Chapter 124 Brother Crown Prince, I will do as you say…
The first thing Yan Jiarou did after returning home was to find the sachet that Xiao Che had given her before. This sachet contained the secret of his vital point, which she always kept very safe.
She locked it in a lacquered box containing a double fish symbol, and the key to the box was hidden in the openwork double phoenix gold pendant hanging around her neck, which she wore with her at all times and never took off.
Even when bathing or making love with Xiao Che, when she was already naked, she never took off the gold pendant, so that she would never lose it.
She never revealed the secret to anyone else, not even when Yingxue asked her what it was.
When Xiao Che was with her, his attention was always focused on her body, so he didn't care what she wore. However, after a while, he couldn't help but ask her about it.
Yan Jiarou hesitated and refused to tell him at the time, feeling that if she told him the truth, he would think that she cherished him too much, even carrying his key with her at all times, and that she probably loved him to death. He would definitely take the opportunity to tease her.
She didn't want him to know.
Xiao Che then picked up the gold chain, gently rubbing it between his fingers, glanced at her, and asked with a playful tone, "Why aren't you saying anything, hmm?"
“You have to wear this thing every time we do it, don’t you find it a nuisance?”
Yan Jiarou puffed out her cheeks and retorted in a low voice, "It's just a small, delicate gold sachet ornament. How could it be in the way?"
Xiao Che glanced at her and said seriously, "You're in the way of me touching your breasts."
"You!" Yan Jiarou glared at him, her fair face turning bright red. After a long while, she obediently wrapped the gold pendant around her neck and let it hang down her back. Then she leaned forward, wrapped her arms around his neck, and gently rubbed her nose against him: "Look, this way it won't get in the way."
Xiao Che glanced at her and said with amusement, "Does she really have to wear this thing?"
"What's inside that you won't even take off before getting into bed?"
Yan Jiarou hesitated and refused to speak.
Xiao Che raised an eyebrow, suddenly feeling a mischievous urge to tease her. He lifted her chin, looking at her with a half-slanted gaze: "A hollowed-out sachet... I know, you wear this every time you're in bed. It must contain aphrodisiac incense to enhance the experience, right?"
"No wonder I can't get enough of you every time, and I wish I could die on top of you. So it turns out that you look so innocent on the surface, but you've been doing all this behind my back to make me unable to leave you, so that I'll obediently give you the antidote regularly, right?"
Yan Jiarou felt utterly wronged and quickly protested, "I...I didn't..."
"No? Then tell me, why do I want to fuck you the moment I see you?"
Yan Jiarou was extremely ashamed. She turned her face away and said in a barely audible voice, "I...I don't know..."
"Don't know?" Xiao Che pinched her chin and turned her face to face. "Isn't it because you drugged me? Every time we made love, you wore that fancy sachet. That's the best evidence."
"I didn't!" Yan Jiarou's eyes were flushed, her face red, whether from embarrassment or anger, she said defiantly, "Perhaps...perhaps you're from Lanling, naturally with a strong sex drive, so that's why..." that's why she got aroused as soon as she saw her, yet she tried to blame it on her! Although this sachet did contain some fragrance, it was definitely not an aphrodisiac!
"Nonsense," Xiao Che said, a slight smile playing on his lips as he gently bit her earlobe. His voice was hoarse. "If it were my fault, why am I uninterested in other women, but the moment you pounced on me, I was...? And you're still saying you tampered with the sachet and gold jewelry you always wear?"
Yan Jiarou was taken aback, and confusion gradually appeared in her beautiful eyes. She wasn't very bright to begin with, and this time she was truly caught up in his trap: "I...I don't know either..."
Xiao Che curled his lips: "See, even you can't explain it clearly."
"Waaah..."
"Still not going to tell the truth?" Xiao Che whispered in her ear, feigning a fierce tone, "If you don't tell the truth, I'll fuck you to death tonight."
"I'll fuck you until your legs are so sore you can't close them and you can't get out of bed. Consider it punishment for the little rabbit not telling the truth."
Yan Jiarou was terrified and cried out, "I'll tell the truth, I'll tell the truth!"
"Oh? Tell me then. Why am I like this only with you, always wanting to have sex with you?"
