Chapter 40 The Power of the Secret Weapon

"How dare you humiliate me again and again? I—I'll kill you, you bitch!" Yan Rulan gnashed her teeth in fury. As the legitimate eldest daughter of the General's Manor and a favored daughter of the heavens, when had she ever suffered such indignity? Moreover, every word Yan Ziyu spoke was entirely true, which only served to drive her into a rage of shame and anger. Glaring viciously at Yan Ziyu, she burned with fury.

"Sister Ziyu, you must know that trouble stems from the mouth. It is better not to speak carelessly of certain things, lest you bring harm upon yourself and others!" Mo Yunhao held the incandescent Yan Rulan, offered a few words of low comfort, and then looked coldly up at Yan Ziyu.

"If you do not do shameful things in broad daylight, you needn't fear ghosts knocking at your door at midnight! My conscience is clear, so what is there that I dare not say? As for the Second Young Master Mo, after committing such heinous and conscience-less deeds, do you never have nightmares at night? Or perhaps you are so accustomed to it that not even nightmares can startle you awake?" A sharp glint flashed through Yan Ziyu's eyes. It seemed Mo Yunhao was somewhat more formidable than she had imagined; her words had failed to provoke him at all. Indeed, he was far from being a mere dissolute young master.

Watching the endless bickering, Madame Yan intended to step forward and stop them, but General Yan stopped her with a glance.

This subtle action did not escape the keen eyes of the Sixth Madame. She smiled knowingly, sat aside, and silently watched the unfolding drama. Seeing this, the other madones also remained silent, letting Mo Yunhao and Yan Ziyu push the atmosphere to a breaking point.

Yan Ziyu took in every detail of General Yan and the others' reactions. A cold, sardonic glint flashed in her eyes. This General's Manor was truly fascinating. It seemed that old fox of a General Yan still harbored deep suspicions toward Mo Yunhao and intended to use her as a testing stone to probe Mo Yunhao's depths. How very clever of him.

With a swift shift of thought, before Mo Yunhao and the others could speak, she changed the subject. "Those who commit too many evil deeds should beware of retribution. Who knows upon whom that retribution will fall? It is entirely possible it might strike the next generation." She deliberately stared at Yan Rulan's abdomen, the corners of her lips curling into a mocking smile.

She deliberately sought to provoke the couple, stabbing ruthlessly at their most sensitive spots.

"Yan Ziyu, if you dare curse the child in my womb for even half a sentence more, I—I, Yan Rulan, will fight you to the bitter end!" Yan Rulan's eyes were red with fury. The child in her womb was the precious treasure she had prayed for years to have, the very flesh of her heart, her ultimate taboo. Yet every single sentence of Yan Ziyu's seemed aimed directly at her unborn child, driving her beyond the limits of her endurance.

At this, Yan Ziyu let out a cold snort. "Do you really think that after all the things you have done to me, we could peacefully coexist? A fight to the bitter end? What a fine phrase. Things between us have long been thus, and rightly so."

"Furthermore, while I am magnanimous, decorum cannot be forsaken. I must trouble you to remember your own status, and not forget mine either. Is the title of a Prince's Consort something you can casually toss about in threats? Out of regard for General Yan, I shall overlook your discourtesy this very once, but... let there be no next time! You must know that the crime of humiliating a member of the imperial family can implicate one's entire clan. The Second Young Master's wife should choose her words more carefully in the future; it would be most unpleasant if something unfortunate were to happen."

Invoking her status as a Prince's Consort was not merely to warn Yan Rulan, but also to remind the people of the General's Manor that regardless of whether she had been cast aside or discarded, she remained a current Prince's Consort, and angering her was by no means a wise choice.

Yan Rulan's complexion turned immensely ugly. Staring fixedly at her, she ground her teeth and spat out every single word. "I have engraved this humiliation in my heart. One day, I shall collect it back with interest, and make you kneel and beg me—Consort Xiao!"

"Then this Consort shall await that day. I am somewhat fatigued and will return to my chambers to rest. Unless something happens, no one is to disturb me." Ignoring her words entirely, Yan Ziyu dropped the bland remark and prepared to leave.

"Halt! Apologize to your Second Sister and Second Brother-in-law."

General Yan, who had remained silent all this while, stopped Yan Ziyu and directly commanded her to apologize to Mo Yunhao and Yan Rulan.

In General Yan's eyes, Yan Ziyu was the very definition of uselessness, possessing zero value whatsoever.

"Apologize? On what grounds?" A trace of cold light flashed in Yan Ziyu's eyes, the corners of her mouth curling upward with a heavy dose of disdain.

"On the grounds that I am your father, and I command you to apologize to them." General Yan's cold gaze swept over her as his stern voice rang out.

Yan Ziyu's indifferent face betrayed a trace of sorrow, which instantly gave way to a cold, mocking sneer. This was the father she had been given in this lifetime.

"Ha... hahahaha... What does it mean to be utterly shameless? Today I have finally witnessed it. A dignified general can actually be shameless to such a degree, without even fearing becoming the laughingstock of others." Yan Ziyu suddenly burst into laughter, pointing her index finger directly at General Yan with a cold chuckle.

"You rebellious wretch, cease your wild babbling!" General Yan roared angrily, slamming his palm against the table and glaring fiercely at Yan Ziyu.

Facing General Yan's fury and ferocious glare, Yan Ziyu let out a disdainful snort. "If you hadn't forcefully abducted Ruier, do you think I would ever have returned to this wretched place? Hmph, a grand general actually resorting to such base tactics against his own daughter—General Yan is truly formidable, what an imposing spirit!"

