Time Travel: Brothel Maid

Chapter 265 Why don’t you die?

In the brief silence, a panicked sound suddenly came from outside the carriage, as if breaking the tranquility inside.

"Your Highness, something terrible has happened!" The voice trembled slightly, clearly indicating that the person was frightened.

"What's the matter that you're so panicked?" the person in the car asked in a deep voice, a hint of displeasure in his tone.

"Your Highness, we pulled a male corpse from the water, but... but because his head hit a reef with such force that it was mangled beyond recognition, we cannot confirm his identity." Before Shen Jing could finish speaking, the carriage curtain was suddenly flung open, revealing Xiao Guo'er's terrified face.

Her face was pale and ashen, her large eyes wide with disbelief, as if she had heard something unbelievable.

Looking at her like this, Shen Jing couldn't help but feel a little sorry for her, but he still forced himself to continue, "The male corpse... the clothes on his body... seem to belong to Young Master Tang."

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Little Guo'er screamed as if she had suddenly lost her mind, her voice particularly piercing in the quiet rainy night.

She stumbled and tried to jump off the carriage, looking completely flustered.

Overwhelmed by shock and her legs went weak, she stumbled and fell to the ground.

"Impossible!" Little Guo'er looked flustered and stumbled as she tried to jump off the carriage, but her legs gave way and she fell to the ground.

Little Guo'er ignored him completely, struggled to get up from the ground, and said in a trembling voice, "Where is that male corpse? Take me there, I want to see it with my own eyes!"

The rain continued to fall steadily, showing no signs of stopping. The ground by the river was muddy from the rain, and every step sent mud and water flying high into the air.

The soldiers, carrying rain-proof lanterns, trudged through the mud, their faint light barely illuminating a small area.

In that dim light, a gruesome male corpse lay on the ground.

Xiao Guo'er's body trembled like a leaf in the autumn wind. She shook her head and kept muttering, "It's not him, it can't be, it's not him!"

He looked utterly dejected, unable to accept it, and incredulous.

Zhao Yunrong stood aside, watching coldly. His gaze was like that of a hawk, carefully observing Xiao Guo'er and not missing a single expression on her pale face.

From the sudden hearing of what appeared to be Tang Jingchen's male corpse in the carriage to seeing it with her own eyes, her reaction was indeed that of someone who had suffered an accident involving a loved one.

But he always felt that Tang Jingchen's death was too suspicious...

"Someone, go and inform the Tang family to come and identify the body."

In fact, everyone present had already concluded that the male corpse was Tang Jingchen. After all, they had witnessed Tang Jingchen fall into the river, and the clothing on the corpse served as further evidence.

Zhao Yunrong felt a pang of unease as he looked at Xiao Guo'er trembling all over.

Tang Jingchen's death will not have a significant impact on him. Even if the Tang family blames him and files a complaint with the emperor, he will have sufficient grounds to do so. Tang Jingchen defied the imperial decree and refused to marry, and fled on his own. He only sent troops to pursue and capture him. It was Tang Jingchen who refused to be arrested and accidentally fell into the river and died. He can only blame his bad luck.

However, the fact that Tang Jingchen's death had such a huge impact on Xiao Guo'er, causing her to act like she was going crazy, made him feel somewhat... jealous.

He suddenly had some absurd thoughts; he hoped that Tang Jingchen wouldn't die. If he did, Xiao Guo'er would never forget him...

Tang Jingchen died when he and Xiao Guo'er were at their most affectionate, which means that no one will ever be able to surpass his position in Xiao Guo'er's heart again.

Not long after, the soldiers brought the Tang family to the scene.

Madam Tang, a woman who was always dignified, felt her world collapse the moment she saw the male corpse on the ground that looked exactly like her son.

Her legs suddenly went weak as if they had lost their support, causing her to fall to the ground without any warning.

Suppressing her grief, she crawled with great difficulty, almost using all four limbs, to the body.

