I became the tyrant's only belief.

Chapter 399 I want to live

Compared to the hustle and bustle outside, only occasional conversations could be heard inside the private room.

Huang Ting noticed that although the young man opposite her was talking to her, and his attitude was relatively gentle and polite compared to the previous two times, his mind was not on her.

The young man's gaze kept drifting towards the beautiful figure by the window, a gentle smile playing on his lips.

This is the expression on the face of someone you love.

Huang Ting knew.

But she'd rather not know now.

She lightly bit her lip, which was hidden under her veil, and noticed that there was only a shallow amount of tea left in front of Xiao Jingfan. Suddenly, she got up and picked up the teapot to refill his cup.

Her clothes were scented with fruit and wood fragrance. When she leaned closer, the slightly sweet scent of fruit and wood wafted over, making people unconsciously look towards the source of the fragrance.

Xiao Jingfan also looked up at the person who was pouring him tea.

Huang Ting met his gaze without flinching, her beautiful eyes filled with shyness and timidity, quite captivating.

A night breeze swept by, and the veil's ties suddenly snapped, the thin veil trailing slowly to the ground, revealing a beautiful, delicate face.

Meanwhile, clear tea water is poured into the cup, creating ripples on the surface.

Huang Ting seemed unaware that her veil had fallen off, and softly said, "Young Master Wang, tea—"

Before she could finish speaking, a hand swiftly reached out from the side, clamping her wrist like an iron fist and twisting it behind her back.

"You dare to show off your meager skills in front of us?" Zhou Yuande snorted coldly, his voice no longer deliberately lowered, revealing a somewhat intimidating sharpness.

"Ah!" Huang Ting cried out in pain, tears welling in her eyes. She was so shocked by the suddenness of Zhou Yuande's self-reference that she didn't notice.

Chu Liuzheng turned around when he heard the noise and saw Zhou Yuande with a gloomy, fat face, pressing Huang Ting's upper body onto the table with just one hand.

【Huh? Miss Huang's veil fell off?】

That's right, Chu Liuzheng, who is obsessed with looks, was most interested in Huang Ting's face.

Miss Huang's face is stunning! With looks like that, she could easily rank near the top in any harem.

"Let go!" Huang Ting struggled with tears in her eyes, but her strength was no match for Zhou Yuande's. She used all her strength, but still couldn't break free.

She was afraid inside, but angrily questioned the young man opposite her: "Young Master Wang, is this your way of treating guests?"

Xiao Jingfan picked up the teacup and gently shook it. Suddenly, he twisted his wrist and poured the entire cup of tea onto the table.

The table surface was coated with a layer of paint, making it shiny and clean, so anything on it would stand out.

The tea slowly spread across the table, and in the bright candlelight, a tiny, almost transparent sphere, about the size of a grain of rice, appeared in the otherwise empty tea.

Xiao Jingfan glanced at the sphere a few times, raised an eyebrow, and said in a cold voice, "Is this Miss Huang's way of being a guest?"

"I don't understand what you're saying." Huang Ting frowned, her eyes brimming with tears. "The tea is from your private room. Even if something dirty got mixed in, it's the waiter's fault. What does it have to do with me, a customer?"

She emphasized the word "guest," thinking that one should always be considerate of scions of prominent families.

Xiao Jingfan didn't have time to listen to her excuses and gave Zhou Yuande a wink.

Zhou Yuande pulled Huang Ting up with a forceful pull, stuffed a handkerchief into her mouth, dislocated her shoulder joint without blinking, and shoved her toward Lü Fei.

Lü Fei: ?
Why push it to him?

This woman is even trying to poison His Majesty, assassinate him, and kill him to settle things.

But then Xiao Jingfan ordered, "Take him back to the military camp."

Lu Fei glanced at him. Had he taken a liking to someone?
But his expression doesn't seem to match.

He had countless guesses in his mind, but his actions were swift and decisive. There were no ropes in the private room, so he tore down the gauze curtain, twisted it into a rope, tied the person up, and threw him against the wall, planning to take him with him when he left.

