Chapter 451: I Have Ways to Make the Entire Qi Family Regret It

Chapter 451: Chapter 451: I Have Ways to Make the Entire Qi Family Regret It

He cleared his throat guiltily. "I was seriously injured at the time, so my mind wasn’t very clear."

Just then, Village Chief Wang came in carrying two dishes.

Mo Lingwei asked coldly, "Do you have that many eggs? Take them away."

Village Chief Wang’s face went pale. He stammered, "Crown Prince... you don’t like them?"

Mo Lingwei’s narrow eyes were pitch-black, carrying the oppressive air of a ruler as he stared intently at Village Chief Wang.

"I don’t like them." Immense regret washed over him as he recalled holding a sharp stone shard to Shen Ningning’s neck.

The sight of the bowl of peeled eggs became increasingly offensive to him.

"Take them away," Mo Lingwei urged, his brow furrowed and his presence overwhelmingly oppressive.

Village Chief Wang hurriedly picked up the dishes, but Shen Ningning blinked her wide eyes.

"Why take them away? The village chief and the others prepared these for us with such care. Besides, don’t you think they’re delicious, Brother?"

Hearing Shen Ningning say this, Mo Lingwei pursed his lips and changed his tune.

"We’ll keep them, then."

Only then did Shen Ningning smile in satisfaction.

Mo Lingwei dotingly served the young girl, placing the best dishes and cuts of meat into her bowl.

Village Chief Wang, waiting on them by the side, was on pins and needles.

The slightest lapse in his attention would earn him a dagger-like glare from the Crown Prince.

When they had finally finished eating, Village Chief Wang quickly said, "We have prepared lodging for the Crown Prince and the Princess. You may now retire to rest."

This time, however, the two were surprisingly in sync.

"We’d like to walk around the village a bit more, so we’re not in a hurry to rest!" said Shen Ningning.

After saying this, she asked Village Chief Wang to draw a map of the village.

Mo Lingwei said indifferently, "There’s no need for you to follow. We’ll walk around by ourselves."

Village Chief Wang was startled, but it was clear that Mo Lingwei and Shen Ningning wanted to be alone together.

The two of them had already discussed their plans.

Since they were here to console the villagers, they would first spend the afternoon touring the village.

Shen Ningning planned to give them the grain seeds she had brought.

Afterward, they could head toward East Mountain, which the village chief had mentioned, to see what was making the strange noises.

Mo Lingwei held Shen Ningning’s hand as they walked along the village paths.

The villagers were timid and didn’t dare come out, for fear of causing offense. Some of the normally mischievous children were held back by their parents, forced to hide behind doors to watch.

Shen Ningning noticed an indescribable change in the villagers’ expressions when they saw Mo Lingwei holding her hand.

It was the same look she’d seen from Granny Chen whenever she spotted Dong Sanhua and Uncle Deng together.

The young girl furrowed her brow and tilted her head up to ask, "Brother, are we not supposed to be holding hands?"

After all, her annoying second brother was always nagging in her ear that men and women should not be overly familiar.

Hearing this, Mo Lingwei didn’t let go. Instead, he held her hand even tighter.

"Why shouldn’t we?"

"Then why are they looking at us like that?"

Mo Lingwei followed Shen Ningning’s gaze, looking up.

The moment the Crown Prince’s sharp, dark eyes swept over them, the villagers were so frightened they immediately dropped to their knees behind their doors, heads bowed low, not daring to even breathe.

A faint, barely perceptible smile touched Mo Lingwei’s lips. "You’re overthinking it. They’re only looking at us because they’ve never seen the Crown Prince and a Princess before. They’re just curious, that’s all."

Shen Ningning believed him.

She recalled that the people of Xiangyun Village had reacted the very same way when they first met Mo Lingwei.

The two of them went from house to house, distributing the seeds Shen Ningning had brought.

As the Crown Prince, Mo Lingwei offered words of care, consoling the disaster-stricken villagers.

The villagers of Pingyuan Village began to whisper among themselves.

"Is Princess Funing going to become the Empress?"

