Chapter 97: Assassination

97. Chapter 97 Assassination

When she inspected the outer‑courtyard bed where Cuiyu rested at night, Shen Yunyao only saw its appearance and could confirm one thing: Cuiyu had not returned after getting up to use the bathroom last night.

The silk stockings were placed on a small table at the edge of the bed, and the waist‑binding sash was also left at the head of the bed.

A corner of the thin blanket was lifted, and it had not been tidied.

Cuiyu was not the slovenly type who gets up and leaves things messy; if she had risen normally, she would have certainly made the bed neat and orderly.

"Who was on night watch in my courtyard last night?"

Stepping out of the room, Shen Yunyao looked toward the servants standing in the courtyard and asked in a deep voice.

"Mistress, it is I, the old servant!"

Among the crowd, a middle‑aged maid lowered her head and stepped forward.

"Stand there!"

Shen Yunyao saw something off about the way the woman left the line and immediately rebuked her, calling her back.

"Lift your head!"

At Shen Yunyao's command, the middle‑aged maid snapped her head up and then charged toward Shen Yunyao.

"Die!"

As the maid rushed at Shen Yunyao, she already held a gleaming short blade, its edge flashing a faint green in the sunlight.

"Poisoned!"

Seeing the green hue, Shen Yunyao realized the knife had been coated with poison.

The other maids and servants, upon witnessing the scene, panicked—some shouted, some fled, and none thought to rush forward to protect Shen Yunyao.

Facing the middle‑aged maid who lunged at her with a life‑risking thrust, Shen Yunyao tilted slightly to dodge the incoming short blade.

When the maid's strike missed and she was about to swing the knife horizontally, Shen Yunyao lifted her foot and kicked.

The kick struck the maid's waist precisely.

With a pained cry, the middle‑aged maid fell to the ground, and the short knife in her hand flew away.

It was not until then that someone remembered they should protect their mistress.

A few senior maids rushed forward and pinned the maid down.

"Huh~~~"

Shen Yunyao was drenched in cold sweat, gasping for breath.

Even though she took the opponent down with a single kick, Shen Yunyao was still startled when the knife came swinging.

She didn't know how she had become the target of an assassination.

"Damned, you all deserve to die!"

The middle‑aged maid growled low, her eyes fixed on Shen Yunyao, "Don't get too happy yet; I'll be waiting for you below!"

As she finished speaking, black blood dripped from the corner of her mouth.

"Poisoned?!"

Shen Yunyao stared at the now motionless maid, her heart pounding.

What on earth is this?

She had not been in Jingcheng for a short time, so why suddenly would anyone want her life? Was it because of the royal family, or because of Xie Zian?

Most likely it's Xie Zian!

Shen Yunyao had lived in Liu Cheng all her life, never leaving the house or stepping out, never holding a grudge against anyone; after arriving in Jingcheng, although she publicly kept no enmities, the fact that she was to marry Xie Zian already offended many.

These people wanting her dead could even force Xie Zian to take another wife.

However, if their motive is merely that, why strike her before the Flower‑Viewing banquet?

The banquet is hosted by the Empress; committing such an act is an affront to the Empress and the Emperor alike.

Under normal circumstances, ordinary people could not pull off such a deed.

"Does anyone recognize her?"

"If you know, stand where you are and say it!"

Shen Yunyao looked at the poisoned, self‑killed maid, found her appearance very unfamiliar, and then turned to the servants who had reassembled in the courtyard.