Chapter 351

Now that things have come to this, the most important thing is to figure out how to solve the problem and minimize losses as much as possible. I've already thought of a way to recapture the fleeing assassin; a small trick will suffice. As for the assassination that has already happened…… if handled well, sometimes a bad thing can turn into a good thing.

The night before last, after hearing Ji Ming's rough outline, Tenisi stepped forward to act as an intermediary, letting Duke Heteman of Jueqiao quietly come to the parlor where Elinor was hiding, and the four of them held a closed-door meeting.

Considering that Heteman's trust in him was surely less than that of the other two 'old comrades-in-arms', Ji Ming proceeded to fully explain his baiting plan, detailing each key point, even predicting possible mishaps in advance and preparing backup plans.

It's terrifying that the princess almost got silently killed on her own turf. As a century-old lone minister of the southern borders, the Jueqiao family's ability to endure forever fundamentally stems from its close ties to the royal family; over the years, countless enemies have eyed them covetously, wanting to ruin them. If this sneak attack succeeded, they'd make a fuss and the princess would suffer terribly.

So even though he thought Ji Ming's plan was nearly perfect, he couldn't help but ask a question.

"Your Excellency, the God's Chosen, I have no choice but to question your judgment, but I must answer for my ancestors and descendants—how confident are you in this?"

Ji Ming was about to reply with his usual cliché—everything is arranged by the Holy Light—when the old sun tactfully increased the brightness of the halo above his head.

The three people around him all widened their eyes in unison, then simultaneously covered their eyes, which had almost been blinded by the brightness.

—Well I'll be damned, the Holy Light God has manifested!

Now that the Holy Light God has their back, at least outwardly the Jueqiao Duke, who is likewise a believer, can no longer raise any objections; he merely symbolically pointed out a 'loophole' in Ji Ming's plan and then readily agreed to its execution.

"I will cooperate with you as much as possible, Miss Princess, and I will certainly give you a satisfactory explanation for this—please trust in the loyalty of Jueqiao."

Seeing Duke Heteman leave the meeting room decisively and fade into the distance, Elinor lowered her voice and asked a question she had been wanting to ask for a long time.

"Why don't you tell him about the Third Young Master's affair?"

Tenisi shook his head.

"Elinor, you've stayed too long in the Royal Capital; your understanding of the non‑core areas is too superficial. The Jueqiao family has stood here for five hundred years not only because of their absolute loyalty to the royal family, but also because of their absolute internal unity."

"Now is a troubled autumn of internal and external worries; we still greatly need the Jueqiao family's help on their turf. How could we, at this time, tell a benevolent father that his most beloved son is a traitor secretly colluding with foreign enemies?"

Tenisi, who still had to give some face as an elder, ended up not saying a bit of what he wanted to.

That is, compared to the overly open nobles of the Northeast Border, the Jueqiao family is relatively conservative—even having a mistress exposed in private would be a major scandal, let alone……

"Uncle uncle uncle, your son is out there fooling around, and he's even actively playing a zero‑sum game with an old coot who could be his grandfather."

Really, they were afraid Heteman might faint on the spot if he found out.

As for Elinor, who was to play the absolute lead in the scheme, why would she agree to such an apparently outrageous baiting plan?

It was because Ji Ming told her that by cooperating with his act, she could not only expose the assassin, show off her smarts and skyrocket her popularity, but also dig up the landmine buried beneath Jueqiao Pass, earning a precious favor from the Jueqiao family.

Although she had grown up in noble circles and wasn't unfamiliar with empty promises, she wouldn't wholly believe Ji Ming's rosy future he painted.

Even if she didn't believe it, pretending to be dead for a few days had no side effects; she figured she'd do Ji Ming a favor and agreed.

Who would have thought—setting aside other matters, the crowd suddenly felt it was good that the princess was alive, and now they genuinely cheered for her health; this is what 'the people's will' means.

Eh? Turns out one can really advance by retreating, using the 'assassination' as capital to play the victim.