Yan Jiarou was forced to confess under torture and had no choice but to admit to the crime. She said aggrievedly, "Because...because I secretly tampered with the sachet, that's why you couldn't control yourself..."
"You're wrong, baby."
Xiao Che sighed softly and lowered his head to kiss away the tears on her cheek: "It's because I like you so much that I'm like this."
Yan Jiarou slowly opened her eyes, staring at him blankly. It took her a long time to finally realize that Xiao Che was simply toying with her. How could he possibly believe she carried a sachet filled with aphrodisiac incense all the time? Wouldn't she be constantly aroused? This was just an excuse for him to tease her; he was always this wicked. "Ugh, brother, you're so bad..."
"This is bad? There's something even worse."
"Ugh... I hate it..."
...
Although she didn't wear any aphrodisiac in her sachet, he still made her half to death that night.
Memories flooded back, recalling their playful flirting in bed. Although Xiao Che always teased her, she felt a sweetness even when her body couldn't take it. She thought that Xiao Che always liked her, so whenever she had a spare moment, she would try her best to satisfy him, and she often felt guilty for not being able to satisfy him.
Looking back now, it was incredibly foolish.
Xiao Che probably only treated her like a fool and played with her from beginning to end.
A cold smile appeared on her lips as she lowered her head and fiddled with the openwork sachet hanging down to her chest. With a snap, she opened the sachet and took out a key from inside.
I used to wear them with great care, but now I don't need to anymore.
Xiao Che gave her a sachet containing his life-threatening secret, which she originally intended to keep secret for the rest of her life and not let anyone else know.
But things change, and she never expected that she would change her mind in just a few months.
Xiao Che was full of lies. She had considered that the secret about the vital point might be false, but Xiao Che had no reason to tell her the secret at the time. Since he was willing to tell her, he should not be lying.
As for why he was willing to put his most sensitive secret in a sachet and give it to her as a gift to please her when their love was at its peak, it couldn't be because he loved her so much that he was willing to risk his life to prove it.
Yan Jiarou thought that he was probably too arrogant, so arrogant that he thought she would always be under his control and be a fool who was completely unaware of what was going on.
Even if he gave her a sachet containing the secret to his life, she probably wouldn't even think of opening it—she would never have any intention of harming him, so why would she open it?
It's a pity, Xiao Che, even you have a day when you miscalculate.
——
After taking out the key, she opened the xx and retrieved the brocade pouch that Xiao Che had given her. She finally learned for the first time the location of his Achilles' heel—
It is one inch below the third rib on the left side of the chest.
She breathed a sigh of relief.
Because Xiao Jue told her that as long as she stabbed the dagger into his right chest, down one inch from the third rib, the mark that the wicked fox had planted on her would fade, and the bond between her and Xiao Che would be completely severed.
In this way, her strange illness was naturally cured.
She only stabbed him once. Lanling's constitution is different from ordinary people, and he will not die easily. Since it is not a fatal blow, it will not take his life. What does she have to worry about?
She simply didn't want Xiao Che anymore, and didn't want any more ties with him. What did she do wrong? In the end, wasn't it because of him that she contracted this strange disease?
She felt that he owed her something, that he had been using and deceiving her all along, saying he loved her, taking her body, and then getting entangled with other women.
Who is she?
She heard him say with her own ears that he was nothing more than a plaything for her, a fool whom he could humiliate and toy with at will.
She hurt the crown prince, whom she had been close to since childhood, for his sake.
How could she not regret it, how could she not feel ashamed?
The love affair we've been having these days is nothing but a complete joke.
He deceived her feelings, but he deserved to be stabbed, even if it hurt.
If she suffers five parts pain, she will make him suffer ten parts, only then will she feel satisfied.
Moreover, he was ruthless in achieving his goals and had harmed her two other brothers; she should avenge them.
But why is she still so hesitant?
She thought she was really crazy.
Even at this point, she still couldn't bear to do it.
Is it true that people from Lanling feel more than ten times the pain of ordinary people?
No, making him suffer is exactly what she wants. Those who betray her must pay the price. Xiao Che's suffering will only bring her pleasure.
What was it that made her feel vaguely uneasy...?
Thoughts flash by like wisps of smoke, but when you try to think about them carefully, you can't grasp them.
——
She couldn't make up her mind.
Because of this unresolved matter, he tossed and turned, unable to sleep, and was completely distracted.
