Offered As A Lucky Bride To The Mad Princess To Ward Off Misfortune - Chapter 33

33: The Seductive Reddened Eyes Tormented by Pain…

Not only Yin San, but even Yu Nanqing was momentarily stunned, beginning to suspect whether the vinegar she added was too little. How could Xiao Qiling remain so composed?

Xiao Qiling tore off another piece of meat and ate it, the golden sheen of roasted oil glistening on the exposed bone, her movements slow and deliberate, making the roasted pheasant seem particularly appetizing.

Yu Nanqing’s eyes instinctively followed.

Xiao Qiling swallowed without a change in expression, catching Yu Nanqing’s greedy, intrigued look, and suppressed a smile. “Actually, the vinegar was added just right. After roasting, the sourness is barely noticeable. Would the Princess like to try?”

Yu Nanqing hesitated. “Really?”

Xiao Qiling thoughtfully brought the pheasant to Yu Nanqing’s mouth. “Try it.”

Yu Nanqing, with practiced ease, leaned forward and took a big bite of the pheasant meat.

Then…

Yu Nanqing froze.

The fragrant roasted pheasant in her mouth gave off an indescribably sour taste, almost bitter. Uncontrollably, her brows furrowed, and tears welled up in her eyes.

Xiao Qiling tried to hold back but couldn’t, her hand forming a fist against her lips as she laughed heartily, her usually steady sword-wielding hand almost unable to hold the vinegar-soaked pheasant.

Yu Nanqing, with the pheasant meat stuck in her mouth, neither swallowing nor spitting, stood up and walked away, spitting it out in a secluded spot. Only then did she regain her composure, slamming her fist against a tree trunk.

How had she been tricked by Xiao Qiling again?

Xiao Qiling followed, pulling Yu Nanqing by the waist and lifting her up, explaining, “I wasn’t laughing at you just now. I was laughing at that pheasant.”

“I’ve lived this long, and it’s the first time I’ve tasted a pheasant with such a unique flavor. Hmm… even the imperial kitchen would have to admit defeat.” As Xiao Qiling spoke, she laughed again, her soft, melodious laughter brushing against Yu Nanqing’s ears.

Yu Nanqing, initially embarrassed by being teased, couldn’t hold back her expression any longer, and a faint smile escaped her pursed lips.

Xiao Qiling heard it and sighed, “Now I’m a bit curious about the flavor of the pheasant you roasted yourself.”

Yu Nanqing took a deep breath and said flatly, “No, Your Highness, you’re not curious.”

Xiao Qiling: “No, Your Highness is very curious.”

“You’re not curious at all.” Yu Nanqing said, covering her ears in mock agony.

Xiao Qiling, amused, reached for her arm. Yu Nanqing noticed the glistening oil on Xiao Qiling’s palm and dodged to the side. “Don’t touch me; your hands are covered in pheasant grease.”

Xiao Qiling followed her gaze, chuckled, and pointed at the greasy marks on her own clothes. “Then who was it that left these two prints on my clothes earlier? If we run into other courtiers later, how am I supposed to face them?”

“That was an accident.” Yu Nanqing said, guiltily looking away. “It’s just two marks. I’ll wipe them off for you.”

There happened to be a river nearby, and Yu Nanqing pointed to it. “Let’s go wash there. There shouldn’t be any assassins by the river, right?”

They were near the camp, and if anyone attempted an assassination, it would surely attract a large group of imperial guards. Naturally, no one would arrange assassins there.

“No, let’s go.”

Passing through a few ancient trees, a cool breeze by the stream alleviated the heat from the fire.

Yu Nanqing washed her hands, took a handkerchief from her bosom, dipped it in the stream, and wrung it half-dry before approaching Xiao Qiling. The grease had seeped into the fabric, and despite her careful wiping, Yu Nanqing couldn’t remove it, frowning in frustration.

Xiao Qiling looked down at Yu Nanqing’s furrowed brow, smiling helplessly. Her fingers flicked a few drops of water onto Yu Nanqing’s cheek.

Caught off guard, Yu Nanqing, half-squatting, lost her balance and fell to the ground. The splashed water dripped down her brow, leaving her slightly disheveled.

She froze for two seconds, her wide eyes filled with disbelief. “What kind of filth has possessed you?”

Xiao Qiling raised an eyebrow, skimming her hand over the water’s surface and splashing Yu Nanqing again.

Finally reacting, Yu Nanqing turned, scooped water from the river, and splashed it back.

