When Chu Junyi and Shen Ninghua settled everything here, there was a burst of noise outside.
In the crowd, Bu Jinglan frowned slightly, waving the folding fan in his hand slowly in an absent-minded manner.
When he arrived at the backyard, he saw Shen Ninghua and Chu Junyi standing side by side. The expression in his eyes suddenly sank, and the smile on his lips froze. After a long while, he sighed slightly. It seemed that Bu Tinghe’s plan had failed. Not only had it failed, but she had also probably entrapped herself. Well, she really went for wool and came home shorn.
Seeing the scene in the courtyard, many people exclaimed, “Heavens, what is going on?”
There were more than a dozen corpses on the ground, each of them wearing the same clothes and using the same weapons. At a glance, one could tell that they were accomplices.
Everyone looked at Shen Ninghua and Chu Junyi. Could it be that they were here to assassinate Princess Zhaohua and Master Chu?
Just as everyone was guessing, the Third Prince, whose clothes were slightly disheveled, walked out from a room. When he saw Bu Jinglan in the courtyard, he stepped forward and cupped his hands slightly. “Your Highness, today’s matter happened quite unexpectedly, so I could only let Princess Wenhe suffer some grievances first. But please rest assured. I will immediately report this matter to Father Emperor after returning to the Palace and have Father Emperor send people to your country to make a proposal.”
Make a proposal? Grievances? Princess Wenhe?
These words shocked everyone like thunder. What had happened in just two hours?
Bu Jinglan looked at Shen Ninghua with an evil glint in his eyes. Bu Tinghe’s plan was already very thorough. He did not expect that it would still be ruined by Shen Ninghua.
“Princess Zhaohua, you are the witness here. I don’t know what happened and I was confused by the Third Prince’s words.”
Shen Ninghua raised her eyes to look at the Third Prince. “It is better for the Third Prince to explain this matter himself. After all, it involves Princess Wenhe. Your Highness, what do you think?” Bu Jinglan wanted to drag her into this, but she would not fall for it.
The Third Prince’s heart was filled with excitement as he successfully got what he wanted. How could he refuse? Hearing Shen Ninghua’s words, he immediately said, “That’s right. Let me explain this. Speaking of it, it’s a blessing in the midst of misfortune. Princess Wenhe was attacked by assassins in the backyard. Those people coveted her beauty and wanted to do bad things to her. Fortunately, when Princess Zhaohua was admiring the scenery, she found that something was wrong and called Master Chu over to help kill the assassins. I was with Master Chu at that time and also rushed over. Who would expect that this group of crazy criminals actually drugged Princess Wenhe with aphrodisiac! In desperation, I could only…”
The Third Prince did not continue. Instead, he smiled meaningfully and everyone understood. The matter was “urgent”. The men around were only the Third Prince and Master Chu. Master Chu had his wife Princess Zhaohua by his side, so naturally, he could not help. Then, the only one who could help was the Third Prince.
As for why the Third Prince personally came forward to help instead of calling for an imperial physician, was this hard to understand? Previously, for the sake of Princess Wenhe, the Third Prince had offended other young aristocratic ladies. This clearly indicated his interest in Princess Wenhe. Facing such a good opportunity, he would surely be glad to get what he wanted.
Bu Jinglan looked at Shen Ninghua, and the light in his eyes became hotter and hotter. Bu Tinghe’s plan was not like this. Shen Ninghua was really good at scheming. Not only did she make Bu Tinghe lose her virginity, but she also became the one who saved her! It’s so infuriating!
Chu Junyi looked up and met Bu Jinglan’s gaze. The aura around him was ice cold. “I wanted to leave two people alive so that I could interrogate them to find the mastermind behind this. Unexpectedly, these people directly bit the poison sac between their teeth and committed suicide. Your Highness, please do not blame me.”
Suicide? Haha, apparently, they were killed by you!
“Master Chu is too modest. Killing these criminals is not a big deal. Why would I blame you?” Biting the poison sac between their teeth to commit suicide was a perfect excuse to cover the traces of the poison that was used by Shen Ninghua. Chu Junyi really had a thorough plan.
At this time, the door of the room out of which Third Prince had just come opened again. People turned to look at Bu Tinghe, who was walking out of the room. Many people’s eyes were shining with interest. After all, this was a romantic affair of the royal family and there were not many opportunities to watch such fun. However, on second thought, the majority of the people cleverly lowered their heads to avoid landing themselves in trouble.
Bu Tinghe’s face was pale, and her footsteps were slightly messy as she walked stiffly.
The Third Prince turned to look at her and hurriedly went forward to support Bu Tinghe. “What are you doing out here? You are not feeling well. Go back and rest.”
Bu Tinghe looked at the Third Prince. The hatred in her heart was overwhelming. She lowered her head slightly to prevent the hatred from leaking out from her eyes, and the smile on her face became a little shy. “It doesn’t matter. I have to thank Princess Zhaohua. I won’t feel at ease if I don’t personally come out to thank her.”
Bu Tinghe’s tone was extremely awkward, but the Third Prince thought that she was embarrassed and therefore he did not care at all. “That’s right.”
Shen Ninghua raised her eyebrows slightly and she secretly became more on guard against Bu Tinghe. At this time, Bu Tinghe was still able to endure and maintain her composure. She was even more tough-minded than most men. Shen Ninghua thought that if she had not been prepared in advance, she would probably have been in trouble.
