These days, she suddenly took a fancy to playing chess. After all, there was nothing else to do when she was alone.
Moreover, she gradually found that she understood many things from playing chess that she had never figured out before. There were even some clues about those treacheries she had vaguely solved back then.
Just as she was hesitating about her next move, Mei, Lan, Zhu, and Ju stepped into the room.
"Your Highness, we just heard something interesting outside. Do you want to hear it?"
The girl put down the chess piece with her fair - skinned hand and turned her star - like eyes.
"Of course I want to hear the gossip."
Hearing this, the four of them took turns to tell the information they had gathered.
The arc of the girl's mouth grew wider and wider.
"It seems that someone can't wait any longer. I said that the waters of this big family are not that shallow. It seems that there's going to be a good show."
"He Rou should be afraid that the fact that she killed the mistress of the He family will be discovered in the future, so she plans to make the prince kill the two of them with his own hands tomorrow. But I always feel that it can't be that easy. Should we give them a little push?"
The girl shook her head, not quite agreeing with Mei's words.
"Someone will step in sooner or later. Do you think He Rou's such a plan will surely succeed? I don't believe it. They've never been the type to sit back and wait for death. Let's just watch the dogs fight each other."
With her words, the Thirteen Guards didn't plan to interfere.
Early the next morning, the girl had gone to bed late the previous night. She sent someone to keep an eye on the side courtyard and then went back to sleep. Even when the sun was high in the sky, she had no intention of getting up. Anyway, someone would surely come to wake her up.
While someone was sleeping soundly, someone else couldn't sit still.
He Rou had already grasped Qing Bai's whereabouts. She knew that he would never leave his elder sister without any special circumstances, which just created an opportunity for her.
While the two people in the bed were still sleeping, she sent most of the maids in the side courtyard away, and then quietly took her personal maid to the side courtyard.
It seemed that she wanted to catch the two inside off - guard, or maybe it was on purpose. She waited until there was a sound inside before pushing open the door.
The two of them had thought that no one would come to the side courtyard, so they were completely immersed in their moment.
When Qing Bai was on top of He Hui and met He Rou's eyes, his face immediately fell.
Almost instantly, he used his internal energy to close several windows, and then rushed forward with his light - body technique to choke He Rou's neck.
The woman being choked obviously didn't expect things to turn out like this. This was not in line with her original plan.
She had originally planned to catch them in the act while they were off - guard.
However, the man in front of her reacted so quickly. She secretly thought it was bad. She turned around and wanted to run, but it was already too late.
Helplessly, she could only turn her eyes to the person on the bed, hoping that the person would be afraid of those behind her.
"Sister! I can keep today's matter a secret from everyone. Please let me go. If Father knows that I died here, he will never forgive you. Even if you have a hundred mouths, you won't be able to excuse yourself."
"Heh, what you said reminds me, my dear sister. Do you think Father will go crazy if he can never see you, this cruel concubine - born daughter? I remember he loved you the most back then. He should not want anything to happen to you here, right?"
Since they had already been discovered, He Hui didn't think there was any need to hide anymore. She wrapped herself in a sheer veil, under which her curves were faintly visible, extremely alluring. She walked closer step by step, making Qing Bai stare at her intently and subconsciously tighten his hand.
He Rou was already out of breath from being choked. After seeing the killing intent in He Hui's eyes, she regretted her recklessness today.
"No! Absolutely not! Sister, I shouldn't have competed with you for things since I was a child. I know I was wrong now. Please spare me. From now on, if you tell me to go east, I will never go west. I will do whatever you say."
As she spoke, hot tears fell on Qing Bai's hand. However, he showed no sign of letting go.
In this world, there was only one person he cared about.
And that person was smiling tenderly at him.
"It's too late. Everything is too late, sister. Since we were very young, you've been competing with me for all kinds of things. You're just a low - born child from a concubine. Logically, you should have been humble in front of me. But unexpectedly, Father gave you and your actress mother special favors. Even I, the legitimate daughter, had to lower my head in front of you. I've had enough of this kind of life."
As she spoke, she took out a sharp hairpin from the jewelry box beside her and then continued.
"I made a deal with Father and helped him seize the throne. I've been winning step by step and finally got to where I am today. Just when I'm about to succeed, Father wants to kick me out for a small matter. The purpose is to let you take over everything in my hands and give you this credit, right? Do you think I don't know anything? You all treat me like a fool! Father clearly promised to protect Mother and younger brother, but he broke his promise!"
"No! No! If you want to blame someone, blame Father. I didn't come here to compete with you for credit this time. Please spare me. I can go back to the Northwest and will never appear in front of you again."
"You really treat me like a fool. Don't I know what will happen if I let a tiger return to the mountains? If you had known this would happen, you shouldn't have touched my mother and younger brother. They were my last relatives! You scoundrels!"
Tears streamed down He Hui's face. She rushed forward crazily with the hairpin, leaving one deep - bone - visible scar after another on He Rou's face.
"This is all what you owe me, what you owe my mother and younger brother. I will go back. By then, I will make him kneel in front of my mother and younger brother's memorial tablets to admit his guilt!"
As the last word fell, He Rou slowly closed her eyes.
It seemed that she still wasn't satisfied with her venting. She continued to stab the hairpin into He Rou's body, leaving one hole after another.
Just like this, the cold and beautiful girl who was still alive not long ago had now become a cold and mutilated corpse.
Qing Bai didn't even look at the person on the ground. Instead, he gently held He Hui in his arms.
"You go and rest first. Someone needs to clean up here. I'll come to accompany you after I've taken care of this. I'm sure they'll find out that He Rou is missing soon. We should come up with a fool - proof plan then."
"Wait, I have a better idea. This time, we can just solve a big problem for ourselves. That person has stayed in the mansion for too long. She's had a peaceful life for too long. It's enough."