"Bang—"
The heavy gates of the Prince's mansion were violently smashed open by the guards behind Xiao Ruizhi.
What greeted their eyes was a scene of carnage!
The guards of Mu Changxi who had been stationed at the mansion's entrance lay in pools of blood, their breaths long extinguished. In the winter chill, their bodies had already stiffened.
Xiao Ruizhi hurried forward, examining one of the bodies. He then turned to Mu Changxi and shook his head, "Your Highness, he likely died last night. He bears marks of knives, swords, and struggle. Captain Liu truly worked hard. It seems he led his men to defend the Prince's mansion gates to the death, but ultimately, they were no match for the attackers."
To think that the guard captain of the dignified Prince Chang's mansion would suffer such a gruesome death at the hands of the enemy's blades!
Veins bulged on Mu Changxi's forehead. "Captain Liu was personally trained by my maternal grandfather. His martial arts skills were top-notch, even in the capital. For these people to defeat him, it shows they put considerable effort into targeting our Prince Chang's mansion!"
Xiao Ruizhi's gaze sharpened, and he looked towards the inner courtyard. "However, the Princess Consort is not one to passively await her fate, Your Highness. Let's go in and see!"
Without Xiao Ruizhi or Mu Changxi needing to say anything, the guards they brought with them had already advanced towards the rear courtyard.
Xiao Ruizhi pushed Mu Changxi, and despite the difficult snow-covered ground, they quickened their pace.
The path leading to the rear courtyard was a "shocking spectacle."
Bloodstains and corpses littered the ground, belonging to both the Prince Chang's mansion's people and the attackers.
Xiao Ruizhi stepped forward to examine a few of the attackers and discovered a clue. "Your Highness, it appears some of these attackers hail from the Southern Kingdom!"
Mu Changxi frowned. Seeing Xiao Ruizhi shake his head again, he continued, "However, I haven't seen these individuals among the Southern Kingdom's envoy delegation. It seems that even if this matter is related to the envoy, they have made thorough preparations to ensure no blame can be placed upon them."
But at this moment, these were not the most important matters.
Xiao Ruizhi pushed Mu Changxi rapidly towards the rear courtyard. Indeed, upon reaching the rear courtyard, they heard sounds of fighting!
"Your Highness has arrived, Your Highness has arrived!"
The sky was now growing brighter. Mu Changxi's arrival seemed to bring hope to the remaining guards at the rear courtyard entrance.
The moment they saw Mu Changxi, two guards who had bravely held their ground all night could no longer suppress the pain of their injuries and their exhaustion. They slumped to the ground.
Mu Changxi knew that Song Chaoyu was within this small courtyard.
She had poured all the strength of the Prince Chang's mansion into protecting herself and their child.
Even though so many had bled so much blood in front of this courtyard, as long as Song Chaoyu was within the courtyard, Mu Changxi would fear nothing.
Mu Changxi's men advanced, quickly securing the area.
Simultaneously, a joyful voice called out from within the courtyard, "They're here, they're here! His Highness is back! His Highness is finally back!"
Mu Changxi hurriedly pushed his wheelchair into the courtyard. He saw Tiaohong, her eyes red from crying, running towards him. "Your Highness, you're finally back! Our Princess Consort has been in labor all night, but the baby still hasn't been born. What should we do?!"
Laboring all night?!
Mu Changxi felt a heavy weight descend upon his heart. He then headed towards the sleeping quarters. "Why has it taken so long?"
Tiaohong wiped away her tears and quickly explained, "The Princess Consort's pregnancy has always been in good condition. She went into labor herself in the middle of the night. But they blocked the entrance, and a precious ginseng root that the Princess Consort needed for energy is outside and cannot be brought in. The Princess Consort's strength has been insufficient, which is why the baby cannot be born!"
Mu Changxi nodded, signaling Xiao Ruizhi to fetch the ginseng.
Then, without hesitation, he headed towards the inner chambers.
Startled, the wet nurse guarding the door stopped Mu Changxi. "Your Highness, the delivery room is bloody. It might not be suitable for you to enter!"
"Move aside!"
Mu Changxi's eyes were cold, his entire demeanor radiating anger. "My Princess Consort is inside. Am I not allowed to enter? Move aside! Bloody or not, whether I can enter or not, I do not care! All I care about now is the Princess Consort's safe delivery. No one will stop me!"
His imposing presence caused the old wet nurse's hands to involuntarily move away from blocking him.
Mu Changxi entered the delivery room and indeed smelled the scent of blood.
Unbeknownst to anyone, his entire body was trembling slightly. He then pushed his wheelchair towards Song Chaoyu, who lay on the bed, having almost completely lost all her strength.
—
Song Chaoyu truly didn't know how much time had passed.
She desperately wanted to follow the midwife's instructions and push with all her might to give birth to the child safely.
But giving birth felt incredibly difficult for her!
Moreover, her body seemed to be working against her; she simply couldn't muster the strength to push.
When her strength was depleted, no matter what Tiaohong and Qiuhuang brought her, Song Chaoyu ate it all, hoping her body would gradually recover and she would regain the strength to give birth.
However, soon, her stomach churned violently, forcing her to vomit everything she had eaten, as if that were the only way to feel a little better.
She endured this cycle of eating and vomiting, vomiting and eating, throughout the night.
Song Chaoyu felt as if half her life had been worn away. It was then that she heard Mu Changxi's voice in her ear—
Was she hearing things?
Song Chaoyu's vision was blurred by sweat; she could no longer see clearly what was happening in front of her.
Just as she suspected she was hearing things due to extreme exhaustion, a hand suddenly grasped Song Chaoyu's hand!
Without needing to see clearly, Song Chaoyu knew it was Mu Changxi's hand.
That warm hand, only Mu Changxi possessed it!
But why was Mu Changxi's hand trembling slightly?
Song Chaoyu desperately wanted to open her eyes and tell Mu Changxi not to be afraid.
She was trying her best to safely bring their child into this world, to let that child live.
But she couldn't utter a single word. All she could hear was Mu Changxi's murmur, "Ayu, you cannot be harmed. If something happens to you, what will I do? Ayu, let's not have this child anymore. No matter what, I only want you to stay by my side. We'll never have children again, okay?"
No, absolutely not!
Song Chaoyu wished she could respond to Mu Changxi like this, but she still couldn't say anything.
She could only gently squeeze Mu Changxi's hand, wanting to tell him that she wanted this child.
But this small gesture caused Mu Changxi to look up at the midwife with overwhelming joy. "Look quickly! Ayu squeezed my hand! She knows it's me! She knows everything in her heart! Quickly, find a way to save her!"
The midwife, who had delivered countless babies, had never seen a man like Mu Changxi before.
The dignified Prince was crying like a child at this moment.
His eyes were filled with helplessness and fear.
The midwife felt a sense of helplessness. "Your Highness, it's alright! The Princess Consort is just a little exhausted! Both the baby and the Princess Consort are fine. Please don't be like this. For other families, childbirth can take two or three days. As long as we have that ginseng, and everything goes smoothly, please don't cry!"