Your Highness's status
"My lady, a letter!" Yi Er burst in at an inopportune moment. Jiang Jin carefully supported Wei Shu. "Yi Er, you help him. I'll read the letter."
Jiang Jin walked to the side and glanced at Wei Shu, then turned her back to carefully examine the letter in her hand. Not long after, Jiang Jin crumpled the letter into a ball and threw it on the ground.
"I'm so angry!" Jiang Jin glared at Yi Er, her face full of fury. "Did you bring a tinderbox?"
"Yes." Yi Er handed the tinderbox to Jiang Jin, and the letter on the ground burst into flames in an instant, turning into black ash in no time.
"Fine, fine." Jiang Jin laughed coldly, her anger turning into a mocking smile as she looked at the black ash on the ground.
"Yi Er, think about it carefully again. Do those people's moves seem familiar?" Jiang Jin looked at Yi Er with a gloomy face.
"The assassins trained by powerful families mostly receive similar training, and it is impossible to tell from their fighting styles which family they belong to."
Suddenly, Yi Er realized something. "There's something different. When the leader makes a move, he always unconsciously veers to the right, a bit like..." Yi Er stopped talking when he saw Wei Shu beside him.
“The main branch of the Wang family,” Jiang Jin said, glaring fiercely at the cave entrance. “They want to use His Majesty’s sword to kill off the collateral branches of their own clan.”
“My lady, we are in great danger now. The head of the Wang family will not give up until he achieves his goal. He will definitely send more assassins if he does not see General Wei’s body.”
Yi Yi returned to the cave at this time. "Zhou Cong has already arrived at the cliff with the Imperial Guards. I think they might want to search the bottom of the mountain."
"Wei Shu, send this message to His Majesty as quickly as possible," Jiang Jin said, glancing at Wei Shu, who had regained his color.
"You want to turn the tables on me?" Jiang Jin nodded. Wei Shu took a whistle from the necklace and blew it loudly. A bird's call came from the whistle.
A pigeon flew into the cave a moment later and landed beside Wei Shu's hand.
"There's charcoal and paper up there. I can't move, so you write it down." Having come this far, Jiang Jin didn't refuse anymore. She wrote a few lines, tied them to the pigeon's leg, and released it.
"How long will it take for this letter to reach the Imperial Guards?" Jiang Jin asked with some worry, watching the pigeons fly away.
"Two hours." Wei Shu let out a long sigh of relief. "These pigeons are specially trained and worth more than ten thousand taels of silver."
“Alright, then we’ll wait here for now. Yi Er, you go out and keep watch. Yi Yi, stay here and be careful.” Jiang Jin helped Wei Shu up and let him lean against a rock.
"You're feeling better now, so why don't you tell me your plans for the future?" Wei Shu looked at Jiang Jin's face thoughtfully and said, "Are you tired? Why won't you let me lean on you?"
"Wei Shu, did someone chop your head off?" Jiang Jin glanced at Wei Shu speechlessly, then sat down under his earnest gaze.
"Alright, hurry up and tell me!" Jiang Jin was eager to know Wei Shu's plan, and Wei Shu, having succeeded, naturally didn't keep her in suspense. "Who do you think is most anxious right now?"
Jiang Jin raised an eyebrow and tentatively replied, "Wang Juesong?"
"That's right. Rumors are flying in the capital, and both parties have their doubts. The head of the Wang family wants to bring him down, so he has no choice but to turn to His Majesty."
Wei Shu adjusted his posture, "But after this incident, his already precarious trust with His Majesty is almost gone, so he's like an ant on a hot pan."
"Whose fault is this? It's simply that his ambitions were too great, and his virtue didn't match his position." Jiang Jin had encountered three arrogant and conceited members of the Wang family, demonstrating the typical Wang family values.
"So we just need to wait for good news. However, Wang Juesong is currently on the edge of a cliff, and we should give him another push."
Jiang Jin instantly understood the meaning behind Wei Shu's words, "It's not enough for him to fight to the death now, but if both parties really abandon him, that would be a bolt from the blue."
"Smart." Wei Shu had just moved his shoulder when a sharp pain shot through him, causing him to hiss involuntarily. Jiang Jin heard him.
"You're injured and still so restless." Jiang Jin put his arm around Wei Shu's shoulder, making him lean most of his body against him. "So, should we send another message now?"
"No need. I've already arranged for people to whisper in the ears of both parties. As long as the plan goes smoothly, we can watch them fight like dogs." Wei Shu didn't dare to completely succumb to Jiang Jin's help, but was simply enjoying Jiang Jin's concern. The atmosphere between the two was still quite harmonious.
"Physician Zhai, how am I feeling?" Lou Xuan looked at Zhai Wan through the curtain. "You kept declining today. Anyone who didn't know better would think you were disrespecting me, the princess."
Lou Xuan waved for everyone to leave, leaving only Xueya and Yunwu to serve him.
"His Highness is in good health and there is nothing wrong with him." Xueya received a look from Lou Xuan and pulled back the curtain, while Yunwu skillfully handed a teacup to Lou Xuan.
"That's good." Zhai Wan replied and sat down on the wooden chair. Lou Xuan threw the teacup where Zhai Wan had just stood. The hall fell silent instantly, the sound of the teacup shattering reaching the ears of everyone serving.
"How is it?" Lou Xuan glanced outside the hall; Song Luo stood motionless guarding the hall door.
"It's completely healed, there's no trace left." Zhai Wan explained the situation in the Consort's palace to Lou Xuan in detail. "And Jiang Jin's situation..."
Lou Xuan frowned and looked at Zhai Wan. "Hasn't her injury healed? What's wrong with her now?"
