Chapter 90 Midnight Assassination

Chapter 90: Midnight Assassination

Jiang Lian was left stunned and disoriented by the sudden slap, for a moment, she couldn't react.

She initially wanted to get up and leave, but then she remembered her mother's parting instructions.

The second branch of our Jiang family now only had her, a single daughter. If she couldn't secure a good marriage, her parents would have no one to care for them in their old age.

So, she endured the pain and knelt before Jiang Yaozhen, pleading, "Second Sister, Lian'er knows she was wrong. Please give Lian'er another chance. Lian'er will definitely please the nobleman!"

Jiang Yaozhen looked down at Jiang Lian kneeling on the floor, whose features bore some resemblance to Jiang Shuning's. A malicious idea suddenly surfaced in her heart.

"Fine, then I'll give you another chance," she said, a cold, sinister smile curling at the corner of her mouth, her tone icy. "From now on, you must learn to emulate your elder sister more closely!"

"Yes, Second Sister!" Jiang Lian replied, trembling with fear.

Her sole desire was to rely on Jiang Yaozhen's connections to attach herself to a good family and change her own fate, completely unaware of what she was about to face.

—

Xiao Lingchuan hurried back to the palace by carriage.

As soon as he returned to Jinghe Palace, he ordered the palace servants to fill a bathtub with ice.

Once the tub was filled with ice-cold water, he quickly removed his clothes and immersed himself in the bone-chilling water.

The biting cold finally provided slight relief from the fiery agony within his body.

The Seventh Prince, Xiao Qiyu, happened to come looking for him to attend court together. Hearing he was soaking in ice water and learning from Ling Feng that he had nearly fallen victim to Jiang Yaozhen's scheme again, Xiao Qiyu couldn't help but shout in the direction of his bedchamber, "Fourth Brother, in my opinion, why not have Divine Physician Sun first develop some formulas to counteract aphrodisiacs! The number of times you've been drugged with aphrodisiacs is almost catching up to the times you've been poisoned!"

A voice, gritted with anger, came from the bedchamber: "You shut your mouth!"

Xiao Qiyu shook his head, then couldn't resist turning to complain to Ling Feng, "Why does Second Miss Jiang always resort to such old-fashioned tricks like using aphrodisiacs? If she used a different method to scheme, I might actually think more highly of her! Last time she wanted Fourth Brother to ruin Miss Jiang Shuning's virtue, whose virtue does she want him to ruin this time?"

Ling Feng cleared his throat softly. "Her third sister, Miss Jiang Lian."

"This Second Miss Jiang, she won't even scheme against anyone who isn't from her own family! I hope Third Brother marries her soon, so she can go wreak havoc among all those beauties in his harem!"

Xiao Lingchuan soaked in the icy water for a long time, yet the heat of the drug could not be completely dispelled. Images of intimate scenes with Jiang Shuning kept surfacing in his mind, lingering persistently, leaving him agitated and nearly frantic.

Fearing Xiao Lingchuan would delay further and miss the court assembly, Xiao Qiyu quickly ordered someone to ride post-haste to bring back Divine Physician Sun, who lived in seclusion outside the palace.

Divine Physician Sun did not dare to delay. He rushed over and immediately administered acupuncture to Xiao Lingchuan, barely suppressing the sinister fire raging within his body.

Xiao Qiyu, watching from the sidelines and never one to shy away from stirring trouble, said, "Divine Physician Sun, why don't you refine a bottle of pills specifically for countering aphrodisiacs for my Fourth Brother? He's always being drugged by those scheming women. If this continues, I'm really afraid he won't be able to preserve his chastity and will end up giving it away cheaply to women other than his future wife!"

Xiao Lingchuan glared at him fiercely.

If looks could kill, Xiao Qiyu would have been sliced into a thousand pieces.

Divine Physician Sun stroked his white beard and laughed heartily. "I have such pills ready-made, but they cannot be taken regularly. Otherwise, they will affect the body's foundation, ultimately leading to a complete loss of desire!"

"That won't do!" Xiao Qiyu and Ling Feng said in unison. "The side effects of that medicine are too drastic!"

"Divine Physician Sun, give me a bottle of such pills," Xiao Lingchuan spoke up proactively, his expression dark and inscrutable. "I might... need them."

Xiao Qiyu looked thoughtful. "It seems Fourth Brother anticipates encountering more honey traps. As a fellow man, I really don't know whether to envy you or pity you!"

"Seventh Brother," Xiao Lingchuan's icy gaze fell upon him, "if it weren't for the blood ties between us, I would truly want to cut out your tongue!"

Xiao Qiyu covered his mouth in terror. "Fourth Brother, you mustn't act impulsively!"

—

After the deadline for taking the antidote passed, the skin on Jiang Yaozhen's body began to fester in patches.

