Upon hearing the sound, Liu Yue and Jiang Xian were initially confused.
Liuyue was the first to react.
She put down the knife, stood up, and bowed: "Liuyue greets Fourth Prince Brother..."
Jiang Chi narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing her: "Liu Yue?"
His tone and gaze were both unsettling.
Liu Yue forced herself to reply, "Yes, Fourth Brother."
Jiang Chi nodded: "Your mother, with her beautiful face, outshone all others and was the most favored concubine in the palace. You do resemble her somewhat."
Liu Yue's expression wasn't very good, but she still said gently, "Thank you for the compliment, Fourth Brother."
Jiang Chi withdrew his gaze and looked at Jiang Xian with a hint of disdain: "You, are you the Sixth Prince?"
Jiang Xian was somewhat afraid. He instinctively wanted to move closer to Liu Yue, but he was still quite far away from her.
So Jiang Xian leaned closer to Yuan Yuan and stammered, "It's...it's me..."
Lacks manners and is as timid as a mouse!
They're utterly useless!
Jiang Chi scoffed inwardly.
He didn't take Jiang Xian seriously and instead looked directly at Yuan Yuan: "Yuan Yuan, you're lucky to be alive!"
"It's been over a month since we last met. This prince originally intended to come and collect your corpse."
Yuan Yuan held the knife in his hand, coldly raising his eyes: "I've disappointed you."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Chi's sinister eyes flashed with an excited, cold light: "Yuan Yuan, Yuan Yuan, you have truly surprised this prince!"
What, has your broken pride healed again?
Yuan Yuan: "..."
His expression turned somewhat grim.
Seeing Yuan Yuan's expression, Jiang Chi was particularly excited: "I happen to have nothing to do today, and I've brought the imperial physician with me."
Someone, come and examine Young Master Yuan!
Make sure every part of your body is checked thoroughly!
"yes!"
A middle-aged man dressed as a royal physician with a mustache and narrow eyes stepped forward.
Jiang Chi stared at Yuan Yuan with amusement and instructed, "By the way, take a look at Young Master Yuan's body and see if it's truly cleansed completely?"
Yuan Yuan, unable to bear it any longer, said: "Jiang Chi! Don't go too far!"
Jiang Chi tilted his head and gave a sinister smile: "I, the prince, brought the imperial physician to examine you, and instead of being grateful, you even blame me?"
Yuan Yuan sneered.
Jiang Chi waved his hand: "Go, hold him down!"
Yuan Yuan gritted his teeth, gripped his short sword tightly, and shouted, "Who dares!"
“Yuan Yuan.” Jiang Chi was amused: “Do you think this prince is someone who can be easily frightened?”
"With your little dagger, who can you possibly hurt?"
Yuan Yuan changed the direction of his short sword, the blade directly touching the fair and delicate neck, and said coldly, "Jiang Chi, you seem to have forgotten that a sword can not only hurt people, but also end one's own life."
"What can you do to me now that I'm dead?"
After speaking, he pressed the blade down.
A bloody scratch was instantly left on her slender, fair neck.
The glaring blood seeped along the blade.
Jiang Chi's brows furrowed.
He gritted his teeth and said menacingly, "Yuan Yuan, if you dare to die, I, the prince, will dismember your body and throw it into the moat to feed the fish!"
“Heh…” Yuan Yuan scoffed coldly: “When a person dies, all that’s left is a shell.”
Do you think I'd care?
Jiang Chi's eyelids twitched violently.
Beside him, the imperial physician asked obsequiously, "Your Highness, what do you think..."
Jiang Chi angrily swung his sleeve: "Yuan Yuan, you win!"
After speaking, he shouted at his lackeys, "Go!"
A group of more than a dozen people all rushed out of Ruyi Palace.
Only after everyone had left did Liuyue finally breathe a sigh of relief.
She stepped forward worriedly: "A-Yuan, your injury..."
Yuan Yuan coldly removed the knife from his neck without even frowning.
He held out his hand: "Do you have a cloth?"
Liu Yue was stunned for a moment, thinking he was going to bandage his wound, so she quickly took out her handkerchief and handed it to him: "A Yuan, here."
Yuan Yuan took the handkerchief and wrapped it around the short sword before Liu Yue could react.
Where the blade passed, only bright red, glaring blood remained.
The short knife, however, was as clean as new.
