Chapter Thirty-Two: A Young Maiden's Thoughts

"You are a fake Prince of Lin, and I am the culprit who killed the real Prince of Lin..."

"Now that we both have leverage over each other, then..."

Xu Lan looked at Lin Jiangnian, her clear eyes filled with a cautious attempt at testing: "Are we even now?"

Even?

Lin Jiangnian looked at the young woman before him and remained silent for a moment.

If the real Prince of Lin had indeed been killed by her, that was certainly a critical piece of leverage. The crime of murdering the Prince of Lin was far more severe than Lin Jiangnian posing as the Prince!

So...

Lin Jiangnian stared at the girl, taking in every expression on her face. Why would she tell him such a massive secret? Just to... call it even with him?

"You still don't believe me?"

Seeing Lin Jiangnian’s expression remain unmoved, a strange emotion flickered in the depths of Xu Lan's eyes. She had already told him her greatest secret; why did he still not trust her?

"If you don't believe me, then kill me now."

As she spoke, Xu Lan simply closed her eyes and stretched out her neck, as if daring him to strangle her.

But after a long time, there was no reaction. When she opened her eyes, Lin Jiangnian was still motionless.

"If you won't kill me, then I'll take it that you believe me."

Xu Lan let out a long sigh of relief.

She struggled to climb up from the floor, but as soon as she rose, she felt her limbs go limp and her legs weak. She braced herself with difficulty, tidied her clothes, and smoothed out her disheveled hair. Yet, no matter how she groomed herself, she still appeared disheveled, possessing a beauty that seemed to stem from having been ravished.

Xu Lan cast a complex look at Lin Jiangnian, who remained sitting on the floor, and took a deep breath: "Then I'm leaving?"

"Let today’s events be a secret between us..."

Xu Lan bit her lower lip, gave Lin Jiangnian one last deep look, turned, and walked to the door, pushing it open.

As she stepped out, she collided with a figure.

"Oh? Miss... Miss Xu?"

At the door, a petite and clumsy young maid hurriedly apologized. She subconsciously glanced at Xu Lan, then widened her eyes: "Miss Xu, you... what happened to you?"

"It's nothing..."

Xu Lan’s mind was in chaos. Noticing the maid’s strange look, she lowered her head, looking dejected: "I'm heading back."

Xiaozhu stood in place, watching Xu Lan leave in a hurry with unsteady, stumbling steps. Her little face froze, and as if realizing something, her eyes widened in disbelief.

...

Inside the room.

After Xu Lan left, Lin Jiangnian finally rose from the floor.

The medicinal balm Xu Lan had given him was indeed effective; the pain throughout his body had eased significantly, though his chest still throbbed with a dull ache. Those two strikes had left him injured.

He looked down and realized he, too, looked disheveled. In the struggle with Xu Lan on the floor, he hadn't cared for his image; his hair was messy, and his clothes were torn and stained with blood, clearly beyond repair.

Lin Jiangnian took off his outer robe and was about to put on a new one when a figure appeared at the door.

Xiaozhu stood there, catching sight of Lin Jiangnian in the middle of changing. Seeing the Prince’s disheveled state, identical to that of Miss Xu, it looked exactly like...

"Yo, Your Highness..."

Xiaozhu’s voice trembled slightly. Had she discovered some earth-shattering secret?

"Hmm?"

Lin Jiangnian turned around and saw the little maid at the door looking at him with great nervousness.

"What is it?" Lin Jiangnian asked.

"N-nothing..."

Xiaozhu stuttered, lowering her head in a panic.

Just moments ago, Miss Xu had been disheveled, her hair in a mess, looking dejected with red-rimmed eyes as if she had been crying... and the way she had hurried away, clearly unsteady...

More importantly, Miss Xu had come out of the Prince's room. Xiaozhu was certain that the Prince and Miss Xu had been alone in the room for a long time... Miss Xu had arrived at noon, and now it was nearly dark. What had they been doing in there for so long?

