The Emperor's uncle loves me! My paranoid wife, don't run away

Biluo curled up in the corner of the dark room, pressed against the cold wall, hugged her knees tightly with her hands, and pricked up her ears to listen to the noise outside.

Those people were rummaging around, their footsteps hurried and their whispered conversations echoed in the empty room.

Biluo held her breath, afraid of making any sound.

After a long time, a person's voice caught Biluo's attention.

"There's a painting in the secret compartment!"

A man's voice was heard from outside, followed by the slight "swish" sound of a scroll being opened.

Biluo's heart suddenly jumped up, and she subconsciously held her breath and concentrated, with her ear almost pressed against the wall, trying to hear more clearly.

"Hmm? Could it be..."

"Could it be that the woman in the painting is the one that the King of Xiang loved back then?"

These words were like a sharp sword piercing Biluo's heart. Her body froze for a moment, her nails dug deeply into her palms, and she was completely unaware.

The people outside continued to talk, but their voices were vague as if covered by a layer of fog, but every word hit Biluo's eardrum like a hammer.

"It is truly stunning!"

"No wonder the King of Xiang is willing to be the enemy of Your Majesty for her!"

"To be imprisoned for love for one's entire life is still a hero!"

Biluo bit her lower lip, almost breaking it.

Those conversations kept echoing in her mind, like a nightmare that she couldn't get rid of.

The Prince of Xiang actually has someone hidden in his heart, someone for whom he is willing to be an enemy of Your Majesty!

"Stunning beauty..." Biluo looked down at herself, her fingers unconsciously touching her cheek, touching the rough skin, and she thought of the face in the mirror that could not be more ordinary.

Her heart felt like it was being gripped by an invisible hand, causing her pain and suffocation.

Biluo hugged herself tightly, her fingertips trembling slightly, and the bitterness in her chest flooded over her heart like a tide, drowning her completely.

She wanted to see the woman in the painting, to see what the woman who made the King of Xiang willing to be imprisoned for his entire life looked like, but she didn't dare, and didn't want to look.

Tears slid down quietly and wet her cuffs. Biluo bit her lip but couldn't stop herself from crying.

The discussion outside could still be heard clearly, and they didn't seem to have any intention of leaving immediately.

Biluo was upset after hearing what she heard. Although she tried hard to suppress her emotions, she still couldn't help being affected by those words.

"Wait! Do you think... this woman looks familiar?"

"Hmm... Did the maidservant before Luo Yujin have similar features to this one?"

"Don't say it, please don't say it!"

Then there was a mocking voice.

"There is some resemblance, but it must be the blessing that the maid has accumulated over several lifetimes!"

The men outside seemed to be full of gossip.

"Isn't that maid being kept by the King of Xiang now? She's just a substitute."

"I heard that she favors him every night!"

Then there was a burst of laughter.

"I wonder how that maid will react when she finds out that I'm a substitute?"

"What kind of reaction can she have? What right does she have to react?"

"..."

Biluo's ears were buzzing. The laughter of the people outside was like sharp needles, piercing her eardrums and then stabbing into her heart.

"substitute……"

When she heard that the King of Xiang had someone else in his heart just now, she felt as if the sky had fallen and the earth had collapsed, but she could at least comfort herself. But now, those people's words "substitute" completely tore apart her last bit of fantasy and crushed it into dust.

Biluo raised his hand blankly, touched his cheek again, and then slowly slid his hand down, as if he was touching a strange face.

A sour feeling rose up in her throat. She wanted to cry, but found that her tears seemed to have dried up, leaving only a heart full of pain with nowhere to vent.

The laughter still echoed in her ears, piercing her last bit of dignity again and again, crushing her pitiful self-comfort.

"Favored every night..." These four words were like a knife, separating her from those warm memories.

"Am I a person... or a painting?" she asked in a voice so low that it was almost inaudible.

……

The footsteps and laughter gradually faded away, and finally there was a slight sound, as if the door was pushed open, and then everything returned to silence.

"Don't go out!" The King of Xiang's instructions to her emerged in her mind, and that low but firm voice seemed to still echo in her ears.

"But don't you want to take a look? The woman for whom King Xiang is willing to give everything..." another voice whispered, with temptation and provocation.

Biluo's heart was torn in two. One half told herself that she had to listen to King Xiang and never make things difficult for him; the other half couldn't help but feel a strong curiosity. What did the woman in the painting look like?

Her hand involuntarily reached towards the door, but she suddenly retracted it just as it was about to touch the wooden door.

"No, no!" she murmured softly, trying to suppress the impulse in her heart.

Biluo slowly retreated to the corner, bit her lip, and forced herself to calm down. She would go check again in the middle of the night when no one was around, so as not to expose her whereabouts.

However, her heart could not calm down.

The scenes on the bed flashed through her mind like a slide show.

Everything is fake...

The last scene freezes at - "Biluo, you are mine." Prince Xiang hugged her and whispered. The doting and possession in his tone almost made her lost.

……

Elsewhere, light shines through the gauze curtains onto the carved table. Shen Runing stands beside the bed, holding a silver needle in his hand with a focused look on his face.

The needle tip trembled slightly, and with the movement of her wrist, it accurately pierced several acupuncture points of Coral. With each needle insertion, Coral's body would tremble slightly.

When the last needle was placed, Coral suddenly opened her mouth and spat out a mouthful of ink-black blood. Then, her body went limp and she fainted.

There was silence in the room, and everyone stared at the coral on the couch with bated breath.

After just a few breaths, her complexion actually improved visibly, and her originally sallow face gradually regained its color.

Helan Duoduo was stunned, then he knelt down excitedly, shouting: "Thank you——"

"Get up!" Shen Runing was quick to grab Helan Duoduo's arm and help her up.

She frowned, her tone revealing displeasure: "Don't kneel to me, you'll shorten my life!"

How could I bear the kneeling worship of the prince's wife?

Helan Duoduo's eyes were red. She tightly grasped Shen Runing's hand and thanked him repeatedly: "Lord Fangyi, thank you so much! If it weren't for you, Shanhu she..."

Shen Runing waved her hand and interrupted her: "That's enough. I'm almost getting calluses on my ears from hearing the word 'thank you' so much." She calmly took back the silver needle and said lightly, "It's a doctor's duty to save lives. There's nothing to thank me for."

Then he frowned and looked at Helan Duoduo.

"Dancing Lotus Powder."

"what?"

"The coral is poisoned by the Wu Lian Powder. This poison... is only available to the royal family of your Liuli Nation."