Chapter 241: The Cruel Youth

Chapter 241: The Cruel Youth

As soon as Chun Hua stepped into Prince Rui's mansion, she felt a strange, eerie feeling.

The princess was back?

She crossed the courtyard and saw the princess standing inside Prince Rui's study, like a soulless puppet, with vacant eyes and a blank expression, searching for something.

Not far away, the Third Young Master of the Jiang family, Jiang Tianze, was leisurely sipping tea, but his gaze was fixed on the princess like a hunter watching its prey, fixed intently.

Chun Hua's heart sank.

"Princess, when did you return? Why didn't you send word to let me know?" she ventured cautiously.

Jiang Yaozhen showed no reaction, as if she hadn't heard her at all, continuing her actions.

"The princess is searching for something important. How dare a maidservant like you come and disturb her so cluelessly?" Jiang Tianze set down his teacup and strode over, his tone icy. "Leave."

"Yes, Third Young Master." Chun Hua lowered her eyes, hiding the turmoil inside.

Something was wrong—the princess was definitely not right!

It had to be the Third Young Master's doing!

She meekly stepped outside and immediately whispered a few words to the young maid guarding the door.

Soon, the maid began eagerly refilling Jiang Tianze's tea, trip after trip.

After several pots of hot tea, Jiang Tianze couldn't hold it any longer and got up to use the restroom.

The moment he left, Chun Hua rushed in with a ready flask of realgar wine, grabbed Jiang Yaozhen's chin, and forgetting all manners, forced the pungent liquid down her throat!

Strangely, Jiang Yaozhen, subjected to such rough treatment, didn't resist at all, letting the wine slide down her throat.

The next moment, she began to retch violently, bent over and vomited a pile of filth.

Among the mess was a long, pitch-black worm still writhing, a truly horrifying sight!

Chun Hua's face turned pale with fright. "Oh my God! What in the world is this thing?"

Just then, the figure on the ground slowly raised her head. Those once vacant eyes gradually cleared.

"Chun Hua..." Jiang Yaozhen's voice was hoarse, tinged with dazed awakening. "How... how did I end up here?"

Hadn't she returned to the Prime Minister's mansion?

"Princess! You're finally awake!" Chun Hua cried tears of joy, rushing forward to help her up.

Jiang Yaozhen's gaze fell on the squirming black worm, and in an instant, the memory of Jiang Tianze's sycophantic smile as he served her food at dinner a few days ago flashed through her mind.

In that moment, her confusion vanished, replaced by bone-chilling chill and ferocious hatred.

"Jiang Tianze, you little wolf cub—how dare you put a Gu worm on me!"

"Princess, the Third Young Master will be back soon! What should we do?" Chun Hua asked anxiously.

"What's there to panic about?" A vicious glint flashed in Jiang Yaozhen's eyes. "Clean this mess up and act as if nothing happened."

"He went to such lengths to control me—let's see what he's really after!"

When Jiang Tianze returned from the restroom, the study was in disarray, scrolls and bamboo slips scattered everywhere.

The item he sought was clearly not found.

He clicked his tongue in irritation, his gaze coldly sweeping over Jiang Yaozhen, who was still rummaging. "Forget it. It seems it's not in the study. Second Sister, are there any secret chambers in Prince Rui's mansion? The tiger tally that Prince Rui cherishes as his life should be hidden in a place like that."

The words "tiger tally" struck Jiang Yaozhen like a thunderbolt!

What he wanted was the military tally that could mobilize Prince Rui's personal troops stationed in Xiyu?

What would a mere sixteen-year-old boy want with such a deadly item?!

Could he be working for Xiao Lingchuan?

In an instant, old grudges and new hatreds surged within her!

She recalled how she had tried to curry favor with the mother and son in the past, only to be snubbed. Now they had turned around and allied with her sworn enemy, Xiao Lingchuan, plotting to use Xiao Xiuzhan's private army!

How admirable!

Jiang Yaozhen slowly turned around, her seething hatred hidden behind a perfect mask of numbness and confusion. Like an obedient puppet, she began to walk out of the study.