Her hands trembled violently, as if the corpse were an extremely precious and fragile treasure. She carefully pulled open the corpse's collar, each movement so slow and deliberate, as if afraid of waking her sleeping son.

When she finally saw the familiar crescent-shaped scar on the corpse's chest, all pretense shattered in that instant. She could no longer suppress her grief and, like a child, threw herself upon her son's body, weeping bitterly.

"My son... how can I live like this..."

Madam Tang's cries were so mournful, so desperate, that it seemed the whole world could feel her pain. Her desperate, heart-wrenching cries moved everyone present.

Tang Jingchen's father happened to leave the capital today to handle some business matters in another place. I wonder how sad he will be if he learns of the unfortunate death of his only son.

Seeing that Madam Tang had already accepted it, Xiao Guo'er had no choice but to accept the truth. Large tears, like pearls from a broken string, kept welling up from her eyes.

"How could...how could..."

The pain of losing one's own child is unbearable for most people. Even though Madam Tang used to love Xiao Guo'er, she now felt a deep hatred for the person who killed her son.

With a crisp "slap," Xiao Guo'er was forcefully knocked to the ground. A glaring red and swollen five-finger mark appeared on her pale face, and even the corner of her mouth was broken and bleeding. She must have been in pain, but she lay on the ground as if she was oblivious, with tears still streaming down her face.

"You're the one who killed my son! You're such a wicked devil! Why don't you just die! Why did it have to be my son who died!"

Madam Tang was furious and even tried to hit Xiao Guo'er on the ground.

The raised hand was stopped by a hand.

“Madam Tang, your son’s death was an accident. No one else is to blame. If anyone is to blame, it is only himself. He brought it upon himself.”

Madam Tang was thrown aside by Zhao Yunrong. After a stumble, she regained her footing and her eyes shot out poisoned arrows. "Eighth Prince, you are of noble birth and high status, but my Tang family is not an unknown force! If you hadn't sent people to force me today, my son wouldn't have drowned. I will go to the Emperor to lodge a complaint!"

Madam Tang's eyes were bloodshot, and she looked as if she wanted to kill Zhao Yunrong before she would stop.

But how could the dignified Eighth Prince care about the threat of a mere merchant's wife? His eyes immediately revealed a bloodthirsty killing intent.

Seeing this, Xiao Guo'er immediately stood up and forcefully pushed Zhao Yunrong away, "You're the one who killed Jing Chen! You're the culprit! If it weren't for you, Jing Chen wouldn't have died!!"

She screamed wildly, like a madwoman.

Zhao Yunrong frowned as he dodged Xiao Guo'er's attack, but Xiao Guo'er continued to attack him relentlessly. Not wanting to hurt her, he simply delivered a chop to her neck.

Xiao Guo'er felt a sharp pain in her neck, followed by a blackout, and lost consciousness.

Zhao Yunrong caught the wobbly little girl steadily and picked her up horizontally.

"Madam Tang, I deeply sympathize with your son's plight, and I beg you to accept this loss. However, the dead cannot be brought back to life. I advise you to consider the living. The Tang family is large and powerful, with many members, and has served our dynasty with utmost loyalty. I will certainly not mistreat the Tang family in the future. But if word gets out that your son defied the imperial decree and ran away from his arranged marriage, some will surely take advantage of the situation. If the Emperor and Empress Dowager punish him, the crime of defying the imperial decree will be severe. For the sake of the entire Tang clan, Madam Tang, you must think carefully before acting!"

After Zhao Yunrong finished speaking calmly, without even looking at Madam Tang's expression of deep hatred and unbearable pain, he carried Xiao Guo'er to the carriage.

As the Eighth Prince's carriage departed, all the officers and soldiers present also left.

On the dark riverbank, apart from a few servants from the Tang family, only Madam Tang remained, kneeling beside her son's corpse.

After an unknown amount of time, it seemed that Madam Tang's tears had almost dried up.

Ignoring the blood and grime on her son's face, she carefully wiped it gently with her sleeve, as if her son were still alive, afraid of hurting him.