“Humph!” Zhang Haokun’s gaze turned vicious. “Bitch, keep acting wild if you can! Grab her for me!”
“Yes!”
Just as the thugs were about to step forward, Shen Changfeng saw Jiang Yanqing open her folding fan and frantically rushed to block them.
“Heir Kun, don’t be hasty. Let me have a proper word with her.”
He knew all too well that the men Zhang Haokun brought along were no match for Jiang Yanqing. If they all ended up dead here, he would truly have no way to answer to Prince Cheng.
At that moment, Shen Ruoyou also ran over.
“Heir Kun, please, I beg you to spare my fourth sister. She grew up in the countryside, so she’s uncultured, ignorant of the rules, and didn’t mean to pick a fight with you. I’ll make her kneel and apologize to you right now, alright?”
Knowing full well that Jiang Yanqing would never yield, she said this purely to add fuel to the fire. If she could use Prince Cheng’s Estate to get Jiang Yanqing killed, that would be wonderful. As for being married off to Zhang Haokun, she wasn’t actually worried; after all, arrogant as Prince Cheng’s son might be, he wouldn’t dare pick a fight with the Emperor’s son.
In a panic, Shen Changfeng hissed at Jiang Yanqing, “Prince Cheng is the most powerful non-imperial prince in our Great Xing, holding five thousand elite troops in his hands. Killing you is easier than swatting a fly! Let alone you, even if he flattened our entire Marquis Residence, His Majesty wouldn’t say a word. Kneel down and apologize to Heir Kun right now! For my sake and Ruoyou’s, he might spare your life. Once you’re dragged into Prince Cheng’s Estate, you’ll wish you were dead. Can’t you be a little less stupid?!”
Jiang Yanqing laughed brightly. “If Prince Cheng really can flatten this Plain-Vast Marquis Residence, that would be fantastic—it would save me the trouble of doing it myself. Piss off and stop getting in the way. Hurry up and invite Prince Cheng over to launch a bloodbath here.”
Zhang Haokun gritted his teeth. “Step aside, Plain-Vast Marquis! For such a lawless bitch, I’m going to break her spirit today until she submits completely. All of you, get her!”
“Yes!”
The thugs roared in unison, cracking their knuckles and rolling up their sleeves.
“Don’t… don’t…”
Shen Changfeng tried to stop them, but nobody paid him the slightest heed.
In a flash, the folding fan in Jiang Yanqing’s hand flicked out, and all of Zhang Haokun’s men crashed sideways to the ground.
“This…”
Zhang Haokun turned deathly pale with fright, staring blankly and dumbfoundedly at Jiang Yanqing. “What… what kind of monster are you? How on earth do you possess such formidable martial arts?!”
Before Jiang Yanqing could reply, Shen Ruoyou chimed in, “Fourth Sister, no matter how good your martial arts are, you can’t possibly fight off tens of thousands of troops from Prince Cheng’s Estate. Stop acting crazy and obediently go to Prince Cheng’s Estate to confess your crimes.”
Prompted by her reminder, Zhang Haokun’s spine instantly straightened.
“Just you wait, Jiang Yanqing. I’m going to dispatch someone to fetch my father right now.”
Jiang Yanqing smiled. “Good, I’ll wait.”
She turned her gaze to Shen Changfeng. “Have a servant bring me some tea and pastries.”
Shen Changfeng opened his mouth, but in the end, not a single word came out. This wretched girl was acting like a total lunatic; he had better endure it for now. Once Prince Cheng arrived, she’d finally get what was coming to her.
Just as he was about to give instructions to Gao Hai, Shen Ruoyou chimed in, “I’ll go brew the tea and fetch some pastries for Fourth Sister.”
Bearing gifts for no good reason usually meant a hidden agenda. Jiang Yanqing merely cast a mocking glance at her without a word.
When Shen Ruoyou returned, she brought along a maid carrying tea, plum blossom cakes, peach shortbread, preserved plums, and a dish of melon seeds and peanuts.
Jiang Yanqing poured a cup of tea. Without even bringing it close to her nose, she caught the scent of arsenic mixed into it.
Although the poison was completely colorless and odorless, she had been bathed in medicinal tubs since she was a child, rendering her immune to all poisons and naturally capable of identifying them all.
She raised her head and smiled at Zhang Haokun—a smile breathtaking enough to topple cities.
“Heir Kun, it will take at least the time it takes for an incense stick to burn for your father to get here. If I remember correctly, you probably haven’t had lunch yet. Why not come over, have a cup of tea, and try some pastries?”
Jiang Yanqing was naturally fair-skinned and exquisitely beautiful, leaving the playboy Zhang Haokun momentarily dazed.
“If you had been this sensible earlier, how could someone as tender-hearted as me have ever hit you?”
With that, he began walking toward Jiang Yanqing.
“You mustn’t!”
Shen Ruoyou hastily grabbed Zhang Haokun’s arm.
“What is it?”
“Heir Kun, don’t go over there. Yesterday, she used my Second Brother as a hostage. Asking you over for tea is eight-tenths likely just another trick to pull the same stunt.”
Zhang Haokun hurriedly backed up two steps. “Thank goodness you reminded me, Ruoyou. This bitch must be terrified, so she’s trying to trick me into a trap to use me as leverage against my father.”
Jiang Yanqing chuckled. “Since Heir Kun won’t drink it, Shen Ruoyou, you drink it instead.”
“I… I’m not thirsty. Fourth Sister, you should drink it yourself.”
Jiang Yanqing picked up the teacup and strode right up to her. “Whether you drink it or not isn’t up to you.”
“What are you doing?!”
Shen Ruoyou instinctively stumbled backward, but Jiang Yanqing reached out and gripped her chin tightly.
“Ah… no…”
“Jiang Yanqing, what are you doing? Let go of Ruoyou!”
Zhang Haokun tried to pull Jiang Yanqing away, only to be kicked flying through the air with a single kick.
The entire cup of tea was forcefully poured straight down Shen Ruoyou’s throat before she was violently shoved aside.
“Ah… wuwuwu…”
Shen Ruoyou immediately thrust her fingers into her throat to induce vomiting. It was the first time Shen Changfeng had ever witnessed her looking so utterly unglamorous and unhinged.
“Ruoyou, what’s wrong with you?!”
“Father… find a doctor… quickly find a doctor… there’s arsenic in the tea.”
The moment the words left her mouth, she spat out a mouthful of fresh blood and collapsed unconscious.
“Ruoyou! Ruoyou!”
Clutching Shen Ruoyou in his arms, Shen Changfeng roared at Gao Hai, “Quickly, go fetch the Divine Doctor of Ghost Valley!”