Stroking the baby in her belly and feeling the heart-warming movements, Shen Ninghua sensed a chill in her heart. She knew what it meant for a woman to lose her virginity, but she did not feel that she had gone too far. If Bu Tinghe’s scheme succeeded, she would be the one to be violated, and the one to die would be her and her unborn baby. She was just giving Bu Tinghe back what she deserved.
Bu Tinghe slowly walked to the front of Shen Ninghua. Because she was facing the crowd with her back, no one else could see her eyes, so the hatred and resentment in her eyes were so strong that they were almost overflowing.
“Princess Zhaohua, thank you for your help. If it wasn’t for you, I don’t know what I’ll be like now. I will definitely repay you heavily for this kindness.”
Shen Ninghua, I would definitely seek revenge for today’s matter in the future. You made me end up like this, and I would definitely destroy your reputation and crush your bones!
Looking at the uncontrollable hatred in her eyes, Shen Ninghua’s expression was calm. “It’s just what I should do. You don’t have to take it too seriously. In the future, when you marry into Third Brother’s Mansion, we will be a family.”
You only had yourself to blame for what happened to you today. You couldn’t blame anyone else! If you dared to take revenge, I wouldn’t cower in the slightest. We would have plenty of opportunities to fight after you entered the royal family!
The silent confrontation between the two caused the atmosphere in the surroundings to become extremely oppressive.
Many people lowered their heads quietly. They understood that there was something more to today’s matter, but it was none of their business to judge who was right and who was wrong.
Seeing that the matter was over, people began to bid farewell. Bu Jinglan did not urge them to stay and he instructed the servants to see the guests off.
Chu Junyi held onto Shen Ninghua’s arm. His gaze did not fall on Bu Tinghe for a second. “Since the matter is clear, we will take our leave.”
Bu Jinglan nodded and his gaze swept over Shen Ninghua. “Take care, I won’t see you off.”
The Third Prince turned around and held Bu Tinghe’s hand. “Princess Wenhe, don’t worry. I will now go into the Palace and report the situation to Father Emperor. I will definitely not let you suffer any grievances.”
“Alright.” Bu Tinghe lowered her head slightly and said in a gentle and mellow voice.
The Third Prince’s face was filled with excitement as he turned around and walked out of the courtyard.
When there were only Bu Tinghe and Bu Jinglan in the courtyard, Bu Tinghe suddenly raised her head and looked at the dozen corpses lying on the ground. “Someone.”
“Princess!” The guards who were waiting at the side quickly stepped forward and knelt on the ground, not daring to look up.
“Drag these bandits down, chop them up and feed them to the dogs!”
“…Yes.”
The maid who was in charge of guiding the Third Prince hurried over. When she saw Bu Tinghe, she immediately knelt down and apologized. “Your Highness, I did not do my job well…”
Bu Tinghe walked up to the maid step by step. She bent down, pinched her chin, and lifted her head. “I remember asking you to guide the Third Prince to the backyard, right?”
“Yes, I was knocked unconscious, so…”
“Oh, you were knocked unconscious, so you were not to blame.” Bu Tinghe sneered.
The maid’s heart trembled in fear. Her chin was painful due to the pinch, but she did not dare to lower her head. “I deserve to die. Your Highness, please spare me.”
Bu Tinghe let go of her chin and stood up. She turned around and pulled out a saber from the waist of a guard at the side. She suddenly cut off the maid’s head. Blood splashed out and dyed her white dress red. However, she did not care. The smile on her face was so ferocious that it made people tremble.
“Since you knew that you deserved to die, how could you still dare to beg for mercy? Drag this lowly slave down and send the corpse to her family. Chop it up and feed it to her family. Kill anyone who refuses to eat.”
“Yes.”
Bu Jinglan expressionlessly waved the folding fan in his hand and waited for Bu Tinghe to finish her orders. Then, he waved his hand to dismiss the servants. “Are you done venting?”
Bu Tinghe tidied up her clothes and sat down on a chair at the side. She took a sip of the cold tea and then suddenly threw the teacup onto the ground.
Bang! The pieces exploded and the tea soaked into the ground, leaving traces of pitch-black stains.
Bu Tinghe stared at the ground for a long time before slowly raising her head with an impeccable smile on her face. “I’m done venting.”
Bu Jinglan looked at her and sneered. “I have already said that Shen Ninghua is different from others. She is too smart. You have to take extra care when you scheme against her. If you are not careful, you will go for wool and come home shorn. Now you understand?”
“No wonder you were previously schemed by her and ended up marrying a cripple!”
Bu Jinglan’s eyes flashed with coldness. “I was made to marry a cripple, yet I can still marry other women. But you were made to marry the Third Prince, and then you will be tied to his boat from now on.”
Bu Tinghe gently stroked her slender fingers. “The Third Prince…humph, how can that trash compare to Cousin?”
“You love Chu Junyi, but he doesn’t care about you at all.”
“Aren’t you the same?” Bu Tinghe smiled coldly. “You are afraid of Shen Ninghua, but you are still secretly attracted by her. You spend a lot of effort coming to Da’an again just for her. You and I are equal, so let’s not ridicule each other.”
Bu Jinglan’s lips curled up. His charming smile made his handsome face look even more eye-catching. “Hehe, good, since that’s the case, then let’s cooperate. You want Chu Junyi, I want Shen Ninghua, and our goal is to separate the two of them! Now that the first plan failed, we will use the second one.”
Bu Tinghe curled her red lips and smiled. “Then I will have to trouble Sixth Elder Brother to play the leading role this time.”