No—put another way, the real question was:
Who brought her here?!
Princess Baorong clutched her neck. Normally fearless, in this wide, empty hall with no one else around, even she couldn’t help but feel a creeping fear.
Then—she heard a soft laugh.
The laugh was light—barely audible. But in Princess Baorong’s ears at that moment, it was like a thunderclap, striking her so hard her very soul nearly fled her body.
For the first time, she finally understood what imperial physicians meant when they said “disturbed spirit and unsteady soul.” She scrambled to her feet, backing up in terror, pressing herself against the wall and glaring toward the prayer cushion and merit box in the distance.
She shouted sharply, “Who’s there?! Who’s pretending to be a ghost?!”
But in truth, Qi Yuan had never been one to play ghostly tricks.
She hadn’t planned on being spooky at all. If it hadn’t been for the fact that the courtyard outside Princess Baorong’s room was swarming with maids and guards—making it too risky to kill there—she wouldn’t have dragged her to this secluded side hall at all.
Qi Yuan flexed her wrist, then slowly lifted her head and smiled. “Your Highness, why don’t you turn around and see for yourself? I don’t have a habit of pretending to be a ghost.”
Princess Baorong turned her head in terror—and saw Qi Yuan’s face in the shadows against the cliffside.
Her face was still streaked with dried blood.
It had crusted over her left cheek. Under the moonlight, at first glance she looked like a ghoul risen from the underworld.
Princess Baorong screamed and collapsed to the floor, crawling backward in horror.
No. No, how could it be Qi Yuan?!
Was she… dead?
Had she come to exact revenge?
Her mind was in complete disarray—but soon, she noticed that Qi Yuan cast a shadow.
She wasn’t dead!
Even after Huailiang Qin Wang had led so many men to ambush her—she was still alive?!
Princess Baorong’s fear quickly turned into rage.
She finally understood that mix of helpless fury Qi Wang had always carried.
Heaven was far too merciful to Qi Yuan!
Even now, she still refused to die!
Qi Yuan raised an eyebrow ever so slightly. “Your Highness must be very surprised, right? Even after informing Huailiang Qin Wang, you didn’t expect I’d still be standing here in front of you?”
Princess Baorong’s gaze was venomous, her sneer cold. “Yes, I am surprised. How did you get away?”
Qi Yuan smiled, utterly unbothered by the princess’s snake-like glare. “Your Highness has it wrong—why say I ‘got away’? I didn’t escape. I killed them all and walked out.”
Killed them all…
This woman!
Princess Baorong clenched her jaw so tightly she nearly cracked her teeth.
Why did Qi Yuan always manage to escape danger?
Every single time—she turned crisis into triumph!
That time with Pu Wuyong was like that.
Now again, with Huailiang Qin Wang lying in ambush—and still she survived!
Was Heaven blind?!
She clenched her fists so hard that her nails pierced into her palms, blood dripping freely.
She could even accept marrying off to the East—as long as Qi Yuan died. As long as Qi Yuan died, it would all be worth it!
But why—why couldn’t Heaven grant her even this?!
Why was Qi Yuan still alive and thriving right here in front of her?!
A surge of fury rampaged through her chest, distorting her expression until her face was nearly unrecognizable.
But then—unexpectedly—Princess Baorong suddenly dropped to her knees with a thud and burst into sobs.
Qi Yuan, standing at a distance, looked at her with a trace of puzzlement. “Your Highness, why are you crying?”
Princess Baorong looked at her with tearful misery. “I don’t want to marry into the Eastern Kingdom! It’s all because of you. You caused my mother’s death—that’s the only reason I had to take such a desperate step… Miss Qi, please let me go…”
Qi Yuan seemed slightly hesitant.
The moment she caught that flicker of hesitation, Princess Baorong cried even harder, her tone more heartfelt: “I’m sorry, Miss Qi… it was all my fault… I won’t ever do it again…”
As she spoke, she staggered forward toward Qi Yuan as if she’d lost her mind.
Qi Yuan didn’t move.
But just as Princess Baorong got close, she suddenly raised her wrist—revealing the hidden sleeve dart strapped to it all along.
Fine. If she couldn’t rely on anyone else, it didn’t matter.
As long as she could rely on herself.
She would end this threat with her own hands!
Without hesitation, she frantically triggered the mechanism.
Qi Yuan let out a cold, mocking laugh. Bracing against a curtain rope, she kicked off a pillar and launched herself into the air, narrowly dodging the darts. Then she released the curtain and landed right beside Princess Baorong.
And with that, she took the gem-encrusted belt she had just grabbed from the neighboring hall—and looped it around Princess Baorong’s neck.
Princess Baorong was frozen in disbelief. She clutched the belt with both hands in shock.
Qi Yuan sneered. “Your Highness, this isn’t our first encounter. I know exactly what kind of venomous snake you are. You think a few tears would fool me?”
Anyone she intended to kill—no one could stop her. Not even the gods.
If there was such a thing as divine retribution, let the gods come stab her themselves.
She dragged Princess Baorong forward a few steps. The princess thrashed wildly, her legs kicking in all directions, hands clawing desperately at the belt, trying to loosen it just enough to breathe.
But it was all in vain.
Qi Yuan’s strength was simply too much.
There was no way for her to escape.
Qi Yuan wound the belt once around a pillar, pulling it taut. She didn’t let go until Princess Baorong had completely stopped struggling.
Only then did she relax her grip.
She sat down for a moment to catch her breath.
This side hall was right next to the princess’s residence. She had knocked the princess unconscious, then carried her across the rocky ledge between the two windows.
And now—naturally—she had to return the body the same way.
She erased any signs of struggle, tied Princess Baorong to her back, and moved quietly and carefully back into her residence.
By the time she finished, the moon above had disappeared without her noticing.
As she climbed back out the window, she was startled to see Xiao Yunting waiting outside.
He reached out quickly to pull her down, and when he saw the blood on her face and the raw blisters on her hands, the words he meant to say took a different shape. “Come with me.”
Without hesitation, Qi Yuan followed him back toward the side hall where she had just killed the princess.
As soon as they entered, Xiao Yunting spoke in a low, firm voice: “Stay here. Once the chaos starts, Lai Chenglong will make sure no one searches this place. Wait until everyone’s gone—then leave the mountain.”
Qi Yuan looked like she was about to speak, but Xiao Yunting cut her off: “I know you’re capable. But the ones you wanted to kill—you’ve killed them yourself. Let me handle the rest. Don’t worry. Baorong never wanted to marry into the Eastern Kingdom. Publicly, she claimed she was here to pray for Noble Consort Xiao Liu’s soul, but in reality, she resented our imperial grandfather…”
He looked into her eyes.
“She took her own life.”
Qi Yuan feared nothing—not Heaven, not retribution—but he… he didn’t want the world to see her as a monster.
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