Rumors were spreading throughout Kyoto, and even in the Imperial Palace, that the Ninth Princess was suffering from a rare poison and was on her deathbed.
The Ninth Prince summoned almost all the doctors from the medical clinics in the capital, and a whole cartload of off-duty imperial physicians also came; the doctors rushed in and out of Hui Nuan Pavilion, carrying box after box of medicinal herbs into the pavilion like a flowing stream.
In Jieyi Garden.
Bai Rumei, dressed in a simple white gauze dress, was slowly brewing tea. The steam from the boiling water made her beautiful face even more rosy, adding a touch of allure to her otherwise somewhat ordinary features.
Diancui returned from outside in a hurry. Seeing her mistress so calm, and even somewhat smug, she was surprised and puzzled: "Mistress, the Prince has ordered people to investigate those who had contact with the Princess today. They will soon find our garden."
"Is she still alive?" Bai Rumei asked in a very calm voice, as if asking if the flowers in a certain place had bloomed.
Diancui was startled and could not hide her anxiety: "Master, why did you have to take such a risk? Quickly think of a way to escape."
“I suddenly realized that living as arrogantly and domineeringly as her wouldn’t be so bad.” Bai Rumei filled a cup with hot tea, held it tightly in her hand, seemingly oblivious to the scalding temperature, and stared blankly at the dark night sky outside the courtyard, her gaze falling on the distant, shimmering starry sky. She sighed, “It’s just that I don’t have her luck.”
Ji Fengyao was a free bandit, while she was merely a puppet on a string.
"Master, your hand!" Diancui hurriedly snatched the teacup from Bai Rumei's hand, held her reddened fingers in her own hands, and gently blew on them to cool them down and relieve the pain.
Bai Rumei withdrew her hand and said nonchalantly, "Help me tidy up. I can't be too sloppy when I go to see the prince."
"Yes, Master." Diancui's face turned ashen. She fetched water and carefully washed and dressed Diancui.
Sure enough, a squad of soldiers arrived in the courtyard shortly afterward.
Bai Rumei said nothing, got up and followed the soldiers straight into Hui Nuan Pavilion, arriving at the outer room of Ji Fengyao's bedroom, where she knelt before Shang Xiye, who was icy and aloof.
Through a screen, Bai Rumei turned her head and glanced towards the bed.
A petite figure lay quietly on the bed, breathing evenly.
"Do you have anything to say to me?" Shang Xiye asked the woman before him indifferently.
She was the first to enter Prince Su's residence, yet he still couldn't remember what she looked like. The only thing he remembered was that this unremarkable woman had taken four lives in his household. If Ji Fengyao hadn't been able to protect herself, this would have been the fifth life she had taken.
Bai Rumei remained calm and composed, speaking tactfully: "It is already summer, Your Highness's old injury has not yet healed, so please do not be tempted by the cold, and wear more clothes in the morning and evening."
Looking at Bai Rumei like this, Shang Xiye felt a chill run down his spine.
These are venomous snakes cultivated in the depths of the palace, silent, vicious, and ruthless. They often use the excuse of "love" to seek the satisfaction of their desires, but their desires are never truly satisfied.
Wuhen waved a tray in front of Bai Rumei, on which was a stack of confessions written in black and white on white paper, half a dirty piece of white hoof cake that Ji Fengyao had thrown in the garden, and the hairpin that she had worn during the day and hidden in the secret compartment of her dressing table.
Bai Rumei had initially held onto a sliver of hope, but after seeing these things, her hopes were completely dashed.
If someone hadn't deliberately leaked it, no matter how capable Shang Xiye's people were, they wouldn't have been able to find the hairpin on her way here and enter Hui Nuan Pavilion right after her.
In the end, she was just a pawn to be discarded, and her story ended like a joke.
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