Chapter 386: No, You Must Be Mistaken
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
“Go. Just say that my clothes are dirty. Ask them to go back to the palace and bring a set of clean clothes for me.” After arriving at the washroom, Su Ying gave her instructions to Lin Zhu.
Lin Zhuyu asked, puzzled, “Does Your Imperial Highness have some sort of plan?”
Su Ying glanced at her indifferently. “I have to verify something. I will go out in a while. Think of a way to stall for time.”
Lin Zhuyu didn’t ask any more questions. Her face was solemn. “Don’t worry, Your Imperial Highness. 1 will not disappoint you!”
With that, she turned around and left the washroom. A moment later, Su Ying heard her slightly arrogant voice from outside the door. “Some water accidentally splashed on Her Imperial Highness’s dress. You gals must immediately return to the palace and bring a set of clean clothes for Her Imperial Highness.”
After the door to the inner hall was closed, Su Ying jumped out of the back window.
She didn’t leave the palace for temporary stays but went around to the back of Princess Pingling’s inner hall. There was a window at the back of the inner hall that was just big enough for one person to pass through.
She nimbly jumped in through the window. The maidservant in the inner hall saw Su Ying enter suddenly and was knocked unconscious by Su Ying before she could react.
Su Ying went straight to the bed and saw a person lying on it. The person heard the commotion and turned around. When she saw Su Ying, she was stunned at first, then a hint of terror appeared in her eyes.
Su Ying grabbed her neck in one move. “Where’s Princess Pingling?”
The maidservant was so frightened that she trembled all over. “Don’t… don’t…”
“If you don’t want to die, tell the truth!”
“The Imperial Palace… she’s gone to the palace…”
Su Ying loosened her grip and elbowed the maidservant, causing her to drop onto the bed.
Su Ying suddenly thought of something, turned around, and jumped out of the window.
She avoided the crowd and swiftly went to the back door of the palace for temporary stays. The distance to the Imperial Palace would be shorter from the back door of the palace for temporary stays.
Meanwhile, Princess Pingling had successfully sneaked into the Imperial Palace in the guise of a maidservant. She knocked out the young palace maid who was leading the way for her and changed into her clothes before quickly walking towards Xiao Li’s palace.
It was currently dinner time. Princess Pingling waited outside the palace hall. Before long, she saw a palace maid walking over with a food container.
She went forward and hid along the path that the palace maid had to pass by. When the palace maid passed by, she knocked her unconscious and hid her body. Then, she carried the food container and walked up to the palace door.
The Imperial Guards keeping watch at the palace entrance checked the palace token in her hand and opened the door to let her in.
Princess Pingling lowered her head slightly. After entering, she quickly surveyed her surroundings.
Several of Xiao Li’s servants had already been sent away by Xiao Jin. Now, there was only a eunuch and a palace maid serving in the inner courtyard.
At this moment, there was only one eunuch standing guard outside the door.
Princess Pingling carried the food container and walked forward. When that eunuch saw her walking over, he stared at her with a somewhat puzzled expression for quite a while. “Huh? Why isn’t Sister Chun Tao here to deliver food today? You look unfamiliar. Where did you serve before?”
Princess Pingling slowly raised her head and abruptly took out a handkerchief to cover the mouth and nose of the eunuch.
The eunuch widened his eyes in horror and lost consciousness in the blink of an eye.
Princess Pingling pushed the door open and dragged the eunuch inside before closing the door.
Princess Pingling put down the food container in her hand and silently looked in the direction of the inner room. She could vaguely see a figure standing there. She gave a scornful sneer. Without any hesitation, she walked up, raised her dagger, and stabbed at the other party’s back.
“Go to hell, useless trash!”
Princess Pingling’s expression was ferocious. Just as the dagger in her hand was about to stab the other party, the other party suddenly turned around and grabbed the dagger in her hand without any emotion on her face.
“Su Ying!”
Su Ying exerted a slight force and twisted Princess Pingling’s hand open. The dagger in her hand fell to the ground.
Princess Pingling stared at Su Ying in disbelief as if she had seen a ghost.
“How is this possible? You were clearly… clearly in the palace for temporary stays. How come you are here?” Princess Pingling almost lost control and screamed out loud.
Without waiting for Su Ying to speak, Princess Pingling’s expression become contorted as she reached out to grab Su Ying. “Then you can go to hell with him as well!”
Princess Pingling knew martial arts, and her skills were not weak at all. She quickly attacked Su Ying, but Su Ying managed to capture her after dodging two moves.
Princess Pingling’s two hands were pinned behind her back by Su Ying. She wanted to break free, but she found that Su Ying’s hands were like iron pincers.
She could not break free at all!
“Su Ying, you’ll die a horrible death!”
“You’d better save these words for yourself.” Su Ying took out a medicine bottle, opened it, and placed it in front of Princess Pingling’s nose before kicking her onto the bed.
Before Princess Pingling lost consciousness, she saw Xiao Li lying on the bed.
Her heart was filled with hatred to the utmost. She felt that Su Ying was probably going to use underhanded methods to make her and Xiao Li sleep together, but she simply had no strength to fight back. Her vision went black, and she fell onto Xiao Li’s body.
Su Ying walked over to the bed and pinched Xiao Li’s hand between his thumb and forefinger. When she saw his eyelashes quiver slightly, she turned around and walked out.
She exited through the main entrance of the palace, and the Imperial Guards were very astonished to see her.
Su Ying’s eyes darkened as she said, “What are you waiting for? Someone is trying to assassinate the Third Prince. Get people to go and save him at once.” The Imperial Guards were stunned. Before they could think about how Su Ying had come out from there, one guard instinctively turned around to look for help.
By the time one team of Imperial Guards arrived, Su Ying was long gone.
The Imperial Guards rushed in anxiously. The moment they charged into the inner hall, they saw Princess Pingling sitting astride Xiao Li’s body in a suggestive position, strangling his neck. Xiao Li’s face totally flushed and he was about to suffocate.
“Quick! Save the Third Prince!”
The Imperial Guards quickly rushed forward and pulled Princess Pingling away from Xiao Li.
Xiao Li took a gulp of air and felt that he had come back to life.
He glared angrily at Princess Pingling. “You slut! How dare you sneak up to attack me! I want the Emperor to execute you!”
Princess Pingling’s eyes were bloodshot as she glared at Xiao Li with fury. Her heart was filled to the brim with hatred. When she woke up, she found herself lying on top of Xiao Li. At this moment, Su Ying was already nowhere to be seen. She felt that there must be something wrong with Su Ying’s medicine, which was why her body had no reaction at all. She then saw Xiao Li, who was under her. How could she let go of this opportunity to kill him?
Thus, she did not hesitate to strike. To her surprise, the Imperial Guards suddenly barged in at this moment and caught her red-handed.
Entering the palace to assassinate a prince was not a small matter. The Imperial Guards immediately reported this incident to Xiao Jin.
Xiao Jin’s expression froze momentarily, and he asked that Imperial Guard to speak clearly.
After listening to him, he furrowed his sharp brows slightly and asked, “At that point, was it the Empress who told you that the Third Prince was being assassinated?”
That Imperial Guard replied, “Yes. Your humble servant does not know when Her Imperial Highness entered. Please forgive me, Your Majesty.”
“No, you must be mistaken.”
The Imperial Guard raised his head in shock and saw that Xiao Jin was very sure of himself. “Mm-hmm. You must be mistaken. The Empress has already gone to the palace for temporary stays much earlier and hasn’t returned yet.”
The Imperial Guard was dumbfounded. However, he clearly remembered that the person who came out was the Empress…
Could it be that he was really wrong?