Chapter 99 I Can Be a Tiger Too

The warm breath brushed against her ear, sending a shiver down Chen Chu's spine.

When did this guy get so close to her?

She took a step back, raising an eyebrow slightly. "Your Highness, if you want to expose me, someone has to believe you first."

How could anyone believe that a censor who was highly regarded by His Majesty would report herself?

Pei Yuan looked at Shen Chu, whose eyes were full of cunning, and clicked his tongue softly.

"Is your self-inflicted injury just an appetizer? You went to all this trouble to have me, the prince, bring the Flying Eagle Guard here just to see you frame your stepmother."

As clever as you are, can't you see that framing her alone won't bring her down?

Or are you trying to use me, the prince, to intimidate others?

Shen Chu curled her lips, "A fox borrowing the tiger's might? Your Highness underestimates me. I am not a fox. When necessary, I can also be a tiger, and the kind that can devour people."

She doesn't deny that she has a backup plan.

She framed Chen Shi simply to make Chen Shi confess to her embezzlement, and incidentally to make the Marquis of Changning hate Chen Shi even more.

"Since Your Highness is here, just relax and enjoy the show. In short, Your Highness will gain something today."

Pei Yuan stroked the jade-bone fan, a hint of interest flashing in his eyes.

Chen Chu is like a comprehensive riddle book; you'll never know the answer until you turn to the end.

"Since I have nothing else to do today, I'll watch a play to pass the time."

Shen Chu curled her lips and walked towards Marquis Changning.

Marquis Changning was now convinced that Lady Chen had received gifts from the other ladies, and he sent someone to the Flying Eagle Guard to report Shen Chu for accepting bribes. He felt extremely disgusted with Lady Chen.

However, since Chen was representing the Empress Dowager and the Empress in hosting the disaster relief banquet, he didn't want to embarrass her too much, so he said a few words to Chen and then helped to smooth things over.

“Ah Chu, your mother must have been deceived by the villains around her. After today’s disaster relief banquet, I will make her give you an explanation.”

Chen Chu sighed, "Since Father has said so, A Chu naturally believes Father."

Madam Shen glanced at Chen Chu with displeasure. "This matter may not necessarily be related to your mother. You have a lot of malevolent energy on you. Maybe it was this malevolent energy that clashed with you, which led to others reporting you."

Alright, disaster relief is the important thing; stop with this nonsense.

Chen glanced at Chen Chu, and the pent-up anger in her heart dissipated considerably.

Ha, even if the Marquis believes she framed her, so what? With the Empress Dowager and the Empress backing her up, the Marquis can't do anything to her.

She proudly brushed away the stray hairs from her temples and said with a wronged expression, "Thank you for your understanding, Mother. But with the young master's special destiny, who knows where he might clash?"

The eldest son has already been affected by the evil energy, and it's unknown who else will be affected next.

I've been burning incense and praying to Buddha countless times these past few months, hoping to avert my eldest son's cursed fate of being a lone star, but it seems to have been of no use at all.

Alas, we were too naive. The eldest young master lived in the Taoist temple for seventeen years and still couldn't get rid of the evil aura surrounding him. How could my burning incense and praying to Buddha possibly dispel it?

The crowd's expressions changed slightly, and they subconsciously took a step back, increasing the distance between themselves and Shen Chu.

It seemed that if you got too close, you would be tainted by the evil aura.

Seeing this, Chen's eyes gleamed with even greater smugness.

Chen Chu smiled and said, "Speaking of the evil aura, I have now found a way to break it, so my mother and grandmother no longer need to worry so much."

Chen was slightly startled, but Old Madam Shen couldn't wait to ask, "What's the solution?"

Shen Chu: "The one who tied the knot must untie it. Since that master calculated that I was destined to be a lone star, he must have a way to break the curse."

Chen's expression froze. "Back then, the master calculated that you were destined to be a lone star, and said that sending you to a Taoist temple would resolve that fate."

