Escape for Their Lives
After Lily finished speaking, Charles Hayes murmured in his sleep, as if he was about to wake up. Lily quickly turned back, kept patting her son and softly sang a lullaby, and only then did Charles settle down.
Alexander Hayes watched Lily coax their son with such care, took a deep breath, and suppressed the fire burning inside him.
He knew that with Charles here, he and Lily couldn’t get close. If they woke their son up in the middle of the night, it was better not to bother at all.
So Alexander tiptoed out of bed, went to the bathroom nearby, looked down at his hands, and gave a helpless, bitter smile.
Forget it, forget it. Tonight, I’ll let my left and right pillows keep me company instead.
After all, it was he who planted the seed, and now the child is born—this father has to put up with that little rascal hogging Lily.
"Hmph, just wait till An’er marries and has a son of his own. Then he’ll know his old man’s suffering… little rascal…"
===
House of Zhao
Mrs. Penny Zhao had been scolding those useless servants from dinner all the way until nightfall, berating them for their laziness.
"My husband and father-in-law died just days ago, and this is how you treat me!? What are you feeding me and my son—food not even fit for pigs and dogs!" Mrs. Penny Zhao, furious, swept the entire table of dishes to the floor.
The servant serving the meal sneered, "Mrs. Penny Zhao, you should be grateful you have anything to eat at all. Why are you throwing a tantrum? Look around—these are hard times. You want abalone and bear paw at every meal? Ordinary folks can’t afford that! Your husband’s dead, who’s got silver to improve your menu? Whatever everyone else eats, you and your son eat the same. Stop acting like you’re still the magistrate’s wife!"
Mrs. Penny Zhao trembled with rage, her usual arrogance shaken. She was so used to lording it over the servants that she never spared them a second thought.
But now, a mere lowly servant dared to talk back to her!
Furious, Mrs. Penny Zhao raised her hand to slap him, but the servant caught her arm and shoved her back, sending her sprawling onto the floor.
The servant glared at her, his voice dripping with sarcasm: "Your brain really isn't working, is it? Your dead husband and father-in-law got themselves killed for offending Prince Alexander Hayes. Now, everyone in Anchester fears him! Tomorrow, the Zhao clan will hold a family meeting right at the gates of Qin Palace. Everyone’s desperate to cut ties with you and your son—what are you still putting on airs for? Tsk tsk, eat this meal if you want, but it’s your last…"
Mrs. Penny Zhao jolted. "What do you mean, last meal?"
The servant realized he’d said too much, clamped a hand over his mouth, and snapped, "Nothing! Eat if you want—I’m done serving you!"
With that, he stormed out and slammed the door behind him. When Mrs. Penny Zhao tried to chase after him, she found the door locked!
"You—you fair-weather traitors! Are you really going to hand me and my son over to Prince Alexander as rebels tomorrow?" Mrs. Penny Zhao suddenly felt cold all over. Her mind cleared bit by bit as she turned to look at her six-year-old son, murmuring, "No, I can't die. My son is only six. We can't die like this!"
Late at night, a torrential rain poured down. Two figures—one big, one small—slipped out of the Zhao estate under cover of darkness, escorted by several of Mrs. Penny Zhao’s loyal servants, fleeing southeast toward the Penny family’s home.
Qin Palace.
"Your Majesty, Mrs. Penny Zhao and her son have fled with a few servants. The Zhao clan is chasing them down—they clearly don’t want the mother and son to make it back alive." Sean Hayes, dressed in his nightclothes, stood outside the hall, listening to the report. Prince Alexander Hayes said calmly, "Send someone to tail them. Spare one of the Penny servants and secretly protect him until he reaches the Penny family to deliver the news. Let the Penny family know that Mrs. Penny Zhao and her son were killed by the Zhao clan while fleeing."