Chapter 15: This Is So Freaking Inhuman
Xiao Li completely ignored the unwelcoming look in her eyes, lowered her head, and sniffed the air. "Imperial Sister-in-law, are you injured? Why is there such a strong smell of medicine?"
Liu Xueyin’s face instantly tensed. "I fell and hurt my knee. I’m applying a poultice."
"Is that so?" Xiao Li suddenly flashed a devastatingly charming smile, then shoved Liu Xueyin aside.
"Stop right there!" Liu Xueyin cried in a panic, but she still failed to stop Xiao Li.
Liu Xueyin followed Xiao Li inside in a panic. When she saw the room was completely empty, she instantly breathed a sigh of relief, only for it to be replaced by a burning rage. "What on earth are you doing here?"
"I came to see my Imperial Sister-in-law, of course. But since you don’t seem to welcome me, I suppose I should just leave."
Xiao Li came and went in a flash. Liu Xueyin suspected she knew something. ’But how could that be possible?’
But she didn’t have time to worry about Xiao Li. Right now, she was worried about Gu Ling. ’He’s so badly injured. What will he do without me?’
After a quick look around, Xiao Li announced her departure. Xiao Jingyi immediately moved to leave with her. There was no way Prince Chen could miss how dismissive they were being.
"What exactly are you two here for?"
Xiao Li and Xiao Jingyi exchanged a look. Xiao Jingyi spread his hands. He honestly had no idea; his Imperial Sister had just dragged him along for the ride.
Xiao Li produced a fan from seemingly nowhere and gave it a few waves. "Brother, are you sure you want to know?"
She grinned slyly. "Brother, you must know about the assassination attempt on me. Well, Gu Ling still hasn’t been found. I remembered that he and our Imperial Sister-in-law are on excellent terms, so I thought I’d come and try my luck."
"Of course, I haven’t caught him now. But I have people stationed outside. If someone were to jump out right now, they’d be walking straight into a trap."
"So, what do you think, Brother? Will I be able to catch Gu Ling or not?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Xiao Li was gone in a flash.
’Everything she did was just to achieve her own goals. The relationship between Prince Chen and his wife had nothing to do with her.’
Outside the wall, a group of people were sprawled in disarray, all of them appearing injured.
Xiao Li’s face instantly turned livid. "Where is he?"
Yang Zhuo fell to his knees before Xiao Li. "Princess, Gu Ling did indeed jump out from here. We had just joined forces to subdue him when three men in black appeared out of nowhere and snatched him away."
Xiao Li couldn’t help but be furious.
’He was badly injured and right in our grasp, yet they still snatched him away.’
’How utterly absurd.’
’Just as you’d expect from the third male lead. The guy’s got some luck on his side.’
"Tell the Patrol Camp to intensify the search. Whoever finds him gets a reward of 500 taels of gold."
’She refused to believe she couldn’t take down one single Gu Ling.’
Gu Ling was on the run and didn’t dare show his face, which all but confirmed he was the assassin.
The Emperor had a wanted notice issued, and Marquis Ping Nan was stripped of his title and reduced to a commoner. His entire family was exiled to Quzhou.
Xiao Li had chosen this location specifically for them. Quzhou was now her fiefdom, which meant she had them right in the palm of her hand.
Not long ago, Princess Xuanyang had nearly destroyed the Lu family. Now, she had taken down an entire Marquis Mansion.
The common folk were abuzz with discussion, while the noble families and officials felt a shared sense of unease. They couldn’t be sure if this was Princess Xuanyang’s doing, or if the Emperor was using her as an excuse to eliminate his enemies.
The Lu family, however, had no time to worry about outside rumors. They were all consumed with worry for Lu Yanzhi.
Ever since he was carried home after being beaten by the Princess while drunk, it was as if he had lost his soul.
He ate, drank, and studied as usual, but his eyes were always vacant. He would zone out at a moment’s notice, looking for all the world like a walking corpse. It was heart-wrenching for his family to watch.
"What in the world is wrong with him? Don’t tell me she beat him stupid?"
