Before the house was raided, the maidservant of the Prime Minister's residence absconded with t

East Palace Side Hall

Xie Jingxing lay on the soft couch, covered with a light brocade quilt, but his lower body could not be touched at all because of the dozens of lashes he had received.

He turned his head to the side, his gaze falling on the newly sprouted branches outside the window, a sinister smile playing on his lips.

He has been living in the Eastern Palace for almost half a month now.

His efforts to suppress the bandits were unsuccessful, resulting in the loss of many soldiers. He himself nearly lost his life at the hands of the bandit leader, becoming the biggest laughingstock in the capital.

The emperor was so angry that he smashed his teacup on the spot, gave him a severe scolding, and then ordered Li Dequan to be beaten thirty times.

The thirty strokes of the cane weren't aimed at his buttocks, but at the prestige he had accumulated in the court over the years.

The court officials who used to fawn over him have noticeably reduced the number of visiting cards they've sent in these past few days.

He knew perfectly well that these people were all watching and waiting.

Aside from his mother's family and a few old ministers who had been dependent on his mother's lineage for generations, who else would dare to approach him at this time?

"Your Highness," Liu Wei's voice rang out from outside the curtain.

Xie Jingxing withdrew his gaze and said calmly, "Come in."

Liu Wei lifted the curtain and entered, bowing his head in greeting.

He was an old man in the Prince Cheng's mansion and also his trusted subordinate. He had followed Xie Jingxing for more than ten years and knew the proper boundaries.

But today, his steps were slower than usual, and his head hung even lower.

Xie Jingxing's heart skipped a beat when he saw his appearance.

"Is Xie Jingchen dead?"

He asked directly, after all, this was the topic he cared about most.

Liu Wei's body trembled almost imperceptibly, and his voice was somewhat hoarse: "Your Highness, our men brought back news that the Crown Prince is seriously injured, but... he escaped."

Xie Jingxing, who was lying on the bed, suddenly sat up, which aggravated his injury, causing the veins on his forehead to throb with pain.

He ignored all that, his eyes fixed on Liu Wei: "What did you say?"

"Your Highness, please calm down!" Liu Wei knelt down with a thud. "We sent eight men, but only two came back."

The rest are all dead.

The Crown Prince's guards were all dead, including his trusted confidant Jiang Zhen.

But the Crown Prince… the Crown Prince has escaped.”

"He escaped?" Xie Jingxing's voice suddenly rose. "Eight men, he killed two guards, and he still managed to escape?"

Are those assassins just sitting around doing nothing?

He slammed his hand on the small table beside the couch, making the teacups clatter. The celadon teacups with gold decorations on the table rolled to the ground and shattered into pieces.

Tea splashed onto the back of his hand, scalding it until it turned red, but he was completely unaware.

"Useless! All of you are useless!"

Liu Wei knelt on the ground, his forehead pressed against the cold brick floor, not daring to move.

Once Xie Jingxing's breathing had calmed down a bit, he cautiously spoke, "Your Highness, please calm down..."

The two men returned and said that although the prince had escaped, he had been stabbed by a sword and poisoned by our specially made poison.

There is no unique antidote for that poison; death is certain within ten hours.

Even the imperial physicians couldn't help, and ordinary doctors were completely helpless.

Xie Jingxing was stunned for a moment, and the anger in his eyes was gradually replaced by another emotion.

"You mean, the Crown Prince has been poisoned?"

"Yes." Liu Wei raised his head. "It's a secret poison made in the martial arts world, it kills instantly upon contact with blood."

Although the crown prince did not die on the spot, he definitely will not live past tomorrow.

Xie Jingxing slowly lay back down, staring at Cheng Chen on the top of the tent, and remained silent for a long time.

The hall was quiet for a moment, with only the faint crackling of the charcoal fire remaining.

After a long pause, he suddenly smiled.

"Very well," he said, his voice carrying an indescribable meaning. "Let him live a couple more days; consider it a favor from me to my elder brother."

Let him taste what it's like to wait for death.

Liu Wei breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Your Highness is wise!"

My subordinates also thought it was time for our people to withdraw.

