Chapter 4
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The door was closed. Ling Rui bumped into it a few times with his small body, but couldn’t open it at all.
He patted the door and shouted with all his might, “Momo, Momo!”
Outside the door, Li Momo heard the voice but remained unmoved. She turned and went back to the small room next door, where she opened a bundle.
Inside the bundle was a dagger, a dagger from Fenghua Palace.
While Li Momo was touching the dagger, Ling Rui next door had shouted himself hoarse without getting anyone’s attention. Dejectedly, he sat down on the floor with his head drooping.
At the same time.
Little Chubby, who had been playing with Ling Rui, plucked a handful of grass and ran back to his mother’s Lan Pavilion.
As soon as he entered, he smelled a strong medicinal scent.
“Royal Mother, I’m back!”
He hid the grass and cheerfully called out, “The tutor gave us half a day off, and eldest royal brother let us have free time.”
If it weren’t for the junior teacher’s break, he wouldn’t be able to come out now.
The chubby little sixth prince was a chatterbox. He hadn’t even seen his Royal Mother yet and was already chatting away.
Just as he was chatting away, inside the room, Consort Ru, who was leaning on a soft couch, stopped her needlework and thought for a moment.
“You mean, there’s a little baby younger than you who gave you a bag of pastries?”
“Yes, after he gave me the pastries, he kept staring at me while I ate! Hahaha, he couldn’t possibly want to share a bag of pastries with me, could he?”
Because he, chubby little Sixth Prince Ling Fu, had plenty to eat and drink, he was also naive to think that others didn’t.
Consort Ru, after some thought, responded, “He probably did want to share it with you.”
Ling Fu: “?”
Ling Fu looked skeptical.
Although Consort Ru stayed in the palace every day, seemingly detached from worldly affairs, she was well-informed about the little boy and his background.
“He is the Seventh Prince, living in Chaoxi Palace,” Consort Ru pointed out the little boy’s identity, mentioning that his living conditions were not great.
“The snack he gave you might have been his lunch,” Consort Ru added sincerely.
Ling Fu was stunned by this news, his chubby body wobbling in shock. As the older, overweight brother, he had eaten his little brother’s lunch without leaving a crumb!
If his second brother found out, he’d surely get a beating!
“Royal Mother,” the chubby boy regretfully asked, “Can I take dinner to Little Seven?”
Consort Ru resumed her needlework, replying lightly, “You don’t need to go. I’ll have the small kitchen send some food over later.”
“Thank you, Royal Mother!” the chubby boy, his conscience appeased, happily went off to play.
Despite being young, the chubby boy was well taken care of by Consort Ru, living a carefree and well-fed life.
In contrast, the little prince, who had no mother or support, was locked in a room until midnight.
At midnight, Li Momo came in.
She refilled the water pot on the table and brought in a bowl of porridge, which the groggy Ling Rui drank. She then took the bowl and locked the door again.
The autumn feast was approaching, and Li Momo needed to keep the frail little prince alive for a bit longer.
The door was open and locked again.
Ling Rui wiped his little face and stared blankly at the door. Through the broken window, he could clearly see the tightly closed door illuminated by moonlight.
No one came to take him out, and no one was there to protect him like Ah Wu.
“It’s okay,” Ling Rui murmured to himself. “I can protect myself.”
He vowed to work hard and grow up. Once he did, in this unfamiliar world—
He will find Ah Wu.
Thanks to the porridge brought by Li Momo, Ling Rui slept a bit better in the second half of the night. But by daybreak, his brief peace was over.
As the autumn feast approached, although Li Momo ensured his survival, she left him with injuries.
His small, fair body was covered in bruises, and to prevent him from crying out, she gave him medicine that sapped his strength.
After tormenting the little prince, Li Momo returned to her room to enjoy the fine pastries sent from Lan Pavilion, sighing as if relieved from a burden. She also familiarized herself with the dagger she had been keeping.
Time flowed quietly.
The next morning, Li Momo opened Ling Rui’s door.
“Seventh Prince,” she smiled, “Didn’t you want to go out and play? How about I take you to the autumn feast? It’s lively there, with your brothers, sisters, and even your royal father attending.”
Ling Rui shivered with fear at her smile.
Surprisingly patient, Li Momo covered his bruises with clothes and carried him out.
