Feng Zixiao hadn't gotten up yet. He had returned from the palace late last night and didn't go to sleep until almost dawn.
Outside the door, Agu's steady voice rang out: "Master, something's happened?"
There was no sound for a long time. Agu was about to leave and wait for the prince to wake up when a lazy voice came from inside: "Come in."
"Yes," Agu walked in. Inside the spacious bedroom, a bright yellow gauze curtain hung over the large vermilion bed, obscuring the view inside. Agu quickly reported.
"My lord, the Left Prime Minister sent someone over early this morning to inform me that someone attempted to assassinate Miss Jiang last night, but he secretly sent people to protect her."
"Assassination?"
A sinister, chilling voice rang out, followed by a large hand lifting the gauze curtain to reveal a perfectly sculpted face. The eyes were filled with a chilling aura and murderous intent, and the entire bedchamber was filled with coldness. Agu dared not look at his master.
"Yes, the news has spread throughout the capital that the future Crown Princess has been assassinated."
Feng Zixiao's eyes were cold, and a dark, enigmatic smile curled at the corner of his lips. Good, very good. He never expected Jiang Batian to be so ruthless. It seems they had all underestimated him. Although they had always known that Jiang Hailing was out of favor, she was still his daughter after all. No matter how much he disliked her, he would never harm his own daughter. Now it seems that he is completely insane. In order to resist the oppression of the royal family, he did not hesitate to eliminate his own daughter. Such a person cannot be allowed to live.
Besides him, he couldn't think of anyone else who had a problem with that woman.
"Agu, immediately take ten guards and some servants into the General's Mansion to protect the Crown Princess. Remember, do not allow anyone to harm her."
This wasn't because he cared so much about the woman, but because she was still useful. Besides, the royal family had granted the marriage, and if this woman were killed, people would question the royal family's capabilities. So she absolutely couldn't die; not only couldn't she die, but she couldn't be harmed in the slightest.
"Yes, I will do it immediately."
Agu accepted the order and left. Inside the room, Feng Zixiao narrowed his eyes, inwardly scoffing...
Chapter 27 A Heartless Father
Feng Zixiao sneered inwardly, "Jiang Batian, I'd like to see if you dare to defy the royal family. If you do, I'll definitely remember this as a serious offense of disrespect. In that case, I won't even need to marry that woman."
Feng Zixiao thought about going back to bed to continue resting.
Inside the study of the Left Prime Minister's residence.
A tall, handsome figure leaned casually against the couch, elegantly flipping through a book.
Two figures stood beside the table in the room, one of them respectfully reporting something.
"My lord, just as you predicted, someone attempted to assassinate the Crown Princess last night. Your subordinates have protected her."
The speaker was Shi Mei, a subordinate of the Left Prime Minister Xi Lingfeng. Shi Mei's beautiful face was filled with arrogance, and her eyes were full of admiration. She had always known that the master was a man of great foresight. Last night, she couldn't understand why he had sent them to protect the Crown Princess. She never expected that someone would assassinate the Crown Princess in the middle of the night. He was indeed resourceful.
Xi Lingfeng nodded and looked up at Shi Mei and Shi Zhu.
"Is she alright?"
Most women would be terrified by such an assassination attempt, but the woman he saw last night seemed intelligent, cunning, and composed, unlike ordinary women.
As Xi Lingfeng was thinking, Shi Mei's voice rang out: "Reporting to Master, she is fine. Not only is she fine, but she is also very capable. If it weren't for my subordinates last night, she would have been fine too."
Although Shi Mei didn't want to admit it, it was true. That woman's skills were strange. She didn't know martial arts, but her moves were no worse than theirs. Upon closer inspection, she couldn't find any martial arts routines, so Shi Mei couldn't see through her.
"oh."
