Chapter 178 Better Off Without It

Shen Nanyuan wore a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "Indeed. If not for this, I might have been kept in the dark forever, right, Second Prince?"

Gu Shengyu’s expression stiffened, his gaze turning chillingly cold. "Even without Wu Miaofu, did the County Princess truly believe that this prince would have only you for the rest of his days? Men have always taken multiple wives and concubines; the County Princess’s ambitions are perhaps rather too grand."

"It is precisely because the Second Prince cannot do this that this subject’s daughter has no wish to marry you," Shen Nanyuan replied. "There are naturally men in this world willing to do so for my sake. Since the Second Prince cannot, why persistently entangle yourself with me?"

"..."

Gu Shengyu clenched his jaw. "Born to the Defense-State Duke's Mansion and revered as a noble lady of the capital, you should have known from the very beginning that your destiny was never yours to command."

"Yet this subject’s daughter insists on breaking free from worldly conventions and seizing her own destiny."

Gu Shengyu paused, his gaze fixing on Shen Nanyuan's face before he let out a mocking laugh a moment later. "The County Princess is indulging in idle daydreams."

He smiled with cold derision. "Do you truly think His Majesty will let you go?"

"There is no need for the Second Prince to trouble himself over that."

Shen Nanyuan's gaze fell upon the sharp, gleaming dagger in his hand, radiating a biting chill. The sarcastic words hovering on her lips—that he would likely never have the opportunity to see such a day—were swallowed back down.

The mocking expression on Gu Shengyu's face did not recede. "Like all the others, no matter what, you believe that Third Brother is superior to me. He spent a long time at the Defense-State Duke's Mansion; compared to me, the County Princess must surely harbor a preference for Third Brother."

Shen Nanyuan maintained a placid expression. "The Second Prince overthinks."

"Had he not returned to the palace, I would have already been proclaimed Crown Prince and wedded to you long ago," Gu Shengyu said, as if he hadn't heard her words, his gaze growing sharper and more sinister. "Yet the moment he returned, I lost everything! Before he went missing, Royal Father was already partial to him, even intending to name him Crown Prince when he was just a child! I am the one who has remained by Royal Father's side all these years! Why must everything change the moment he comes back? Just as it was about to fall into my hands, everything vanished into thin air! I am not resigned! How can I ever be resigned!"

At that moment, Gu Shiniang, who had remained silent throughout, suddenly spoke up. "Because Royal Father intended to name Yan'er Crown Prince back then, Consort Zhuang orchestrated his disappearance?"

Gu Shengyu smiled, though he did not deny it. "Indeed."

He continued, "When Consort Hua—Consort Zhuang—spoke to me of it, I was initially opposed. Though I disliked Gu Shengyyan back then, he was always clinging to me. While I disliked him, it was not to the extent of wishing him dead. My mother had indeed dispatched a few men to kill him, but I secretly sent my own people to dispose of them. Now that I think upon it, I should have let those men kill him back then!"

"Even so, he was only a child, yet you condoned Consort Zhuang in doing such a thing..."

Gu Shiniang pressed on, "That was no different from sending Yan'er to his death."

"Yet he did not die," Gu Shengyu said fiercely. "He came back alive and well! I only regret why I wasn't more ruthless at the time!"

Having reached a point of profound regret, he tightened his grip on the dagger. The blood on the blade had already dried, and a rich, heavy scent of iron drifted over once more. A wave of nausea rose within Shen Nanyuan, and she suppressed it before speaking. "Second Prince, if you turn back now, there is still a chance."

"There is none."

Gu Shengyu’s expression turned somewhat desolate. "I have no chance left."

A sudden flurry of hurried footsteps sounded from outside. A faint, eerie smile surfaced on his lips, causing goosebumps to break out across the skin of Shen Nanyuan and the others.

"They are here."

The moment his voice fell, a suppressed, furious, and icy voice echoed from outside.

"Gu Shengyu, direct whatever grievances you have at us. Do not drag unrelated people into this."

It was Xiao Yan’s voice, cold and tinged with a raw, menacing edge, chillingly severe.

Gu Shengyu spoke slowly. "You are Commandant Shen's most cherished younger sister, the most beloved daughter of Shen Yi, and Gu Shengyyan lingered in your courtyard for a considerable time—he undoubtedly holds some affection for you. If I were to kill you right before their eyes, the pain they would suffer should be far worse than death. I can no longer escape; taking your life to accompany me in death and making them miserable for a lifetime is not a bad outcome."

Shen Nanyuan's pupils contracted sharply. Gu Shiniang reached out to block her path, her dark eyes profound. "Yuyu, do not continue down this erroneous path."

"Eldest Sister," Gu Shengyu laughed strangely, "do you truly think you can stop me?"

Shen Jinyu, trembling with fear, still threw himself desperately in front of Shen Nanyuan. "Do not hurt my sister! My sister is innocent, she knows nothing of this!"

However, Gu Shengyu shoved him violently aside, grabbing Shen Nanyuan by the arm and pulling her directly toward him. He held the blade horizontally against her neck. The metal was frigid, and the dried blood upon it smeared against her skin. Only now, at such close range, did Shen Nanyuan notice that Gu Shengyu's left shoulder appeared to be injured—perhaps wounded during his clash with Xiao Yan’s forces before he fled here. It was merely because his garments were black that the blood had remained hidden.

That was why the stench of blood inside the carriage had been so heavy.

A faint, cold smile curled the corners of Gu Shengyu's mouth as he pushed her in front of him. "Do you believe your hands are faster, or is my blade faster?"

Shen Jinyu, who had been about to strike him with a teapot, paused and instantly withdrew his hand. Not daring to act rashly, he choked back a sob. "Sister!"

Shen Nanyuan was pushed out of the carriage by Gu Shengyu, the icy blade pressed flat against her skin. A stinging pain flared, and her scalp tingled, her entire body stiffening. She raised her gaze to find the cold, stern faces of Shen Sinian and Xiao Yan.

Xiao Yan fought to suppress the towering rage within his chest, his voice leveling into a calm tone. "Let her go. Release her, and I will grant you a way out."

Gu Shengyu sneered. "A way out with nothing left? I'd rather have none."

Furthermore, he glared at Xiao Yan with bitter resentment. "How could I ever accept charity from you!"

"Why did you have to come back! It would have been better had you died out there," he continued, every word laced with venomous coldness. "You were meant to die out there in the first place."

Gu Shengyu kept retreating step by step, guarded by several personal guards on either side. Covered in blood, the oppressive stench made Shen Nanyuan somewhat nauseous. She could only feel the sharp pain at her neck, as if something warm was beginning to trickle down.

Xiao Yan’s expression was shrouded in a layer of violent hostility, his eyes pitch-black and chillingly bleak enough to make one's hair stand on end.

"You know what my martial arts are capable of. While I may indeed fall short of you and Commandant Shen, amidst the fleeting gaps of your sneak attack, a single slash of my knife is still more than enough to cleanly and swiftly end Shen Nanyuan's life."

The hidden guards lying in ambush around them dared not make a rash move. Shen Sinian gripped his hands so tightly that his knuckles turned white, the terror and worry in his heart overwhelming him. As he watched the blood trickling from Shen Nanyuan's neck, his eyes turned bloodshot with rage.