Chapter 10: Who Wants to Harm Her?

  “Heh, the other party really went to great lengths. Since they can't kill me, they’ve started targeting my consorts, one after another. Are they trying to ensure I die without an heir?” Yun Xie’s eyes were filled with ruthless intensity, thick and inky like unmeltable bck ink.

  If only his first consort had committed suicide, he might not have been suspicious. But one after another, every woman who married him ended up taking her own life. In the end, the deaths were even framed as murders he committed.

  If he hadn’t suspected that this was deliberately orchestrated, he would have long been dead by now.

  Over the years, many had tried to assassinate or poison him, but not once had they succeeded.

  Hidden in the darkness, Shang Li was silent for a moment before saying, “Your Highness, this person may very well be connected to the gunpowder explosion from years ago.”

  Yun Xie’s hand, hanging at his side, suddenly clenched into a tight fist. Blue veins popped beneath the skin, and the pitch-bck light in his eyes instantly turned blood-red.

  A full moon hung high in the sky, glowing like a bright silver disc. Inside the hall, a man wearing a robe of spring jade silk embroidered with python patterns stood motionless. All the candles around had been extinguished, leaving only a stream of moonlight spilling in through the window.

  “Utter fools! How dare you try to deliver poison right in front of the Evil King?” the man in the jade robe exploded with rage. With a sweep of his rge hand, he knocked over the candle stand in front of him.

  The two men in bck kneeling on the floor remained completely silent, not daring to make a sound.

  “If you don’t kill the Evil King’s fifth consort in the capital, then bring your heads to see me, no matter what method you use! The fifth consort must die!” The man’s voice was extremely ruthless and resolute.

  Yun Xie, who told you to be so outstanding, who told you to be so favored by the emperor? As long as you live, I cannot sleep in peace!

  If I can’t kill you, then I’ll kill your consort. As long as you marry one, I’ll kill one. I want to cut off your bloodline, leave you with no heirs. After all, the emperor is still in his prime and will remain on the throne for some time.

  And you, even if you are both wise and brave, skilled in both civil and military affairs-so what?？

  The Eastern Chu Kingdom cannot accept an emperor who is disfigured and blind!

  The emperor has repeatedly bestowed marriages upon you, all in hopes that you will produce an heir as soon as possible, so that the crown prince’s position can be passed on to your child.

  But Yun Xie, I will not let you marry a consort, nor will I allow anyone to bear your child!

  Yun Xie,You are in the open, I am in the shadows. We have a long road ahead!

  __

  The third day after the wedding is the day to return to the bride’s family.

  Early in the morning, the Prime Minister led all three hundred members of his household to wait at the main gate!

  Although it was already autumn, the weather was still somewhat hot.

  The cicadas on the trees chirped restlessly.

  Everyone waited for half an hour before the Evil King’s carriage slowly stopped at the Prime Minister’s residence.

  Clearly, half an hour ago the servants reported that the Evil King’s carriage had already set off, yet everyone had to stand under the bzing sun for half an hour before seeing the carriage arrive at the Prime Minister’s gate.

  You should know, the Evil King’s residence and the Prime Minister’s residence are only two streets apart-even crawling wouldn’t take this long!

  The Prime Minister immediately led his two sons to greet them.

  The Evil King, dressed in a robe embroidered with cloud patterns and purple python, stepped gracefully out of the carriage. His tall, imposing figure radiated kingly authority, instantly cooling the sweltering air.

  Then Wei Yuanwei, led by Yun Xie, stepped out of the carriage. Everyone gasped, unable to believe that this noble and elegant dy was once the wild child who ate and slept with horses.

  Wei Yuanwei’s delicate and slender figure was cd in a pink embroidered silk blouse and a pearl-white pleated skirt. Her oval, fair jade-like face was tinged with a faint blush, dimples appearing on her cheeks. A light touch of rouge made her cheeks look like newly bloomed flowers, white tinged with red. Her long, dark, arched eyebrows looked almost painted, and her bright, expressive eyes were mesmerizing, exuding a captivating charm.

  Was this really the Wei Yuanwei who was once locked in the stables? Her beauty and bearing surpassed even the famous Wei Xiwu of the past by several times, and her graceful, lively demeanor was exactly like Wei Xiwu’s in her youth.

  If not for Wei Yuanwei’s resembnce in spirit and temperament to the Wei Xiwu of old, no one present would have believed that the woman stepping out of the carriage was Wei Yuanwei.

  “Oh my, is that really Wei Yuanwei? I thought eldest sister was beautiful enough, but I didn’t expect Wei Yuanwei to be even more beautiful than she was back then!” The speaker was the ninth young dy, Wei Guanyue, the legitimate daughter of the main branch, and the “eldest sister” she referred to was naturally Wei Guanshu.

  The matron, Madam Shen, standing beside her, shot Wei Guanyue a gnce, and Wei Guanyue immediately fell silent.

  “Your humble servant greets the Prince and Princess Consort!” said the Prime Minister, bowing deeply, though his address of “Princess Consort” was clearly reluctant.

  Yun Xie lightly flicked his sleeve, offering the Prime Minister a token gesture of support as he was about to speak.

  Yun Xie’s low, cold voice came from his thin lips: “I wonder if the Prime Minister has found those who bullied the Princess Consort behind your back?”

  The Prime Minister’s face, which had just recovered a bit, froze instantly. He never expected the Evil King to bring this up at such a moment!

  The people behind the Prime Minister panicked as soon as they heard this.

  At first, they had heard that the Evil King cared deeply for his new consort and had ordered that anyone who gossiped about her background would have their tongue cut out. In just one day, thirty-two people had their tongues cut out, and after that, no one dared to mention Wei Yuanwei’s background again.

  They thought the Evil King’s order was merely to save face, so they hadn’t taken it seriously.

  But unexpectedly, today the Evil King directly asked whether those who bullied Wei Yuanwei had been found-this was clearly not a simple return visit, but a reckoning!

  Wei Yuanwei, standing beside Yun Xie, couldn’t help but gnce at him.

  “Yesterday, after returning from court, I locked up those who had bullied the Princess Consort in the woodshed, had them flogged, and punished them according to their crimes!” The Prime Minister’s hands trembled slightly in his sleeves, though he forced himself to remain calm.

  Even if this was about pursuing old grievances, who would question someone the moment they set foot in the Prime Minister’s residence?

  It seemed the Evil King intended to pursue the matter to the end!

  “Oh? Is that so?” Yun Xie’s cold gaze swept over everyone’s faces.

  Except for the concubines and illegitimate daughters who were absent, everyone else was present.

  “Of course. Today is the Princess Consort’s return to her family, so I dared not neglect it. I specifically had them come to greet the Prince and Princess Consort, even while injured!” The Prime Minister, a veteran of court politics, knew exactly what the Evil King was getting at.

  Wei Yuanwei sneered inwardly-she didn’t see any sign that these people had been punished!

  Suddenly, a strong hand wrapped around Wei Yuanwei’s waist. “The sun is high, Princess Consort, shall we go inside?”