CHAPTER 183 — HIS HIGHNESS' ANGRY DISCOVERY
The man scrambled off the bed so violently he nearly tripped over his own half‑pulled trousers. He collapsed to his knees, forehead almost hitting the floor.
"Your Highness—spare me! Please spare my life!"
The woman beside him was frozen in terror, still perched on the bed, eyes wide and empty. She didn't even react. She simply trembled, as if her soul had fled her body.
Under the bed, Tang Kexin sucked in a sharp breath.
God above… can you be any crueler? Could I be any more unlucky?
Of all the rooms in the entire manor, of all the hours in the night, Ye Lanjue had to appear here, now, at what must be around two in the morning.
Did this man not sleep?
The kneeling servant's body blocked her escape completely. Through the narrow gap between his shaking shoulders, she could see Ye Lanjue standing in the doorway—tall, rigid, and radiating a cold fury that made her palms sweat.
His expression was enough to freeze blood.
He didn't even need to look at the bed to understand what had happened. The dishevelled clothes, the scent in the air, the panic—everything was obvious.
His face darkened, the temperature in the room dropping with it.
He had originally intended to search the manor tomorrow. It was late, and even he had limits. But as he passed the backyard, he heard a strange sound—soft, breathy, unmistakably suspicious.
He had rushed over immediately.
One kick, and the door flew open.
The scene inside made the coldness in his eyes sharpen into something lethal.
"How dare you."
His voice was low, icy, and filled with a danger that made even Ming Xun—standing behind him—go rigid.
Ming Xun had seen many things in his life, but this… this was new. A half‑naked servant, a terrified maid, and His Highness in a mood that could kill with a glance.
The man on the floor stammered, "Y‑Your Highness… this… this servant…"
He couldn't even form a sentence. His courage had evaporated entirely.
The woman suddenly realised she was still half‑naked. She squeaked, grabbed the nearest shirt, and crouched down, covering herself as she trembled violently.
"Y‑Your Highness…" she whispered, voice cracking with fear.
She squatted with her back to Tang Kexin, and Tang Kexin had a perfect view of her bare back. Thankfully, her undergarments were still on—small mercies.
Ming Xun frowned. "Put your clothes on. Quickly."
His tone was clipped, but he didn't look at them. Normally, he wouldn't care about such matters at all. But these past two days had been… unusual. His Highness was unpredictable, volatile, and frighteningly cold.
Because he wasn't looking, he didn't notice Tang Kexin hidden beneath the bed. The darkness concealed her completely.
Tang Kexin, however, could see everything.
Ye Lanjue stood tall and unyielding, his presence filling the room like a storm about to break. His cold aura was suffocating. His expression was carved from ice.
The woman fumbled blindly for her clothes. The room was too dark, and the man had thrown garments everywhere. One piece had even fallen under the bed—right beside Tang Kexin.
The woman's hand reached under the bed.
Tang Kexin held her breath, shrinking back as far as she could.
The woman's fingers brushed the floor, searching… searching…
Then she froze.
Her eyes widened.
She had seen Tang Kexin.
"Ah!"
Her scream tore through the room.
Tang Kexin nearly leapt out of her skin. She wanted to slap a hand over the woman's mouth, but she couldn't move—not without revealing herself.
Thankfully, the scream came after Ye Lanjue had issued his punishment. In the darkness, with the man kneeling in front of her, no one could see where she was looking. Everyone assumed she was terrified by the sentence.
And what a sentence it was.
"Take them away," Ye Lanjue said coldly. "Thirty strikes for the woman. Eighty for the man. Then throw them out of the manor."
Ming Xun inhaled sharply.
Thirty strikes could kill a woman.
Eighty could cripple a man.
But this was not a night for mercy.
The woman whimpered, pulling on her undergarment with shaking hands. The man's face turned ashen.
Tang Kexin stayed perfectly still, praying Ye Lanjue wouldn't look her way.
Ming Xun glanced at His Highness. He wasn't even looking at the couple. His gaze was fixed elsewhere—forward, distant, as if lost in thought.
Ming Xun knew exactly what he was thinking about.
Tang Kexin.
His Highness had never cared for women. Not once. Not even when a stunning dancer had stripped and lain on his bed in the dead of winter. He had ordered her thrown out without a second glance.
He didn't like women.
He didn't like men.
He liked no one.
Until Tang Kexin.
And now she had run away.
Ming Xun's stomach twisted. If His Highness caught her… he didn't know what would happen. He wasn't sure he wanted to know.
Under the bed, Tang Kexin exhaled slowly.
Good. He hasn't noticed. He really doesn't care about women.
She silently urged him to leave.
Go. Go. Go away, you terrifying man.
But Ye Lanjue didn't move.
Instead, he suddenly turned his head—toward the bed.
Toward her.
The faint light from outside illuminated the sharp angle of his jaw as he shifted his gaze.
Tang Kexin's heart stopped.
Her blood froze.
He was looking directly at the bed where she was hiding.
And this time…
He wasn't looking away.
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CHAPTER 184 — HIS HIGHNESS' ANGER HAD BEEN DISCOVERED
The servant seemed to snap back to life the moment the woman screamed. He threw himself forward, forehead smacking the floor as he kowtowed desperately.
"Your Highness, spare me! Please spare me! I—I was seduced! She dragged me here, she tempted me into the backyard—"
Under the bed, Tang Kexin's eyes widened with cold fury.
You shameless, spineless rat.
