This strike had not a moment’s hesitation, revealing desperate courage in burning all bridges.

A miserable scream rang out, frightening the palace maids standing guard outside the pavilion into stupefaction.

“You promised to let me serve the Crown Prince!” Chaohua shrieked shrilly, then turned and ran. As she passed the water pool, she flung out her hand and threw the gold hairpin into it.

The gold hairpin entered the water, stirring up layers of ripples.

But soon the emerald green pool water swallowed the gold hairpin and returned to calm.

Only then did those palace maids wake as if from a dream and begin screaming.

“Someone come quickly—someone has assassinated the Crown Princess—”

“Crown Princess, are you alright?”

The Crown Princess covered her cheek, her expression twisted, fresh blood gurgling out from between her fingers.

At first glance, she looked no different from a fierce ghost.

The pavilion descended into chaos.

Unlike Jade Attendant secretly taking contraceptive medicine, which had been suppressed, such a major incident as the Crown Princess being stabbed by a palace maid in the Eastern Palace garden could not be concealed, and news quickly reached the Emperor’s ears.

The one responsible for managing the inner palace was Noble Consort Xiao.

Noble Consort Xiao hurriedly brought people to the Eastern Palace.

“How is the Crown Princess?” Noble Consort Xiao entered and asked Wei Qiang, who was standing in the outer room.

Wei Qiang’s expression was grave: “Her left cheek was stabbed. The imperial physician just applied medicine. Because the Crown Princess’s emotions were somewhat agitated, she was given calming medicine and put to sleep.”

“How could such a thing happen?” Noble Consort Xiao found it inconceivable that a palace maid would dare to assassinate the Crown Princess.

Wei Qiang’s face looked even more grim.

Why this had happened—he wanted to know too!

Before Noble Consort Xiao came, he had already questioned the palace maids who were present at the time, but these palace maids had hemmed and hawed, only saying that the one who stabbed the Crown Princess was Cuihong, a maid serving Jade Attendant.

“Crown Prince, has the palace maid who stabbed the Crown Princess been found?”

“Still searching.”

“I heard this palace maid served one of the Crown Prince’s attendants?”

Wei Qiang’s gaze grew cold as he nodded slightly.

Soon an inner attendant hurried in and reported: “Your Highness, Cuihong is not with Jade Attendant.”

Hearing these words, Wei Qiang inexplicably felt relieved, though his expression remained gloomy: “Continue the search. That lowly maid must be found!”

“This consort will go see the Crown Princess.”

Wei Qiang accompanied Noble Consort Xiao into the inner chamber.

The Crown Princess lay quietly on the bed, the wound on her left cheek already covered with gauze, revealing only half of her uninjured face.

Looking at her like this, Wei Qiang thought of the woman who seemed crazed when he had rushed over upon hearing the news.

Not a trace of the Crown Princess’s bearing and composure remained.

Perhaps it was because her face was injured?

That bowl of calming medicine—he had forcibly ordered the imperial physician to pour it down the Crown Princess’s throat.

Noble Consort Xiao examined the Crown Princess who had fallen into unconsciousness and secretly shook her head.

Injured on her face, and in such an obvious location on the cheek—the Crown Princess was disfigured.

A disfigured Crown Princess, even if blameless, probably wouldn’t last long in her position.

The Eastern Palace was about to undergo a change.

“His Majesty instructed me to assist the Crown Prince in investigating this matter. Since that palace maid served Jade Attendant, please have Jade Attendant come over.”

Wei Qiang nodded and ordered someone to summon Chaohua.

Thinking of the woman who had accompanied him for twelve years, Wei Qiang’s feelings were very complicated.

He didn’t want to see anything happen to her, but for now he also didn’t want to see her.

Seeing her would make him think of those pills she had swallowed, shattering his self-deception of these years.

Luo’er hated him.

How could she not hate him? He had destroyed her family…

Wei Qiang’s heart seized with pain.

He thought that even if one day they met again in the underworld, she would not forgive him.

All these years, living in this Eastern Palace that everyone envied, it actually hadn’t been as pleasant as imagined.

He regretted it.

That year, he shouldn’t have succumbed to temptation and taken that step.

He had destroyed his beloved, and also destroyed his ability to love someone.