As a result, he fell seriously ill.
Although I fell ill, this illness came at just the right time.
She hadn't wanted to see Xiao Che during this time, worried that he would notice something. But she had been going to see him every few days and always sticking to him. Now she had suddenly become cold, which might arouse his suspicion.
But now that she's sick, she has an excuse not to see him.
Even when she needed the antidote, he had to deliver it to her door.
——
Xiao Che has recently noticed that Xiao Tu is much colder about that matter than before. Her body is still very sensitive, and she gets wet at the slightest touch, but she always holds back in bed and doesn't like to make a sound, as if she is deliberately suppressing something. She is no longer as soft-hearted as before and willing to let him have sex with her many times. She always says she is tired as soon as she gets the antidote.
Xiao Che would sometimes vent his frustrations, embracing her from behind and gently nibbling at her earlobe: "You heartless little thing, you really think of me as the cure? You're happy now, but you don't care about my life or death anymore, huh?"
He took her hand and guided her slowly downwards, saying in a hoarse voice:
"Feel it, it was just getting a little interested, and it's already done?"
"Okay, Yan Yan, give it to me one more time."
If it were in the past, she would have given in to his persistent pleading and cajoling, and then it would have happened once, twice, three times... His appetite seemed to be insatiable.
But now she simply turned and gently stroked his face, her dark eyes looking at him: "Xiao Che, I've been ill recently, and I'm truly willing but unable to do so. Let's wait a while, okay?"
“Baby, I already consulted the imperial physician. Sweating will only benefit your condition. But since you have said so, I will naturally follow your advice.”
He took her other hand, lowered his head and kissed and sucked on her fingertips one by one, his voice hoarse: "I'll let you pay for these few days. Once you're better, I'll definitely fuck you to death."
Yan Jiarou's lips twitched, her smile somewhat unreal: "Okay."
——
To everyone else, she had only caught a slight cold, not even an illness. Only she knew that she was suffering from a mental illness.
Since then, she has never been to Hanguang Palace again. Xiao Che would come to Chenghuan Palace to see her every few days, often bringing her some novel trinkets from outside the palace. Even the pastries she liked best from Rongjizhai, which were all extremely sweet, were no longer restricted by him in the past.
"I heard that eating something sweet can improve your mood. Little Rabbit has been listless lately, so I'll make an exception and let you eat a few more pieces."
Xiao Che touched her cheek: "Are you any happier?"
The sweet and soft hibiscus cake melts in your mouth. In the past, I would always feel extremely happy when I ate it, but now I feel bored.
She suddenly felt tired and leaned against him, her gaze falling on a point in the air. She said blankly, "As long as you're with me, I'm happy no matter what." She wished he hadn't done those things, that it was all a lie.
Xiao Che smiled slightly and lowered his head to kiss her forehead: "Of course, I will always be by your side."
He said, "I am yours."
Such words are so sweet; even knowing they are lies, one can't help but become addicted to them.
She would sometimes feel dazed, and for a moment, she didn't want to care about anything or pay attention to anything. She just felt that if Xiao Che was willing to keep lying to her, it wouldn't be so bad.
Until that day, she lay on her side on the couch, surrounded by the sweet, cloying fragrance of incense. She was drowsy in the afternoon and had a dream.
In her dream, the crown prince abdicated, her father passed away, and Xiao Che finally achieved his wish and ascended to the high position. She was genuinely happy for him.
But the next moment, the scene changed, and she was suddenly pushed to the ground by him. His gaze towards her was devoid of any of the warmth he once had. He coldly said, "Royal sister, envoys from a foreign country have come to our court, requesting that we establish a marriage alliance. They need to send a princess to marry into the Northern Chu. After much thought, I believe that you are the most suitable candidate."
“My sister is so beautiful, she evokes pity in me. Northern Chu will surely be pleased. The other princesses are all my own sisters, blood is thicker than water, and I can’t help but feel reluctant to part with them. But my sister is not of royal blood, yet she has held the title of princess for so many years. She has enjoyed the honor of a princess, so naturally she should also shoulder the responsibilities of a princess. What do you say?”