To say such a thing at a time like this—he wasn't a man, he was a crawling beast. Eighty strikes were far too merciful. Ye Lanjue should have castrated him on the spot and made him a eunuch. Let's see how he "seduces" anyone after that.
Everything happened in a single breath.
The woman's scream.
Ye Lanjue turning.
The man's pathetic plea.
There was no pause between them.
The woman froze, stunned by his betrayal. She turned to him slowly, disbelief and heartbreak filling her teary eyes. Her lips trembled, but no sound came out.
What could she say?
What words could defend her now?
She looked as though she wished the thirty strikes would simply end her life.
Ye Lanjue didn't even glance at the man. His eyes narrowed, his disgust palpable. He despised men who shirked responsibility. If the servant had begged for the girl, or tried to shield her, perhaps Ye Lanjue would have shown a sliver of mercy.
But this?
This was contemptible.
A cold, mocking curl touched his lips.
"Ming Xun," he said, voice like a blade, "send him to the cleansing room. Solve his problem completely. Make sure he's never 'seduced' again."
Ming Xun's mouth twitched. His Highness was growing darker by the day.
Such a cruel punishment, delivered in such an innocent tone. It sounded almost helpful—solving his problem—but every man in the room knew exactly what it meant.
Without that part of him, he would never be a man again.
Never pass on a legacy.
Never touch a woman.
But the servant deserved it. He was vile.
The man froze, turning into a statue of terror. He couldn't even breathe.
The woman stared blankly, tears spilling down her cheeks. Whether she cried for him or herself, no one knew.
Under the bed, Tang Kexin blinked in surprise.
Well… I didn't expect Ye Lanjue's punishment to match my thoughts so perfectly.
For a horrifying moment, she wondered if she and Ye Lanjue were somehow aligned in spirit.
She nearly bit her tongue.
Absolutely not. Never. If we were aligned, how would I escape him?
Ye Lanjue stepped forward, dismissing the entire scene as if it were nothing more than dust in the air—noticed for a moment, then forgotten.
Guards dragged the servant away. Another guard, embarrassed by the woman's dishevelled state, kept his eyes averted as he escorted her out.
But the girl suddenly broke free.
She ran—barefoot, half‑dressed—straight to Ye Lanjue. She dropped to her knees so hard the sound echoed.
"Your Highness, please spare him! It was my fault! My fault!"
Tang Kexin stared from under the bed, stunned.
Girl, what are you doing? He betrayed you in a heartbeat!
But feelings were never logical.
This was her first love—pure, naïve, painfully sincere.
Ye Lanjue's brow lifted slightly.
Normally, he would have ignored her completely. He had always been indifferent to women.
But now… something in him had changed.
Ever since Tang Kexin entered his life, it was as if she had cracked open a part of him he didn't know existed.
"Take her away," he said quietly.
There was a softness in his tone—barely there, but unmistakable. He imagined what Tang Kexin would do if she were here. She would tear the man apart, comfort the girl, and then lecture everyone in sight.
She was ruthless when she acted.
He admired that.
Ye Lanjue blinked, startled by his own thoughts.
When did I start thinking like this?
He suspected Tang Kexin had poisoned him.
A slow, creeping poison that sank deeper every day.
"Your Highness, but he—" the girl tried again.
"Enough," he said, voice firm but not unkind. "Leave. That man is not worth your tears."
She opened her mouth to argue, but his next words froze her.
"When have I ever changed my orders?"
She fell silent instantly.
The man was already beyond saving.
Her strength crumbled. She collapsed onto the floor, sobbing quietly.
But then—her eyes widened.
She remembered.
Tang Kexin.
Under the bed.
She turned her head instinctively toward the room she had just fled.
Ye Lanjue noticed.
His gaze followed hers.
His eyes sharpened.
He spun around and strode back into the room, Ming Xun on his heels.
He reached the bed in three long steps, bent down, and looked beneath it.
Darkness.
He pulled out a fire piston, lit it, and held it low.
A clear indentation marked the mat beneath the bed.
A small bundle lay beside it, half a bun tucked inside.
But the woman he sought—
Gone.
Ye Lanjue's hand tightened around the fire piston. His eyes—cold as winter steel—held a storm of emotions.
She had been right there.
Right under him.
And he hadn't noticed.
Damn it.
She had escaped beneath his nose.
If someone told him this story, he wouldn't believe it himself.
Ming Xun and the girl rushed in behind him.
"There was someone under the bed," the girl whispered.
"Why didn't you say so earlier?" Ming Xun snapped, horrified. He didn't need to guess who it was.
"I—I forgot," she stammered. "After what he said, I… I forgot everything."
Ye Lanjue's jaw clenched.
"Send word," he growled. "Two guards from each direction. Chase her. The rest—search the manor."
His voice was low, furious, and vibrating with barely contained rage.
Good. Very good. That woman grows bolder by the hour.
She had been hiding mere steps away from him—and still dared to flee.
But she couldn't have gone far.
His men were martial experts.
They would catch her.
"Go!" Ming Xun barked, sprinting out.
Ye Lanjue vanished into the night like a shadow.
The girl stood frozen, trembling.
Who had been under the bed?
Why was His Highness so desperate?
Meanwhile, Tang Kexin had already slipped into the group of guards escorting the disgraced servant to the cleansing room.
She kept her head down, blending into the darkness.
Her men's clothing helped.
No one noticed an extra figure.
The cleansing room was in the farthest corner of the manor—exactly where she needed to go.
She moved carefully, step by step, the exit drawing closer.
Then—
A shout split the night.
"Search the manor!"
Ye Lanjue's order.
Her blood ran cold.
She was out of time.