Zhu Wangbei, his face deathly pale, said, "What could I have done? My body is in such a state now that I have to drink medicinal potions every day. When she was made a Jieyu by the Emperor, I could only watch her from afar."
Cui Huaiji said, "I heard you just woke up yesterday! Only half a day has passed, and you already knew our younger sister was to enter the palace? You even knew her carriage would definitely pass through Zhuque Street. Go on, who told you? What did that person make you do?"
Zhu Wangbei gritted his teeth and roared, "No one! I just wanted to see her, just to see Cui Huaiyin!"
Cui Huaiyi asked, "Was it someone from the imperial palace who ordered you to do this?"
Zhu Wangbei hung his head and said, "I did not kill anyone, nor harm anyone. I just walked around the street, and you seized me arbitrarily. The Cui family is supposed to be an esteemed, noble clan, are you trying to abuse private authority and beat and kill people as you please?"
The three Cui brothers exchanged glances, their expressions sinking slightly.
Rongyao stepped around her three uncles and walked up to Zhu Wangbei. She looked up at him and asked, "Was there someone who made you stop Mother from entering the palace? Who is she?"
Zhu Wangbei gave Rongyao a long, hard look, a flash of disgust darting across his eyes, before he curled his lips into a fake smile. "Yaoyao, don't talk nonsense. What's all this about targeting your mother? Your father loved your mother more than anything in the past. It's all her fault that she grew tired of me. Not only did she cause the death of your grandmother, she also made your father lie sick in bed for over a month. Seeing that I was unwell, she cruelly left the Zhu family, and even took you away from my side. Now she's living the good life, having become an imperial concubine, and abandoned you to the Cui family. From now on, you'll be a child with no father, no mother, and no home. Yaoyao, if only... ah!"
Zhu Wangbei never got to finish his words, for he was met with a harsh slap across the face from Cui Huaiyi. "You ungrateful wretch! What vile nonsense are you spouting! Yaoyao is the Cui family's eldest daughter, and has already taken the Cui surname! What father? You have no right at all to claim to be Yaoyao's father. You are nothing to her!"
Zhu Wangbei covered his stinging cheek, only glancing briefly at Cui Huaiyi before turning his gaze back to Rongyao. "Yaoyao, your father truly loves you. Have you forgotten all those times when you were little, I would carry you in my arms and buy you sweet treats? Have you forgotten all of that?"
Rongyao glowered at Zhu Wangbei fiercely. "Of course I remember. I remember that you are not my father. You lied to Mother, you are a big fraud."
Zhu Wangbei's face drained of color. He deliberately hunched over, looking like he was deeply hurt. "They have all been lying to you. Your mother has lied to you too. Look at her now, she's chased after wealth and status and left you behind. Why don't you come home with me? Back at the Zhu family, you will be the sole young mistress of the house, and no one will ever dare to slight you."
Cui Huaihao scoffed, "How dare you say such things? What do you even own? That courtyard you live in was rented out to you by me, and the lease is only for half a year. In a few months, you will have nowhere to call home."
Zhu Wangbei's eyes went wide, his voice rising in shock. "What did you say? That courtyard wasn't bought for me by you?"
Cui Huaihao said, "How shameless can you be? I see you've gotten used to living off the Cui family's resources, to the point where you thought you could leech off us forever. But unfortunately for you, your days of easy living are over!"
Zhu Wangbei's face flushed bright red with rage, his whole body trembling. "You're going too far! You're all going too far!"
Seeing Zhu Wangbei in such a state of distress, the three Cui brothers felt a deep sense of satisfaction.
Rongyao could not help but burst into laughter. She then asked Zhu Wangbei, "Was it Consort Chen from the imperial palace who ordered you to do this?"
Zhu Wangbei's trembling body froze instantly, as if a vital pressure point had been pressed. His eyes were filled with panic and utter confusion.
Though that flustered expression only lasted for a split second, the three Cui brothers all caught sight of it.
Cui Huaiyi exclaimed, "So it really was her! What deep grudge does Consort Chen hold against our family?"
Cui Huaihao said, "I'm afraid it's far more complicated than that."
Cui Huaiji asked, "Zhu Wangbei, have you met Consort Chen in person?"
This time, Zhu Wangbei hung his head completely and said not a single word.
The three Cui brothers all darkened their faces. They were just about to use harsher methods on him, when a servant came rushing in to report that a woman had arrived at the Cui household demanding to take someone away. The woman claimed to be Zhu Wangbei's wife, and said she had witnessed the Cui family knock her husband unconscious in broad daylight out on the street.
The woman was kneeling right in front of the Cui residence's main gate, threatening that if they did not release Zhu Wangbei, she would report the entire incident to the local authorities.