Xiao Qiling dodged quickly, evading every drop the moment Yu Nanqing raised her hand.

Yu Nanqing soaked the handkerchief again and chased after her.

In the dense forest, Yu Nanqing, no match for Xiao Qiling, stumbled with every step and soon lost her.

“Your Highness?”

She circled the area twice, but only the sound of rustling leaves answered her.

Yu Nanqing raised her voice. “Your Highness?”

She called out twice more, nearly calling Xiao Qiling by name, when a rustling sound came from the tree trunk behind her.

Turning around, a dark figure suddenly dropped from the tree, startling Yu Nanqing into stepping back.

Upon seeing Xiao Qiling’s face, Yu Nanqing gasped twice, her words morphing into, “Your Highness, your skills are truly impressive. One might think you’d turned into a bird and flown away.”

Xiao Qiling landed lightly in front of Yu Nanqing, the intricate hem of her robe catching on low shrubs, fanning out in layers at her feet.

“Scared you?”

Yu Nanqing didn’t even feel like playfully splashing water on Xiao Qiling’s face anymore. “No, let’s head back, or your guards will come looking.”

“Wait.” The Western Hills had been a royal hunting ground since the time of the Great Ancestor, and now, centuries later, the trees were as thick as a person. Xiao Qiling grabbed Yu Nanqing’s sleeve, pulling her against a nearby tree trunk.

For a moment, all sound ceased, leaving only the soft rustle of leaves in the breeze.

When Yu Nanqing first entered the mansion, she dared to sit in Xiao Qiling’s lap in her undergarments, even in a hot spring. Earlier, when Xiao Qiling held or pulled her, it hadn’t felt improper. But now, this possessive posture made her heart skip a beat.

Yu Nanqing’s face remained calm, showing no trace of change, but her hands, hidden under her wide sleeves, began to curl tightly, the remaining water droplets gathering together.

Plop—

A drop fell onto a tender leaf nearby.

Xiao Qiling raised her hand. Yu Nanqing lowered her eyes, her light-colored pupils flickering under thick lashes, but Xiao Qiling’s hand paused at her hair, removing a hairpin and examining it.

The jade hairpin was intricately carved into a twin lotus, with translucent jade beads originally dangling from it. Now, only one strand remained—others likely lost during the morning hunt.

“Why not wear the phoenix hairpin I gave you? Don’t you like it?” Xiao Qiling asked casually, fingering the lotus hairpin.

Yu Nanqing answered honestly, “That’s the Empress’s hairpin. If I lost it, I couldn’t afford to replace it. If Your Highness likes it, keep it for yourself in the mansion.”

“It was given to you to wear. Do you think letting it gather dust at the bottom of a box expresses my mother’s memory or respect?” Xiao Qiling said, amused.

She slid the lotus hairpin back into Yu Nanqing’s hair, her gaze falling on the handkerchief still clutched in Yu Nanqing’s hand, recalling something. “You promised to embroider mandarin ducks on my handkerchief. It’s been so long—have you finished?”

Yu Nanqing: …

If Xiao Qiling hadn’t brought it up, she’d nearly forgotten.

“Your Highness,” Yu Nanqing tried to reason, “the calluses on my hands are from reading and writing, not from needlework.”

Xiao Qiling nodded, pretending not to understand. “I know.”

Though raised as a prince, Xiao Qiling had been taught the feminine arts—music, chess, calligraphy, painting—by the Empress herself, including some embroidery. How could she not know where embroidery calluses form?

She hadn’t exposed Yu Nanqing back then, assuming the calluses came from other work in the Duke’s mansion, not scholarship.

Yu Nanqing reminded her faintly, “So, I can’t embroider mandarin ducks. I’m afraid I’ll disappoint Your Highness.”

Xiao Qiling encouraged her, “No matter, just embroider. As long as it resembles something, it’s fine.”

Yu Nanqing fell silent.

Xiao Qiling leaned closer. “Unwilling?”

Yu Nanqing turned her head. “…Do you remember that burnt pheasant earlier?”

Xiao Qiling’s expression grew odd. “You mean?”

Yu Nanqing closed her eyes, numbly saying, “My embroidered mandarin ducks might be even less pleasing than that. If Your Highness insists, I’ll try embroidering a pair tonight.”

But that night, Yu Nanqing didn’t embroider any mandarin ducks.

Not because Xiao Qiling excused her, nor because she was too lazy to try.