Yuan Yuan lowered his eyelashes, put the handkerchief aside, picked up a persimmon, and continued peeling it.
Seeing this, Jiang Xian was so frightened that he stood up and moved closer to Liu Yue.
Liu Yue gasped in surprise, "A Yuan!"
Yuan Yuan looked up, staring at her coldly: "What is it?"
While asking, he put the peeled persimmons into the basket...
Jiang Xian was both indignant and afraid, and dared not say a word, only staring at him with her big eyes.
Yuan Yuan's eyes shifted slightly, his gaze falling coldly on his face.
Jiang Xian froze.
Liu Yue's face was slightly pale. She gently patted Jiang Xian's shoulder and forced a smile, "A Yuan, I'm fine. I just wanted to ask if your wound... needs to be bandaged?"
"No need," Yuan Yuan said coldly. "I won't die."
Liuyue's eyes showed worry.
Yuan Yuan added, "I'll wash the handkerchief and return it to you."
Liu Yue sighed softly, "Okay..."
After speaking, she patted Jiang Xian's head reassuringly: "Xian, peel the persimmon."
"good……"
The three of them sat back down on the steps under the eaves.
After Jiang Chi left, several autumn rains fell, and winter officially arrived.
The cold palace was especially cold during winter.
In previous years, the Yuan family would have lit their stoves long ago at this time of year.
They burn only the finest fruitwood charcoal.
In this desolate palace, let alone charcoal, not even firewood is delivered...
There was no trace of grain, meat, or vegetables.
Liu Yue, wearing an old coat, stood guard at the entrance of Ruyi Palace every day for half a month, but she still didn't receive the allowance that she and Jiang Xian were entitled to.
Ruyi Palace seems to have been forgotten...
By December, at Ruyi Palace, they still hadn't received their allowance.
There was less than half a pound of rice left in the rice container.
Liu Yue gritted her teeth and went to discuss with Yuan Yuan and Jiang Xian: "Yuan, Xian, I need to find a way to leave Ruyi Palace!"
Yuan Yuan was holding a charred tree branch and teaching Jiang Xian to write on the stone steps.
Hearing the voice, he looked up and said in a cold voice that gradually became thinner, "Once you leave this Ruyi Palace, will you be able to come back?"
Liu Yue was stunned for a moment: "A Yuan, you mean..."
Yuan Yuan wrote the character "Jiang" on the ground and said coldly, "Jiang Chi just wants to trap us to death."
If you go out, do you think the people outside will let you in again?
Upon hearing this, Liu Yue was completely stunned.
The image of Jiang Chi's sinister face from that day flashed into my mind.
"Fourth Brother..." Liu Yue gave a bitter smile, "A Yuan, Fourth Brother is targeting us like this, are we really going to be trapped and die this winter?"
Yuan Yuan coldly pursed his lips: "The more he wants us to die, the more we have to live."
Liu Yue hesitated: "But..."
Yuan Yuan said coldly, "I will leave the palace tomorrow."
There's always a way.
After thinking it over, Liu Yue said to him, "A Yuan, I'll go out of the palace with you after breakfast tomorrow!"
Yuan Yuan pursed his lips and remained silent.
The next day.
Yuan Yuan got up early, and before he even reached the kitchen, he heard Liu Yue's happy cheers: "A Yuan, A Xian, come quick!"
Yuan Yuan frowned and strode towards the kitchen.
A greyish-white figure rushed towards the kitchen like the wind: "Sister, what's wrong?"
Yuan Yuan: "..."
He stood at the entrance of the kitchen, looking at Liuyue, whose face was full of joy: "What happened?"
Before Liu Yue could answer, Jiang Xian excitedly shouted at the top of his lungs, "Rice! Meat! And vegetables!"
Yuan Yuan paused for a moment, then walked over in a few steps.
The rice jar, which was almost empty yesterday, is now filled with glistening, plump grains of polished rice...
Liu Yue was so happy she almost cried: "A Yuan, you are so knowledgeable. Are there really gods in this world?"
The gods saw how miserable the three of us were, so they came to help us!
Yuan Yuan: "..."
He coldly interrupted Liuyue's fantasy: "It's Chi Ying."
"Huh?" Liu Yue was stunned: "Young Master Chi?"
Yuan Yuan left the kitchen, walked to the bare persimmon tree, and said coldly, "I know you're here. Come out!"
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