The Deposed Crown Prince had Three Lifelong Regrets - Chapter 22

Chapter 22

Zhiyun never expected Li Qinghuai to suddenly get out of bed and rushed to support her.

Unexpectedly, the other woman used the leverage awkwardly to lean toward the door.

Uncertain of her intentions, Zhiyun stood frozen for a moment. Only when the other woman opened the door and was about to step over the threshold did Zhiyun scramble to block her way.

“Let me go out and see.”

“Sister, you cannot go out. Your friend told you not to move recklessly. If you collapse outside, we won’t be able to report back. Just take pity on us; all we want is an antidote…”

The situation was in utter chaos. Only Li Qinghuai herself knew why the people outside had come, but it was hard to explain to others. The truth was too complicated to be believed, and a suitable reason was hard to find under the circumstances.

Zhiyun was single-minded and couldn’t understand why Li Qinghuai simply wanted to go out but was not allowed. After a few attempts, she broke out in a cold sweat and was already panting heavily.

Li Qinghuai was never easy to get along with. Having come from the royal family, she was not born completely naive. After being tricked a few times, she should have learned some calculation.

However, her mother had raised her to be pampered, willful, yet genuinely simple. She knew how to use common insults and had some clever ideas, but she simply didn’t believe anyone would truly harm others for the sake of rivalry. Because she didn’t believe it, she couldn’t bring herself to be ruthless and cut off people’s retreat, so she was often tricked and even helped the tricksters count their money. It wasn’t until a few months before her mother’s death that she finally resolved to seize power.

Now, the saying “a dirty mind sees dirt everywhere” seemed to apply.

When someone blocked her, she wouldn’t think it was out of fear that she might catch a cold. Instead, she would think they were deliberately frustrating her, fearing that they were resentful of her previous ungratefulness and had given the family fake chronic poison, forcing a confession.

When she was utterly exasperated, she turned her head and squinted at Zhiyun, who instantly felt her legs weaken from fright.

Li Qinghuai’s gaze was more than just contempt; it was the look of someone staring down at the dead from the edge of a cliff, a mixture of disdain and ruthlessness.

Having lived at the foot of the mountain for years, unlike the delicate ladies in the capital, Zhiyun had an innate stubbornness in her blood.

That look frightened her for a moment, but the cloud-like weakness in her legs disappeared instantly, leaving only the humiliation of being mocked.

Zhiyun kept complaining in her heart, recalling several past incidents where they had been tormented by Li Qinghuai.

She became emboldened by resentment. Feigning inadvertence, she hugged Li Qinghuai around the waist and dragged her backward forcefully, disregarding her injuries.

Li Qinghuai, who was already unstable, suffered a major setback and instantly fell to the ground.

“Ah, are you alright?” Zhiyun didn’t have time to gloat over her revenge. After a few seconds, she felt a little scared and quickly asked.

The question sounded completely mocking now.

But she couldn’t blame others.

Zhiyun only wanted to prevent her from going out and causing trouble, essentially to ensure her own safety.

In the palace, this action would be considered disrespecting a master. If taken seriously, it wouldn’t be excessive to be sentenced to twenty strokes of the cane, beating the person into a pulp.

But outside the palace, ignorance was excusable. Furthermore, the future heir of the nation was supposed to relieve the worries of the people, alleviate their distress, and warm their hearts. Strictly speaking, from a minimal moral standpoint, blaming her would be unreasonable.

Her internal organs experienced a wrenching, crushing pain from the fall.

She endured it, silently swallowing her broken teeth.

Li Qinghuai thought she might as well not open the door and just yell loudly inside, hoping the people outside could hear her. If the Jinyiwei had indeed come to protect her, they would likely break down the door as soon as she spoke. If it was anyone else, she wouldn’t suffer any loss.

Unfortunately, she hadn’t thought to shout earlier, and now she had little strength left. She couldn’t even manage to answer Zhiyun, only shaking her head with a bitter expression.

Just as she was feeling the pain in her rear end and reaching a dead end, a series of door-breaking sounds suddenly erupted outside, and the fiery dragons arrived in quick succession.

