The Crown Prince stared at her exquisitely beautiful profile, momentarily stunned. He had never expected her to say such words.
His expression shifted slightly. “Bring it up.”
Meng Jinyue nodded happily.
Only after the Crown Prince finished eating did Meng Jinyue cautiously ask, “Your Highness, is Ah Ye doing all right?”
This question left the Crown Prince silent for a long time.
Meng Jinyue’s voice trembled slightly. “Your Highness?”
The Crown Prince’s dark eyes met hers, but in the end, he concealed the truth. “It’s nothing. Go back.”
Yet his words only deepened the worry on Meng Jinyue’s face.
The Crown Prince explained, “I am thinking of a way. Ah Ye is fine for now. Don’t overthink it.”
Such comforting words were unprecedented coming from the Crown Prince.
Lin Shenghè was visibly taken aback but quickly chimed in to console her. “His Highness is right. You mustn’t worry. Both His Highness and I promised Ah Ye we would take good care of you. If he returns and sees you like this, he will surely blame us.”
“Is he really all right?”
Meng Jinyue asked, tears welling in her eyes.
Both the Crown Prince and Lin Shenghè nodded simultaneously.
Meng Jinyue pretended to be reassured and left, but she knew it wouldn’t be long before news of Xie Yunye’s death in battle would arrive.
Sure enough, just as the Qinghe Autumn Hunt was about to conclude, word came from the border.
Xie Yunye had sacrificed himself for the nation, dying on the battlefield.
With grain supplies and reinforcements delayed at the border and the enemy watching eagerly, fierce and skilled in battle, Xie Yunye had no choice but to take a desperate risk. Using himself as bait, he killed the enemy commander.
With their leader gone, the enemy lost its core pillar and its myth. The outcome of the battle was thus decided.
Xie Yunye had resolved the greatest threat to the border for decades to come for the imperial court.
But all this was bought with his life.
“How is this possible? How could he die?”
“Miss!”
“Miss has fainted! Someone, come quickly!”
Meng Jinyue knew Xie Yunye wasn’t dead, so she felt no real sorrow.
Compared to the genuine grief of the Crown Prince and others, Meng Jinyue could only feign heartbreak and faint.
She maintained this pretense for two days.
Having gone without food for two days, her face was naturally pale.
“Miss, you’re finally awake!”
As soon as Meng Jinyue woke, she pushed Qiu Ning aside and struggled to get out of bed.
Qiu Ning had no time to stop her.
But the guards outside the tent swiftly drew their long blades to block Meng Jinyue’s path.
“By His Majesty’s order, no one is permitted to leave from today onward!”
Qiu Ning hurriedly supported Meng Jinyue, whispering an explanation. “Miss, we cannot go out now. His Majesty was assassinated yesterday.”
“Assassinated?!”
Qiu Ning helped Meng Jinyue back to bed and detailed the current situation.
…
“Not only that, but the Crown Prince has also been confined for questioning.”
Meng Jinyue bit her lip tightly, her face pale as she asked, “Why?”
Qiu Ning hesitated before speaking. “Be… because the assassins bore the insignia of the Crown Prince’s residence.”
“Everyone knows General Xie and His Highness are sworn friends. Before General Xie died in battle, His Highness had already defied His Majesty over matters concerning General Xie and the border, leading to a dispute.”
“Now… now that General Xie has just died in battle, His Majesty is assassinated. It all happened too coincidentally. Rumors are already spreading that the Crown Prince intends to rebel and harm the sovereign…”
Qiu Ning’s words left Meng Jinyue stunned for a long time.
After a long while, she finally seemed to snap back to reality. “How could this be… How could His Highness possibly do such a thing?”
“And how could he leave behind such obvious evidence?”
Qiu Ning said, “This servant also believes His Highness has been wronged, Miss. If something happens to His Highness, what should we do?”
Meng Jinyue pretended to be in a daze, biting her lip tightly without speaking.
The scheme against the Crown Prince was far too obvious, but once the Emperor’s suspicion was aroused, there was nothing to be done.
Or perhaps it was that the Emperor did not care about the truth and only wanted to eliminate the Crown Prince.
Meng Jinyue and everyone else were imprisoned for a full seven days.
When they were released, news had already spread that the Crown Prince had been deposed and would be escorted back to the capital in three days to be placed under house arrest.
And because the Emperor was still ill, their own return journey was repeatedly delayed.
