Arc 2: Part 35
Huh—
Why was he holding her hand?
Tong Su tried to free herself in surprise, but she couldn't.
She had no idea what Xiao Lingchen was up to; however, any noticeable attempt at breaking free might draw attention, and his grip on her was tight. So she let him hold her hand.
“Ultimately, Your Majesty wants to arrest me because the Prince fainted after drinking the soup I made, right?”
Tong Su calmly stepped forward, and although countless angry stares were directed at her, she didn’t show a hint of panic.
“But did the Prince truly get poisoned?”
"Without proof of poisoning, Sister, what are you trying to deny now? The Prince has collapsed, aren't you willing to admit it?"
Xiao Qingwan released Emperor Xuanyi's arm, stumbled forward, and pointed at Tong Su with righteous indignation and tears in her eyes. It seemed she could no longer tolerate Tong Su's denial. “You are unrepentant and now you are even trying to—”
Smack!
Suddenly, Tong Su raised her hand and slapped her hard!
“Ah!”
Xiao Qingwan was caught off guard by the slap and immediately fell to the ground with a miserable scream, clutching her face.
The visible swelling on her cheek was immediate, and her teeth even bit through her cheek, causing a mixture of blood and a tooth to spill out!
She had fallen next to Cui Yu, and the swelling on her face was visibly larger.
Everyone gasped in surprise, and Emperor Xuanyi shouted angrily, “Xiao Qingwan! What are you doing!”
Xiao Lingchen's icy gaze swept over them, making everyone shut their mouths in fear.
“Cui Yu was hit by Zhu Se, I had to help her repay the favor,” Tong Su massaged her wrist and sneered, “The Prince just fainted, you didn’t even get close to him, how can you be so sure that he was poisoned, and not ill?”
Xiao Qingwan was taken aback, and sobbed in a slurred speech, “Of course he was poisoned, who gets ill and suddenly faints? He's got all these red bumps on him, how can that be an illness?”
“The Prince fainted, but he's still breathing. The most important thing now should be to get the royal physician, yet you deliberately cause a commotion. What's your motive?”
Tong Su stepped forward, pushed aside the guards, squatted down next to the Prince, and with a flick of her wrist, she pulled open his collar to reveal his neck and part of his chest.
Immediately, the noble women let out low screams, covering their eyes but peeking through their fingers.
Xiao Lingchen’s face darkened, and he said, “I’ll take it from here.”
He took over Tong Su's task, tearing open the Prince's collar directly. Tong Su didn't know whether she should laugh or cry, so she could only focus her attention on the red swelling on the prince's neck.
After a closer look, she was completely relieved. As expected, the reason for the crown prince's fainting was exactly the same as she had guessed!
Xiao Qingwan screamed, “What are you trying to do!”
"What am I trying to do? The question should be what are you trying to do. You incite the emperor to capture me, yet you show no concern for the Prince. I really wonder whether your purpose is to help the emperor save the Prince, or you just want me dead?"
"You're talking nonsense!" Xiao Qingwan flinched, "Where did I stop you from saving the Prince? Doesn't it mean that the royal doctor hasn't arrived yet?"
"But the royal doctor is here."
Xiao Qingwan's eyes widen in surprise, and abruptly turned to look at the tent door. Sure enough, she saw an old man with long eyebrows standing respectfully at the door with his medicine box.
"Grandmaster of the Royal Medical Academy greets Your Majesty!"
Emperor Xuanyi's face turned ashen, “When did I send someone to call you?”
"Of course, Your Majesty did not send anyone," Xiao Lingchen spoke up, his brows raised, "I sent him. According to what Your Majesty just said, you don’t want to call a royal physician?”
"Hehe, of course not." Emperor Xuanyi waved his sleeve angrily, "Go check it out!"
Xiao Qingwan felt apprehensive, she tried to comfort herself, in her previous life, wasn't it also uncertain whether the Prince was poisoned or ill, there's no reason it would be different this time...
However, as she watched Tong Su's confident appearance, her unease grew.
No comments:
Post a Comment