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墨書 Inktalez
"Madam, Ms. Liu has returned to the capital."
Qing Zhu burst into the study, clutching a secret report, just as I was dipping my brush in vermilion to draw on the Private Salt account book.
"It is said that His Majesty has personally bestowed the title of Princess Mingyi upon her, and she will host a welcoming banquet at Xiao Residence in three days."
The tip of my brush punctured the rice paper with a sharp "pop."
Has the plot of the original story advanced? Liu Ru Yan, this white lotus, was supposed to be ambushed and fall off a cliff during the autumn hunt, wasn't she?
"Change clothes." I threw down my wolf hair brush and stood up. "Bring out that set of gold and emerald headpieces from the storeroom."
Qing Zhu's eyes widened in disbelief. "But that's what you were saving for your fake death expenses..."
"Now it will serve as bait for fools. Liu Ru Yan loves to snatch things from others; the more ostentatious I am, the more she will want to make a scene."
On the day of the banquet, I held Qing Zhu's hand as we stepped into the flower hall, where gasps filled the air, trembling like the strings of a zither.
"Madam Xiao's attire..."
"Like a nouveau riche, afraid others don't know how wealthy the the Xiao Family is?"
Liu Ru Yan sat at the head table, her pure white dress untouched by dust, resembling a magnolia dew-kissed in the morning.
Her gaze swept over the golden phoenix at my temple, and her nails lightly scraped against the edge of her teacup.
Here it comes! I knew she would pull something!
I seized her wrist first. "Princess, that nail polish is exquisite; it complements your skin like snow."
Her fingertips still bore traces of unshaken powder, and her pupils suddenly constricted. "M-Madam overpraises me..."
"I have heard that Madam is skilled at playing the zither?" She suddenly grasped my hand with a smile laced with poison. "Why not entertain our guests?"
"My skills are crude; I fear I would tarnish Your Highness's esteemed ears."
"Smack—"
Liu Ru Yan suddenly clutched her chest and collapsed, blood frothing at her lips. "This tea... is poisoned!"
Amidst the uproar, Xiao Jingyan struck my teacup from my hands. The porcelain shattered against my forehead, blood mingling with cold tea as it trickled into my collar.
"Su Wan!" He gripped my neck and pressed me against a pillar, the scent of dragon's saliva mingling with blood filling my ears.
"You even used our the Xiao Family's tea to poison; how loyal of you."
The plot is so clichéd, hiding poison under the nails and then biting into a blood pouch?
I struggled to pry his fingers apart. "Check... check her nails..."
"Enough!" He shook me off and shouted at the guards, "Take her to the woodshed!"
Qing Zhu rushed forward, tugging at his sleeve. "My lord! The lady is innocent!"
"Drag her out and slap her!"
I shot a glance at Qing Zhu. She hesitated for a moment, then suddenly stuffed a pouch into her collar—inside was the Turtle Breath Pill I had prepared for my faked death.
The musty smell of the woodshed made it hard to see.
"Click."
The small window was suddenly pushed open, and Qing Zhu, with half of her face swollen, handed in an oiled paper bag. "As you instructed, I bribed Liu Ru Yan's personal Medical Girl."
I unfolded the blood-stained confession and let out a cold laugh. "Liu Ru Yan really went all out, even bribing the court physician."
"What do we do now? Lord Xiao believes that poisonous woman..."
"That's good." I bit into the osmanthus cake, its sweetness suppressing the metallic taste in my throat. "During the shift change at midnight, mix the Turtle Breath Pill into the food."
From outside came the sound of a funeral dirge. Qing Zhu suddenly trembled. "It's the commotion from Liu Ru Yan's courtyard; they want to frame you for harming others!"
I reached into my sleeve for the blood pouch—the sheep intestines I had specifically asked the butcher for this morning.
Liu Ru Yan, that lady was a top student from medical school in her past life; she thought she could play dead with me?
As the wooden clapper struck three times, the woodshed door creaked open.
"Time to eat." The guard kicked over a ceramic bowl, spoiled food splattering onto the straw.
I curled up in the corner, feigning weakness as I groaned, "Excuse me... could I have some water...?"
The moment he leaned down to curse at me, I bit into the blood pouch and sprayed him with "blood."
"Help! Help! The lady is vomiting blood!"
When Xiao Jingyan rushed in, I was just weakly clutching at his robe. "Husband... I might not make it..."
I caught a fleeting glimpse of joy in his eyes before I blissfully pretended to faint.
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