Chapter 15: You Can't Read a Person's Heart

Xiao Zhen finally understood. It was exactly as he had suspected; nothing was a coincidence. Someone had set a trap, and his troublesome parents had walked right into it.

"Father, do you regret it?" Xiao Zhen's voice was cold.

How could Consort Xiao not regret it?

He regretted it so much his intestines felt like they were turning blue.

He could only blame himself for living a life of luxury all these years. Every day, he was either painting eyebrows for the Princess in front of a mirror or playing mediator between his wife and son. He...

For a moment, Consort Xiao did not know how to describe his current state.

Princess Jiayi did not dare to look at her son; she could only steal glances at Consort Xiao. Seeing his handsome face turning pale one moment and flushed the next, her heart ached for him.

She hurriedly put on a pitiful expression and said to Xiao Zhen, "Your father didn't do it on purpose. It's all because those villains are too cunning. Your father is pure and upright; how could he know how treacherous human hearts are? Isn't that right, son?"

Xiao Zhen: "Mother, please stop putting on an act in front of me. Being arrogant and domineering is your true nature."

Princess Jiayi opened her mouth, then squeezed out an innocent smile and said to Consort Xiao, "Yan-ge, you are well-read. Isn't 'arrogant and domineering' a derogatory term?"

Consort Xiao: "The Chinese language is profound and vast; many words have multiple meanings. For instance, 'arrogant and domineering' isn't a term anyone can use. For example, it certainly cannot be used for common laborers and peddlers."

Princess Jiayi's smile was uglier than a cry: "I understand. My son is praising me for being elegant and dignified."

Xiao Zhen: "..."

Seeing that their son was finally no longer lecturing them, the couple exchanged a secret glance. Princess Jiayi nudged Consort Xiao with her chin, signaling him to speak first.

Consort Xiao had no choice but to brace himself and say, "A-Zhen, since that Second Miss Zhao has saved our lives, shouldn't we thank her in person? How about..."

Consort Xiao looked at Xiao Su: "A-Su, go and invite the Eldest Miss and the Second Miss of the Prince of Liang's manor over."

Xiao Su agreed immediately but did not move. He remembered something and said to Xiao Zhen, "By the way, Little Fourth Zhao said that this life-saving debt must be repaid with Mount Fanghe. She wants Mount Fanghe."

Xiao Zhen froze, somewhat puzzled: "Mount Fanghe? Is that part of the Xiao family's property?"

Xiao Su hurriedly reminded him, "Big Brother, have you forgotten? It was that year..."

Xiao Su instinctively glanced at Consort Xiao and lowered his voice: "The year Xiao Yue came. Your eldest uncle was afraid you would be unhappy, so to make you happy, he gave you that mountain."

So it was that mountain.

Xiao Zhen remembered. It was the year he returned from the Wu region and discovered he had a younger brother. At the time, he had thought of that dream and was so shocked that he had stood there in a daze.

Feeling guilty and mistakenly believing his eldest son could not accept the situation, Consort Xiao had secretly brought a land deed and gifted him a mountain.

But that mountain was far away in the Liang lands. Xiao Zhen had never been there, and as time passed, he had even forgotten its name.

"She wants that mountain? Then give it to her," Xiao Zhen said.

Although his parents were a handful, let alone a single mountain, even a hundred or a thousand mountains would not be worth more than their lives.

Zhao Shiqing had saved his parents; even if Zhao Shiqing demanded his life in return, he would be willing!

But Xiao Su was unwilling: "That won't do, Big Brother. You don't know, but that Little Fourth Zhao is a thief. All these years, if I hadn't been guarding that mountain for you, she would have stolen everything from it long ago. We can't just give it to her easily."

Xiao Zhen: "Is there a mine in that mountain?"

Xiao Su shook his head: "Not exactly."

"Are there rare treasures?" Xiao Zhen asked again.

Xiao Su still shook his head.

Xiao Zhen: "Then what else can she steal?"

Xiao Su: "Mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and all sorts of medicinal herbs and fruits. You don't know, Little Fourth Zhao has a master who loves researching food. To find ingredients for her, Little Fourth Zhao runs to Mount Fanghe to steal things every few days."

Xiao Zhen: "..."

He waved his hand weakly: "Fine, I get it. Go and invite the sisters over."

"Big Brother, you must not be deceived by that female demon. Mount Fanghe cannot be given to her," Xiao Su urged.

Xiao Zhen nodded: "Alright, I know what I'm doing."

As Xiao Su was about to leave, Xiao Zhen called him back: "Jiang Ping and the others are still waiting for me outside the manor. Go and let them know we are safe so they don't worry."

Only then did Xiao Su leave. A moment later, Zhao Yunnuan and Zhao Shiqing walked in, one after the other.

This was the first time Zhao Shiqing had seen Princess Jiayi and Consort Xiao.

Although Princess Jiayi was already in her thirties, she looked like a young woman in the prime of her beauty; her delicate face showed not a trace of hardship.

And Consort Xiao lived up to his reputation as a top scholar; even in middle age, he was still so handsome that one could almost ignore his age. Even though he was under house arrest here, he showed no signs of disarray; every strand of his hair exuded refinement.

In contrast, looking at Xiao Zhen sitting below them—forget it, Zhao Shiqing no longer wanted to judge. If she truly had to say something, it would be that Xiao Zhen looked old and broken; that face full of vicissitudes and exhaustion was enough to be the father of Princess Jiayi and Consort Xiao.

Following behind her sister, Zhao Shiqing paid her respects to Princess Jiayi and Consort Xiao.

Princess Jiayi called the sisters to her side, taking one in each hand. She poured out words of gratitude as if they were free, yet every sentence seemed to imply: *You have placed us under house arrest, but you also saved us, so we are even.*

Even? My ass!

Zhao Shiqing rolled her eyes and suddenly said, "Your Highness, did your people kill my father?"

Princess Jiayi, who was mid-babble, suddenly let out a hiccup. She hurriedly covered her mouth with a handkerchief.

Consort Xiao's handsome, ethereal face darkened instantly.

As for Xiao Zhen, he merely raised his eyebrows and sat aside to watch the show. At this moment, all he lacked was a handful of melon seeds.

Princess Jiayi sobbed, "I know everyone from your Prince of Liang's manor suspects that the Consort and I killed your father. But heaven is my witness! Although I fought with your father, that was twenty years ago; I forgot about it long ago. Furthermore, although the Xiao family is in the Liang lands, we have always respected the Prince of Liang's manor and never thought of replacing it. The Xiao family doesn't even have an official; how could we covet the throne?"

Zhao Shiqing: *This princess thinks quite a lot; it seems she prepared this speech long ago.*

She knew perfectly well that the Princess and Consort were not the killers of the Prince of Liang, but since she wanted to hold leverage over them, she could only keep biting at this issue.

"One can never truly know what is in another's heart; even biological brothers can turn against each other. Moreover, although my father and Your Highness both share the surname Zhao, our branches split a hundred years ago. As for the Xiao family, that goes without saying. Does your Xiao family not maintain private guards? Don't say you don't, because no one would believe it. It's better to just admit it openly."

Xiao Zhen watched Zhao Shiqing with amusement, then shifted his gaze from her to Princess Jiayi, his expression carrying a hint of schadenfreude.

*You have nothing left to say, do you? I want to see if you'll learn your lesson this time.*