The Prime Minister's Darling
Chapter 829 - 829 383 Revelation (second update)_2

Chapter 829: 383 Revelation (second update)_2 Chapter 829: 383 Revelation (second update)_2 “Wait for me to come back…” Gu Jiao muttered the last four words, her elbow propped on the windowsill, her cheek cradled in her hand as she gazed into the distance.

Why did she feel a bit happy?

Gu Jiao’s lips curled into a smile, which she couldn’t suppress.

“Hey!”

Gu Chengfeng suddenly came back, hanging upside down from the roof beam like a golden hook, his head dangling outside Gu Jiao’s window, almost face to face with her.

The difference was, Gu Jiao’s face was the right way up, his was upside down.

Gu Jiao looked at this unwelcome guest who broke the mood, “What now?”

Gu Chengfeng said, “There’s something I forgot to tell you, your husband was poisoned at the Imperial College.”

Gu Jiao’s expression turned cold.

“It’s a good thing I got there early, ah, just in time…”

Before Gu Chengfeng could finish speaking, Gu Jiao had already vaulted out the window, supported by one hand on the windowsill.

Gu Chengfeng was stunned: “Uh… the thing is, I wasn’t finished talking.”

With Gu Jiao’s current skill, sneaking into the Imperial College was no longer much of a problem. Although the Imperial College was large, its layout was simple, and the supervisory examiners all lived in Jingyi Pavilion.

Xiao Liulang had just finished washing up, wearing only a thin undergarment. He snuffed out the oil lamp on the table intending to go to sleep, but someone gently knocked on his door.

“Who is it?” Xiao Liulang went behind the door, removed the bolt, and gently opened it.

Instead of a colleague, a petite figure in black stood outside, wearing a fancy mask.

Underneath the mask, a pair of eyes shone like the collected light of the Milky Way, brightening even the darkest corners of his heart.

He stared at her in a daze, also gazing stupidly at his own reflection in her pupils, momentarily forgetting to react.

“You two, go check over there!”

A guard’s voice rang out not far away.

Xiao Liulang quickly reached out, pulled her inside, and she crashed into his embrace. He held her with one arm, and with the other, he swiftly closed the door.

Almost at the moment he bolted the door, the guards had reached it.

“You two, go check over there, you two search this courtyard, you, follow me!”

“Yes!”

Gu Jiao was held tightly in Xiao Liulang’s arms; she didn’t move, blinking her big eyes brightly at him.

Xiao Liulang raised his index finger to his lips.

Gu Jiao understood.

No talking, she got it!

“Achoo!”

But she couldn’t hold back the sneeze!

Even the mask had been knocked askew!

“What was that noise!”

One of the guards approached Xiao Liulang’s room.

“It was me,” Xiao Liulang said, sounding as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

“Still not asleep at this late hour, Lord Xiao?” the guard outside asked.

Holding Gu Jiao, Xiao Liulang didn’t dare to budge: “I was sleeping, but you’ve woken me again.”

“Apologies.” The guard outside cupped his hands in respect, “It’s just that our brother found an unconscious guard near the kitchen, seeming to have been out for quite a while. We suspect there might be thieves in the College, and we are searching on orders. We ask for Lord Xiao’s patience.”

Gu Jiao took off her skewed mask. Unable to get away while being held tight by him, she simply buried her little head into his chest.

Xiao Liulang felt a surge in his heart, his breathing growing heavy. He composed himself and said, “I didn’t hear any disturbance on my end, you should hurry to the other lords’ places.”

“Yes,” the guard responded.

“Brother, we didn’t find anything here.”

“Nor there.”

“Let’s go!”

The guards gradually left Jingyi Pavilion, and Xiao Liulang listened intently to their footsteps, waiting until the last one had gone far away and quiet returned to the surroundings.

However, neither Xiao Liulang nor Gu Jiao moved.

There was no lit lamp in the room, only the weak moonlight shamefully infiltrating through the window paper, barely providing any brightness.

The night was peaceful and calm.

He held her in his arms, the sound of their breathing and the drumming of his own heart in his ears.

“That guard wasn’t knocked out by me, I didn’t hit anyone,”

Gu Jiao said.

