Early the next morning, Eunuch Luo had originally been relieved that Princess Baorong hadn’t caused any trouble during the night. But as soon as he stepped into her room, he saw her hanging in midair—and was so terrified he collapsed to the ground with a loud cry.
He immediately rushed out, pointed at the palace maids, and roared in a voice that was nearly hoarse with fury: “Wretches! Her Highness is dead and you didn’t even notice! What use are any of you?!”
Last night, fearing the princess would be impatient for news, Eunuch Luo had been out the whole time trying to gather updates.
Who could have guessed that by the time he returned this morning, he would find Princess Baorong’s corpse?
She was hanging from the ceiling beam, with a stool placed neatly beneath her feet.
Everything aligned perfectly with the appearance of a suicide.
But Eunuch Luo knew—Princess Baorong would never choose to die like this.
She had been like this since childhood: if she was going to die, she would drag everyone she could reach into h*ll with her. There was no way she’d die so quietly, so neatly, so alone.
And now, not a single word had come from the Eastern delegation all night…
Eunuch Luo’s heart sank like a boulder crushing his chest—he could barely breathe.
No. Something had gone terribly wrong.
Who killed the princess?
It had to be Qi Yuan!
This visit to Huangjue Temple had clearly been a collaboration with the Eastern Kingdom. Princess Baorong had coordinated with them to have Huailiang Qin Wang assassinate Qi Yuan.
And now—no word from Huailiang Qin Wang’s side. And the princess was dead…
Eunuch Luo turned and bolted out.
No—this couldn’t stand. The princess had died in this place, and these bald-headed monks, palace maids, and guards hadn’t noticed a thing!
It must have been Qi Yuan!
But just as he was about to rush out the gates, he saw a group of people approaching from afar—led by none other than the Imperial Grandson, Xiao Yunting.
Xiao Yunting!
Eunuch Luo stumbled back two steps and fell heavily to the ground again.
You don’t survive long in the palace without being clever.
And in that moment, he understood everything:
Why the princess could die in her own chambers without a sound. Why the place had been so heavily guarded, and yet nothing had been noticed. Why the whole night had passed with no sign of trouble.
He instantly knew the reason.
Xiao Yunting stooped down, smiling faintly, and casually grabbed Eunuch Luo’s collar, lifting him easily off the ground. He even tidied his robes as if helping an old friend, and asked in a friendly, almost warm voice: “Eunuch Luo, what’s wrong? You look so flustered. What happened?”
His face was all smiles—but not a trace of it reached his eyes.
Eunuch Luo had no doubt: if he said even a single word he shouldn’t, he wouldn’t leave Huangjue Temple alive.
He didn’t even dare mention Qi Yuan again. All he could do was shakily lift a trembling finger, point toward the princess’s quarters, and stammer: “Her Highness… something’s happened to Her Highness!”
Xiao Yunting gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder, then led the crowd into Princess Baorong’s chambers.
Moments later, his shout echoed from inside: “Aunt Baorong!”
Eunuch Luo closed his eyes. He knew: from this point on, nothing was in their hands anymore.
News of the princess’s death didn’t reach the rest of the women until later that afternoon.
But it couldn’t have been kept quiet for long—after all, as a daughter of the imperial family, Princess Baorong was supposed to attend the Buddhist rituals with the monks every day.
Yet she’d been absent all morning.
When news of her death spread, Old Madam Qi finally let out a long, heavy sigh of relief.
She hadn’t dared to sleep at all the previous night—haunted by a strange, persistent unease.
But now… it was clear.
Qi Yuan was still Qi Yuan.
There was nothing she wouldn’t dare.
If she said it, it was as good as done. Every word she spoke was as solid as a coffin nail—no less final than a summons from the King of H*ll himself.
Old Madam Qi finally relaxed, gave Second Madam Qi’s hand a squeeze, and looked steadily at her: “Ah Yuan was already feeling unwell yesterday. She was sent back to the house in the capital. She had absolutely nothing to do with this matter.”
Second Madam Qi had indeed immediately thought of Qi Yuan.
So when the Old Madam emphasized it like this, her heart started pounding. She swallowed hard and quickly nodded.
Sure enough, not long after, the Embroidered Guards arrived at the temple and began investigating everyone’s comings and goings from the previous night, questioning people separately.
Thanks to Old Madam Qi’s instructions, Second Madam Qi firmly insisted that Qi Yuan had felt ill by evening and had already gone down the mountain.
The Qi family were now newly risen nobles, and besides, the Embroidered Guards had clearly been given their orders—so they didn’t make things difficult. After a round of routine questioning, they left politely.
Only then did Second Madam Qi realize her palms were drenched in cold sweat.
This was a princess!
A princess!
How could she just die like that?!
But she wasn’t the only one asking this question. Half a mountain away, Cuizheng was also staring at Princess Baorong’s corpse in disbelief.
W-what—how did the princess just die?!
Yesterday, during the monks’ ritual, Princess Baorong had still been haughty and overbearing. She nearly beat a young monk to death just for dozing off.
She looked full of life—like someone who would outlive everyone else.
But now…
Could it be that he had some kind of grudge against Princess Baorong?!
Not long ago, she had taken that name list to the Ministry of Rites, and thanks to her, he was almost labeled a traitor, chased and denounced by Censor Tie and the others.
Now all he was doing was organizing a simple blessing ceremony for Noble Consort Xiao Liu, and in the middle of it, the princess who was supposed to be marrying into a foreign court hanged herself?
He looked at Xiao Yunting with a mournful expression. “Your Highness, I failed in my duty…”
It didn’t matter why Princess Baorong died—the fact was, she was dead. That was the end result.
Anyone even remotely connected to the ceremony would be implicated.
What kind of grudge was this?! After all the years of study and toil to pass the exams and earn office, and now this?
Xiao Yunting, however, was especially calm and approachable. He reached out and helped him up personally. “Lord Cui, why say such a thing? This matter truly has nothing to do with you, nor with anyone else involved…”
As he spoke, he couldn’t help but sigh. “Lord Cui, please look at this…”
He handed Cuizheng a letter.
Cuizheng took it with a puzzled expression, but the moment he read it, he instinctively snapped it shut with a loud smack!
There were just a few words on the paper: “My royal father killed me!”
Heavens!
Was this something he should even be reading?!
No wonder.
No wonder even with so many guards and palace maids, Princess Baorong still managed to die without a sound.
So she wanted to die!
She hadn’t come to the ritual for any blessing. She had come looking for a chance to end her life—to disgust Emperor Yongchang one last time.
Cuizheng’s hands were trembling as he looked at Xiao Yunting.
Xiao Yunting’s expression was grave. “This matter can’t be hidden. If we cover it up, every official involved, even the abbot and the senior monks of Huangjue Temple, will be dragged down with it. So…”
So the truth had to be reported to the emperor:
Princess Baorong had taken her own life.