She could only hide in her room, not daring to go out, having her maid Chun Hua bring her food daily.

But the torment of the pain drove her nearly to the brink of collapse.

Unable to bear it any longer, she could only put on a cloak, covering herself completely, and go to Laifu Tavern to find her mother, begging her if she could give her the antidote to take first.

Her mother gestured: "I've already taken the antidote!"

They were mother and daughter, both placing their appearance above all else.

The moment they received the antidote from Ling Feng, they had both eagerly taken it without delay.

Xiao Lingchuan had long since anticipated this.

Jiang Yaozhen had no choice but to tell her mother about how she had acted cleverly that day, trying to send Jiang Lian to Xiao Lingchuan's side, only to have it backfire and completely offend him.

"He actually ordered someone to cut off my antidote!" Jiang Yaozhen cried, tears streaming down her face like pear blossoms in the rain. "Mother, what should I do? Now I can only wear a veil all day, not daring to show my true face. How can I endure a whole month living like this?"

Her mother's heart ached for her. Using gestures, she told her, "Don't cry. I will go beg the Fourth Prince!"

She slipped into Jinghe Palace late at night, knelt before Xiao Lingchuan, and handed him a note, her head nearly knocking against the floor.

The note read: "Zhen'er was foolish and offended Your Highness. I beg Your Highness to be magnanimous and give her this month's antidote. I am willing to do anything for Your Highness!"

Xiao Lingchuan seemed to have already anticipated her plea. He spoke calmly, "Since you are so sincere, then I will give you a chance to atone for your mistake through meritorious service."

"Tonight at midnight, go to the Palace of Gathered Elegance and assassinate my father. At that time, Beauty Su will step forward to take the blade for the Emperor. Remember, do not kill her; just let her sustain some injuries. If her injuries are too severe and she loses her life, you and your daughter can forget about ever receiving the antidote again for the rest of your lives!"

Her mother nodded repeatedly like pounding garlic, indicating she understood what to do.

The night was deep. The Emperor was sound asleep on the couch in the Palace of Gathered Elegance.

Ning Xiang lay beside him, fully awake and alert.

She was waiting for the assassin sent by the Fourth Prince.

For her, this was a crucial opportunity, a perfect chance to completely sever ties with the Third Prince and thereby gain the Emperor's genuine recognition.

Soon, a black figure, like a ghost, slipped into the Palace of Gathered Elegance.

She deliberately made some noise, allowing the guards to spot her. They cried out in alarm, "There's an assassin! Quickly, protect His Majesty!"

The Emperor abruptly woke from his sleep, his eyes wide open. "What's happening?"

Ning Xiang put on a panicked expression, nestling close to the Emperor. "Your Majesty, there's an assassin..."

Before her words faded, she saw a black shadow, like an arrow released from its bow, fly in through the window, heading straight for the Emperor.

Ning Xiang, almost instinctively, threw herself towards the Emperor, using her own body to shield him. "Your Majesty, be careful—"

The sharp blade pierced into her back, emitting a horrifying sound of tearing flesh.

"Ah—" Ning Xiang let out a piercing scream. The Emperor, startled, kicked at the assassin's hand.

The assassin cried out in pain, dropping the knife from his hand. At the same time, the guards who had heard the commotion swarmed in, rushing into the bedchamber.

Seeing this, the assassin immediately fled through another window, vanishing into the night.

The emperor roared at the panicked guards, "What are you standing around for? Go fetch the imperial physician! If anything happens to Consort Su, I'll have all your heads!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!" A guard hurried off to carry out the order.

Ning Xiang lay weakly in his arms, her face deathly pale, as if she might fade away at any moment.

The scent of blood on her mingled with a strange fragrance, the smell was somewhat unsettling.

"Your Majesty... it hurts so much..."

The emperor’s heart ached for her. Gently stroking her cheek, he soothed her softly, "The imperial physician will be here soon. I won’t let anything happen to you!"

"I... don’t know if I’ll live to see tomorrow..." Ning Xiang struggled through the pain, speaking haltingly, "But I don’t want to deceive Your Majesty even in my final moments..."

"I am actually... the Third Prince’s person... He ordered me to serve by Your Majesty’s side, to seize opportunities... to influence you with pillow talk on his behalf..."

"Don’t say any more. I already know all of this!"

"Your Majesty... doesn’t blame me?" Ning Xiang’s eyes brimmed with tears, a single glistening teardrop slipping from the corner of her eye and tracing a slow path down her cheek.

"In the past, I might have blamed you," the emperor gently wiped the tear from the corner of her eye with his thumb, his tone tender and full of pity, "But now, I no longer blame you! Nothing must happen to you!"

As if she could no longer hold on, Ning Xiang slowly closed her eyes.

In truth, she was concealing a fleeting look of triumph that flashed in her eyes.