Chapter 162

Su Wanrou bumped into Jinzhi and felt unusually unsettled, her heart pounding anxiously.

That Jinzhi is a firecracker buried in the Wangfu, ready to explode at any moment; most crucially, she is by Gu Jiu Ling's side, and if anything goes wrong, she will fall into an irredeemable abyss.

She rose and paced back and forth, her gaze falling on the several bolts of Shu brocade laid on the table, meant to be made into her wedding dress.

Su Yiran's heart skipped a beat, yet she found herself less opposed to leaving the Rui Wangfu.

She stared fixedly at the cloud-brocade pattern on the Shu brocade, then lifted her hand and clenched the satin tightly, the armor on her fingers almost tearing the fabric.

A grim bitterness seeped from the corner of Su Wanrou's mouth.

As for Xiao Yin, because she was very close to him, she had always seen him more deeply than others.

In the eyes of the fools of Shang Jing, Xiao Yin was already a waste, but only she could see that he was hiding his strength like a tiger pretending to be a pig, and sooner or later he would return to being a dragon among men.

She came from the countryside, and upon first seeing such a stunningly talented and beautiful man, she ordered people to lift her into a carriage and bring her back to Jing Cheng; everything she dared not even dream of, as long as she wanted it, would be given to her.

Gradually she no longer desired jewels or a life of fine clothes and jade-like food; she wanted to become the true mistress of this Wangfu.

Yet her position was awkward; even if she had taken Jinzhi's place, she was too humble to bear the title of Princess Consort of Rui, and moreover she could clearly see from Xiao Yin's eyes that what she felt was not romantic love but an elder brother's affection for a younger sister.

She hated this feeling so much that she had killed every woman who got close to Xiao Yin, never expecting that in the end it would benefit Gu Jiu Ling?

Su Wanrou stared fixedly at the satin in her hand and drew a deep breath.

She refused to believe it—why was the man she liked so cold-hearted?

She wanted to give it one last try; she had liked him for so long, so she would give him one final chance.

Su Wanrou steadied herself, slowly sat back onto the bed, and called: "Someone come!"

A little maid outside hurried in and bowed to Su Wanrou.

Su Wanrou pointed at the several bolts of Shu brocade on the table and said slowly: "Move these to the backhouse."

"Yes!" the little maid carefully cradled the Shu brocade.

Su Wanrou suddenly recalled something—just now, after Jinzhi had frightened her badly, she had driven away all the attending maids and sat here alone thinking of a plan, but she hadn't noticed whether that maid Hongyu had returned.

She had ordered Hongyu to personally escort Jinzhi back to the Peach Blossom Pavilion, worried that Jinzhi might cause trouble again.

Moreover, even if Gu Jiu Ling discovered that Jinzhi had been poisoned to death, she would first interrogate Hongyu, the one who had sent Jinzhi back.

No matter how much the Prince favored Gu Jiu Ling, she would simply cast Hongyu aside.

But why did she feel a twinge of guilt now?

This feeling made her very uncomfortable; she actually felt a bit regretful now.

What if the poison dosage wasn't enough and Jinzhi didn't die—what then?

It would have been better to strangle Jinzhi to death together with Hongyu in the Tan Chun Garden back then; after all, it's best to see her die before your eyes, since in this world only the dead cannot speak.

The more she thought, the more agitated she became—how did Gu Jiu Ling manage to bring Jinzhi into the Wangfu this time? It was completely out of the blue.

"Where is Hongyu?" Su Wanrou's voice turned sharp.

The little maid who had come in to serve was about to carry the Shu brocade out of the warm chamber when Su Wanrou's question made her shudder involuntarily.

She hurriedly bowed and replied, "My lady, Hongyu elder sister returned an hour ago, but then left again, saying she was running an errand for you and needed to go out of the Wangfu."

"What did you say?" Su Wanrou sprang up from the bedside, fixing the little maid with a stare as her expression turned fierce.

The little maid clutching the Shu brocade trembled with fear.

Whenever the mistress flies into a rage, we servants always suffer a beating; now we don't know what offense Hongyu elder sister has committed to anger her.

With a crack! Su Wanrou exerted too much force, the armor on her finger snapped, and cold fury flashed in her eyes.

She suddenly strode out of the warm chamber and personally went to the cottage where Hongyu lived in the courtyard.

Hongyu was a first-class senior maid in the Rui Wangfu, of high rank, and thus had her own private chambers.

Su Wanrou kicked the door open, and the maids outside held their breath, daring not to move a muscle, feeling that even standing there doing nothing would invite deadly disaster.

Su Wanrou opened the cabinet in the room, and indeed inside lay gold, silver, and fine silks—all the items Hongyu usually used, neatly tidied away.

"You wretched slave!" Su Wanrou hissed under her breath.

She hadn't expected Hongyu to leave her such a loophole; according to Southern Qi law, any household slave who flees, once caught, will be severely punished—thirty heavy blows, then enslaved as a government servant and conscripted into the army.

Hongyu actually dared to run away from her despite such great risk?

Could there be some complication with Jinzhi?

Su Wanrou suddenly broke out in a cold sweat.

Panicking, she turned and hurried out, but her steps abruptly stopped there.

Su Wanrou no longer worried that Hongyu would expose her past misdeeds; after all, each scheme she had devised was cleverly crafted, and now that Hongyu had fled, any blame could be pinned on her—otherwise what would be called fleeing to avoid punishment?

But now her sole concern is Jinzhi.

In the Rui Wangfu she gets whatever she wants—wind if she wants wind, rain if she wants rain—and even when she makes a mistake, Xiao Yin will intercede for her, all because she is nominally the daughter of General An.

Xiao Yin owes her adoptive father a life; no matter how outrageous her behavior, he will tolerate her.

But the Jinzhi matter is different; Xiao Yin and Gu Jiu Ling are both sharp as tacks, so if Jinzhi ever recalls anything and blurts it out, even though she possesses all of Jinzhi's tokens and even the marks on her neck, it won't matter.

Yet in that matter she cannot afford any slip-up, otherwise the consequences would be unthinkable.

And now Hongyu has run off as well, making this impossible to delay any further.

Jinzhi must die!

She lifted her gaze to the pitch-black horizon, where a few stars twinkled, emitting an eerie chill that defied description.

"Go to the Eastern Garden and ask if the Prince has returned?" Su Wanrou's voice trembled; the maid who received the order quickly replied and hurried out of the Tan Chun Garden.

Not long after, that maid returned to report.

"My lady, the Prince has returned, but he went to the Peach Blossom Pavilion."

Su Wanrou felt even more resentful—must she really be unable to stay away from that woman? Even after returning from court, despite her busy official duties, she still has to go sit with Gu Jiu Ling?

Upon hearing this, Su Wanrou's heart pounded with dread; she had the feeling that Jinzhi was about to be recognized by Xiao Yin any moment now.

She walked toward the courtyard gate; the maid behind her hurriedly lifted a lantern to follow, while another maid grabbed a cloak and rushed up, intending to drape it over Su Wanrou, but she was harshly slapped for getting in her way.

Not long after, Su Wanrou stood outside the courtyard of Peach Blossom Pavilion, and from afar she heard Gu Jiu Ling's laughter from the warm pavilion, as well as Xiao Yin saying something she couldn't make out; it seemed the two were getting along very well.

Su Wanrou stopped her steps, composed herself, and then stepped inside.