Deliberately chilling his voice, Gu Ruobai said icily, "A joke! You've already been living in the Prince Yu's mansion. Shouldn't I divorce you? Do you expect me to wait for you to have an affair?"
"I didn't!" Su Mingyu's face turned ashen. "You clearly know..."
"What do I know!" Gu Ruobai immediately interrupted her. "That you've been having an affair with the Prince Yu for a long time? That I've long known you're a promiscuous woman?"
Saying that, Gu Ruobai turned around and was about to leave. But before he took two steps, Su Mingyu grabbed his wrist. "Don't leave me..."
Before Gu Ruobai could say a word, a cold and sinister voice came from behind. "It's getting late, Your Highness. If you delay, our father's anger will be beyond what we can bear."
Su Mingyu turned around and glared at the Prince Yu. "Shut up!"
Instead of getting angry at Su Mingyu's cold look, the Prince Yu hooked his lips and walked straight to her side. Under Su Mingyu's surprised gaze, he put his arm around her shoulder.
Before Su Mingyu could resist, the Prince Yu raised his eyebrows and whispered in her ear, "If you reject me now, I'll make sure he won't reach the desolate land safely."
Su Mingyu froze. Gritting her teeth, it took her a long time to control herself from attacking the Prince Yu.
Clenching her fists tightly, Su Mingyu fixed her gaze on Gu Ruobai, her eyes full of pain. "I want to go with you."
"You?" Glancing at the Prince Yu's hand on Su Mingyu's shoulder, Gu Ruobai sneered. "We're already divorced. You have no right now."
After saying that, Gu Ruobai gave a look to the soldier escorting him. "Let's go."
As the soldier pushed Gu Ruobai into the carriage, Su Mingyu's tears finally couldn't be held back. She waved away the Prince Yu's hand and ran to Gu Ruobai's carriage. Her voice was hoarse and unpleasant. "Gu Ruobai... Take me with you... Don't leave me..."
The person in the carriage didn't say a word. The only response to her was silence.
Su Mingyu gritted her teeth. Just as she was about to climb into the carriage, the person inside finally spoke. "You can go..."
"I won't go!" Su Mingyu stubbornly looked at the blurry figure in the carriage. "I want to accompany you."
"With what can you accompany me?" Gu Ruobai sneered. "You were my wife before. But now, who are you? Don't use the child in your belly as an excuse. The whole capital knows that you were abducted for a while and came back pregnant. I just didn't want to care before because of my disability. But now... Do you think I still need to tolerate you?"
"What...?" Su Mingyu was stunned at first, then suddenly understood something.
Before, because she heard that Gu Ruobai was leaving, she was too nervous and scared and just ran over without thinking. But now, after Gu Ruobai's words, she suddenly woke up.
A crime as serious as rebellion. Even though Gu Ruobai had made great military achievements, being exiled couldn't be the whole punishment. Moreover... Gu Ruobai's words were obviously meant for her.
During their days in the mansion on the water, only she and Gu Ruobai knew that they had actually been together all the time. But Gu Ruobai said those words deliberately to remind her that his departure this time was just an arrangement.
Thinking of this, the icy coldness in Su Mingyu's heart melted a little. She raised her eyes and looked at the man behind the curtain reluctantly. She whispered in a voice only they could hear, "I'll wait for you..."
Although the person inside didn't say a word, Su Mingyu could feel his intention.
Pressing her lips together, Su Mingyu pretended to be extremely disappointed and got off the carriage. Then she stood there dejectedly, looking as if a gust of wind could blow her down.
The Prince Yu walked over, raised his hand and put it on Su Mingyu's shoulder, pulling her into his arms. "You can't keep him."
Su Mingyu shrugged off the Prince Yu's hand. "Don't touch me!"
As her voice fell, Gu Ruobai's carriage slowly started moving. Just as Su Mingyu wanted to step forward to stop it, the Prince Yu blocked her.
"Su Mingyu! If you take one more step forward, I'll immediately send out my secret guards!"
The Prince Yu's voice was cold, but it was full of deterrence.
Su Mingyu tightened her fists. After a long time, she finally stopped. Standing there blankly, she watched Gu Ruobai's departing carriage in a daze.
Seeing Su Mingyu's sad expression, the Prince Yu lowered his eyes. "Let's go. Come back to the mansion with me."
Su Mingyu ignored him and just stared blankly in the direction where Gu Ruobai had left.
Seeing this, the Prince Yu didn't say much. He stepped forward, picked up Su Mingyu horizontally and got into the carriage back to the Prince Yu's mansion.
"Let me go!" Su Mingyu glared at the Prince Yu angrily and complained, "Are you satisfied now? Gu Ruobai is gone. There's no place for me in the whole capital anymore!"
"My mansion is your place to stay." The Prince Yu looked at Su Mingyu with lowered eyes. "I've said that I want you to accompany me."
Su Mingyu was stunned for a moment, then sneered, her face full of contempt. "You? On what grounds? You drove away my lover and deprived me of my freedom. You keep me in your mansion like a caged bird. And you say you want me to accompany you?"
Su Mingyu looked at the Prince Yu accusingly. "I don't want to! I said from the beginning that I don't want to! And I'll tell you this. If you watch me closely, it's okay. But if you let your guard down, I'll definitely run out to find Gu Ruobai. He's the father of the child and the only one I rely on!"
After saying that, Su Mingyu turned her head and didn't want to look at the Prince Yu anymore.
Seeing this, the Prince Yu didn't force her. He just raised his eyebrows. "You'll be willing to stay by my side."
The atmosphere in the carriage immediately dropped to freezing point. Su Mingyu and the Prince Yu didn't say a word to each other, and they remained in a stalemate until the carriage arrived at the Prince Yu's mansion.
Because of her excessive worry, Xia Mian had been waiting at the courtyard gate early. When she saw that Su Mingyu was brought back by the Prince Yu, her heart sank. She knew that Su Mingyu hadn't been able to keep the Prince Ruixian.
"Miss... Are you okay?" Xia Mian stepped forward and gently hugged Su Mingyu, her face full of distress.
Su Mingyu's expression was a bit dull. She looked at Xia Mian and then nodded blankly. But the next second, she hugged Xia Mian painfully. "He's gone... He's really gone..."
Xia Mian softly comforted Su Mingyu. "It's okay. At least he's still alive. There's always hope."
Su Mingyu's voice was muffled. "Xia Mian... I've lost everything."
"Aren't there still me and Zhi Zhu accompanying you?" Xia Mian patted Su Mingyu's back. Although such comfort seemed weak, it gave Su Mingyu a sense of security. It felt really good to have someone she trusted by her side.