I thought the investment had gone down the drain, but then a big return came—what's the difference between that and picking up a gold nugget on the street?

Eleanor could only struggle to keep the corners of her mouth from turning up, fully exercising her noble acting talent, and wiped at the corner of her eye.

Thank you all for your concern for my health; I have indeed been unwell lately, but fortunately everything is over now, and I have some words from the heart I want to share with you.

Although surprise and innovation can indeed catch people off guard, if one is always thinking of pulling flashy stunts, it's very likely to end up accomplishing nothing.

So Eleanor chose to give a conventional speech, whose theme was how hard she had been in Sunshine City, how happy she was upon arriving at Jueqiao Pass, how enthusiastic everyone had been toward her—basically just praising with eyes closed and spinning around.

Of course, both are sycophants; some can easily sweet-talk a crowd into orbiting them like a sea king, while others only end up being PUA'd into an ATM, a pure clown.

As a professional who writes such documents, the actual author of this speech, Ji Ming, naturally wouldn't be the latter; moreover, he is better at adding seasoning and novelty to these overused classic topics.

After listening, the onlookers not only didn't find it stiff or awkward, but felt as if they were about to swell with pride, thinking the princess spoke wonderfully and that the assassin truly deserved to die!

So, hiding below the stage and watching the crowd's reaction, Ji Ming couldn't help but feel secretly relieved; fortunately, his steady-written piece lacked strong incitement, and Eleanor's speaking experience was limited, making it hard for her to infect the audience with her emotions.

Otherwise, he felt that with the crowd's current spirit and vigor, if Eleanor next went to a small tavern or the like to chatter and shout, they could instantly rise up and rebel against that damn Sun King.

All right, that's about all I wanted to say; thank you for listening.

After bowing to the entire audience as a conclusion, the princess walked toward her carriage along the same path amid thunderous applause.

But as she reached the last step on the stairs, she suddenly staggered; fortunately, a nearby guard quickly steadied her with his shield, otherwise she would have been embarrassed even if she didn't fall.

Probably to conceal it, she wearily waved at the crowd again, and loudly declared amid the reporters' snapshots taken with their capturing stones.

Thank you for your enthusiasm. I will not forget Jueqiao Pass!

Mm, she's gone...

People came here just to watch a good show; now that even the lead has left, there's naturally nothing left to linger for.

Thus, under the dispersal and guidance of the Holy Light clerics, the crowd chattered away gradually, leaving only a mess strewn across the Duke's Square.

Hehehe, actually I also think Princess Eleanor will be fine; seeing her today, I can consider myself reassured.

After exchanging a couple of polite, possibly insincere remarks with his companions, Winston rode his carriage back to his manor, and his face darkened the moment the servants closed the gate.

Damn it!

Just now he had spent a fortune buying the best-view window on a nearby building, but what he saw wasn't what he wanted; instead, he watched that damned little brat laughing and joking for a while.

This must absolutely not be known by the adults; otherwise, even if he doesn't die, he'll surely get a skinning!

Wiping the fine sweat from his forehead, Winston tugged at his collar and went to the bedroom, flinging his body onto the sofa.

It's true that hanging out with noble lords can bring good food and drink, but the precondition is completing the tasks they assign; in fact, since a few years ago, in order to please the adults, he has already paid a considerable price.

But before, at least he could get things done by spending a little money to buy some connections and fool a few simpletons; this time...

He painfully kneaded his old face, feeling that whenever he closed his eyes, he saw what had happened in the toilet.

Back then, he was at least a rising star in the Royal Capital's business world! Just by his face, he could make noble ladies and matrons unable to bear it, instantly dragging him off to play poker—a pretty boy!

... How is it that after decades, he's still alive and yet keeps coming back to this?

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but groan in pain.

Good heavens, truly good heavens...

But just then, he suddenly heard footsteps outside in the corridor, prompting him to immediately compose himself and return to his usual stern demeanor.

Mr. Winston, another poker card has appeared on the table.

Hearing the butler's low words, Winston instantly flew into a rage.

