Ji Wuxia blinked, and Ji Meiyuan finally understood, whispering, "It's you?"
"Who told her to bully us so badly! I only asked someone to release a snake, and she got bitten! But damn it, how did she manage to be saved!" Ji Wuxia said angrily. "I'm already adopted by Mother and am the legitimate daughter, but don't you think Father still spoils her? As long as she's around, Father won't even look at us younger sisters! Didn't you do a lot of things before, trying to suppress Ji Wushang? I didn't expect her to be so stubborn! Hmph, now, we've only succeeded a little bit! We still have one last step!"
"What do you intend to do?" Ji Meiyuan looked at Ji Wuxia, unable to believe that she had actually tried to kill Ji Wushang! But, very well, she had thought about killing her before, but she just never had the chance!
"We need to find an opportunity to remove Ji Wushang's silver needles. Only then will she surely die!" Ji Wuxia sneered. "Then, as long as we bury her, all her dowry will belong to the two of us sisters. As for Fourth Sister, she is already under house arrest and can no longer have children. So, what right does she have to compete with you?"
“Yes, and we must rescue Concubine Xie and help her become the official wife! I heard recently that Father was interested in making Concubine Xie the official wife. Humph, that old woman doesn’t deserve it!” Ji Meiyuan looked at Ji Wuxia. “If we make Concubine Xie the official wife, then we will truly have a place in this General’s Mansion! As for the other concubines, they can all be driven out!”
"What do you mean by kicking them out? Hmph, isn't it better to bury them? It's just another coffin to buy." Ji Wuxia's eyes were sinister as she looked at Ji Meiyuan. Ji Meiyuan felt a chill run down her spine under her gaze and said, "Hehe, Third Sister, your idea is not bad, but we still have to consider them. They are not easy to deal with either. After all, we will all get married in the future, so we can't control them too much."
"Are you scared?" Ji Wuxia looked at her, her lips twitching slightly. "Is Second Sister scared? Where did the fearless Second Sister go?"
"What are you afraid of?" Ji Meiyuan glared at her. "Let me tell you, those assassins in the Round Moon Nunnery were lured out by me, following my aunt's method. Unfortunately, Ji Wushang was still lucky! Now, haven't they been destroyed by the two of us sisters?"
"What Crescent Moon Cult? How come I don't know anything about it? What exactly did Auntie tell you?" Ji Wuxia looked at Ji Meiyuan, "Why didn't she tell me, her younger sister?"
“Weren’t you lying in bed then? How could I tell you?” Ji Meiyuan didn’t seem to find anything wrong with it and said, “We can ask Auntie later. Alright, let’s have our meal first, and then, when the time is right, we’ll have someone go and give Ji Wushang’s silver needles to…” Ji Meiyuan gestured.
Ji Wuxia nodded.
Night falls and the city lights come on.
Ji Wushang's entire room was secretly manned, and Tie Feng even sat in front of the door, keeping a close eye on anyone who entered. When the maid entered, Zhu'er immediately came forward to ask questions.
No one can bring all the dangers to Ji Wushang.
Just then, Ji Meiyuan's head maid, Baoqi, brought a bowl of stew into Xinyuan. Upon seeing her, Tiefeng immediately drew his sword and stepped forward, demanding, "What are you doing?"
"Oh, Brother Tiefeng, I am Baoqi, the Second Miss's head maid. How could you forget me?" Baoqi said with a smile.
Tie Feng pretended to examine Bao Qi for a moment before letting it in and then stood aside.
Bao Qi nodded and bowed before entering. The room was dimly lit, with seven ever-burning lamps hanging inside. Behind the beaded curtain lay Ji Wushang. Bao Qi peeked a few times and saw that Ji Wushang's body was still covered with silver needles.
"What are you doing?" Zhu'er looked at Baoqi and stepped forward to point at her, but when she saw the stew, her serious expression softened.
"It's Sister Zhu'er. I was ordered by the Second Miss to bring this stew to the Eldest Miss so she can have some nourishment." Baoqi said as she placed the stew on the table.
Pearl nodded, "Okay, thank you. I'll help Miss drink it when she wakes up."
"When will Miss be able to wake up?" Baoqi asked.
"How would we know? I'm afraid she won't wake up anytime soon. Alas, poor Miss." As Zhu'er spoke, tears streamed down her face, and she picked up her silk handkerchief to wipe them away. Bao Qi noticed that Zhu'er's eyes were red and swollen from crying.
"Sister Zhu'er, don't be sad. Miss will definitely get better," Baoqi said, stepping forward to comfort her.
"Yes, that's what Pearl thought too, but... I just never expected something like this to happen," Pearl said, crying.
"Will they find out anything?" Baoqi was trying to calm Zhu'er down so she wouldn't cry.
