At that moment, a page boy rushed in and bowed, saying, "Your Highness, news has suddenly arrived from outside, it says..."
The page boy hesitated, seeming somewhat unsure, but continued, "They say that news has come of The Prince’s death."
Ji Xinhe’s face instantly turned pale as she swayed and staggered, collapsing into the taishi chair. Her heart pounded painfully, her lips trembling, "You, you, you’re saying what?"
The page boy was clearly panicking, speaking incoherently, "I...I am not clear, I just overheard someone saying, they said The Prince is dead..."
Ji Xinhe felt her heart sink as she clenched her fists, eyes filled with tears. Her voice shaking, she refused to believe it, "How is that possible? How can it be?"
Just a few days ago, news had come of Rouyi nation being in chaos. Ji Xinhe naively thought that it must be a scheme of Mu Houchu, who must still be alive! He has to be okay! But unexpectedly, she then received such terrible news today, was he dead? Could he have just died like that?!
How could that be possible?
Shulan was stunned into silence.
Xiaoyu, however, seemed to remember something and asked sharply, "Where did this news come from?!"
The page boy stammered, "I...I am not sure either. I just heard some bystanders talking about it. The news...this news, is already known by everyone now."
As the page boy spoke, he lowered his head in dejection. Yu State had just escaped a disaster, but who knew that so soon after, they would have to face such devastating news. If The Prince was dead, then Yu State would be left without a leader and chaos was inevitable! What would the people of the royal mansion, or even the common people of Yu State do then?
Pondering upon this, the page boy shivered in terror.
"Everyone outside knows?!" Xiaoyu asked with a hint of suspicion in her voice, "Such important news, even our scouts who were sent out to find the whereabouts of The Prince do not know yet, but the news has already spread everywhere outside?"
The page boy was taken aback and did not understand the implication in Xiaoyu’s words. He could only reply blankly, "I...I do not know."
However, Ji Xinhe immediately figured out the problem. Her dispersed gaze became more focused, and there was a chilling coldness in her eyes that made people shudder.
"The news is everywhere outside? How did he die? Who spread the news? Do you know all these?" Ji Xinhe asked coldly.
The page boy, hearing these questions, felt chills down his spine and hesitatingly shook his head, "I... I do not know..."
Xiaoyu immediately bowed and said, "Your Highness, this matter is of utmost importance. We cannot be careless. I believe that the news has come too suddenly. How can the common people gossiping in the streets know more than our scouts? This seems questionable."
Ji Xinhe’s cold gaze swept over the page boy, causing him to quickly kneel down and repeatedly beg for mercy, "I don’t know, Your Highness! I genuinely don’t know! I just came to report after hearing it from outside."
The page boy was scared half to death and quickly explained. He was afraid that Ji Xinhe might mistake him for intentionally spreading rumours and deceiving her. After all, he wouldn’t dare mislead Her Highness. He knew full well how fearsome his Master could be!
Ji Xinhe cast the page boy a cold glance before finally letting him go. Turning towards Xiaoyu, she asked, "Where is Little Stick Man?"
"Still outside, keeping an eye on the court’s actions." said Xiaoyu.
"Send someone to inform him to thoroughly investigate where this news of ’The Prince’s death’ originated from." Ji Xinhe said. Now that her emotions had calmed, she noticed the loopholes in the whole affair.
This sudden news of death, seemed more like a long-planned conspiracy to Ji Xinhe now.
It was too sudden, and even the source of the news was suspicious. She had to verify this herself.
Upon hearing instructions from Ji Xinhe, Xiaoyu hesitated for a moment, "Does Your Highness suspect... the court?"
Ji Xinhe pondered for a moment, then scoffed, "Aside from the court, who else has been coveting the Pingyang Prince Mansion and Yu State? Moreover, rumors of The Prince’s death only seem to be beneficial for the court."
It must be the court’s doing!
If this news of death is fake.
But what if it’s true?
Ji Xinhe felt a wave of faintness wash over her as she thought about this. She was not the least bit prepared to accept this as fact, and didn’t think she could ever be. If it was true, what should she do?
Ji Xinhe felt weak and closed her eyes, "Everyone may leave now."
After exchanging glances, Xiaoyu and Shulan bowed and withdrew without saying a word.
As for the page boy, who was kneeling on the ground begging for mercy, he quickly bowed deeply before leaving as well.
Ji Xinhe sat forlornly in the East Warm Chamber until the darkness of the night began to deepen and the entire Royal Mansion fell silent.
All of a sudden, she heard Shulan’s excited voice from outside, "Your Highness! Your Highness!"
Ji Xinhe abruptly opened her eyes, "What happened?"
Shulan, with joy spreading across her face, rushed into the room, "The Prince is perfectly fine, he’s not dead!"
Ji Xinhe’s heart trembled at the news. Trying her best to control her excitement, she blurted out, "Is that true?"
Nodding vigorously, Shulan replied, "Yes, The Prince is not dead. Ling Feng has just returned, he came to deliver the news to Your Highness. Do you want to summon him?"
Ji Xinhe exhaled the breath she seemed to have been holding, a rare smile lighting up her face. Looking pleasantly surprised, she hurriedly said, "Quickly, let him in!"
"Yes!"
Shulan quickly invited Ling Feng in.
Entering with long strides, Ling Feng knelt and greeted, "I pay my respects to Your Highness!"
Cloaked in snow and dust, he looked like he had ridden fast with his horse.
"How is The Prince now?" The words slipped out from Ji Xinhe’s mouth before she could even process them, forgetting to tell him to rise.
Ling Feng quickly responded, "The Prince is perfectly fine, Your Highness has no need to worry."
"Really?" Ji Xinhe could hardly believe what she was hearing and felt a burning sensation in her throat. Her constant anxiety from the past few days still held her back, as she feared Ling Feng might be tricking her.
Listening to her doubts, Ling Feng took out a letter from his robe and handed it to her, "Your Highness, please take a look. This is a hand-written letter from The Prince. He really is perfectly fine, there’s no imminent danger. All the rumors outside are false. It’s probably a plot by the court. Your Highness, you must stay alert and not believe them so easily."
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