Chapter 497 King of Qin Assassinated

Chapter 497: The King of Qin's Assassination Attempt

The fishing float bobbed violently.

A fish had taken the bait.

Yet the angler set down the rod, and the churning water gradually stilled.

It had escaped death.

Bei Jingchu crouched before Lei Nian'er and reached out to embrace the girl who had stood so steadfastly by her side.

She looked like she might break.

But she wouldn’t let that happen.

Bei Jingchu murmured into her ear, "I didn’t actually kill them."

The person in her arms lifted their head.

The constant twists had exhausted even her sharp mind.

Her reason could no longer support judgment, but what Bei Jingchu said, she always believed.

No proof needed, no thinking required.

Whatever she said was truth.

She believed it all.

"Nian'er, not every cover-up requires killing. Though I wouldn’t hesitate if truly forced, we’re not at that point yet. They're just locked up. Don’t be sad."

Was this just to reassure her?

Lei Nian'er didn’t know.

But it didn’t matter—she would believe it all the same.

Later, she was taken to meet several men, also commanders.

Not of the imperial guards, but of a secret private army.

Lei Nian'er thought Bei Jingchu was insane. Even with her suspicions, seeing it openly revealed still shocked her.

Loyalty to the throne and patriotism had been instilled in her since childhood. Rebelling over the instability of the heir’s position was still too extreme for her.

But then came sudden clarity.

She had never been one for rigid rules—otherwise, she’d be stuck in some noble's inner chambers raising children by now.

When spring came with the new year, it was time for the Emperor’s annual ceremonial plowing.

Recently, however, the Emperor had fallen ill and passed the duty to the King of Qin.

Bei Jingchu showed no reaction to the news.

The Emperor favoring the King of Qin was nothing new. Though standing in for the Emperor was unprecedented, to outsiders, it meant everything.

For Bei Jingchu's part, as long as he didn’t hand over military power to Bei Jingyu, she could keep her composure.

Yet while she peacefully continued her carefree existence as a pampered noble, the King of Qin was assassinated during the Imperial Plowing Ceremony.

Bei Jingchu: "..."

She was utterly exasperated.

Especially in this situation—her suspicion was the greatest.

But she had never once thought of killing the King of Qin, okay?

Not out of any sibling affection, but because even without the King of Qin, there would still be the King of Zhao, the King of Jin, the King of Yan, or even some Thunderbolt Supreme King.

Her true enemy had never been the imperial heirs competing for the throne, but the man seated on the dragon throne—the father she once revered most.

As long as she failed to satisfy him, he could always prop up someone to trouble her.

Even if she killed all her siblings, he could just pick any clan member to replace them.

But others didn’t know Bei Jingchu’s thoughts. Everyone assumed that with the King of Qin gone, she stood to benefit the most—naturally making her the prime suspect.

And among the assassin’s belongings, a token bearing the Eastern Palace insignia was found.

The motive practically wrote itself: her jealousy flared when she saw the King of Qin performing the Emperor’s plowing ceremony.

Bei Jingchu burned the report, her teeth nearly grinding in fury.

Well, well. She had always been the one framing others—no one had ever managed to dump the blame on her.

Just let her find out if this was Bei Jingyu’s scheme of feigned victimhood!

Calming her anger, Bei Jingchu sat at the table and applied makeup to look sickly.

When she looked up, the mirror reflected a face haggard from dissipation.

At that moment, Changyan rushed in.

"Your Highness, His Majesty demands your immediate presence."