After becoming pregnant, the cold-hearted nobles all went mad.

The general's carriage was parked outside, and Princess Su tried her best to persuade Shen Lingyi to stay.

Xu Yanqing received a signal from his mother and looked away. "The Prince's mansion is usually too quiet. It must be lonely for my mother to live here alone. It would be nice if you could keep her company."

Shen Lingyi had hoped that he could persuade the princess, but now that hope was dashed.

She couldn't really stay in the Prince Su's mansion.

Pei Heng has been appeased for the time being, but she will stay for less than half a day before rumors about her and Xu Yanqing sweep through the entire capital once again.

Even if Shen Lingyi tries her best, she won't be able to explain it clearly.

Princess Consort Su was exceptionally enthusiastic, just as Shen Lingyi was pondering how to escape.

A servant ran up and knocked on the gate of the Prince's mansion. "I am from the residence of Prince Huaizhen. I have been ordered to escort the County Princess back!"

"Prince Wei?" Xu Yanqing immediately looked at Shen Lingyi, whose relationship with Prince Wei was well-known.

Shen Lingyi was actually a little surprised, but on the surface she said as expected: "I'm sorry I made an appointment with the Crown Prince before, so I can only disappoint the Princess's kindness."

Upon arriving outside the Prince's Mansion, they indeed saw a carriage parked there, surrounded by several guards.

Wei Chengrui's carriage, like the man himself, was gloomy, cruel, and filled with a murderous aura.

However, Shen Lingyi remembered that they used to ride in this carriage when they were young.

Back then, when servants came to report, they wouldn't say they were from the residence of Prince Huaizhen, but rather from the residence of Prince Zhenbei. Wei Chengrui was also the heir apparent of Prince Zhenbei.

However, a few years ago, the Prince of Zhenbei was suspected of treason and was punished by the late emperor. The men were exiled and the women were imprisoned in the Yongxiang Palace. Only Wei Chengrui was saved by his grandmother by committing suicide by hitting her head against a wall.

"What are you standing there for, Second Miss? Do you want me to invite you up?"

Seeing that Shen Lingyi did not move for a long time, Wei Chengrui's cold and harsh voice came from inside.

Shen Lingyi had not ridden in this carriage for a long time.

Surprisingly, the furnishings inside are almost exactly the same as they were back then. It's a soft sleeper with a thick layer of fox fur on top, and the fur looks like it was recently groomed.

There was also a table set with fruits and pastries.

Wei Chengrui sneered, "It was really not easy to find you. I searched all over the capital before I found out that you had been kidnapped by the Crown Prince."

Shen Lingyi ignored his sarcastic remarks and giggled, "Thank you for helping me escape today, Your Highness."

"Help you escape?" Wei Chengrui stopped playing with the dagger and smiled disdainfully. "I'm afraid it'll just interrupt your good time."

His tone was filled with a strong sense of hostility, even more so than before.

Shen Lingyi realized something must have happened, so she lifted the curtain and asked the person outside, "Did your master eat gunpowder today?"

Qingyun pursed her lips and remained silent.

Wei Chengrui pulled down the curtain and stopped the carriage. Then he grabbed Shen Lingyi's wrist and said, "Come with me somewhere."

The carriage stopped on a quiet street.

Outside, it was either noisy with gongs and drums or bustling with people, but here it was unusually quiet.

Shen Lingyi stepped on something with a "crack!" and only after lifting her foot did she realize that it was a broken lamp.

The guards didn't come down with her, and the fact that a lone man and woman were in such a place made Shen Lingyi feel uneasy.

"Wei Chengrui," she stopped, her brow furrowed, "where exactly do you want to take me?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than a door opened in front of him.

A beautiful woman with jeweled hairpins in her hair, but a somewhat haggard face, stared at the two of them in astonishment.

"Lingyi..."

Shen Lingyi stood there, stunned, too moved to speak.

"Cousin." Wei Chengrui finally released her and obediently called out to the woman in front of him.

Wei Xu stepped aside to let them in, saying, "This isn't the place to talk. Come in and let's talk."

Once inside, I realized that this was not a house at all, but a brothel. These kinds of entertainment venues only operate at night, so they are naturally quiet during the day.

Inside were many women adorned with gold and silver, each one smiling sweetly and exuding tenderness.

Upon seeing Wei Xu bring people in, a woman dressed in a gauze dress, revealing a large expanse of her soft chest, walked over, even in the dead of winter.

"Oh my, Sister Xu, where did you find such a handsome young man? It's been so long since I've seen one like him. It's so tempting!"

The woman's alluring hand traced across Wei Chengrui's narrow waist, then moved to his strong arm, before being grabbed.

Her expression changed, and her smile became a little awkward. "If you don't want me to touch you, then don't. Why are you being so fierce... You scared me to death."

"Enough, he's not your guest." Wei Xu finally lost his temper.

Her words caused the women in the brothel to exchange bewildered glances, their eyes filled with nothing but confusion.

What else could people come to if not to seek pleasure?

Wei Xu turned and nodded to them, then walked up the stairs. "Come with me, it's quieter up there."

Just as Wei Xu said, once he went up to the second floor, he was cut off from the decadent sounds outside, and his ears immediately felt clear.

However, Shen Lingyi still didn't know how to face her.

Wei Xu seemed to know this as well, and had no intention of staying for long. "I'll go make you some tea first, you can chat."

After saying that, he got up and left.

A delicate fragrance wafted from where she walked, her clothes jingling and her jade pendants tinkling, the subtle scent lingering in the air.

This was completely different from the quiet, scholarly woman Shen Lingyi remembered.

Wei Chengrui glanced around at the furnishings, his voice radiating a chilling aura, "Seeing all this, you have nothing to say?"

Shen Lingyi took a deep breath and put away her usual smile.

"What do you want me to say? Apologize to your family? But what did I do wrong?"

"The destruction of the Prince of Zhenbei's mansion has nothing to do with me. Back then, I was just an unmarried woman. I had nothing with you except for that marriage contract. What makes you think I can interfere and save you?"

"Then you can save the others!" Wei Chengrui suddenly stood up, his eyes bloodshot.

"My grandmother, my cousin, and so many women in the Wei family! Not to mention how good my grandmother has always been to you, my cousin is also someone you know well, and what did you do? You just watched them being sold off and did nothing!"

"Shen Lingyi, sometimes I'm really curious, do you even have a heart?"

The boy's impassioned questions kicked Shen Lingyi back to the cold night three years ago.

The Prince of Zhenbei's Mansion has been a prominent and influential family for three dynasties.

His rebellion shocked the world.

At that time, it was still the reign of Emperor Ling of Wei. When the late emperor learned that the evidence of the Prince's Mansion's plot to rebel was conclusive, he was furious and ordered the entire Prince's Mansion to be searched and confiscated.

That night, she knelt in front of her father's door, but only received a sigh from him.

Shen Su advised her to go back, saying that their family couldn't get involved in this matter.

Even Shen Su, who is always loyal and righteous, said so.

No one else dared to show their faces, and those aristocratic families who originally had connections with the Prince's Mansion disappeared one by one in this turmoil.

Only Shen Lingyi didn't believe it.