Sparks of fire appeared in the small courtyard, like divine soldiers descending to save Li Qinghuai from the crisis.

The person knocking on the door earlier had a deep, magnetic voice, and it was clearly male.

Since it wasn’t Lu Fengmian herself and the person didn’t know the password, opening the door was strictly forbidden. But the old man also knew that the situation outside was extraordinary, not merely a demonic disturbance. Thus, he spoke four or five more sentences with veiled intentions.

Unexpectedly, the person outside claimed to be the Imperial Guard and began smashing the door without further explanation.

“What is it, official?” The head of the family, forced to slide open the safety lock, was even more stooped and looked much older, the wrinkles deepening with his increasing flattery.

All he received for his humility was a curt, “Get out of the way. Don’t block the path.”

When two Jinyiwei searched the inner room, the old man tried to interject again but was immediately pushed to the ground.

The commotion was quite loud, and the siblings inside the room were filled with grief and indignation.

The younger sister, timid, huddled in a corner, trembling all over. While lamenting their fate, she didn’t forget to poke the dizzy Li Qinghuai, seemingly preparing to give some farewell speech.

The brother, clutching the jar of sauerkraut he had managed to find, lurked in the shadows behind the door, waiting for an opportunity.

The inner door was quickly kicked open, revealing two menacing Jinyiwei outside.

The first thing they saw upon entering was Li Qinghuai squatting under the bed, her face impossibly pale. They immediately panicked, instinctively drawing their embroidered spring sabers horizontally, the cold gleam flashing.

The sharp blade reflected her eyes.

Li Qinghuai was momentarily blinded and slowly turned her head. She felt that sitting on the cold ground for too long had made her mind unclear. She sighed silently and made no reaction.

This lack of reaction thoroughly terrified the two Jinyiwei searching for her. They immediately sheathed their sabers and moved to assist her.

One step, two steps, three steps…

On the fourth step, Zhiyun’s brother suddenly darted out from behind the door, raising the jar of sauerkraut and smashing it onto the first person who entered.

“Clang!”

Sauerkraut juice splattered all over the Jinyiwei, thoroughly pickling him and causing a stench.

He stumbled but didn’t pass out. However, he was immediately tackled by a sudden pounce attack.

The two wrestled, exchanging punches and kicks. Just as Zhiyun’s brother was gaining the upper hand and raising his fist again, a steel saber was suddenly pressed against his neck, drawing a circle of blood beads with the slightest movement.

“Jinyiwei Xu Xing is late in coming to your aid, Your Highness. I beg for your punishment,” the Jinyiwei who followed spoke indifferently, standing rigidly with his saber.

Li Qinghuai stared fixedly for two seconds. Without standing, she shuffled two steps toward him.

She thought for a moment of Zhiyun’s brother’s name and spoke quietly, “Fang Xun, are you afraid of death? If so, get down.”

As her words fell, Fang Xun stared stiffly, twisting his eyes to look at her.

“Withdraw the sword.” Li Qinghuai’s eyes were almost unfocused, and her voice was chillingly cold.

The owner of the sword was obedient. Without hesitation, he immediately sheathed the blade. After doing so, he suppressed his anxiety and turned his head away, no longer looking at Li Qinghuai.

Fang Xun remained in his original position for a moment, trying to stand up, but Li Qinghuai immediately pressed down on his shoulders, forcing him back down. She leaned her face close to his, opening her eyes wide to prevent dizziness.

She held up three fingers in front of him and slowly said, “I’ll give you two choices—”

“Your Highness, save me…” A resentful plea came from somewhere, but it definitely wasn’t from Fang Xun’s mouth, as he hadn’t dared to open it.

That must be the old man, she thought. People’s voices can become high-pitched when they are startled, so it wouldn’t be surprising if his voice sounded younger.

“Two choices. The first is that you return to the capital with us and report to the Dali Temple. Just confess your mistakes, take your punishment, and you’ll be out in three or four months. Don’t worry, they provide food.” Li Qinghuai’s bloodless lips moved.

