Tang Ning tugged at Xiao Yan's sleeve, peeking out to observe the crazed Jiang Momo. She hesitated before saying, “Brother, she seems like she’s trying to say something.”
Xiao Yan lowered his gaze to the old woman on the ground. “You want the Cheng Princess to come back?”
“Ah! Ah—”
Jiang Momo frantically banged her head against the ground.
Xiao Yan frowned slightly and turned to glance at Gu Helian.
“Disgusting!” Gu Helian grumbled irritably but still reluctantly brought the Cheng Princess over.
When Jiang Momo raised her head to look at her, her eyes were filled with a chaotic intensity. Unable to speak, she gestured wildly—first pointing at the Cheng Princess, then at Gu Helian—before letting out garbled cries.
The Cheng Princess remained silent for a moment before speaking. “You mean to say, the one who drugged me back then wasn’t Gu Helian?”
“Ah! Ah!”
“It was Xie Tianyu?”
“Ah! Ah—”
Jiang Momo nodded desperately.
The Cheng Princess clenched her fists tightly. “I understand.”
But Jiang Momo didn’t stop. Instead, her cries became even more frantic. She seemed desperate to say something else, but it was incomprehensible to everyone present.
Seeing their confusion, Jiang Momo grew even more agitated. The blood clogging her throat was nearly choking her. She knew she wouldn’t live much longer; the blood flowing from her mouth and nose was a grim reminder. She only wanted to tell the Cheng Princess the truth before dying, to stop her from being deceived any longer by Xie Tianyu. But she couldn’t say a word.
The blood filling her mouth began to reverse into her airway, cutting off her breath. Her face started turning a ghastly shade of green as her life force drained away. Desperately, Jiang Momo writhed on the ground, flailing her arms and slapping the floor, her face covered in blood, her expression grotesque in its anguish.
Wu Huai frowned. “What else is she trying to say?”
The Second Prince also asked, “Is it about the Cheng Prince?”
Jiang Momo nodded and then shook her head violently, her guttural cries growing more desperate. Her actions only baffled those around her further.
Tang Ning furrowed her brow. “Is it about the Cheng Prince, or not?”
“Ah! Ah!”
Jiang Momo screamed, nodding and shaking her head in rapid succession. Her bloodied face and increasingly disoriented expression made it impossible to discern her meaning. She tried to write on the ground, but her broken fingers could only drag bloodstains across the surface.
While the others were lost in confusion, Xiao Yan stood silent for a moment before speaking. “Are you trying to say it’s about Xie Yin?”
“Ah! Ah! Ah—”
Jiang Momo’s eyes widened in shock. She banged her head against the floor repeatedly before looking up at Xiao Yan with intense excitement. She waved her arms frantically, her guttural cries becoming more urgent.
Watching her intense reaction, Xiao Yan recalled a long-held suspicion. He tentatively asked, “Are you trying to tell the Cheng Princess that Xie Yin’s parentage is questionable, and he’s not her biological son?”
“Ah!”
Jiang Momo’s eyes grew impossibly wide, and she nodded with such force it seemed her head might fall off. Blood poured from her nose and mouth as she gazed at the Cheng Princess, mumbling incoherently, her gestures confirming Xiao Yan’s words.
The Cheng Princess, however, turned deathly pale, stumbling as though she might collapse.
Wu Huai, Marquis Wenxin, and the Second Prince all stood in stunned silence.
“Xie Yin isn’t the Cheng Princess’s son? Then whose son is he?” the Second Prince asked, still in shock.
Tang Ning added anxiously, “What about Aunt’s child? The one she gave birth to back then—what happened to them?”
This time, Jiang Momo didn’t respond.
It seemed that revealing this devastating secret had drained her final reserves of strength. Her cries grew weaker, and the color in her face faded rapidly.
She opened her bloodied mouth one last time, staring fixedly at the Cheng Princess. As her body collapsed, the cloudy tears in her eyes reflected a lifetime of regret.
