The seductive princess is no longer being pursued; the aloof prime minister is facing a crematorium.

Chapter 54 I love nothing more than breaking up loving couples!
unlucky.

Jiang Jinshuang raised an eyebrow, looked down at the delicate and helpless woman in front of her, and leisurely crossed her arms.

In the spacious palace, with no one around, even the servants who came and went deliberately avoided the two of them.

"Miss Xia, didn't Pei Du explain it to you clearly?"

Xia Yurong bit her cherry lips, tears welling in her eyes: "What?"

"I want you to stay away from me. I really can't be bothered with you."

With that, Jiang Jinshuang lifted her foot to leave.

But behind her, Xia Yurong's voice rose a few decibels: "Sister, are you still blaming me for taking Brother Pei away from you?"

Jiang Jinshuang closed her eyes slightly, her patience exhausted.

"Yu Rong admits that she shouldn't have fallen for Brother Pei when she was still a maid in the Princess's residence, but back then, you were so persistent in pursuing Brother Pei, I just couldn't bear it..."

At this point, Xia Yurong bit her lip slightly, her clear, innocent eyes saying, "Your Highness, you know that Brother Pei has no feelings for you. Please, Your Highness, let go and grant Brother Pei's wish..."

Jiang Jinshuang scoffed lightly, leaned forward slightly, and said with a cold and mocking look in her eyes, "Miss Xia, don't you know that what I like to do most is to break up couples?"

She raised her chin, her tone cold and stern: "I'm making this clear: as long as I live, the two of you will never be together."

After a pause, as if recalling something amusing, Jiang Jinshuang smiled and said, "Since Miss Xia and the Grand Secretary are so in love, why don't you ask your brother Pei if he would be willing to take you as a concubine?"

Upon hearing this, Xia Yurong looked as if she had been greatly humiliated, her eyes wide with disbelief: "I could never marry Brother Pei as a concubine."

Looking at Xia Yurong, who was righteous, strong and earnest, Jiang Jinshuang couldn't help but laugh.

Xia Yurong bit her lip slightly: "What is Your Highness laughing at?"

Jiang Jinshuang sighed softly, her eyes filled with undisguised mockery as she looked at Xia Yurong: "Xia Yurong, I've been wondering if I've spoiled you too much."

Xia Yurong was stunned, not understanding at first: "What does Your Highness mean by this?"

The smile on her face vanished, and Jiang Jinshuang raised her eyebrows: "You always tell others that I made you a slave in the princess's residence back then."

“But even in the princess’s residence, I only let you do some light work, and I never skimped on your food, clothing and other necessities.”

"Later, you said you wanted to stay in the capital, so I thought of finding a family for you to take in as your adopted daughter, which is how I got you in touch with the Xia family."

After a pause, Jiang Jinshuang sneered, "If I hadn't saved you, you would have been devoured by those refugees long ago."

People's hearts are not enough.

Some people, having witnessed the lives of royalty and nobility, believe that they too can become one of them.

"Not a concubine?" Jiang Jinshuang sneered. "Miss Xia, have you ever considered that if it weren't for me, you wouldn't even be worthy of carrying Pei Du's shoes, let alone being a concubine?"

Xia Yurong stayed by Jiang Jinshuang's side for two years.

Over the course of two years, Jiang Jinshuang believed that he had not mistreated her. Because she had not lived well before, Jiang Jinshuang had taken good care of her in the mansion.

However, instead of being grateful, she resented her because she had worked as a "servant" in the princess's residence.

Xia Yurong's face turned ugly.

"Xia Yurong, don't put yourself in the position of a victim. Nobody owes you anything."

Jiang Jinshuang had said this to her before, but clearly, Xia Yurong hadn't listened.

"What is Your Highness trying to prove by saying these things?" Xia Yurong stared intently at Jiang Jinshuang, her eyes serious and resolute. "No matter what, I am now in love with Brother Pei, yet Your Highness is still entangled with him. Aren't you afraid people will say you are shameless—"

There was a "pop-" sound.

Xia Yurong was slapped to the ground by Jiang Jinshuang.

