Chapter 213: The Mad Prince

The Crown Prince’s residence had become a prison, more mental than physical. All the doors were locked, but they were just the same as the particular memory that kept looping in his mind—ultimately trapping him in a reality that was far from the truth.

Guards stood at every entrance, and even the servants who brought food were searched before entering. No one was permitted to leave or enter with Empress Lihua’s approval.

Days had bled into weeks and weeks into months for me. In all of it he barely slept, his reality more haunting than his nightmares. Even food was a wasted bland material in his mouth.

No one could recognize the handsome prince he had once been, his cheeks sagging into circular hollows in his face.

Every morning he sat beside the window, staring through the narrow gap between the curtains at the courtyard beyond.

Ru Yi.

Every thought returned to her, every breath he took seemed to carry her name.

"Ru Yi..." His voice was hoarse from lack of use, his palms pressing into the hard planes of his face.

"Where did you go?"

His mind replayed the last moments he had seen her back in the cold cell of the palace. No...it was back in the royal court during her trial.

Her face.

Her eyes.

The way she had looked at him. But in all of it she had left and taken his child with her. Their unborn child.

His hand instinctively moved to his chest. "I’ll find you." His voice trembled. "I swear I’ll find you."

A knock sounded at the door and Zhao Chen immediately stood. "Ru Yi?"

The door opened. A young palace maid entered carrying a tray of breakfast. She lowered her head into a small bow. "Your Highness."

Zhao Chen’s expression fell. He looked at the tray, then at her. "I don’t want it."

"Your Highness, her Majesty, ordered that you must eat."

"Take it away."

The maid swallowed.

"Please, Your Highness. You haven’t eaten properly in three days." More like in months. Even the maids were seeing how much he was wasting away before everyone’s eyes.

"I said take it away."

She hesitated.

Zhao Chen turned toward the door. "I need to leave. My wife and child...they’re waiting for me."

The maid quickly stepped in front of him. "Your Highness, you cannot."

"Move."

She stood her ground. "I cannot." She would be thoroughly punished if he escaped from his room.

His eyes darkened. "I am the Crown Prince."

"And Her Majesty has ordered that you remain inside."

"Move."

The maid shook her head.

Zhao Chen pushed past her and she stumbled backward, the breakfast tray crashing to the floor. Porcelain shattered, the sound echoing through the room.

"Your Highness!"

Zhao Chen reached for the door but it was locked. He grabbed the handle and pulled violently. "Open it!"

The guards outside immediately reacted. "Your Highness, please return inside."

"I said open the door!" He struck the wooden door with his fist. "I have to leave!"

The maid hurried toward him. "Your Highness, please!"

Zhao Chen spun around. "I have to find her!" His eyes were wild. "She is out there waiting for me!" He pointed toward the locked doors. "She’s somewhere out there, carrying my child..."

His voice cracked. "I have to bring her back."

The maid stared at him, unblinking and almost afraid.

Zhao Chen’s breathing became uneven. "She must be frightened." He lowered his voice. "She has no idea where to go. She doesn’t know who she can trust." His eyes filled with desperation. "And she’s carrying our child."

The maid slowly shook her head, she knew not to be carried away by his grand delusions. "Your Highness..."

"You don’t understand." He grabbed her shoulders in a grip so tight it was surprising. "She is the woman I love. No one can replace her."

The maid flinched.

"I love her." He released her. "I love her so much." His voice broke on the final words. He stumbled backward until his knees struck the edge of the bed. Then he sank onto it.

"I shouldn’t have let her go." His hands trembled. "I should have protected her."

The maid looked at him helplessly. Outside, the guards remained silent.

Zhao Chen stared at the floor. "She probably thinks I abandoned her." He shook his head. "No."

His eyes suddenly hardened with determination. "She wouldn’t leave me." He stood again. "Someone took her."

The maid frowned. "Your Highness—"

"Someone must have forced her to run away from me." His thoughts were becoming frantic. "Maybe she’s injured."

He looked toward the door again. "She needs me." He rushed forward.

The guards immediately blocked the entrance when the doors were opened from outside. "Your Highness!"

"Get out of my way!"

"Her Majesty’s orders—"

"I don’t care about her orders!"

The guards exchanged uneasy looks.

Zhao Chen pushed against them. "I am going to find Ru Yi!"

One guard caught his arm. "Please calm yourself."

Zhao Chen violently pulled free. "Don’t touch me!" His eyes were red. "Do you know what she’s carrying?"

The guards said nothing.

"My child." His voice shook. "My child is out there." He looked between them. "And the woman I love is alone."

One of the guards lowered his gaze. "Your Highness, Her Majesty believes Lady Ru Yi is dangerous." It was a well practised lie they’d told him over and over again.

"She isn’t!" Zhao Chen shouted. "She would never hurt me!" His breathing became ragged. "She wouldn’t hurt our child."

The guards remained firm.

Zhao Chen looked toward the courtyard. For one brief moment, he seemed to see Ru Yi standing there. Her hair moving in the wind. Her eyes looked toward him.

He whispered her name. "Ru Yi..."

Then he stepped forward. "I have to save her."

The guards blocked him again.

Zhao Chen fought them. He struck at their arms, shoved against their shoulders, desperately trying to force his way through. "Let me go!"

"Your Highness!"

"I need to find her!" His voice echoed through the residence. "I need to bring her home!"

Two guards finally restrained him. Zhao Chen struggled until his strength failed. Then he went still.

His head dropped. "Please..." The word was barely audible. "Just let me see her."

Silence.

"I’ll apologize." His shoulders trembled. "I’ll beg if I have to." He closed his eyes. "I don’t care about the throne."

The guards looked at him.

"I don’t care about the crown." His voice cracked. "I just want Ru Yi." He sank slowly to the floor. "I want the woman I love."

His hand moved protectively over his abdomen, as though somehow he could protect the unborn child through the gesture.

"Our child..." He whispered. "I need to find them."

The maid stood several steps away, tears gathering in her eyes. Right now Zhao Chen wasn’t the crown prince. Not the future ruler of the kingdom. He was just a man who had lost the woman he loved.

A man who could think of nothing else. A man who believed that somewhere beyond those locked doors, Ru Yi was waiting for him.

Zhao Chen looked toward the door one last time. "I’ll find you, Ru Yi." His voice was quiet now. "But even if the entire kingdom stands against me..."

His eyes hardened. "I will come for you."