Chapter 118 Green Chrysanthemum

The garden was filled with clusters of flowers, each vying for attention, their colors undiminished by the slight chill of autumn.

Jade took the flower shears and walked towards the clump of green chrysanthemums.

The petals unfold layer upon layer, the green color gradually deepening to a rich, vibrant green at the center of the flower, just like the name "Jade".

Biyu really liked the green peony. After admiring it for a while, she picked out the fullest one and raised her scissors to cut it off.

A hand reached out from behind and firmly covered her mouth.

Biyu instinctively swung the scissors, but felt a sharp pain in her wrist; the scissors that were in her hand were now pressed against her neck.

"Waaah—" Biyu's cries were all choked in her throat as she was dragged behind the flowers and trees.

"Don't move or shout, or these scissors won't hold back."

A cold voice rang in her ears, startling Biyu into nodding repeatedly. But with that movement, the tip of the scissors went in a little further, and pain immediately followed.

"Waaah—" Biyu dared not move anymore, tears streaming down her face.

The hand that was covering her loosened its grip.

Jade gasped for breath, her voice trembling as she asked, "Who...who are you?"

The person behind her chuckled softly: "You were just assigned a task, and you're already asking such a silly question?"

Biyu trembled all over, her voice panicked: "Your Highness, spare me! Your Highness, spare me!"

As soon as she said that, Qiuheng felt reassured.

They tricked him out of it.

"Spare my life? The plan failed, yet you're the one who knew about it. How can anyone feel at ease with that?"

"This servant will not say anything, please, Your Highness, spare this servant..." Biyu choked with sobs, but dared not make any big movements. She was like a fallen leaf in the autumn wind, desperate and helpless.

The scissors that were pressed against her delicate neck were moved away.

Biyu remained motionless, not even daring to ask anything. Fear made her tremble like a leaf, and she had no courage to run away.

A person slowly walked around from behind to the front.

Bi Yu's pupils contracted, and she exclaimed in shock, "Sixth Miss Qiu! How, how could it be you?"

Qiu Heng smiled: "What, are you disappointed that it's not one of Consort Yu's people?"

"No, no—" Biyu was too shocked to speak coherently.

Qiu Heng pointed and said, "I've taken a liking to that green peony. Could you please cut it off and come with me to see the beauty?"

Looking down at the flower shears that had been shoved back into her hand, Biyu instinctively clenched them, a murderous glint flashing in her eyes.

Qiu Heng raised an eyebrow: "You still want to kill me? I came to see you on behalf of the beauty, and you are a palace maid who serves the beauty. If you really wanted to harm me, where would you hide the body? How would you explain it to the beauty? Or do you naively think that Consort Yu will protect you?"

The more Biyu listened, the uglier her face became.

Qiu Heng took a step forward, her tone nonchalant: "Putting all that aside, you don't have the strength to kill me."

Biyu looked up abruptly, remembering the hand that had covered her mouth. Her chaotic thoughts vanished instantly. She silently walked towards Lüju and carefully cut off the flower that Qiuheng had pointed to.

Qiuheng turned and walked ahead, while Biyu followed behind, holding a green chrysanthemum.

She stared intently at the figure in front of her, her expression constantly shifting, but the murderous intent that had arisen when she first touched the scissors could no longer be rekindled.

No one knew the strength of that hand better than she did. This seemingly delicate and frail Miss Qiu was definitely no ordinary person!

A person with secrets is inherently dangerous—a truth she had long understood during her years in the palace.

"My lady, the Sixth Miss and Biyu have returned."

Qiu Meiren sat up straight and looked at the two people who walked in.

Qiu Heng walked calmly in front, while Bi Yu respectfully followed behind, holding a green chrysanthemum. No matter how you looked at it, there was nothing unusual about it.

How did Sixth Sister test the waters? Or did she simply not find an opportunity to do so?

Qiu Meiren was puzzled, but nodded to Qiu Heng: "Sixth Sister is back."

Qiu Heng stepped to the side and glanced at Bi Yu.

Biyu shuddered and knelt down with a thud: "My beauty, spare me! I was wrong!"

Qiu Meiren glanced at Qiu Heng in surprise, then gripped her teacup tightly and looked at Biyu: "So it really was you who sent the wooden doll to Chief Lin in my name?"

"Yes, it's this servant..."

"Biyu, I've never treated you badly, so why did you do this?"

“This servant—” Biyu subconsciously looked at Qiuheng.

Qiu Heng stretched out her hand to Bi Yu: "Give me the green peony."

Biyu shrank back slightly when she saw the hand, and tremblingly handed over the green chrysanthemum. The girl holding the green chrysanthemum smiled at her.

Biyu knelt on the ground, her voice trembling with sobs, and said, "This servant was forced. The maidservant by the Imperial Concubine's side came to me and asked me to give that wooden doll to Commander Lin... This servant dared not disobey, for it is the Imperial Concubine!"

Qiu Meiren gripped the armrest of her chair with one hand and asked through gritted teeth, "When did you get involved with Consort Yu's people?"

Biyu quickly shook her head: "We've never had any contact before, except for this time with the wooden doll—"

Qiu Meiren closed her eyes, overwhelmed by a sense of powerlessness: "You agreed as soon as I approached you."

"I'm sorry, my beauty, but if I don't agree, my life will be in danger. I... I just want to live..."

Qiu Meiren remained silent for a while, then waved her hand: "You may leave now. Zheng Yu, keep an eye on her."

"Yes." Zheng Yu led Bi Yu out.

Qiu Meiren smiled bitterly at Qiu Heng: "Sixth Sister, you see? No one in this palace can stand against Consort Yu. She doesn't need to do any maneuvering. When she needs someone, she just needs to use the title of Consort Yu, and they won't dare to disobey."

Qiu Heng thought about how later generations had described Consort Yu as a "femme fatale," and felt it more deeply.

"I just can't understand why Consort Yu would do such a cruel thing when I have always been respectful to her."

"Is it because my sister can come to the autumn hunt?"

Qiu Meiren hesitated and shook her head: "Although the Emperor dotes on Consort Yu, he also occasionally looks at the other concubines. Consort Yu doesn't seem to care about this."

"Could it be that my sister has offended Consort Yu in some way without realizing it?"

Qiu Meiren pondered hard, but still had no clue: "Given my rank, I don't have many opportunities to interact with Consort Yu."

"If it weren't for my sister—" Qiu Heng frowned, recalling the records about the ending of Qiu Meiren and Lin Chengfeng.

There are no records about Qiu Meiren, but there are records related to Lin Chengfeng: General Lin was convicted because of his young son, and the Great Xia lost a talented general.

Qiu Heng was startled and had a new guess about this conspiracy that she thought was caused by the concubines fighting for favor in the harem: Could it be that Consort Yu was not targeting Qiu Meiren, but General Lin!

This guess was so sudden and bizarre that even someone as calm as Qiu Heng found it hard to believe.

"Sixth Sister, don't think about it. Consort Yu is capricious and unpredictable. She doesn't need a reason to dislike someone."

Qiu Heng composed herself and did not voice her guess.

If she guessed wrong, there was no need to say it. If she guessed right, given the vast difference in their abilities, knowing would be a death sentence for Consort Qiu.

"How did Sixth Sister get Biyu to talk?"

"I was bluffing her, but I didn't expect her to be so easily provoked and confess right away."

Qiu Heng didn't ask Qiu Meiren how to deal with Biyu; she walked out of the palace with a heavy heart.

(End of this chapter)