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As a matter of fact, it wasn’t exactly Marquis Xuanping who brought the State of Yan’s female slave before her. Rather, it was that female slave who had come on her own.
She distinctly remembered the first words the woman had spoken to her, "I heard you"re a princess. Can I stay in your princess mansion?"
She was a woman exuding a wild, untamed energy, reminiscent of spirited horses on the prairie. She had wheat-colored skin, deep-set features, and rugged skin weathered by wind and sand. However, her facial features were exceptionally delicate and profound.
In the State of Zhao, fair skin was considered beautiful, but upon seeing her, Princess Xinyang realized for the first time that beauty had nothing to do with skin color.
She couldn’t speak the language of the State of Zhao very well, and it took Princess Xinyang a while to understand her meaning. It turned out that Old Madame Xiao, upon learning of her pregnancy, was overjoyed and worried that she might face difficulties, so she sent seventeen or eighteen maidservants to attend to her.
She found it quite bothersome.
"I am Marquis Xuanping"s wife."
"I know, but you don"t love him."
Is that why you"re completely at ease to live in my princess mansion while your belly’s like that?
Princess Xinyang wasn"t sure whether to call her audacious or daring.
In the end, Princess Xinyang let her stay.
The reason was simple: she was a female slave from the State of Yan, and she knew many things about the State of Yan. Princess Xinyang was eager to learn and seek knowledge.
Their interactions were very comfortable. She was different from the women from the State of Zhao, as she exuded a unique sense of freedom and openness, without so much complexity and hidden motives.
That was why Princess Xinyang never expected her to commit the act of killing someone else"s child just to save her own son.
But when she thought about it again, wasn"t this something she really could do?
She was indeed a ruthless and decisive woman.
No wonder she could make Marquis Xuanping bring her back home.
Marquis Xuanping might lead a carefree and unrestrained life outside, but within his household, he adhered to rules and wouldn’t readily engage with the maidservants. The two illegitimate children were obtained only after relentless insistence from Old Madame Xiao. He had never brought any other women back home.
Xiao Heng"s mother was the only exception.
As his wife, Marquis Xuanping wouldn"t allow other women to offend her. There was a time when an audacious courtesan blocked her carriage, offering to go home with her and serve her and Marquis Xuanping in any way she wanted. In short, she pleaded to be by their side.
The next day, that courtesan disappeared from the capital.
After thinking through so many things, Princess Xinyang"s emotions finally settled down.
She began to seriously consider the possibility of her Dragon Shadow Guards betraying her.
The answer was almost impossible.
If the Dragon Shadow Guards could betray their master, then they wouldn"t be the Dragon Shadow Guards anymore.
The Dragon Shadow Guards were a.s.signed to her by the late Emperor. They only listened to her and the late Emperor’s commands, but the late Emperor had pa.s.sed away before she and Marquis Xuanping were betrothed.
Did he give the Dragon Shadow Guards the order to poison the two children from under his grave or something?
Just how did he do it?
Through a dream?
Hold on. There was one person who wasn"t a Dragon Shadow Guard of the late Emperor among them.
Long Yi.
As soon as this thought flashed through Princess Xinyang"s mind, she dismissed it immediately. Long Yi was sent away by her to suppress the rebellion at Mount Fengdu during that time, and he didn"t return until Xiao Heng was nearly a month old.
So, was it really the other four Dragon Shadow Guards?
But she couldn"t fathom it. She never gave them the order to poison the two children, and the late Emperor couldn"t have done it either... Unless there was a third person in this world who could command them, or perhaps the late Emperor had somehow risen from his coffin?
It couldn"t possibly be that the late Emperor had ordered them to harm her and Marquis Xuanping"s child before his death, when he knew full well that she and Marquis Xuanping couldn"t have a child together——
Her train of thought abruptly halted.
Princess Xinyang was frozen in place.
It seemed like she had inadvertently figured something out.
Marquis Xuanping was still young at the time, but the late Emperor saw this young man’s potential. He was the youngest Martial Marquis in the State of Zhao, personally conferred by the late Emperor. The late Emperor valued him as if he were his own right-hand man.
However, the late Emperor"s favor was actually a strong precautionary measure against Marquis Xuanping.
The late Emperor secretly arranged her betrothal to Marquis Xuanping. The reason it was kept secret was that if the late Emperor had lived longer, he intended to kill Marquis Xuanping personally. If the late Emperor had pa.s.sed away early, then it would be her duty to kill Marquis Xuanping.
But at the same time, the late Emperor also understood that the State of Zhao was in a precarious position and needed Marquis Xuanping to a great extent.
Therefore, the late Emperor decided to make the most of Marquis Xuanping. As long as he didn"t rebel, he would be allowed to live, but the moment he showed any signs of rebellion, he would be eliminated immediately!
However, Marquis Xuanping was an extremely cautious individual, and ordinary a.s.sa.s.sins couldn"t get close to him. So the late Emperor came up with a honey trap.
The late Emperor chose her out of all the imperial princesses simply because he understood that she would never fall for Marquis Xuanping.
Only someone who would never develop feelings for Marquis Xuanping could kill him at any moment.
However, being born into the imperial family and having been an Emperor for so many years, the late Emperor certainly understood the unpredictability of life.
What if she did fall in love?
The late Emperor couldn"t allow her to bear Marquis Xuanping"s child, nor could he permit them to have an unresolved and unbreakable bond.
Directly killing Marquis Xuanping was also not an option, as the stability of the country depended on him. The only condition under which Marquis Xuanping could be killed was if he rebelled.
As long as he didn"t rebel, he would be allowed to live.
But their child couldn"t.
The original target of the Dragon Shadow Guard had been Xiao Qing. Unfortunately, even though Xiao Qing was born half a month earlier, he was roughly the same size as the newborn Xiao Heng. The Dragon Shadow Guards made a mistake the first time, but the second time they accurately administered the poison into Xiao Qing’s mouth.
As to why they used poison instead of some other method, Princess Xinyang didn"t know.
Everything was considered by the late Emperor.
Perhaps it was to avoid tracing it back to the Dragon Shadow Guards, or maybe it was the late Emperor leaving a last trace of mercy for his grandson——to give him a decent corpse.
Princess Xinyang felt all the strength drain from her body, and her legs gave way, causing her to collapse to the ground.
"Princess!" Yu Jin rushed in.
She didn’t wait for Princess Xinyang to return in Bishui Alley as someone had delivered a message from the princess mansion that the princess had returned there, but something seemed a bit off.
Hence, she hurried over.
"Princess, what"s happened to you?" Yu Jin knelt beside her, holding her slightly trembling shoulders.
Princess Xinyang"s face was as pale as death, her eyes vacant, as if filled with endless sorrow, yet she couldn"t shed a single tear.
Princess Xinyang spoke with a hollow expression, "I thought that when imperial father entrusted the Dragon Shadow Guards to me, it was a sign of trust, that only I could bear this heavy responsibility."
Yu Jin gently supported her. "Princess..."
Princess Xinyang smiled self-deprecatingly, "But in the end, he still didn"t trust me... He was wary of Marquis Xuanping... and he was wary of me too..."Raz P."s Thoughts
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