The Sickly Regent Prince Who Was Abandoned as a Substitute Bride

"Ah... Oriental Pearl, you're much more ruthless than your aunt. I'd rather die than let you get away with this..."

The drunkard used his last strength to let his offspring emerge.

Blood stained the sheets, the drunkard's eyes widened, and he collapsed. Terrified, Dongfang Mingzhu dropped the dagger, trembled as she dressed, and hastily fled the scene.

Back in her room, Dongfang Mingzhu collapsed to the floor, tears streaming down her face. She felt immense regret and fear, unsure how to face it all.

"It's all my aunt's fault! If it weren't for her, I wouldn't have encountered this situation, and I wouldn't have... Waaah!"

"No, Mingzhu is too impulsive. What if she gets hurt..."

Liu Qiqi decided to go and see... the Oriental Pearl Tower, worried that something might have happened to it.

"Ah..." Liu Qiqi ran into the drunkard's room and saw that he was already dead on the bed, but he was completely naked...

"Mingzhu...Mingzhu, no, Mingzhu will be alright!"

Liu Qiqi didn't have time to think much. In the end, she found her in a dazed state in the Oriental Pearl Tower's room.

"Mingzhu, Mingzhu, are you alright? Tell your aunt..." Liu Qiqi hugged Dongfang Mingzhu...

Oriental Pearl shoved Liu Qiqi aside and started yelling at her like a madwoman!

"It's all your fault! I told you long ago to deal with that person. You wouldn't listen, and now look what happened, I've been humiliated..."

Oriental Pearl stared blankly ahead, muttering to herself, "It's all because of you, all because of you. Why didn't you believe me? Why did you let this happen?"

Liu Qiqi looked at Dongfang Mingzhu with heartache, tears streaming down her face. She held Dongfang Mingzhu's hand tightly, wanting to comfort her, but didn't know what to say.

Dongfang Mingzhu suddenly raised her head, stared fiercely at Liu Qiqi, and said, "Do you know? I hate you, I really hate you! If it weren't for you, none of this would have happened."

Liu Qiqi was stunned. She had never imagined that Oriental Pearl would speak to her like that. She felt a pang of heartache, as if a knife had been plunged into her heart.

Oriental Pearl continued, "You should have listened to me and driven that man away. But you didn't; you chose to believe him instead of me. Now, are you satisfied?"

Liu Qiqi cried and said, "Mingzhu, I'm so sorry, I didn't know this would happen. Please forgive me, okay?"

Oriental Pearl sneered and said, "Forgive you? Do you think that's possible? I will never forgive you. From today onwards, we are no longer mother and daughter."

"Mingzhu, calm down, Mingzhu..." Liu Qiqi quickly grabbed Dongfang Mingzhu, afraid that she would do something rash.

“Mingzhu, that person is dead… He’s dead, no one will know…” Liu Qiqi said softly, trying to calm Dongfang Mingzhu down.

"No, Aunt, there will definitely be other people who know..." Dongfang Mingzhu cried out, her voice filled with despair and helplessness, "What should I do? My innocence is gone..." Tears slid down her cheeks, dripping onto the ground and splashing up teardrops.

Liu Qiqi looked at Dongfang Mingzhu with heartache, her heart filled with guilt and self-reproach. She knew that this incident had been a huge blow to Dongfang Mingzhu, and if word got out, Dongfang Mingzhu's reputation would be severely damaged.

“Mingzhu, don’t be afraid, your aunt is here. This is something only you and I know, and your innocence has been proven by the First Prince…” Liu Qiqi comforted her, hoping to ease Dongfang Mingzhu’s inner pain.

Dongfang Mingzhu raised her teary eyes and looked at Liu Qiqi, her eyes glistening with tears. "Auntie, yes, my innocence has already been given to the First Prince..." she murmured to herself, as if trying to convince herself.

Liu Qiqi gently patted Dongfang Mingzhu's shoulder and said firmly, "Trust Auntie, everything will be alright. Let's dispose of the body first."

So the two of them went back to the drunkard's room and cleaned it up.

Liu Qiqi and Dongfang Mingzhu threw the drunkard's body into the well...

"Auntie, what if we get discovered here..." Dongfang Mingzhu said with some fear.

"Don't worry, Mingzhu, no one will come here. By the time someone finds him, he'll be a pile of bones..." Liu Qiqi comforted her.

"Hmm..." Dongfang Mingzhu nodded, still feeling somewhat uneasy. She followed Liu Qiqi back to her courtyard, remaining silent the entire way.

The Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion...

"Chengfeng, Chengfeng, how are you..." Ye Jingxia saw Lu Chengfeng being carried back on a stretcher, his face as pale as paper and his body covered in blood. She was so heartbroken that she couldn't stop crying.

Lu Yanchen's eyes were red, but he still held back his tears and pretended to be strong.

"Brother!..." Lu Wanning also rushed back to the Duke's Mansion. Fortunately, her daughter sent a message in time, telling her that the Ninth Prince had faked his death, which put her at ease.

"Big brother, my big brother!..." Lu Qingmo cried heartbreakingly, refusing to let go of Lu Chengfeng's hand no matter what.

No matter how Su Yazhen tried to persuade him, she couldn't stop him, so she had no choice but to let him go.

"Cough cough cough. Second brother, I'm not dead yet..." Lu Chengfeng's lips twitched slightly, and he smiled helplessly.

Looking at the scene before him, Lu Muchuan noticed that although his elder brother was covered in blood, he spoke with a strong voice, which did not match his expected level of injury.

"Brother, which bastard hurt you? I will definitely avenge you!" Lu Qingmo made no attempt to hide his anger and grief, tears streaming down his face as he cried uncontrollably.

"Cry, cry, cry! Your older brother isn't dead yet! If you keep crying, I'm going to die from your crying!" Lu Yanchen was furious and slapped Lu Qingmo hard on the head.

Lu Qingcheng witnessed this scene, and fear appeared on her little face. However, seeing her father so emotionally weeping, she couldn't help but feel curious and muttered softly, "Daddy, shame on you..."

"Let's go inside and talk... cough cough..." Lu Chengfeng said with difficulty, signaling the soldiers to carry him into the house.

Ye Erxiao's bodyguards observed the Lu family's behavior and, after confirming that Lu Chengfeng was indeed seriously injured, quietly left.

Lu Muchuan keenly noticed the subtle movement in the tree, a slight smile playing on his lips as he chuckled softly before quickly regaining his composure. He thought to himself, "So that's how it is; I understand everything now."

After closing the door, Ye Jingxia and Lu Qingmo went into the inner room.

Seeing that they were all family members, Lu Chengfeng stopped pretending and sat up in bed. He moved his limbs and felt no discomfort.

"Second brother, stop wailing, second brother..." Lu Chengfeng felt that his ears were about to be deafened by Lu Qingmo's crying.

"Chengfeng, you're alright!..." Ye Jingxia saw that her eldest son had actually stood up, and she already guessed what had happened. A hint of joy flashed in her eyes, but more of a look of confusion.