From then on, he only had the identity of Crown Prince, and he must hold onto this identity.

Otherwise, everything would become a joke.

In the remote, cramped courtyard, the melon seed shells on the ground had not yet been swept away.

The team that had just come to search for Cuihong had just left, frightening Qing’er until her hands and feet went weak and her face turned deathly pale.

A hand gently patted her.

“Attendant—”

Chaohua smiled: “Silly girl, what are you afraid of?”

“I, I—” Even though there was no third person present, Qing’er didn’t dare mention half a word about Cuihong.

Chaohua, however, didn’t care at all.

She had endured humiliation for twelve years all for the bracelet the County Princess had left behind.

Now that she had lost the bracelet, there was nothing she wouldn’t do.

Either get the bracelet back, or die.

“Finding Cuihong early is a good thing. Don’t be afraid.” Chaohua sat on the stone bench where Cuihong had once sat, lightly grinding the melon seed shells on the ground with the tip of her foot.

Qing’er looked at those melon seed shells, panic in her heart: “Mistress, this servant will sweep them up.”

Chaohua nodded slightly.

At this moment, the sound of knocking came from outside.

Qing’er held the broom, uncertain and alarmed.

“Go open the door.”

Qing’er went forward and opened the door.

An inner attendant stood outside with an expressionless face: “His Highness commands Jade Attendant to come over.”

Qing’er turned around, her face pale.

Chaohua stood up and walked over, her expression bland: “Let’s go.”

The entire journey was silent.

“Your Highness, Your Grace Noble Consort, Jade Attendant has arrived.”

Wei Qiang looked over and saw that familiar graceful figure walk in.

“This servant greets His Highness, greets Your Grace Noble Consort.”

“Rise.” Wei Qiang said indifferently.

Chaohua straightened her body, properly keeping her head lowered.

Noble Consort Xiao examined Chaohua for a moment, then spoke: “The palace maid Cuihong who served you stabbed the Crown Princess today. Does Jade Attendant know the reason?”

“This servant concubine does not know.” Chaohua kept her eyes lowered, her tone flat. “Last night Cuihong exposed to His Highness that this servant concubine was secretly taking medicine. It seems she never truly regarded this servant concubine as her mistress. How would this servant concubine know why she stabbed the Crown Princess?”

Wei Qiang’s expression changed drastically: “Who told you to speak out of turn!”

Chaohua pressed her lips together and silently knelt down.

Noble Consort Xiao looked at Wei Qiang in surprise: “Crown Prince, what is this about?”

Wei Qiang said with a dark face: “That lowly maid betrayed her mistress for gain—she should have been beaten to death with rods. I thought the Crown Princess would handle it today, but I didn’t expect this to happen instead.”

Hearing Wei Qiang say this, Noble Consort Xiao understood that the Crown Prince was protecting this Jade Attendant.

She tactfully didn’t pursue the matter further.

At this moment, Qing’er suddenly knelt down beside Chaohua, kowtowed, and said: “Your Highness, this servant knows why Cuihong would do this!”

As soon as these words were spoken, countless eyes immediately fell on Qing’er.

“Speak!” Wei Qiang said coldly.

Qing’er buried her head and said in a trembling voice: “Today Cuihong said to the Attendant… said that the Crown Princess promised her that in the future she would let her serve Your Highness…”

Wei Qiang looked toward the head matron with an iron-dark face.

Matron Gui dropped to her knees with a thud: “Your Highness, this lowly maid is speaking nonsense, slandering the Crown Princess!”

Qing’er secretly clenched her fists and mustered the courage to refute: “This servant is not speaking nonsense. Cuihong truly said this to the Attendant, and this servant was right there at the time. If Cuihong had no relationship with the Crown Princess, why would she stab the Crown Princess?”

Matron Gui was stopped short by the question.

Wei Qiang spoke with a cold face: “Someone come. Arrest all the palace servants who were present when the Crown Princess was attacked, and interrogate them carefully about what happened at the time. Anyone who continues to conceal information will be beaten to death with rods directly!”

Very soon, a palace maid confessed: “When Cuihong stabbed the Crown Princess, she said, said that the Crown Princess had promised to let her serve the Crown Prince.”