"Ugh." Huang Ting unconsciously let out a few groans of pain.

How could a pampered young lady withstand such brutal treatment? She had already fainted from the pain when Zhou Yuande dislocated her shoulder joint. [Tsk, he actually dared to lay a hand on the tyrant! Even if he doesn't execute his entire family, they'll be wiped out. Even if the tyrant doesn't know that Master Huang is helping the pirates of Wangyue Island sell stolen goods, he can still kill this scoundrel who aided and abetted the tyrant.]

Chu Liuzheng was delighted, thinking that perhaps without a thorough investigation, they could follow the Huang family's lead to Wangyue Island and wipe out the pirates in one fell swoop!
Tongniang stepped forward and put the insect egg on the table into a bottle.

Just then, golden fireworks exploded in the sky, and amidst the cheers of the crowd, the door to the private room was knocked on.

Three long and one short strikes is the agreed-upon method.

The private room fell silent instantly.

Xiao Jingfan said, "Open the door."

Zhou Yuande walked over and opened the door. He was relieved to see that it was Xiao Daping and Xuan who came in.

He glanced at the sack Xiao Da was carrying on his shoulder and asked, "Is it done?"

Xiao Da nodded and entered the private room one after the other with Ping Xuan.

Not seeing Jiang Yao, Tongniang hurriedly asked, "Where is my young lady?"

“Master Jiang has gone to deal with those drugged people,” Xiao Da said. “She asked me to tell you not to worry about her.”

Tongniang nodded, but she was still worried because she couldn't see her young mistress return safely.

Chu Liuzheng gently comforted her for a moment, then listened intently to Xiao Da's report.

Upon hearing that it was Ping Xuan who had used his own blood to severely betray his master Yin Lanci, thus turning the capture operation from hard mode to easy mode, Chu Liuzheng couldn't help but glance at the handsome young man several more times.

This is true hatred; they've even resorted to methods that inflict heavy losses on both sides.

After listening to Xiao Da's report, Xiao Jingfan frowned and looked at Ping Xuan: "Why bother with this?"

"I only have this one chance." Pingxuan looked directly at him, her lips pressed together. "I want to live."

[Tsk tsk, Yin Lanci hates traitors the most. If Ping Xuan doesn't do something underhanded, he'll be the first to die when the two sides fight.]

Chu Liuzheng glanced at Xiao Jingfan's cold and stern face.

[That's what you call a tyrant dog. If Pingxuan hadn't been on guard, he'd be meeting his maker by now.]

Xiao Jingfan: "..."

Which side is this woman on?

Pingxuan asked, "Your Majesty's words are law; do you now wish to go back on your word?"

For both public and private reasons, Xiao Jingfan did not want Pingxuan to live.

However, the emperor had to save face.

Thus, Pingxuan was able to live for the time being.

Having gotten the answer he wanted, Ping Xuan quietly retreated to the wall, glanced down at Huang Ting who was bound hand and foot on the ground, and a cold sneer appeared on his lips.
-
The spectacular illusion came to an end, and amidst the lingering fragrance, the people fell into a deep sleep, oblivious to everything.

The pale moonlight draped them in a light veil.

The fighting within the city continued until midnight.

At dawn, Jiang Yao returned to Xiyuan Garden, stepping through the morning dew. In the bundle she carried were three human heads: Chi Nian, Bai Ou, and Hei Fu.

Qingjiu was seriously injured but managed to escape, and the secret guards are in pursuit.

"As agreed, after you ask what you want, Yin Lan will resign and return to me." Jiang Yao looked directly at Xiao Jingfan and threw the bundle on the ground.

The strange lines on her face had completely faded, and her fair skin had a transparent quality in the morning light. Her lips were so pale that they seemed to melt into the morning light.

Tongniang rushed forward to support her, calling out worriedly, "Miss."

(End of this chapter)