Ji Lingxue tugged at Xiao Yichen's arm and asked, "Who was that woman in white who just passed by?"
Xiao Yichen glanced in the direction of Ji Lingxue's finger and said, "That is Chu Xin, the daughter of Prime Minister Chu, and the leader of the three most talented women in the capital. With Ji Yuqing's arrival today and all the talented women gathered together, I'm afraid they will inevitably write poetry..." As he said that, he glanced at Ji Lingxue.
Ji Lingxue pouted and said, "Why are you looking at me?" She knew that Yiyun had invited her here with bad intentions. Was she using poetry to humiliate her, the Princess of Chen, as having no talent or virtue? Haha, this calculation was wrong. She came prepared today, and Xiao Yichen would help her deal with all the setbacks.
Xiao Yichen smiled and said, "What if they make a scene later and ask you to write a poem as well?"
Ji Lingxue blinked, and really thought about it seriously, then turned to look at Xiao Yichen and said, "Then I'll ask you, Your Majesty, to write it for me."
Xiao Yichen twitched his lips, "Father has hired teachers to teach you many times before, is it true that you don't even know how to write poetry?"
Ji Lingxue smiled. Ji Baichuan had indeed invited a teacher, but that was for Ji Yuqing. Whenever she wanted to attend class with a book, Feng would always find various things for her to do, anyway, to make her miss the teacher's teaching time.
Hearing the servant report to Prince Chen and Princess Chen, Yiyun came out happily to greet them. She said that she hadn't seen Xiao Yichen for some time. Xiao Yichen, who usually didn't like these gatherings, actually came with Ji Lingxue.
Evian was wearing a light pink dress today, and the rabbit fur on the collar made her skin look as white as snow.
"Prince Chen, Princess Chen, you are here. I wonder how your princess has been doing since we last met at Wangyue Lake?" Yiyun asked while bowing gracefully.
Ji Lingxue smiled and said, "Thank you for your concern. I am doing well."
Yiyun looked behind Xiao Yichen and asked him, "Didn't Sister Yuqing come with the prince today?"
Ji Lingxue rushed to answer: "Of course my sister is here, and she's still behind." Xiao Yichen stood aside and smiled.
Yiyun said "oh" and invited Xiao Yichen and Ji Lingxue to sit in the pavilion not far away. The pavilion was covered with bead curtains on all sides, making it less cold.
There were already three people sitting in the pavilion, and the woman in white, Chu Xin, was among them. Seeing this, they hurriedly stood up and saluted. Xiao Yichen waved his hand and said, "Everyone, please stand up. No need to be polite."
Chu Xin looked at Ji Lingxue and said, "Princess Chen rarely shows up in our circle of noble ladies. This is the first time I've seen her today."
The two women beside him laughed and said, "The prince always takes the princess with him wherever he goes. Their love is truly enviable."
Yiyun hurriedly explained: "This is Prime Minister Chu's daughter Chu Xin, this is my best friend Fang Yuyan, and this is Jasmine."
Chu Xin was elegant and refined in her white dress, Fang Yuyan was cute and lovely in her yellow jacket and skirt with two buns, and Jasmine was beautiful and charming in her red dress with a lotus bun. Yiyun stood between them and became an embellishment.
"Everyone is here. It seems I've arrived just in time." A clear and beautiful voice came from the plum blossom forest. Who else could it be but Ji Yuqing? She was wearing a blue dress today. She walked out of the plum blossom forest like a fluttering butterfly. Her skirt fluttered in the wind. The golden hairpins inserted in her bun sparkled in the sun, making crisp jingling sounds.
Yiyun smiled and said, "Yuqing, you are late. You must write three poems before you can come in."
Ji Yuqing hurriedly apologized and immediately composed three poems on the theme of flowers. Only then did Yiyun stop and pull Ji Yuqing into the pavilion for tea.
When a group of women get together, all they do is compliment you on your hairstyle, you compliment my jewelry, you talk about this year's popular clothing styles, and she talks about which family's boys are the most handsome.
Ji Lingxue yawned out of boredom. She was not impressed by these compliments. Moreover, due to her status as Princess Chen, no one wanted to chat with her.
Yiyun called Xiao Yichen away and said that she had something to tell him. Ji Lingxue had no interest in prying into Yiyun's thoughts, so she walked out of the pavilion and walked along the stone path in the plum forest, occasionally picking a plum blossom and playing with it in her hand.
I heard giggling behind me. I wonder what happy things these women were talking about.
Evian Mansion was also very large. After leaving Merlin and stepping onto the arch bridge, there were rockery and trees on both sides. When she was about to go back, she met Ji Yuqing and Chu Xin who were taking a walk.
Ji Yuqing said: "Sister, are you looking for the prince? It's only been a short time since you and the prince were separated, and you can't help but miss him, hehe..."
Ji Lingxue frowned, "Sister, you think too much. I was just taking a walk because I was bored. Besides, I can't keep up with you talented ladies who can speak poetry."
Chu Xin said: "I never thought that Princess Chen is actually a talentless person. I really don't know why Prince Chen is so in love with you?"
Ji Yuqing said: "If it weren't for my sister's good birth and her early engagement with the prince, it wouldn't be my sister's turn to be the Princess of Chen now."
Ji Lingxue smiled, "It's good that my sister was born like that. She has become a concubine. Miss Chu Xin hasn't married yet. You were born with a noble status. I'm afraid no man is worthy of you. You haven't been engaged yet at the age of official marriage. So what if you are talented and beautiful? So what if you have a good family background? But you have become a tool for marriage and married someone you don't love. What's the point of showing off?"
