A Marriage in Name Only? My Stepbrother Won't Let Me Go Chapter 173: Cry Your Daddy Awake

With i Wanying’s life on the line, Pei Yan dared not make a single rash move.

He tested Pei Yu’s defenses, inching closer and closer until he finally found the perfect opening.

The window of opportunity was fleeting; there was no ti for hesitation.

Pei Yan sprinted toward i Wanying, moving faster than he ever had in his life.

Faster.

Even faster.

’If anything happens to Ah Yin, I won’t go on living without her.’

’The days without her were agonizingly, bone-chillingly cold. He would never go through that again!’

"Your Highness!"

The Hidden Guards’ hearts nearly stopped as they watched Pei Yan’s figure vanish over the edge with i Wanying.

They were all highly trained, having survived life-or-death battles to earn the right to serve by Pei Yan’s side.

Yet in that mont, not a single one of them could match his speed.

Soone grabbed i Wanying, and the sensation of falling abruptly lessened. She gasped for air, her heart still pounding with terror.

After that trip to death’s door, she was drenched in a cold sweat, as if she’d been subrged in water.

Her heart hamred against her ribs, threatening to burst from her chest.

Tears stread down i Wanying’s face. She looked up through her blurry vision and saw Pei Yan’s tightly clenched jaw.

He was straining so hard that the veins on his neck bulged.

Pei Yan had caught her, but he’d also managed to grab hold of a pine tree growing from a fissure in the rock face.

The branch was groaning, ready to snap at any mont.

i Wanying’s hands were bound; she couldn’t help even if she wanted to.

To lower Pei Yu’s guard, Pei Yan had dislocated one of his own arms.

Now he was holding her, bearing both their weights. The re thought of it made i Wanying ache in sympathy.

She slled the acrid scent of blood and saw a dark red stain spreading across Pei Yan’s robes.

A sticky fluid sared against her cheek. The tallic scent filled her nostrils—it was his blood.

’He’s hurt.’

’Badly hurt.’

i Wanying wanted to ask if he was in pain, but her throat felt like it was clogged with sothing, and she couldn’t utter a single word.

All she could do was cry.

’What was he thinking, chasing off a cliff without a mont’s hesitation?’

’How could she possibly hate him, detest him, or be annoyed with him after this?’

’The man who had left her to fend for herself in the rear courtyard, who had shown her no tenderness even when she was carrying his child... that wasn’t the man before her now...’

’How was she supposed to face him after this?’

Hearing i Wanying’s tear-choked gasps, Pei Yan soothed her, "Don’t be afraid. I won’t let go."

"Just hold on a little longer. They’ll pull you up."

Pei Yan had brought more than enough n with him when he left the city, terrified he wouldn’t be able to protect i Wanying.

Thankfully, he hadn’t let her fall.

’We’ve faced death together this ti,’ Pei Yan thought. ’A bond like this deepens the connection between us.’

Pei Yan chuckled softly. "Ah Yin, you’ve helped eliminate a huge threat. That’s a life-saving favor. I’ll have to repay you by dedicating my life to you."

Through her blurry tears, i Wanying found herself crying even harder.

’Did he really have to say things like that at a ti like this?’

When Pei Yan’s guards arrived and saw that the two of them were still alive and not dashed on the rocks below, they let out a collective, heavy sigh of relief.

They quickly threw down several ropes. A few agile Hidden Guards rappelled down, securing Pei Yan and i Wanying.

"Get my lady up first."

Pei Yan’s tone was absolute, leaving no room for argunt.

i Wanying shot him a fierce glare. ’Even in a situation this dangerous, he’s still trying to get a one-up on with his words!’

Once she was pulled onto the clifftop, the ropes binding her hands were cut. All the strength left i Wanying’s body, and her limbs went weak.

Finally, she crumpled to the ground.

She was the woman Pei Yan had claid as his own. Barring exceptional circumstances, no one dared to touch her.

The Hidden Guards exchanged uncertain glances before tacitly looking away, leaving i Wanying on the ground.