Zhu Wangbei had not actually committed any actionable crime. If the matter was brought before the yamen court, the Cui family would be the ones at fault. Left with no other choice, they had to grit their teeth and let him go.
Right before he was escorted out of the manor, Zhu Wangbei suddenly broke into a smirk. He looked at the three Cui brothers and said, "The Cui family won't be riding high for much longer."
After that, his expression softened abruptly as he turned to face Rongyao. "Yaoyao, your father will always welcome you home. If you ever run into any grievances at any time, you must come back. The Zhu family will always be your home."
Rongyao frowned and glared at him. "Since you are not my father, why are you so set on acting as if you are? Are you unable to have a daughter of your own?"
Zhu Wangbei's face turned sullen as he was physically led out of the Cui household.
He got back on his feet, brushed the dust off his clothes, and clenched his fists tightly. His face was full of resentment as he spat a "Pah!" in the direction of the Cui residence.
The Cui family had dared to treat him like that! And that little brat Rongyao, how dare she speak to him in such a manner! In the past, she had always been the most obedient to him, respected him as her father, and stood firmly by his side. All he had to do was treat her a little nicely, and she would be completely docile and filial to him.
But now, everything had changed.
Ever since the day his mother was poisoned, he was poisoned too, Concubine Liu took her own life, and Cui Huaiyin forced him to divorce her...
Even if Concubine Liu was the one who put the poison in the food, it was all because of Cui Huaiyin. If she hadn't brought those poisoned snacks to him and his mother, his family would never have fallen into such a mess!
He even suspected that that vile woman Cui Huaiyin had known long in advance that the food was laced with poison, and had deliberately sent those poisoned snacks to him and his mother.
He had been stuck sick in bed, and after Cui Huaiyin left him, he was so overcome with rage that he fainted for several days. He had only woken up the day before, and was immediately told that Cui Huaiyin had caught the Emperor's eye, been made a Jieyu, and was to enter the palace that very day.
The news made him shake with fury, and he nearly fainted again.
How could this be? How could Cui Huaiyin have such incredible good fortune? After leaving him, there was still a man who wanted her, and that man was none other than the Emperor himself!
So when that noble imperial person found him, and offered him a plan to block Cui Huaiyin's path to that imperial glory, he agreed without the slightest hesitation. He never expected that the Cui family would catch on to his scheme ahead of time and seize him.
Now he had lost everything. His revenge had not been achieved, and even his house did not belong to him...
Zhu Wangbei was grinding his teeth in frustration as he dragged his weary body along the road, when he saw Madam Shen standing not far ahead, her face streaked with tears.
Madam Shen was his first wife. She had borne him children. Though she was not as strikingly beautiful as Cui Huaiyin, she was gentle, sweet, and understanding, and never tried to scheme against him.
Back then, to chase a more prosperous life, he had to leave Madam Shen and their children in hiding outside the city to marry Cui Huaiyin. Now that Cui Huaiyin had left him, Madam Shen had come back with their son and daughter.
Zhu Wangbei's shoulders unconsciously relaxed. Looking at the woman who was fretting over him, he suddenly felt that there was nothing to fear anymore.
He had a son and a daughter, and he had Madam Shen. Over the years, he had also secretly siphoned off Cui Huaiyin's dowry and hidden those valuables in his study. As long as he had those precious things, he could still live a decent life.
A glimmer of hope returned to his eyes as he stepped forward to take Madam Shen's hand, and said gently, "How fortunate I am to have you. From now on, I will treat you well, I promise."
Madam Shen looked at him with a shy, worried expression. "I know you have me in your heart, my dear. Did they mistreat you? Did they hurt you?"
Zhu Wangbei's heart warmed even more. "Don't worry, I'm perfectly fine. I didn't do anything wrong, so there's nothing they can do to me."
Madam Shen still looked rather troubled. "It's a relief to hear you're unharmed. You're the pillar of this family, you must take good care of yourself, so the three of us, mother and sons, can rest easy. It's just..."
Zhu Wangbei asked, "Just what?"
Madam Shen looked even more awkward as she said, "The silver you brought back before has all been spent. It's also time to pay the tuition fee for Zhu Shu's private school. We have no silver on hand right now, what are we going to do?"
Zhu Shu is the son born to Zhu Wangbei and Madam Shen in their early years. He is already eight years old now, exactly the right age to attend a private school and start his studies.
Zhu Wangbei gave a relaxed smile, and cast Madam Shen a reassuring look. "Don't you worry, I have a backup plan. I hid all the valuable items from Cui Huaiyin long ago, and they are right in the study of our house."
Madam Shen's eyes lit up at once. "Really?"
Zhu Wangbei lifted his head with a proud look on his face. "Of course. I'll take you there to get them right now, my dear."