Ji Lingxue's words made Chu Xin blush. She had originally intended to ridicule Ji Lingxue on behalf of Ji Yuqing, but she didn't expect that she would be ridiculed by the other party instead.
Ji Lingxue said: "The prince and I have been childhood sweethearts. It has nothing to do with marriage. The prince married me willingly. Haven't you heard the saying that if you want to tie a man down, you must first tie his stomach down? My cooking skills are good, and men can still leave me alone."
Ji Yuqing gritted her teeth. What Ji Lingxue said was absolutely right. In the birthday gift presentation for Xiao Yichen that day, Ji Lingxue just happened to have the upper hand. A food that they had never heard of won Xiao Yichen's complete favor.
Just when the atmosphere was tense, a maid came towards Ji Lingxue, "Princess, the prince wants you to come over."
Ji Lingxue nodded, ignored the two talented women, turned around and left with the maid.
The maid brought Ji Lingxue to the door of the wing room, "Princess, the prince is waiting for you inside, please go in quickly."
Ji Lingxue raised her eyebrows, pushed open the door and walked in. The room was a little dark. Ji Lingxue called Xiao Yichen's name twice, but got no answer.
Ji Lingxue frowned, turned around and walked back, only to find that the door had been locked from the outside when she reached the door.
What's the point of locking her up in this room
Ji Lingxue folded her arms across her chest and looked around. At this moment, she heard a noise behind a screen not far away. Ji Lingxue strode over, walked around the screen, and was shocked by the scene in front of her.
Jasmine was lying on the bed with purple lips and blood at the corners of her mouth. Ji Lingxue stepped forward and pushed her, "Miss Jasmine..."
Seeing that Jasmine didn't respond for a long time, he reached out to touch her nose.
At this moment, "Ah... someone is murdered, the princess has murdered someone!" The maid who had just led the way ran out from somewhere and screamed loudly.
The tightly closed door was pushed open, and Xiao Yichen and Yiyun ran in the front.
Ji Lingxue kept bending over and slowly turned her head to look at the screaming maid. It was obvious that this was a setup. Today's plum blossom viewing party was originally a Hongmen meeting. She thought Yiyun's methods were mediocre, but she didn't expect that she would go to such lengths this time, even murdering people and framing others.
Xiao Yichen looked at Ji Lingxue in horror, "Xue'er, what happened?"
Yiyun said: "Just now Jasmine told me that she had a headache, so I arranged for her to sleep in this room, but I didn't expect the princess to be here too..." The implication was that Ji Lingxue had an argument with Jasmine and then poisoned her to death.
The maid said: "Princess...how can you kill someone..."
At this time, Ji Yuqing and Chu Xin also walked into the room, looking at Ji Lingxue with gloating eyes.
"Sister, how can you kill someone? Even though you are a princess and Jasmine is just a singer in a brothel, it is still a human life after all!" Ji Yuqing said as if she was afraid that the world would not be in chaos. She was happy to see that Ji Lingxue was in trouble.
Yiyun murmured, "I invited Jasmine to my house today because I was planning to have her dance to entertain me, but I didn't expect..." As she spoke, she picked up her handkerchief and sobbed, her expression full of sadness and self-blame.
Ji Lingxue straightened up and said, "I didn't kill that person."
The maid said, "Princess, how can you lie? Just now you and Miss Jasmine were the only ones in the room, and I heard some noises in the room. If it wasn't you, who else could it be?"
Ji Lingxue turned to look at Xiao Yichen and repeated what she had just said: "Your Majesty, I didn't kill anyone."
Xiao Yichen, didn't you say you would protect me? Now, do you believe me
Chu Xin said, "Princess, you and Jasmine are the only ones in the room. What can you use to prove that you didn't kill anyone?"
Ji Lingxue said: "Miss Jasmine was poisoned, but I don't have any poison powder on me."
Yiyun raised her head, her eyes red, and said, "In order to prove your innocence, Princess, will you accept a body search?"
Xiao Yichen glanced at Ji Lingxue, turned his head and said, "Xue'er, just cooperate with the body search." The absence of poison powder proves that there is no murder weapon or motive.
Ji Lingxue sighed and nodded, then opened her mouth and arms to signal them to come over for a body search.
Xiao Yichen walked up to Ji Lingxue and said to everyone, "Let me search you, is that okay with you?"
You are the prince, who dares to object
No one answered, so Xiao Yichen started searching Ji Lingxue from her hair. The hairpin was taken off, leaving her long black hair scattered on her body.
Xiao Yichen began to search Ji Lingxue's arms, wrists, chest and legs again.
Xiao Yichen knew that Ji Lingxue had been researching some poison powders recently, but none of them were fatal. But if she brought poison powders with her today, it would be hard to explain. What on earth did she want to do as a princess visiting Evian's house with poison powders
Xiao Yichen obviously wanted to protect Ji Lingxue. He searched Ji Lingxue's chest and asked with his eyes: What's going on
Ji Lingxue shook her head helplessly, not knowing what was going on. She had just approached Jasmine and had not had time to find out what was going on when she was startled by the maid's sudden shouting.
Evian's sobbing was particularly loud in the quiet room. It was really sad that such a good maiko died so suddenly.
Xiao Yichen felt something hidden in Ji Lingxue's chest, but he didn't search it. He turned to Yiyun and shook his head, saying, "There is nothing suspicious on my princess."
Yiyun's maid said, "My Lord, the princess is your woman, it is natural for you to protect her. I saw the princess kill someone with my own eyes."
(End of this chapter)