The climate in Northern Chu is harsh and the journey is long. She has lived in the pleasant climate of the Great Wei capital for so many years, and has been pampered since childhood, no different from a flower in a greenhouse. How could she endure the torment of Northern Chu? Moreover, the Northern Chu royal family is lustful and tyrannical, and takes pleasure in torturing women. She is just a fake princess. Would they really treat her well?
The Northern Chu was thousands of miles away from the capital. The journey was long and arduous, with harsh weather and difficult people. She was afraid she was destined to die far from home and never see Xiao Che again in this life...
She knelt on the ground in a panic, reaching out in vain to grab his clothes, and pleaded, "No, don't send me away, Xiao Che. Even a night of marriage can have a hundred days of grace. For the sake of our past relationship, please don't send me away. I don't want to go to a political marriage. Let me stay by your side. I'll be good..."
"If you stay, what will happen to me?"
Suddenly, he heard a woman's charming voice. Turning his head, he saw Ji Le in Xiao Che's arms. Her soft, boneless hands clung to him, her lips curled into a smile, her eyes defiant, and the kiss marks on her neck revealed their unusual relationship.
“Princess, now that His Highness has ascended the throne, you are no longer of any use to me. I have endured for so long, it is time for you to abdicate. We are in love, why don’t you grant our request?”
"As for the marriage alliance," she said softly, her eyes shifting slightly as she smiled, "if you truly love him, then do this last thing for him. This is your only remaining value. Your pampered body has been sustained by the royal family; now it's time to repay that favor."
The implication is that they want to exploit her to the bone, squeeze out every last bit of value from her, and then discard her like trash.
"No...don't..."
She was drenched in cold sweat, suddenly opened her eyes, and screamed as she sat up in bed.
The sweet, cloying aroma filled my nostrils, and my head felt groggy and throbbing from just waking up from a deep sleep.
A deep sleep? It was just a dream...
She had just breathed a sigh of relief when she suddenly caught a glimpse of Ji Le standing by the bed!
She smiled and leaned down slightly to look at her, saying, "Princess, you're awake?"
Yan Jiarou's face suddenly turned deathly pale, and she shrank back, clutching the quilt: "You... how did you get here..."
"Your Highness is too tired today and probably can't come. I was afraid the princess would wait in vain, so I came to tell you. Yingxue knew I was here to deliver a message for Your Highness, so she let me in."
She tossed a strand of hair behind her ear, seemingly unintentionally revealing a hickey on her neck, and sighed softly, looking rather troubled: "His Highness must be exhausted today, he really put me through a lot. Princess, have you been starving him lately? Is that why he acted like this..." Her face flushed slightly, revealing a shy, girlish demeanor: "But it's been so hard on me..."
Yan Jiarou's eyes widened suddenly, all color drained from her face, and her lips trembled as she stammered, "You... what did you say..."
The kiss mark on Ji Le's neck overlapped with the one in her dream, blurring the line between dream and reality in an instant.
Her head was spinning and heavy, and even the things in front of her began to appear double. She vaguely saw Ji Le retreat, her face distorted in the bizarre and colorful scenery around her, and her voice was sharp and eerie, mixed with intermittent laughter.
It all felt like a nightmare.
With a splitting headache, Yan Jiarou clutched her head in pain, momentarily unable to distinguish between reality and dream.
——
After leaving Chenghuan Palace, Ji Le lowered her head, rubbed the remaining incense ash between her fingertips, and then held it to her nose to sniff it. It was still sweet and cloying.
This is the "Delusion Silk" given to her by the Crown Prince. Once lit, it can induce a dream state, reflecting one's inner demons into the dream. Moreover, over time, it becomes difficult to distinguish between reality and dreams, and one is easily influenced by dreams, believing that the things one fears most are very likely to actually happen.
The "Nianwangsi" fragrance is similar in scent to the incense that Yan Jiarou usually uses. Yingxue would collect the fragrance from the Incense Bureau every now and then. It would not be difficult for her to deceive Yingxue and tamper with it under her nose.
Yan Jiarou is simple-minded and has had a carefree and smooth life since childhood. Her only inner demon is that she believes Xiao Che is only using her and that he truly loves someone else.
So it's not hard to guess what she'll dream about, and it's not difficult for her to deliberately pinch a mark on the side of her neck so that she'll mistake it for a hickey.
After being repeatedly stimulated, she was naturally confused and in agony. At this time, if the Crown Prince persuaded her, it would surely be twice as effective.