Seeing the state of the Prince now, everything seemed self-evident.

Xiaozhu’s little head immediately filled in the blanks: the Prince had been overcome by primal urges, taking advantage of being alone with Miss Xu to act improperly. Miss Xu had resisted to the death, but had been unable to stop the beastly Prince, who had torn her clothes and forced her to...

Xiaozhu kept her head down, her heart filled with shock.

Lin Jiangnian glanced at the maid, put on his outer robe, and looked at her: "Come here."

"Ah?"

Xiaozhu was immediately alarmed.

"Ah what? Come here and help me comb my hair," Lin Jiangnian said impatiently.

Xiaozhu paused, having thought the Prince was about to...

Relieved, she cautiously moved forward, picked up a comb, and stood behind him, carefully combing his hair.

Through the bronze mirror, she stole glances at the Prince from time to time. Lin Jiangnian naturally noticed her gaze quickly and narrowed his eyes: "What are you looking at?"

"No, nothing..."

Xiaozhu quickly looked away, her face flushing red. But at the same time, she remembered something...

Miss Xu was different from other women; she was from the Xu family, and the Xu and Lin families were close friends. Now that the Prince had done... that to her!

If the Xu family found out, what would happen? Unless... the Prince married Miss Xu?

But wasn't the Prince already betrothed to the Grand Princess? Or perhaps... he would marry them both?

Lin Jiangnian watched the distracted little maid behind him through the mirror and narrowed his eyes.

...

Night fell.

In another courtyard.

"You mean the Prince spent the whole afternoon alone with Xu Lan?"

Upon hearing Xiaozhu’s report, Ziyuan frowned, her expression showing a trace of astonishment. The Prince had made a move on Xu Lan? Even she was somewhat surprised.

"Y-yes..."

Xiaozhu kept her head down, reporting truthfully. She recounted everything that had happened that afternoon, including Miss Xu’s reactions.

"I understand."

After a brief moment of shock, Ziyuan was silent for a while before nodding: "You may go."

"If the Prince shows any further unusual behavior, report it to me immediately."

"Yes."

Xiaozhu nodded and withdrew.

Ziyuan stood in the courtyard for a moment before suddenly turning around.

"Prepare the carriage! We are going to the Xu residence."

...

After leaving the courtyard, Xiaozhu hurried through a dark corridor, returning to the Prince’s residence. She looked around cautiously and, satisfied that no one was watching, slipped back into her room.

Not far away, after Xiaozhu returned to her room, Lin Jiangnian’s figure appeared from the shadows, quietly watching the scene.

Very well!

The little maid had actually betrayed him. He had suspected something was off about her for a long time... so she was a double agent.

Lin Jiangnian narrowed his eyes.

Traitors deserve to be dealt with.

...

At night.

The Xu residence.

In the back courtyard, in a quiet and fragrant boudoir.

A figure sat cross-legged on the bed, wrapped in a quilt, revealing only an exquisite face. Her gaze was distant, staring blankly out the window.

In her mind, the events of the day resurfaced. She thought of the Prince of Lin’s residence, and inside that guy’s room...

Those cold eyes and the suffocating pressure remained vivid in her memory, as if they were still enveloping her. The intense stimulation had left her trembling, her body tense.

Such strong emotional stimulation left her gaze unfocused and dazed. At the same time, a strange, different emotion seemed to well up from the bottom of her heart...

After a long while, she let out a long sigh. Her fair forehead was beaded with crystalline sweat, her cheeks were flushed, and her breathing was slightly rapid.

Her delicate face held a new touch of feminine tenderness, breathtakingly beautiful. She panted softly, and as if thinking of something, a hint of shy resentment appeared in her eyes.

She wrapped the quilt tighter around herself, her gaze slightly lost, and after biting her lower lip for a long time, she spat out with resentment:

"Bad guy!"