Seeing the man in black draw out his dagger and stab him without hesitation, Qi Che rushed to the door at the critical moment and roared:
"If I die, Your Majesty won't live past a month!"
Chu Hong's footsteps suddenly stopped.
"That fake Wuya in the palace is actually from the witch doctor clan. She planted a heart-eating poison in Your Majesty's body long ago."
Qi Che's forehead was covered in sweat as he spoke rapidly, "The poison will attack on the night of the full moon. Your Majesty will then suffer a sudden attack and die from a severed heart."
At this time, the tip of the black-clothed man's knife was against Qi Che's neck again. When he was about to use force, he saw Chu Hong suddenly raise his hand.
"Go on."
Qi Che saw the suspicion in Chu Hong's eyes and gritted his teeth, "I, I know a secret method from the Western Regions that can draw out the poisonous insects. If the prince kills me, who can save His Majesty?"
Chu Hong was silent.
Although he hated Qi Che, this matter concerned his father's safety. If what Qi Che said was true, killing him would be equivalent to destroying his father's life.
The man in black stopped where he was, waiting for Chu Hong's order.
Qi Che took the opportunity to say, "Your Majesty, I know I deserve death, but I am still useful! If you spare my life, I promise to help you remove the poisonous insect from your Majesty's body and prevent this marriage."
Chu Hong turned around and stared at Qi Che for a long time, as if he wanted to see through him from inside out.
"The marriage has already been decreed. How can you stop it?"
Qi Che paused, a fierce glint in his eyes. "Let the real Princess Wuya enter the palace and meet the fake Wuya. Threaten her clansmen's lives, and there's no doubt the fake Wuya will obey."
Chu Hong's mind moved, and he narrowed his eyes as he thought of something. "How dare you dare to want to harm my father's dragon body!"
Qi Che hurriedly explained, "Don't worry, Your Majesty. I'm not drugging you. I'm just slightly adjusting your daily diet. I can make your Majesty suddenly feel unwell during the palace banquet. I guarantee it won't cause any damage to your body."
"The key is that we must leave 'evidence' pointing to one person."
Chu Hong thought he was talking about Qin Yuan and sneered, "Do you think everyone is a fool? The emperor has already agreed to the marriage, what reason does Qin Yuan have to drug the emperor?"
"It's not Qin Yuan!" Qi Che said.
He met Chu Hong's stunned gaze and spoke word by word: "It's the second prince of the Qin Dynasty, Qin Xuan."
…
A quarter of an hour later, Qi Che left, and Chu Hong sat alone in the private room quietly, seemingly thinking about something.
Qi Che's words were like a spell, full of bewitching power.
But he had to admit that this was a seemingly perfect plan that could prevent the marriage without bloodshed.
Reason told him that he should refuse.
But Qi Che finally said that Xie Yunqi was secretly supporting Helian Shuo in the Western Regions and provoking civil unrest in the Western Regions. Now, he is probably on his way back to Beijing.
Time is running out, and once Xie Yunqi comes back, this plan will be easily exposed.
Therefore, we have to get all this done before Xie Yunqi returns to Beijing.
The day after tomorrow, there will be a palace banquet to celebrate the imperial sister being named the crown prince.
Qi Che planned to take the real Princess Wuya into the palace to find the fake Wuya.
Should he agree to join forces with Qi Che?
——
On the other side, the news from the court soon reached the post station.
After hearing this, Li Linyuan's heart sank suddenly and his face looked unhappy.
He waved away the servant who brought the news and walked to Qin Yuan's room. Seeing that Qin Yuan was carving something with his own hands, Li Linyuan paused, seeming to be hesitant to speak.
Qin Yuan's kung fu was not weak, but at the moment he was completely immersed in the wood carving in his hand and did not notice the person standing outside the door at all.
"Your Highness!"
After a while, Li Linyuan called him.
Qin Yuan didn't even raise his eyelids, but just asked, "What's the matter?"
Li Linyuan hesitated for a while and finally took a deep breath.
"There is good news and bad news. Which one would you like to hear first, Your Highness?"
Qin Yuan paused and looked up at him.
The sunlight shone through the window lattice onto the ground, half bright and half dim, making it impossible to see the expression on his face.
"Let's talk about the bad first."
Li Linyuan's throat rolled as he whispered, "The Emperor of Chu has issued an edict, appointing Princess Zhaoyang as the Crown Princess and acting as Regent. This also clarifies her status as the Crown Prince of Great Chu."
Qin Yuan tightened his grip on the knife handle, and a scratch instantly appeared on the wood carving.
He said nothing, but returned his gaze to the wood carving.
It was a phoenix spreading its wings, ready to fly, with the patterns on its wings already taking shape.
"What's the good news?" His voice was flat.
"His Majesty the Emperor of Chu... has also approved your marriage with Princess Zhaoyang." Li Linyuan's voice became increasingly low.
“When these two decrees are put together, the meaning couldn’t be clearer.
Princess Zhaoyang is the Crown Princess and will rule the Chu Kingdom in the future. There is absolutely no reason for her to marry into the Qin Kingdom. This marriage... is probably just a nominal promise."
The room was silent, with only the sound of blades scraping against wood.
Qin Yuan still had his eyelashes drooped, and no one could see the emotions in his eyes.
Li Linyuan stood there and said nothing more.
After about an incense stick of time, Qin Yuan suddenly put down the knife in his hand, placed the unfinished phoenix on the table, stood up and said:
"Prepare the horses."
Li Linyuan was stunned: "Your Highness is going to look for Princess Zhaoyang? At this time, I'm afraid..."
"Go to Jubaozhai."
Li Linyuan suspected that he had heard it wrong.
"Ju, Jubaozhai?"
"Yeah. Go choose a gift." Qin Yuan nodded lightly, indicating that he had heard correctly.
He glanced at the phoenix wood carving beside him, his eyes filled with depth.
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