"Don’t be ridiculous. The Princess is still young."

"But it’s a long-standing tradition in our Cangyun Country. Whenever the Crown Prince or the Emperor visits to console the common people, the woman accompanying him is always his wife."

Their words unintentionally reached Shen Ningning’s ears.

The young girl blinked in confusion. When she glanced back, the villagers immediately stopped whispering and lowered their heads.

Just as Shen Ningning was about to clear things up, a horse-drawn carriage arrived at the village entrance, capturing everyone’s attention.

Guards cleared the way as the carriage came to a steady halt. The family crest of the "Qi" family was particularly conspicuous on its side.

When a maidservant lifted the curtain and Qi Xiuwei’s figure appeared, Shen Ningning waved happily. "Xiao Wei! You came too!"

Mo Lingwei frowned imperceptibly.

The two young girls were friends from the National Academy. Shen Ningning ran over, and she and Qi Xiuwei held hands, skipping about happily.

Upon seeing her, much of the gloom in Qi Xiuwei’s heart dissipated.

She explained in a hushed voice, "My grandmother forced me to come... Ningning, you’re not mad at me, are you?"

Shen Ningning understood at once.

’The old matriarch of the Qi family was forcing Qi Xiuwei to put on a show for Mo Lingwei again.’

The young girl sighed helplessly. "I really feel for you, having a grandmother like that. Of course I’m not mad at you! Come on, we’re in the middle of consoling the villagers."

Shen Ningning cheerfully pulled her over to Mo Lingwei. In his presence, Qi Xiuwei was cautious and timid, not daring to lift her head.

Learning the reason for her arrival, Mo Lingwei’s expression remained indifferent, betraying neither pleasure nor displeasure.

Sensing that Mo Lingwei didn’t particularly welcome her, Qi Xiuwei grew restless and uneasy.

Shen Ningning took out several small cloth pouches filled with seeds and handed them to Qi Xiuwei.

"Here, you can hand these out to the villagers."

"Okay, thank you, Ningning." Qi Xiuwei quickly began to distribute them to the villagers.

On one side, Shen Ningning chatted with the villagers while handing out medicine bags she had made herself to prevent heatstroke, with Mo Lingwei helping her.

Initially, Qi Xiuwei had felt at ease since Shen Ningning was there.

However, the maidservant Mrs. Qi Sr. had sent to keep an eye on her came over and quietly tugged on Qi Xiuwei’s sleeve.

"Miss, don’t forget your purpose for coming. You’re not here to genuinely relieve the villagers. The Crown Prince is over there. You should go to him, quickly."

Bracing herself, Qi Xiuwei slowly walked over to Shen Ningning’s side.

The young girl turned around and, thinking she wanted to help, offered Qi Xiuwei some of the medicine bags she had brought.

This made Qi Xiuwei feel even more ashamed, but the maidservant behind her was watching her like a hawk.

The villagers were delighted to receive the seeds and herbal medicine bags.

Several of the village children took Shen Ningning by the hand, inviting her to their homes for a cup of tea.

It was an invitation too kind to refuse, so Shen Ningning had no choice but to turn to Mo Lingwei and say, "Brother, I’ll just be a moment. You and Xiao Wei can hand out the rest of the seeds!"

With that, she was pulled away by the children, running toward a village house not far away.

Mo Lingwei watched Shen Ningning’s retreating figure, pursing his lips.

Nudged by her maidservant, Qi Xiuwei finally stood beside Mo Lingwei, "getting her wish."

Before she could say anything to ease the awkwardness, Mo Lingwei spoke in a cool, detached voice.

"I do not like the Qi family, and I know your family is trying to send you into the palace. But for Shen Ningning’s sake, I will offer you a piece of advice. Should your father send you to the Eastern Palace, I have countless ways to make every last member of the Qi family regret it."

In that instant, all the color drained from Qi Xiuwei’s face.

Mo Lingwei looked at her, a mocking curve to his lips.

"Tell your family to stop their pointless efforts. The spot in the Eastern Palace is reserved for Shen Ningning alone. You are her friend; you, of all people, should not be doing this."