Ling Rui, feeling dizzy and in pain, barely lifted his head.
A breeze brought a moment of clarity, reminding him of the palace maids’ conversation about the autumn feast hosted by Noble Consort Yi. If he went to the feast, he might see her.
“Niang Niang,” he murmured, moving his mouth but unable to speak.
Li Momo kept talking, “Seventh Prince, remember, your injuries are from Noble Consort Yi. She despises your mother and wants you dead.”
Ling Rui shook his head in disbelief, but Li Momo continued her narrative all the way.
Taking a secluded path, Li Momo entered the outer courtyard of Fenghua Palace.
The feast was bustling with people arriving. In the outer courtyard, she could hear the lively sounds from the main hall.
Her path was unobstructed, cleared by someone behind the scenes.
According to the plan, she was to leave the little prince’s body here.
“Seventh Prince,” Li Momo breathed deeply, placing the weak boy on the ground. She pressed a hand to his neck, whispering, “You are ill-fated. Without me, you wouldn’t live to grow up. It’s better to join your mother sooner, for release.”
Her tone was gentle, but her eyes were filled with murderous intent.
At the moment her dagger was about to strike, she saw the little prince lying on the ground, barely hanging on to his last breath, suddenly roll over. The next moment, he staggered to his feet and ran forward.
The sudden turn of events startled Li Momo for a few seconds.
By the time she got up to chase after him, the little troublemaker, who was running in an unsteady manner, had jumped into the pond. The depth of the water in the pond was unknown.
In any case, Li Momo watched as he jumped in, not even a splash rose, as if he had sunk straight to the bottom!
“Seventh Prince?”
Li Momo’s face turned as cold as water as she stared at the water’s surface for a while. Finally, she breathed a sigh of relief. “No matter how he dies, why did he choose to die in the water!”
This rendered her dagger of no use.
Li Momo glanced reluctantly at the dagger and threw it near the pond.
She threw away the dagger and walked away.
As for the little prince in the water, she saw that there was no doubt he would die, and she only needed to complete the final step to lead everyone over, and then throw the blame on the noble consort!
In today’s situation, she managed to do this step, and many people have worked hard in secret
Otherwise, by herself, she wouldn’t have been able to get through even the outer gate of Fenghua Palace!
Li Momo hurriedly walked away, but as she reached a rockery, a palace servant suddenly pulled her aside.
“Miss Meng Er!”
Seeing Meng Er, Consort Li’s confidante, Li Momo smiled, about to say something, when a sudden pain struck her chest.
She looked down to see the dagger she had discarded now plunged into her heart.
Li Momo’s eyes widened in disbelief.
Meng Er’s hand, holding the dagger, was steady. In just a few moments, Li Momo’s eyes lost their life.
“Your task is done. Now… others will take over,” Meng Er said, throwing Li Momo’s body into the pond where Ling Rui had fallen earlier.
Consort Li wouldn’t leave such a loose end alive after Li Momo had completed her part in this scheme.
After finishing her task cleanly, Meng Er vanished from the scene.
Shortly after her disappearance, at the autumn feast, someone led a group of noble ladies excitedly to admire the koi fish.
Noble Consort Yi wasn’t in the mood for such entertainment. She sat in her seat, calmly sipping tea.
Seeing her cup empty, Cuixi stepped forward to pour more tea.
Noble Consort Yi glanced at her, then frowned and called for someone else.
Cuixi, unfazed, quietly stepped back, casting a glance towards the palace gate.
Ever since the seventh prince was sent back, he hadn’t come to Fenghua Palace for two days.
Last night, Noble Consort Yi even muttered “little liar” to herself.
Cuixi retreated, and Qingdai, suppressing her glee, stepped up to pour tea, softly speaking on topics Noble Consort Yi liked: “His Majesty just sent word. He’ll come over after discussing matters with the Shilang of the Ministry of Revenue.”
Noble Consort Yi acknowledged with a hum.
It was time for them to send annual tributes to Great Qing. It was said that Crown Prince Huo Qinwu of Great Qing was plagued by nightmares and couldn’t sleep well. His Majesty planned to select rare herbs and nourishing jade to send to Great Qing’s Eastern Palace.
Thinking of Great Qing, a shadow crossed Noble Consort Yi’s eyes.
