Chapter 3

Xie Jing impatiently sheathed his sword, his handsome face showing displeasure at being interrupted.

He sheathed his longsword, tossed it onto the stone table, and his gaze lingered for a moment on Gu Zhizhuo's veiled face.

Just now, Physician Liu came to report that the medicine has already been given to her, but within three days, even a miracle cannot save her.

Xie Jing curled his thin lips and condescended to ask, "Is your face alright now?"

"Physician Liu has come to examine you." Gu Zhizhuo took out a fine porcelain medicine jar with a clear blue glaze after rain. "He said this was given to him by you."

Xie Jing nodded and said, "Yes."

"What's this?"

Xie Jing casually replied, "The best wound medicine in the palace is called Wanling Baibao Ointment, which is priceless."

She pressed further, "Is it really that good?"

Xie Jing nodded again, confidently stating, "Of course. Even if you have a cut and bleeding head, it can stop the bleeding immediately, heal wounds, and even save lives! If you don't want to have scars, listen to Physician Liu and apply it every day."

"I've got it." Gu Zhizhuo put away the medicine jar and said with a smile, "Thank you, Your Highness."

She curtsied, pulled Xie Danling to sit down, and clapped her hands in praise: "This dance was wonderful, and Young Master Zhou's flute playing was also excellent. Any more would be too intense, and any less would be too cold. It was melodious like the wind and elegant like ink."

Zhou Liulang, holding his flute, gave an awkward smile.

Xie Danling had a palace maid bring her a cup of fruit syrup, leaned against the beauty's back, and said lazily, "My cousin is right, I think it's quite interesting."

"Is this Miss Ji? Come here and dance for me again."

Xie Danling said flippantly, "Let me see how it compares to that new Flying Catkins Dance that the Imperial Music Academy has arranged."

To listen to music and practice swordsmanship is an extremely elegant activity.

In Xie Danling's words, Ji Nanke was compared to a dancer.

Ji Nanke frowned slightly, knowing perfectly well who Xie Danling was belittling her for, and sighed inwardly.

Whether it's Cousin Zhuo or the Fifth Princess, they are just like ordinary women in the world, only good at making things difficult for women and being jealous and sour in their own little world.

Xie Jing's forehead veins bulged, and he angrily rebuked, "Dan Ling, stop talking nonsense."

"You, a princess, dare to spout such nonsense in front of the daughter of a court official, and you still haven't apologized to Miss Ji?"

"The daughter of a court official?" Xie Danling sipped her fruit syrup and said casually, "Isn't her father just a scholar who passed the imperial examination? When did a mere scholar become a high-ranking official in the country?"

"Could it be that an orphan living in the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion thinks she's a daughter of the Duke?"

"The palace maids and eunuchs still live in the palace, and they don't consider themselves masters."

Ji Nanke's pupils suddenly contracted.

She was extremely proud and arrogant; how could she tolerate such sarcastic remarks?

She suddenly smiled, and before Xie Jing could speak up in defense, she said in a cool tone, "A sword dance performed by one person always lacks a certain charm. I wonder if the Fifth Princess would be willing to do me the honor..."

She held up her sword and gestured an invitation to Xie Danling.

Xie Danling raised an eyebrow.

She stared at Ji Nanke's fair and delicate face, and thinking of her little cousin's swollen cheeks, she felt a surge of anger.

The arrows were clearly aimed at Ji Nanke.

It shouldn't have been Yaoyao who got hurt!

Xie Danling drank the fruit syrup in one gulp and was about to draw her sword to accept the invitation when Gu Zhizhuo gently squeezed her hand.

The two cousins ​​had played together since childhood and were of one mind. Xie Danling pursed her lips and swallowed her words.

"If Cousin Danling wants to see a sword dance, then watch me!"

Gu Zhizhuo smiled gently, stood up and picked up the long sword inlaid with jewels and jade from the stone table.

As the sword was drawn, Gu Zhizhuo ran his fingers over the blade.

This sword has not been sharpened yet.

