Chapter 1078 - 1080: Chu Hai Falls_1
Bai Ruozhu’s eyes slightly narrowed, Zhou Jue had actually become the Crown Prince of Chengshui Country, and she didn’t even know about this news—no wonder he was so arrogant now!
Bai Ruozhu glared at him, "A friendly competition is what you call poisoning my guard? Attempting to kill me, a fourth-rank authorized lady? Although I am of humble status, I am still a wife sanctioned by Danliang Country. Since when can the Crown Prince of Chengshui Country harm the wife of a Danliang official?"
Liang Jing glanced at Jianqi’s hand that had turned green and understood that Bai Ruozhu’s words were not false. He coldly looked towards Zhou Jue and said, "The Chengshui Crown Prince has come to visit, why didn’t you go to the Guest House? Even though all visitors are guests, they still need to abide by the rules of the Capital City. Since the Chengshui Crown Prince has injured someone, please come with me."
Zhou Jue’s face still wore an amused smile, "So this is how Danliang Country treats its guests? Or is it that someone in the Capital can actually ’cover the sky with one hand’ now?"
At this moment, the sound of horse hooves approached from afar; it was the Capital’s Prefect, Fan Li, leading a group of officers who had hurried over. Upon arrival, he hastily dismounted to pay his respects, saying, "The lowly official greets the Chengshui Crown Prince, greets Lord Liang. I just heard that a misunderstanding occurred here; please, for my sake, let’s not make a big deal out of it."
Liang Jing snorted coldly, "Prefect Fan really did come at just the right time."
Fan Li could not miss the irony in his words, but he could only force a dry laugh. After all, he had no choice; he had just received the news that the Crown Prince of Chengshui had arrived unexpectedly, and the Ministry of Rites hadn’t yet managed to receive him. As the Capital’s Prefect, he couldn’t allow the situation to escalate into a big incident, or else the two countries would...
"It is my fault for arriving late, my fault indeed," Fan Li said and then gave another bow to Liang Jing, his manner extremely humble, which made it difficult for Liang Jing to flare up in anger.
"But the Chengshui Crown Prince indeed injured someone in the Capital City; this matter can’t just be overlooked." Liang Jing glanced at Bai Ruozhu and still spoke up. If he had arrived any later, Madam Jiang might have been in great danger. How would he explain it to Jiang Yichun? Everyone knew how much Jiang Yichun cared for his wife.
Yet Zhou Jue spoke lazily from atop his horse, "When did I ever injure anyone? Are any of them wounded?"
"Does poisoning not count as injuring someone?" Bai Ruozhu looked at him coldly.
Zhou Jue chuckled softly, his charm completely unveiled, dazzling the eyes of everyone present. Bai Ruozhu had seen his behaviors behind closed doors in the Space and felt sickened to the point of wanting to vomit, seeing him act this way.
"Where has he been poisoned?" Zhou Jue asked, even throwing a coquettish glance at Bai Ruozhu.
Bai Ruozhu didn’t bother with him and looked at Jianqi’s hand—sure enough, the poison had been cured!
She was greatly startled; Zhou Jue’s skill in curing poison had reached such an unfathomable level. What was she to do now?
However, this was not the time to think about these things, and she pursed her lips without saying anything.
Zhou Jue then looked towards Liang Jing and said, "It was just a joke upon seeing an old friend. Does Danliang Country have no sense of humor? Can’t even take a little joke?"
"You!" Liang Jing was also very angry but did not think it was appropriate to react strongly.
Fan Li quickly attempted to mediate, bowing to Zhou Jue and saying, "It’s all a misunderstanding that will clear up with explanation. Crown Prince Zhou, I am the Capital Prefect, Fan Li. The Ministry of Rites will soon send people to escort you to the Guest House; please follow me there first."
According to the customs of Danliang Country, if an important envoy or prince from another country visits, they are personally received by the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites. However, if the visiting guest is the Emperor or the Crown Prince, they are greeted personally by the Minister of the Ministry of Rites. Bai Ruozhu pondered as she watched a procession of horsemen approaching from the distance, whether the Ministry of Rites knew that Zhou Jue had become the Crown Prince.
