She looked so fragile.
Huo Dao felt no pain from the slap; her palm was too soft, and his face was thick-skinned. He hadn't even used any internal energy. It was like being swatted by a kitten with clipped nails, utterly without menace.
Her slender, long neck seemed as though it could be snapped with a single hand.
Huo Dao’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed quietly. His lashes drooped, concealing the fleeting glint of bloodthirsty red in his eyes.
Fu An had gone to the imperial pharmacy to fetch medicine. It usually took half an hour, but today, an hour had passed, and the medicine was still not back. Huo Dao was the one who brought it.
Shen Yue quickly sensed something was amiss. Just as she was about to send someone to look for Fu An, a guard at the door reported that the Crown Prince had arrived. Almost as soon as the words left his mouth, the door was flung open roughly.
The Crown Prince swaggered in. Shen Yue’s brow furrowed, and her face turned cold when she saw the person behind him.
Fu An, who had been missing, was now being held by the shoulders by two guards. His fair face was slightly swollen, and there was a bruise on his lip.
Seeing Shen Yue look over, Fu An subtly shook his head.
Shen Yue stood up, her hair loose. Her striking face, like a seductive phantom from a storybook, watched the Crown Prince approach with icy eyes.
“I heard you were also ill,” the Crown Prince said, his posture imposing and a mocking smile on his lips. “Perhaps you’ve done too many wicked deeds, and that’s why you’re being haunted by vengeful spirits.”
The Crown Prince’s arrival at this moment was merely to add insult to injury. He had always been so childish, unchanged over the years, still as foolish.
However, he should never have touched someone he shouldn’t have.
Shen Yue had never been this angry before, never had such a strong desire to kill someone.
Seeing Shen Yue’s perpetually unchanging face finally crack, the Crown Prince felt a surge of peculiar pleasure, his chin tilting slightly.
“You and the seventh prince were separated, and the seventh prince was bitten by wolves, leaving him with only half a body. Yet you’re acting like nothing happened. Fourth brother, I underestimated you. I didn’t expect you wouldn’t spare even a fool. To be honest, I almost pity the seventh prince. It’s truly not worth losing his life for someone like you.”
As he spoke, his malice deepened, as if he were calmly recounting events or subtly belittling her.
“Harming your siblings? Is there anything you wouldn’t do?”
The Crown Prince was upright and just. He would never do something like harming his siblings. From the start, he knew Shen Yue was not a good person and that such a person, if they ever ascended to power, would surely bring ruin to the people.
Shen Yue was too extreme, too cold-blooded, resorting to any means to achieve her goals.
Shen Yaojin’s fate was a prime example.
The Crown Prince was forthright and upright, naturally opposed to Shen Yue. He had initially believed that no matter how wicked Shen Yue was, she had her limits. But now he realized that Shen Yue would truly do anything for herself.
Shen Yaojin’s body had several pieces of flesh torn away by wolves. How painful that must have been!
The Crown Prince had come this time to put Shen Yue in her place, to make her clearly understand her status, and also to seek justice for Shen Yaojin.
Shen Yue’s fingertips, hanging at her sides, turned white. The beauty mark under her eye seemed especially vibrant as she let out a low laugh, her eyes now tinged with gloom.
“Words are meaningless without proof. Who would believe you?”
“What happened at that time? You weren’t there. How can you possibly know?”