Blooming Flowers, Silent Sorrow

Chapter 84

Su Yin crushed the teacup in his hand with a single grip, his expression immediately turning grave. He spoke softly, "Did you hear everything... without missing a single word?"

The person kneeling before him bowed and replied, "Young Master, I heard everything without missing a single word."

Su Yin sighed deeply and gazed out of the window for a while before saying, "Prepare the carriage, I need to visit the Prince's Mansion."

"Yes!"

Su Yin had sent shadow guards to follow Huai En and his party. They returned to Dali half a day earlier than Lord Shen Wang and others. When Su Yin, looking very solemn, returned from the Prince's Mansion, Li Han and Zongzheng Shaoyu of the Zong Zheng office were unexpectedly waiting for him at his residence.

This surprised Su Yin. It was not unusual for Zongzheng Shaoyu to pester him, but he seldom interacted with Lord Shen Wang. The main reason was that his maternal grandfather had been rooted in the southern Yunnan region for over thirty years, commanding an army of 200,000 men. It was as if he ruled a country within a country, so far from the emperor that the locals probably only recognized the Prince and were oblivious to the emperor himself. Moreover, his son-in-law was revered as the leader of the martial arts alliance, able to command the entire martial world. The emperor was quite wary of the Prince's power, harboring a grudge ever since he ascended to the throne. Despite the political contention for the throne, whether any party sought his alliance or not, he remained unmoved, dutifully paying taxes annually and managing his territory impeccably, leaving no room for criticism. Thus, southern Yunnan had become a constant thorn in the emperor's side.

Today, Li Han's personal visit must be related to Huai En.

As expected, as soon as he entered, he saw Li Han smiling at him, causing him to raise his eyebrows in response.

Unfortunately, before the two could exchange more than greetings, Zongzheng Shaoyu had already jumped beside him, his big stubborn eyes slightly aggrieved as he murmured, "Cousin."

Without blinking, Su Yin looked at him steadily and bowed, "Your Highness."

Zongzheng Shaoyu's pale, delicate face turned red with frustration, his eyes filled with accusation and sadness. Seeing Su Yin’s unresponsive demeanor, he quickly dropped his innocent, coy expression, furrowed his brows, and without another word, threw himself into Su Yin’s arms.

Caught off guard, Su Yin found himself embraced tightly by Zongzheng Shaoyu, who hugged him like a bear, clinging even tighter the more he struggled. Su Yin rolled his eyes in annoyance but refrained from throwing him off, especially in front of Lord Shen Wang.

The person in his arms looked up triumphantly, pouting slightly and declared, "I won't hold a grudge against cousin anymore, I forgive you."

Su Yin felt a headache coming on and said sternly, "Your Highness, please let go of me."

Zongzheng Shaoyu snorted, "No, I'll do as I please. What can you do about it?" He knew that with Lord Shen Wang present, Su Yin would have to show some deference to the royal family. It would be a waste not to take advantage of such a good opportunity.

Feeling like his entire body was being dragged down, possibly by Zongzheng Shaoyu's full weight, Su Yin was both annoyed and helpless, unable to express his frustration. He looked pleadingly towards Li Han for help.

Li Han was at that moment attentively tasting tea, seemingly oblivious to the scene unfolding before him.

Left with no choice, Su Yin lowered his head and emphasized, "Your Highness, this is unbecoming. Please let me go."