Seeing her as if she knew where to go, Jiang Tianze followed without suspicion.

What he didn't see was the cold, cruel smile curling on Jiang Yaozhen's lips in the shadows, unseen.

A secret chamber?

Prince Rui's mansion did indeed have a "secret chamber"—one perfect for trapping this self-righteous wolf cub!

She sneered inwardly: Once this little wolf falls into my hands, wouldn't his mother, the Nanyue Poison Master, have no choice but to do my bidding obediently?

Jiang Yaozhen led Jiang Tianze down a slippery stone staircase. The damp, cold air hit them, mixed with a stench of rust and decay.

This was Prince Rui's private dungeon, once used for interrogating enemies. Since his imprisonment, it had been left untended, now even more sinister.

Far from showing any fear, Jiang Tianze looked around with interest at the instruments of torture on the walls, clicking his tongue in wonder. "I never thought Second Brother-in-law had such flair. This chamber is truly a fine place."

Jiang Yaozhen sneered inwardly—soon you'll be staying in this fine place!

She skillfully avoided the hidden traps, luring the young man deeper into the snare.

Finally, as Jiang Tianze stepped onto the slightly darker stone slab at the center of the cell, she slowly turned around, met his puzzled gaze, and slammed her hand against a protruding dragon-head carving on the wall!

"Boom—clang!"

With a deafening mechanical roar, a massive black iron cage descended from above, crashing down!

The spikes at the bottom drove deep into the stone slab, kicking up a ring of dust, trapping Jiang Tianze inside.

Only then did his admiration freeze, replaced by utter shock and disbelief.

"You're right, Third Brother." Jiang Yaozhen slowly paced to the cage, a cold and cruel smile curling at her lips. "This place is indeed fine—perfect for trapping you."

"You—!" Jiang Tianze's expression shifted violently. He gripped the cold iron bars. "You actually broke free from the Gu worm?"

"Your pathetic Gu sorcery—did you really think it could control me?" Jiang Yaozhen let out a contemptuous laugh, as if laughing at an overconfident fool. "Don't forget, my maternal aunt is from Nanyue. She long ago taught me how to counter Gu magic. A cup of strong realgar wine—that's all it took to turn your proudest trick into a complete joke."

She leaned down, approaching the iron cage, her face full of calculation.

“My dear Third Brother, what do you think your mother, the Nanyue Poison Master, will use to exchange for your life?”

“Who knows?” To her surprise, the panic on Jiang Tianze's face quickly faded. He calmly examined the cage as if admiring an interesting work of art, then lifted his head and gave Jiang Yaozhen an innocent yet cruel smile. “Perhaps, she might use Second Sister's aunt to trade?”

“What did you say?” Now Jiang Yaozhen's expression changed. “My aunt is…”

“Second Sister's aunt was tortured at the hands of Prince Jing in Nanshuo and was on her last breath when I brought her back.” Jiang Tianze's smile grew even warmer, but the malice in his eyes was almost overflowing. “I have hidden her well, feeding her daily with my newly concocted poison. Thanks to you, Second Sister, she has become a rare ‘toxin body’—immune to all toxins.”

“You!” The blood rushed to Jiang Yaozhen's head, murderous intent blazing in her eyes. She turned and lunged for the deadly mechanism on the wall. “I’ll kill you!”

“Don’t move.”

Jiang Tianze's voice was lazy but carried an undeniable authority.

“I forgot to tell you, I also planted a gu worm inside her. If I die, she won't survive either.”

He looked at her with leisurely amusement, his clear young eyes now full of serpentine coldness and mockery.

“Now, Second Sister, do you still want to kill me?”

Jiang Yaozhen's hand, reaching for the mechanism, froze in midair.

The overwhelming hatred and murderous intent seemed choked off by an invisible hand, dissipating into nothing, leaving only piercing coldness that spread from the soles of her feet all the way to her heart.

She trembled violently.

She had underestimated the young man before her.

He was the descendant of the Nanyue Poison Master—how could he ever be merciful?