The pain from having her chin squeezed was sharp, and Shen Zhi looked at Pei Lian with a face full of confusion.
In the previous nineteen lifetimes, he had not set foot in Lanxin Pavilion at the very beginning. It was only later, through various opportunities she engineered to cross paths and encounter him to boost his favorability, that he would come to Lanxin Pavilion.
But why was this lifetime different?
“This concubine does not know what Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince is talking about.”
A bewildered expression appeared on that tender and deathly pale little face, and her almond eyes widened to manifest a look of innocence.
Her voice carried a touch of naivety and bewilderment, genuinely failing to understand this question Pei Lian asked her.
Confronted with Shen Zhi’s answer, Pei Lian’s expression grew even more frigid.
He leaned down slightly to meet Shen Zhi’s gaze at eye level, yet the words he uttered sent a chill down her spine.
“Nineteen times. You have lived again nineteen times.”
“So, what exactly is your purpose in approaching Us?”
“If you don’t speak…”
Pei Lian exerted force with the hand squeezing her chin, the strength so immense it felt as though it could dislocate Shen Zhi’s jaw.
His voice was devoid of any emotion, and his expression and gaze were terrifyingly cold.
Even though it was still the height of summer, Shen Zhi felt cold throughout her entire body, and her heart flinched with absolute dread.
“We have plenty of ways to torture you.”
How could Pei Lian possibly know about this matter? Fine beads of cold sweat broke out on Shen Zhi’s forehead, but she still forced herself to maintain composure.
“This concubine is ignorant and does not understand the meaning of what Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince is saying.” Shen Zhi continued to play dumb and feign madness, hoping to muddle her way through.
Seeing that she was still acting dense and refusing to answer his question, the fury in Pei Lian’s heart flared up even more.
Disregarding the fact that Shen Zhi still had injuries on her head and knees, he flung her away with force, throwing her onto the ground. Shen Zhi ended up splayed on the floor, and her delicate palms were slashed open by tiny pebbles, oozing blood.
“Answer Us!”
Pei Lian raised his voice significantly, clearly truly enraged.
Splayed on the ground, Shen Zhi felt stars dancing before her eyes, her entire body aching terribly, and her palms throbbing with immense pain.
She glanced at her own hands, which were already seeping with fresh blood.
This pair of lunatics—she hadn’t even thought about provoking the two of them, yet one after the other, they both rushed over to torture her.
The more Shen Zhi thought about it, the more aggrieved she felt. Tears slowly brimmed in her eyes. She lifted her head slightly, enduring the half of her face that had not fully deswelled as she looked at Pei Lian.
When a beauty sheds tears, it usually arouses a man’s pity, stirring a trace of forbearance and heartache.
But Pei Lian did not feel this. Having just ascended the imperial throne and before even warming the seat, he turned around and found himself standing in front of the study, still wearing the attire he wore when he was the Crown Prince.
All of his patience erupted entirely at this very moment.
Right now, he only wanted to know what purpose Shen Zhi—whom he had inducted into the Eastern Palace in a moment of impulse due to her beauty—had in approaching him.
“Do not attempt to continue concealing it from Us, or else We will make you understand the taste of a life worse than death,” Pei Lian spoke slowly as he looked at her.
To validate his words, a man dressed in black clothing with a mask covering his face suddenly appeared in the courtyard that originally held only the two of them.
Upon appearing, this man pressed a dagger directly against Shen Zhi’s neck. The pain caused Shen Zhi’s brows to furrow tightly.
“If you do not speak, We will kill you right now.”
Following these words from Pei Lian, the pressure on her neck intensified by a fraction. Shen Zhi knew the other party was serious.
After contemplating for a moment, Shen Zhi’s tear-filled eyes looked at him, and with a choked voice, she spoke slowly: “Your Royal Highness, one day, this concubine received a task, and this task is to capture…”
However, before Shen Zhi could finish her sentence, an excruciating pain manifested in her body. Her heart and head felt as though they were being pierced by countless needles, the agony unbearable.
Her already deathly pale face bleached to an even greater extreme at this moment, just like that of a dead person.
Seeing Shen Zhi in this state, Pei Lian frowned slightly.
