CHAPTER 496: CHAPTER 496: BEWILDERING

In the evening, flames of cloud appeared in the sky, painting the heavens in a blaze of vibrant colors.

Under the setting sun, Prince NanAn rode back on horseback.

A brilliant smile lit up his face, as handsome as ever.

Seeing the gleaming smile on Prince NanAn’s face, a trace of sympathy flashed across the gatekeeping servant’s face.

If His Highness knew that the Prince and Princess Consort were preparing a betrothal gift for him, he definitely wouldn’t be smiling.

Prince NanAn leapt off his horse, and the servant quickly came to take the reins, only to be lifted by the collar by Prince NanAn while descending the steps.

The servant, "..."

"Your Highness, I didn’t provoke you," the servant pleaded for mercy.

"Don’t play innocent. What was that look you just gave me?" Prince NanAn asked.

He might not know all the other servants, but he was very familiar with these gatekeeping ones.

How dare they look at him with sympathy.

A dignified Commandery Prince needs no sympathy from a servant!

His instinct told him something was amiss.

The servant was quite smart, hurriedly saying, "I just saw Your Highness happy and was wondering if you found the jade pendant and could cancel the engagement."

Damn it!

Prince NanAn put the servant down, giving his forehead a hard knock.

"Way to bring that up!"

"Can’t you guys let me be happy?!" Prince NanAn was quite mad.

He really didn’t want to hear the words "jade pendant."

The pendant he carried was stolen, and no matter how hard he looked, he couldn’t find it. It was a great disgrace to him.

The servant repeatedly said no, but Prince NanAn didn’t believe him, giving him another knock on the forehead.

Prince NanAn targeted another servant, "Come here!"

The servant, "..."

What does this have to do with him?

Under Prince NanAn’s glare, the servant really didn’t dare disobey.

So he offered his head for Prince NanAn to knock.

After knocking, Prince NanAn entered the mansion.

The servant rubbed his sore forehead, glaring fiercely at the culprit.

Prince NanAn’s good mood was completely ruined by the servant.

He went inside, plopped down on a chair, and Princess NanAn looked at him, "Still haven’t found the jade pendant?"

Prince NanAn, "..."

Can they just leave him alone?

Or were his parents trying to force him to move into the Dongxiang Marquis Mansion with creative tactics?

Prince NanAn didn’t feel like talking at all.

But Princess NanAn didn’t plan to let him off, saying, "I’ll give you another half month to find the jade pendant. If you can’t find it, I’ll personally accompany you to apologize and then propose marriage to that family."

Prince NanAn shot up from his chair, "Mother, you can’t be serious?"

Princess NanAn looked at him, "What’s there to joke about with this matter?"

Prince NanAn could see that Princess NanAn wasn’t joking.

He was even on the verge of dragging that female thief out and thrashing her.

He feared he’d be trapped by her for the rest of his life!

After searching for so long without any news of the female thief, Prince NanAn wasn’t confident in finding the jade pendant within half a month.

All he could do was plead with Princess NanAn to give him an extension of half a year.

"One month," said Princess NanAn.

"I don’t care if the jade pendant was stolen by a thief or if your father has it."

"If you can’t give it to me by hand in a month, I’ll send the betrothal gift myself, and the engagement will be set in stone, with no room for you to back out."

Prince NanAn discontentedly said, "You make it sound as if I can back out."

"Knowing it’s not allowed, you still fool around and lose the engagement jade pendant?!" Princess NanAn glared at him.

"..."

Prince NanAn gazed at Princess NanAn, "Mother, don’t you often visit the Dongxiang Marquis Mansion?"

"Look at how open-minded they are. My sister-in-law could choose her own husband, even snatching one off the street if she liked."

Princess NanAn looked at him, disappointed, "It’s rare for Young Master Xie to be snatched on his first outing, while you wander frequently and nobody snatches you. If you were snatched, would Mother need to worry about your marriage?"

Prince NanAn, "..."

Absolutely no way to communicate.

Prince NanAn was utterly defeated.

In front of the Dongxiang Marquis Mansion gates.

A carriage slowly came to a halt.

Young Master Su was the first to hop out of the carriage, followed by the Ninth Prince, Young Master Shen, and then Miss Shen.

"Brother Su Yang, make sure you catch me," Miss Shen was a little scared.

But she still jumped down from the carriage.

Young Master Su caught her in his arms.

Taking a food box from the carriage, they happily ran into the mansion.

Heading straight for the inner courtyard.

Inside, Mrs. Tang and Marquis Dongxiang were talking.

Young Master Su came in carrying the food box.

Marquis Dongxiang looked at the food box in Young Master Su’s hand and asked, "What did you bring back now?"

"It’s lychees," Young Master Su said.

"I brought back quite a lot from my sister’s place, and Grandmother asked me to bring some for Mother and Aunt to taste."

Mrs. Tang slightly frowned, "Your sister ate lychees?"

"Yes, she did, and got many red rashes on her face," Young Master Su said.

Mrs. Tang looked at Marquis Dongxiang.

She always thought something was off with Su Jin, her behavior somewhat unlike her daughter.

She suspected someone disguised themselves as her.

But no one could disguise every mole on her body perfectly.

Now even sharing the same allergic reaction to lychees.

Even the symptoms of the allergy were identical.

So few in the world are allergic to lychees, not even many from Qingyun Mountain knew that Su Jin was allergic to them.

Her daughter was undoubtedly her daughter.

But how did a simple fall result in exceptional medical skills?

With such high medical skills, saving the Heir of Prince Zhenbei, she wouldn’t need to impersonate her daughter.

Mrs. Tang truly couldn’t fathom where the problem lay.

Marquis Dongxiang, however, didn’t think much about it.

When Su Jin attempted to snatch Xie Jingchen on the street, Marquis Dongxiang had someone secretly watching, just not stopping her.

From beginning to end, Su Jin was always under the observation of the Dongxiang Marquis Mansion.

He was certain his daughter hadn’t been swapped.

If she were really swapped, who’d dare reveal her medical skills and arouse suspicion?

Young Master Su looked at Mrs. Tang and asked, "Mother, why don’t I get allergic to lychees?"

"Are you wanting to experience the feeling of being allergic, or are you thinking you’re adopted again?" Mrs. Tang chuckled.

"..."

"Neither. I’m just a little curious," Young Master Su quickly said.

Marquis Dongxiang pinched Young Master Su’s shoulder, "Don’t overthink it. You’re born of me and your mother."

Young Master Su nodded.

After staying for a while, he went out with the Ninth Prince and the others.

Once they left the courtyard, Young Master Su’s face fell.

Young Master Shen looked at him, "You confirmed you’re born of them. Why aren’t you happy?"

"You don’t understand my father. The more likely one is adopted, the more he insists they’re his birth child, like my eldest brother," Young Master Su explained.

"Brother Su Yang’s background is becoming more and more puzzling," Miss Shen said.

"..."

"It’s not puzzling; it’s mysterious," Young Master Shen corrected.

"It’s puzzling! I heard it from Father," Miss Shen stubbornly declared.

"That was Uncle’s incorrect pronunciation."

"..."