Три мандариновые утки и полторы пары

Глава 7

Zhu Yu pursed her lips, her eyes cold and narrowed.

"I said back then that if someone misbehaves or disobeys, they'll have to be taught a lesson!"

With a sharp look in their eyes, the birdcages in Wuyou and Wuchou's hands were knocked away by the sudden force. As soon as the birdcages hit the ground, the two frightened birds immediately flew out!

"Zhu Yu!"

Wuyou and Wuchou only saw Su Shaochu's figure flash by. The startled birds flew around and cried out loudly as the two attacked at the same time. The lightning-fast exchange seemed to happen in the blink of an eye, until a dead bird fell to the ground. Wuyou and Wuchou cried out in surprise at the same time!

"Your Majesty!"

"Young Master Su!"

They watched in horror as things unfolded before them. Su Shaochu had one hand on Zhu Yu's neck, while Zhu Yu grabbed her other hand. At the same time, the other surviving bird was held in Zhu Yu's hand, chirping and struggling desperately!

"My dear brother, your actions, while you are injured, have taken me by surprise."

"Perhaps for someone like you, even instincts will be triggered."

Su Shaochu's expression was solemn, his usual leisurely demeanor gone, and his eyes turned somber.

Zhu Yu gave a sly smile. "So, two birds can sway you, or would it be the harm done to these two girls that would make you more swayed!"

"Third Prince, your unpredictable moods and emotions can shake anyone. Killing two birds and injuring two maids, what are you trying to do?"

"Your smile."

"What?"

"Anyone whose genuine smile isn't meant for me, the prince, will be killed by me!"

Zhu Yu curled his lips, moved the hand he was holding to his lips, and kissed her palm. His charming eyes were fixed on her, and the smile that tugged at her was chilling.

"Think of how many people will die because of you, men and women alike. As long as you continue to do this, you will only provoke my murderous intent even more!"

Zhu Yu's blood from killing the first little bird was still on his palm, and now, as he held Su Shaochu's wrist, the blood stained her wrist as well.

"The blood on my hands will be completely severed from yours, Su Shaochu."

"Third Prince, I've discovered that understanding you is difficult; not understanding you is even more difficult!"

Su Shaochu pulled her hand back from his neck pulse. Given her current condition, she couldn't solve the problem by taking action. However, Zhu Yu had no intention of letting go of her wrist!

"Oh! So, does my beloved brother understand me or not?"

"If I hadn't been forced to do these things time and time again, I would never have wanted to understand you!" she said coldly. "Someone who is always heartless and enjoys manipulating people's hearts would only waste my sincerity, let alone give my sincerity to someone I don't want to understand."

"Very good!" Zhu Yu grinned maliciously!

"Your Majesty—no—" Wuyou and Wuchou shouted in fear at the same time, but they stopped Zhu Yu from crushing the bluebird in his hand to death!

Blood stained his other palm again. He let go, and the bird carcass fell to his feet. The two birds that had once earned Su Shaochu's bright smile were now dead on the ground!

Seeing this, Zhu Yu smiled happily, touched her cheek, and looked at the blood staining her beautiful face, his smile became even more delighted.

"My dear brother, it's enough to see you lose your usual composure."

Su Shaochu remained motionless, his eyes narrowed, and a colder voice escaped from his tightly pursed lips: "Wuyou and Wuchou like these two kingfishers very much because you gave them to them."

"So what?"

"They are your biological daughters." Su Shaochu looked straight into Zhu Yu's dark, unfathomable eyes and said firmly and clearly, "They are your and Song Meie's biological daughters."

"So?" He shrugged, amused by her serious expression. "I never intended to keep anything. What does it matter if it's my own child or not? Even though it was born through incest, it just adds a bit of novelty and excitement. Whether I keep it or not depends on whether I need it or not. If I don't want something, even if it's my own child, it's just superfluous."

Su Shaochu's eyes were icy cold as he said indifferently, "Ghosts and monsters that don't belong to humans are truly chilling and frightening!"