“She tested the medicine on Wei Shu, but it was too strong, so she cut her arm with a knife. Later, I didn’t dare to stay any longer for fear that Wei Shu would become suspicious, so I rushed to the capital.” Zhai Wan sighed. “I never expected that she would ask me to stay for such a reason.”
"Xueya, remember this. I'll scold her when she returns to the capital." Lou Xuan rubbed his temples and sighed deeply. "I really don't know if this was the right thing to do or the wrong thing?"
“Your Highness, I don’t think Wei Shu was unintentional. At least his determination to find an antidote is genuine.” Zhai Wan picked up a pastry from the plate and took a bite. “However, if the self-inflicted injury ploy works, then it will be a fitting end to her injury.”
“Wei Shu is not as simple as he seems on the surface.” Lou Xuan glanced at Zhai Wan. “You didn’t have a tail following you when you came to the capital, did you?”
"Your Highness, rest assured, it's clean." Zhai Wan placed the plate in front of Lou Xuan. "Your Highness, shall we proceed with the Consort's task?"
"No, it doesn't pose a threat to us yet; it's just a tactic in the power struggle within the harem." Lou Xuan squinted at Zhai Wan. "Have you made all the arrangements for Madam Wang?"
"Your Highness, rest assured, everything has been arranged. But will the Third Prince really fall for it?" Zhai Wan didn't understand why Lou Xuan would go to such lengths to help Lady Wang win over the Third Prince.
"With such a good opportunity to strike at the Crown Prince, would the Third Prince let it go?" Lou Xuan chuckled. "Awan, you overestimate men, especially those born into the royal family. In fact, they are more snobbish and disgusting than others."
"But Madam Wang accepted it too quickly. Could there be a trap?" Zhai Wan thought about how she had given the item to Madam Wang, and how she had only hesitated for a moment before readily accepting the plan.
“Sacrificing a piece is a choice made without other options, especially when it’s re-entered into the game. She’ll know which side is most advantageous to her.” Lou Xuan stroked Zhai Wan’s hand.
"It's true that Madam Wang is a noble lady from a prominent family, but it's also true that she has experienced the life of being abandoned. No one wants to be anxious on the chessboard forever."
"Your Highness, are you really going to set her free? If this plan succeeds, she'll know too much. Would letting her go be detrimental to Your Highness?" Zhai Wan was very wary of the noblewoman.
“Once she leaves, she’s no longer a member of the Wang family. Who would listen to the ravings of a commoner? Besides, if she dares to tell anyone, I have ways to make sure she can never speak again.”
Lou Xuan looked at the yellow peony in the room and laughed, "It wouldn't hurt to let them taste what it's like to be devoured by a chess piece."
"Your Highness, Commandant Chang has sent someone with a jade pendant." Song Luo's voice rang out from outside the hall. Zhai Wan immediately knelt to the side with her head bowed.
"Come in." Songluo opened the door, and a maidservant entered the hall carrying a sandalwood box.
"Give it to me." Xueya took the box, and the maidservant, not daring to look at it any longer, quickly retreated.
"Your Highness, would you like to open it and take a look?" Lou Xuan nodded, and Xueya carefully placed the box on the table. A warm and translucent jade pendant lay quietly inside.
Lou Xuan picked up the jade pendant and tied it to his waist, attracting the attention of the three men. "Your Highness, does this mean you've accepted Commandant Chang's offer?"
Zhai Wan hadn't expected Lou Xuan to accept the emperor's bestowed marriage so readily. "We're all in the same boat, what's wrong with exchanging gifts? Yunwu, you can pick out a jade pendant with a symbol of love from the treasury and send it over later."
Lou Xuan glanced at the water clock. "It's noon. I should go to the Crown Prince's palace for lunch. I suddenly really want to see their expressions." Lou Xuan sneered a few times. "Xueya, take Awan downstairs to change her clothes. It's not proper for her to go out with her skirt all wet."
"Thank you, Your Highness." Zhai Wan quickly walked to the palace gate, then, as if remembering something, hurriedly supported her knees. She then glanced at Lou Xuan expectantly before following Xue Ya out the door.
"Your Highness, would you like to go change together?" Yunwu helped Lou Xuan up, a golden mother-of-pearl hairpin slanted into her hair.
"No need. Why make such a big fuss when we're going to see my brother?" Lou Xuan turned slightly to look at the hairpins on the dressing table. "Go pick out a few novel hairpins and we'll give them to the Crown Princess."
"Yes, Your Highness." Yunwu also withdrew, and Songluo stood silently behind Lou Xuan. "Your Highness, the palace staff saw what Physician Zhai looked like just now, although it was only for a moment. Should we suppress the rumors?"
"Suppress it a bit, so that the Consort doesn't think she's in charge of the whole palace. But don't go too far. It won't work if no one knows. Just say that Physician Zhai accidentally knocked over a teacup because she had been kneeling for too long. Tell Zhai Wan to say something ambiguous and have someone clean up the broken pieces on the ground."
"Yes." Shortly after Songluo left, a group of maids entered the palace from outside, carrying cleaning and sweeping tools.
Yunwu also came in carrying two boxes. "Your Highness has chosen the gift. This is the Jade Pendant with the Knot of Love. I will arrange for someone to deliver it out of the palace." Lou Xuan picked up the jade pendant and looked at it. "Go."
"Your Highness, these hairpins are of the finest quality and will surely reflect Your Highness's magnanimity." Yunwu opened the box below, and Lou Xuan nodded in satisfaction after only a glance.
"Not bad." The work in the Huiyue Palace proceeded smoothly until noon. Lou Xuan then led the three to the Crown Prince's bedroom.
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