"Dongfang Heng has shattered all my power, leaving me with nothing. Using his son as a shield to escape the capital isn't too much to ask, is it?" Dongfang Zhan escaped the palace, and Dongfang Heng's men would search for him relentlessly in the capital. The Holy King's Mansion was Dongfang Heng's home, and he would never have imagined that he would end up walking into a trap there. Of course, his main purpose was to find a reliable hostage to slip out of the capital.
"I'll be your hostage, you can release the child." The woman, who had just given birth, was extremely weak. Shen Lixue tried many times but couldn't muster much internal energy. She even had difficulty standing up, let alone snatching the child from the highly skilled Dongfang Zhan.
The child is Dongfang Heng's. Given Dongfang Zhan's hatred for Dongfang Heng, once he leaves the capital and is safe, he will immediately kill the child, causing Dongfang Heng unbearable pain. As a mother, how could she knowingly push her child into a fire pit?
"Li Xue!" Dongfang Xun exclaimed, but he didn't know what to say. Dongfang Zhan had never given up on Shen Li Xue. Her initiative to take a hostage was exactly what Dongfang Zhan wanted. But he couldn't bring himself to stop Shen Li Xue from saving the child. Even if he did, Shen Li Xue wouldn't listen.
If he could, he would be willing to be a hostage in exchange for the safety of Shen Lixue and her child. However, with his extremely high martial arts skills and intelligence, how could Dongfang Zhan possibly abandon the vulnerable woman and child and instead capture such a powerful man as him?
“Your body is indeed very weak right now, but you are best at ambushes. If I take you hostage, and you manage to ambush me and escape, wouldn’t I be at a loss? The baby is better.” Dongfang Zhan looked down at the baby: “He’s so small and soft, he has no ability to resist. If I’m not a master, I can crush him with one hand.”
Dongfang Zhan had tried to capture Shen Lixue many times, but she always managed to ambush him from the shadows. Even when she repeatedly assured him that she wouldn't, Dongfang Zhan wouldn't believe her. However, Shen Lixue couldn't let him take her newborn child hostage.
“Then I’ll hold the baby, and you can take both of us hostage. You’re highly skilled in martial arts, and I’m very weak after giving birth. I will never attack you again.”
"Li Xue." In that instant, Dongfang Xun felt as if a bottle of mixed emotions had been spilled in his heart. Sour, sweet, bitter, spicy, salty, all kinds of feelings were there. Shen Li Xue had just given birth and desperately needed to rest, but she couldn't care less about her own body and insisted on protecting her child.
He knew that paternal and maternal love were both great, but he never imagined that a mother could sacrifice everything, including her own life, for her child.
He had been observing Dongfang Zhan, waiting for him to reveal the slightest flaw so he could seize the opportunity to save the baby. However, Dongfang Zhan was very clever. With his back against the wall and his side facing him and Shen Lixue, he could see their every move. He wanted to take advantage of their unpreparedness to launch a sneak attack, but he couldn't find any opportunity.
Shen Lixue slowly sat up, looked up at Dongfang Zhan, her beautiful eyes full of expectation. A certain string in Dongfang Zhan's heart was deeply touched, and he agreed as if possessed: "I will trust you one more time. Have all the guards of the Holy King's Mansion retreat to a distance of twenty meters." The last sentence was said to Dongfang Xun.
Dongfang Xun glanced at Dongfang Zhan and walked out of the room. Dongfang Zhan would not harm Li Xue and her child for the time being; otherwise, he would have killed them when he left Fengsong Courtyard. However, he had to find a way to save them; otherwise, he would have trouble explaining himself to Dongfang Heng.
Shen Lixue grabbed the clothes from the chair, dressed as quickly as possible, and then draped a thick, light purple cloak over her shoulders. With hopeful eyes, she stretched out her arms toward Dongfang Zhan.