As the slap landed, Jiang Jinshuang felt instantly much better!
She raised her chin, flexing her wrist from the attack, and looked down at Xia Yurong, who was kneeling on the ground, her eyes full of mockery and contempt: "Xia Yurong, remember this, even if I am down on my luck, I am still a princess of a country."

"Even if you are favored by the Empress Dowager, you are still just a young lady from a humble family."

“There’s a world of difference between us,” Jiang Jinshuang said coldly. “Being your ‘older sister’ would be beneath you.”

Red marks quickly swelled up on her fair face. Xia Yurong touched her swollen face, biting her lip tightly, bravely refusing to let her tears fall.

She raised her eyes and looked at Jiang Jinshuang resolutely: "I will remember the humiliation of kneeling today."

Jiang Jinshuang sneered dismissively: "Then you'd better remember this well: if I can make you kneel once, I can make you kneel a thousand times, ten thousand times."

After saying that, Jiang Jinshuang didn't give Xia Yurong another glance and turned to leave.
-
The moment Jiang Jinshuang obtained the privilege of entering and leaving the Dali Temple, she went to the Dali Temple's archives.

She showed her token to the guards, and since the officials of the Dali Temple must have heard that Princess Zhaoming was going to personally take charge of the assassination, they didn't stop her much and let her in.

In the archives, cases and processes from the past thirty years are displayed from far to near.

If you want files from even older times, you'll have to go to a storage room a little further away.

Shen Huaihe has served as the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review for more than five years. During these years, all the cases he handled have been recorded in detail and can be used as evidence.

According to the dates on the case file shelf, Jiang Jinshuang quickly found the case of Prince Ruiyang from three years ago.

In fact, the case of Prince Ruiyang was originally intended to be handled by the Dali Temple, but overnight the evidence was submitted and the emperor quickly handed down the death sentence.

—It didn't even give the Dali Temple a chance to intervene.

Jiang Jinshuang opened the file.

Blank.

Apart from the objective description of the events of that year, the rest of the verdicts and evidence are completely blank.

Jiang Jinshuang frowned, her expression turning slightly cold.

—Shen Huaihe did not record the imperial edict issued by His Majesty back then.

Does that mean Shen Huaihe knows something?
Thinking of this, Jiang Jinshuang tightened her grip on the dossier.

The guard's voice came from outside the door.

"I've met my lord."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Jinshuang hurriedly put the file back in its original place.

The door to the archives was pushed open.

When the guard called out "Sir," Jiang Jinshuang initially thought it was just Shen Huaihe who had arrived.

But to her utter surprise, Pei Du also came to the Archives Pavilion.

Jiang Jinshuang was so happy just now that she almost forgot that in order to obtain the right to enter and exit the Archives Pavilion, she had promised His Majesty that she would allow Pei Du to assist her.

Some headache.

Neither of the two people in front of them were wearing official robes.

Shen Huaihe wore a dark blue round-necked robe. Today, he had his hair half-up and half-down, with a lotus leaf-shaped jade crown holding his long hair back. Even his eyebrows and eyes appeared a bit gentler.

Pei Du, dressed in a wide, moon-white robe, had a cold and indifferent gaze, like an immortal untouched by worldly dust.

Shen Huaihe was not surprised to see Jiang Jinshuang here.

He bowed slightly to Jiang Jinshuang: "Greetings, Your Highness."

Jiang Jinshuang smiled and said, "Lord Shaoqing, and...the Grand Secretary, what brings you two here?"

His Majesty's decree ordering Jiang Jinshuang to investigate the assassin on behalf of the Crown Prince has been issued, and Shen Huaihe did not say much about His Majesty's decree.

"The Grand Secretary just arrived with His Majesty's decree, and I also heard that Your Highness had already arrived at the Court of Judicial Review earlier, so I guess Your Highness should be in the Archives Pavilion."

Jiang Jinshuang smiled, glanced at Shen Huaihe, and then slowly shifted her gaze to Pei Du.

—From the moment he entered, his gaze never fell upon her.

(End of this chapter)