Crossing the Mountains

Chapter 217 Becoming a Sacrifice
Yelena narrowed her eyes, her gaze sweeping over Caizhu'er.

She suddenly chuckled: "Interesting. A mere merchant's daughter, not only coveting the title of princess, but also daring to brazenly impersonate a princess to marry the third prince of Da Xuan? Who gave you the guts?"

Cai Zhu'er suppressed her trembling and said resentfully, "The entire caravan is dead, and my father and brothers didn't escape either. I'm just a barbarian woman who entered the pass and am completely unfamiliar with Da Xuan. How am I supposed to survive? Since I can't survive anyway, why not take a risk? His Highness the First Prince is just worried about not having a replacement for the princess... And I succeeded! I fooled the Third Prince and even became the Princess of Qin! That's endless wealth and glory!"

Yelinya laughed mockingly, "Then may I ask, Princess Qin, why have you fallen into such a state of being a prisoner?"

Caizhu glanced fearfully at Aisha, stammering, "I...I..."

“Because she’s too arrogant!” Aisha sneered. “She thought she was hiding it well, but little did she know that the royal family of Da Xuan already knew about the princess’s attack and death, and that the third prince had already seen through her disguise. He was just going along with it and playing along for the sake of the royal family’s reputation and the diplomatic relations between the two countries.”

“After the Third Prince is granted the title of Prince of Qin, the Empress will take the opportunity to poison her, the fake princess, to eliminate any future troubles. If I hadn’t wanted to spare her life so that I could return to Mohe and tell her the truth, she wouldn’t have had the chance to stand here.”

"In the midst of his busy schedule, he still has the mind to save her. It seems the eldest prince cares a lot about this merchant girl?" Yelena probed.

"Heh, don't underestimate her. I was almost fooled by her at first." Aisha looked at Caizhu, her eyes flashing with cold hatred. "Back then, she told me that Alan left a will before her death and entrusted her with her personal ornaments, asking her to bring the tokens to me so that she could help me complete the marriage alliance. I thought she was doing this out of a sense of righteousness."

"After spending more time with her, I realized that she was nothing but a scheming liar. Later, the King of Qin investigated the attack in depth and obtained a lot of clues... Finally, under my questioning, she finally revealed her true colors and admitted that she had failed to help Alan in her time of need, but only because there was no way to verify it, she took the risk of volunteering herself when I was busy dealing with her."

Cai Zhu trembled, but not from fear.

She suddenly understood why Aisha had been so cautious when she first discovered she possessed Alan's sapphire bead necklace, and why her suggestion to work overtime on Princess Alan's head was a test. At that time, he didn't trust himself at all; for a long time, he suspected Alan's death was related to her. He suspected she was an accomplice of the assassin, and he also suspected her of failing to save Alan in her time of need.

Perhaps it wasn't until she managed to escape from the Qin Prince's mansion and stop acting under the name of Princess Alan that he slowly lowered his guard and dared to place a little trust in her.

What kind of environment did he grow up in that made him so withdrawn and suspicious?

At this moment, Yelena was focused on something else: "A clue? What clue did the King of Qin discover? Could there be another hidden story behind the destruction of the marriage alliance?"

Aisha said, "Indeed, the King of Qin has confirmed that the attack on the marriage alliance was not carried out by ordinary bandits, but by the Da Xuan rebels in collusion with Ti Nu, who set up a trap to prevent the marriage alliance."

"So that's how it is..." Yelinya feigned surprise. "Alas, poor Alan, if only you had listened to my advice and hadn't been so eager for a marriage alliance, you wouldn't have lost your life at the hands of an assassin."

“Fortunately, the Great Xuan has completely eradicated the rebels, and the alliance between the two countries has been successfully concluded, which can be considered a consolation to Alan’s soul.” Aisha bowed respectfully. “Father, thanks to the protection of the god Monroe, my mission has not been in vain.”

"Hehe, my son... you've worked hard..."