“The second—”

This time, she was interrupted again before finishing. “Your Highness, staying like this is too humiliating. I don’t want to live anymore.”

“Is it haunted?” Li Qinghuai’s chronic hypoglycemia of many years was suddenly cured. “Which thing is chattering endlessly?”

Xu Xing, who had been refusing to make eye contact, finally turned his head. Risking being executed for witnessing the Crown Prince’s embarrassment, he spoke with sincerity, “Your Highness, he is underneath, still being straddled by the person you’re holding down. His posture is extremely ugly and indecent.”

Li Qinghuai furrowed her brow and shifted her gaze downward.

She thought, Great. My vision is already black with a golden fringe; I can’t see anything.

Her thoughts drifted elsewhere. The people who arrived hadn’t shown any abnormalities, so she guessed they were two of the five members of the friendly group.

Which person in the friendly group of five was the most overly emotional?

Hiss, it was Chen Zui.

“Chen Zui?” she asked tentatively.

The resentful voice indeed floated up from below. “Wuwu, Your Highness, you remember me after all! I can die contentedly now.”

The overly dramatic response made her heart sink.

Before she could react further, Xu Xing suddenly dropped to one knee and bowed respectfully, looking like a marionette on a string. “Your Highness, let me help you up first.”

Li Qinghuai squinted toward the source of the sound for a moment, finally perceiving something with her ears.

New footsteps were approaching, urgent yet steady, suggesting they also belonged to martial artists.

If other less familiar subordinates saw this scene, murder would be the only option.

Li Qinghuai reached out both hands, grasping randomly, and managed to touch an offered arm. She quickly leaned on it and stood up.

A moment later, the footsteps ceased. Only four breaths remained in the vicinity.

Logically, excluding herself, six people should have remained. However, she felt nauseous, and her senses were dull, so if the breathing was faint, she couldn’t hear it.

The newcomer was silent for a moment before speaking again. “Your Highness, how could you… be in such a mess?”

Her ears twitched.

The voice sounded like a girl, and it was somewhat familiar.

“How strange, Jiang Nan. Did we make an appointment? How come you rush here to steal the credit right after we found His Highness?” someone next to her reminded.

Jiang Nan was a girl who respected hierarchy. Upon hearing this, she was immediately enraged. If the Crown Prince hadn’t been present, a fierce battle would have erupted.

“Honestly, His Highness is on a private inspection tour, finally coming down to observe the conditions of the people, and yet is severely injured. One would think someone failed in their duty to protect! Always lacking manners, I didn’t expect it to be the same this time…”

Although she couldn’t openly insult anyone, she wouldn’t give up the opportunity to criticize indirectly. She approached the Crown Prince with red eyes, her mouth incessantly rambling.

Li Qinghuai didn’t listen to whatever further arguments they had. She was usually very tolerant of disputes and didn’t enforce much discipline.

Although Li Qinghuai’s initial purpose for this trip was to eliminate the Fourth Prince’s subordinates, she unexpectedly learned of other matters that needed to be addressed along the way.

Since time was not pressing, she conducted a secret investigation in the area and discovered that the worship of evil spirits, which the court prohibited, seemed rampant in the mountains.

However, in her current state of physical decline, dealing with a matter that the court usually turned a blind eye to would normally require several days of rest, with no possibility of working overtime for public duty.

Others could simply use force to suppress it, but Lu Fengmian…

To force herself to meet the other woman, she couldn’t even allow herself to faint safely now. She could only comfort herself that she would pull through.

Unfortunately, at this point, enduring the meeting was useless. She might as well just faint.

Listening to Jiang Nan’s barbed and incessant talking, Li Qinghuai chose to deliberately zone out without any hesitation. Her body swayed for a moment, her legs gave out, and she fainted.

Before losing consciousness, her final thought was about an irrelevant old man.

Is that thing still alive? Why isn’t he screaming as I expected?

Did he get knocked out? But if he was knocked out, his two children would probably resist more fiercely. It seems the old man has some insight, knowing, like me, that keeping quiet means it will all pass soon.