The baby had been crying since birth, which annoyed Dongfang Zhan. Shen Lixue reached out to take the baby, and he handed it to her. He had already checked carefully and found that all the guards within 20 meters had been withdrawn, so there was no need to worry about anyone suddenly rushing into the room to attack.
The baby was tiny and soft. After being placed in Shen Lixue's arms, his crying gradually subsided. His big eyes were all misty. Shen Lixue smiled gently, took a silk handkerchief, and gently wiped his eyes clean.
The little guy's eyes cleared up and opened wide, looking at Shen Lixue with curiosity. Shen Lixue smiled knowingly, her usually cold eyes sparkling with rare tenderness. His brows resembled Heng's, and in a few more days, he would look even more like him. With two little devils in the family, it would definitely be quite lively.
The scene of mother and child showing deep affection was heartwarming and sweet to others, but Dongfang Zhan found it particularly repulsive. The child was Dongfang Heng's, and his features resembled Dongfang Heng's. He didn't know whether Shen Lixue was looking at the child or thinking about Dongfang Heng.
"It's getting late, let's go." Dongfang Zhan stretched out his long arm, hugged Shen Lixue's small waist tightly, and led her out of the room.
Shen Lixue was physically weak and walked very slowly. He was in a hurry to leave the city and didn't have time to wait for her to walk slowly step by step.
Dongfang Zhan's arms were holding her tightly, and Shen Lixue couldn't break free with her current strength. In addition, she wanted to ensure the baby's safety, so she didn't resist and let him carry her forward.
Dongfang Xun and the guards of the Holy King's Mansion stood in the courtyard. When they saw Dongfang Zhan come out, they were all on high alert. As Dongfang Zhan took a step with Shen Lixue, they took a step back, staring at him intently without blinking. However, they dared not step forward to save the person, for fear of accidentally hurting Shen Lixue or the baby.
Gradually, Dongfang Zhan reached the corner of the wall, looking at Dongfang Xun twenty meters away, a cold smile playing on his lips: "Prince Xun, tell Dongfang Heng that I have taken Li Xue and the child with me. If he dares to send someone to assassinate me, the first to die will be that mother and child..."
Beneath the cloak, Shen Lixue's face was pale, her gaze gentle yet firm. The baby in her arms had stopped crying and was obediently opening its eyes, as if it were telling her something.
It was an ordinary scene, but it made Dongfang Xun feel a pang of sadness. He was useless and couldn't protect the mother and child: "Dongfang Zhan, you actually used women and children to escape. You are truly despicable and shameless."
Dongfang Zhan smiled coldly, neither confirming nor denying: "Young Master Xun, until we meet again." With a sudden leap, he carried Shen Lixue into the air, about to scale the wall and leave, when Shen Lixue in his arms suddenly cried out: "Big brother, catch the child." The tiny swaddled baby instantly slipped from Shen Lixue's embrace and flew straight towards Dongfang Xun.
Dongfang Xun is highly skilled in martial arts and will surely be able to catch the child. She cannot break free from Dongzhu Zhan and must stay as a hostage. However, her child has a chance to escape, so she naturally cannot let him take the risk and suffer.
As expected, after the swaddling clothes were thrown, Dongfang Xun flew into the air and caught it firmly. But by the time he landed, Dongfang Zhan and Shen Lixue had already leaped over the high wall and disappeared without a trace...
"Wah!" The baby seemed to know that its mother was in danger and cried incessantly, with large tears streaming down its face.
Just then, Dongfang Heng entered the courtyard. Hearing the baby's cry, he was first stunned, then overwhelmed with indescribable joy. The child was born; he was going to be a father. Li Xue had truly suffered. His sharp eyes filled with tenderness as he softly called out, "Li Xue, Li Xue..."
"Second brother!" Dongfang Xun turned around and strode towards Dongfang Heng, whose eyes were filled with joy.