Rather, the valiant Prince Ning, who had been shooting arrows with such vigor during the day, fell into a high fever by night.

The tents of Prince Ning’s mansion were brightly lit all night. The mansion’s physician had already examined her and was busy brewing medicine. Yu Nanqing and a few hidden guards stood by Xiao Qiling’s bedside. Xiao Qiling, now in nightclothes with her long hair loose, lay with her eyes closed, her pale face showing a rare vulnerability from illness.

The Emperor’s imperial physician had also come to examine her. The mansion’s physician hadn’t elaborated on the symptoms, but Yu Nanqing learned of the condition from the imperial physician.

“After the assassination attempt, Her Highness’s body has been weakened. Perhaps today’s hunting exposed her to the wind, triggering an underlying condition, which caused the dormant poison in her body to flare up. I can only do my best.”

“What do you mean, ‘do your best’?” Yu Nanqing, seated at the head, looked at the kneeling physician, her tone commanding. “Just tell me, can you cure her or not?”

The physicians knelt in unison. “Please forgive us, Princess. The poison in Her Highness is too complex. We are truly incapable. We beg for your understanding.”

A teacup was smashed onto the ground, porcelain and tea splashing everywhere. “Get out. All of you, get out!”

The guards of Prince Ning’s mansion immediately dragged the physicians out.

With Prince Ning poisoned and the Princess consumed by worry, the servants who came to snoop on the situation saw the ejected physicians and vanished into the night.

In Prince Ning’s tent, Yu Nanqing paced by Xiao Qiling’s bedside, then raised her hand to summon Yin San, a trace of lingering ferocity in her eyes. “Answer what I ask. You may choose not to answer, but don’t lie to me.”

In Yin San’s eyes, Yu Nanqing had always been a delicate young lady from the Duke’s mansion, gentle and harmless, with no trace of aggression. But now, her piercing gaze made Yin San lower her head. “Yes.”

“The mansion’s physician and you guards don’t seem too worried about Her Highness’s unconsciousness. So, the poison tonight can be treated, can’t it?”

Yin San hesitated, then nodded.

If it could be treated but wasn’t, then it must be: “Do I need to step aside? Or is your Highness putting on a bitter act for the Emperor again?”

Yin San said with difficulty, “The poison in Her Highness’s body has always flared up unpredictably. We can’t anticipate it.”

Yu Nanqing stared at Yin San’s face for a moment, unable to find any flaws, and gave up.

At that moment, the physician lifted the tent flap, bringing in the freshly brewed medicine and instructing Yin San, “Help Her Highness up and get the medicine down her. This can suppress the poison.”

Yu Nanqing, being closer, propped Xiao Qiling up and tested the temperature of the medicine before spooning a dose.

But Xiao Qiling, in her unconscious state, couldn’t swallow properly, and the medicine dribbled out.

The dark liquid stained her collar and splashed onto Yu Nanqing.

The physician suggested, “Princess, why don’t you change your clothes? Leave this to me.”

Having interrogated Yin San, Yu Nanqing suspected the physician was trying to dismiss her but didn’t press further. “Then I’ll trouble you.”

The physician smiled. “Princess, you’re too polite. This is our duty.”

Once Yu Nanqing left, Yin San pressed two acupoints on Xiao Qiling’s chest. Xiao Qiling, who had been too weak to sit up, suddenly opened her eyes, a rare reddish hue lining her pupils, glaring warily at the medicine bowl.

When she turned coldly to the physician and guards, a chilling hostility radiated from her.

“Your Highness, the Princess has stepped out for now. Will you take the medicine?” The physician, who had attended Xiao Qiling during past poison flare-ups, still felt uneasy despite her experience, her voice softer than usual.

Xiao Qiling, in thin nightclothes, sat on the bed, the candlelight illuminating the icy chill in her eyes.

Yin Er and Yin San stood cautiously by her side, only relaxing slightly when Xiao Qiling raised her hand.

The poison in Xiao Qiling’s body could be suppressed with inner strength and medicine, but constant suppression wasn’t enough—she needed to “release” it periodically. Xiao Qiling would retreat to a villa in the suburbs each month for this, but today was unusual.

At noon, after returning from the hunt, Xiao Qiling had summoned the physician to her tent and asked, “Have the remaining toxins in my body from the other day been fully cleared?”

Xiao Qiling had always been in good health, daring to keep such potent poison in her body for years. She rarely mentioned her condition, so the physician grew serious. “The new poison from the arrow seeped into your flesh. It should take a few more days to fully expel. Is something wrong with Your Highness’s body?”

