Pingyang calls her "Emperor's Sister-in-law".

Lin Huaiyin kept her eyelids drooping, refusing to look at Xiao Zhian.

She was very busy, with many things waiting for her. The White Lotus Sect could attack at any moment, so she didn't have time to waste with Xiao Zhian.

All she wanted was to get back the jujube wood bow and take the snake catcher out into the woods to see if they could set some traps.

“Yinyin?” Xiao Zhian lifted her chin. “Yinyin, look at me. I will always stand by your side. No matter how absurd or bizarre it is, I will believe you as long as you say it.”

Xiao Zhian's expression was serious, his phoenix eyes narrowed, and Lin Huaiyin's face shone in his pupils. He held her in his eyes, warming her, as if he had a thousand things he couldn't bear and was overflowing with pity. But his behavior only made Lin Huaiyin feel annoyed.

Lin Huaiyin couldn't understand him and had no way of trusting him.

He was so clever and cunning, how could he not have imagined that Princess Pingyang was involved? But he deliberately avoided it, wasn't that a way of silencing her?

He's gagging her, yet he has an untouchable weakness; he also wants her to tell the truth and believe him. Isn't he contradictory?

Lin Huaiyin couldn't understand Xiao Zhian; she only felt annoyed.

Her heart was like a hornet's nest, pierced by a thousand arrows and riddled with holes. Xiao Zhian's kindness to her and everything he did for her was like sweet honey, touching her for a moment, then leaking out through the holes and never to return.

She couldn't recall any good things about him. She had never considered what Xiao Zhian meant to her. Lin Huaiyin didn't listen to a single word of his self-talk.

He always reminded her of the prince in the imperial prison of her past life. His body could bring her comfort, and she couldn't help herself. She ate him without hesitation. It was a matter of mutual pleasure and desire, and she didn't care.

The only thing that could truly leave a mark on Lin Huaiyin's heart, like a nail firmly driven into her flesh and drawing blood, was Xiao Zhian's attitude towards Princess Pingyang.

That was an attitude that could determine the life and death of Lin Huaiyin and the Lin family. No matter how much Xiao Zhian did or said, it couldn't compare to him putting a cloak on Princess Pingyang in front of everyone, cheering for her, and rejoicing for her.

Filtering out all tenderness, all that remained in Lin Huaiyin's heart were jagged, interlocking nails.

Xiao Zhian is not trustworthy.

Lin Huaiyin had already experienced the price of trust in her previous life—she was deceived by Shen Congyun, her entire family was wiped out, and she died tragically in prison.

Lin Huaiyin shook her head; she didn't want to waste her energy and only wanted the jujube wood bow.

"Knock knock knock".

The knocking was ill-timed.

Someone is coming.

Lin Huaiyin glanced sideways, but Xiao Zhian remained unmoved, pinching her cheek. "Yinyin—"

"Royal brother."

Princess Pingyang's voice came through the door as it opened: "It's time to administer the medicine."

As she gracefully approached, Lin Huaiyin's expression changed drastically. She looked around in a panic, found nowhere to go, and buried herself in the brocade quilt.

Seeing her like this, Xiao Zhian calmly took off his shoes with upturned toes, pulled the quilt aside, pulled her into his arms and covered her up, then casually picked up a book from the bedside and peeked out.

"Pingyang has arrived."

"Hmm." Princess Pingyang stepped up the low steps and sat on the edge of the bed, her posture very intimate.

Lin Huaiyin nestled in Xiao Zhian's arms, holding her breath, her heart pounding.

The blanket pressed against her ear, and she heard the soft clinking of porcelain spoons and bowls, each tinkling sound accompanied by words of concern about whether he was fully recovered. This sent chills down Lin Huaiyin's spine—if Princess Pingyang was using the guise of delivering medicine to actually poison him, her older brother would be in serious trouble, if not dead.

Instinctively, Lin Huaiyin grabbed Xiao Zhian's hands to stop him from moving.

The air was filled with the scent of perfume, and the brocade quilt billowed unnaturally. As Princess Pingyang stirred the medicine, she glanced around and confirmed that there was a woman lying in Xiao Zhian's arms, the same wild woman who had ruined her plans on the Buddha's Birthday.

And this wild woman was none other than Lin Huaiyin, whom she had just seen upstairs, following Xiao Zhian into the palace.

Lin Huaiyin betrayed Shen Congyun and followed Xiao Zhian. This matter could be a big deal or a small one. Princess Pingyang was worried and came to investigate. Based on her understanding of Xiao Zhian, she thought that in broad daylight, the two of them would definitely be playing chess and painting together. She really didn't expect to have to come to the palace to look for them.