After all, her affection for Xiao Che was actually quite superficial, and she couldn't hold out for long.
——
When Xiao Jue entered, the incense in the room had burned out, and a long stretch of incense ash had accumulated beside the incense burner, winding in a snake-like shape.
Yan Jiarou leaned against the bed railing, her face pale and her eyes vacant.
In just a few days, her face has become noticeably thinner.
Her delicate features were highlighted, making her even more breathtakingly beautiful.
But the expression on his face seemed to be one of utter despair, his eyes were blank, empty and lifeless, like a beautiful but lifeless mannequin.
Xiao Che frowned, feeling a pang of heartache. He couldn't bear to see Yan Jiarou so hurt, but he had no choice but to do this to help her sever her ill-fated relationship with him.
Ultimately, it was all Xiao Che's fault.
He will naturally avenge the pain he caused Yan Jiarou a thousandfold in the future.
Thinking of this, he suppressed his chaotic thoughts, walked over and sat down beside her, raised his hand to stroke her cheek, and sighed, "Jiarou, you've lost so much weight..."
Yan Jiarou slowly raised her head, her gaze lingering on his face, as if it took her a long time to recognize him: "Crown Prince," she said, "what should I do..."
"What's wrong? What happened? Tell your brother, the Crown Prince, and I will help you. No matter what happens, I will help you."
“No, you can’t help me, no one can help me with this…” She shook her head, dejected, and said, “Xiao Che will soon abandon me… Before long, once he ascends the throne, I will be of no use to him… The humiliation and revenge will be enough… He will no longer show me any kindness… He will be with the person he truly loves… Yes, he loves Ji Le, our childhood sweetheart, aren’t they childhood sweethearts too…”
“Ji Le has taken care of him since he was a child. He treated her differently from other palace maids. Crown Prince, you are right. I'm afraid that it was she who introduced him to the idea of incest... because I saw it, I saw it on her neck..."
Her thin shoulders trembled slightly, and she didn't continue speaking, only saying, "What should I do... I don't want to go on like this anymore, Crown Prince. I want to go back to the past, back to the carefree days..."
Every moment now feels like a living death to her.
My heart feels like a piece has been ripped out, leaving a gaping, bloody hole that won't heal for a long time, and every breath brings a sharp, persistent pain.
That terrifying dream, the provocative kiss mark on Ji Le's neck, what she heard in the bamboo forest, what she saw in the attic, her second brother's letter, Hua Yao's keepsake...
They were like the sharpest daggers in the world, deeply embedded in her body, twisting and turning over and over again, no less than the cruelest punishment in the world.
She was desperate to find a way out.
If liking someone is this painful, then she shouldn't like them anymore, never again.
She was like a drowning person, desperately grasping at the last straw.
Xiao Jue then gave her this straw: "Jiarou, the reason you are in so much pain is because you thought you loved Xiao Che deeply, but Xiao Che betrayed you, that's why you are like this."
"But the mute doctor told me long ago that after you contracted that strange disease, your mind would be affected by the fox poison. That lewd fox had a perverse love for Xiao Che, which is why it used your body to have sex with him. This was not your intention. Moreover, when it comes to matters of lust, it is easy for people to misunderstand and think it is love. You are young and it is possible that you cannot distinguish between them."
Yan Jiarou's eyelashes fluttered slightly: "You mean... I don't like Xiao Che, and it's just because of the White Fox's influence that I feel this way?"
"Yes, as long as you do as I say, at the right moment, plunge the dagger into his right chest an inch below the third rib, the strange illness will be cured, and your bond with Xiao Che will completely disappear. At that time, you will be able to recognize your true self, not be influenced by the lewd fox, and will never again be sad for him or heartbroken because of him."
She felt she was in so much pain and desperately wanted to find a way out, so she finally nodded and agreed: "...Okay, Crown Prince, I will do as you say. This is what he owes me."
She thought she would never like Xiao Che again.
Xiao Che was cunning and ruthless, framing Xiao Yan and causing Xiao Jue to be seriously injured. As his younger sister, she should avenge her brothers.
Even setting aside this feud, the grudges between her and Xiao Che should be settled.
This strike was meant to sever all ties between them, and also to repay the emotional debt he owed her.
From then on, they owed each other nothing.
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