You little brat, I haven't even come to settle scores with you yet, and you actually came looking for me on your own!

But his voice remained relatively calm, just a light hum.

After closing his eyes to gather his energy for a moment, he stood up and walked alone toward the large garden behind the villa, a small garden that was separately enclosed by a wall.

As Wenster's secret base, the cleaning schedule here is strictly planned, so it is now an absolutely deserted and secluded place, perfect for him to privately meet important special figures.

For instance, the black-clad person who silently emerged from the bushes after he sat at the stone table.

"Hehehe, Mr. Wenster, you probably didn't expect me to come visit you on my own, did you?"

He always seemed to have a smile on his face, and his sharp voice was truly unpleasant, so even though he was an aide sent by the superior, Wenster gave him no pleasant look.

"Hah, you still have the nerve to smile, Dushe?"

In return, we got Dushe's shamelessness.

"Hehehe, optimism is a kind of attitude toward life, so I certainly will…"

Wenster's suppressed anger surged up again as he slammed the table and shouted.

"Dushe! You clearly told me that if I could find a way to sneak you into the banquet, you could kill the princess—so why is she still running around alive and well?"

"Hehehe, Wenster, you need to learn to see the essence through phenomena!"

Seeing him so angry he wanted to rip himself apart, Dushe not only didn't hurry to explain, but became even more excited.

"Haven't you seen it? The expression on that little songstress's face when her legs went weak?"

Wenster took a deep breath, about to burst out "What are you looking at?! I'm not a professional!" when he heard Dushe muttering to himself.

"Hehe, although it was only an instant! Her face flashed with a "I'm doomed~" kind of fear and panic! And even if she quickly recovered her smile, it was tinged with an ugly strain and stiffness."

Huh?

Wenster frowned.

"You mean… the poison you gave her is still taking effect?!"

"Yes!"

Dushe jumped onto the table in front of Wenster and lowered his voice in a pretentious manner.

"Besides, that little princess was in a hurry when she rode the carriage, rushing home to find her mother like a whimpering child, and I even saw…"

Wenster gritted his teeth and immediately demanded.

"What did you see?!"

But this damned hermaphrodite started humming and hawing again, even putting on a little girl's coquettish airs.

"Well… this…"

"Dushe! Holy shit!"

After years of enduring humiliation, the old man finally snapped, cursing and throwing a punch.

Unfortunately, as an aging, frail ordinary person, no matter how well he kept himself, he could hardly hope to hit a young assassin; Dushe merely dodged with a casual flick and laughed as he stepped back to the ground.

"Don't rush, I just like to see you flustered…"

"Alright, don't glare at me—I'll tell you: a second before the curtains were drawn, I saw someone apparently hand her a cup of something, a drink she was eager to gulp down in one go…"

Wenster let out a long breath and slapped his forehead.

"She's definitely poisoned, but she's just holding on with the medicine, right?"

"Of course!"

Dushe's tone was cheerful.

"The poison I gave her was personally transmitted by the Pope himself—a slow‑acting neurotoxin that will gradually kill her; how could it possibly be removed so easily?"

But Wenster wasn't soothed by this explanation; he shouted.

"But she isn't dead now!"

"But she can't do without the medicine now!"

Dushe immediately raised his voice to drown him out, spreading his arms.

"And if that medicine were truly perfect, that would be great—but she almost stumbled on the stairs, which shows it only treats the symptoms, not the root cause!"

"So she might not die, but she'll gradually be numbed into a living wreck who can only lie in bed, needing help even to defecate and urinate—hahaha!"

For Dushe, tormenting a target—especially one of exceptional value—seems like a particularly enjoyable pastime, but for Wenster, who cares only about results, it's not.

Thus, even though he relaxed a bit, his brows remained tightly furrowed.

"It sounds like it does indeed meet the superior's demands, but how can we guarantee success? If there's any leak…"

Dushe composed himself, crossed his arms over his chest, and shook his head.

"Fine, you suspicious and cruel old thing… I'll go later and give our little treasure another dose, how about that?"