CHAPTER 525: CHAPTER 525: GRIEF

Duke Chong’s Mansion.

Study.

The Duchess of Duke Chong pushed the door open and walked in.

However, the Duke was not in the study.

The Duchess sat down, and the maid served tea.

Just as the Duchess lifted the teacup, she heard footsteps approaching.

The Duchess hastily put down the cup and stood up.

Duke Chong walked in, and she approached him and said, "Have you gone to persuade King Beimo again?"

Duke Chong said nothing.

The Duchess complained, "He’s been at our Duke Mansion for a long time, and he’s very stubborn. Why does the Duke still try to persuade him?"

"What do you understand?" replied Duke Chong.

"The Emperor’s men are still here. Even if I can’t persuade him, I have to go every day."

Duke Chong sat down, looked at the Duchess, and asked, "How is Yongcheng Bo Mansion?"

"Their only son is dead; how can they be fine," the Duchess sighed.

"The fortunate thing is that their enemies also died, providing some comfort to their hearts."

The death of one Yongcheng Bo Heir helped them eliminate two strong adversaries. It was a death worth the cost.

The Duchess was in a great mood.

Knock, knock!

The door was knocked.

"Come in," said Duke Chong.

A servant pushed the door in, approached, and said, "Duke, the Heir of Prince Zhenbei and the Princess Consort have been found."

"Found?!" The Duchess’s voice suddenly rose.

"Where were they found?!" she asked anxiously.

The servant hesitated for a moment.

He truly didn’t know where the Heir and the Princess Consort of Prince Zhenbei were found.

He could only report what he knew—

"They sent the Eldest Prince to the palace."

The Duchess’s shock deepened, and she looked at Duke Chong.

Duke Chong’s expression was no better than hers.

The three people they thought dead had actually returned!

Being able to send the Eldest Prince to the palace was enough to show they were unharmed.

Duke Chong wanted to ask about the Eldest Prince’s condition, but then another set of footsteps approached.

The sounds were familiar, yet chaotic and urgent.

Manager Wang walked in and said, "Duke, the Second Prince sent someone to ask you for the antidote."

"What antidote?" Duke Chong frowned.

"It’s the antidote for the poison the Eldest Prince ingested," Manager Wang replied.

The Duchess frowned, "Has the Second Prince lost his mind, wanting to save the Eldest Prince?!"

Manager Wang shook his head, "The poison the Eldest Prince and the Second Prince ingested is the same. The Imperial Physician helped the Second Prince with his, but the Emperor asked the Imperial Physician to detoxify the Eldest Prince, and the physician couldn’t do it..."

Duke Chong’s fists clenched, veins bulging on the back of his hands.

"Give him the antidote!"

These words were almost squeezed from between his teeth.

They planned meticulously to eliminate the Eldest Prince, were on the brink of success, yet had to give him the antidote to save him.

What was the meaning of their hectic endeavors?!

Were they just letting the Eldest Prince know they wanted to kill him, forcing him to oppose them?!

Duke Chong was so angry that his chest hurt.

He clutched his chest, and the Duchess was frightened.

"Quickly call the Imperial Physician!"

...

Uncle’s Mansion.

A sedan chair stopped.

The curtain of the sedan was lifted, and the Old Madam stepped out.

She looked up at the white silk hanging from the plaque of the Uncle’s Mansion, her face cold as frost.

She didn’t move for a while.

"Old Madam...," Mrs. Wang called.

The Heir and his wife had been missing for three days.

Early in the morning, the Old Madam decided to return to the mansion.

Although Mrs. Wang felt it was better to stay at JingAn Temple to pray and ask the Bodhisattva for the safety of the Young Master and the Princess Consort

But since the Old Madam wanted to go back, Mrs. Wang could only follow her.

On the way, the Old Madam instructed the servant to change their route to the Uncle’s Mansion.

Mrs. Wang’s call brought the Old Madam back to her senses.

She shifted her gaze from the white silk and allowed Mrs. Wang to support her into the Uncle’s Mansion.

In the main hall.

The coffin of the Yongcheng Bo Heir was displayed.

Maids and servants knelt on the ground, burning spirit money, sobbing uncontrollably.

Madam had fainted several times and was not present.

Uncle heard the news and rushed over.

The Old Madam simply stood there, saying nothing, doing nothing.

