Madam Zhen's smile turned cold and cruel as she looked at him and Yue Mingxuan's entire body chilled. A wave of helplessness and sadness suddenly filled his chest.
He had been thrown into this strange world for no reason, only to face a group of vicious women who seemed to take pleasure in destroying others. Were these women truly so cruel that they found joy in crushing him? Even in the modern world, the poisonous snakes and wild beasts he once faced during missions were far kinder than these people.
So this was what the struggle inside the imperial harem was like, it's bloody, merciless, and cruel beyond imagination.
Today, he had no one to rely on. If he admitted to losing his virtue, he would carry that shame forever and his engagement would surely be canceled. But if he refused to admit it, even if he was still innocent, once Madam Zhen performed her so-called "inspection," she would definitely ruin his reputation anyway.
He let out a cold laugh, his icy gaze sweeping across the room from Rong Tieshan, to the silent nobles, and finally resting on the Emperor, who still pretended to be asleep. If even the Emperor refused to speak, how could he expect anyone else to defend him?
At that moment, Rong Tieshan accidentally met Yue Mingxuan's eyes and for a second, he froze.
In those clear, cold eyes, there was a hint of sorrow, it's a faint, silent pain that tugged at something deep in his chest.
Those eyes that was pure and bright as the moon struck him harder than he could have imagined. He had never realized before that Yue Mingxuan possessed such beautiful eyes. The eyes that was so breathtaking that they could shake a person's heart.
And in that moment, Rong Tieshan read something he had never seen before in Yue Mingxuan's gaze. It was determination, sharp and unyielding.
He suddenly understood that whatever Yue Mingxuan was about to do next might change the fate of both their nations.
Yue Mingxuan quickly turned his eyes toward his father, the Emperor. From beginning to end, the Emperor sat with his eyes closed, as if resting and showing no concern for what was happening. Yet Yue Mingxuan could clearly understand the Emperor's true thoughts beneath that calm appearance.
"Please wait, Mother Consort," Rong Tieshan suddenly stood up and bowed deeply. "This son believes that Yue Mingxuan has a point. Since there is no evidence, we cannot convict the Fifth Prince. Moreover, if a body inspection were to be done and word spread, it would not only bring great humiliation to the Fifth Prince but also make our royal family seem unjust."
"Tieshan, what are you doing?" Concubine Hua was shocked. The plan had almost succeeded, yet her own son suddenly interrupted it. She stood up anxiously, her tone sharp and hurried. "He agreed to the inspection himself! What does that have to do with us?"
"I believe the Fifth Prince is innocent. Let this matter end here," Rong Tieshan said calmly while glancing briefly at Concubine Hua before turning to look at the Emperor.