"Given your rare expression, my dear brother, I'll take it as a compliment."

Zhu Yu smiled, his blood-red fingers touching her lips. Looking at the bright red against her untamed and stern brows, he couldn't help but narrow his eyes.

"My dear brother, you look absolutely stunning with all that blood on your face!"

He then lowered his head and kissed her lips. Su Shao Chu's eyes were cold and closed. She did not respond to the sweet kiss that covered her lips, but simply let him kiss her silently and motionless.

"Don't forget, later this prince will accompany you to bathe and treat your poison. Being able to freely admire your alluring body will be an even more enticing prospect." The ambiguous words and sultry breath were whispered in her ear.

Su Shaochu once again offered that leisurely, faint smile.

"How could Shao Chu dare to disappoint the Third Prince?"

"Those words make me even more eager for nightfall!"

Zhu Yu came to her lips again, touched the corner of her lips with a trace of blood, and left with a smile, his hands behind his back.

Su Shaochu closed her eyes, as if calming a raging storm brewing within her. At this moment, it was best not to let any emotion out. She wiped her lips and then saw Wuyou and Wuchou squatting on the ground, each picking up a bird carcass.

"No worries, no sorrows."

Seeing this, she felt apologetic. Zhu Yu's unpredictable emotions were directed at her, but they were affected. Just as Su Shaochu was about to say something to comfort them, she saw them smile.

"She's dead, Su Su is dead!"

"Chu Chu is dead too!"

After examining the bird carcass and confirming its identity, they burst into laughter, their laughter growing sweeter and more delightful.

"Don't worry, don't be sad, stop laughing." Su Shaochu frowned.

"But the Emperor killed Susu!" Wuyou turned the blood-soaked bird in her palm. "So being naughty really can cause Susu to be killed by the Emperor!"

"Disobedience is one thing! Chu Chu was crushed to pieces!" Wu Chou looked at the bloody mess in his palm, only the blue wings were still discernible.

As the two sisters chatted, another burst of unrestrained laughter erupted. They appeared innocent and charming, yet their hands were covered in blood, and they were examining the bird carcass intently. The sight was chilling, but Su Shaochu felt a pang of sympathy and approached them.

"No worries, no sorrows." She gently held their hands, which were covered in the blood, and asked softly, "Do you really like Susu and Chuchu?"

They blinked, smiled, and nodded.

"Then why laugh? Be sad for them, cry your heart out, and then bury them."

"Cry!" Wuyou shook her head vigorously. "His Majesty said that our voices are beautiful, and if we want to be by his side, we must often make happy sounds, otherwise it will be useless."

Wuchou nodded vigorously. "His Majesty said that he hates crying and whining the most, and that useless womanly sentimentality. Our beautiful voices can only be used for laughter, otherwise he will abandon us."

"We have no mother, and Uncle Dao is gone too. We cannot be without the Emperor."

"So His Majesty wants us to only laugh happily, and we can't cry."

"Don't worry, don't fret!" A pang of sadness gripped a certain part of her heart, and Su Shaochu said softly, "Just cry in my arms, away from Zhu Yu."

Their eyes trembled, their eyes reddened and tears welled up, but they held them back, shaking their heads and forcing smiles.

"No, if we cry, something will happen to the people we love. That's how Aunt Yan died." Thinking of Aunt Yan, who had cared for and protected them, Wu Chou's eyes reddened even more, and her tears welled up even more. However, the fear of the past made her dare not let the tears fall.

"Aunt Yan? Is that Lü Yanniang?" I remember there was a beautiful woman who had followed Zhu Yu for many years.

Wuyou and Wuchou nodded in unison.

"Is Lü Yanniang very good to you?"

Su Shaochu still remembered this woman who came from a prominent family in Nancheng, was extremely talented, and was famous for her beauty. When her husband committed a crime, she had an affair with the Third Prince Zhu Yu. When her husband was released, she was abandoned by his family, and her own family regarded her as shameless. After that, she ended up by Zhu Yu's side, finding some beautiful young men and women for Zhu Yu's amusement.

