Reborn as the Crippled King's Beloved

Chapter 39: Chapter 39 A Box of Jewelry and Silks for Her

After Jun Yuyan left, Murong Jiu still lingered on the words he had said.

She thought that if it were someone else, they would surely find every possible way to learn more from her—who wouldn’t want to seek advantages and avoid harm?

But Jun Yuyan was truly different; he respected her a lot and was a responsible, stand-up guy.

Too bad she hadn’t understood him in her past life.

In this life, she was determined to change the early demise of Jun Yuyan and wouldn’t let him fall victim to Jun Haoze’s treacherous plots again.

Although she didn’t know why Jun Yuyan had returned to the Capital City in her previous life, now that she had memories of her past life, she would absolutely not let the tragedy happen again.

...

Feeling good, Murong Jiu even ate half a bowl more of rice at lunch.

The head chef at Drunken Fairy Tower lived up to his reputation; the dishes were all to her liking and favored lighter flavors.

Xiao Wen also ate his fill beside her. He had been getting better nourished day by day; his skin was still a bit dark, but it was a healthy color, and she believed that in no time, she could nourish him into a plump and fair state.

Second Prince’s Mansion.

“How could such a thorough plan fail!”

Jun Haoze was furious, sweeping everything on the desk to the floor with a swipe and drawing the treasured sword from the wall, seething with murderous intent.

Several aides and trusted guards kneeled on the ground, knocking their heads on the floor and loudly pleading, “Your Highness, please calm your anger.”

“Prince Ling just had a stroke of damn luck, coincidentally catching the remnants of the former dynasty in his hands. Your Highness, you mustn’t lose your composure now!”

A middle-aged aide with a goatee exclaimed loudly.

“Damn luck? I dispatched twenty dead soldiers, and Jun Yuyan came out completely unscathed. You call this damn luck? A bunch of worthless trash!”

The more Jun Haoze spoke, the angrier he became, and he swung his sword at the speaking aide.

Screams, like those of a pig being slaughtered, rang out as steaming hot blood splashed on everyone’s faces.

A severed hand twitched on the ground a few times as blood gushed out.

“Scream again, and I’ll chop off your head next!”

Jun Haoze’s eyes were sinister, and his blood-dripping sword stood erect on the ground, his demeanor a far cry from his usual mild-mannered appearance, making everyone’s heart skip a beat.

The wounded aide’s face was deathly white, not daring to cry out anymore, cold sweat forming on his forehead from the pain as his whole body trembled.

“For today, I’ve been plotting for months, and you all said it was foolproof. Yet, you’ve let Jun Yuyan effortlessly gain credit. Is this what you call foolproof? Tell me, is this foolproof?”

Everyone’s heads were bowed, none daring to make a sound, as silent as cicadas in winter.

“Speak, why is it now that no one has anything to say? Tell me, why did all twenty dead soldiers fall at Jun Yuyan’s hands? The only ones who knew of this plan were myself and you few here.”

Jun Haoze’s venomous gaze swept across all those present.

The insinuation in his words was clear.

Jun Yuyan couldn’t have simply been that lucky. Such a meticulous plan, executed so suddenly without alerting anyone, should have caught Jun Yuyan completely off guard.

Yet, somehow, Jun Yuyan seemed to have developed a Heavenly Eye, detecting the plan the moment it began to unfold. The dead soldiers were decimated, and then, the remnants of the former dynasty, whom he had deliberately lured into the Capital City with bait, also fell into Jun Yuyan’s hands!

If the plan had succeeded, the remnants of the former dynasty would have “gone on a rampage” in the Capital City, causing the Emperor to be enraged. Because of being caught unprepared, Jun Yuyan would have either died or been injured. Even if he survived, he would be punished by the Emperor. At that critical moment, Jun Haoze would step in, seize the credit, and establish a reputation in front of the Emperor and the people as someone capable and effective in handling affairs.

From then on, he would no longer live in the shadow of Jun Yuyan. Everyone would remember that he was the legitimate son born of the Main Empress, the man most eligible to be Crown Prince. He was indeed better than Jun Yuyan!

This plan had great significance for Jun Haoze.

But, it had failed!

Jun Yuyan certainly couldn’t have grown the Heavenly Eye, so there was only one possibility—someone betrayed him!

Jun Haoze’s bloodied knife dragged across the ground with an ear-piercing screech, but his voice was eerily calm.

“Speak, who exactly has become Jun Yuyan’s lapdog? Confess yourself, and I shall spare the lives of your entire family.”

No one dared to utter a sound, fearing to be vented upon by Jun Haoze like the middle-aged aide.

“Not talking? Then all of you may as well take your own lives.” @@novelbin@@

A trusted follower immediately cried out, “Your Highness, I am utterly loyal to you, without a sliver of treachery! I swear on my life, I have never betrayed Your Highness!”

The others also hastened to ensure their loyalty.

Jun Haoze naturally didn’t know that in reality, no one had informed on him. It was Murong Jiu, whom he had looked down upon, who had been reborn overnight, learned of the situation first, and disrupted his plan.

He was convinced that someone in that room had leaked his plan, causing him to unwittingly serve Jun Yuyan, giving the latter an opportunity to achieve a meritorious deed.

If that were not the case, the one who should be entering the palace to meet the Emperor at this moment would be him!

He ground his molars in hatred, “Since you all claim to be loyal, then I shall have to torture each of you until your mouths pry open.”

At this moment, an aide swiftly shouted out loud,

“It was Guard Xu! Your Highness! It must have been Guard Xu who betrayed you! He has been short of money recently, only he had the motive to betray Your Highness!”

If they did not accuse someone else, then they themselves would be the ones to endure torture, so they had to point the finger at someone who seemed to have a flaw.

The aides were all intelligent, which is how they earned the title of think tanks.

Once this aide spoke up, the remaining three aides also echoed immediately.

Guard Xu’s complexion changed drastically, “I have not! Your Highness, I have indeed been short of money recently, but I have never once harbored the heart to betray Your Highness!”

Jun Haoze’s icy gaze fell upon him.

…

Murong Jiu had no idea that her assistance to Jun Yuyan this time had caused dissension among Jun Haoze’s followers.

The middle-aged aide with the severed palm was actually one of Jun Haoze’s most trusted followers later on.

And the soon-to-be-doomed Guard Xu, skilled in martial arts, had killed countless people for Jun Haoze, a sharp blade in his hand.

“Miss, Miss, the young master has returned from the palace, and he’s heading this way! I saw the servants carrying a chest here!”

Chun Tao ran back from the entrance of the courtyard, excitedly bringing the news to Murong Jiu.

Murong Jiu was teaching Xiao Wen to read when she heard the news. She got up and before long, Jun Yuyan arrived, indeed with people carrying a heavy-looking chest behind him.

“These are some trinkets bestowed by Father Emperor, I have no use for them, so I brought them for you,”

Jun Yuyan explained as the servants set down the chest and opened it.

The array of dazzling jewels nearly blinded her.

Inside, there were also many silks and satins that even the Consorts in the palace couldn’t wear.

Murong Jiu didn’t know that the Emperor’s intention was for Jun Yuyan to pick a few treasures from the storeroom, but he had chosen everything suited for a woman.

Those several pieces of silk were even coveted by Consort Yun Pin, who was currently favored yet had never managed to claim them.

What woman doesn’t love to adorn herself? Upon seeing these exquisite and lovely jewels and silks, Murong Jiu’s heart was also pleased.

“Oh, Mother wants me to take you to the palace tomorrow. Tomorrow is her birthday. Do you want to go, Ah Jiu?”