CHAPTER 257: CHAPTER 255: THE LONELY REGRET

Luo Wanxiang clutched her wrist, her voice dripping with venom as she accused, "Crown Prince, this wretch pushed my sister down the stairs! She tried to kill her! My brother-in-law saw it with his own eyes! This wretch is my brother-in-law’s concubine—this is a family matter, and I kindly ask Your Highness not to interfere!"

Lu Ying glanced at Lu Shiyan.

Lu Shiyan’s heart gave an involuntary tremor. For some reason, he suddenly felt unable to meet the gaze of his legitimate younger brother.

Lu Ying asked Shen Yinning, "Did you push Luo Wanzhao?"

"I didn’t." Shen Yinning denied resolutely, "She barged into Zhaoyue Hall with people to cause trouble for me. When I refused to yield, she jumped out of the window herself to frame me. I tried to save her, but she not only rejected me, she even scratched my arm."

She rolled up her sleeve in front of everyone.

By the light of the lanterns, the crowd noticed that her slender, fair arm indeed bore five long scratch marks.

Lu Ying stepped forward and pulled her sleeve back down.

Their fingers brushed unintentionally.

For a split second after the touch, both of them froze.

But soon, Lu Ying broke past the hesitation. His warm, strong palm firmly covered the back of her hand.

His tall figure cast a shadow that enveloped her completely, as if the expanse of Liang Garden now contained a territory marked entirely with his presence. It was his declaration—a place none would trespass or insult.

He turned coldly to Lu Shiyan and said, "Have you seen the scratches on her arm, Brother? For Royal Sister-in-law to fall out of the window, she should have clung to Shen Yinning’s hand desperately for help. Why would that result in such visible injuries instead? This seems far more plausible—that Shen Yinning tried to save her, but she deliberately refused to be saved."

Lu Shiyan gripped the armrest of his wheelchair tightly.

His gaze shifted back and forth between Lu Ying and Shen Yinning, betraying a tension and unwillingness even he hadn’t noticed.

He knew perfectly well that Zhaozhao could never have pushed Luo Wanzhao.

But...

But he wanted Zhaozhao to bend, he wanted Zhaozhao to beg him.

Yet he hadn’t foreseen Lu Ying’s direct intervention...

Luo Wanxiang finally pieced things together.

She had no idea about her older sister’s plans for tonight; she’d assumed Shen Yinning had pushed her. It had never occurred to her that her sister had jumped herself.

Her sister was far too ruthless, but at the end of the day, it was Shen Yinning who’d driven her to it!

She let out a frustrated huff, glared hatefully at Shen Yinning, and turned back to visit Luo Wanzhao.

Gradually, the crowd dispersed.

Lu Ying escorted Shen Yinning back to the quarters to tend to her wounds.

Bai Ling brought medicine directly from the palace, reporting in a hushed tone, "Your Highness, Prince Wu is still downstairs waiting in the dripping flower pavilion."

Lu Ying carefully eased the crimson silk sleeve off Shen Yinning.

Under the soft glow of the candlelight, the girl’s skin was smooth and fair as polished jade, translucent like a peeled lychee.

But the wounds on her back and arms were shocking—the bright red blood trailing down starkly against her pale skin, staining her pomegranate skirt an even deeper hue.

The pain must have been severe. Sweat clung to her temples, her crow-black hair sticking in damp strands to her cheeks. Her complexion was alarmingly white.

As Lu Ying cleaned and applied the medicine to her injuries, her lips parted slightly, emitting gasps from trying to stifle the pain.

Her eyes reddened.

But she did not cry.

Bai Ling averted her eyes out of propriety after delivering the medicine. She kept her back turned, but heard her master speak with cold detachment, "Seemed so capable when opposing me. Why have you suffered such a loss at the hands of the Luo sisters?"

Shen Yinning endured the pain, but could not resist a mocking retort. "They are the daughters of the magistrate and one of them is Prince Wu’s legitimately wedded princess. Their supporters could line up from Qianyou Lake to the city gates. What am I worth? What can I fight them with?"

"Luo Xibai is quite willing to stand by you, isn’t he?"

"Your Highness, that statement almost sounds jealous."

"Don’t flatter yourself."

Lu Ying issued the warning, his gaze falling on the whip wound across her back.

Luo Wanxiang had shown no mercy; the whip had left a deep gash, raw and bleeding. He had to use an ample amount of powder to staunch it.

His eyes darkened as he twisted a cloth in the golden basin and gently wiped away the bloodstains around the injury.

When he accidentally touched the wound, the girl didn’t make a sound but involuntarily flinched, her body spasming ever so slightly.

The pain was undeniable.

But she had an exceptional tolerance for it.

This reminded Lu Ying of when she was in the Capital, where a mere sprain of her ankle would have her diving into his arms, weeping for comfort, playfully demanding his attention with childlike vulnerability.

He had sent her to Jiangnan, to Lu Shiyan’s side, believing that as childhood sweethearts, Lu Shiyan’s deep-rooted love for her would never let her suffer.

Yet now, witnessing their antagonism firsthand, he realized the situation was far from his imaginings.

No wonder she sought Luo Xibai’s protection.

Lu Ying lowered his lashes, his gaze shadowed, as if harboring the signs of an imminent storm.

After finishing with her bandages, Lu Ying called the maids to assist Shen Yinning to bed.

He descended the stairs. In the dripping flower pavilion, where the lantern lights shimmered brightly, Lu Shiyan was indeed still waiting.

Lu Shiyan moved his wheelchair forward eagerly. "How is Zhaozhao’s injury?"

Lu Ying leveled his gaze at him. "You dare say her name?"

"Every official in Jiangnan knows that Prince Wu has an unofficial concubine named Lv Zhu residing in Liang Garden," Lu Shiyan responded without flinching. "If she’s destined to be my concubine, why shouldn’t I speak of her? Or have you conveniently forgotten—it was you who personally gave her to me? Or do you plan to take her back now?"

Lu Ying’s face darkened.

The word "concubine" grated on his ears.

He suddenly realized how ridiculous and erroneous it had been to hand Shen Zhaozhao over to Lu Shiyan.

Without hesitation, his figure blurred as he appeared before Lu Shiyan.

His fist cut through the air with a sharp gust, targeting Lu Shiyan’s pristine and unruffled face!

The Five Ghosts appeared silently, intercepting the punch.

Simultaneously, Black and White Binding Spirits materialized, joining the fray with sheer force, overpowering the defensive formation and sending the five retreating in stumbles. Blood stained their cuffs as they wiped their mouths.

As Lu Ying swept forward like the wind, the Five Ghosts exchanged a glance and charged at him with renewed fervor—

The gold-threaded cloud patterns on his dark sleeves shimmered like liquid light in the night. Despite their unity, all five failed to endure even two strikes under the monstrous inner strength radiating from him, crashing backward from the impact!

Lu Ying flicked his sleeves; two blasts of energy shot dangerously at Lu Shiyan!

Lu Shiyan opened his inked folding fan, barely blocking the assault. "Did I strike a nerve, Brother? Got you lashing out in rage? You were the one who abandoned her first. What does this act of gallant defense mean now?"

The second blast pierced through his fan, skimming his cheek and leaving a shallow cut.

Lu Ying remained expressionless, his black robes stirring ominously despite the still air. His narrow eyes darkened further, like shadows deeper than the night itself. "I regret it."

Lu Shiyan froze.