*Bang!*

General Yan shattered the table with a single blow, a fierce glint flashing in his eyes. "Men! Consort Xiao is feeling unwell; escort her back to her chambers to rest. Without my permission, no one is allowed to visit."

"Understood, My Lord!" At General Yan's command, the guards of the manor hastily stepped forward, intending to 'escort' Yan Ziyu away.

The same old trick, Yan Ziyu sneered inwardly.

If he simply wanted to place her under house arrest, why bother wrapping it in such high-sounding pretexts?

"Resting can wait; this Consort happens to have something she wishes to show the General..." Lowering her head, Yan Ziyu emptied several black, thumb-sized beads from the pouch at her waist. With a curl of her lips, she lobbed one of them viciously onto the ground right by the doorway...

*Boom!*

With a deafening explosion, the marble-paved floor was blasted into a waist-deep crater. The nearby cabinets, doors, and windows were completely blown to splinters, wood chips flying everywhere. The tremendous blast nearly left General Yan and the others deafened. Even so, the sheer destructive power of the small object Yan Ziyu had tossed gave them a profound shock!

Looking at the dumbfounded crowd, Yan Ziyu curled her lips into a cold smile. "Well? Is General Yan satisfied with this little gift?"

As she spoke, she casually toyed with the remaining few makeshift hand grenades in her hand, leaving the hearts of General Yan and the others suspended in mid-air. They lived in terror that she might accidentally drop one, leaving all their lives forfeit on the spot.

"W-What is this thing?" General Yan asked, harboring a deep sense of dread toward the items in her hand, his voice entirely altered.

"Just some trifles I whipped up for fun. The hour is getting late; perhaps General Yan should consider letting Ruier return to the manor with me? Of course, if the General is too busy, you needn't trouble yourself—I can simply search room by room on my own. I still have quite a few of these things left." She unhooked the pouch from her waist, weighed it in her hand, and maintained her pretty, smiling expression.

This formula was something she had translated from an ancient silk scroll obtained at an auction. It contained no maps to secret treasures, nor any martial arts manuals; what it recorded were formulas and chemical compositions completely incomprehensible to the people of this world. Due to the differences in time and space, many original materials could not be found here, but the scroll meticulously detailed exact substitutes. And the item recorded on that scroll was none other than a military weapon of terrifying destructive power from her past life—the hand grenade!

Though a makeshift version, in this age of cold weapons, it was more than enough.

Especially now, mastering the production method of this item gave her the capital to take control of her own destiny.

"You—!"

General Yan was boiling with rage, yet he dared not treat her as he had before, which only fueled his inner fury all the more.

"Men, go and escort the Young Master here." Having no other choice, General Yan compromised with her.

Soon, Ruier was brought in. Upon catching sight of Yan Ziyu, he bounded over full of life...

"Mother... Ruier missed you so much..." Ruier lunged forward, wrapping his arms tightly around Yan Ziyu's neck, rubbing his soft little face against hers, smiling with utter bliss.

"Ruier, are you alright? Did anyone bully you? Are you hurt anywhere..." Seeing that Ruier was safe and sound, Yan Ziyu finally let out a breath of relief. She grabbed him, spun him around on the ground, and inspected him from head to toe for any hidden injuries.

Ruier shook his head, his rosy little face beaming with a bright, milky smile as he spoke in a soft, sweet voice, "Ruier is fine, I just missed Mother. He was a bad man; he made Ruier stay in the woodshed. Mother, let's ignore him. Take Ruier home to sleep, okay? Ruier is so sleepy..."

"Alright, Mother will take Ruier back to sleep." Yan Ziyu's face darkened. It was going too far—actually locking a four-year-old child in a freezing woodshed for an entire night! It was utterly intolerable!

Taking a deep breath to steady her temper, Yan Ziyu scooped up Ruier in her arms and turned to face General Yan. "Since General Yan is being so hospitable, as a junior I cannot be impolite. I shall stay and trouble the General for a few days with Ruier."

What did she mean by this?

General Yan furrowed his brow, failing to grasp the underlying meaning of her words.

"Oh, by the way, judging by the weather, it's going to rain over the next few days. General Yan should pick your moments carefully when going out, and pay special attention during thunderstorms—make sure you aren't struck by lightning." Dropping these cold words, Yan Ziyu scooped up Ruier and turned to leave, leaving her slender, snow-white silhouette imprinted in everyone's line of sight.

"My Lord, that little wretch is simply too arrogant! She doesn't put you in her eyes at all..."

Madame Yan desperately wished for Yan Ziyu to meet a miserable end outside. Every time she heard of Yan Ziyu suffering and being mistreated at the Prince's Manor, her heart took immense delight. Yet now, the girl had come here to flaunt her dominance right before her face, leaving Madame Yan choked with an unbearable wave of frustration and wrath.

"Silence! I have my own plans!" General Yan barked coldly. Watching Yan Ziyu's receding back, his gaze grew dark and icy, radiating a chilling aura.

That little bitch looked more and more like her bitch of a mother. That gaze, that expression, that tone of voice were the exact spitting image of her mother in her youth... A fleeting trace of tenderness flickered in the depths of General Yan's eyes, only to be instantly replaced by an even more terrifying, bone-chilling frost. His gaze, brimming with murderous intent, made him appear incomparably ferocious and terrifying.