Xi Lingfeng responded briefly, a spark flashing in his dark, ink-like eyes before returning to their gloom. A hint of detachment appeared on his lips. This was quite interesting. He hadn't expected that Miss Jiang would be such an interesting person. Most women were boring, but this was an unexpected surprise.
He saw her last night and remembered seeing her before on the West City River Bridge, wandering the streets at midnight and shouting that there was a ghost. She was a really funny person. But last night she was a completely different person, calm and cunning. And when he looked closely at her face, he found that she was not unpleasant at all. On the contrary, she was very cute, like a white steamed bun.
The study was quiet. Shi Mei and Shi Zhu looked at each other, puzzled. The master seemed lost in thought, which was unusual. What was wrong with him? Shi Mei cautiously called out, "Master."
Xi Lingfeng snapped out of his daze, his lips twitching. He hadn't expected to be thinking about a woman; it was quite a surprise.
"Go down. The Crown Prince will send people to protect her. Just keep an eye on the General's Mansion."
"Yes, Your subordinate obeys."
Shi Mei and Shi Zhu went outside and took a deep breath. Whenever they were with their master, they felt some pressure. Although their master treated them very well and was generally very easygoing as long as they didn't make mistakes, the domineering nature hidden in his bones was still a source of pressure.
The person inside the room, unaware of what his subordinate was thinking, continued reading his book, no longer contemplating anything else.
The Qinfang Courtyard of the General's Mansion was noisy from early morning. Steward Han sent people to clean up the assassins who were killed last night in the Qinfang Courtyard, and they were quickly cleared away.
In addition, Steward Han received orders from the General to appease the Third Miss and fulfill any conditions she may make. Furthermore, since there are no maids or servants left in Qinfang Courtyard, a new batch should be assigned to her.
Han Liang immediately brought a group of servants from the General's Mansion and waited in the hall of Qinfang Courtyard.
At this time, Hai Ling had not yet woken up, and the Fourth Madam was entertaining Han Liang.
"Thank you for your help, Butler Han."
Although she was the general's concubine and Han Liang was merely the steward of the Prince's mansion, he was far more noble than her and held great power in the general's mansion. Therefore, the Fourth Madam treated Han Liang with great courtesy.
Han Liang, who became the chief steward of the general's mansion, naturally possessed a shrewd and worldly-wise demeanor. He understood the current situation. Even though Du Caiyue was out of favor and a lowly concubine, she was still the mother of the Crown Princess. As a mere steward, he couldn't afford to offend her. Therefore, Han Liang always treated Du Caiyue with utmost respect.
"Fourth Madam, you're too kind. The General instructed me to come and see what the Third Miss needs."
"He's quite thoughtful."
Du Caiyue's smiling face stiffened for a moment, a fleeting chill crossing her eyes, before quickly returning to her usual gentle smile, making it impossible to detect anything amiss. Last night, Jiang Batian, to protect the First Madam and Jiang Feixue, had ordered the killing of over a dozen people, demonstrating his ruthlessness and cold-bloodedness. So, were the assassins from last night connected to him? If so, he was truly worse than a beast. Ling'er was also his daughter; did he kill her simply because he didn't like her? If Jiang Feixue were in this position today, the situation would likely be entirely different.
Du Caiyue felt sorry for her daughter, wondering how she had ended up with such a heartless father. As she thought about it, she started blaming herself.
Inside the hall, Han Liang listened to the Fourth Madam's words but said nothing, respectfully continuing his reply.
"Fourth Madam, there are hardly any servants left in Qinfang Courtyard. I have brought over another batch of maids and servants. Would you like to select a few more to stay and serve us?"
Upon hearing Han Liang's words, Fourth Madam Du Caiyue shook her head. Would they still dare to use the servants in the General's Mansion? How many of these people were truly kind-hearted? Even if they were transferred back, they would ultimately still obey the First Madam and Jiang Feixue's orders, which would only cost them another life. Although they hated these servants, they had no choice. Everyone had a family to support and didn't want to protect their loved ones.