Chapter Thirty: The Princess Consort Is Also a Master of Deception

"Your Highness..." Xiao Jingxuan gazed at Su Jingluo with a dazed look. Zhuo Yue'an glanced at Xiao Jingxuan, momentarily unsure how to enter the room. After all, he had just discovered someone's little secret, and if he ruined her small display of pride, she'd bare her teeth at him.

"Come in and speak," Xiao Jingxuan hurriedly composed himself, sitting upright in his chair.

"Here? Are you sure?" Zhuo Yue'an was a little surprised. The two of them usually shared their secrets in secluded places—had the princess's status risen so high now?

"What is there to be afraid of? Can the princess in her current state still give anything away?" Xiao Jingxuan thought Zhuo Yue'an was becoming increasingly oblivious; whether or not secrets were kept, the princess was no outsider.

"Your Highness, I haven't been able to discover exactly when the Empress made her move, but Consort Lin did meet someone last night. They whispered for a while and then left," Zhuo Yue'an reported, sorting through the information he received daily from the shadow guards and presenting what was useful.

"Who was it?" Xiao Jingxuan frowned. Very well. It seemed Lin Feifei's act could come to an end.

"Someone from the palace."

"Lin Feifei can't hide her fox's tail any longer. The Emperor and Empress truly think highly of me—first sending the princess, and now planting Lin Feifei. Does the princess's current state have anything to do with the Emperor?" Xiao Jingxuan suspected everyone. Su Jingluo was the first to be exposed, which was why he had neglected her for so many years. Though he also suspected Lin Feifei, she had never revealed herself.

"I can't find out. Your Highness, our strength is still insufficient," Zhuo Yue'an could see that his lord was truly anxious this time. He had begun reviewing his own forces and external deployments since early morning.

"Anyone who harms my people will pay with their life. The princess is like this now—every moment this grievance goes unavenged is a stab in my heart. Kill the Empress—whether by assassination or poison, I want her dead." Xiao Jingxuan gnashed his teeth. On his way home last night, he had sworn to protect this fragile happiness, only to find it shattered the moment he arrived.

He could not endure it any longer.

"Your Highness, this... Acting rashly will leave many clues and weaknesses. Please reconsider, and think of the young lord as well," Zhuo Yue'an had never seen Xiao Jingxuan so impulsive before, and had to bring up his dearest concern to make him think clearly.

"I will protect Yunbai myself, and the princess will be sent away. I want everyone in the palace to pay for what they did to her."

Xiao Jingxuan had always thought he had no fatal weakness, that he handled everything thoroughly. But now he realized how suffocating that had been. Even if it meant mutual destruction, at least he would live freely now.

"I promised you and our child—no one would ever bully you." He walked to Su Jingluo's side, gently running his hand through her silky hair, and spoke softly.

"Um... There's no need to be so eager to die for me; you make me feel rather embarrassed," Su Jingluo suddenly looked up, baring her teeth in a smile.

Xiao Jingxuan was stunned. What did she mean? Was Su Jingluo still pretending to be mad, or had she recovered?

"So you've been feigning madness all along?" Suddenly, Xiao Jingxuan understood—they'd all been fooled by her. For a moment, he felt an urge to slap her. How could this woman be so infuriating?

"Are you angry? Is it really necessary? I lost my memory, didn't I? I couldn't tell if the Emperor or Empress were good or evil. When she poisoned me yesterday, I decided to play along and see what tricks she was up to. Who knew you would take it so seriously?"

Su Jingluo had only realized she was poisoned last night when she saw the snowflakes that looked like dandruff. Her mind searched through her knowledge, and she deduced that she had fallen victim to her family's secret gu poison, "Drunken Immortal." She had rummaged for the antidote, but not knowing why the Empress had targeted her with the gu, she'd decided to test her instead.