frightfiction Chapter 561 It Was a Big Fish
Chapter 561 It Was a Big Fish
As soon as Su Nuan spoke, Zhao Zong looked at her with astonishment in his eyes.
Even Mu Yunting and Lord Shen frowned, but Lou Guang was puzzled.
"Consort Xia is joking. How could I possibly get my own surname wrong?"
“But I heard that your surname is Xiao, and that you are a descendant of Xiao Duo.”
Before Zhao Zong could reply, Lord Shen blurted out, "Is Consort Xia's statement true?"
Even Mu Yunting looked at Su Nuan with surprise, waiting for her answer.
Su Nuan replied with a smile, "It's true, I heard someone call him Your Highness."
"I guess the 'Prince' that Liu Yin is referring to is Xiao Duo's son, right?"
These words were spoken to Zhao Zong. Upon hearing this, Zhao Zong's expression immediately changed, from surprise to anger and finally back to calm. He then slowly stood up and said, "I never realized that Consort Xia was such a master eavesdropper."
"You can't blame Liuyin for not treating me like a living person."
Su Nuan meant to make a joke, but Mu Yunting was terrified when he heard her words. If she hadn't rescued the person in time, she might have really been ruined by that crazy woman.
His Highness the Crown Prince pursed his lips, remaining silent, but clenched his fist tightly beneath his sleeve.
"That idiot, all he knows is revenge, he ruined my plans."
Zhao Zong's angry voice rang out again.
"What is your business?" Su Nuan asked. "Restore your kingdom? Just by threatening people with women and children?"
"Women and children are not ordinary people. If used properly, restoring a kingdom is not impossible, is it, Your Highness?"
Zhao Zong raised an eyebrow and looked at Mu Yunting.
Mu Yunting laughed, “Indeed, women and children are the most honorable people in Nanzhao Kingdom. They are enough to be used as bargaining chips to help you restore your kingdom. It’s just a pity that you didn’t seize the opportunity. Before you could even use them to threaten me, you became a prisoner.”
“That’s right, I’m a prisoner, but don’t forget I have a child in my hands. Although he’s not as noble as the Crown Prince’s child, his father and grandfather dote on him. Those two hold half of the military power in Nanzhao.”
The child Zhao Zong mentioned was Xia Zhuowen, the eldest grandson of General Xia. He was naturally the apple of the Xia family's eye, which is why he was used to threaten the two General Xias.
"What do you plan to do with that child? To force Father and my elder brother to relinquish their military power?"
Su Nuan couldn't help but ask.
Zhao Zong replied, "How could that be? What use would I have for the military power of Nanzhao Kingdom? I only want the two Generals Xia to do me a small favor."
"help you with what?"
"The decision-making power on the battlefield rests with the two Generals Xia. It's no use for Consort Xia to know."
Su Nuan was furious. This scoundrel was secretly stirring things up. His words seemed to be directed at her, but they were actually meant for the Crown Prince. He first pointed out that the Xia family held a large army, and then implied that her father and elder brother valued Zhuo Wen and might do something detrimental to Nanzhao for Zhuo Wen's sake.
This is planting a seed of doubt in the Crown Prince's heart!
Those present were all skilled strategists, and they naturally understood the underlying meaning of Zhao Zong's words, but no one spoke up.
His Highness the Crown Prince and Lord Shen simply did not believe Zhao Zong's words. The Xia family father and son were known for their loyalty to the emperor and the country, and they would not be threatened by anyone on the battlefield. If that scene really happened, they were afraid that the old general would personally kill the child.
They remained silent because they wanted to continue watching Zhao Zong's performance; the more he spoke, the more flaws he would reveal.
Lou Guang didn't believe Zhao Zong's words either, but he would never reveal Consort Kuanxia's true feelings.
So, in reality, only Su Nuan took Zhao Zong's words to heart. She cursed him as a "scoundrel" in her heart, and she didn't hold back either, saying the most hurtful things: "I don't know what you're so smug about. You're already a prisoner, and you still have the mind to scheme against my father and elder brother. What? You still expect that after the fall of the Prince of Fanli, Nanzhao will send you back to be the king? You can't even dream that far! If you're smart, you'll use that child to exchange for your own life. If we find Zhuo Wen later, you won't even have this chance."
"You don't need to worry about that, Consort Xia. I understand that as long as you can't find that child, I won't die. So I won't let you find him."
Are you really that confident you can hide that child well?
This time it was Mu Yunting who spoke. He felt sorry for Su Nuan, whose face had turned ashen with anger, and couldn't help but speak up.
"My men just reported that they've located the child and will be able to bring him back soon."
"Does Your Highness think I would believe you?"
Not only Zhao Zong, but even Su Nuan didn't believe it. She had been with Mu Yunting the whole time, and no one had come to deliver Xia Zhuowen's message.
Aside from being a beat slow when getting off the car at the entrance of the Ministry of Justice, a guard came over and seemed to hand Mu Yunting something. At the time, he didn't pay attention, but now that he thinks about it, what the man handed him might have been a small note for passing messages.
With that thought in mind, Su Nuan looked at Mu Yunting with renewed anticipation.
Then Mu Yunting spread his palm, revealing a small square piece of paper with only a strange pattern drawn on it.
Upon seeing the pattern, Zhao Zong's expression immediately changed, and he asked coldly, "Where did you get this?"
Mu Yunting didn't answer, but just looked at Zhao Zong with disdain.
The latter gradually succumbed to his gaze, its upright body slowly collapsing.
Su Nuan looked at Mu Yunting with a hint of reproach; why hadn't he brought out such a powerful tool sooner? However, she quickly realized why Mu Yunting had done so.
For the rest of the time, Zhao Zong kept his mouth shut and did not answer any questions asked to him.