The servant had already lit three incense sticks, which had almost burned out.

The atmosphere was eerily quiet.

Mrs. Wang increasingly felt that something was off about the Old Madam.

The Young Master and Princess Consort were missing, whereabouts unknown, and she wasn’t anxious to return home but instead came to send off the Yongcheng Bo Heir. What kind of grandmother does that?

Uncle choked up, "With the Old Madam coming to see Feng’er off, he can rest in peace knowing in the afterlife."

The Old Madam wiped away the tears from the corner of her eyes, "Feng’er was raised under my watch, and he was just murdered. How could I not come to send him off?"

She waved her hand, signaling Mrs. Wang to retreat.

Not only Mrs. Wang, but also the maids and servants burning the spirit money in the main hall.

But just as Mrs. Wang and the others exited, the steward of Yongcheng Bo Mansion hurried in.

The steward swallowed the words he had when he saw the Old Madam.

Uncle gave him a look, "If you have something to say, come out with it. The Old Madam is not an outsider."

Now she wasn’t an outsider, but what he had to report couldn’t be let known to the Old Madam of Zhenbei Royal Mansion.

The steward pulled Uncle aside.

"Uncle, the Heir of Prince Zhenbei and the Princess Consort have returned," the steward said.

Uncle’s face turned ashen.

"Returned alive?!" His voice cold and seemingly from the depths of hell.

"Not only did they return alive, but they also saved the severely injured Eldest Prince," the steward’s voice wavered slightly.

"The Emperor is pleased and has heavily rewarded them."

The steward’s reporting grew weaker and weaker.

As he reported, he glanced at the coffin of the Yongcheng Bo Heir, feeling a chill deep in his heart.

The Young Master kidnapped the Princess Consort of Prince Zhenbei, only to lose his own life. Yet they came away unscathed, saving the Eldest Prince and earning high merit...

Wouldn’t the Young Master die with regrets upon hearing this?

The Heir of Prince Zhenbei and his Princess Consort were still alive?!

They even earned merits?!

Fury surged in Uncle’s chest.

His vision darkened, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.

He fell backward.

"Yuanyuan!" the Old Madam cried out urgently.

The steward quickly supported Uncle.

"Uncle!"

"Uncle!"

"Someone, come quickly!"

The steward shouted.

The maids and servants outside the door heard and rushed in at once.

Mrs. Wang was pushed against the door by the servants rushing in, grimacing in pain.

Hongxiu supported her, "Mrs. Wang, are you alright?"

"I’m fine, just quickly go support the Old Madam," Mrs. Wang urged.

Hongxiu hurried inside.

By then, the Old Madam had been pushed to one side, and in the commotion, she accidentally kicked over the copper basin used for burning spirit money for the Yongcheng Bo Heir.

Hongxiu helped her and said, "Old Madam, perhaps we should return to the mansion for now."

The Old Madam looked at the fainted and bleeding Uncle, with a flicker of sorrow in her eyes.

Mrs. Wang supported the Old Madam out of the Uncle’s Mansion, just in time to meet a servant coming on horseback from Prince Zhenbei Mansion.

The servant dismounted with a face full of joy, "Old Madam, the Young Master and the Princess Consort have been found."

Mrs. Wang felt a joy in her heart, but her arm suddenly bore a weight.

The Old Madam was almost collapsing, most of her body leaning on Mrs. Wang’s arm.

A heavy feeling pressed on Mrs. Wang’s heart like a stone.

It was good news that the Young Master and Princess Consort were found, but why was the Old Madam reacting like this?

She looked up, just in time to catch a fleeting hint of murderous intent in the Old Madam’s eyes.

Mrs. Wang felt a chill down her spine.

But upon closer inspection, the Old Madam’s face was once again full of joy, as if what she saw was just an illusion.

"Thanks to the blessings of our ancestors, they have finally been found," the Old Madam clasped her hands tightly.

"Let’s return to the mansion."

Mrs. Wang helped the Old Madam back into the sedan chair.

With the curtain lowered, Mrs. Wang rolled up her sleeve, looking at the bruise left by the Old Madam’s grip on her wrist.

Inside the sedan chair, the joy on the Old Madam’s face vanished entirely.

The sorrow she had been suppressing crawled over her cheeks once more.

Little by little—

Replaced by a fierce murderous intent.