“Hmm,” Xiao Liulang responded vaguely, gently releasing his arms that had been around her, the night concealing the flush on his cheeks, “Why have you come so late?”

“Gu Chengfeng said someone poisoned you,” Gu Jiao spoke, her fingertips already on his pulse.

“I didn’t eat it,” Xiao Liulang said, “The guard who passed out must have been the one who was supposed to bring me dinner.”

“Your pulse is normal,” Gu Jiao asked, “Is the poisoned food still here?”

Xiao Liulang made his way to the table in the dark, took out a flint and lit the oil lamp: “They took it away, but I kept a bit of the scallion that had been poisoned.”

As he said this, he took out a small porcelain bottle from his bundle.

Gu Jiao poured out the scallion from inside and after a careful examination, her expression darkened: “It’s arsenic.”

Someone had actually tried to poison her dear husband with arsenic!

Her little fists indicated they were itching for action!

Xiao Liulang watched her fierce little expression and couldn’t hold back his laughter.

He lifted his hand and gently rubbed the top of her head: “I’m fine, I wasn’t tricked this time. The person behind this must have realized they’ve given themselves away, so they won’t make another move for a while.”

At least they won’t try anything at the Imperial College again.

“Did you come all this way in the middle of the night just for this?”

In his eyes, this was just a minor incident. From the moment he had returned to the Capital City, he had expected the road ahead to be fraught with difficulties.

“I will find the culprit,” Gu Jiao stated seriously.

“Good,” Xiao Liulang smiled slightly, smoothing down a tuft of her hair tousled by the wind.

Strangely, he had never made such a gesture before.

Although they bore the title of husband and wife, they lacked the interaction typical of a married couple, resembling guests living under one roof, each in their domain, never interfering with the other.

When exactly did the boundaries between them begin to blur? When did their plans begin to involve one another?

Xiao Liulang chuckled to himself.

“What are you laughing at?” Gu Jiao asked.

“Nothing,” Xiao Liulang shook his head.

He just couldn’t help but be amused.

As for what he found amusing, he seemed to know, yet at the same time, he didn’t.

“By the way, what exactly was written on Empress Jing’s royal edict?” Gu Jiao skipped right past how he knew the content of the royal edict.

Xiao Liulang seemed to finally understand what he found humorous, he was happy.

Being with her, he never had to worry about her asking questions that would put him on the spot, and of course, he wouldn’t pry into matters she was reluctant to discuss.

It wasn’t cautiousness born from a deep understanding; rather, it was their natural compatibility and tacit understanding.

Xiao Liulang said, “It is a royal edict left by the late Emperor before his death, concerning matters of great importance.”

To say it was important was an understatement; it could shake the very foundations of court politics.

Gu Jiao inquired, “Does it have to do with my maternal aunt?”

Xiao Liulang nodded: “Yes.”

It must be related to her aunt, or else Empress Jing wouldn’t have held onto the edict for so many years as her trump card.

Gu Jiao continued to guess: “Is it the late Emperor’s approval for my aunt to act as regent?”

If the late Emperor had consented, then her aunt wouldn’t have to face such criticism. Empress Jing holding this edict surely brought great obstacles to her aunt’s path to regency.

Xiao Liulang shook his head: “No.”

Gu Jiao tried another angle: “Then, is it an order for my aunt not to interfere in court affairs?”

“Neither,” Xiao Liulang shook his head again.

Gu Jiao made a curious sound: “It couldn’t possibly be an edict ordering my aunt to be buried alive with the late Emperor, could it?”

Xiao Liulang fell silent.

Seeing his reaction, Gu Jiao knew the answer in her heart.

The edict left by the late Emperor right before his death was indeed ordering her aunt to be buried alive with him!

This made Gu Jiao even more perplexed: “But why would Empress Jing keep an edict that ordered my aunt to be buried alive? They were at such odds with each other; she would be happy to see the back of her, so why hide the edict?”

Xiao Liulang’s eyes gradually deepened: “Because… the edict didn’t only order my aunt to follow the late Emperor in death, but also Empress Jing.”

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.