"Well, I don't know. I'll have to ask Brother Tiefeng," Zhu'er said. "It's getting late, so you should go back now. Tell the Second Miss that she doesn't need to worry and that the Eldest Miss will definitely get better."
"Okay, then I'll be going now." Bao Qi said, glancing at Ji Wushang in the distance a few more times before walking out.
This Baoqi is nothing more than a spy.
Sure enough, when Baoqi returned to the plum garden, he immediately told Ji Meiyuan and Ji Wuxia everything that had just happened.
After hearing this, Ji Meiyuan said, "Baoqi, you can go now. You did a very good job with this."
"Yes." Bao Qi bowed and withdrew.
"Third Sister, what do you think?" Ji Meiyuan looked at Ji Wuxia with worry in her eyes. "There's a very good chance that Eldest Sister will really come back to life!"
"I know," Ji Wuxia rolled her eyes at her, "I knew she wouldn't die so easily!" Ji Wuxia stood up and said, "But she has to die!"
“Right now, her place is surrounded and protected by the Iron Guards, so how could they possibly send anyone to kill her!” Ji Meiyuan looked at Ji Wuxia in frustration. “Now, I’m afraid not even a fly could get in!”
"Hmph, but don't forget, you are the second young lady and I am the third young lady. Who dares to stop us?" Ji Wuxia sneered.
"You mean, we should do it ourselves?" Ji Meiyuan looked at her. "That way, it'll be easy for someone to find out!"
Ji Wuxia glared coldly at Ji Meiyuan, as if to say, "You're really stupid!"
“We can send someone tonight, but it absolutely has to be a mute. If he gets caught, he can’t speak!” Ji Wuxia said coldly. “It’s just about removing a few silver needles, it’s not a big deal! There are just a few more guards, but as long as we lure them away, are we afraid we won’t have a chance?”
"Who should we send?" Ji Meiyuan asked nervously.
"You don't need to worry about that. If he fails, then it's up to us to decide what to do next." Ji Wuxia herself wasn't very confident either.
Ji Meiyuan nodded.
——
Pearl lifted the lid of the stew pot and then smelled it.
"Aren't you afraid of being poisoned to death?" Ji Wushang asked from inside. Zhu'er was so frightened that she dropped the stew pot.
"This is food for me, but you'd rather I were dead than have it served to me. Do you think it'll help me recover? It'll probably be used to nourish me in my coffin," Ji Wushang sneered. "Throw it away!"
"Yes." Zhu'er nodded. She hadn't intended to drink it because she was just curious about what it was, but what her mistress said made sense; it was better to be careful! She should refuse anything brought by random people!
“Baoqi is just testing us, Zhu’er. You have to be careful. If you can’t beat him, just run away, understand?” Ji Wushang said.
“Yes.” Pearl nodded. “If you can’t beat them, then hide.”
"Hmm, someone will definitely come again tonight. Hmph, trying to play mind games with me!" Ji Wushang sneered slightly. "Get everything ready. This time, capture them alive."
Those lurking in the shadows all nodded in agreement.
The night grew deeper, and Ji Wushang was almost asleep, but he forced himself to stay awake because he knew someone would come again.
The guards hidden in the shadows were getting impatient, some even beginning to doubt whether Ji Wushang had guessed correctly. But just then, a gust of wind blew in, and they heard some noises outside.
Tie Feng had already been ordered by Ji Wushang to doze off and let that person in, whether he came through the front door or the back door!
This time, let's trap them!
The man in black was outside the door when he saw Tie Feng standing guard outside, holding his long sword, but he was actually dozing off.
The man in black smiled silently, approached the door, took out the sleeping incense, poked a small hole in Ji Wushang's door, and looked inside. He saw Ji Wushang lying on the bed in the inner room behind the beaded curtain, while Zhu'er was already sitting at the table, watching over him, and had also fallen asleep on the table.
The man in black lit the sleeping incense and then, after a while, boldly entered the room.
As soon as the door closed, the man in black approached Ji Wushang.
I lifted the beaded curtain and entered the inner room.
The man in black looked at Ji Wushang on the bed and saw that her body was covered with silver needles. His eyes flashed with a fierce light, and he moved closer to Ji Wushang, reaching out his hand.
However, just as he was smugly thinking about reaching out to pull out all the silver needles, someone behind him suddenly pulled his hand back!
The man in black was in excruciating pain and immediately staggered backward, grabbing his weapon to kill. However, the Iron Guards were extremely skilled, and a dozen of them quickly surrounded the man in black. At this moment, Tie Feng entered and shouted, "Capture him! As long as he's not dead!"
Hearing this, the crowd became even more ferocious, and they thrust their swords and knives at the man in black!
Gradually, the man in black ran out of strength. Tie Feng stepped forward and kicked him in the chest. The man in black immediately fell to the ground. At this moment, the guards surrounded him and put their swords to his neck, rendering him unable to move!
