Chapter 35: Palace Banquet Storm (5)

"Yanyun will show her clumsiness." The woman stood up elegantly and gracefully, walking toward the golden silk carpet in the middle. She faced Yan Hongtian, but she didn't start dancing. She actually... pulled at her clothing belt! Zhuo Qing was stunned. Was this Princess too bold? Undressing in front of everyone... She wouldn't be dancing a striptease, would she...

If it were a striptease, she would be quite interested in watching. Zhuo Qing stared excitedly at the beauty on the golden silk carpet who was slowly taking off her belt and pulling at her outer robe. With her movements, the gorgeous outer garment slipped away quietly, revealing the bright red semi-transparent silk dress underneath. The thin fabric was not only elegant and enchanting but also displayed her curvaceous figure to everyone.

The woman walked generously to the very center, her clear voice carrying a smile as she said, "Musicians, please play a piece of ceremonial music. Only the sound of bells and drums is needed; other instruments are not required."

Bowing to Yan Hongtian, the woman took a bright red silk ribbon from her sleeve, grabbed it in her hand, and unfolded it to about eight or nine meters long, but the silk ribbon was extremely thin.

Zhuo Qing was a bit curious. The thinner the silk ribbon, the harder it was to wave. This woman looked weak and delicate; could she really wave it?

Zhuo Qing was still thinking when, following a heavy hammer strike from the musician, the woman leaped lightly. The silk ribbon in her hand seemed to have life, flying up suddenly, matching the beat. Her bright, agile, cat-like eyes drifted toward Yan Hongtian from time to time. Twisting her graceful waist, she was as soft as a snake, and the long silk ribbon in her hand danced lightly with the drumbeats. Especially every time she jumped and spun, she was stepping on the beat. With only the single sound of bells and drums, she was already able to bring this dance to such a realm. Not only did it not appear monotonous, but it added a lot of color.

Sighs of admiration rose and fell all around. Zhuo Qing had to say that her eyes lit up; this woman was definitely a top-tier human. Combining the enchanting figure with the hardness of the bells and drums very cleverly, every time a bell rang, that flash of crimson silk seemed to entangle your heart at the same time, gently, itchily. Not to mention that men would be watching with blood rushing to their heads, even she felt difficulty breathing. This dance was definitely much higher-level than a straightforward striptease.

Zhuo Qing looked at Lou Xiyan in front; she could only see his thin back and couldn't see his expression. Opposite, Su Ling still had an untamed cold face, his cold and arrogant eyes only staring at the fine wine in his hand, which seemed more fascinating than any beauty.

Looking at Yan Hongtian on the high seat, he was staring at the beauty without blinking, but it was a pity that what flowed in his eyes was just a man's playful interest upon seeing prey. Also, as a gift, would there be a shortage of women? Zhuo Qing sighed secretly, it was truly a pity for such a great beauty...

Just as the last drumbeat fell, the woman suddenly collapsed straight to the ground with a bang. In the hall, everyone held their breath, staring at the beautiful figure on the ground.

Something was wrong. Her dance just now was extremely agile; this final ending pose was too lacking in standard! Zhuo Qing stood up straight, her clear eyes narrowed slightly, secretly observing every move of the woman. After a long time, the woman did not get up. Among the ministers, fragmented discussions came.

Xu Yanyun did not move for a long time. Xu Xunsi finally couldn't help but stand up and walk forward, calling out softly beside her, "Seventh Sister?"

Xu Yanyun did not respond at all. Xu Xunsi lifted her up gently, but she still lay softly in his arms. Xu Xunsi's brows furrowed tightly, and he patted her cheeks lightly. Just as he was about to call her, he saw Xu Yanyun suddenly start to convulse, her hands and feet stiff, and her complexion turned from the original flush to a faint blue-purple. Then came obvious difficulty breathing. Xu Xunsi also panicked and asked anxiously, "Seventh Sister, what's wrong with you?"

