The Crown Prince shot a disgusted glance at the two dead bodies which had turned cold. He could not care less about those women.
However, he could no longer suppress the expression on his face.
"Prince Yu, I don"t feel well. Can you help me to the side so I can take a rest?"
Lin Mengya cupped her hands on her mouth, looking as if she was repulsed by the two naked bodies.
Long Tianhao held on to Lin Mengya to support her and in this manner, they returned to the hut they were hiding earlier on as the Crown Prince looked on.
"Tsk tsk, the expression on the Crown Prince"s face was priceless. Where did you get such a brilliant idea from, la.s.s?"
The moment the stepped into the hut, Qinghu appeared from nowhere. He had quickly shoved Long Tianhao aside and taken over the s.p.a.ce next to Lin Mengya.
Long Tianhao"s face fell the instant he was pushed aside, but he soon calmed down when he saw the serious expression on Lin Mengya"s face.
"Make a guess."
After she gave Qinghu the explanation, which made him hysterical, Lin Mengya had put on a black cape.
All the people had followed the Crown Prince back into the banquet hall.
They knew that the Crown Prince was going to give them a good scolding.
"Where are you going?"
At Long Tianhao"s questioning, Lin Mengya simply smiled and mouthed the words, "It"s a secret" through her cla.s.sy lips.
Under the moonlit sky, Lin Mengya, accompanied by Qinghu and Baisu took a quiet stroll in the yard.
At some point when they rounded a corner, they spotted the shadow of a black figure behind the rockery in the garden.
"You may show yourself now. I have to thank you for accomplishing the mission."
Under the moonlight, it could be seen that the person had delicate features, but was abnormally pale.
"How did the two women die?"
The woman"s voice was soft and gentle, but it gave people gooseb.u.mps.
"The Crown Prince killed them personally with quick sword slashes."
As Lin Mengya sized up the woman, doubts arose in her heart.
She had found an unconscious Long Tianhao in the room where she was locked in.
After an a.s.sessment, she realized that he had been poisoned by an unusual ecstasy pill.
It was a completely odorless and tasteless poison which was not even detectable by a silver needle. It would merely cause a normal person to fall into unconsciousness for a few days.
However, when ingested by a person who knew martial arts, he would not be able to mobilize his inner strength over a longer period of time.
What was queer about it was that the room was filled with an extremely tantalizing and alluring scent.
Adding those two together, Lin Mengya deduced that the poison must have been some kind of ecstasy pill which induced hallucinations.
Fortunately, she had the habit of carrying neutralizing pills with her at all times, which eventually made it possible for her to get Long Tianhao out with the help of Baisu.
"That"s good. At least I"ve managed to take revenge for my child. Thank you, Princess Yu," said the woman emotionally.
In response, Lin Mengya nodded in silence.
The woman had mysteriously appeared after Lin Mengya dragged Long Tianhao back into the room.
Perhaps the woman had been secretly hiding, while witnessing the entire scene—how Lin Mengya dragged Long Tianhao back into the room.
However, it was peculiar that the woman seemed to know everything.
Not only did she offer Lin Mengya the antidote, she had played along with Lin Mengya in putting up an act.
Since Qinghu was good at imitating people"s voices, Lin Mengya had him pretend as the Crown Prince"s young eunuch to pa.s.s a false message to Madam An.
Later on, he had struck Madam An to make her unconscious, so he could feed her some of the same poison.
Then he forced the remaining poison into a guard in Madam An"s courtyard.
The woman revealed to Lin Mengya all the things that had happened, as part of the Crown Prince"s scheme to force Long Tianhao into marrying Princess Ming Yue.
However, no one had expected that Lin Mengya was the one who made the final move.
"There"s no need to thank me. I"ve colluded with you because you could be my secret agent planted in the Crown Prince"s mansion. Now, can you tell me who you are? Why did you take revenge on Madam An?"
Under the moonlit sky, one could see the bitter and miserable smile on the woman"s face.
For a moment, her eyes were filled with painful struggles, but she finally opened her mouth to speak.
"I"m one of the Crown Prince"s vice Princesses, and also the daughter of Lord Zhang. I suppose you may have heard of me."
"Lord Zhang?" Immediately, the image of a person who had always followed the Crown Prince closely, who was a man of few words, appeared in Lin Mengya"s mind.
Was the woman before her eyes the daughter of Lord Zhang?
However, she heard that vice Princess Zhang was greatly doted upon by the Crown Prince. How—
"I married the Crown Prince five years ago, to become one of his vice Princesses. In the beginning, the Crown Princess doted on me very much. Nevertheless, everything changed the moment that woman came into the picture."
Nodding, Lin Mengya realized that she was referring to vice Princess Dugu.
That was true. She could see that in recent days, the Crown Prince was always accompanied by her, and her alone.
As a result, the other vice Princesses felt neglected.
That lady before her was likely a bitter lady.
"I had prepared myself mentally when I married the Crown Prince. I would be dutiful, so as to protect my parents" family as well as my status in the palace. I became pregnant half a year ago. At that time the Crown Prince was thrilled, but little did I expect that this poor child would evoke the bitter jealousy of that woman."
