She was buried alive at the start, but she's determined to smash her ex-husband's head in

The night patrolman, carrying a lantern, drew closer and closer. She had indeed heard some noise coming from the kitchen, but she hadn't seen anyone there.

The lantern's faint light seemed so terrifying in the darkness, creeping closer and closer to them.

Hearing Pei Zhaoan's increasingly loud heartbeat while being held in his arms, Lin Qingwei wanted to press down on his heart to stop it from beating. Pei Zhaoan's chest seemed unable to contain such a fierce heartbeat, as if it was about to burst out at any moment.

His breathing became heavy, each breath hitting Lin Qingwei's earlobe, giving her goosebumps. The two were so close that they were practically glued together.

"Come out! I see you!" the night patrolman called out again, craning his neck and looking around, but saw nothing.

Was it just the wind? Did she mishear?

Hiding behind the stove, Lin Qingwei was extremely nervous, afraid that the other party would hear Pei Zhaoan's breathing. So she raised her hand and covered his mouth and nose. His hot breath sprayed onto her palm, carrying an undeniable heat like a burn, which made Lin Qingwei's heart tremble.

She thought she was just too nervous.

The night patrol found nothing and left with peace of mind. Lin Qingwei breathed a sigh of relief when she heard the footsteps fading away and released her hand from Pei Zhaoan's mouth and nose.

Pei Zhaoan shoved the person away, stood up abruptly, and took several steps back. Lin Qingwei's legs were numb from squatting, and he was pushed so hard that she fell to the ground with a thud.

She looked up at him angrily, intending to curse him, but in the dim moonlight she saw the lingering blush on his face.

Did I cover myself too tightly just now? Should I apologize?

Pei Zhaoan looked very uncomfortable, breathing heavily, as if his whole body was on fire, and the heat just wouldn't dissipate.

"you"

"I"

The two spoke at the same time. Lin Qingwei rubbed the spot where she had fallen and stood up, gesturing for Pei Zhaoan to speak first.

Pei Zhaoan coughed softly twice, his tone somewhat unnatural, and whispered, "Wait for me a moment, don't wander off..."

With a swift movement, he flew away like a cat, and before Lin Qingwei could react, he was gone.

She was left alone in the dark kitchen.

Lin Qingwei couldn't laugh at all. Had Pei Zhaoan slipped away without finding anything? What was she going to do? Should she climb over the wall herself? He wasn't really not coming back, was he?!

Very well! She will curse Pei Zhao'an forever!!!

After trying to calm her anger, Lin Qingwei carefully examined each wine cup. Pei Zhaoan had only finished speaking when someone arrived, so she wasn't quite sure where the balsam juice had gotten on her.

There were too many wine cups and the moonlight was too dim, making it extremely difficult to find them one by one. Lin Qingwei's eyes were almost blurry from looking so hard, but she still couldn't find them.

After inspecting the wine cups in this cabinet, Lin Qingwei was about to walk to the side to inspect the wine cups in another cabinet when she didn't see a large wooden basin on the ground. She tripped over it and stumbled and fell into the basin.

Luckily, there was no water inside, otherwise Lin Qingwei would have been soaked to the bone!

But what's in the wooden basin? Why does it smell so strongly of alcohol?

She endured the pain, sat up, and groped for a foothold. She touched some round, cold things, picked one up, and saw that they were some uncleaned wine cups!

Moreover, the handle of the one she's holding has a faint red tinge!

It's balsam flower juice! It's the balsam flower juice that women use to dye their nails!

Wait! A woman?

Lin Qingwei was startled. So Pei Zhaoan really caught the person who poisoned the Crown Prince? He knew from the beginning that this person was Zhao Huarong and not Prince Duan?

What would he do? Hand over the physical evidence to the Xuande Emperor?

What will become of Zhao Huarong? She guessed that even if Emperor Xuande knew that Zhao Huarong was responsible, he would make an excuse to let it go, considering the hardships she had endured in her childhood, and that it was a conspiracy between Zhao Huarong and Prince Duan.

Emperor Xuande wouldn't really punish them. Zhao Huarong was a daughter who had been lost for many years and was finally found. Prince Duan was the child of his most beloved woman. The Crown Prince was just an unfavored son caught between propriety and personal desires.

In this way, Zhao Huarong and Prince Duan will definitely hold a grudge and take further drastic measures against the Crown Prince!

A mild lesson won't really hurt Zhao Huarong; only a sudden, fatal blow can truly destroy her.

Exposing Zhao Huarong now would only alert the enemy, and all the disadvantages would point to the Crown Prince.

She couldn't risk using Zhao Hongjia.

Lin Qingwei immediately smashed the wine cup on the ground, hid the fragments stained with balsam juice in her clothes, and restored everything to its original state before Pei Zhaoan returned.

She had just finished getting ready when she heard footsteps behind her, and her heart jumped into her throat.

"What are you doing?"

"I just fell down! It hurts so much! I'm injured! Look!" Lin Qingwei turned around with a pout, looking aggrieved.

She pulled up her sleeve, revealing a slash on her fair arm, from which blood flowed, a truly shocking sight.

"How did this happen?" Pei Zhaoan asked worriedly, lifting her arm. His voice softened.

At this moment, Lin Qingwei noticed that Pei Zhaoan had been doing something, his face was covered in water droplets, and his hair was wet and stuck to his cheeks.

Her lips were red, and water droplets trickled down her cheeks, gathering at her chin in a state of barely hanging on, shimmering faintly.

There were even tiny water droplets on his eyelashes. He looked down at Lin Qingwei, and suddenly the words Shen Yushu had said flashed through Lin Qingwei's mind.

He really does have some good looks...

"Did you hear me? What happened?"

Lin Qingwei looked away guiltily and pointed to the wooden basin next to her, saying, "It was too dark, I didn't see anything on the ground and tripped over it. There were some uncleaned wine cups in the basin, and I must have broken several when I fell. My arm was cut by the shards."

To confuse the issue, Lin Qingwei deliberately broke several pieces and mixed them all together, making it difficult to spot the missing piece.

Pei Zhaoan frowned slightly, took out a small porcelain bottle from his pocket, and carefully poured it onto Lin Qingwei's wound. The powder hurt even more when it came into contact with the wound than when she scratched herself, and she couldn't help but pull her hand back.

Pei Zhaoan pulled her back: "Don't move."

He moved with practiced ease, pulling off the hairband from Lin Qingwei's head and bandaging her wound.

"Apply the medicine three times a day, and have Chunqi help you." He placed the porcelain bottle into Lin Qingwei's hand.

Because they were so close, Lin Qingwei could see the wrinkles on his fingers from being soaked in water, and asked, "What were you doing just now? Did you go to the hot springs?"

Leaving her here alone for almost half an hour and then going to relax in the hot springs by herself—isn't that a bit too much?

Pei Zhaoan seemed to have thought of something, took a step back, looking somewhat guilty, and did not answer Lin Qingwei's question.