But you lived in the Taoist temple for seventeen years and still couldn't dispel the evil energy. Perhaps the method the master mentioned might not be effective.

“Mother is right.” Shen Chu nodded, then changed the subject, “Since the master’s method of breaking the curse is useless, perhaps his calculation of the fate is also inaccurate, don’t you think, Mother?”

"Ah!" Chen was taken aback for a moment, then quickly said, "Master, you've always been good at predicting fates, so you can't be wrong, right?"

"Whether there's a mistake or not, we'll know after asking again." Shen Chu chuckled. "Speaking of which, it was Mother who found that master back then. So many years have passed, does Mother still remember where that master lived?"

Chen's eyes flickered slightly. "This... Master is a hermit, with no fixed abode. Meeting him is fate. How would I know where he lives?"

Shen Chu smiled slightly, "Ever since I came to the capital, I have been having people search for that master. Persistence pays off, and I have finally found him."

Chen blurted out, "Impossible."

"Why is it impossible?" Shen Chu asked, puzzled. "Does Mother really think it's impossible for me to find that master?"

Chen's cheek muscles twitched twice, and she pursed her lips without saying a word.

Madam Shen couldn't wait to press Shen Chu, "Now that you've found the person, didn't you ask the master if there's any way to resolve this?"

Shen Chu shook her head, "The person was only found yesterday, and Hongxiu has already gone to ask for help."

As soon as she finished speaking, Hongxiu pulled in a man dressed in tattered clothes.

Marquis Changning frowned and reprimanded Shen Chu in a low voice: "Today is a disaster relief banquet. What are you doing bringing a beggar up here? Take him away immediately. We'll talk about your matter when we get back."

Chen Chu ignored him and looked at the beggar, asking, "Master, do you still remember coming here seventeen years ago to interpret the fate of a newborn child?"

The women present couldn't help but gasp in surprise, staring at the beggar in disbelief.

"Isn't he a master? How come he's a beggar?"

"Could it be a fake?"

The beggar hunched his neck and drooped his head, cowering like a stray dog.

Shen Chu's eyes turned slightly cold as she stepped forward and grabbed his hair, instantly exposing his face to everyone.

"Grandmother, Mother, take a good look! Isn't this the master who predicted my fate back then?"

Chen's pupils contracted almost imperceptibly.

Madam Shen stood up in surprise, “It is him. I remember he has a black mole under his right eyebrow, and a tuft of yellow hair on the mole.”

"Oh dear, Master, it's been so many years, how come you look so disheveled?"

The beggar man was terrified. "Madam, spare me! Spare me!"

Madam Shen's face darkened. "Achu, what are you doing? How could you behave so disrespectfully towards the master? Release him immediately."

Shen Chu let out a cold snort and kicked him hard in the shin.

"What master? He's clearly a fraudulent swindler. Listen carefully, I'm only giving you one chance to be honest."

We will tell you the truth about how you came here for a fortune telling back then. If even one word is untrue, we'll twist your head off.

The beggar cried out in pain and knelt on the ground, pleading, "Don't kill me, I'll talk."

Shen Chu asked, "What is your name? What do you do? Tell me honestly."

“My name is Zhang Wang. I worked as a Taoist priest in a Taoist temple in the south of the city for two years, but I couldn’t resist the temptation and returned to secular life. I make a living by relying on the little bit of knowledge I learned in the temple.”

The crowd erupted in uproar.

Old Madam Shen reacted the most strongly, "You...you're actually a fake master? So all that was about the fortune you gave A-Chu?"

Zhang Wang shrank back, not daring to utter a sound.

Chen's expression changed, and she immediately stepped forward, staring at Zhang Wang with resentment. "You liar, how dare you say that A-Chu is a cursed star, deceiving us for so many years."

"Guards! Drag this swindler out and beat him to death immediately, lest he ruin today's disaster relief feast!"