“The old poison in my body seems to be showing signs of flaring up.” Xiao Qiling said, frowning, having already tested it with her inner strength. “Perhaps we were wrong. The one who poisoned me didn’t intend to kill me with this poison but to trigger the old poison in my body.”

The physician was shocked and checked Xiao Qiling’s pulse. “That shouldn’t be. I compared the new poison that day, and while it could trigger the old poison, it shouldn’t cause a flare-up.”

Xiao Qiling pressed the wound on her left shoulder, her lashes casting a shadow. “If I weren’t the one poisoned, and you weren’t the one treating me, what would happen?”

“Then it would certainly trigger the old poison.”

“It seems tonight we’ll have to put on a show for the Emperor.”

The physician snapped back to reality. The rumors about Xiao Qiling weren’t entirely false, just exaggerated. When the poison flared, Xiao Qiling did lose much of her consciousness, and her temperament became more volatile.

Thus, she couldn’t leave the tent. The imperial physicians would report a heart-attacking poison flare to Emperor Wenjing, but Xiao Qiling couldn’t truly lose control in front of so many courtiers.

After Xiao Qiling drank the bowl of medicine, the physician reached for the bowl, but Xiao Qiling didn’t let go.

The physician’s brief relief turned to tension again. She nudged Yin San. “Go, take the bowl from Her Highness.”

Yin San shook her head. “I can’t beat Her Highness.”

The physician turned to Yin Er. “Then you go.”

Yin Er, who had suffered during Xiao Qiling’s past episodes, cautioned, “This isn’t the villa. If we really anger Her Highness, it’ll be hard to manage. If she likes the bowl, let her keep it.”

The physician snapped, “What if she crushes it? What if it injures her?”

Just then, Yu Nanqing, having changed, returned upon hearing the commotion. “What’s this about injuring Her Highness?”

The physician, as if seeing a savior, abandoned her initial intent to hide things from Yu Nanqing and pushed her toward Xiao Qiling. “Please, Princess, take the bowl from Her Highness.”

“She’s awake?”

Yu Nanqing approached the bed and noticed the icy, distant aura around Xiao Qiling, starkly different from usual.

It was somewhat like the night Yu Nanqing first entered Prince Ning’s mansion, when Xiao Qiling had killed a courtyard full of assassins.

Xiao Qiling’s fingers tightened warily around the empty bowl, as if she might crush it with a single squeeze.

“Is she awake or not?” The bed curtains brushed Yu Nanqing’s face, startling her. She hadn’t expected Xiao Qiling to be like this during a flare-up, truly as the rumors said—completely unconscious.

“After acupuncture and medicine, she’s half-awake,” the physician said, sighing. “It’s not easy for me to survive under Her Highness’s hands. You haven’t met Yin Liu and Yin Qi, have you? They’re still recovering at the villa. But don’t worry, Yin Er and Yin San are skilled and will protect you. Go take the bowl.”

Yu Nanqing: …

She had been reassuring herself, but now her hands trembled at the physician’s words.

“I think you should do it.” Yu Nanqing said, deferring to the physician.

The physician didn’t argue and reached for Xiao Qiling, but Xiao Qiling’s wary gaze shifted to her, veins bulging on her hand as if ready to strike.

The physician shrugged, signaling her helplessness.

Yu Nanqing hesitated for a long while, her voice trembling. “Your Highness, can you give me the bowl?”

Xiao Qiling’s unfocused eyes moved to Yu Nanqing’s face. After a moment, her hand actually loosened.

The physician exclaimed, “The Princess is truly—”

Her voice stopped as Xiao Qiling grabbed Yu Nanqing’s wrist.

The empty bowl rolled onto the bedding.

Yu Nanqing’s lashes trembled violently as she met Xiao Qiling’s gaze. “…Your Highness?”

Xiao Qiling’s hollow eyes flickered, looking at her. Those dark pupils held no emotion, no joy or sorrow, only pure coldness.

Yu Nanqing forced a smile, raising her other hand. “Look, Your Highness, I have no weapons, and you know I have no martial skills. I won’t hurt you.”

Xiao Qiling stared at her intently.

Yu Nanqing’s heart pounded like a drum. As she struggled, Xiao Qiling’s grip tightened.

Yu Nanqing gasped. “It hurts…”

Xiao Qiling’s wary gaze remained, but her grip on Yu Nanqing’s arm loosened at the word.