She performed a beautiful sword flourish and said with a light laugh, "Cousin Ke, please!"

Zhou Liulang hesitated for a moment, then looked at Xie Jing. Seeing him nod, he put the jade flute to his lips.

As the flute melody began, Ji Nanke raised her sword and rose to the occasion. Every move she made was like flowing water sleeves, graceful and natural.

Xie Jing looked at her intently, his eyes brimming with love, almost overflowing.

Bang!

As the flute music rose higher, the two swords clashed at that very moment, producing a clear and sharp sound.

In Gu Zhizhuo's hands, a sword is simply a sword.

A sword is a sharp weapon; it can save lives, but it can also kill.

She knows how to wield a sword.

Sword dance? I've never learned that!

She was incredibly aggressive, disrupting Ji Nanke's dance steps and rhythm in just a few moves. The occasional clash of swords startled the flute music, causing Zhou Liulang to break into fits of sweat and almost forget what tune was next.

Xie Jing frowned, his expression displeased.

Gu Zhizhuo dared to bully Ke'er like this right in front of him, which shows how difficult Ke'er's life was in the Zhenguo Duke's Mansion.

The flute music paused again as Gu Zhizhuo deflected the sword from Ji Nanke's hand. The sword tip trembled slightly, and the fierce sword aura brought her immense pressure.

Ji Nanke's eyes darkened, and she gracefully retreated.

Her figure remained light and graceful.

Gu Zhizhuo stared at the red-painted fence behind Ji Nanke, his gaze darkening.

In his previous life, in order to save his life, Zhou Liulang spoke without reservation.

At that time, Ji Nanke was already the Crown Princess of Daqi. Zhou Liulang said, "After the Fifth Princess provoked the Crown Princess, the Crown Princess was magnanimous and not angry. She even took the initiative to invite her to dance, and the Fifth Princess agreed. Perhaps the Fifth Princess was in a bad mood, so she kept stabbing the Crown Princess in the face with her sword. Later, the Crown Princess was forced to crash into the railing, but unexpectedly the railing suddenly broke."

"The Crown Princess was about to fall, but fortunately the Crown Prince caught her in time. In a fit of rage, the Crown Prince pushed the Fifth Princess down."

As the flute music played, Gu Zhizhuo pointed his sword in the distance. Ji Nanke first grabbed the railing beside her, then slammed her delicate body backward.

With a barely perceptible "click," the fence snapped.

"Ke'er!"

Xie Jing rushed over anxiously and grabbed Ji Nanke tightly.

Ji Nanke clutched his collar, her charming face showing shock and uncertainty.

Xie Jing was terrified and furious with Gu Zhizhuo, the culprit. Without thinking, he reached out and grabbed Gu Zhizhuo, wanting her to experience the same fright that Ke'er had suffered.

Gu Zhizhuo had been waiting for this. Without making a sound, she took half a step back, and Xie Jing grabbed at empty air.

He moved too quickly, and before his momentum had subsided, his body involuntarily fell towards the broken fence.

Gu Zhizhuo's lips curved into a smile, and she raised her hand to give Xie Jing a gentle push on the back.

Xie Jing was still unsteady on his feet when the push caused him to lose his balance completely and fall out of the pavilion.

The veil concealed the smile playing on Gu Zhizhuo's lips as she watched with amusement as Xie Jing crashed face down to the ground, blood splattering everywhere.

All of this happened in just a few breaths.

Gu Zhizhu blocked the view of others with his body, so no one could see how he fell.

"Your Highness!"

Gu Zhizhuo shouted dramatically, "Even if you're trying to save someone, you shouldn't disregard your own safety!"

The stunned crowd finally came to their senses.

Their faces were all pale. Some were shouting "Your Highness!", some were so frightened that they didn't know what to do, and some quickly climbed over the pavilion's railing and ran towards Xie Jing.

"you……"

Ji Nanke stared at Gu Zhizhuo in astonishment and blurted out, "What did you do?"

“Miss Ji,” Xie Danling sneered, “everyone saw that my third brother fell while saving you. What, you want to turn the tables on me!”

