Chapter 176: Chapter 176: 176 Prince Longevity (6)

The Taoist told Princess Consort Cheng that he had dealt with it.

But when Princess Consort Cheng went to find Chuzheng to settle the account, she hadn’t said much before Chuzheng drove her out.

Where was the matter settled?

It clearly hasn’t changed at all!

Princess Consort Cheng wanted to confront the Taoist, but where could she find him now?

Princess Consort Cheng couldn’t understand how she had been deceived.

Angered, Princess Consort Cheng sought several other Taoists, but to no avail in the end.

Chuzheng did whatever she was supposed to do.

Princess Consort Cheng had several confrontations with Chuzheng, and each time, she was soundly defeated.

“Mother.”

Cheng Xiao was furious.

“She hit me, look, the mark hasn’t even faded yet. Are we just going to let this go?”

Princess Consort Cheng hurriedly consoled her daughter, “Mother is also pained for you, but the one in the southern courtyard is truly very strange.”

“She must be possessed,” Cheng Xiao pouted, “She wasn’t like this before, so fragile a gust of wind could knock her over, but now she dares to strike.”

Cheng Xiao continued, “I’ve made inquiries; those who are possessed often undergo a complete change of character, gain strength, or suddenly know things they didn’t before. She’s definitely possessed!”

“And Mother, the last time she came back, she was wearing clothes from the Embroidered Brocade Pavilion, the latest fashion no less. Where did she get them?”

Princess Consort Cheng hadn’t paid attention before, but recalled the detail after Cheng Xiao mentioned it.

“She shouldn’t have much money on her…” Princess Consort Cheng said, “After the Prince left, I’ve had the treasury key. I haven’t given her any money these past months.”

“Mother, do you think…” Cheng Xiao clutched at Princess Consort Cheng’s hand, “she couldn’t be meeting men in private, could she?”

Princess Consort Cheng’s face shifted subtly, “Don’t talk nonsense about such things.”

“Then where did her clothes come from? A man must have bought them for her!”

Princess Consort Cheng appeared contemplative.

After a moment, Princess Consort Cheng patted Cheng Xiao’s hand, “Don’t worry about this. It’s almost time to enter the palace… Did Qing He bring back the clothes we sent last time?”

Cheng Xiao sneered, “She said they got dirty and asked Qing He to wash them. She wishes. Qing He just tossed them aside.”

“Tell Qing He to clean them.”

“Mother?”

“Mother has a plan.”

“…Alright then.”

–

“…Qing He, why are you standing in front of the Miss’s courtyard gate? What mischief are you planning now?”

Lv Zhu opened the courtyard door to see Qing He standing at the entrance, warily eyeing her.

Lately, the Miss… had been acting a bit strange, but considering that these people now dared not bully the Miss so freely, she felt the change wasn’t necessarily for the worse.

“You…” Qing He wanted to erupt in anger, but recalling the recent actions of the master of this courtyard, she held back, “Here are the clothes from last time, they’re cleaned.”

Qing He shoved the clothes at Lv Zhu and quickly left.

Before Lv Zhu could examine them, the clothes were taken by a fair-skinned hand.

“Miss, these were the ones they sent over last time,” Lv Zhu stepped back and bowed, “They were prepared for you… to wear when entering the palace.”

The attire for entering the palace needed to be elaborate, not like the usual attire.

“I don’t want them.” Chuzheng thrust the clothes back into Lv Zhu’s arms, “Just throw them away.”

“Ah?”

But what will she wear?

She can’t wear her old ones, can she?

That would be laughable!

“Throw them away,” Chuzheng declared decisively.

Lv Zhu initially struggled to adapt to Chuzheng’s manner, but now she was almost used to her cold demeanor.

It was good for the Miss not to be bullied…

–

Juyuan Pavilion.

The young man in white descended the stairs, leaning on the handrail with several guards following behind him. The people around dared not look him directly in the eye.

The young man held his chin high, his still youthful face full of contempt and disdain.

He was the current Emperor’s younger brother, ranked eighth, and had just turned fourteen this year. His title was Prince Rong.

Just as Prince Rong was about to reach the end, he suddenly stopped and looked toward the corner.

“Sixth Royal Brother.”

Prince Rong looked as if he had seen something amusing, his youthful face revealing an eager malice.

The one he called Sixth Royal Brother stood in the corner.

He was also just a youth, dressed in dark robes, his head lowered.

He stood there extremely quietly, almost unnoticeable until Prince Rong had spoken.

“Sixth Royal Brother, sorry about that, you’ve been waiting for a while, haven’t you? I forgot you were still down there.”

There wasn’t a hint of apology in Prince Rong’s words.

It was all ill-natured mockery and scorn.

Even standing still, the young man had an elegant and eye-catching manner.

He slightly raised his head.

The moment his face was revealed, there were faint gasps from the crowd.

Stunned by the young man’s appearance.

His looks were stunning, his features clear and distinct.

His face was somewhat sickly pale, his lips lightly pursed, mysteriously carrying a bit of submissive gentleness.

Yet his eyes were very calm, like a soulless doll.

Exquisite, but only to be manipulated by others.

His rosy lips parted slightly: “It’s no trouble.”

His voice was crisp and gentle, calming the hearts of those who heard it.

However, Prince Rong reacted as if he had heard something extremely disgusting, his attitude abominable as he said, “If that’s the case, then Sixth Royal Brother can walk back by himself, I’m not going to accompany you.”

“Alright,” the young man agreed.

Prince Rong snorted coldly but then laughed again: “I’ll watch you leave.”

The young man hesitated slightly before starting to walk out.

Prince Rong immediately signaled someone beside him with a look, and the guard quickly descended the stairs, just as the young man was walking out the door, he was harshly pushed out.

Amid the low exclamations of the crowd outside, the young man fell to the ground, his black hair spilling out, spreading across the floor.

His black robes also opened up, dusting the ground.

The surrounding crowd immediately began whispering and pointing at him.

Seeing Prince Rong in the Juyuan Pavilion, everyone immediately fell silent, not daring to gossip further, afraid to provoke the little Demon Head, Prince Rong.

The Emperor was extremely indulgent toward this younger brother.

The young man lay on the ground, his head bowed, his ink-black hair concealing his expression, bloodstains faintly visible on the palm inside his sleeve.

Prince Rong stepped out with a bold stride, his foot pressing down on the young man’s hand.

He looked down at the young man from above: “Sixth Royal Brother, be careful where you walk. Why are you like those women, so delicate and weak? Perhaps I should report to Imperial Brother and have you married off, find someone to take good care of you?”

Could there be anything more insulting than calling a man, like a girl, and suggesting he be married off?

The young man remained silent for a long period before speaking: “There’s no need…”

“Ah, that’s boring,” Prince Rong sighed like a child: “Well then, Sixth Royal Brother can’t bear to leave me, and I can’t bear to leave Sixth Royal Brother, either.”

Prince Rong left in high spirits, laughing heartily.

The young man’s palm stiffened.

“Are you alright?” A greasy hand extended in front of him.

The young man paused, following the hand with his eyes, he saw a young Taoist holding a chicken leg, looking at him with concern.

“I’m fine.” The young man avoided the Taoist’s hand and stood up on his own.

His palm was covered with bloodstains from scraping against the ground.

“Are you really okay?” The Taoist looked after him with care.

“I’m fine.”

The young man nodded to the Taoist and walked away in one direction.

The Taoist followed: “Hey, wait a moment, I have something to tell you, you’ve got a darkening on your brow, and it looks like you’ll face a disaster…”