Chapter 36 This Person Must Not Be Provoked!

Chapter 36: This Person Is Not to Be Trifled With!

In her previous life, the Second Prince was the first of the princes to die.

After the Crown Prince ascended the throne, his frail health made him unfit for the heavy responsibilities, plunging the court into turmoil.

The Second Prince had the protection of the Empress Dowager. Moreover, his maternal clan had been generals for generations, wielding substantial military power and achieving illustrious military exploits. This posed a significant threat to the Third Prince, Xiao Xiuzhan's position.

Not long after, war broke out between Nanyue and the Daye. The Second Prince personally led a great army to battle but never returned.

Later, Xiao Lingchuan discovered that the Second Prince had not died on the battlefield but was assassinated by killers sent by Xiao Xiuzhan.

Jiang Shuning was suddenly reminded that Xia Yan had taken the tonsure and entered a nunnery not long after the news of the Second Prince's death arrived.

She once told Jiang Shuning that as a woman, despite having aspirations to serve her country, she could not ride into battle, which remained a lifelong regret.

Rather than being confined to the inner chambers, marrying and becoming someone's wife, it was better to keep the company of a solitary lamp and ancient Buddha.

At that time, Jiang Shuning was consumed by the pain of her unrequited feelings for Xiao Lingchuan and had no time to ponder her close friend's strange behavior.

Now, upon careful reflection, Xia Yan might have already harbored secret affection for the Second Prince. Unable to bear the news of his death, she chose to retreat into monastic life.

"Miss Jiang, what's wrong?" The Fifth Prince's voice pulled Jiang Shuning back from her chaotic thoughts.

She started slightly, masking the turmoil in her eyes, and a faint smile touched the corners of her lips. "It's nothing. It was just a bit of a surprise to hear about Xia Yan and the Second Prince. She never mentioned it to me."

Hearing this, a flicker of regret crossed the Fifth Prince's handsome face. "I spoke out of turn."

"It's fine. Thank you for your understanding, Your Highness." She offered him a grateful smile.

Since she knew the fate of the Second Prince from her past life, perhaps in this life, she could do something for Xia Yan.

Xiao Huaijin's gaze held a hint of expectation as he asked gently, "Miss Jiang, regarding the matter of instructing my younger sister in archery, may I ask your opinion?"

Jiang Shuning looked at his refined and handsome face, feeling a slight stir in her heart. "I will naturally do my utmost to teach."

Delight bloomed in the Fifth Prince's eyes, his tone barely containing his excitement. "Thank you, Miss Jiang! I thank you on behalf of my younger sister and my mother! I would like to invite you to the palace in three days to instruct her."

"Alright."

The Fifth Prince seemed relieved, a smile reaching the corners of his eyes as he bid farewell with a cupped-hand salute.

Jiang Shuning watched his tall, straight figure gradually recede into the distance, ripples stirring in her heart.

In her past life, confined to the inner quarters, spurned by her husband for years, as a woman, she had always yearned deep down for the tenderness and care of a gentle husband.

And Xiao Huaijin happened to be the man among those she knew who was the gentlest.

She thought to herself, even though she carried a deep-seated grudge in this life, she still had the right to pursue her own happiness.

Moreover, at present, she and Xiao Lingchuan were merely allies.

Surely allies shouldn't meddle in each other's personal affairs?

Thinking this, she suddenly felt much lighter.

——

Upon hearing that Xiao Lingchuan had regained consciousness, Jiang Yaozhen's heart tightened abruptly, and fear washed over her in a wave.

The Nanyue "Death-Bringing Curse" was extremely potent. How had he managed to escape death?

Could it be that he had seen through it all along and was now preparing to seek revenge on her?

The thought threw her mind into turmoil, filled with anxiety and dread.

She hid in the Jiang residence for several days, but her mother never appeared. Left with no choice, she could only sneak off to the Laifu Tavern to find her.

Who would have thought that the moment she stepped into the private room of the inn, she would fall straight into the trap Xiao Lingchuan had laid.

Her mother was held at sword-point by Xiao Lingchuan's subordinate, Ling Feng, pressed against her throat, her life hanging by a thread.

Shocked and furious, Jiang Yaozhen cried out sharply, "I am the future Third Prince's Consort! Who dares to harm a single hair on my mother's head!"

Xiao Lingchuan lounged lazily in his chair, a cold smile curling at the corner of his lips. "Jiang Yaozhen, have you ever considered that if Xiao Xiuzhan knew you drugged that cup of wine, causing him to lose control and commit that shameful act with you, would he still want to marry a schemer like you?"

Jiang Yaozhen's face went deathly pale, but she forced herself to remain calm, retorting, "Don't talk nonsense! That night's wine was examined by physicians at the Third Prince's behest, and nothing unusual was found!"

"You are clever, using a secret Nanyue drug that physicians in Daye would find hard to detect." Xiao Lingchuan's smile deepened, but a cold glint flashed in his eyes. "Unfortunately, you forgot to clean up one fatal oversight!"