Princess Pingyang found it all quite amusing: Xiao Zhian had always been lazy and aloof, with a pure heart and few desires. He had even said that because of his father's tyranny, he was extremely disgusted by matters between men and women. Yet, once he had a woman, he actually learned to indulge in debauchery in broad daylight and willingly degenerate.

Princess Pingyang never indulged Xiao Zhian. Seeing that his hands were under the covers and he was playing with something, she grabbed his arms and pulled him out.

She was arrogant, and Lin Huaiyin was arrogant too.

She increased her strength, and Lin Huaiyin also exerted hers.

She held Lin Huaiyin's hands tightly together.

The two women were arguing through the blanket.

Seeing this, Xiao Zhian's brows furrowed slowly, and his relaxed posture leaning against the bed railing gradually became tense.

After a moment's thought, he disregarded Lin Huaiyin's desperate attempts to hold him back and forcefully pulled his hand away.

Princess Pingyang was not surprised by this result; her brother always doted on her the most, and no one could compete with him.

She smiled sweetly and placed the bowl of medicine in Xiao Zhian's hand, "Drink it quickly."

"Okay." Xiao Zhian brought the medicine to his lips.

Princess Pingyang freed her hands and pressed her advantage, exerting force directly from the foot of the bed—a gust of wind rushed in, the brocade quilt was instantly thrown off, Lin Huaiyin felt a chill on her back, hugged Xiao Zhian's waist tightly, and took advantage of the chaos to knock over the medicine bowl.

With a "whoosh," the brown medicinal soup spilled onto the ground, slowly swallowed into the brocade carpet, the bowl spun around in place with a "glug-glug" sound.

Xiao Zhian stared at the bowl, his brows becoming even sharper. He turned his head and pulled the trembling Lin Huaiyin into his arms, kissing her hand in front of Princess Pingyang.

After giving her a gentle kiss, Xiao Zhian, like a mischievous child who had succeeded in a prank, looked up and praised Princess Pingyang: "You came at the right time. The beauty was frightened, so I took the opportunity to kiss her. Otherwise, I'm afraid I would have to wait until Shen Congyun died before Miss Lin would be willing to sit in my arms."

He said it that way on purpose to save face for Lin Huaiyin, while also bringing out some things that were inconvenient to say, and expressing his stance to both women at the same time.

Princess Pingyang was shocked to see him like this—Xiao Zhian was actually disregarding propriety and protecting Lin Huaiyin so fiercely, practically warning her not to say anything unpleasant or to harm his people. He even specifically mentioned that he was keeping an eye on Shen Congyun; were these words merely to defend Lin Huaiyin, or were they also a warning?

If Xiao Zhian suspects her, to what extent?

Princess Pingyang quickly calculated in her mind, checking when she had overlooked something.

Lin Huaiyin nestled in Xiao Zhian's arms, her body enveloped in his warm, strong embrace, but her heart was in turmoil.

Princess Pingyang barged into the bedchamber and even dared to pull off Xiao Zhi'an's blanket. Even if they were siblings, this was really going too far. Xiao Zhi'an really spoiled her rotten. When he pulled his hand away from Princess Pingyang, it was a clear statement that he wanted his sister and didn't care about her at all.

Now that Princess Pingyang has captured her, Lin Huaiyin knows that if she and Yu Li return to the Shen family, they will have no chance of survival.

what to do?

Lin Huaiyin's heart was pounding wildly, and she was drenched in cold sweat.

Knowing that she was comfortable, Xiao Zhian couldn't keep holding her on the bed indefinitely, so he lifted her to the ground, loosely holding her arm, and solemnly introduced her to Pingyang: "Miss Lin will be the mistress of the Eastern Palace and your sister-in-law in the future. Pingyang, if you change your address in advance, I will grant you a wish."

Xiao Zhian spoke softly with a smile, his eyes filled with affection. He looked into Lin Huaiyin's eyes and saw her stunned. He then pinched her earlobe, making her brows furrow and her nose wrinkle. To make sure she could hear him, he bent down and whispered in her ear, "Yinyin, you have to believe me."

The voice in her ear and the pain in her earlobe flooded her brain in an instant. Lin Huaiyin stared blankly at Xiao Zhian. She felt that Xiao Zhian's words had a hidden meaning, as if he was making a promise to her.

Does this mean that Xiao Zhian knew about Princess Pingyang and Shen Congyun?

He knew, he definitely knew, but he knew yet did nothing, just said a few innocuous words, and let it go?

Lin Huaiyin's heart sank to the bottom little by little.

