Chapter 612: Resentment in Life and Death

The night of the Dragon Boat Festival was not a good one for Zhang Yue alone; the deserted residence of Princess Yongping saw no one in the mood to celebrate. Since the Longevity Festival, the place had been completely sealed off, with all food and supplies delivered from outside. No one else was allowed in or out, turning it into a dead end. After all, Prince Zhao, Zhu Gaosui, still had a son and several daughters outside, but Princess Yongping had no hope left. Despite the prohibitions, many people managed to find ways in, so every night, shadows and whispers could be heard at the back door as they plotted their own escape plans.

“Princess, have some tea.”

Hearing this familiar voice, Princess Yongping immediately turned around and saw her nurse, Mother Zhao. She put down the pen in her hand. Over the two years her son had been imprisoned, she had aged greatly, and these past half month of suffering had turned half of her hair white. Seeing the thick stack of draft papers on the desk, she smiled through gritted teeth.

Everything she had done was for her son. Now that he was dead, no one else would escape unscathed! Even if she were to expose this matter, her fate would be grim—she would have to drag others down with her. Her brothers could never live in comfort! As for the Zhang family, even though her son was dead, she wouldn’t let them off easy, especially Zhang Yue. After all, she had nothing left! Fortunately, not all civil officials were united, and she had found someone willing to offer advice—methods that would soon bear fruit…

It was hot outside. She picked up the teacup and drank it in one gulp, then squinted at the writings she had composed over the past few days, marking each page with a nail indentation. After reviewing about a dozen pages, her eyelids grew heavy, and she slumped over the desk, falling asleep shortly after. Mother Zhao called out softly a few times. Only when she realized the princess was completely motionless did she wipe the sweat from her forehead and quietly walk to the door, whispering a few words to those outside.

In the silent night, one figure sneaked into the main house, while another stood at the door keeping watch. Soon, a muffled groan, as if choked in the throat, came from inside, followed by the sound of fumbling around. After what seemed like a while, two figures crouched low slipped out—one carrying a bundle, the other none other than Mother Zhao. She staggered a few steps before suddenly tripping over something and falling hard to the ground. Before she could get up, overwhelmed with anxiety, she felt a tightness in her chest and suddenly lost consciousness.

At her fall, the man ahead immediately turned around and saw that Mother Zhao was lying on the ground, unable to get up. He snorted irritably, “To end up like this after all this… It’s understandable—after all, the princess grew up on your milk. It’s natural to feel guilty and scared after doing such things. Mother Zhao, just keep doing good deeds in the future. Killing will surely bring retribution… Damn, she really fainted from the fall? How is that possible… Hey, Mother Zhao, get up quickly! If you miss the carriage outside, you’ll have to stay in this hellish place forever. You’ll have to take all the blame then!”

He bent down and shook Mother Zhao hard, but found no response at all, and panicked. After hesitating for a moment, he stood up quickly, clutched the bundle in his hands, and hurried outside. By now, it was extremely dark; there were only tall walls on both sides of the path, with no one in sight. The emptier it seemed, the more he felt like someone was following him, so he kept looking back several times, but saw no one.

He almost ran to the corner, where he could see from afar the two dark gates leading to the back street. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief. Relieved, he opened the gates and saw a carriage parked outside. He rushed over, handed the bundle to the coachman, and whispered that he had completed all his tasks. As he got into the carriage, he seemed to see the coachman smile at him.

Early the next morning, the servants got up early as usual to handle various tasks. But now Princess Yongping’s temper had become even more erratic; without her orders, none of the maids dared enter the courtyard rashly. Aside from Mother Zhao, only three other trusted maids were allowed in. When the three of them saw the courtyard door tightly closed, they found it strange. Although everyone knew Princess Yongping had been confined to her room these days, entering casually might invite scolding. After calling out several times with no response, Mother Gan, the leader, mustered the courage to push the door open. As soon as she peeked in, she saw a dark figure collapsed on the ground in front of the main house door.

Realizing something was wrong, the three of them rushed in to check. They found Mother Zhao already dead, and they panicked even more. Mother Gan, who had knocked gently at the door without success, broke in right away.

“Heavens!”

Mother Gan, the first to enter, was terrified at the sight at just one glance and stumbled, sitting down on the ground. The two others, unable to stop in time, bumped into her. But once they saw what was inside, they also stepped back in horror. Though they had served Princess Yongping since her time in the YanMansion and were experienced, they had only seen such things once or twice before. Who would have thought Li Maofang died this way, and now Princess Yongping died the same way?

