017 Threat and Fear

Outside the door, Duan Nanyu was standing there, sunlight streaming down upon his tall figure, so dazzling that Yun Xueyan's eyes ached from the glare. His handsome and cold face was tinged with anger, his icy gaze piercing right through her.

His sudden appearance had taken her completely by surprise—she had not expected him to show up now. The fury that had just consumed Yun Xueyan was instantly smothered by the chill he exuded.

Yet she still lifted her chin, meeting the face before her that seemed poised to devour her whole.

“My lord…” The silence was broken by Yun Xiyin’s trembling, fearful voice, her eyes filled with innocence as she looked at Duan Nanyu, who stood behind her. She wasn't feigning helplessness; she had truly been frightened just now.

He helped Yun Xiyin up and handed her to Yicui. “Take the princess consort back to Junyu Pavilion and call for a doctor to see if she’s been hurt.” After giving these instructions, his tall, straight figure slowly turned, casting a cold look at Yun Xueyan, who stood motionless in place.

The stubborn resolve in her eyes only fueled his rage.

Fortunately, he had arrived just in time. Otherwise, how could Yun Xiyin possibly stand up to this woman before him? Where did she find the audacity to bully the woman he favored?

“You—” In a few swift steps, he closed the distance between them. Staring down at her petite form, his eyes narrowed to slits, his chill only deepening. He seized her chin in his fingers, gripping her with such force that he didn’t lighten his hold in the least for her being a woman. “What did you just do to Yin’er?”

Pain pinched her brow, but the exposed eye on one side of her face bore into him unflinchingly. He was terrifying, but she could not yield to him now.

If she showed fear, it would be an admission of guilt—yet she had done nothing wrong.

Seeing the resolve in her eyes, his anger surged entirely to the surface, and his interrogation came through gritted teeth, voice icy and sharp. “If you’re tired of living, just say so!”

“I want to live, but that doesn’t mean I will submit without reason. My lord, I touched the woman you love, so you come to champion her—I have no complaint.”

Beneath her sleeve, her fingers curled slowly, struggling to control her nerves and keep her body from betraying its tremors and revealing her inner fear.

How many could face a man like him and not be afraid?

“I saw it with my own eyes—do you think I could be mistaken? Or are you suggesting to me that Yin’er simply fell to the ground herself?” He gave a low, disdainful laugh, tightening his grip on her chin. “Don’t make me ruin this side of your face as well!”

Her knees buckled, and Yun Xueyan’s body slumped, yet Duan Nanyu’s hand on her chin yanked her upright—the pressure so fierce it seemed he would shatter her jaw.

She thought, with just a little more force, her chin might indeed be broken.

A tide of terror surged within her, battering her until her body went limp and aching. There was nothing left to fear about the ruined half of her face.

But she could not—she could not allow the other side to be destroyed as well. She could not endure that nightmare again.

All her life, she had suffered humiliation and ridicule, had woken from countless nightmares before finally learning to accept this half of her face.

She could not remember how her face had been ruined; she only knew that when she awoke, it had already been so…

Her thoughts began to drift, her mind swelling with pain, the agony in her chin the only thing anchoring her to consciousness.

“A vicious woman will never meet a good end!” With those words, he let go of her chin, flinging Yun Xueyan to the ground.

Duan Nanyu did not help her up. Instead, he slowly crouched down beside her.