“Third Miss Meng, why have you come at a time like this?!”
Lin Shenghè lowered his voice, filled with astonishment.
“Hurry back!”
After just a few days apart, both sides looked much more haggard.
Lin Shenghè had lost all his former grace, his face etched with exhaustion.
During this time, Meng Jinyue had eaten very little, and in Lin Shenghè’s eyes, she had lost a great deal of weight due to excessive grief over Xie Yunye’s death.
She seemed like a lost soul, no longer vibrant and radiant, as if only a beautiful shell remained.
“I… I heard about His Highness’s situation. I couldn’t rest easy, so I came to see him. How is His Highness?”
Lin Shenghè shook his head and did not answer. “Don’t ask, and don’t come looking for His Highness again, lest you become implicated.”
Meng Jinyue shook her head, her voice choked with tears. “At a time like this, with Ah Ye already gone, I’m not even afraid of death. Why would I fear being implicated by His Highness?”
Her words were too pessimistic, causing both Lin Shenghè outside the tent and the Crown Prince inside, who was silently listening to the conversation, to grow serious.
Lin Shenghè straightened his face and spoke earnestly:
“Third Miss, I know you are grieving, but Ah Ye is gone. Those who are still alive must carry on.”
“You were someone Ah Ye cared about. Both His Highness and I hope you can remain safe.”
“But I also hope His Highness remains safe. Before Ah Ye left, he entrusted me to take care of His Highness.”
Meng Jinyue wiped the tears from her face with her snow-white hand, sobbing as she spoke. “I want to see His Highness.”
Lin Shenghè still refused. “His Highness will not see you. We do not wish to implicate you. Although His Highness has been deposed, the people around you will not be withdrawn. Third Miss, take good care of yourself in the future, live well, and carry on for Ah Ye’s sake as well.”
Meng Jinyue knew she would not be able to see the Crown Prince today.
But she not only wanted to see him—she also planned to be escorted back to the capital with him.
After all, emotions are more easily nurtured in times of hardship.
For the Crown Prince, being deposed and placed under house arrest was a calamity, but for Meng Jinyue, it was an opportunity.
She admitted she was a thorough villain.
Even at a time like this, all she could think about was completing her mission.
Meng Jinyue was waiting for an opportunity.
She knew Meng Jinrong would not miss any chance to deal with her.
“Stop.”
Meng Jinyue had just returned from the Crown Prince’s quarters when she was intercepted by Meng Jinrong’s people.
The opportunity came even faster than she had imagined.
It seemed Meng Jinrong’s hatred for her had truly sunk deep into her bones.
“Second Sister.”
Meng Jinyue pretended to be frightened and tried to flee.
“Stop that wretch.”
Meng Jinrong had been waiting for this day for a long time.
Now that the Crown Prince had finally fallen, how could she not strike against this wretch?
“It’s all your fault, you vile woman, for killing Brother Xie! It’s all because of you! If not for you, Brother Xie would never have gone to the battlefield!”
“He wouldn’t have died! It’s all because of you, you vile woman! I want you to pay with your life for Brother Xie!”
Meng Jinrong’s eyes were filled with madness.
She had channeled all her grief over Xie Yunye’s death into hatred for Meng Jinyue.
“Seize the people around her.”
Meng Jinrong had brought many men with her this time.
“Do you think you still have anyone to rely on? Brother Xie was killed because of you, and the Crown Prince has been deposed! Why should I fear the people the former Crown Prince sent to your side? Now, I can do whatever I want to you!”
As she spoke, Meng Jinrong pressed Meng Jinyue’s head against a stone and slammed it down.
The pain made Meng Jinyue clench her fists tightly under her sleeves.
But she had already endured far greater pain than this.
A moment of impatience may ruin a great plan.
“Your Highness, something has happened to the Third Miss Meng.”
The Crown Prince—now the deposed Crown Prince, Xiao Yan.
When Xiao Yan saw Meng Jinyue again, her head and face were covered in blood, and the back of her skull was swollen into a large lump.
She looked dazed and utterly wretched, as if the blows had left her senseless.
“Your Highness, if we leave her here, I fear she won’t survive in Meng Jinrong’s hands.”
Lin Shenghè could not bear the thought.
Xiao Yan gazed at Meng Jinyue, pale and bloodied, and remained silent for a long time.
“If we take her with us, she will have to endure house arrest alongside me—possibly for the rest of her life. How do you know she would be willing?”