Grief was written all over vice Princess Zhang"s face at the mention of her child.
Lin Mengya may have lacked the experience of being a parent, but still, she was able to empathize with her emotion.
She had guessed the outcome.
Madam An and vice Princess Dugu must have colluded with each other to murder vice Princess Zhang"s child.
That led to vice Princess Zhang"s grievances.
Fights were commonplace, especially in an extensive courtyard like that.
"I"ve avenged my son now, but the Crown Prince is still in the dark. I knew you were a victim of her scheming, just like me, which was why I wanted to work with you to eradicate that evil woman!"
Naivety! That was what came to Lin Mengya"s mind, when she saw the fervency in vice Princess"s eyes at the mention of the Crown Prince.
Lin Mengya was keenly aware of the manifestation of a woman who was crazily in love.
A look of pity and regret flashed across Lin Mengya"s eyes. She knew that was the path vice Princess Zhang chose for herself. She had merely played along with her.
"Alright, I will work with you. However, the Crown Prince would definitely be suspicious of all his concubines. Remember to clean the sole of your shoes and the hem of your dress thoroughly, so we do not leave any trails, lest our plan be upset. In this way, the Crown Prince would be able to see the woman"s true colors."
Lin Mengya"s patient instructions made vice Princess Zhang put her trust in her, thinking that she was a good person.
After thanking Lin Mengya profusely, vice Princess Zhang disappeared into the night.
"Do you believe her, la.s.s?" asked Qinghu, who had been hiding in the dark.
"Why not? What I"m certain is that she desperately wants to regain the Crown Prince"s favor and love."
Lin Mengya arranged her cape and went back, taking the road from where she came.
However, she did not go back to the room she came from. She had followed the path to an unmarkable hut for storing firewood.
Baisu lifted the lantern she was holding and they saw Ming Yue, the subject of everyone"s talk, sleeping soundly inside.
"Enjoying a sweet sound sleep! It"s your turn to act, sly fox."
Qinghu smiled an evil smile and his narrow slit eyes looked towards Lin Mengya.
"You are a bad bad girl."
To Lin Mengya, that statement sounded more like a compliment.
Silently, Qinghu lifted Ming Yue and put her on his shoulder, then leaped up onto the roof and left.
Lin Mengya trusted Qinghu in all the tasks she commissioned him to carry out.
Therefore, she followed Baisu to return to the hut where she hid.
The moment she stepped into the hut, she was pulled by a pair of large hands into a warm embrace.
"You must be cold. Look, your hands are freezing cold."
A deep voice sounded from above her head and Lin Mengya"s body tensed instantly.
On the way back just then, they had accidentally brushed each other. Did he sense it?
"I"ve had someone tailor-make you a coat made from fox fur which will be delivered to the Capital City soon. You should put it on if you"re cold."
She was moved, yet a quick look of struggle flashed across her black, pearl-like eyes.
She quickly lowered her gaze to hide her true emotions.
"How would I be frozen to death just by this cold? If I need that coat now, would I have to wrap myself in blankets come winter time?"
She was not sure if it was because of the weakened body or the poison she had ingested, that she was feeling exceptionally cold. Even when it was only autumn.
Despite being separated by layers of clothes, Lin Mengya could feel the warmth coming from Long Tianhao"s body.
As his faintly fragrant scent entered her nostrils, she was soothed and at the same time rejuvenated.
"What perfume are you wearing, Your Highness? You smell so good."
She had indulged herself as she coveted Long Tianhao"s warm embrace, like a puppy, taking in his scent.
Long Tianhao smiled faintly as he carried her in his embrace most naturally.
He had completely wrapped her up in his embrace.
"The fragrance comes from the incense my mother got for me when I was little, to help me get over my recurring nightmares. I can give you some if you like. How about that?"
"Yes, please."
Lin Mengya yawned and slowly fell asleep in Long Tianhao"s arms.
Long Tianhao smiled as he listened to her quiet breathing, but a look of worry crept onto his face.
"When did the princess begin to crave for sleep?"
Baizhi, who was in a daze as she looked on was alarmed by the prince"s sudden question.
Playing with her fingers, she said with a vexed tone, "I suppose she was like this since she recuperated from her illness. I"ve asked the physician and he said her heart and veins were damaged and she should not be overworked, so she needs to sleep more every day. I think it"s nothing to worry about."
Nevertheless, Long Tianhao did not feel rea.s.sured by Baizhi"s explanation but continued to worry about Lin Mengya.
Lin Mengya used to be an alert and vigilant person.
He had secretly checked on her those days after she fell asleep.
Long Tianhao felt rea.s.sured when he saw her sleeping quietly.
However, once he had knocked over the lampstand and she was not awakened by it.
He wished it was simply because she really needed her rest.
In the small hut, Long Tianhao continued to carry Lin Mengya in his arms, as if she were some valuable treasure. He did not even dare to change his position.
Lin Mengya, on the other hand, had fallen into a deep sleep, while holding on to Long Tianhao"s arms and pressing on them.