Every time Madam Lu saw him like this, her heart ached. Yet Lu Yanzhi himself didn’t think anything was wrong. "Mother, don’t worry. I’m fine."
’Fine?’
As she watched him trail off mid-sentence and begin to stare into space again, Madam Lu’s heart bled for him. ’How is this fine in any way?’
’What a cruel fate! How did my perfectly fine son end up with a menace like Princess Xuanyang!’
Lu Yanzhi hadn’t lost his soul. His entire worldview had simply been shattered.
His grandfather couldn’t stand seeing him this way, so he called him over for a game of chess.
Lu Yanzhi was clearly distracted. After just a few moves, he stopped. "Grandfather," he asked, bewildered, "I’ve hated Princess Xuanyang for all these years. Was I wrong to hate her?"
Chief Minister Lu’s eyes narrowed, his gaze sharp and steady. "She beat you into this state, and you’re starting to doubt yourself? It seems I’ve underestimated her."
"She used to be utterly infatuated with you, which is why she seemed so docile and easy to bully. But for a motherless princess to have survived under the Empress Dowager’s watch, she must be deeply calculating and skilled at biding her time. Do not be deceived by her."
Lu Yanzhi knew the Princess could be cruel—now her cruelty was just out in the open. But during those three years, she hadn’t been. He had genuinely fallen for the person she was then; he could tell the difference between what was real and what was an act.
However, this flicker of indecision in Lu Yanzhi’s mind was soon shattered.
Liu Xueyin had a miscarriage. It happened right after Xiao Li went to make trouble for her.
The jade brush in Lu Yanzhi’s hand was crushed to pieces. ’He had actually felt a moment of pity for a woman as vicious as Xuanyang. What was he thinking?’
Xiao Li: Vicious, I admit. But I’m not taking the blame for this one.
’Liu Xueyin’s miscarriage was obviously from being tormented by Prince Chen. What did that have to do with her?’
When she heard about Liu Xueyin’s miscarriage, Xiao Li’s lips twitched. This was exactly why she hated Liu Xueyin and the male supporting characters like Lu Yanzhi, but couldn’t bring herself to hate the male lead, Prince Chen.
’That son of a bitch is truly something else.’
’He tormented Liu Xueyin over and over, abusing her body and her mind, pushing her to the brink of death every single time.’
’Xiao Li despised domestic abusers, but when she remembered that Liu Xueyin eventually forgave him and they even became a loving couple...’
’Well, what can you say? An abusive man and a two-faced bitch. A perfect match!’
However, while Xiao Li was still lost in these thoughts, Lu Yanzhi returned, moving his belongings back in.
"Princess, the Prince Consort’s men are already moving his things in."
Xiao Li instantly felt as if she had swallowed a fly. The last time, when she’d reneged on the divorce, she had been so focused on messing with the female lead and Lu Yanzhi that she hadn’t thought it through. ’Now that I think about it, I still have to be this man’s wife for some time to come.’
’Even if it’s only in name, it’s still utterly nauseating.’
’Kick him out? No, that won’t work. After all, I still have to fool the Emperor.’
"Let him move in."
’He’s already been beaten twice and still hasn’t learned his lesson. If he dies by her hand in the future, he’ll have no one but himself to blame.’
Xiao Li thought about the melodramatic plot of the book she was in. It seemed complicated, but it was actually quite simple: it all revolved around the female lead, Liu Xueyin, and her tangled, amorous affairs with several men.
’All the male villains are crushed and dealt with by the male lead. All the female villains die at the hands of the various male supporting characters. Then, for the female lead’s sake, the male supporting characters choose to back the male lead, pushing them both to the pinnacle of power.’
’So... does that mean if she kills the male and female leads, the supporting male characters, and everyone else, she can finally leave this absurd world?’
Xiao Li felt like she had finally found her purpose.
’Kill them, and this world will cease to exist. Then she can finally leave.’
Those eyes, which should have been gentle and tender, were now filled with excitement and killing intent.
’It was a real shame that Gu Ling had escaped when she was just one step away from catching him. But now, hadn’t someone else come and obediently delivered himself right to her doorstep?’