39. Favoring one over the other?
As the assassin drew ever closer to the carriage, the carefree prince's heart leaped into his throat. Even though he desperately wanted to break free, it was too late; the assassin had already pulled down the carriage curtain and thrust his sword into the carriage. Blood instantly stained the sword, and then a glaring red liquid began to seep from the carriage, dripping desperately—one drop, two drops… until more and more. Seeing this, the carefree prince's heart stopped, and he cried out in grief and rage:
"No!"
Seeing this, Ouyang Ziren's eyes turned cold, and he acted even faster and more ruthlessly. He went to the side of the Carefree King and said:
"Che, wake up! Don't just stand there like an idiot. Let's finish this quickly, there might still be hope!"
"Yes, with Ziren here, everything will be alright!" Prince Xiaoyao kept reassuring himself. Thinking of how much blood Liu Hanruo had lost, Prince Xiaoyao was frantic with worry and had no heart for further fighting. He attacked ruthlessly, each move fatal. The remaining assassins were quickly dealt with, but due to the fighting, both men were inevitably stained with blood, looking just like soldiers fresh from the battlefield.
After dealing with the assassin, Ouyang Ziren went to the side of the Carefree Prince and reached out to treat his arm wound, but the Carefree Prince stopped him. The Prince looked worriedly towards the carriage, then pulled Ouyang Ziren and ran towards it, saying as he ran:
"Ziren, I'm fine. Go save Ruo'er first, then you can treat my wounds!"
Seeing that the Prince of Xiaoyao was completely focused on Liu Hanruo, Ouyang Ziren stopped talking and let the Prince of Xiaoyao lead him to the carriage. Ouyang Ziren originally thought he would see Liu Hanruo lying there covered in blood, but to his surprise, he saw Hua Nishang kneeling in front of Liu Hanruo, one hand clutching her chest, her hand covered in blood. The wound had not been treated, and blood kept gushing out, quickly staining Hua Nishang's clothes red.
Unlike what Ouyang Ziren had seen, the Carefree King only had eyes for Liu Hanruo from beginning to end. He automatically ignored Hua Nishang standing in front of him, walked directly past her to Liu Hanruo's side, and saw that her face was pale. He panicked and hurriedly asked Ouyang Ziren:
"Ziren, come quickly and see why Ruo'er is so pale. Has she been frightened?"
Upon hearing this, Ouyang Ziren felt utterly helpless. He didn't know what to say to the Prince of Xiaoyao and sighed inwardly:
Hey, Che, anyone with eyes can see that Hua Nishang took a sword for Liu Hanruo. You're saying Liu Hanruo's face is pale? Didn't you notice that Hua Nishang standing in front of you seems even paler? The blood hasn't stopped flowing; it keeps leaking out. If you leave her like this, she'll definitely bleed to death. Hey, even if you don't care about her, at least consider her feelings. She saved your Ruo'er; you shouldn't just ignore her like this.
On the other hand, Hua Nishang's original idea was that as long as she saved Liu Hanruo, the Prince of Xiaoyao would surely be grateful to her and praise her. Once the Prince of Xiaoyao changed his opinion of her, she would have the opportunity to develop a closer relationship with him. However, no matter how much she planned, she never expected... that it would end like this. How could she not be so angry that she vomited blood?
Hua Nishang coughed incessantly in anger, and due to the large movements, the blood on her chest flowed even more freely. However, the Carefree Prince only glared at her coldly, seemingly complaining that Hua Nishang was too noisy, completely ignoring her injury. This made Hua Nishang even more nauseous, and her emotions became increasingly agitated, even her breathing became rapid. Finally, Ouyang Ziren couldn't bear to watch any longer and spoke up to defuse the situation:
"Che, injuries vary in severity and urgency. Since the Princess Consort is unharmed, there's no need to rush to see her. On the other hand, Madam Hua's injuries are worrying. As fellow women of the inner court, Che, you cannot show favoritism!"
Ouyang Ziren's words earned Hua Nishang a grateful smile, but the Carefree King still seemed very unwilling. He raised his eyebrows and finally gave in!
Having received permission from the carefree king, Ouyang Ziren smiled at Hua Nishang and politely said:
"Madam Hua, I am a doctor and can only see the wound. Please forgive me if I have offended you."
Hua Nishang glanced at the wound, and how could she not understand? She looked up at the Prince of Xiaoyao, wanting to ask for his opinion, but all she got in return was the Prince of Xiaoyao's cold eyes and impatient expression.
Ultimately, it was all because of Liu Hanruo. As a result, Hua Nishang's hatred for Liu Hanruo grew deeper and deeper, and her murderous intent intensified. She closed her eyes, perfectly concealing her bloodthirsty gaze.
After obtaining Hua Nishang's consent, Ouyang Ziren pulled Hua Nishang's top down to her chest, and then skillfully treated the wound, stopping the bleeding, applying medicine, and bandaging it. He was very busy. After a quarter of an hour, he finally finished treating it. Hua Nishang straightened her clothes and sat down by the carriage.
Urged anxiously by the Prince of Xiaoyao, Ouyang Ziren finally took Liu Hanruo's pulse. The weak pulse seemed to tell him that Liu Hanruo had lost too much blood. He wondered to himself:
That doesn't make sense. It's just poisoning, how could it cause excessive blood loss, unless...
Ouyang Ziren looked up and carefully observed Liu Hanruo. His efforts paid off, and after a long time, he finally noticed something amiss. He saw faint bloodstains under the slightly open collar of her clothes. Upon closer inspection, he saw several scratches of varying depths. Judging from the healing process, these were likely recent wounds, caused by something sharp.
With this deduction in mind, Ouyang Ziren suddenly looked up at Hua Nishang. This action startled Hua Nishang, causing her to break out in a cold sweat. Fearing that something would be discovered, she lowered her head, not daring to look at Ouyang Ziren, her hands clenched into fists. This action further confirmed Ouyang Ziren's guess. He glanced at her with cold eyes, and when he saw the gold hairpin in Hua Nishang's hair, he smiled knowingly and asked indifferently:
"Madam Hua, may I take a look at your golden hairpin?"
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