Before the words had left his mouth, a eunuch slowly emerged from the adjacent room, kneeling respectfully before Xiao Lingchuan.

Jiang Yaozhen took a closer look and instantly turned deathly pale.

That person was precisely the eunuch she had bribed that night to lure Jiang Shuning away and deliver the wine to the Sixth Prince!

How had he fallen into Xiao Lingchuan's hands?

"After the Sixth Prince drank from that bottle, he was also driven to bestial rage. This eunuch can testify to that. I even specially kept some of the wine aside, just in case."

Hearing Xiao Lingchuan speak these words so lightly, Jiang Yaozhen felt as if she had been driven into a corner.

With a *thud*, she fell to her knees, tears streaming down her face like broken pearls. "I was blind! I beg Your Highness, the Fourth Prince, to show mercy and spare my life! I was merely infatuated with His Highness the Third Prince and momentarily lost my senses, leading me to commit such an unspeakable act. If Your Highness spares me this once, my mother and I pledge our lives and loyalty to Your Highness, the Fourth Prince!"

A cold sneer tugged at Xiao Lingchuan's lips, his gaze piercing like ice. "Before, you and your mother swore oaths, vowing repeatedly to be loyal to me. Yet, in the blink of an eye, you harbored malicious intent, deliberately withholding the antidote, trying to send me to my death. Now, how much sincerity and how much falsehood lies in this pledge of loyalty?"

Terrified, Jiang Yaozhen kowtowed repeatedly, her voice choked with tears. "This humble girl deserves to die ten thousand deaths! It was only because our family recently suffered a misfortune—my elder brother met an untimely demise—that I was overwhelmed with grief. My mother, worried for my safety, was momentarily distracted and failed to present the antidote in time. It was absolutely not intentional! If Your Highness wishes to punish, I am willing to bear the responsibility alone!"

"Overwhelmed with grief?" Xiao Lingchuan scoffed, a cold light flashing in his eyes. "Wasn't Jiang Tianen's death precisely your doing? Jiang Yaozhen, how long do you intend to keep up this act?"

Hearing this, Jiang Yaozhen's heart jolted violently, her terrified gaze fixed intently on him.

She suddenly realized that the Xiao Lingchuan before her was unfathomable, like a hidden dragon in a deep pool.

No matter how clever her words or intricate her schemes, he always saw through everything, tearing her disguises to shreds.

Why?

How exactly did he manage it?

"I have no desire to engage in pointless entanglements with you and your mother any longer!" Xiao Lingchuan's patience had run out. "Whether you are loyal or not, I can't be bothered to guess. It's more reassuring to keep leverage in hand. From now on, Concubine Jiang must serve me. If you dare to feign compliance while acting contrary, I will hand the evidence directly to my Third Brother, so he can see clearly how scheming and malicious the woman he intends to marry truly is!"

Trembling with fear, Jiang Yaozhen could only agree.

Xiao Lingchuan waved his hand, ordering someone to bring two pitch-black pills. He forced the mother and daughter to swallow them, his expression indifferent. "This is a deadly poison. You must take the antidote every month. Otherwise, when the poison takes effect, your bodies will fester, and you will die in agony."

The concubine panicked, gesturing frantically. Jiang Yaozhen's voice trembled as she spoke on her behalf, "Your Highness, the Fourth Prince, my mother asks, what exactly do you want us to do?"

"What else could it be?" A sinister, cold smile curled at the corner of Xiao Lingchuan's lips, his gaze sharp as a blade. "Didn't you keep claiming that I am the descendant of the Nanyue Princess? Since my late mother, on her deathbed, hoped that one day I would lead the Nanyue iron cavalry to crush the Daye empire and avenge her humiliation, as her son, how could I fail to fulfill her dying wish?"

Upon hearing this, the concubine's face changed several times. After a moment of hesitation, she abruptly prostrated herself, performing the traditional Nanyue kneeling salute.

Jiang Yaozhen gritted her teeth and declared loudly, "We swear to follow the descendant of Nanyue with our lives!"

Immediately, she too knelt down, kowtowing on the ground.

As they left, the two were still shaken, their hearts filled with lingering fear.

"Mother, why does the Fourth Prince, who is so wary of us and always has a backup plan, believe the story you told him earlier?" Jiang Yaozhen asked in a low voice.

The concubine made an urgent gesture, her expression grave. "I don't know why he believes me, but one thing is crystal clear to me—this man must not be provoked!"

Suppressing the fury in her heart, Jiang Yaozhen muttered under her breath, "He's just a bas—"

"Shut your mouth!" the concubine sharply interrupted, her gesture as sharp as a blade, her eyes filled with terror. "Do you have a death wish? Our lives are now in his hands. We must not speak recklessly again!"

Rage surged in Jiang Yaozhen's heart, but she could only force down her resentment.

How hateful! To be played by Xiao Lingchuan like this!

When she achieves her long-cherished wish one day, she'll make him pay dearly!