Many children, many blessings; a stunningly beautiful wife is given to you right from the start.

Wenruo felt her knees were a little weak.

He leaned against a pillar, panting heavily. His scholar's robe was soaked with cold sweat and clung stickily to his body.

The person was saved.

The prince's darling, the son-in-law of the southern border... Bah!

The Baiyue warriors from southern Xinjiang were finally pulled back from the mine gate.

He straightened up shakily, straightened his appearance, and tried to regain some of the demeanor of a chief strategist.

But when his gaze met Lin Mo's ambiguous smile again, the composure he had just regained vanished instantly.

No.

We can't leave.

We absolutely cannot leave the princess alone in this den of wolves!

This guy surnamed Lin looks harmless, but he's actually a ruthless demon who eats people without spitting out the bones.

If this naive and innocent princess stays here, she'll probably be reduced to nothing in less than three days.

Having figured this out, Wenruo steeled her heart and took another step.

He didn't look at Lin Mo again, but walked straight to Xia Man'er.

"Princess."

Wenruo bowed deeply.

"Since you insist on staying here for some time, this old minister... feels obligated to do so and dares not leave."

"This old minister humbly requests to remain by your side and protect you."

Xia Man'er was clinging to Lin Mo's arm, rubbing her little head against it, enjoying the sweet comfort of surviving a disaster.

Upon hearing this, her face immediately fell.

"don't want!"

"I don't want you following me! You're the most annoying one!"

"How can I play with Brother Lin Mo... how can I play with Brother Lin Mo with you here!"

Xia Man'er stamped her foot, her pretty face turning bright red.

She had finally escaped from that big cage in the southern border region, and hadn't even had enough time to get intimate with Brother Lin Mo, when this old fogey was about to ruin her good time.

None of the doors!

"Go back to the southern border quickly and tell my father that I'm doing very well here! Tell him to stop sending people to bother me!"

Wenruo bent down even lower.

"Princess, His Highness has ordered that if this old minister fails to bring you back safely, he shall be executed."

"Please...please have pity on this old man's bones..."

"I don't care!" Xia Man'er put her hands on her hips, her unreasonable temper flaring up again.

"You're not allowed to stay!"

"If you stay, you'll definitely tattle on me to my father every day! I'm not falling for that!"

Wenruo looked at Xia Man'er, who was resolute in her attitude, and then glanced at Lin Mo, who stood to the side with his hands in his pockets and a look of "it's none of my business, I'll just watch the show." She sighed inwardly.

Hey……

Soft methods won't work.

It's hard... but not as hard as it could be.

What kind of mess is this?!

Wenruo was a figure second only to the emperor in the Southern Frontier, a man whose every move could shake the Ten Thousand Mountains.

Now, we've been forced into this situation.

It seems... that's the only option left!

next second.

Wenruo's eyes suddenly became resolute, like a brave warrior about to go to the execution ground.

Under the astonished gaze of everyone.

"thump--"

Wenruo's old, cold legs suddenly bent, and he knelt firmly on the cold bluestone slab.

The entire courtyard fell silent instantly.

Everyone was stunned.

Including Lin Mo.

This old man... is he going all in?

Xia Man'er was startled and instinctively shrank behind Lin Mo.

"What...what are you doing! Get up!"

Wenruo, however, seemed not to hear.

He knelt on the ground, let out two dry howls, but couldn't shed a tear.

He simply covered his face with his sleeve, his shoulders trembled violently, and he let out a heart-wrenching sob.

"Princess...this old minister...this old minister has failed Your Highness's entrustment..."

The voice, trembling and choked with sobs, was like a candle flickering in the wind, about to be extinguished at any moment.

"Princess...this old man...this old man is suffering so much..."

"Back then, you were just a baby in swaddling clothes, and it was I... it was I who changed the first diaper for you!"

Xia Man'er's face flushed red instantly, all the way to her ears.

"You...you're lying! My dad said he switched them!"

"What does the prince... what does he know!"

Wenruo's voice suddenly rose, filled with resentment at being misunderstood.

"When you were three years old, you climbed a tree to steal birds' nests and broke your leg. The prince was so angry that he wanted to whip you. It was I who did it!"

It was only after I knelt outside the study for a whole day and night that His Highness calmed down!

"When you were five years old, you poisoned the Prince's beloved koi fish in his precious fishpond, killing his favorite koi king. The Prince punished you by confining you to your quarters for three months. It was I who did this!"

"It's me, this old man, who keeps you company all day playing cat's cradle to pass the time!"

"When you were ten years old, you secretly ran away to the Ten Thousand Gu Tower and were almost used as material for Gu refining by those madmen. You were also an old minister..."

They dragged you out of there with the help of Baiyue warriors!

Wenruo was in tears, and when she got emotional, she gently bumped her forehead against the ground, making a dull thud.

"This old minister... has no merit, but has certainly worked hard; and even if he hasn't worked hard... he's certainly tired..."

"Now that you've grown up and are heading towards your own happiness... this old, useless body of yours has become a burden in your eyes, something you despise... an old thing..."

"Waaaah... This old minister... This old minister's heart is filled with bitterness!"

Wenruo's combo was fluid, emotionally rich, and logically flawless.

Lin Mo watched with great interest.

Talent!

The dialogue, the emotions, the rhythm—it's a waste of talent if he's not a storyteller in a teahouse!

He realized that the old man's crying was fake, but his desire to stay was real.

Moreover, he accurately grasped Xia Man'er's weakness of being resistant to gentle persuasion but not to force, and directly launched a devastating attack—using his seniority and emotional blackmail.

Its destructive power is enormous.

Sure enough, Su Qingyue's face showed a look of reluctance.

Even Qin Ruxue's usually cold and aloof face showed a hint of emotion.

Only Liu Yiyi and Chu Mengyao watched with great interest, while Chu Mengyao analyzed the scene with a blank expression.

Xia Man'er was completely dumbfounded. She stared at Wen Ruo, who was kneeling on the ground crying with snot and tears streaming down her face, and was at a loss for what to do.

"You...you get up! So many people are watching, it's so embarrassing!"

Just as Xia Man'er was about to break down her defenses with this sob story, Wen Ruo used her trump card.

He abruptly stopped crying and slowly spoke in a sorrowful tone of profound realization.

"That's enough...that's enough!"

"Since the princess insists on this, and finds this old minister to be in the way..."

He stood up shakily, staggering as he moved toward the thickest mahogany pillar in the courtyard.

"Then how can this old minister...face to return to see His Highness!"

"How can you still have the face to live on in this world!"

"It would be better... to kill myself right here today! To repay the Prince's kindness in recognizing my talent! To uphold the name of this old minister's loyalty and righteousness over the past decades!"

While shouting slogans, Wenruo closed his eyes, raised his head, and aimed his whole body at the pillar like a fully drawn bow.

The way they looked made it seem like blood was about to spill out at any moment.

"No, no, no! Oh dear! Don't be impulsive!"

Xia Man'er was so frightened that her soul almost left her body. She rushed over and grabbed Wen Ruo's sleeve tightly.

"I was wrong! I was wrong, okay?!"

Xia Man'er was naive and inexperienced, and at that moment she felt that her brain was not working properly.

You can't hit them, you can't talk to them, and now you can't even cheat.

She tugged at Wenruo, turned back helplessly, and cast a pleading look at the only person in the courtyard who could give her a sense of security.

"Brother Lin Mo... what should we do?"