His Majesty is watching us closely; if we give anything away…

Xie Jingxing waved his hand, "Okay, let's bring everyone back, and make sure they're clean."

Don't leave any evidence!

"Yes."

Xie Jingxing was silent for a moment, then suddenly asked, "What about Liu Tao'er and the young master?"

Your Highness, what should we do next?

Liu Wei's body stiffened slightly.

Xie Jingxing keenly noticed this and swept his gaze over like a knife: "What?"

Haven't those two been found yet?

Liu Wei forced a smile and said, "Your Highness, we have already sent more men, but that girl and the young master are very slippery. We almost caught them several times, but they escaped each time."

"But Your Highness, don't worry, they can't go far. Sooner or later..."

Xie Jingxing interrupted him, his voice filled with chilling coldness, "Sooner or later?"

They're all a bunch of useless trash!

Once I'm healed, I'll go and catch it myself.

I'd like to see where that wretched maid can run to."

He paused, then said, "I can't go now; I need to recuperate for the next few days."

Listen carefully, send some people to go find them.

Capture them alive.

I want her to know what it means to wish she were dead.

Liu Wei lowered his head and replied, "Yes."

"Go."

Liu Wei got up and backed out the door.

The moment the curtain fell, he heard a low, cold laugh coming from inside.

Liu Wei dared not linger and quickly left.

Silence returned to the hall.

Xie Jingxing gazed at the top of the tent, his eyes deep and unfathomable.

Crown Prince Xie Jingchen, his eldest brother, was once the heir apparent, but is now a down-on-his-luck prince who has been demoted to the northern lands.

That person was better than him from a young age. He was better at studying, better at riding and archery, and even better at winning the emperor's favor.

Born to the Empress, the eldest son of the legitimate wife, a natural-born crown prince.

Xie Jingxing, however, was merely the son of a concubine. No matter how favored he was, he was still just a "son of a concubine."

He plotted for years, waiting for the crown prince to make a mistake, for his father to get angry, and for those people to finally stand on his side.

But what about Father?

The emperor compared him to the crown prince.

They say he is not as composed, as strategic, or as capable as the Crown Prince.

Ok.

Since the Emperor values ​​the Crown Prince so much, then he will make the Crown Prince disappear from this world.

Let's see who Father will pass the throne to next.

Xie Jingxing turned over, and another sharp pain shot through his wound.

He gritted his teeth, cold sweat beading on his forehead, but he remained completely silent.

The top-quality wound medicine sent by my mother is indeed very effective, but the wound is in such a place that even the best medicine needs to be healed slowly.

The imperial physician said that it would take at least five or six more days before he could get out of bed and walk around.

Five or six days.

Xie Jingchen's poison took effect within ten hours.

Once he catches that wretched maid, he'll deal with that little brat and her wretch.

Does Father want the parchment scroll?

dream!

It's best if no one can have it.

As he pondered this, a smile crept onto his lips.

Outside the window, the spring breeze blows, and the tender buds on the branches sway gently.

Suddenly, a series of footsteps came from afar, somewhat hurried and somewhat chaotic.

Xie Jingxing frowned and listened intently.

The footsteps grew closer, seemingly heading towards the main hall of the East Palace.

The main hall of the East Palace is currently empty.

After the crown prince was demoted, the Eastern Palace became empty.

He is "temporarily" staying here, but only in a side hall.

The main hall's doors remained sealed, and no one dared to touch them.

After all, he hasn't been named crown prince yet, so it's inappropriate for him to live in the main hall!

The footsteps stopped at the entrance of the main hall.

Xie Jingxing heard someone speaking, but the voice was very low, and he couldn't make out what they were saying.

A moment later, footsteps sounded again, this time heading towards the side hall.

He felt a chill run down his spine and instinctively sat up.

The curtain was lifted, and it wasn't Liu Wei who entered, but his chief eunuch, surnamed Zhao.

I've been following him for over ten years.

Eunuch Zhao's expression was not good.

"Your Highness," he said in a low voice as he quickly walked to the bedside, "something has happened."

Xie Jingxing's heart sank: "What is it?"