The mad princess forces love upon him, and the aloof imperial advisor trembles every night.

His hands trembled as he grabbed the bloody object, frantically wiping the blood off it with his sleeve. His voice trembled with excitement: "Father, look! The man in black hid so well; this must be the token of the mastermind! As long as it's clean—"

His voice abruptly stopped.

The cuffs were wiped clean of most of the bloodstains, revealing the object's true form—a fine, exquisitely carved mutton-fat jade pendant.

On the front of the jade pendant, a clear design of a coiled dragon amidst clouds is prominently engraved, while on the back... there is a unique, hidden emblem belonging to the Third Prince's residence. Each prince possesses only one, representing his status, and it is never removed from his person.

How is that possible?!

He clearly... he clearly put in a jade pendant that Chu Qingyue always wore! How did it become his own personal jade pendant?!

Chu Xuanjing's fingers began to tremble violently. The jade pendant fell to the ground with a "clatter," rolling to the Emperor's feet and stopping in front of his dragon-patterned boots. Bloodstains left a dark red trail on the gold bricks, like a dying snake.

"No...this isn't mine..." He suddenly looked up, his lips trembling, trying to explain, but he met his father's sudden, gloomy, and furious gaze—a gaze filled with shock, disappointment, the shame of being fooled, and even a murderous intent that seemed to be brewing.

And the Empress.

The empress stared intently at him, her phoenix eyes bloodshot and filled with venom, wishing she could tear him apart alive and devour his flesh and drink his blood.

"Father! Someone has framed me!" Chu Xuanjing's voice changed, becoming hoarse and shrill. "This jade pendant... I have always worn this jade pendant close to my body, it has never left my side!"

He frantically reached for his waist—it was empty. The jade pendant, a symbol of his princely status, which he never parted with, was gone.

The Chu Emperor's chest heaved violently, his cloudy eyes swirling with shock, anger, doubt, and a barely perceptible hint of rage at the complete loss of control over the situation.

He stared intently at the jade pendant on the ground, then looked at Chu Xuanche, who was almost covered in blood and convulsing in the arms of a guard, and finally, his gaze settled on the distraught Chu Xuanjing.

It's like looking at a dead person.

The Empress had already rushed to Chu Xuanche's side. Her phoenix crown was askew, her hair was disheveled, and her well-maintained face was streaked with tears and snot, mixed with splattered blood, making her look ferocious and terrifying.

She gripped her son's hand tightly, her sharp nails almost digging into his flesh, and roared at Chu Xuanjing:

"Chu Xuanjing! How vicious you are! Che'er is your own brother! How dare you... how dare you commit such a heinous act! Your Majesty! Your Majesty, you must avenge Che'er! Kill him! Kill this heartless bastard!"

"Chu, Xuan, Jing—!!!"

Chu Xuanche roared with his last ounce of strength, each word laced with blood and boundless hatred:

"It's you! It really was you! How vicious you are! Not only did you want to kill me... but you also wanted to cut off my lineage! This jade pendant... this jade pendant is irrefutable proof!"

After he finished speaking, he suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood and fell straight backward.

"Che'er—!!!" The Empress's shrill scream pierced the night sky.

"The imperial physician! Where the imperial physician has gone?!" Chu Yintian finally erupted, overturning the imperial desk in front of him. Golden cups and jade goblets shattered on the floor.

"Save the Crown Prince! If anything happens to him, you will all be executed!"

The situation was completely out of control.

The imperial physicians scrambled to carry Chu Xuanche away, leaving long, shocking red streaks of blood on the polished gold bricks.

As Chu Xuanjing passed by, Chu Xuanche's unfocused eyes turned and stared intently at him, his lips moving silently. Chu Xuanjing understood the lip movements: "You... will die a horrible death."

A chill ran from the soles of my feet straight up to the top of my head.

---

After the eldest prince was carried away, Emperor Chu looked at his third son kneeling on the ground. This son, usually gentle and refined, humble and polite, was someone he knew all too well about the shameful things he did behind the scenes.

As for the ways of the emperor, he felt that the princes had some tricks up their sleeves and some ambition, which was not unacceptable.

But... but it just so happens that he killed his brother.

To use such a vicious method at a palace banquet, in full view of everyone.

"Father! Your son is innocent!" Chu Xuanjing saw the coldness in his father's eyes, something more terrifying than rage—a sign of complete abandonment.

He kowtowed frantically, his forehead striking the gold brick with a dull thud, and blood quickly appeared.

"Your Majesty, I have never let this jade pendant leave my body! I would never have given it to an assassin! This must be a setup! Someone stole my jade pendant and deliberately set a trap! I beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly!!"

He suddenly looked up, his bloodshot eyes scanning the entire room like a trapped beast.

Officials bowed their heads, guards stood at attention, palace maids and eunuchs trembled... everyone's faces blurred into a gray background. Only—

Atop the Lotus Pavilion. That crimson figure. Chu Qingyue leaned against the eaves of the pavilion, her crimson skirt fluttering in the wind, like a blood lotus blooming in the night.

She held Si Chen's hand with one hand, while casually twirling a strand of hair with the other, looking down at him. A faint smile played on her lips. Cold, eerie, and laced with an all-knowing mockery.

It's her! It must be that bitch!!

Chu Xuanjing almost ground his teeth to powder, blood seeping from his gums with a metallic taste.

But when did he fall for the trick? When was the jade pendant stolen? Last night? This morning? Or... even earlier?

Was he already caught in her trap from the moment he began plotting this assassination?!

Chu Qingyue met his gaze, even tilting her head slightly, her eyes innocent and pure, as if asking: Third brother, why are you looking at me?

"Father!" Chu Xuanjing almost gritted his teeth to pieces.

"This matter is suspicious! The assassin didn't appear earlier or later, but precisely when the beast was frightened and everyone was in a panic! And of course, he had my jade pendant on him! This is clearly someone's deliberate scheme to kill two birds with one stone, harming both my elder brother and me! I beg Father to thoroughly investigate everyone who handled the beast and arranged the defenses tonight! And also..."

He pointed at Chu Qingyue as if he were going all out:

"The Ninth Princess was with the Imperial Preceptor the whole time, far from where the incident occurred. It's too much of a coincidence!"

A very soft chuckle came from the pavilion roof. The laughter was like ice beads falling on a jade plate, clear and cold, yet carrying a chilling edge.

Chu Qingyue released Si Chen, lightly touched the ground with her toes, and her crimson figure, like a burning feather, gracefully landed in the center of the messy banquet, only a few steps away from Chu Xuanjing.

Her skirt brushed against the shattered cups and splattered blood, yet remained spotless, as if the filth and bloodshed had no effect on her at all.

"I don't understand what you're saying, Third Prince."

She slowly approached, squatted down, and picked up the blood-stained jade pendant with two fingers, examining it closely. Bloodstains congealed on her fingertips, but she paid no attention, as if she were merely playing with an ordinary pebble.

"You mean, I not only have the ability to steal this personal item from you without anyone noticing, but I can also foresee the future, predicting that the Fifth Princess's tiger would go berserk, that the assassin would take advantage of the chaos to kill her, and that you would 'coincidentally' kill the last survivor with one sword, and that you would 'panick' and search him, and finally... 'coincidentally' pull your own jade pendant from his stomach?"