Chapter 42.2
Ruo Zhen clenched his fists in anger, the place where he had been stabbed with the golden hairpin was now bleeding profusely, he was truly at a loss. Zhao Heng had actually poisoned him! He had underestimated this seemingly weak and timid woman.
Suddenly, a faint sound of footsteps could be heard outside. Zhao Heng fell silent, listening as the footsteps stopped outside the door for a moment before continuing.
Thinking it was Lian Zhou, Zhao Heng breathed a sigh of relief as she took out a handkerchief from her sleeve and gently wrapped his wound, "I've said it before, everything I do is to live well. When the time comes for you to leave the capital, you won't pose a threat to me anymore. I have no need to needlessly put you in a life-threatening situation."
Ruo Zhen stared coldly at her.
Zhao Heng, her eyes and brows lowered in shadow, showing no emotion, said, "Don't look at me like that. You provoked me first. Before acting, you should consider the possible consequences, rather than assuming a snake is harmless when it's actually venomous."
Ruo Zhen glared at her, saying, "Li Wenjian should see the state you're in now."
Zhao Heng's eyes sparkled with a faint light upon hearing the mention of the Crown Prince, and a hint of softness appeared at the corner of her lips.
"He won't see it."
"If he knew about all the evil thoughts in your mind, he would definitely kick you out of the palace immediately."
Zhao Heng bit her lip lightly, her eyes twitching slightly.
The gentleness in her expression softened, and she changed the subject, saying, "By the way, there's one more thing I need your help with."
Ruo Zhen, feeling impatient, said, "Aren't you capable enough? Why do you need my help?"
Ignoring his sarcasm, Zhao Heng asked, "By the way, if I hadn't come to meet you today, were you and Wei Wanyu planning to forcibly take me out of the palace?"
Ruo Zhen snorted coldly, not answering her question.
Zhao Heng slapped the back of his hand hard, causing him to grimace in pain, his teeth gnashing and cold sweat appearing instantly.
"When in a difficult situation, one must learn to bow, Prince Ruo Zhen," Zhao Heng coldly reminded him.
Ruo Zhen gritted his teeth, breathing heavily and grunting in frustration.
"Was it at the grand National Temple? When we praying with the Third Princess?" Zhaoheng asked again.
Ruo Zhen impatiently turned his head back, meeting her gaze of reminder and nodded in response.
Zhao Heng said, "When the time comes, make sure she goes to the grand National Temple."
"She won't go, she never listens to me," Ruo Zhen grumbled, frustrated with these troublesome women. If it weren't for Wei Wanyu causing chaos, would he have fallen victim to Zhaoheng's treachery?
Zhao Heng took out an envelope from her waist and handed it to him, saying, "Find a way to discreetly place this in Wei Wanyu's room. After she reads it, she will go to the grand National Temple."
"What is this?" Ruo Zhen asked.
Zhao Heng said, "You don't need to worry about it, just do as I say."
Ruo Zhen was furious. No one had ever dared to speak to him like this!
But his fate was in her hands, and he had no choice but to grit his teeth and swallow his pride.
His thoughts about Zhao Heng went from wanting to sleep with her to wanting to kill her.
After doing all this, Zhao Heng could not linger here any longer. The afternoon classes at the school of arts were about to begin, and Mr. Liu who teaches music in the afternoon is very strict. If she was late, she would be scolded.
Without further delay, she packed up her things, slung them over her arm, and turned to push the door, but suddenly smelled the scent of burning wood.
Smoke was seeping out from under the door.
"There's a fire! There's a fire! Fengming Tower is on fire."
Someone outside was shouting.
The fire had started in the room next to Zhao Heng's, and with the dry weather in summer, the fire had already spread to her side.
There were footsteps coming from the palace and many people were arriving.
The nearby guards who heard the shouts were rushing towards them.
If Zhao Heng and Ruo Zhen were to go out now, they would just end up being caught. But if they stayed inside... they would die.
"Lian Zhou?" Zhao Heng called through the door, but there was no response.
Her attention had been on Ruo Zhen all this time, and with Lian Zhou guarding outside, she hadn't noticed the situation outside.
The footsteps just now weren't Lian Zhou's.
Someone was deliberately making noise.
She quickly realized this and ran to the window, pushing it open with all her strength.
She had been to Fengming Tower many times before and knew the layout well. It was a high platform with stone steps in front and a small forest behind. She had already planned that if anything unexpected happened, she could escape through the window.
She just hadn't expected an actual emergency.
"Aren't you going to help?" she looked at Ruo Zhen.
Ruo Zhen hurried over and forcefully hit the window with his elbow, causing it to open.
Zhao Heng didn't hesitate, she lifted her skirt and climbed onto the windowsill, saying to Ruo Zhen, "You stay here and block them, you know what to do, right?"