However, from Princess Pingyang's perspective, the two seemed to be very close.

Princess Pingyang was also shocked, as if she had fallen into an ice cave. From childhood to adulthood, especially after he became regent, Xiao Zhian had always given her whatever she wanted. If she wanted the moon in the sky, he wouldn't even frown. But now he was granting her a wish.

A wish?

Or is it by calling her "Empress Dowager's sister-in-law" that they get her?

Princess Pingyang had to face reality: Xiao Zhian had completely tied her to Shen Congyun and no longer trusted her.

But why?

What happened? The midday ceremony was fine, how did it suddenly turn into this?

Was it because of Lin Huaiyin? He'd abandon her for a woman who suddenly appeared?

Their sibling bond of over twenty years, their blood ties, how could he just abandon it like that?

On what grounds?!

Princess Pingyang found it hard to accept. She looked at Lin Huaiyin, and unlike the last Shen family banquet, this was the first time she had truly scrutinized Lin Huaiyin.

With a delicate, lotus-like face and a slender willow branch adorned with ripe peaches, she was truly a beautiful woman. No wonder even her brother, who was abstinent and averse to matters of love and sex, was attracted to her.

It turns out that his lack of love for women was a pretense; his real pleasure lay in seizing other men's wives, taking over the wives of his subjects, and forcing respectable families into ruin.

It turns out that my elder brother is just as disgusting and worse than a beast as my father!

Great, now I don't need to have any psychological burden, I can just kill them directly.

Princess Pingyang made a firm decision, unafraid of Xiao Zhian's current suspicion and cold treatment. She was his only sister, and blood was thicker than water; she was not afraid of not having a chance to turn things around.

She had the best emotional control and the best demeanor. She slightly bent her knees towards Lin Huaiyin, folded her hands on her left waist, turned her face to the lower left and softly called out, "Greetings, Imperial Sister-in-law."

This scene shocked Lin Huaiyin on the spot—Princess Pingyang was able to bend and stretch, and indeed her heart was as hard as stone and her courage was invincible.

Almost instantly, Lin Huaiyin made a decision.

She looked up at Xiao Zhian and said, "Zhian, you have frightened Her Highness. It is our first meeting. I should pour Her Highness a cup of tea."

"good."

Xiao Zhian nodded in response.

The two characters “Zhi’an” illuminated him, his phoenix eyes shining brightly, as if the autumn waters had been pierced, the clouds had parted and the moon had emerged, and he had finally achieved his wish.

Seeing Lin Huaiyin head towards the table, he helped Pingyang up, his gaze shifting back and forth between the two of them.

Although it's far from perfect, Xiao Zhian is confident that his woman and his sister can still be together, and the family can be warmly reunited.

He wasn't unaware that the woman Shen Congyun had secretly met that night was Pingyang; Pingyang's support for Shen Congyun was far too obvious.

But since Shen Congyun is destined to die, and Xiao Mao'er hates Shen Congyun so much, then there is no jealousy, no fighting, and no need for a life-or-death struggle between her and Pingyang.

Xiao Zhian believed that because they loved him, they would compromise with each other and live in harmony.

Xiao Zhian did not miss Lin Huaiyin's action of knocking over the medicine bowl.

He knew Lin Huaiyin was wary of Pingyang, but he also believed that Pingyang was only being misled by Shen Congyun, and that she would change, that she could change for the better. He couldn't abandon Pingyang because of one mistake; she was his only sister, and he had a responsibility to raise her well.

With her back to the two siblings, Lin Huaiyin poured tea.

Holding the teapot in one hand and the teacup in the other, he quietly reached into his waist and pulled out a packet of Five Poisons Powder.

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, a one-time chance. As long as she can kill Princess Pingyang, she would gladly accept any punishment, even if it meant being struck by lightning or being killed on the spot by Xiao Zhian.

Shen Congyun is not scary; what is scary is Princess Pingyang. She must kill Princess Pingyang to eliminate any future troubles.

This is an opportunity not to be missed.

Lin Huaiyin is usually timid, but at crucial moments, her years of archery skills come to the fore. Her hands are steady and precise, each working on its own task with extreme precision.

The Five Poisons Powder, meticulously prepared by Fourth Sister Lin Mianfeng, was colorless, odorless, and tasteless when dissolved in water. Unlike the previous time when it was absorbed into the palm of her hand on the ninth day of the lunar month, it could be swallowed directly in one gulp. No matter how fast Physician Lu arrived or how powerful a celestial being descended to earth, it was useless.

Lin Huaiyin held the teacup in both hands and walked step by step toward Xiao Zhian and Princess Pingyang.