Chapter 544 - 547: Jealousy
The Regent King’s icy gaze sent a jolt through Li Yu, snapping him back to his senses.
He cursed himself frantically in his mind.
’Is there something wrong with my head? I know he’s a man, yet I was still dazzled by his beauty!’
’If word of this got out, who knows what people would think of me!’
Li Yu slapped his own forehead hard, reminding himself to stay calm and not let his eyes wander.
He tried to forget the embarrassing incident from moments ago and act natural.
"To be honest, I don’t know how I was poisoned. I’ve been eating and living with everyone else for the past two days.
If it was a problem with the food or water, I shouldn’t be the only one who was poisoned."
He had actually suspected that the Regent King had someone poison him.
But thinking about it carefully now, there was no reason for the Regent King to do that.
The Regent King had summoned the group of princely heirs to Shangjing to use their status to keep the various Vassal Kings in check.
If something happened to him, the Regent King’s plan would be ruined.
There was no need for the Regent King to make such a losing deal.
Hua Manman poked her head out from behind the Regent King and pressed him.
"Did you sneak any food behind everyone’s back? Or did someone secretly poison your food?"
When Li Yu saw her, his heart couldn’t help but skip a beat again.
He struggled to steady himself, constantly reminding himself in his heart.
’He’s a man! He’s a man!!’
Perhaps the self-suggestion worked. Li Yu’s heartbeat gradually stabilized, and his mind cooled, returning to a state of calm.
’Even if he’s exactly my type, he’s still a man.’
’It’s impossible for me to have any special feelings for a man.’
Li Yu said, "We’ve been working from morning to night these past two days, we’re dead tired. How could we possibly have the energy to sneak food?
Besides, in that godforsaken place, there was nothing to be had. What could there possibly be to eat?
As for your suggestion that someone secretly poisoned me, that’s impossible.
I always eat with my friends. It would be too difficult to secretly poison my bowl in front of so many people."
Hua Manman continued to speculate.
"What if it was someone close to you?
They could have been sitting right next to you and poisoned your bowl when you weren’t looking.
Because you were close and everyone knows each other well.
Neither you nor anyone else present would have paid much attention."
Li Yu denied it without a moment’s hesitation.
"That’s even more impossible!
I’m on very good terms with my friends. They would never harm me!
Even if you’re trying to curry favor with the Regent King, don’t use such a clumsy lie to sow discord between me and my friends.
I won’t fall for it."
He was very disappointed. He hadn’t expected the Heir of Prince Yu to be so good-looking yet have such a malicious mind, even trying to stir up trouble.
’Sure enough, you can’t judge a book by its cover.’
’The more beautiful someone is, the more vigilant you have to be.’
Hua Manman offered a few more guesses, but no matter what she said, Li Yu refused to answer.
His guard against her was now at its highest.
Hua Manman was at a loss. She could only look at the Regent King to see what he planned to do.
Instead, she heard the Regent King ask impassively.
"Are you two finished talking?"
Just now, Li Yu had been staring at Hua Manman, his eyes practically glued to her.
Then Hua Manman had kept striking up a conversation with him, and the two of them had been chatting back and forth enthusiastically.
The jealousy in Li Ji’s heart bubbled to the surface.
’The sourness is killing me.’
Hua Manman was confused. "I don’t have anything else to say."
Li Ji said, "Then let’s go."
With that, he turned and left crisply.
Hua Manman and Li Xun hurried after him.
Feihua Zhenren, afraid of being detained, quickly slung his medicine box over his back and scurried after them.
Once they left, the room fell silent again.
The maidservant stood trembling to the side, her head bowed, not daring to make a sound. She was terrified the Princely Heir would blame her for being incompetent.
But after waiting for a long time, the Princely Heir still hadn’t said a word.
The maidservant cautiously looked up, only to see the Princely Heir clutching his waist and giggling foolishly.
Li Yu giggled. "Hehe, he touched me here just now."
But then, as if remembering something, he slapped himself and cursed irritably.
"Idiot! Get a good look, he’s a man!"
He fell back onto the bed, sighing in despair.
"How could he be a man? Why does he have to be a man?"
The maidservant watched, a million questions flooding her mind.
’What’s wrong with my master, the Princely Heir?’
’Did the poison damage his brain?’
...
「On the way back.」
Li Ji didn’t say a word the entire way. His face was dark and frightening.
Hua Manman and Li Xun exchanged glances.
Hua Manman silently mouthed, "What’s wrong with your Father King?"
Li Xun mouthed back, "I don’t know. His foul mood is probably acting up again."
Li Ji: "..."
’Do you two think I can’t see your mouths moving just because you’re not making any sound?’
Li Ji reached out and grabbed his stinky son’s ear.
"Who has a foul mood?"
Li Xun yelped in pain. "Mother, save me! Father King is hitting me again! Waaaah!"
Hua Manman wanted to step in and save him, but she felt this was a family matter, and it wasn’t her place as an outsider to interfere.
She could only say lamely.
"He’s just a child, Your Highness. Please don’t hold it against him."
Li Ji sneered. "I’m not holding it against him. I’m teaching my own son a lesson. He needs to learn what it means to respect his elders."
After saying that, he even raised his hand and swatted his stinky son’s bottom.
Li Xun’s cries grew louder, as if he was in real pain.
"Mother, save me! Waaah!"
Hua Manman didn’t know what came over her; she just couldn’t bear to see Li Xun being bullied.
Burning with anxiety, she could no longer hold back. She lunged forward, pried the Regent King’s hand away, and pulled the child behind her.
She shielded the child with her body and shouted.
"Even if Your Highness wants to discipline the child, you should teach him properly! How can you hit him?
What if you hurt him? Wouldn’t your heart ache?"
Hua Manman said this purely on impulse.
Once the impulse passed, she began to feel afraid.
Given the Regent King’s personality—one of unquestionable authority who brooked no dissent—he was sure to be infuriated by her words.
’Will he beat me up?’
’Or will he punish me with hard labor, forcing me to repair roads?’
Just as Hua Manman was feeling uneasy, she saw the man before her withdraw his hand.
Li Ji huffed in displeasure.
"Why should my heart ache for him? He has plenty of people who dote on him.
Unlike me, who has no one to feel sorry for me."
Hua Manman froze.
Li Xun peeked out from behind his mother and asked, "Doesn’t Mother feel sorry for you?"
Li Ji said scornfully, "She was so happy chatting with someone else just now she didn’t even spare me a glance. How could she possibly feel sorry for me?"
After saying this, he deliberately shot a look at Hua Manman.
That look was really something else.
It was as if he were looking at a cheating wife who was stringing along other men right in front of her husband.
Hua Manman: ???