Ji Nanke was filled with doubt and surprise. In the end, she only saw Xie Jing grab Gu Zhizhuo, but he didn't catch him.

"Yaoyao, let's go see..." The word "lively" lingered in Xie Danling's mouth, "...Third brother! I was so worried about Third brother falling like this."

She raised her sleeve to cover her face and pretended to cry.

Gu Zhizhu casually tossed his sword onto the stone table and followed Xie Danling out of the pavilion with light steps.

Xie Danling winked at Gu Zhizhuo: Did you push him?

Gu Zhizhuo gently brushed the stray hairs from his temples and bent his index finger twice.

Xie Danling's phoenix eyes lit up, and she quickly lowered her head to hide the smile on her lips.

Xie Jing struggled to sit up.

The pavilion wasn't high, and when he fell, his head and face hit a sharp rock. The rock cut a long, deep gash on his forehead, and blood smeared all over his face.

Xie Jing covered his face, blood flowing out from between his fingers.

He experiences pain all over his body with the slightest movement and cannot stand up at all.

His personal attendant, Xiao Yunzi, had never seen such a scene before. He was so frightened that he was in a panic, sending people to fetch the imperial physician and to carry a sedan chair, running around everywhere.

Gu Zhizhuo walked over slowly, looking down at his blood-covered face with great satisfaction.

Although satisfied inwardly, he still couldn't help but express his concern: "Your Highness, you are badly injured."

Xie Jing's expression suddenly changed.

He had clearly almost regained his balance just now; someone must have pushed him!

"It's you..."

Before the question could be uttered, Gu Zhizhuo reached into his sleeve pocket and pulled out a delicate porcelain jar with a sky-blue hue reminiscent of the color of rain-washed sky.

She said thankfully, "Thank goodness, I have some medicine here. Please apply some for now."

Xie Jing's breath hitched suddenly.

Gu Zhizhuo took a step forward, her slender figure looming over him. He heard her say, "This Myriad Treasures Pill is a priceless divine medicine. Even if you have a cut and bleeding head, it can stop the bleeding immediately. It can heal wounds and save lives!"

Every word and phrase was spoken by Xie Jing himself.

Xie Jing stared intently at the medicine jar in her hand, his back tense, as if he had seen some monstrous beast.

But what made his heart pound even harder was that sentence—

"Your Highness, please enjoy!"

Xie Jing knew all too well what was inside that ordinary little jar.

He instructed Physician Liu to make sure Gu Zhizhuo's appearance was completely ruined, leaving no room for recovery.

Physician Liu said that the medicine was extremely potent.

"No need." Xie Jing shivered, clutching his wound, and refused. "This medicine is too precious. I'm fine, so I won't use it. The imperial physician should be here soon."

Gu Zhizhuo advised, "Your injuries are quite severe. We don't even know when the imperial physician will arrive. If you bleed too much, you could die. We can't afford to take that responsibility."

Xie Danling skillfully countered her words, pointing at each of them with her delicate white fingers, and said arrogantly, "If anything happens to my third brother, Mother will never forgive you!"

These words made the others very nervous.

That's right! If anything were to happen to the Third Prince right under their noses, no one would escape the Emperor and Empress's fury.

Zheng Erlang quickly replied, "I've also heard of the Wanling Baibao Ointment. Consort Ning once gave my elder brother a jar of it, and he was saved when he injured his head."

As soon as Zheng Erlang said this, a chorus of voices echoed in agreement.

Gu Zhizhuo took another step, and she was only one step away from him. Xie Jing could even clearly smell the strong medicinal smell coming from her.

Xie Jing shrank back and shouted sternly, "I said I don't need it! Get out of here."

Gu Zhizhuo raised his voice: "Your Highness, why are you making such a fuss about the medicine...?"

She emphasized two words: "Poisonous?"

Xie Jing's eyes widened: "No..."

Gu Zhizhuo's tone suddenly turned cold, his imposing manner overwhelming: "You had the imperial physician poison me!"

A note from the author: