Chapter 169: Please, Save the Princess

After the winter solstice.

Xie Yingmian has been waiting for Xiao Lingxi to come.

Ever since she and Xiao Lingxi started working together to sell Tiger-Tiger Pills, Xiao Lingxi would come to her every now and then.

After a few interactions, she discovered that she and Xiao Lingxi shared the same interests and both liked to make money.

I don't know what went wrong,

When she was with Xiao Lingxi, she felt like she was interacting with her own sister.

When she gets along with her real sister Xie Baoyu, she only wants to give her two big pockets.

It's a magical feeling.

Xie Yingmian waited for four or five days, but Xiao Lingxi never showed up.

Xie Yingmian thought Xiao Lingxi was delayed by something and didn't take it to heart.

One afternoon.

Xiao Lingxi's maid Fu Fu stumbled to the gate of Prince Ling's mansion.

Before he could say anything, Fu Fu fainted.

The doorman recognized Fu Fu and hurried to report.

Xie Yingmian was discussing with Yu Lingye the issue of processing cassava flour into potato cakes.

Upon learning that Xiao Lingxi's maid had fainted at the door of Prince Ling's mansion, Xie Yingmian hurriedly had her brought in.

Xie Yingmian examined Fu Fu's body.

This inspection was really shocking.

Fu Fu was wearing winter clothes, and nothing could be seen from the outside. All that could be seen was that she looked very weak, covered in dust and looked a little disheveled.

Only when you lifted up Fu Fu's coat could you see that his clothes underneath were all torn.

There is almost no good meat on the back and buttocks.

Because of the long time that had passed, the flesh and clothing fragments stuck together, looking shocking.

Fu Fu still had a high fever and was so weak that he could die at any time.

Xie Yingmian immediately stuffed a heart-protecting pill into Fu Fu's mouth.

While Fu Fu was still unconscious, she asked Zhu Yue and several maids to clean Fu Fu's wound.

After the wound was treated, Fu Fu's fever subsided and he woke up slowly.

When Fu Fu saw Xie Yingmian, he immediately stood up.

As soon as she stood up, the wounds on her back and buttocks were affected. The wounds were in severe pain, and her face turned pale. She almost fainted.

"Don't move." Xie Yingmian held Fu Fu down. "What happened?"

Fu Fu burst into tears: "Princess Ling, please save the princess."

"The princess, the princess...she is about to die." She was completely emotionally broken and couldn't help but burst into tears.

I cried so hard that I couldn't utter a word.

Xie Yingmian was neither anxious nor urging.

There's no point in being anxious.

When people are in certain situations such as extreme fear or extreme sadness, they are simply unable to speak.

Fu Fu's spirit is on the verge of collapse and is in danger of collapsing at any time.

Only by venting a little and calming down can you ease up a little.

Fu Fu cried loudly for about a cup of tea before he was finally able to speak.

She cried and said:

"The princess, she attended the flower viewing banquet organized by Princess Lan Ning a few days ago."

"The flower viewing banquet was held on a pleasure boat, and below the boat was a lake. When the princess and her cousin were admiring the flowers together, the cousin pushed the princess, and she fell into the lake."

"It's so cold, and the lake is frozen. It shouldn't be a big deal if you fall in. At most you'll just fall."

"But the princess was unlucky. The ice she fell on was thin, and she fell into an ice hole."

"It was so cold, and it was difficult to rescue someone in the ice hole. By the time the princess was rescued, she had already developed a high fever and was unconscious."

"This servant was so frightened that she hurried to inform the county lord."

“But, but…”

Fu Fu's body was shaking, and her voice was filled with fear: "I will tell the prince that it was my cousin who pushed the princess, and that's why she fell into the lake."

"The princess and the prince are so affectionate, I believe the prince will definitely seek justice for the princess."

"But I never expected that the prince would not believe my story at all. He even lost his temper and accused me of neglecting my duty and causing the princess to suffer this disaster. He also tried to slander my cousin and ordered me to be beaten with thirty sticks."

"Thirty strokes of the cane, each one landed squarely on the ground. I felt like I was going to die."

"The county lord also thought that I was doomed, so they threw me into the woodshed."

"Prince Ling gave the princess two Heart-Protecting Pills earlier. The princess gave me one. I didn't want to die, so I ate the pill."

"When I regained consciousness, I didn't know how much time had passed. I was worried about the princess and wanted to go find her when I heard the conversation between the maids outside."

"A maid said that the princess is no longer alive. The mourning hall in the front yard has been set up, waiting for the princess to breathe her last."

"Another woman said that the princess should die sooner and make way for the cousin. She said that the cousin and the prince were a perfect match, and the princess had interfered and separated them, so she deserved to die in the water."

When Fu Fu said this, his body trembled even more violently.

She was the personal maid specially chosen by Madam Xiao for Xiao Lingxi.

Besides being loyal, she is also smart.

Xiao Lingxi inherited the Xiao family's stubbornness and did things without knowing how to tact. Madam Xiao was afraid that Xiao Lingxi would suffer, so she specially chose her to stay with the princess and advise her at any time.

She immediately realized that things were not that simple.

She was weak and on the verge of death, so she couldn't go to investigate, and there was no one left in the Xiao family.

After much thought, I can only ask Xie Yingmian for help.

Fu Fu forced himself to kneel down and said, "All the Xiao family members have died in the battle."

"My princess has no family to support her, so I don't know who to turn to. I can only ask you for help."

"Please, save the princess."

"Please."

"I will definitely repay you with a grass ring."

"Get up first." Xie Yingmian said.

Fu Fu refused to get up.

Xie Yingmian asked, "Have you confirmed what those two women said?"

Fu Fu shook his head: "It has been confirmed."

"After hearing what the two maids said, I realized something was wrong and went to the princess's courtyard away from everyone."

"I arrived outside the princess's courtyard and heard the conversation between the princess and her cousin."

"The county lord said that he had someone hang the princess by her last breath and force her to reveal the whereabouts of the key, but the princess never answered."

"The prince thought the princess didn't know the key, so he stopped her medicine and said she wouldn't live until tomorrow."

Fu Fu's tears rolled down.

"I was terrified."

"After the county horse and cousin leave, I will sneak to the corner gate."

"Fortunately, the servants in the mansion didn't know what the prince was thinking, and the gatekeeper didn't dare to offend me, so she let me out. That's when I had the opportunity to come to Prince Ling's mansion for help."

Xie Yingmian roughly understood what had happened.

She said, "You take a rest first."

Fu Fu was a little anxious and wanted to say something.

Zhuyue shook her head at her.

Fu Fu lowered his head and tears fell down.

Xie Yingmian returned to the study.

Yu Lingye is writing and drawing.

Xie Yingmian sat directly across from him: "Remember I received an invitation from Princess Lan Ning before?"

Yu Lingye didn't even raise his head: "I don't remember."

"I really don't remember?" Xie Yingmian said, "I even complained to you before. Organizing a flower viewing banquet in the middle of winter is one thing, but a village girl like me from a farm actually received an invitation."

"I think Princess Lan Ning might be your admirer."

"Originally, I wanted to join in the fun and experience the customs and people of Shangjing. But after the emperor issued the imprisonment order, I was unable to attend the flower viewing banquet."

Yu Lingye had a blank expression on his face: "Let's talk business."