“Ah-Mo, I’m so nervous. Why does Xie Tianyu like me? He’s so persistent—it’s scary…”
“Ah-Mo, he saved me. I think… I think I’ve fallen for him.”
“Ah-Mo, I’ve heard marriage can be terrifying. I don’t know what life in the Prince’s residence will be like. But as long as you’re with me, I’m not afraid…”
Yue’er loved Ah-Mo the most…
Tears mixed with blood rolled down Jiang Momo’s face as her breath faded. Even as her life ebbed away, her gaze remained fixed on the Cheng Princess.
She had let her lady fall to such a lowly state. She had taken the wrong path, step after step, and brought this calamity upon the woman she had raised.
If only she had…
If only she hadn’t been deceived by Xie Tianyu. If she hadn’t hidden the truth about Gu Helian, perhaps her lady could have married Gu Helian and lived a life of happiness. She could have had a husband who truly loved her, children who respected her, and a life free of pain and regret.
It was she who had destroyed it all. She had ruined her lady’s happiness.
The wind carried the rain under the eaves, droplets scattering on the ground.
Jiang Momo lay lifeless on the floor, silent at last.
Jing Yun stepped forward to check her pulse and then looked up. “Commander, she’s dead.”
Xiao Yan merely hummed in acknowledgment, showing no particular emotion about Jiang Momo’s death. No amount of regret or guilt could erase her betrayal. Betrayal deserved retribution, and Jiang Momo’s death was fitting.
He shifted slightly to shield Tang Ning from the wind and rain.
Beside him, Gu Helian noticed the Cheng Princess suddenly collapse. He quickly reached out to catch her.
“Rong Yue!”
…
The events at the Cheng Prince’s residence caused a massive stir. The fire consuming the Star Gazing Tower amidst the torrential rain drew widespread attention. With the Marquis Wenxin and the Capital Magistrate leading troops and officials to storm the Cheng Prince’s estate, a shocking sequence of events unfolded: the Dowager Consort was murdered, the Cheng Prince was found to have secretly recruited soldiers and stored weapons, and he attempted to frame the Cheng Princess and collude with Xiao Yan. Every revelation sent ripples through the capital.
Qin Niang hurried from the palace and was greeted by the sight of the Cheng Princess, her face pale and bleeding profusely.
“This child… the baby can’t be saved.”
Gu Helian winced at the pain in his bandaged back. “Forget the child! Save Rong Yue!”
Qin Niang snapped, “Now you care? Do you think I’m a deity? I told you before: the Princess’s health is fragile, and her pregnancy unstable. She shouldn’t have been subjected to this kind of stress. And yet you let her return to the Cheng Prince’s residence. This is madness!”
“If Aunt didn’t hit rock bottom, she wouldn’t turn back,” Tang Ning interjected.
Qin Niang turned to the unusually composed young girl, surprised by her calmness. Though pale and visibly worried, Tang Ning didn’t panic. She had stepped into a leadership role, displaying a maturity and poise reminiscent of Xiao Yan.
“Please, Qin Sister, do everything you can to save my aunt,” Tang Ning pleaded softly.
Qin Niang sighed, her earlier frustration dissipating. “Don’t worry. The child may be lost, but the Princess will survive. Thanks to the life-saving measures prepared earlier, she’ll pull through, though she’ll be significantly weakened after this.”
Turning to the bloodied and injured Sun Taiyi, Qin Niang said, “Come with me. I’ll teach you the acupuncture techniques needed. I must return to the palace soon; you’ll oversee her care afterward.”
Sun Taiyi, still reeling from the night’s chaos, initially hesitated. But under Tang Ning’s quiet yet piercing gaze, he reluctantly adjusted his posture and replied, “I’ll do as you say.”
He followed Qin Niang into the chamber, clutching his medicine box tightly. Inside, he tried to convince himself that he was here to hone his medical skills and not because he was afraid of the county princess's intimidating demeanor.
Why does she seem as terrifying as Xiao Yan himself? he wondered, suppressing a shiver.
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T/N: The big reveal
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You can read ahead to chapterr 234 (100+ extra chapters) here
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