Chapter 78: Poisoned in Prison

As Jun Qianye finished speaking in a loud voice, a sudden crash sounded at the door—the sharp noise of porcelain shattering against the floor. Opening the door, Jun Qianye saw Xia Yue’er standing on the threshold. She held a tray in her hands, yet the osmanthus and mung bean soup it carried now lay splattered on the ground, green broth staining her clothes in a messy state; but her disheveled appearance was nothing compared to the panic and shock that seized her.

After leaving the Jade Lotus Hall, Jun Qianye had come to the Prime Minister Xia’s residence. Although Xia Yue’er had been badly frightened in the hall, the arrival of the Seventh Prince made her heart flutter with excitement. She had deliberately ordered the kitchen to prepare osmanthus mung bean soup and brought it herself to the study, hoping for a chance to be close to the prince.

But what she heard instead was the sound of her own heart breaking.

Xia Yue’er felt her ears ringing—had she really heard that? Jun Qianye said he’d fallen for Xia Jiujiang? Xia Jiujiang, who was now Princess Jin, the same Xia Jiujiang once ridiculed as a useless fool and bullied in the prime minister’s residence?

Jun Qianye’s words were a blade, piercing Xia Yue’er’s heart, setting her insides ablaze with pain and fury.

Jun Qianye spoke coldly, “Xia Jiujiang is the woman I’ve chosen. If you need another reminder, do not lay a finger on Xia Jiujiang!”

With that, Jun Qianye didn’t so much as glance at the shocked and mortified Xia Yue’er standing by the door. He stepped past her and left the prime minister’s estate.

Eyes red with tears, Xia Yue’er rushed to Xia Wentao. “Father, what does His Highness mean? He’s interested in Xia Jiujiang? Xia Jiujiang—she’s a useless fool who’s already married and become Princess Jin! How could His Highness favor someone like her over me? In what way am I inferior to Xia Jiujiang?”

Seeing his daughter weeping bitterly, Xia Wentao’s heart ached with sorrow.

His anger surged—this calamity, Xia Jiujiang, had destroyed Jin Mantang and the Marquis of Guanyuan, and now she had stolen away the heart of the Seventh Prince—the one who should have belonged to Xia Yue’er. No, he couldn’t let this slide. If left unchecked, Xia Jiujiang would surely ruin the Xia family.

With a sharp, determined gaze, Xia Wentao comforted his daughter, enunciating each word, “Yue’er, rest assured—the position of Crown Princess will be yours and no one else’s!”

Rage and jealousy warred in Xia Yue’er’s eyes. She would never let Xia Jiujiang get away with this. The Seventh Prince would be hers and hers alone!

Even as Xia Yue’er’s troubles weighed on Xia Wentao, the matter of the Marquis of Guanyuan also became the prime minister’s greatest concern.

The plot by the Marquis of Guanyuan and Jin Mantang to frame Jiang Mantang was quickly brought to light, as the evidence was overwhelming. The entire Wang family was stripped of their property, and in prison, Wang Zhen was kept in solitary confinement, his appearance withered and spiritless.

Wang Zhen was tormented by countless questions. How had Jin Mantang fallen so swiftly? How had all those letters and pieces of evidence ended up in the secret room? These doubts gnawed at him day and night, tormenting him relentlessly, until today, when Lady Wang—Jiang Ying—passed by his cell.

With the Wang family’s downfall, Jiang Ying too had been arrested. Pei Xingzhi of the Supreme Court was investigating the truth behind the events of five years ago. The evidence found in Wang Zhen’s study had revealed much, yet crucial pieces still eluded Pei Xingzhi.

At this moment, Jiang Ying, as a key witness, cooperated with Pei Xingzhi’s investigation, exposing all the Wang family’s secrets. The plot by Jin Mantang and the Marquis of Guanyuan to frame Jiang Mantang was laid bare with irrefutable proof.

Wang Zhen, agitated, rushed to the bars and shouted at Jiang Ying, “You wretched woman! How could you be released? The Wang family has been stripped of everything—how is it that you, as Lady Wang, walk away unscathed? Was it you who planted all that evidence in my study?”

Jiang Ying—whose true identity as Jiang Beiying, the last survivor of the Jiang family, had been revealed by Xia Jiujiang—was spared by Emperor Zongkang in light of the Jiang family’s massacre. In return, Jiang Ying aided Pei Xingzhi in uncovering Jin Mantang’s crimes.

Today, Emperor Zongkang issued an edict freeing Jiang Beiying. It was only then that she passed by Wang Zhen’s cell and their gazes met.

Looking at Wang Zhen behind bars, Jiang Beiying sneered, “Since you already know, why bother asking?”

Wang Zhen roared, “Why? If not for me, you’d have starved to death by the roadside five years ago! I fed you, clothed you, made you Lady Wang, gave you power over the family—and this is how you repay me, gathering evidence in secret to destroy my Jin Mantang!”

Jiang Beiying laughed. “Master Wang, are you really asking me why? I suppose you’re the sort who forgets the past. When you heard my name, Jiang Ying, did you not find it familiar?”

“My name?” Wang Zhen was confused.

Jiang Beiying sighed, “It’s no wonder you don’t remember. The Wang family saw to it that all one hundred and four members of the Jiang family were beheaded. Why would you recall who they were?”

Wang Zhen was stunned. “You… you’re Jiang family!”

Jiang Beiying gave a cold smile. “Jiang Ying, Jiang—just like Jiang. I am Miss Jiang of the Jiang family, Jiang Beiying. Now, do you wonder why I destroyed Jin Mantang?”

Wang Zhen, trembling, pointed at her, “You… you wretch, it was you who orchestrated Jin Mantang’s downfall!”

Jiang Beiying laughed again. “Not just Jin Mantang. Your sons and daughters—dead, crippled, mad… every one of them, that was all my doing.”

“You…” Wang Zhen’s rage burned in his chest, his bloodshot eyes locked on Jiang Beiying.

His expression twisted, malicious and strange, he glared at Jiang Ying. “You think I don’t know you’ve been helping Pei Xingzhi investigate the Wang family? You think I don’t know you brought ruin upon us? You think I’ve said so much to you for nothing? Do you really believe you’ll walk out of here alive?”

As Wang Zhen finished, Jiang Beiying’s look of pride froze. A searing pain stabbed her chest. Unable to contain it, she spat a mouthful of blood and crumpled to the ground.

“You…” Blood gushed from Jiang Beiying’s lips.

Watching her collapse, Wang Zhen let out a chilling laugh. “I said all this just to see you die of poison before my eyes.”

News of Jiang Beiying’s poisoning soon reached the Prince Jin’s residence. Bai Zhi rushed to Xuan Third Residence, bursting through the door and falling to her knees with a sliding bow.

Lifting her head, Xia Jiujiang saw Bai Zhi at her feet. Good grief, Xia Jiujiang wasn’t dead yet—was it really necessary for Bai Zhi to kneel so dramatically?

Panting, Bai Zhi pleaded, “Your Highness… please, please save my mistress.”

Xia Jiujiang frowned. “Speak slowly. Wasn’t Jiang Beiying granted a special pardon?”

Eyes red, Bai Zhi was near tears. “My mistress was poisoned in prison.”

Accompanied by Bai Zhi, Xia Jiujiang hurried to the prison, where, outside Wang Zhen’s cell, Jiang Beiying lay on the ground. The jailers nearby dared not touch her. Xia Jiujiang saw the bright blood staining Jiang Beiying’s clothes from her mouth.