What trick is this witch playing now?
“Pfft—”
A large mouthful of fresh blood sprayed directly out of Shen Zhi’s mouth, splashing right onto the orange-yellow boots on Pei Lian’s feet.
Shen Zhi collapsed limply on the ground, entirely devoid of strength. Seeing this scene, the hidden guard standing behind her took two steps back to prevent Shen Zhi from falling against him.
Looking at her near-death appearance, Pei Lian could no longer bother with continuing the interrogation. He strode over, scooped her up from the ground, and walked straight toward the inner bedchamber.
The moment he exited the courtyard, he immediately instructed Yuan Qing: “Take Our token and go summon Imperial Physician Tang here.”
“Understood!” Yuan Qing received the command and immediately withdrew.
Seeing her mistress return after just a brief moment, Suwen found that the face which already lacked color was now even more dreadful, and the collar at her chest was dyed crimson by fresh blood. Not knowing what had happened to make her mistress turn into this current state, Suwen was incredibly anxious.
Yet with Pei Lian here, there was nothing she, a mere maid, could do no matter how anxious she was.
Placing the person back onto the bed, Pei Lian’s face was as black as the bottom of a pot. Looking at Shen Zhi, who was still vomiting blood from time to time, a hint of vexation arose in his heart.
If he had known this situation would occur, then he certainly would not have questioned her about the purpose behind her actions.
“Blegh—” Another mouthful of fresh blood was vomited out. Shen Zhi felt as though she was seeing King Yama again.
【Host must not reveal the task to anyone. If there is a violation, severe punishment will be enforced.】
The rebirth system, which had not appeared for a long time, emerged at this moment to deliver a warning.
Hearing the electronic voice echoing in her head, Shen Zhi finally understood why her entire body was in agony and why she was vomiting blood.
So it turns out she couldn’t speak of it—
“Got it, won’t say it,” Shen Zhi complied.
Having received a response, the rebirth system retracted the punishment inflicted upon her body.
Her head and heart no longer ached, but she still felt the urge to vomit blood.
Just as the thought crossed her mind, another mouthful of blood sprayed out. Shen Zhi felt that she truly was about to go see King Yama.
“Shen Zhi, We do not permit you to die!”
“Did you hear Me?!”
Seeing Shen Zhi’s eyelids slowly closing together, Pei Lian shouted at her with a trace of anxiety.
Hearing these words, Shen Zhi merely said faintly to Pei Lian, “Apologies, Your Highness, this concubine seems to be dying…”
As soon as he heard that she was going to die, Pei Lian could no longer sit still.
“Where is Imperial Physician Tang? Why has he not arrived yet?!”
“If she dies, We will have all of you buried with her!”
Pei Lian was enraged to the extreme, shouting loudly toward the outside of the door.
This sentence of his caused everyone inside and outside the bedchamber to instantly drop to their knees, “May Your Royal Highness appease your anger.”
The entire Lanxin Pavilion fell into utter chaos. The servants who usually attended to Shen Zhi buried their heads against the ground one by one, terrified that a single lapse of caution would provoke the furious Crown Prince and cause their heads to be separated from their bodies.
Not long after, the hidden guard brought the person over by a hoist. Imperial Physician Tang was entirely in a daze.
Upon seeing the Crown Prince, he immediately paid his respects: “Greetings to Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince.”
“Go see what is wrong with her,” Pei Lian instructed, pointing at Shen Zhi on the bed.
“Understood.”
Imperial Physician Tang walked to the bedside, hurriedly took out a handkerchief to place over Shen Zhi’s wrist, and began to feel her pulse.
By this time, Shen Zhi had already closed both eyes, her face deathly pale. Her lips were drenched red by the fresh blood, resembling red plums blooming in the winter against a face as pale as paper.
Time ticked away second by second. Just as Pei Lian was growing impatient from waiting, Imperial Physician Tang fell to his knees with a thud, and then said to Pei Lian: “Reporting to Your Royal Highness… Fengyi Shen has… passed away.”
Dead?
Pei Lian’s eyes widened slightly, a look of incredulity appearing on his face.
What kind of secret was it exactly that claimed her life before it could even be voiced aloud?