The Inside Story

She paused, then said, "Father-in-law, please don't tell the Emperor what my mother just said. I believe the Emperor will investigate this matter thoroughly and give me justice."

Eunuch Deng laughed and said, "That's right, that's right." He had inwardly learned a thing or two about how formidable the future Consort of the Prince of Qi was.

Zhao Ruxi's words seemed like a concession, but in reality, her attitude was firm, indicating that she was indifferent to this marriage, but very worried about her personal safety. If the Emperor and Prince of Qi could not resolve this issue, perhaps Mister Kumu would step in and refuse the marriage.

Refusing a marriage decree would be impossible for others, but not for Zhao Ruxi. After all, given what had happened and with Mister Kumu mediating, the Emperor was unlikely to be angry.

Now it's not that she's begging to marry into the royal family, but that the royal family has taken a liking to her and insists on marrying her.

This is a strategic retreat, a way to demand an explanation from the royal family.

He dared not say more on this matter.

He inquired about Zhao Ruxi's injuries, and Zhao Ruxi's account was similar to Xiang Ming's. He noticed that Zhao Ruxi's complexion was paler than before and she looked tired, but she seemed alright overall, so he was relieved.

After taking his leave from the Zhao Residence, he went to the clinic and inquired with the doctor about Zhao Ruxi's injuries in detail before leading his people to the capital.

After Eunuch Deng left, Zhao Ruxi returned to her courtyard. Qingfeng then stepped forward, his hands trembling as he tried to untie the bandages on Zhao Ruxi's arm, muttering words that were difficult to understand.

"Let Lu Yun do it," Zhao Ruxi said helplessly.

She knew what Qingfeng wanted to say: he was blaming her for being so cruel to herself, for cutting the wound so deep.

She didn't inflict the wound herself; Lu Yun did it. After all, the direction of the cut is different when you make it yourself versus when someone else does it, and an expert can tell at a glance.

Although she hadn't studied it, she had read some detective novels and watched some TV shows and movies in modern times, so she knew some of the facts.

As a trained assassin by the prince, Lu Yun knew the cruelty of the struggle for the throne better than Qingfeng. Therefore, she ordered Lu Yun to use whatever force to cut the wound, and Lu Yun did so without hesitation.

She'd seen a doctor at the clinic, and Eunuch Deng would definitely inquire about the wound. The Emperor's men in the capital might even come to investigate and send an imperial physician to examine it. If the cut was too shallow, it might heal before the physician arrived, and all that suffering would have been for nothing.

As a resilient woman who bleeds for several days every month but doesn't die, Zhao Ruxi is confident in her tenacious vitality. If all else fails, there are still pills, right? She can just spend some points to buy one and try it out.

Lu Yun was an extremely calm person. He could even cut his own wound. Now, after untying the wound, washing away the medicine the doctor had given Zhao Ruxi, applying the best wound medicine, and bandaging it again, he was even more efficient. The whole process took less than ten minutes.

Zhao Ruxi said to Qingfeng, "Look, learn from this. These kinds of things might happen from time to time in the future, so you have to be strong."

Qingfeng, who had been holding back his tears, burst into tears and cried out, "Miss..." but bit his lip and couldn't finish his sentence.

Even though there are only three of them in the room, there are still Dianjiang outside watching over them. There are some things Qingfeng doesn't dare to say, for fear of being overheard. That would be a crime of deceiving the emperor, punishable by the extermination of nine generations of her family.

She was a servant born into the Earl of Suiping's Residence's household and had always lived a comfortable life, never experiencing hunger or cold. Now, seeing her daughter betrothed to a prince and forced to live a life of danger, she felt exactly the same as Lady Zhu, wishing she could just annul the engagement.

Zhao Ruxi did not comfort her.

Having chosen the path she wanted to take, she had no regrets.

Furthermore, the reason I took this cut today is to avoid being cut again later. It's better to cut myself than to be cut by someone else, right? At least the knife won't be poisoned, and I won't die.

Eunuch Deng and his entourage hurried as fast as they could and finally entered the city before the gates of Beijing closed.

At that time, Xiao Ge had already eaten with Kang Shilin and was playing chess.

A young eunuch came to report that Eunuch Deng had returned. He looked up, frowned, and asked, "What happened?"

"I heard that it was the Layperson Zhiwei who was assassinated," the young eunuch reported.

Kang Shilin's expression changed drastically. He tried to get off the bed but almost tripped and fell. Fortunately, Kang An caught him.

"Uncle, don't worry, everything should be alright," Xiao Ge comforted him, then turned and said, "Quickly, announce it."

A moment later, Eunuch Deng entered. Before he could even bow, Kang Shilin asked, "How is Zhiwei?"

He appears to be unconventional and acts with the style of the Wei and Jin dynasties, but in reality, he is very disciplined and never oversteps his bounds because he is Xiao Ge's elder or close to him. This interruption is the first time he has done so, which shows that he is completely flustered.

Eunuch Deng glanced at Xiao Ge and, seeing his anxious expression, quickly said, "Lord Zhao is alright."

Kang Shilin and Xiao Ge finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Xiao Ge returned to his seat and sat down. Kang An also helped Kang Shilin to sit down. Only then did Eunuch Deng bow and report the whole story.

Upon hearing that Zhao Ruxi had been injured, stabbed in the arm with a deep wound that had caused a lot of bleeding, Kang Shilin's face turned grim, and he deeply regretted agreeing to the marriage.

He knew this would happen.

Xiao Ge's face was full of anger.

He issued an imperial edict in the palace just last night, Zhao Ruxi was assassinated at noon today. This is not targeting Xiao Lingyan at all; it is clearly a slap in the face to him, the emperor.

"You mean, the only survivor said it was the Crown Prince who ordered it?" he asked, barely suppressing his anger.

Eunuch Deng didn't dare to say "yes" explicitly. Instead, he recounted in detail how the survivor was interrogated, what the man said, and how he ultimately died, saying, "That's how it happened. As for who instructed them, this servant dares not say."

"Alright, you may leave."

After Eunuch Deng left, Xiao Ge summoned Li Li into the palace again for questioning, and then called the head of the Imperial Guards over and gave him some instructions.

The head of the Imperial Guards interrogated the four Imperial Guards separately, and also questioned the eyewitnesses and the child.

He went to report back to Xiao Ge: "The four Imperial Guards questioned him separately and found that the details they gave were consistent, so it didn't seem like they were lying. The passersby's observations were also limited. As for the child, I suggest that a kind woman or a child of similar age approach him and try to extract information from him."

"Although he was just a little beggar boy abducted from the gates of the capital by that group, and only stayed with them for a short while, he might have inadvertently overheard some news from them. However, the boy is very guarded, and having witnessed the woman die in front of him, he is too traumatized to speak. Sending someone to approach him might yield some useful information."