Chapter Twelve: I Won't Let You Go Even as a Ghost
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In the dimly lit dungeon, a young woman was imprisoned. Her limbs were bound and secured to a wooden frame with iron chains, leaving her utterly immobile. Her once exquisite silk garment was now tattered and stained with traces of blood, yet it still could not conceal her proud figure. Her head hung low, and beneath the disheveled strands of hair, one could faintly discern a delicate face.
Lin Jiangnian looked at the woman before him—her appearance and demeanor were both extraordinary, yet he felt no recognition at all.
Clearly, she must be the mastermind the Red-Clad Woman had mentioned!
But… who was she?
The Red-Clad Woman had never revealed the reason behind Prince Lin’s son’s journey, so there was no way to investigate that matter.
Lin Jiangnian had to proceed cautiously and strike first.
He fixed his cold gaze on the bound woman and sneered, “So it was you who plotted to assassinate this prince?!”
No matter who she was, he would first intimidate her with his authority.
The woman on the wooden frame slowly raised her head upon hearing his voice.
Beneath her tangled hair was a pale, somewhat delicate face, drained of color. Despite her disheveled state, a refined aura still emanated from her, resembling a noble lady from a prominent family.
Yet, since Lin Jiangnian had awakened, whether it was the Red-Clad Woman, the kite girl, or even the maid Little Bamboo, all of them surpassed this woman in appearance.
In comparison, she was somewhat inferior.
Her features were fair and her demeanor elegant, and anyone who could associate with the illustrious Prince Lin’s son could hardly be an ordinary person.
So, which noble family did she belong to?
Lin Jiangnian narrowed his eyes, pondering... Could she be the Miss Xu that the Red-Clad Woman mentioned last night?
Xu Lan?
At that moment, when she raised her eyes to meet Lin Jiangnian’s, her fragile body trembled slightly, and a look of incredulous shock flashed across her pale face. “You—you’re not dead?!!”
She indeed knew him!
Lin Jiangnian felt certain and sneered immediately, “What? Did you think this prince was dead?”
“You...”
The woman was terrified. Seeing Lin Jiangnian alive and well before her, as if she had anticipated something, the color drained completely from her face.
She had failed!
The fact that the bastard prince was still alive meant the assassination had failed.
So much effort had been spent, so many lives sacrificed... and yet, in the end, failure?
She seethed with hatred!
She was unwilling to accept it!
“How... how are you still alive...?”
Lin Jiangnian’s expression remained impassive. From her gaze, he recognized that she indeed knew the prince.
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More than that, she was likely very familiar with him.
The most familiar person often made the easiest target.
Lin Jiangnian glanced subtly at the kite girl behind him, who showed no expression, her face devoid of any emotion, calmly watching him—as if waiting for something.
His heart tightened. His gaze returned coldly to the woman bound on the wooden frame. “Speak. Why did you attempt to assassinate this prince?”
While probing the reason for the assassination, he also sought to learn more about her identity.
Desperation clouded the woman’s face. Upon learning that the bastard prince was still alive, her demeanor suddenly turned fierce. Her delicate and refined face twisted into a grimace as she glared fiercely at Lin Jiangnian. “Bah! Bastard prince, your wickedness knows no bounds. Your crimes are countless. The whole world wishes for your death... you deserve to die!”
“I only hate one thing—that your filthy life has been spared... But don’t rejoice too soon. Scum like you will eventually face justice from others who act as heaven’s retribution!”
The refined, delicate woman suddenly erupted into madness, a shocking sight.
Lin Jiangnian felt somewhat unfairly accused.
Though her curses against the bastard prince had nothing to do with Lin Jiangnian himself, he was impersonating Prince Lin’s son. He was wrongfully taking the blame, suffering an undeserved calamity.
More importantly, despite her tirade, he had gained no useful information.
“You say I am wicked and evil beyond measure?”
Lin Jiangnian narrowed his eyes, smirking coldly. “Why don’t you tell me? I’m curious to know what unforgivable sins this prince has committed.”
“Aren’t you evil enough?!”
The woman sneered repeatedly, her eyes burning with hatred as she stared intently at Lin Jiangnian. Her resentment seemed so fierce it could devour him alive. “One by one, every crime you’ve committed is remembered. Sooner or later, you will face retribution!”
Her savage glare sent a chill through Lin Jiangnian’s heart.
What grudge was so deep?
What had the bastard prince done to her?
Lin Jiangnian scrutinized her: young and beautiful, with striking features… Could it be that the bastard prince had seduced her and then abandoned her?
He glanced again at the kite girl behind him, who remained unmoved, seemingly unwilling to get involved.
A feeling of unease crept into Lin Jiangnian’s heart... Was she suspecting something?
“Unfortunately, you probably won’t live to see the day I’m punished!”
Walking on thin ice, Lin Jiangnian had to be cautious. A cold smile crossed his lips as his sharp eyes locked onto the woman. “Before I lose my patience, I’ll ask you one last time...”
“Besides you, who else was involved in the plot to assassinate this prince?”
It was impossible for her to have planned such a conspiracy alone. There had to be others behind her!
And their origins were likely significant.
Yet, the woman stared back fiercely, “Bastard prince, give up that hope. Even if I die, I, Chen Yingying, will never tell you!”
Fragile and disheveled in appearance, but resolute and fierce in spirit.
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Chen Yingying?
Lin Jiangnian suddenly recalled who she was!
The courtesan of Qingfeng Pavilion, Chen Yingying?!
The Red-Clad Woman had mentioned last night that the Prince Lin’s son had taken a liking to the courtesan Chen Yingying of Qingfeng Pavilion some time ago. He frequented the pavilion and maintained close relations with her...
So this was Chen Yingying?
But why was she involved in a plot to assassinate Prince Lin’s son?
Or was she deliberately planted by certain people to get close to the prince? From the very beginning, was this all a setup?
Lin Jiangnian sensed some hidden truth.
Thinking of this, he looked back at the kite girl behind him. “Have you found her accomplices yet?”
The kite girl glanced at the woman calmly. “It will take some time.”
Her expression was indifferent, as if she paid no heed to the woman’s desperate resistance.
“How long?” Lin Jiangnian asked coldly.
“Half a day,” the kite girl replied calmly.
Once inside Prince Lin’s mansion, no one could resist interrogation. Even the most rigorously trained assassins could not withstand the torture.
Chen Yingying looked at the two before her with eyes full of anger and unwillingness. Her fragile body trembled in fear. Before her stood two enemies: one, the wicked bastard prince; the other, a maid aiding and abetting him...
Both deserved to die!
But alas... it was all for naught, the plan had failed at the last moment.
She had long known she would be exposed and understood her fate. Once inside the mansion, death was inevitable.
Her only wish was to confirm the bastard prince’s survival with her own eyes!
Now, in utter despair, she had lost all hope of survival. Rather than be tortured to death by them...
Chen Yingying’s eyes burned with despair, yet her gaze remained fierce, staring at the master-servant pair before her. “Don’t think you can humiliate me or extract a single piece of information! Bastard prince, even as a ghost, I will never let you go!!!”
Her voice was resolute, filled with deep hatred.
Lin Jiangnian suddenly realized something and turned sharply.
Before him was a face both stunning and grotesque, eyes fixed unwaveringly on him, a trail of dark blood slowly trickling from the corner of her mouth.
Heartbreaking and chilling!