Xu Yanyun could not respond to him. Her eyes widened suddenly. The originally agile eyes lost their charm, full of bloodshot, obviously bulging, and filled with fear. Her stiff hands grabbed her throat tightly, and her feet struggled unconsciously...

Zhuo Qing was shocked. Did she have a hidden illness from before? This appearance didn't look like the onset of any illness; it looked like—poisoning.

"Seventh Sister!"

Finally, Xu Yanyun stopped moving, her eyes wide open, staring ahead. Everything happened too fast; everyone in the hall had no way to react.

"Imperial Physician, diagnose and treat the Seventh Princess." Yan Hongtian's slightly cold voice rang out heavily, and his mood at this moment could not be seen on his face.

"Yes." Two imperial physicians ran over quickly and placed their fingers on Xu Yanyun's pulse. The originally calm faces suddenly became heavy. After carefully diagnosing the pulse for a long time, they finally let go and whispered a few words to another imperial physician behind them. That physician immediately diagnosed the pulse. After a long time, the two looked at each other, neither daring to speak.

Seeing their expressions, Xu Xunsi already felt that something was wrong and asked anxiously, "What's wrong with her?!"

"The Seventh Princess is..." The two swallowed their saliva, cold sweat streaming down.

"Speak!" Yan Hongtian roared. The two imperial physicians immediately threw themselves to the ground and replied tremblingly, "She has already passed away."

The hall was in an uproar.

"Bastard!" Yan Hongtian was so angry that he threw the wine cup in his hand to the ground, and the hall fell silent instantly.

Holding the woman in his arms tightly, Xu Xunsi seemed unable to calm down yet. Staring at the imperial physician, he pressed, "This is impossible. Seventh Sister has practiced dancing since she was a child and has always been in good health. How could she suddenly pass away?"

The imperial physician didn't dare to raise his head, and only after a long time did he reply tremblingly, "The Seventh Princess... died from a deadly poison."

Died from poison? The sound of gasping rose again, but no one dared to speak. After all, a princess of a country dying from poison in the Great Hall was truly...

Xu Xunsi looked up at Yan Hongtian, covered his eyes, and replied in a deep voice, "This should be... even more impossible."

A hint of micro-anger flashed in his eyes. Yan Hongtian asked coldly, "What poison did the Seventh Princess ingest?"

"This..."

Coldly staring at the figure curled up on the ground with impatience, Yan Hongtian shouted in a cold voice, "What are you stuttering for? Speak." Truly a bunch of trash! He was a dignified great country; did he still have to lose face in front of outsiders?!

The two looked at each other, but neither dared to reply, only prostrating themselves deeper on the ground. Beads of sweat on their heads kept popping out. They absolutely did not dare to say this poison!

Lou Xiyan and Su Ling opposite looked at each other, then averted their gazes, both waiting to see what would happen. Because at this moment, Dan Yulan, as the Criminal Justice Official, had already stood up and walked toward the fallen Seventh Princess.

The imperial physician was too scared to speak, the ministers were silent, and Yan Hongtian was about to get angry when Dan Yulan's clear and steady voice rang out at the right time: "The Princess had convulsions in her limbs before death, her teeth were tightly clenched, her breath was cut off, her complexion was dark blue-purple, and after death, her eyes were bulging and her limbs were stiff and cold. She should have died from snake venom. And the only snake venom that can take effect in such a short time is the Red Ring Silk Worm."

It was indeed poisoning. After seeing the state the deceased showed, Zhuo Qing also determined this. But one thing she couldn't understand was that there were many cases of venom causing death, but it was very rare for it to take effect as fast as the Seventh Princess. Or had she already been bitten by the snake before she came? That was also impossible; when she came up to dance, there was no abnormality at all.

Zhuo Qing fell into her own thoughts, but among the ministers, when Dan Yulan said the words "Red Ring Silk Worm," there was another commotion. Zhuo Qing thought secretly, what kind of poisonous creature was the Red Ring Silk Worm?

(End of Chapter) ===== CHAPTER 36 =====