Their Qi dynasty had long depended on Great Qing’s protection, but this couldn’t last forever…
“Niang Niang, Niang Niang.”
As Noble Consort Yi pondered Great Qing, a young eunuch hurried over, kneeling with a panicked expression: “When the group of noble ladies were admiring the koi fish, they found a corpse in the pond!”
Noble Consort Yi: “…”
The eunuch continued: “The body is from Chaoxi Palace. The Niang Niang was shocked, and the other noble ladies were also frightened.”
Hearing “Chaoxi Palace,” Noble Consort Yi’s eyelid twitched.
She stood up abruptly, shouting: “Whose body from Chaoxi Palace?!”
Remembering a certain little boy who said he liked her and would come to see her again but hadn’t shown up for two days, Noble Consort Yi grew more agitated, smashing her cup: “Are you mute?! Answer me!”
“Niang Niang, the body is an old Momo who cared for the seventh prince, but a cleaning maid testified—she saw you torture the seventh prince to death and then killed the Momo who came looking for him.”
Noble Consort Yi caught the critical point: “The seventh prince is in the pond too?!”
The eunuch hurriedly replied: “Only the seventh prince’s shoes were found in the pond. They haven’t seen him yet.”
Noble Consort Yi’s face turned icy. She looked at the eunuch behind her and commanded: “Haizi, take people to search! Even if you have to drain the pond, find him!”
“Yes, Niang Niang.”
Hai Gonggong led people to search, while Consort Li arrived late, feigning innocence: “Sister, what happened? Little sister here cn tell you don’t look well.”
Noble Consort Yi looked at Consort Li in her blue palace attire, sneering: “Stop pretending. If you dare cause trouble today, Zhen Li, see how I’ll deal with you later.”
After speaking, Noble Consort Yi headed to the backyard herself.
Consort Li bit her lip, trying to appear unafraid, but felt a bit scared. She turned to Meng Er: “Has His Majesty arrived?”
“He’s on his way.”
Meng Er stepped forward, whispering in a low voice only they could hear: “Don’t worry Niang Niang, everything is going smoothly.”
The seventh prince drowned, Li Momo was dead, and the cleaning maid’s testimony couldn’t be traced back to them.
Their plan was meticulously arranged.
Consort Li said nothing, stepping towards the backyard. She needed to witness this dramatic scene herself, especially the final moments of the little b*stard left by Consort Xi.
The search for the seventh prince continued, but he wasn’t in the pond.
When he fell in, Ling Rui didn’t drown. As a water-dwelling little beast, he couldn’t drown in water.
He floated along the underwater current, drifting away.
Ling Fu, who had come to Fenghua Palace for a meal, wandered around when he saw Ling Rui floating downstream.
Startled, Ling Fu immediately climbed the rocks to rescue him: “Little Seven!”
He recognized his poor little brother who even shared his snacks despite having no lunch!
Two days without seeing him, his little brother looked even worse!
The water downstream wasn’t strong. Ling Fu extended his hand and pulled his brother up. With his strength from eating well, lifting his brother was no trouble.
“Little Seven, wake up.”
Ling Fu shook his brother gently, checking his breathing: “Good, still alive. I’ll take you to Royal Mother.”
Ling Fu wasn’t foolish. He saw the injuries on Little Seven and deduced, based on Little Seven floating over from the water, that this was the work of bad people.
The bad people were likely still nearby!
In the palace, the people Ling Fu trusted most were his mother and his eldest brother. Not knowing where his eldest brother was, he decided to take Little Seven back to his own palace.
Little Seven was so small that they could easily take care of him in their palace!
Ling Fu acted immediately. He carried Little Seven on his back and, skipping his meal, started running out.
He ran for an unknown amount of time.
Exhausted, Ling Fu collapsed halfway. He looked at the remaining distance with some despair, regretting not having someone accompany him when he left!
Just when he was feeling hopeless, a bright yellow figure appeared in his sight.
Ling Fu: “!”
Ling Fu’s eyes lit up: “Royal Father!”
The called-out Emperor Ling stopped and looked over.
Seeing his Royal Father, Ling Fu excitedly got up again. He huffed and puffed as he carried the unconscious Little Seven over and handed him to the Emperor: “Royal Father, this is also your child!”
The Emperor: “…”
The Emperor was stunned and looked down at the little child in his arms.
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