Chapter 496: Pawn
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
At this moment, Princess Ni Yang was extremely calm.
The conviction in her heart was extremely firm. No matter what Yu Niaoniao said, it could not shake her at all.
She looked down at Yu Niaoniao, who was locked in the water prison.
Her gaze was no longer as gentle as before. It was as cold as ice.
“Do you have anything else to say? If not, I’m leaving.”
Yu Niaoniao knew that if she left, she would never return, and she would be trapped in this dark water prison.
Yu Niaoniao hurriedly shouted.
“I have another question!”
Princess Ni Yang asked, “What question?”
Yu Niaoniao said, “Back then, you threw Xiao Juan into a cage and forced him to fight the beasts. Did you really want him to die back then?”
She still could not believe that a mother would want to kill her son for no reason.
Princess Ni Yang seemed to be recalling something from a long time ago, and her gaze became a little distant.
After a long moment, she spoke.
“Actually, I didn’t want to kill him. I just wanted to do a test.”
“I wanted to see how strong his survival instincts and adaptability were when he was in a desperate situation.”
“As it turned out, he was even more outstanding than I had expected.”
“Are you going to ask what’s the point of doing this test?”
“Of course, it meant something. I finally gave birth to him after ten months of pregnancy. He has an extraordinary value to me.”
Yu Niaoniao keenly caught the keyword. “Value?”
To think a mother would actually use a word like “value” to measure her child.
However, Princess Ni Yang felt that it was only right.
“If I keep Ah Juan by my side to raise him, Brother will definitely be worried.”
“He would think of ways to plant people in Western Liang. This was not conducive to the implementation of my plan. ” “The best way is to send Ah Juan away.”
Realization dawned on Yu Niaoniao.
“You deliberately abused Xiao Juan to make outsiders think that you wanted to kill your son. The emperor and the empress dowager believed it and sent someone to bring Xiao Juan to the Imperial Capital.”
“After Xiao Juan left, only you were left. At that time, the emperor was still young and not as suspicious as he was now. He relaxed the surveillance of Liangzhou, and that’s what you wanted.”
Princess Ni Yang said slowly.
“That’s right. Ah Juan is indeed a smart child. Not long after he arrived in the
Imperial Capital, my brother discovered his talent.”
“He had obtained my brother’s trust step by step and climbed to his current position. I had originally thought that when Juan returned this time, I would lay my cards on the table and let him join my camp.”
“This way, I would be like a tiger with wings and have a higher chance of winning.”
“He is my only son. I was already infertile and would have no other children in the future. If I become emperor, the future throne would definitely pass to him.”
“This is a good thing for him. Unfortunately…”
She did not finish, but Yu Niaoniao knew what it meant.
Unfortunately, Xiao Juan was different from Princess Ni Yang. He was a very principled person. Even if the emperor used him and suspected him, he still remembered the emperor’s saving grace.
He would never rebel.
Princess Ni Yang sighed softly. “I really didn’t expect that after so many years, Ah Juan is still brooding over what happened back then. He doesn’t even want to acknowledge me as his biological mother.”
Yu Niaoniao was so angry that her voice was trembling.
“For your ambition, you almost killed Xiao Juan and even used him like a tool.”
“He’s a living person, not a toy you bought. You never thought about his feelings. You’re not worthy of being a mother!”
Princess Ni Yang said coldly, “I’m my father’s only legitimate daughter, but isn’t he treating me as a pawn?
“And when has he ever cared about my feelings?”
“Since my father can treat me like this, why can’t I treat my son like this?”
Yu Niaoniao said, “You keep blaming your father. You hate him for disregarding their father-daughter relationship, but what’s the difference between you and your father now?!”
Every word was like a knife that accurately pierced the most sensitive part of Princess Ni Yang’s heart.
From the first time she was given a marriage, she hated her father deeply. It was her father who had ruined her life.
She could ignore the curses of the world, but she could not accept that she had become like her father.
Princess Ni Yang’s face turned ashen in an instant.
She glanced at the guard beside her.
“Let her suffer.”
The guard understood and went forward to open the cell door. He grabbed Yu Niaoniao’s hair and pressed her into the water.
Yu Niaoniao sank into the water. Water drilled into her head through her ears and nose.
She couldn’t breathe. She kicked as hard as she could.
When she was about to suffocate, the guard let go.
Yu Niaoniao’s head could finally come out of the water.
She tilted her head back and breathed hard.
Because her breathing was so rapid, she coughed hard.
Princess Ni Yang looked down at her.
“That’s the price for saying the wrong thing.”
At this moment, Yu Niaoniao was drenched. Her hair was stuck to her cheeks, and water droplets rolled down her forehead. Her face was pale, and she looked extremely sorry.
But even so, she straightened her neck and said, “What did I say that was wrong? You and the late emperor are indeed biological father and daughter. You’re selfish! You have no right to hate the late emperor because your face is as ugly as your father’s!”
If she had deliberately provoked Princess Ni Yang previously to buy time to survive, then she was purely complaining about injustice for Xiao Juan presently.
It was clearly the sin of the late emperor and Princess Ni Yang. Why should Xiao Juan bear the consequences?
In this era of filial piety, Xiao Juan could not say anything bad about his parents, but Yu Niaoniao was not Princess Ni Yang’s child. She would not spoil this selfish and vicious woman.
She was going to scold this woman for Xiao Juan today!
Princess Ni Yang’s hands hidden in her wide sleeves were clenched into fists.
“Go on!”
The guard pressed Yu Niaoniao into the water again.
It was a long time before she was released.
She popped her head out of the water. Her eyes were watery and she couldn’t see clearly. Her mind was spinning from lack of oxygen. Her voice was hoarse.
“Do you think that by giving birth to Xiao Juan, you can rule his life and control his life?”
“Your thoughts really coincide with your father’s!”
“He gave birth to you and raised you. He’s done you a huge favor. What’s wrong with him just using you?”
“You actually held a grudge against him for so many years over such a small matter?”
“It’s not like you haven’t done the same thing before. What right do you have to resent others?”
“You’re courting death!” Princess Ni Yang could not help but pull out the sword at the guard’s waist and point it at Yu Niaoniao’s face. At that moment, there was a sudden shout not far away.
“Your Highness, something happened!”
She stopped and turned to see an armored female general rushing over.
The female general fell to her knees.
“Duke Lang has appeared at the entrance of the Chillywind Valley with his men.
He’s going to kill his way in soon!”
Princess Ni Yang was first shocked. How did Xiao Juan know that they were here?
She went through everything that had happened in the past two days from beginning to end and quickly reacted. Then, she suddenly turned around and stared fixedly at Yu Niaoniao in the water prison.
“You leaked our whereabouts!”