Love Lock

Chapter 74 Demon, monster!

Qin Yanran patted her hand and comforted her, "Don't worry, Qiao'er. We've been discreet enough. Even if someone investigates later, they won't be able to trace it back to us."

As if remembering something, Zhao Qiao'er felt uneasy and turned to ask Liu'er, "Have you destroyed all the evidence?"

Liu'er said with some pride, "Miss, don't worry! I have buried the paper packet containing the medicine powder under the tree outside Zhao Ling'er's courtyard as you instructed."

"Hmm! Liu'er is really good at handling things. This way, killing three birds with one stone is a sure thing."

Aunt Qin smiled so broadly that her eyes disappeared, and she took off a jade-green bracelet from her wrist and handed it to Liu'er.

"Here, take this. It's a reward for you."

"Thank you, Master." Liu'er was overjoyed. After accepting the bracelet, she quickly and respectfully curtsied.

"Heh." Zhao Qiao'er sneered, "The funeral will be held in the Prince's Mansion tomorrow. Let's see how they set off then. Don't think that just because you're a prince, you can turn the world upside down. If you miss the imperial decree, His Majesty will blame Zhao Zun. From now on, you'll be the one in charge of the Prince's Mansion, Mother."

It was late at night, but the mother and daughter were still too excited to fall asleep.

They whispered in the room, discussing how to watch the excitement at the Prince's mansion the next day, how to act as if they were heartbroken in front of everyone, while secretly feeling smug.

Unfortunately, they didn't know that Pingchuan outside the window could hear their entire conversation clearly.

Pingchuan was terrified. To him, Han Lei was not only his queen and mistress, but also his savior.

He suppressed his shock and anger, quietly left the window, and with a quick breath, lightly leaped out of Qin Yanran's courtyard.

This matter is of utmost importance; he must report it to the Prince as soon as possible.

Soon, Pingchuan entered Han Lei's courtyard.

"Your Highness," Pingchuan called from outside the door.

"Come in."

Inside the house, Han Lei had fallen asleep after taking her medicine. Seeing that Han Lei was alright, the old lady and Zhao Ling'er were sent back to the main house to rest by Zhao Zun's men.

Zhao Zun was tucking Han Lei in when he heard Pingchuan's shout, and he felt inexplicably irritated. He had a very bad feeling.

"Your Highness, it was indeed Consort Qin and her daughter who did it. This medicine packet was dug up from under a tree outside Miss Ling'er's courtyard."

As he spoke, Pingchuan handed a crumpled piece of paper to Zhao Zun.

"Ling'er?"

Zhao Zun's pupils contracted sharply as he unfolded the crumpled paper, revealing some medicine powder still clinging to it.

“Yes, Your Highness. Zhao Qiao’er’s maid buried the medicine packet under a tree outside Miss Ling’er’s courtyard, saying it was a triple kill. They said…” Pingchuan then reported everything he had heard to Zhao Zun.

"What a brilliant plan to kill three birds with one stone! It's utterly vicious; they even wanted to frame Ling'er as well."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Zun's face turned ashen, and his fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

"Ha! Killing three birds with one stone. Ha!" Zhao Zun laughed self-deprecatingly.

He never imagined that it was Zhao Qiao'er, this seemingly weak woman, who had orchestrated all of this behind the scenes! She was his half-sister!

Over the years, while he and his father were away from home, Qin Yanran and her daughter bullied his gentle and kind mother and sister. Now they want to kill the woman he loves and also want to cause him to be blamed by His Majesty.

Are they still half-siblings?
"boom!"

With a loud bang, Zhao Zun slammed his hand on the table and stood up abruptly, the tea set on the table making a crisp sound from the vibration.

The sudden loud noise startled Han Lei, who was fast asleep, awake.

"Huh? What's wrong?"

Han Lei opened her eyes, lifted the mosquito net, and asked somewhat groggily.

"Uh, it's nothing. I just accidentally bumped into the table. You can go to sleep without worry!"

Zhao Zun quickly walked to the bedside, looked tenderly at Han Lei, and placed her hand under the covers. Seeing this, Ping Chuan quickly turned and left the room. "Oh, it's getting late, you should get some rest too! We have to leave early tomorrow morning!"

Han Lei closed her eyes, rubbed her face against Zhao Zun's large hand, and fell into a deep sleep again.

After Han Lei fell asleep again, Zhao Zun turned his head and glared out the window, his eyes burning with an unbearable, endless rage.

"How dare such a vicious person be tolerated by my Zhao family!"

Zhao Zun's voice was deep and powerful, each word seemingly squeezed out from between his teeth, carrying an undeniable determination.

He strode away, slammed the door, and left, determined to personally deal with the mother and daughter to set a good example for the family.

When Zhao Zun stormed out of Aunt Qin's courtyard, the light was still on in her room. The dim light shone through the window lattice, casting two blurry figures.

Zhao Zun took a deep breath, leaped up, and landed lightly outside the window like a night hawk.

As he listened to the faint voices and snickers coming from inside, Zhao Zun's face grew darker and darker.

He suppressed his anger, refraining from breaking down the door. Instead, he let out a soft snort, turned around, gathered his strength, and flew off in another direction...

The next morning, the spring sunshine streamed down from the horizon.

The carriage caravan heading to Cangzhou was already waiting at the gate. Xiao Zhengfei and Pingchuan, along with their guards, loaded their belongings onto the carriages.

Zhao Zun helped the old lady and Zhao Ling'er into the carriage before turning around to take Han Lei's hand.

Aunt Qin and her daughter, who were waiting to see a good show, plotted too late last night and ended up sleeping in.

When the two of them walked out of the courtyard, they found that the mansion was quiet and there was no sign of a funeral being held.

Aunt Qin and her daughter lived in a side courtyard of the Prince's mansion. After exchanging a suspicious glance, they decided to go to the old lady's main house to take a look.

As they passed the gate, they saw Zhao Zun helping Han Lei into the carriage from afar.

Han Lei has a delicate and pretty face, and a beautiful smile. She doesn't look like she's been poisoned and died at all.

The person who should have been dead is now standing alive right in front of me.

The two women standing in the early spring sunshine had never seen such a bizarre scene before.

Qin Yanran was so frightened that her face changed drastically, and she couldn't help but stagger back two steps, almost falling over.

"This...how is this possible?"

Zhao Qiao'er rubbed her eyes, her face turning pale with fright.

"There was chaos in the Prince's mansion last night. They clearly said that wretched woman had been poisoned. Didn't the doctor also find it impossible to treat her? Why is she still so fresh-faced? Then who was poisoned in the Prince's mansion last night?"

"No, it must be...it's her. I...I understand, I...I understand."

Recalling the day Han Lei hit her, with her cold and chilling expression, Aunt Qin's lips trembled with fear. She swallowed hard and could barely speak.

"She fears neither heaven nor earth, and even poison cannot harm her. She... she is some kind of monster, a monster!"

Zhao Qiao'er wasn't as incompetent as her mother. After a brief moment of shock, her eyes darted around, and she was the first to react.

"Mother, Mother, let's go back and take a look."

Zhao Qiao'er grabbed Aunt Qin's arm and left. She wanted to go inside and see if they were seeing things. Perhaps Han Lei had been poisoned, and the person Zhao Zun helped onto the carriage wasn't Han Lei at all.

Along the way, seeing the empty, desolate, and messy scene of the Prince's mansion, the mother and daughter's hearts sank with the early spring breeze.

To their surprise, after the two of them ran back to the main courtyard of the Prince's Mansion through the corridors and pavilions, they were even more furious.

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(End of this chapter)