’We’ll wait for His Highness to get up here before we decide anything...’

But they wouldn’t get a decision from Pei Yan. From the mont he learned Pei Yu had abducted i Wanying, his mind had been a raging storm.

The extre emotional turmoil had caused the latent poison in his system to flare up.

Pushing himself to save i Wanying had already taken him far beyond his physical limits.

Seeing i Wanying safe, Pei Yan finally allowed himself to relax—and promptly lost consciousness.

This was the first ti i Wanying had ever seen him look so fragile.

He looked even more vulnerable than the last ti the poison had flared.

Even an unard person could have taken his life in that state.

i Wanying’s mind went blank, her heart leaping into her throat. "Get a physician, quick!"

He was wounded; they needed a physician here imdiately.

...

At the old residence, Mrs. i prayed day and night for the safe return of i Wanying and Pei Yan.

They had been gone for many days with no word. Ling had lost weight from the ordeal, and Mrs. i had sprouted countless new white hairs from worry.

Ling lay on a playmat, a rattle-drum and a cloth tiger resting beside her.

When Wanying was around, the baby was always lively, her little head turning this way and that as she waved her arms and kicked her feet.

But now, Ling’s round eyes were fixed on the doorway, unblinking.

She wasn’t crying or fussing. She just stared, vacant. The sight was enough to break Mrs. i’s heart.

She gathered her granddaughter into her arms, rocking her gently. "Just a little longer, sweet girl. Your mommy and daddy will be back safe and sound."

’The General spent his life performing good deeds, accumulating so much good fortune for Ah Yin. Ah Yin will surely live to be a hundred!’

At the words "mommy and daddy," Ling twisted her head to look toward the door again.

Seeing no one there, a look of disappointnt actually crossed her tiny face.

Mrs. i’s heart ached all the more.

If her little granddaughter hadn’t needed her, she might have lost control and gone searching for her daughter outside the city herself.

’If they were to die, they would die together. She would never let Ah Yin face danger alone again.’

"Madam, the young lady is back!" an old maidservant cried, running in. "The young lady has returned! She’s back, and she’s alive!"

"That traitor is dead! His body was brought back to the city, and now everyone knows! His Highness and Ling were frad!"

"His Highness saved the entire city! If not for his wisdom, that traitor would have destroyed us all!"

Mrs. i shot to her feet, overjoyed. "Ling, your mommy is really back!"

’That’s all that matters!’

A baby couldn’t understand words, but she could understand tone.

She could feel her grandmother’s joy.

Her little mouth moved, letting out a stream of babbles. Her tiny arms and legs kicked with all their might, as if she were trying to go welco her mother.

Ling was like a wriggling fish; Mrs. i could barely hold on to her.

Ding Xiang took the baby. "Madam, I want to go and greet the young lady."

Mrs. i declared, "We’ll all go!"

Nanny Liu imdiately went to support Mrs. i, and the group hurried toward the manor’s entrance.

When she saw Pei Yan being carried into the manor, unconscious and hovering between life and death, Mrs. i’s heart sank.

"Where is Ah Yin? Is she hurt?"

i Wanying, who was a step behind, ordered the n to take Pei Yan to the guest courtyard. "Mother, I’m fine."

She was terrified, but Pei Yan was the one bleeding and injured. As was her habit, Wanying reported only the good news and hid the bad.

Before she could say another word, the little baby in Ding Xiang’s arms puckered her lips and burst into tears.

She reached out her arms, wanting i Wanying to hold her.

Seeing that her daughter had gotten thinner, i Wanying’s heart broke.

She took the baby and tried to soothe her for a long while, but she couldn’t get Ling to stop crying.

i Wanying held the child upright, gently patting her back. The little one clung tightly to her neck, sobbing inconsolably.

Tears, snot, and drool sared all over i Wanying.

The baby’s cries were a storm of heartbreak and grievance.

After a long ti, i Wanying took out a handkerchief and wiped Ling’s tears.

"Co on," she murmured. "Let’s go cry your daddy awake."