"What happened?" Hearing the child's sorrowful cries, Dongfang Heng was startled. Shouldn't the child be with Li Xue? Why was he being held by his older brother? Could it be that "something happened to Li Xue?"
He had heard people say that childbirth is like a thin veil separating a woman from the King of Hell; if she is not careful, something bad will happen. His Li Xue did not survive this ordeal.
Under his anxious gaze, Dongfang Xun nodded, his gentle eyes filled with regret: "Second brother, I'm sorry, I failed to protect Li Xue. She has been taken hostage by Dongfang Zhan."
Dongfang Heng's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, eased slightly. Thank goodness, Li Xue was alright. However, a fierce anger then surged within him. Dongfang Zhan was truly clever to an annoying degree, willing to do anything to save his own life: "How long has he been gone?"
"They just left." Dongfang Xun's tone was grave. If Shen Lixue hadn't thrown the baby at them, he could have easily caught up with them. Shen Lixue knew this, yet she still threw the child at him, completely disregarding her own life and only thinking of saving the child.
"This is your child." Dongfang Xun held the baby in front of Dongfang Heng.
"Wah!" The baby cried heartbreakingly, its little hands scratching and clawing in the swaddling clothes, extremely restless. When it saw Dongfang Heng, the crying paused for a moment, then it cried even more miserably, with large tears overflowing from its eyes, a sight that broke the heart.
Those eyes looked exactly like Shen Lixue's. Looking into the baby's tear-filled eyes, Dongfang Heng felt as if he could see Shen Lixue crying, waiting for him to save her. He couldn't abandon her. With a light step, Dongfang Heng's slender figure, like a startled rainbow, drew a beautiful arc in the air and quickly flew into the distance.
"Waaaaah!" The baby cried so loudly it shook the heavens and the earth. Dongfang Xun was well-read and had many ways to comfort people, but he was helpless in the face of this newborn baby who knew nothing. He could only keep patting the baby's back and gently comforting him, "Don't cry, don't cry, your uncle will take you to find your parents."
After Dongfang Zhan took Shen Lixue away from the Holy King's Mansion, he seized a fast horse, and the two of them rode together, quickly heading towards the South Gate.
Dongfang Heng did indeed set up many ambushes at the city gate, but after seeing Shen Lixue on horseback, the guards and attendants dared not make any rash moves, and Dongfang Zhan was able to leave the city smoothly.
Dongfang Zhan rode his horse at great speed, stirring up gusts of cold wind. Shen Lixue couldn't help but tighten her cloak. Dongfang Zhan coldly asked from behind, "Why did you abandon the baby?"
“He was just born, and I don’t want him to take any risks.” Dongfang Zhan only held Shen Lixue hostage, so she spoke the truth without any reservations. She thought Dongfang Zhan would get angry, but he fell silent. After a long while, he said softly, “I will not kill you, neither you nor the child.”
Shen Lixue was stunned, not understanding why the once ruthless Dongfang Zhan had become so merciful. In Fengsong Courtyard, he had even viciously threatened to kill the child to make Dongfang Heng suffer.
"Li Xue, if I had met you first, would you have fallen in love with me?" Dongfang Zhan's voice was broken, clearly indicating that he had thought about it for a long time before deciding to ask.
Shen Lixue was taken aback, not understanding his intention: "Why did Prince Zhan suddenly think of asking this question?" At this critical moment of escaping for his life, why is he asking these things?
"Because I like you, I've liked you for a long time." Shen Lixue didn't know that when Dongfang Zhan first saw her, she was standing by the artificial hill, bathed in the bright and warm sunlight of the eastern sky, like a ray of golden sunlight illuminating his dark heart.
He pretended to like Shen Yingxue in order to hurt Dongfang Heng, but he didn't expect that Dongfang Heng had no feelings for Shen Yingxue at all, and all his efforts were wasted.
If he had given up that ridiculous act and had wholeheartedly treated Shen Lixue well back then, would Shen Lixue have fallen in love with him?