Gifted Bride of the Sinned Prince

399 Faces of the Assassins

Li Hua looked at the Queen, and then at the two custard bowls. She knew that in one of them, she had mixed the pill to make Feng Lao unconscious or sleepy. The Queen was in a hurry to kill her.

“Before going out, you both must eat this custard. I have made it with my own hands. I have given it to everyone in the royal family. You were the last one. I brought one for Feng Lao as well as he is your bodyguard,” Zhu Liling stated. She gestured to Mi Yao, who put the custard on the table.

Zhu Liling forwarded the bowl to Feng Lao, who accepted it, and then, she handed the other bowl to Li Hua. “Taste it and tell me how is it,” Zhu Liling said. Li Hua picked up the spoon and took a sip of it. Zhu Liling asked Feng Lao to take the taste as well. He did, which satisfied the Queen.

Zhu Liling had earlier thought to mix a sleep-inducing pill in that, but she changed the plan. Instead, she put in a pill, which would make him exhausted after twenty to thirty minutes. That would be much better than bringing any suspicion to her head if he fell asleep even before Li Hua left the palace.

“Li Hua, I will ask General Hei to send some well-trained soldiers with you. Last time, you got attacked and I do not want it to happen anymore,” Zhu Liling showed her fake concern to her.

“That will be great, Your Majesty,” Li Hua said. “I am grateful to Her Majesty that she always gets willing to send me out,” she stated and put on a smile on her lips. Zhu Liling told her to return before the early evening. “I would like to have a small tea session with all the royal ladies,” she asserted.

Li Hua nodded her head. Zhu Liling decided to leave when Li Hua stood up from her place and bowed at her. Zhu Liling smiled and left the manor. Feng Lao did not waste any moment and left to spit out the custard that he had taken in his mouth. However, he had not swallowed it.

Feng Lao, after rinsing his mouth, returned to the chamber, where Li Hua was present. He asked Li Hua why she ate that custard. “What if she had mixed something in that?” He got worried.

“She will not do that,” Li Hua said and asked him if he was alright.

.....

“I did not swallow it and threw up,” Feng Lao said. “The Queen is evil. I think this is the reason your father never wanted you to get married to the royal family,” he affirmed. Li Hua did not oppose his words. His father’s main concern was that only. He knew that his daughter would be targeted there. However, Li Hua could fight those enemies too. She would not let herself die because of some ridiculous plans of the Queen.

“Your Highness, General Hei wants to see you,” the maidservant informed from outside and the doors opened. Hei Chengxi walked in and bowed to see Li Hua. He saw the bowls of custard on the table and realized that the Queen had already done her work.

“Her Majesty ordered me to send the best soldiers with the Princess Consort,” Hei Chengxi said and asked them if they ate the custard. Li Hua nodded while Feng Lao refused.

“I will not be harmed this way,” Li Hua said. Hei Chengxi agreed with her. Zhu Liling wanted to kill Li Hua outside the palace so that suspicions would not be on her. She would remain clean that way.

Li Hua recalled how the previous evening Xiwan had told them about Yu Yujin’s plans. The three best shooters were deployed for this task at the place, where Li Hua would wait for the non-existent person that Zhu Liling created. Two assassins were also called by Yu Yujin for this task.

Everything was planned in a way that it would seem like an accident rather than an intentional attack. Now, the problem was Xiwan did not know the faces of the assassins. So, there was a risk associated with that. But because Xiwan was himself a highly trained spy, he would not let Li Hua get harmed.

“Your Highness, do not walk away from the place that you are told to. We will kill the shooters first,” Hei Chengxi told her. Li Hua nodded at him and they left for the main market of Qinping.

~~~~~~~~~

Lóng Wei looked at Jinhai, who was whimpering in the pain. “The pain is not enough. I do not get easy on the people, who irk me,” he stated. Because Xiaoming had interceded between them, so he had to stop himself.

“I have realized the mistake I made,” Jinhai said and set the breakfast table for Lóng Wei. The previous night Lóng Wei did not give him dinner. This was the first time in his life that he had to sleep empty stomach. He was surprised by the fact that Lóng Wei held power.

“Are you hungry?” Lóng Wei asked him as he started to eat.

“Yes, Your Highness,” Jinhai said.

“Then, I will give you my leftover food,” Lóng Wei said with a wide smile and continued eating.

Jinhai had never thought that there would be a day when he would have to eat someone’s leftover food. He would stay hungry than eat that type of food. He was not a beggar, neither was he a destitute. He decided to find a way to reach Xiaoming and demand food from him. But was it even possible for him?

When Lóng Wei’s stomach was full, he stopped eating. He looked at the bowls, and the plates, where the leftover food was still present. “I am kind enough to give this food to you. You can eat now and then clean this table,” he stated and pushed the chair back. He stood up and decided to leave when Jinhai told him that he would not eat that.

“So, you want to remain hungry?” Lóng Wei asked him and arched his eyebrows.

Jinhai got on his knees and then, lifted his head. “I beg His Highness to forgive me. I should not have said all such things about you, your mother, and your wife. I have realized what I did was a grave mistake.” He flinched as he felt the dull pain in his stomach again.

Lóng Wei chuckled and walked away. Before stepping out of the tent house, he said, “One who insults my wife, I never forgive him.”