Ruo Zhen looked at her like she was crazy, "Are you insane? Jumping from here?"
As the footsteps grew closer, Zhao Heng calmly said, "This is all because of you, isn't it? If we are seen meeting privately by the guards, I won't be able to live either."
Her own life was in her hands. If she died from the fall, she would lose her life as well. Ruo Zhen quickly stopped her, saying, "I'll go, I'll jump. You stay here."
The platform was two or three zhang high. Ruo Zhen could jump down safely with the help of a leap, but Zhao Heng's fate was uncertain. If luck wasn't on her side, her brain might splatter out.
Zhao Heng glanced at him and said, "How do you expect me to explain to the guards why I'm here alone, drinking and snacking in the middle of the day."
She broke free from Ruo Zhen's grasp and said, "Don't worry, I won't die."
Sitting on the windowsill, her light green skirt hung softly: "Anyway, even if I die, you'll be the one to take the blame. What do I have to fear?"
The guards were running closer, their footsteps getting more urgent.
As Zhao Heng jumped down, the guard's footsteps were already outside the room. Ruo Zhen saw that Zhao Heng didn't jump straight down, but instead slid down the slope to the grass below.
He breathed a sigh of relief, temporarily saving his own life.
This woman was much smarter and more powerful than Wei Wanyu.
He turned around, and the door suddenly burst open from outside, and a group of guards rushed in. Seeing Ruo Zhen inside, they were shocked.
"Prince Ruo Zhen?"
Ruo Zhen rubbed his eyes, pretending to just wake up. "Why is it so noisy?"
"Why are you here?"
Ruo Zhen said, "I drank too much at noon, got tired, and found a place to sleep."
He even yawned.
"What's going on?" Xie Tinghuan followed the crowd, looking at the thick smoke and the crowd, with a look of confusion and worry on the surface, but secretly thrilled.
With so many people catching Ruo Zhen and Zhao Heng meeting in private, she would never be able to turn things around.
Getting Zhao Heng kicked out of the Eastern Palace, even if she couldn't marry the prince, she would be satisfied. At least the prince didn't belong to anyone yet, especially not to such a lowly person.
The thought of a lowly palace maid by the prince's side made her feel as uncomfortable as swallowing a toad.
The one by the prince's side should be noble young ladies from prestigious families like them!
When Xie Tinghuan squeezed to the front, the fire had been completely extinguished, leaving only the burnt house billowing with smoke. She didn't see Zhao Heng, only Ruo Zhen surrounded by the guards.
She widened her eyes, thinking that she had been guarding Fengming Tower the whole time and hadn't seen her leave.
Where was she?
Did she sprout wings and fly away from here?
She pushed through the crowd and walked into the room, seeing the open window, she was suddenly shocked. Had Zhao Heng jumped out of the window?
Impossible! It was two or three zhang high here, someone could easily die if things went wrong!
But as she looked around, there was no other way for Zhao Heng to go besides jumping.
Her heart raced and she desperately wanted to go to Chengming Palace to find out what had happened.
But she didn't dare, she had just angered her aunt and didn't want to cause more trouble for now.
*
A sharp, piercing pain shot through Zhao Heng's ankle, indicating a twisted foot. Fearing unwanted attention, she dared not linger. Gritting her teeth, she rose to her feet and hobbled back, her every step a battle against the excruciating pain.
Before she had gone far, Lian Zhou caught up with her. Zhao Heng had instructed her that in case of any mishap, Lian Zhou should follow the path beneath the window to find her.
"Master, I saw a cat earlier and, fearing it would attract attention, I went to shoo it away. On my return, I encountered a large group of imperial guards, which terrified me," Lian Zhou explained, her voice laced with concern as she supported Zhao Heng. "Are you alright?"
Zhao Heng shook her head, gritting her teeth as she continued to walk. "Hurry, someone set fire to Fengming Tower just now, I almost got caught."
"What!" Lian Zhou looked up at Xiaoheng, trembling all over, her face turning pale with fear, her words shaking as she spoke: "I... I didn't guard the door properly."
Zhao Heng had originally not planned to tell her, knowing that Lian Zhou was timid and would be frightened when she knew. But then she realized that Lian Zhou, who she had brought along to do these things, couldn't continue to be the same as before.
She needed to force her to grow up.
If she couldn't watch the door this time, she might have to jump from the windowsill.
But what about the next time, and the time after that?
They couldn't rely on luck every time, they couldn't afford to.
In the palace, the only person she could trust was Lian Zhou; their lives depended on each other.
"Lian Zhou, you can't do this in the future," Zhao Heng said to her with a serious expression, "Before you act, you must carefully consider the urgency and importance of the situation."