Tie Feng looked at him coldly and said, "Put him in jail! Await further trial!"
"Yes." The guard immediately dragged the man in black away.
Ji Wushang finally woke up. "Sending a piece of trash like this was such a hassle! Tomorrow, you all better watch out. I want my father to watch a show, so be ready to call him over at any time, just in time!"
"Yes." Everyone nodded.
"Get down!" Ji Wushang looked at the people kneeling on the ground. "You've all worked hard. From now on, have Steward Lin increase your salaries. If he refuses, deduct it from my monthly salary!"
“Miss, this is absolutely unacceptable! How can we possibly take your monthly salary? It is our duty as servants to protect you!” Tie Feng said.
Zhu'er watched from the side, then looked at Tie Feng, "Miss's word is law, so we must all treat her well and obey her orders!"
"yes!"
Ji Wushang nodded and waved for them to leave. Looking at his body covered in silver needles, it was truly difficult to sleep, but after much deliberation, to be on the safe side, he decided not to remove the needles and simply lay down on the bed.
Ji Wuxia and Ji Meiyuan were waiting for the people sent in the plum garden, but seeing that it was past midnight and there was little hope, Ji Meiyuan said, "I'm afraid there's no hope. I didn't expect her people to be so capable!"
"So powerful? Hmph, it seems we still need to step in this time. We should do it this way..." Ji Wuxia leaned close to Ji Meiyuan's ear and whispered a lot of things.
"As long as we kill Ji Wushang, we can get even more! If you marry the Second Young Master Nan in the future, you can also wield absolute power in the Marquis's mansion without worrying about her doing anything to hinder you!"
“You’re right, that’s exactly why. So we can’t hesitate, we’ll do it tomorrow!” Ji Meiyuan said coldly, but then she thought, what if the person she sent said something? “If that person is arrested, will he implicate us?”
"No, don't worry." Ji Wuxia nodded. "He's deaf and mute, so don't worry. I'll go now, you should get some rest!"
"Okay." Ji Meiyuan was relieved and watched Ji Wuxia leave before returning to her room to rest.
The next day, Tie Feng immediately went to the dungeon to interrogate the man in black from the previous night, only to discover that the man in black was actually deaf and mute. Tie Feng was at a loss for what to do!
At this time, he couldn't report to the young lady, which put Tie Feng in a difficult position. He could only tell Zhu'er about it. Zhu'er listened and then told Ji Wushang when she found an opportunity. Ji Wushang said, "Keep a close eye on the person. Don't ask any questions or say anything else." He had already expected that there would be no clues, but leaving only one person alive would be enough to prove his innocence!
To Ji Wushang's surprise, Nan Xuzong actually arrived at noon!
Ji Wushang was completely at a loss for what to do.
Upon hearing that Ji Wushang was in trouble, Nan Xuzong immediately sent Gong Shu to accompany him. After paying his respects to Ji Dingbei and the matriarch of the Yuan family, they arrived at Xinyuan Garden.
It was the first time Nan Xuzong had stepped into this courtyard, yet he felt a deep sense of warmth. However, the thought that Ji Wushang was lying in bed because he had been bitten by a snake caused Nan Xuzong's heart to ache.
"Quickly, go in." Nan Xuzong frowned, the golden thread in his hand already rolled countless times. He was determined to go in and treat her! He refused to believe she would leave him!
Tie Feng was guarding outside. When he saw Nan Xuzong and Gong Shu enter the courtyard, he was greatly surprised, "Nan, Prince Nan."
"Hmm?" Nan Xuzong looked at Tie Feng and found him to be upright and dignified, which was quite pleasing to the eye. He said, "Please inform him so that I can go in and see the young lady."
"Please." Tie Feng knew their relationship and wouldn't interfere, but seeing Nan Xuzong's sorrowful appearance, he felt helpless. How would the young lady treat Prince Nan? Would she tell him the truth?
Gong Shu then pushed Nan Xuzong into the house. At that moment, they smelled a faint fragrance of medicinal herbs. Nan Xuzong frowned slightly and took a sniff.
"Gong Shu, wait outside," Nan Xuzong said.
"Yes, sir." Gong Shu nodded and then walked out.
At this moment, Xian'er and Zhu'er stepped forward and said, "Is Prince Nan well?"
"How is the young lady?" Nan Xuzong asked nervously, looking at the two of them.
Xian'er and Zhu'er exchanged a glance and hesitated for a moment. Finally, Xian'er said to Nan Xuzong, "How is the situation? Please ask Prince Nan to go in and take a look! We'll take our leave now."
It's best to let the young lady handle this matter, lest I make a mistake and disrupt her composure!
"Okay." Nan Xuzong nodded, then moved his wheelchair inside by himself.
Xian'er and Zhu'er nodded to each other, then left and closed the door behind them.