"It was hard work, and it was indeed dangerous, but Princess Alan died and the marriage procession was wiped out. As the envoy, the eldest prince should not bear any responsibility?" Yelinya's lips parted slightly, clearly intending to make things difficult for Aysa.

“Of course I cannot escape the blame.” Aisha stepped forward. “As the elder brother, I have no face to face my father and mother for letting my sister die in the desert. I am willing to bear all the punishment! However, there are still some doubts in the clues provided by the King of Qin and this merchant girl. Allow me to find all the murderers involved in the assassination and avenge Alan’s blood feud before punishing them.”

"Are there still any doubts?" Yelena frowned.

“The Zhenxi Army, which surveyed that valley, seems to have found a kind of sleeping powder. When they were suppressing the rebels, the Da Xuan side also found that kind of sleeping powder in the home of an official, but we don’t know where it came from.” Aisha looked at Caizhu’er. “She was the only survivor of the assassination, and she also smelled that fragrance.”

"Oh? What kind of fragrance was it?" Yelena asked with interest. "I..." Caizhu stammered, "Back in the valley, I did smell a very peculiar fragrance, but I couldn't identify what kind of spice it was. I'd never smelled anything like it before... After that, everyone and I were exhausted and could only be slaughtered..."

As she spoke, Yelena and Aisha's gazes clashed in mid-air.

Yelena understood—

Aisha already knew he was involved in the assassination and had evidence to smear her, but he chose to settle things quietly. He seemingly put forward a merchant girl as a scapegoat, but in reality, he placed a witness who could identify the scent of the drug incense in front of her, threatening her not to pursue his failure.

This is a tacitly agreed-upon political deal.

“It is only right to avenge my sister.” Yelena suddenly turned around, her beaded sleeves brushing against Caizhu’er’s cheek. “Since this merchant has confessed, according to the laws of Mohe, those who blaspheme the royal family shall be burned at the stake! Let us appease the gods’ wrath with her flesh and blood on the day of the Monroe Festival. Does the eldest prince have any objections?”

“I will leave it to the Princess’s decision,” Aisha said.

When the final witness is eliminated, neither side will pursue the past, and they can continue their struggle.

As the guards dragged Caizhu away, she calmly glanced at Aisha. The young prince stood there, adorned in magnificent robes yet utterly alone, much like the battered statue of Monroe.

She saw his hands, hanging by his sides, clench and unclench.

They had no choice; the play had gone on for too long to turn back.

The heavy palace doors closed behind her, and Cai Zhu'er vaguely heard Yelinya's meaningful voice: "The eldest prince is indeed... a man of great principle."
-
The day after returning to the prison, Cai Zhu fell ill.

She huddled on the thin, rough straw mat, her mind hazy, a fine layer of cold sweat beading on her forehead. The chill of the dungeon slowly seeped into her bones, each breath a burning pain, plunging her into an endless nightmare.

The images of her father and brother's tragic deaths flashed before her eyes, and she said she would take her with her and not let her suffer any longer.

And there was the vaguely defined Zhenxi Army captain, her deceased husband Shen Tu Heng, who reached out to her from the burned-down green hut and called out to her, "Xi Jun."

Princess Alan's sapphire beaded string was strangling her throat.

She suddenly started coughing violently: "Cough, cough..."

The torches on the stone wall distorted into flickering ghostly shadows in her hazy vision, and she heard a clanging sound as Fu Feng frantically shook the prison door.

Fu Feng said anxiously, "Cai Zhu'er! You're sick! Hold out your hand so I can check your pulse!"

Cai Zhu'er mumbled, "I don't have the strength to get here. Even if I did, you wouldn't be able to reach it..."

Fu Feng said, "Who says I can't reach it! I learned pulse diagnosis by thread pulling from the doctors of Da Xuan. Pull out a thread... If you can't pull it out, it's okay. Just pluck a hair, tie it to your hand, and throw it to me..."

Before he could finish speaking, Caizhu fell into a deep sleep again.
-
Next chapter: Sacrificial offerings can't just die whenever they want.