As days went by, Di Lanmo's wound had healed a great deal and was almost fully recovered.
Even so, Di Lanmo still lingered in bed, her gaze fixed on the sunlight outside. The sunlight had filled half of the room, indicating that it was nearly noon.
"Your Highness, you've been lying in bed for a whole day. How about going out for a stroll?" Qiao Yan pleaded at the door with a forlorn look.
It wasn't that she was ill; she just didn't know how to face Chu Zhiyan. After all, the whole mansion was abuzz with the rumor that she was deeply in love with him. It was so embarrassing!
"Your Highness, it's a lovely day today. Why don't you take a walk in the garden?"
Di Lanmo was too lazy to listen to Qiao Yan's incessant nagging, so she finally agreed to go out for a walk.
She strolled leisurely in the yard, unaware that Lan Hongjiao not far away was seething with jealousy.
"Damn it! It's all this woman's fault. If it weren't for her, the prince would surely love me. After all, I've served the prince for so many years. He can't have no feelings for me at all. It's all this damned woman! It's all her fault!" Lan Shujiao muttered to herself, her face twisted with malice. She wished Di Lanmo were dead.
It was just her bad luck that this bitch had such a tough life and kept showing up under her nose every day. It was really disgusting.
Lan Shujiao suppressed her jealousy and followed Di Lanmo closely, waiting for an opportunity to frame her.
Di Lanmo wasn't a fool. She saw Lan Shujiao's every move clearly, but she thought the woman's tricks were too low - level to be worth her bother. So she simply sat down in the flower pavilion ahead to see what tricks she was up to.
Taking this opportunity, Lan Shujiao drew out the dagger hidden in the lunch box and lunged at her.
Sensing something amiss, Di Lanmo quickly dodged. When she turned around, she only heard the sound of the rice bowl shattering and saw the broken pieces and spilled food all over the ground.
Seeing that her attempt had failed, Lan Shujiao was furious. She had been a secret guard by the prince's side for over a decade. How could she fail to kill a woman?
She crossed her arms and sneered, "Your Highness, these are all the dishes the prince personally ordered me to prepare for your well - being. Even if you don't like me, you don't have to waste the prince's good intentions."
"Oh, are you blaming me?" Di Lanmo was almost laughed out of anger. Was this woman brainless?
She was the princess, while Lan Shujiao was just a servant. How dare she be so sassy towards her master? Just because the prince was a bit kind to her, she actually thought of herself as half the mistress.
"I wouldn't dare. Your Highness can flirt with the prince on one hand and exchange glances with the Third Prince on the other. If I were you, I'd be too ashamed to show my face."
These words were clearly and implicitly mocking her for being promiscuous. This woman's tricks were not very sophisticated, but her sarcastic remarks were really disgusting.
"What, are you jealous? If you change your habit of biting like a mad dog, maybe some man will take a fancy to you."
Lan Shujiao was so angry that she couldn't come up with a retort.
Then, she had a sudden idea. She pointed at the broken food on the ground and said indignantly, "I said this stone pavilion is too slippery. It's not as good as in the house. I accidentally slipped, which is why the food was spilled. The prince's good intentions are all gone."
Di Lanmo just replied with an "oh" and didn't seem to care at all.
She said calmly, "Since you know this is the prince's good intention for me, and you were so clumsy that you spilled the food, then you can squat down and eat all this for me."
"You..." Lan Shujiao's fingers trembled with anger. When had she ever suffered such an insult? She swore to teach Di Lanmo a lesson.
She suppressed her inner anger and squatted down on her own initiative. Looking at the rice, she smiled maliciously. She had already spotted a figure in the distance. Chu Zhiyan was walking towards them. She must expose this woman's false face.
She immediately pretended to be pitiful, forcing herself to shed tears and sobbing softly.
"Wuwuwu, it's all my fault. It's all my mistake. I accidentally said something wrong about Your Highness and the Third Prince. But this food was personally arranged by the prince. It's only natural that Your Highness doesn't feel bad about it being spilled. It's also only natural that you ask me to eat the leftovers on the ground."
Lan Shujiao was crying like rain, nothing like her arrogant self just now.
One was acting too intently, and the other was watching too seriously. They completely ignored Chu Zhiyan who had just walked over.
However, Chu Zhiyan didn't plan to say a word. He watched as a bystander, waiting for Lan Shujiao to finish eating the food on the ground. He also approved of the princess's actions. Lan Shujiao had been with him for a long time, and their interests were intertwined. Before she was completely useless, he couldn't deal with her for the time being.
Lan Shujiao didn't really want to eat. The moment she saw Chu Zhiyan, she immediately stopped what she was doing.
She grabbed Chu Zhiyan's robe while crying and complained pitifully, "Please, my lord, do justice for me. The princess doesn't treat me like a human at all. Just because I brought the food, the princess not only smashed it but also forced me to eat the leftovers on the ground. The things sent by the Third Prince, the princess treasures them well, but she ignores the meals personally arranged by the prince."
"Enough!" Chu Zhiyan shouted at her. "For the sake of our past friendship, I won't punish you today. Go to the martial arts hall and face the wall to reflect. Come out when you've thought it through."
Such a punishment was quite light for others, but Lan Shujiao still thought it was the princess who had caused trouble. She hated Di Lanmo even more. In a fit of anger, she ran out.
Chu Zhiyan felt a sense of unease. Lan Shujiao had been with him since he was eight years old. They had been through so many hardships together. He wasn't someone who didn't value old friendships. He just hoped that she could realize her mistakes soon and come back to work.
If not, a glint of killing intent flashed in his eyes. He would have to fight her with weapons.
Lan Shujiao absent - mindedly ended up on the outskirts of the city. She was in a huff and didn't want to go back, so she just wandered around aimlessly.
A blade came flying through the air. She dodged quickly and took a defensive stance, staring coldly at the person in front of her.
A man in black was standing on a tree. His mask covered his face. He clapped his hands and said, "Good skills! Miss Lan truly lives up to her reputation as the prince's right - hand woman."
"What do you want?"
The man in black smiled. "I'd like to make a deal with Miss Lan."
In the middle of the night, many men in black suddenly appeared in the yard where the princess lived. They skillfully climbed through the window and targeted Di Lanmo directly.
Di Lanmo was awakened by the sense of killing intent. She picked up a dagger and fought with them. Hearing the noise, Chu Zhiyan also rushed over quickly. Lan Shujiao was afraid that something might happen and followed him.
"Lan Shujiao, you deal with these assassins. I'll go in and rescue the princess."
Chu Zhiyan was almost frantic. He left all the assassins to Lan Shujiao and rushed forward bravely.
These assassins were not as powerful. Lan Shujiao gradually began to struggle. She thought to herself that she just needed to hold on a little longer and the prince would come to rescue her soon. When she couldn't hold on anymore and looked into the room, she saw the prince looking at Di Lanmo's scar that was less than an inch long with a pained expression.