"Aunt Yan has always been very gentle and loving towards us. One night, she suddenly asked us if we wanted to recognize her as our mother and leave with her." Thinking of Lü Yanniang, Wuyou couldn't help but sob.

"Wuyou and I love her so much. Aunt Yan never says she doesn't want us. We thought that if we followed Aunt Yan, we would have a mother who would love us. Wuyou and I hugged her and cried happily, but then..." Thinking of this, Wuchou also became sad.

"The next morning, we found Aunt Yan's...body, lying by the garden lake!"

"The Emperor also told us that this is what happens if you are naughty or disobedient."

"No worries, no sorrows." Su Shaochu reached out and embraced them.

Recalling that scene, they were shocked to find that the person who loved them was dead when they woke up early in the morning. The woman who was willing to love them and be their mother was gone. They finally buried themselves in Su Shaochu's arms and cried bitterly!

"When we cried as children, only Aunt Yan and Steward Yan would pay attention to us." Aunt Yan would comfort them, and Steward Yan would give them some sweets.

"Feng Yan is alright, but he's very dull. He just stands there and watches us cry." That's why they usually tease Feng Yan the most.

"After Aunt Yan died, the Emperor said that if we only knew how to cry, we would no longer be allowed to stay in the Third Prince's Mansion."

"So we can't cry, or even the emperor won't want us anymore."

Su Shaochu patted the two sisters who were sobbing and choking.

"Young Master Su, we are afraid that if we cry, we won't be able to stay with you. We like you very much."

"Yes! We don't want to leave His Majesty's side, nor do we want to never see you again."

Worry-free and carefree choked with sobs as they each embraced her, their expressions filled with panic.

"You're afraid I'll get killed." Su Shaochu sighed. "Don't worry! It won't happen anytime soon." Zhu Yu isn't going to kill me yet, since I haven't had enough of torturing this toy.

The two sisters shook their heads.

"You are different from Aunt Yan, and you hold a different place in the Emperor's heart. We are afraid that if we get too close to Young Master Su, and you are not good to the Emperor, the Emperor will send us away. We don't want to never see you again."

"That's right! After serving His Majesty for so many years, we can see that His Majesty treats you very differently."

The two maids couldn't think of a proper way to describe the interactions and emotions between men and women, as well as the subtle relationship between their master and Su Shaochu, and could only repeatedly emphasize that it was different.

"I understand. I have my own way of handling things between you and your master." Su Shaochu smiled and gently patted their heads. "Good girls, let's bury Su Su and Chu Chu in your hands together. After you two wash up, could you please get me a change of clothes?"

Only then did the two realize that the bird carcasses in their hands, with their bloodstains all over themselves and Su Shaochu, were startled and quickly let go, no longer daring to hold her.

Su Shaochu patted them, tore off a piece of his sleeve, and took the bird carcasses from their hands.

"Did you already know that the Emperor was your biological father?" she asked as she finished wrapping up the two bird carcasses. She recalled that when she spoke with Zhu Yu earlier, the two of them showed no surprise.

For the first time, he remained calm and unperturbed, offering no response, which was tantamount to acquiescence.

"When did you find out?"

After another brief silence, the older Wuyou finally answered.

"These are the words of the Emperor himself, spoken during my first year in the Imperial Palace."

"But His Majesty said we can't call him Father, we can only call him Master." Wuchou muttered and pouted, "Unless we are always very obedient and well-behaved, then we will be allowed to call him Father in the future." They had always tried their best to be "well-behaved" as their master wanted, but their master always smiled and didn't say anything. He would only listen to them and let them act cute when he was happy.

Seeing Zhu Yu's attitude of treating the children born out of wedlock as a source of excitement and enjoyment, clearly treating these things as a show, Su Shaochu was utterly disheartened.

"So, did he mention your biological mother?"

"His Majesty said it's not necessary." Wuyou shook her head.

"Because you weren't born with it, you don't need it!"

The naive response made Su Shaochu grit his teeth.