Lian Zhou nodded palely.
Zhao Heng's back was soaked with cold sweat, her whole body trembling with pain, her vision filled with stars, but she had no choice but to grit her teeth and persevere.
After walking for a while, a few people suddenly approached from the front.
There was no need to identify them; even as a blurred silhouette in the distance, Zhao Heng could immediately recognize Li Wenjian.
It was too late to avoid him now.
As luck would have it, every time she tried to avoid him, it seemed like fate was calling her, and she would always meet him no matter how convoluted the route she took.
She didn't want Li Wenjian to see her in her current state.
He stood in the sunlight, seemingly glowing all over.
Every time she stood next to him covered in mud, his nobility made her own disheveled appearance even more stark, reminding them of the vast difference between them.
Li Wenjian also saw her, turned to say something to the people around him, and then they left.
He strode towards Zhao Heng.
"Your Highness." Zhao Heng placed a hand on her waist, slightly bent her knees in a bow to him.
He glanced at her, noticing the dirt on her, and her awkward posture.
"Are you injured?"
Zhao Heng lowered her head, one hand supporting Lianzhou, and gave him a faint smile. "Just tripped accidentally."
Li Wenjian then looked at Lian Zhou and asked, "How did she trip?"
"In response to Your Highness," Lian Zhou said with her head down, "The cassia tree in Heyuan recently bloomed, and the master took me to pick flowers in the garden today. Unexpectedly, while picking flowers, a wild cat suddenly rushed out, startled her, and she fell from the bench."
Zhao Heng had thought ahead and already prepared a perfect excuse for whatever happened.
She had recited this story a hundred times, so she could flawlessly respond to the crown prince's questions without any mistakes.
Zhao Heng's preparations were foolproof, and luckily she had thought ahead.
Li Wenjian furrowed his brow, crouched down in front of Zhao Heng and noticed the mud on her shoes. He lowered his gaze, gently lifted her skirt corner, and with warm hands, he touched her ankle, pinching a few times.
Fortunately, there was no bone injury.
"Next time, bring Mu Gui or Fei Yu with you," he said, as Jian Ning approached from the other end and reported, "Your Highness, Fengming Tower just caught on fire."
Li Wenjian let go of Zhao Heng's skirt, covered her shoe securely, and simply responded with an "Oh," asking, "Was anyone injured?"
"No, only Prince Ruo Zhen was inside. He supposedly came into the palace drunk at noon, stumbled to Fengming Tower, and passed out in an empty room to sleep," Jia Ning reported truthfully.
After a pause, he added, "But it's strange, his hand was bleeding for some reason, and when asked by the Imperial Guards, he seemed hesitant and couldn't explain. Since there was no one else in Fengming Tower, they escorted him back to the palace."
"Understood," Li Wenjian said.
Zhao Heng kept her head down, one hand supporting Lian Zhou, and the other clutching her skirt tightly.
"Can you still walk?" Li Wenjian asked her.
After speaking, he stood up, looked down at her, and his gaze fell on the fine beads of sweat on her forehead.
Having fallen from such a height and walked so far in pain, she must be in agony. Li Wenjian's expression was unreadable, showing no emotion. He bent down and lifted her, carrying her back to Chengming Hall.
When Lin Mama saw Li Wenjian carrying Zhao Heng back, she hurried forward. "What's going on? Is the master injured?"
Li Wenjian replied, "Prepare the medicine for her wounds."
Lin Mama quickly found the medicine and applied it to Zhao Heng's leg. Li Wenjian stood silently beside them, watching Lin Mama's every move from a higher vantage point.
Lin Mama, with a cloth soaked in alcohol, carefully treated the wound on her leg. Every time the alcohol touched the wound, Zhao Heng would furrow her eyebrows lightly, her hand unconsciously gripping the edge of her skirt on the bed, her knuckles turning pale from the force.
Luckily, the wound was not severe and was quickly treated.
Lian Zhou brought clean clothes, as Zhao Heng's clothes were covered in mud and grass stains, making her look unsightly.
Zhao Heng held the clothes, glanced at Li Wenjian beside her, and seeing that he had no intention of leaving, she bit her lip lightly. She was about to speak when Li Wenjian suddenly spoke.
"Zhao Heng, what were you and Prince Ruo Zhen doing at Fengming Tower this afternoon?"
As Zhao Heng heard his clear voice penetrating her ears, her scalp tingled.
At that moment when she raised her head to look over, Li Wenjian also raised his eyes to meet hers.
In that instant of locking eyes, Zhao Heng's heart suddenly clenched.
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The author's note:
Thinking about how I know what's going to happen tomorrow, and you guys don't, I just... feel like a happy groundhog screaming!! Ah---