Long white silk ribbons hung from the tall beams, and the person dressed in a bright red robe was hanging upright there, her feet clad in delicate shoes embroidered with phoenix and butterfly patterns still swaying slightly—a sight that was truly chilling.

“It’s over! We’re all done!” Mother Gan, sitting on the ground, screamed heartbreakingly. “With the princess gone, we’ll all be buried alive! There’s no way we can survive!”

The other two middle-aged women, also maids in Princess Yongping’s entourage, turned deathly pale upon hearing this. Though they were technically servants, they had lived in luxury for years, and their relatives had secured good positions. They had rarely suffered hardship, which was why they were now desperate to find a way out. But with Princess Yongping dead before anything could be resolved, how could they accept dying along with her? The two exchanged glances and almost simultaneously thought of Mother Zhao outside.

“Sister Gan, we’re not at that critical point yet. We must think of a way! Mother Zhao usually seems indifferent, but she’s shrewd. How could she just collapse at the door unconscious? She definitely doesn’t seem scared; there must be another reason. If she really did do this, then that ‘Nine Clans Plant’ is also her doing—nothing to do with us!”
Mother Gan on the ground was also initially stunned by fear, but quickly regained her senses and nodded frantically. The three of them discussed it in the room for a while, yet none of them thought to lower the person hanging from the beam. After some time, when they finally came up with a plan, they hurriedly went up to release the person, while another went outside again. Once Princess Yongping was set down and it was confirmed that she had no breath left, and Mother Zhao was indeed dead, their resolve only grew stronger.
Since there was no way to prove anything in death, they had to take a chance, even if it meant trying something desperate!
While everyone in the princess’s mansion was figuring out how to escape this predicament, Fang Rui had left the Han Prince’s residence early in the morning. Ever since he met Zhang Yue and Wan Shijie that day, he had been restless and unable to sleep properly for days. He was worried that Zhang Yue might refuse, concerned that they might take it out on his brother, and also ashamed enough to never dare enter the British Prince’s mansion again, thus failing to accomplish what Mei Qing had asked of him. As he thought about it, he grew increasingly angry.
Why was he so unlucky? He had finally found someone willing to use his status as the Han Prince’s heir, only for that heir to die so young. Now, it turned out that it was Wei Fei’s birthday next month, and he had been sent to purchase silk from the south. Was this all he was meant to do—abandoning his brother and the ethics and morals he had taught for over a decade?
The streets were already bustling in the early morning. The civil and military officials who needed to attend court had gone, those who worked in government offices had rushed there, and others were out farming, doing business, or working as craftsmen… Everyone had started their new day. Feeling uncomfortable, Fang Rui didn’t want to stay in such a noisy environment any longer, so he simply turned into a quiet alley with few shops. As the noise receded like a tide, he let out a long sigh.
After struggling so hard for so many years, he absolutely couldn’t give up now!

Yet just then, he suddenly felt as if someone was behind him. Before he could turn, he was struck hard at the back of the neck. Almost instinctively, he reached out to hold onto the wall, but before he could see who had struck him, he fainted. By the time he fell to the ground, the two men behind him moved to the front, one gave him another blow, then quickly tied him up tightly with rope, stuffing a cloth ball into Fang Rui’s mouth. The other man took out a large sack and put him inside it.

“Hey, were you accurate with that strike?”
“Don’t worry, I just knocked him out. As for you, be careful when putting him in the sack—don’t suffocate him!”
“We’ve been following this guy for days. If not for his distraction today, we wouldn’t have had such an easy chance. I guess he’s done too many wrong things, so he walks more cautiously than even the Imperial Guards… By the way, why not hide him somewhere for a while? Why send him overseas?”
“The young master gave orders, so we just follow them. It’s said that Lord Liu from Nanjing is going abroad, and the young master thought it would be good to bring along this scholar. Tsk tsk, he’s read so much but still likes to get involved in schemes. What a pity! In my opinion, his brother is smarter. With the young master and Lord Wan looking after him, he can follow the right path—how much more convenient!”
Chattering and laughing, Zhao Hu and Xiang Long easily carried the sack out of the alley on the other side, where a carriage was already waiting. The carriage wandered around the streets for a while before turning onto Xuanwu Gate Street. However, as they passed by Fengcheng Hu Shi, they almost collided with several fast horses coming out of the alley. The sharp-eyed Zhao Hu immediately spotted the white banners and lanterns hanging there and glanced at Xiang Long.

Could it be that Princess Yongping has died?