Meng Ruyi thought this matter was already a sure thing with no room for trouble, so she was thinking about what to say next and waiting to ask Song Huaizhi for his opinion. However, to her surprise, the man in front of her looked at her again and gently said, "No."
"What!"
Meng Ruyi gritted her teeth and looked at Song Huaizhi. "Brother Song!"
Even though Meng Ruyi had always been extremely tolerant towards Song Huaizhi, she couldn't help grinding her teeth in anger now. The look in her eyes as she stared at Song Huaizhi was like that of someone looking at a naughty child.
Really!
It seemed that ever since the two of them had cleared the air and Song Huaizhi's knots had disappeared, Meng Ruyi felt that the man in front of her had lost all his reserve and was no longer polite in his speech.
"Don't be impatient." He smiled faintly, with a hint of amusement in his eyes. "All these things are currently under the name of the Meng Mansion. It's much safer than having them under my name."
"At least this way, those who covet these things will think twice before they act. In the eyes of outsiders, I'm just a down - on - his - luck cousin who came here looking for a handout. If I were to take all these things, it would surely bring new troubles."
"Although these things aren't difficult to handle, no one likes flies buzzing around in their ears all the time."
"But..."
Meng Ruyi hesitated.
"Yu Yu said I shouldn't be polite, so I'll lay it all out now. I won't stand on ceremony with you. I'll just rely on the protection of the Meng Mansion to develop my own power."
Meng Ruyi didn't want to admit it, but she had indeed been convinced by Song Huaizhi. It was hard for her to find a reasonable excuse to refute him.
So she had really been doing a lot of useless work just now.
Sighing, Meng Ruyi said to Song Huaizhi, "Fine. You go and talk to my mother yourself. I'm not going to get involved."
Song Huaizhi didn't expect Meng Ruyi to pass the buck to him like this. He was slightly taken aback and then said, "Okay."
Only then did Meng Ruyi nod in satisfaction. She pointed at the paper in front of them, indicating for Song Huaizhi to look.
...
Outside the city, the wind was strong, carrying sand with it. It rushed towards people like a wild beast, rubbing their faces painfully.
Actually, this was just a psychological reaction. The wind wasn't really that strong.
The Third Prince watched the scene in front of him silently, clenching his fists so tightly that his short fingernails dug deeply into his flesh. Streams of bright red blood trickled down his palm and dripped onto the ground one by one.
This small courtyard was provided by Song Huaizhi. The Third Prince was instinctively on guard against this man, but he had to admit that he couldn't refuse his help.
He was in a bind.
As he scanned the area, these four words popped into his mind, and a sarcastic smile curled up on his lips.
"Your Highness! Your Highness!" The woman on the ground was dying. She called out his name, her voice as shrill as a ghost's, still trying to arouse a glimmer of tenderness in the man in front of her.
"Do you remember? Those times when the Empress punished you, I rushed over overnight just to bring you some food. Without it, in those long, cold nights, you..."
"How could I forget?"
The Third Prince smiled and said to her, "So later, when I heard that the wet - nurse's son was so naughty that no teacher would take him in, I went to great lengths to find a tutor for him."
"And then..."
The woman still tried to rummage through her memory for something else, but she found that she had already said too much in these few hours and couldn't think of anything else at all.
Had the Third Prince been listening to her all this time because he still remembered her kindness and was just venting his anger now?
Thinking of this, she shouted with all her might, "Your Highness! I'll never forget your kindness. I was wrong this time. In the future, I will surely..."
"In the future?"
Before she could finish, the Third Prince bent down and squatted in front of her. With a half - smile, he said, "Wet - nurse, you're joking. Where is there a future?"
The woman instantly felt as if her blood had frozen. The hope in her eyes was extinguished, and her body went limp.
"No! No!"
As soon as she opened her mouth, a guard beside her covered it.
"Considering that the information you provided is important enough, I'll make sure your family dies painlessly."
The woman's eyes widened suddenly, filled with red blood vessels. She was forced to drink the medicine and twitched painfully a few times before collapsing on the ground, showing no sign of life.
The guard beside her let go of her and reached out to check under her nose. After a few breaths, he stood up and respectfully said to the Third Prince, "Your Highness, she's gone."
"Bury her."
Actually, burying her was of no use.
The Third Prince knew that he was currently using Song Huaizhi's resources to make it seem as if the woman had died of the plague. But after he buried her, someone would surely dig her up to find out the real cause of her death.
So there were no wounds on the woman's body, but her eyes and nose were an abnormally red color, as if she had been in a high - temperature environment for a long time and her body had become distorted.
Turning around to leave, the Third Prince took the handkerchief soaked in garlic juice handed to him by someone beside him and wiped the corners of his eyes. His eyes instantly turned red, and tears streamed down, quickly soaking the handkerchief.
The person in front of him saw that he might have applied too much garlic juice, causing the Third Prince's tears to flow uncontrollably. He immediately knelt on the ground, trembling like a leaf.
The Third Prince thought it was a bit funny. He threw the handkerchief on the ground, wiped his tears with his sleeve, and said, "Get up."
He pushed open the door and walked forward.
Although it only took a short distance and a few steps to reach the carriage, he still felt that this was the most difficult and longest path he had ever walked.
And this wasn't even really a path, just a small trail trampled out by people.
"Go to the Meng Mansion."
...
While Meng Ruyi was discussing with Song Huaizhi how to make these private properties safer, the next moment she saw the messages on the bullet screen.
[Poor Third Prince finally killed his wet - nurse.]
[Wow, he's so ruthless. He's going to achieve great things.]
[He's on his way to the Meng Mansion. He must be looking for Brother Song. This is so exciting. Watching the poor prince turn dark live.]
The Third Prince had taken action? And he was on his way to the Meng Mansion?
Meng Ruyi was stunned for a moment. She didn't expect him to act so quickly, so she stuttered a bit when she spoke, and an unnatural look appeared on her face.
"Let's take a break." She pretended to be tired and rubbed her eyes to cover up her momentary unease. "My eyes are getting blurry."
They really had been chatting for a long time.
Only then did Song Huaizhi realize that the sun was almost setting. A tinge of apology welled up in his heart, and he said to Meng Ruyi, "How about we continue tomorrow?"
Meng Ruyi also wanted to be lazy, but thinking of the Third Prince who was still on the way, she could only sigh and say, "Let's just take a short break. We should finish this as soon as possible."
However, they didn't rest for long before Song Huaizhi heard Lianqiao say outside, "Miss, Young Master Song, that Third Young Master who came to visit last time is outside."
"Show him to the study."
Song Huaizhi frowned. He thought the Third Prince had come at a really inopportune time, and a hint of impatience flashed across his face.