The physician watched in astonishment. The last time she tried to take a bowl, Xiao Qiling had bruised her without a shred of pity.

She almost wondered if Xiao Qiling was fully conscious.

But the unusual killing aura around Xiao Qiling hadn’t fully dissipated. As the physician pondered what to do, Xiao Qiling picked up the fallen bowl and asked, “Didn’t you want this?”

Yu Nanqing, still shaken, said, “Can… Can I take it?”

Xiao Qiling stared at her for a moment, then smiled.

She handed over the bowl. “Take it.”

Yu Nanqing turned to the physician. “Is she awake?”

The physician wasn’t sure. “Maybe?”

A cold voice came from behind. “So, you didn’t want the bowl?”

Yu Nanqing flinched, slowly turning back, avoiding Xiao Qiling’s eyes, and threw the physician under the bus. “She told me to take it, but I think if Your Highness likes the bowl, you could even sleep with it.”

“Sleep with it?” Xiao Qiling seemed to find it amusing, her lazy tone rising slightly. “That would be uncomfortable.”

Yu Nanqing followed her lead. “Exactly, so why don’t you give the bowl to the physician?”

“Take it.” Xiao Qiling said, handing it to the physician, seemingly lucid. She added, “No more medicine.”

The physician said, “But we need to administer another round of acupuncture later.”

Xiao Qiling: “No need.”

As if worried the physician wouldn’t understand, she added, “No one needs to stay tonight.”

“Then rest well, Your Highness. We’ll be outside if you need us,” the physician said, overjoyed, thinking Xiao Qiling’s control over the poison was improving, maintaining clarity.

The others could leave, but Yu Nanqing’s hand was still in Xiao Qiling’s grip.

She hurriedly called to the physician, “Wait, help me pry her hand off first.”

The physician, not thinking much, reached to help.

A chilling glare shot over, its icy menace nearly piercing a hole through her outstretched hand.

The physician: …

Yu Nanqing, unaware of what had just happened, sensed the unusual tension between them.

Or rather, Xiao Qiling’s unilateral hostility toward the physician.

“Your Highness, she’s your physician.” Yu Nanqing reminded her. “Don’t you recognize her?”

“I recognize her, of course.” Xiao Qiling said, her gaze softening, her reddened eyes tormented by the poison, appearing both seductive and pitiful. “Why do you ask, Princess?”

Yu Nanqing shook her head. “No reason.”

“You’re worried I’ve lost my senses.” Xiao Qiling said with a faint smile. “Are you leaving?”

Yu Nanqing’s ears felt bewitched. Looking at Xiao Qiling’s unrelenting grip, she sensed a trace of reluctance to let go.

Her heart softened, and she asked, “Your Highness wouldn’t hurt me, right?”

Xiao Qiling’s expression was gentle, her patience seemingly endless. “Why would I hurt you? Did they tell you that?”

Yu Nanqing pointed at the physician. “She just told me you injured Yin Liu and Yin Qi during your last episode, and they’re still recovering at the villa. Is that true, Your Highness?”

“Oh.” Xiao Qiling sighed softly, her eerie, reddened peach-blossom eyes glancing at the physician with a smile that sent chills down her spine. “Did I injure Yin Liu and Yin Qi?”

Her gaze was as gentle as when she looked at Yu Nanqing, yet it made the physician’s back prickle.

This time, her Highness seemed to have lost control even more severely.

To save her own skin, the physician lied to Yu Nanqing. “Yin Liu and Yin Qi were trying to bring Her Highness back to the house and flew too high. Their inner strength wasn’t enough, and they fell off a cliff. It can’t really be said that Her Highness injured them.”

Yu Nanqing, easily convinced, immediately defended Xiao Qiling. “Then why did you smear her name while she was unconscious?”

The physician, swallowing her grievances, said, “When you came in and got so close to Her Highness, I was worried for your safety and exaggerated to keep you from getting hurt.”

Yu Nanqing was about to argue for Xiao Qiling when Xiao Qiling pulled her hand. “Now that it’s clear, are you at ease?”

Yu Nanqing nodded. “Your Highness, maybe you should get a new physician.”

Xiao Qiling glanced at the physician. “Leave.”

The physician, granted amnesty, gave Yu Nanqing a pitiful look but dared not speak. Fearing Xiao Qiling might silence her, she fled the tent.

Xiao Qiling smiled again, gently squeezing Yu Nanqing’s hand. “I might need someone to look after me later tonight. Will you stay?”