King Qin saw that Gu Zi was pretending to be ignorant, and he was too lazy to beat around the bush.
"The Emperor wanted to take the Crown Prince for himself, so he summoned him to the palace, but Princess Ruian took him away. After returning home, the Crown Prince was poisoned and died ten days later. Don't you think the Crown Prince's death was a coincidence? It sounds like he escaped unscathed."
"..." Shen Mianmian bit her lip. "Your Highness is so discerning, I admire you to the core. But I don't understand why Your Highness has captured me. Is there something you want to ask? As long as Your Highness speaks, I will answer."
The King of Qin had been waiting for this very question: "Fine, then I'll ask you: what do you think Prince Jin will do after the Crown Prince fakes his death and leaves?"
Shen Mianmian deliberately trembled, "Your Highness, I am just a woman, and I don't understand these matters of the court."
[Is there even a question? Of course we'll rebel! If we don't, the Emperor will catch us and...hehehe!]
Stealing a glance at the King of Qin, she continued to mutter under her breath, "[That dog emperor has a problem with his brain and his eyes. This King of Qin is clearly more handsome than the King of Jin, so why does he choose the King of Jin instead of the King of Qin? It's unfair! Sigh, if only that dog emperor had chosen the King of Qin! Poor little phoenix."]
King of Qin, "..."
Staring at the submissive and humble woman before him, the King of Qin could not reconcile his own earth-shattering thoughts with those of his heart.
After a moment of contemplation, the King of Qin asked again, "Do you think the Prince of Jin will rebel?"
Shen Mianmian was startled. [Why would the King of Qin ask that? I didn't mention rebellion, did I? Did the King of Qin guess, or... wait, I think I know, it might be Jiang Yinjin who told him.]
[No wonder Jiang Yinjin said a few days ago that she was cooperating with the Prince of Qin; she might already be at the Prince's residence. I wonder if the two of them can be together... Never mind, now's not the time to think about that.]
"Your Highness, I am ignorant of politics."
The King of Qin scoffed, "You understand nothing of politics, do you not know the reason why Bai Qingzhou escaped death? You should have heard of the imperial prison under my control, shouldn't you?"
Chen Mianmian's legs went weak. "This humble woman knows! This humble woman dares not deceive Your Highness. This humble woman does not know whether Prince Jin has rebelled, but if this humble woman were Prince Jin, she would definitely rebel."
[Anyway, Jiang Yinjin already said it doesn't matter if I'm one more. From now on, I'd better answer questions honestly, or I'll suffer the consequences and get another round of torture. My transmigration into this book has already been bad enough; I don't need to experience the Ten Great Tortures of the Qing Dynasty.]
The King of Qin carefully considered the words—transmigration into a book? The Ten Cruelest Tortures of the Qing Dynasty?
He felt that bringing this woman back was the right thing to do; he was very interested in the secrets in her heart.
Then, the room fell silent.
Chen Mianmian waited for a long time, but the King of Qin didn't ask any questions. [What does that mean? He's not going to ask anymore?]
The King of Qin was not ignoring the question, but he was gradually losing patience and considering whether to subject the woman to torture to quickly extract information.
As he pondered, he glanced at the woman, considering the limits of her physical endurance; he didn't want to kill her.
As the King of Qin scrutinized her, a chill ran down her spine. [Oh my god! No way? He's not going to rape me, is he?]
"..." King of Qin.
[I knew this face was going to cause problems sooner or later, so I always wore a veil when I went out. I was so careful, but I couldn't stop the male lead! No way, male lead, you belong to the female lead! Why don't you just throw me into your prison? Actually, the Ten Great Tortures of the Qing Dynasty aren't so bad. You can't experience them in real life, but it's nice to feel them in a novel.]
[Should I say something to provoke him?]
[That won't work either. They were just leering at me; maybe they were just looking? It's not worth it for me to willingly walk into prison.]
"..." King of Qin.
Shen Mianmian grew increasingly uneasy and cautiously asked, "Your Highness, why are you looking at me like that? I... I'm scared..."
The King of Qin opened his mouth, wanting to explain that he did not intend to rape her, but he could not reveal the existence of the Heart-Connecting Gu, and for a moment he was speechless.
"Huh?" Chen Mianmian lowered her head, biting her lip. [Why hasn't he said anything? Oh no, I'm doomed today! What am I going to do? Should I say I'm on my period? Can he send the maid to check me? Heavens, is this really happening to me?]
"..."
The King of Qin couldn't listen anymore. His originally clear thoughts were now in complete disarray due to Gu Zi's inner voice.
Finally, he turned around and left.
"???" Chen Mianmian thought, [She's gone? Phew, looks like she's safe, but what about tomorrow? No, I have to find a way to contact Jiang Yinjin.]
.
The King of Qin left the courtyard.
The bright moon hangs high in the sky, its light shining on the snow-covered ground, making it as bright as day.
But this light was different from daytime; even though you could clearly see the bricks and stones on the path, it still felt unreal.
A cold wind blew by, carrying bits of snow, which stung people's faces slightly.
The King of Qin suddenly stopped in his tracks.
The attendants also hurriedly stopped and awaited the prince's orders.
But after waiting for a while, the prince still didn't speak, so they looked over in confusion.
Attendant Ji Xi stepped forward and asked softly, "Your Highness?"
The King of Qin snapped out of his thoughts and said calmly, "After my dinner, bring the case files of the Leftist case to my study."
Ji Xi was both amused and exasperated. "Your Highness, look at the time! How can you still be working? You should have your dinner and get some rest."
"I can't sleep, and I'm just idling around anyway," the King of Qin said, his tone tinged with weariness.
Ji Xi choked up – Yes, the prince is a light sleeper. While others need four hours of sleep, the prince usually only sleeps for one or two hours, and sometimes he doesn't sleep at all all night.
Those around them had tried to persuade him, but the prince silenced them with a single sentence: "If you're not working, what are you doing idly?"
It seems the prince doesn't have many hobbies.
Power? The prince is already second only to the emperor.
Money? The prince is already very wealthy, and he can't have any more. If he has any more, it will only make the emperor wary.
Entertainment? The prince has never been fond of eating, drinking, or having fun, nor does he have hobbies such as poetry and painting. Even when he frequently attends gatherings of literati, it is only to win over certain people.
Women? If the prince were interested in women, the vast Qin Prince's mansion wouldn't be empty in the backyard.
Yes, what does a prince with no hobbies do when he's not working?
Ji Xi, quick-witted, asked, "Has Your Highness recently come up with anything? Something you're looking forward to? Something you're investigating? Something you've deciphered?"
The King of Qin was taken aback—decipher it? Well, there is one.
The King of Qin smiled and said, "Someone, go and invite Miss Jiang and Miss Shen to have dinner with me."
Gu Zi always hoped that the "male lead" and the "female lead" would be together, so he would give her a chance and continue to listen to the secrets in Gu Zi's heart.
Ji Xi was pleasantly surprised, "Yes, Your Highness."
He thought to himself, "That's more like it. A man has been busy all day. How can he not have a woman by his side when he has dinner in the evening?"
Wait a minute, these two women both seem to belong to Bai Shizi.
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