But isn’t the elevation to Crown Prince generally accompanied by a major ceremony? Wouldn’t guests from all over be invited, and how could the news not have spread? Moreover, shouldn’t a Crown Prince stay in his own country to oversee the state affairs? Why would he come here?
At that moment, as the people from the Ministry of Rites drew nearer, Bai Ruozhu saw that leading them was Bai Guanghe, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, who also happened to be Bai Qizhi’s grandfather, with whom she had a brief previous encounter.
She didn’t think back to when Bai Guanghe had seen her faint before; her mind was preoccupied with trying to figure out the situation with Zhou Jue’s position as Crown Prince.
When Fan Li saw the people from the Ministry of Rites arriving, he sighed with relief and hurried to meet them, bowing to Bai Guanghe and saying, "Minister Bai, the Chengshui Crown Prince is now in the care of your Ministry of Rites."
Bai Guanghe was clearly startled, obviously also unaware that Zhou Jue had become the Crown Prince. He raised his eyebrows inquisitively at Fan Li, who spoke in a lowered voice, "He said so himself."
Zhou Jue, appearing nonchalant, shot a charming smile at Bai Ruozhu and said, "I don’t have time to play with you today, the Crown Prince must take his leave first."
After saying that, he rode his horse toward the Ministry of Rites. Bai Guanghe, prompted by his words, couldn’t help but look over at Bai Ruozhu. His expression changed upon seeing her, and Zhou Jue, now very close to him, subtly raised an eyebrow and turned his head to follow Bai Guanghe’s gaze to where Bai Ruozhu stood not far away. A hint of amusement crossed his lips, as he smiled crookedly with an expression full of malicious intent.
Bai Ruozhu took in everything and couldn’t help but inhale sharply. Zhou Jue was becoming more and more terrifying; had he devised some plan again?
As the Ministry of Rites escorted Zhou Jue away and Fan Li also made his parting bows, Bai Ruozhu came back to her senses, turned to Liang Jing, who was standing nearby, and bowed, saying, "Thank you for your assistance just now, Officer Liang. Otherwise, we would have been at a disadvantage against Zhou Jue today. His martial arts and poison skills are both profound and unpredictable. He is about to enter the Palace; please, Officer Liang, take extra precautions."
Liang Jing furrowed his brow, "Thank you for the reminder, Madam Jiang. I will instruct the Imperial Guards to keep a closer watch."
Bai Ruozhu bowed again to Liang Jing, "Then we shall take our leave and not trouble you with your patrol."
No sooner had she finished speaking than Diao Yao let out a startled cry. Chu Hai, who was standing beside them, suddenly collapsed.
Diao Yao and Xiaosi hurried to help Chu Hai up, but despite his frail appearance, being nearly 1.9 meters tall, the two of them couldn’t lift him by themselves. It was only with Muyu’s assistance that they managed to hold him up.
"Madam, was he poisoned by Zhou Jue?" Muyu asked anxiously.
Diao Yao burst into tears, "Sister Ruozhu, please save my senior brother; he can’t be in trouble again."
Bai Ruozhu stepped forward to check Chu Hai’s pulse, and her expression quickly turned grim, "Muyu, take Chu Hai back to the Residence immediately, and prepare for treatment."
However, Diao Yao suddenly declared with resolution, "Please take good care of my senior brother!" And with that, she turned and ran. Bai Ruozhu’s expression changed drastically. She chased after Diao Yao using her light skills, snatched her arm, and said, "Diao Yao, someone needs to help your senior brother with the detoxification. You can’t cause chaos. He wasn’t poisoned by Zhou Jue, but the poison he had previously suppressed with his Qi is flaring up again because of the excessive energy exerted just now."
Diao Yao shuddered, "What? The previous poison is flaring up again? She knew all too well how painful Chu Hai’s past detoxifications had been. Did all the suffering he endured before mean nothing? Were they going to have to start over again?