Feng Yunshu was still a bit surprised, but she quickly composed herself. She looked at Helan Yanting and nodded.
"Indeed, Your Highness. There has always been some poison in my body that the first wife had given me before. If I don't find a way to get rid of it soon, I won't be able to continue cultivating my spiritual power."
Helan Yanting saw Feng Yunshu looking dejected. He frowned slightly and stared at her intently with his deep eyes. Then he suddenly reached out and pulled her into his arms.
"Your Highness, this..." Feng Yunshu was startled by this sudden hug. She blinked and tried to sit up, but he pressed her back into his arms.
"I've told you before. As long as I'm here, you don't need to worry about these things. I'll take care of them for you."
"But... Your Highness, you haven't fully recovered yet, and you have to go to court every day. Last night, I seemed to see the Third Prince come to the mansion. What urgent matter did he have to come so late?"
Helan Yanting's eyes darkened slightly. "You don't need to worry about the affairs in the court, my lady."
Speaking of this, Feng Yunshu remembered what she had heard in the prime minister's mansion. After some thought, she decided to tell Helan Yanting.
"Your Highness, just now I sneaked into the prime minister's mansion and accidentally heard the Crown Prince and my father plotting in the study. They said they were going to..."
Feng Yunshu told Helan Yanting what they had said. "Your Highness, if what they said is true, the Emperor may also take action against you and the Third Prince. You must be careful. Do you have any way to deal with them?"
After listening, Helan Yanting couldn't help but smile at Feng Yunshu. "With my lady's caring heart, I'm not afraid of anything, no matter what happens."
Feng Yunshu blushed a little at his words. "Where am I caring... Besides, my caring words can't solve the problem. When problems arise, we have to find a solution quickly. Your actions in the prime minister's mansion must have made them hold a grudge. They will surely use this as an excuse!"
"Hehe," Helan Yanting saw Feng Yunshu looking so nervous. He couldn't help but reach out to smooth the wrinkles on her brow. "No matter what kind of villains they are, I will surely protect my lady. Just rest assured."
"Your Highness, do you really understand what I mean?"
Seeing that he was still smiling, Feng Yunshu became even more anxious. "I'm not worried about myself being hurt. I'm more worried about your safety, Your Highness!"
"I know. Thank you for your concern, my lady. I'm very happy."
Helan Yanting's smile grew wider. Suddenly, he leaned forward and got close to Feng Yunshu, leaving a warm kiss on her brow.
Feng Yunshu's face flushed bright red. Her mind went blank again. "Your Highness, what are you doing... I'm talking to you about serious matters..."
"You are my most serious matter, silly lady."
Helan Yanting pinched Feng Yunshu's blushing cheek, his smile full of affection.
"I... I'm too lazy to talk to you. You always take advantage of me and make fun of me. Humph!"
Feng Yunshu found that she simply couldn't continue talking about serious matters. Without realizing it, she had been completely subdued by him. She pouted and turned her head away, not looking at him.
"It's getting late. I'm very sleepy, Your Highness. You should also go to bed early."
"I've come all the way here. Can't my lady let me stay here for the night?"
Hearing this, Feng Yunshu poked her head out from under the quilt and sized Helan Yanting up and down. "Your Highness, I didn't expect that although you're not bad-looking, you have some really nice ideas..."
"Haha..." Helan Yanting was instantly amused. He leaned forward and wanted to pinch her cheek. Feng Yunshu reacted quickly and burrowed back under the quilt, hiding herself tightly.
"Your Highness, go and rest quickly. I'm really going to sleep! Don't expect me to see you off!"
Before leaving, Helan Yanting left behind a rather annoying laugh. Feng Yunshu tried her best to hold back the urge to jump out of the quilt and confront him.
As the saying goes, impulse is the devil.
After Helan Yanting left, Feng Yunshu called Xiaoling over. "Xiaoling, quickly tell me where you went just now? I told you to guard the room. How did several silver needles suddenly fly in from outside and knock out the first wife? I didn't even get to ask for the result!"
"Master, I was guarding the door properly at first. Suddenly, I smelled a very strong demonic aura. It was very pungent. Then I saw a demonic spirit flash out not far away."
Here, Xiaoling frowned. "If it were an ordinary demonic spirit, I might not have paid attention. But I saw that it was actually a fox demon spirit. The smell was definitely that of a fox demon. After all, we're of the same clan, so I wanted to chase after it to find out what was going on..."
"And then?" Hearing this, Feng Yunshu also frowned. How could such a coincidence happen?
"After I chased after it, the demonic spirit ran very fast. Then it ran into a forest. When I got in, I accidentally stepped on a hunting trap and was caught in a net. It took me a long time to get out. Then I heard your voice, Master, and I rushed back quickly..."
"What about that fox demon spirit? Where did it go?"
Xiaoling frowned and shook her head in confusion. "I don't know. It ran too fast. After I was caught in the net, it disappeared in the forest."
"It can't be such a coincidence. This looks more like a distraction tactic!" Feng Yunshu frowned. Suddenly, she thought of something and stared at Xiaoling with wide eyes.
"Could it be that someone knows our true identities?! Otherwise, how would that person know to use a fox demon spirit to lure you away from the prime minister's mansion?"
After hearing this, Xiaoling nodded in agreement. "Master, I think you're right. The appearance of this fox demon spirit is very strange. If there really is a mastermind behind this, who could it be? How many people in this place know our true identities?"
Yes, how many people know?
Feng Yunshu thought carefully. Ziyuan, Yan Qi, Yan Liu, and... the Prince?
Thinking about Helan Yanting's strange words and deeds tonight, Feng Yunshu felt a chill run down her spine. If that was really the case, was it also him who sent out the silver needles?
Feng Yunshu shook her head repeatedly to get these thoughts out of her head. It's impossible. It can't be. The Prince would never do anything to hurt her.
"Master, do you think it was the Prince who did this? I don't think so. The Prince is so good to you. It can't be him. Besides, what would be his purpose?"
Xiaoling was startled when she heard Feng Yunshu's thoughts.
Feng Yunshu quickly nodded in agreement. "You're right, Xiaoling. It's definitely not the Prince..."
Although Feng Yunshu said so, Xiaoling keenly caught the hesitation in her master's words.
After getting along for so long, Xiaoling knew exactly what was on her master's mind. She hoped that this matter had nothing to do with the Prince. Otherwise, her master would be very sad.
Time flew by, and the Mid - Autumn Festival was just around the corner.
Feng Yunshu had been worried that the Emperor and the Crown Prince would surely punish Helan Yanting. Unexpectedly, the days passed in complete calm until the Mid - Autumn Festival.
But Feng Yunshu knew that this was just a false calm before the storm.
Early in the morning, Zilan and Axi came in holding a bright red brocade dress embroidered with gold peonies and flowery patterns. "Princess, come and see. Do you like this new dress?"