The concubine was charming and alluring, and the ruthless prince coaxed her day and night.

Chapter 135 The worst plan

The night was as dark as ink. Xu Jiaojiao stood in the bamboo courtyard, gazing at the faint moonlight in the sky, a faint sorrow showing between her brows.

Three days have passed since Prince Chen left that night, and the night in the Bamboo Courtyard remains eerily quiet.

Bamboo Courtyard is located deep in the mountains and forests, surrounded by lush vegetation, and the nearest village, Wenmei Village, is three miles away.

Zhao Yunzheng said it was very safe here, but the safer it was, the more uneasy Xu Jiaojiao felt.

She turned and went back into the house, looking at the familiar yet unfamiliar furnishings, feeling a moment of disorientation.

When she first arrived at the Bamboo Courtyard, it was so simple that it looked like an abandoned house with no one living there. Now, this small room is filled with things that Zhao Yunzheng had prepared for her.

On the table were her favorite storybooks, on the dressing table were newly made rouge and face powder, and even a whole box of her usual snail-shell eyebrow pencils was prepared.

Prince Chen is so considerate. Even though he is imprisoned himself, he still makes sure everything here is arranged perfectly before he leaves.

"After dealing with Fifth Prince and the Su family, I will return to fetch you." Prince Chen made this promise before leaving, but as he spoke, his eyes darted away, and he didn't even look Xu Jiaojiao in the eye.

Prince Chen was always resolute and decisive, an emotion that Xu Jiaojiao had never seen in his eyes before.

Xu Jiaojiao knew that Prince Chen's chances of survival were slim, and his promise to her was merely to prevent her from worrying too much...

How could she not worry…

Some people and some things, once they enter your heart, are hard to let go of.

Tonight, I still can't sleep.

"Jingle Bell…"

The beaded curtain swayed, and Lianye brought in a steaming bowl of milk, white fungus, and bird's nest soup: "My lady, please have some bird's nest soup and go to sleep. If you keep staying up like this, even if you can bear it, the little one in your belly won't be able to..."

Xu Jiaojiao picked up the bird's nest soup, took a small sip, and shook her head with a wry smile: "It's not that I don't want to sleep, it's just that I feel uneasy and can't fall asleep..."

Although she didn't know what Prince Chen had gone to do, Lianye could sense that her mistress was worried about him.

A mental illness requires a mental cure. Lianye knew that nothing she said would make a difference; all she could do was take good care of her master.

After drinking the bird's nest soup, Xu Jiaojiao sat down at the table and casually flipped through a storybook.

The night breeze rustled through the bamboo grove outside the courtyard, bringing Xu Jiaojiao, who had been staring at the storybook for a long time without moving, back to her senses.

She gave a self-deprecating smile and casually put the storybook aside.

"call--"

The night wind blew into the room through the window.

Xu Jiaojiao subconsciously raised her hand to block the chill.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa..."

The pages of the storybook were blown about by the wind and fell to the ground with a "thud".

When the wind stopped, Xu Jiaojiao bent down to pick up the book, only to discover a hidden compartment at the bottom of the table.

Xu Jiaojiao was slightly taken aback, then reached out and opened the hidden compartment.

Upon seeing the familiar brocade pouch inside, her breath caught in her throat, her heart raced, and her fingers trembled slightly.

This brocade pouch was a gift from her to Prince Chen. The pattern of two birds flying together was embroidered by her stitch by stitch. Before, when he was in the Prince's residence, Prince Chen carried this brocade pouch with him every day.

The appearance of the brocade pouch here was no accident; Xu Jiaojiao had already realized something.

She took a shallow breath, suppressing her unease, and reached into the hidden compartment to take out the brocade pouch.

Upon opening the brocade pouch, a neatly folded letter was revealed.

Before even reading the letter, Xu Jiaojiao's eyes were already red.

She dared not look, but she couldn't wait to take out the letter.

Zhao Yunzheng's handwriting on the letter was strong and powerful:

"Jiaojiao, when you find this letter, it means I may have already lost."

Don't cry, and don't be sad for me.

Do you remember what I said?

If I fail, then you can treat this whole period as a dream, or continue with your original plan to escape the hunting grounds, take the money, and live the life you want.

This statement is not a joke.

Jiaojiao, I've arranged everything.

There are new identity documents and silver notes in the hidden compartment of the wardrobe. "If I don't return within five days, leave here and go to the North. Don't hesitate!"

Xu Jiaojiao quickly got up and rummaged through the hidden compartment of the wardrobe, and sure enough, she found a stack of silver notes inside.

Each of these banknotes was of a huge denomination, enough to ensure she would live a life of comfort and security for the rest of her days.

Xu Jiaojiao felt a sharp pain in her chest, and tears she couldn't hold back dripped down her cheeks, splashing onto the expensive banknotes and leaving a large water stain. She felt sad and helpless.

The intense heartache made her dizzy and her limbs felt numb.

"Crash..."

Countless silver notes slipped from Xu Jiaojiao's hands and scattered all over the ground. She staggered and had to hold onto the wardrobe to keep her balance.

It turns out that Prince Chen had already prepared for the worst.

"master?"

Hearing the noise, Lianye ran into the house and saw silver notes scattered all over the floor and her master with red, tear-filled eyes. Lianye was shocked and worried.

As she rushed forward to help Xu Jiaojiao, she noticed the letter on the table.

Although I only glanced at it briefly, I could roughly make out the contents of the letter.

Lianye's eyes immediately filled with heartache and sadness.

Seeing her master so distraught, she couldn't even utter a word of comfort.

After a long silence, she murmured, "My lady, shall I help you to bed to rest?"

Seeing that Xu Jiaojiao remained silent, Lianye sighed inwardly and took it upon herself to help Xu Jiaojiao to the bedside to sit down.

Sitting on the bed, Xu Jiaojiao, whose eyes were vacant, trembled and looked up at Lianye: "The prince will be alright, won't he?"

Lianye choked on her words, unsure how to respond.

Coming to her senses, she forced a lighthearted smile: "Our prince is wise, mighty, and invincible; of course, nothing will happen to him!"

Xu Jiaojiao seemed reassured and breathed a sigh of relief: "Yes, you're right, the Prince will definitely be alright..."

As they were talking, a strange sound suddenly came from the bamboo grove outside the courtyard, like the sound of bamboo branches being broken by footsteps.

Xu Jiaojiao froze and suddenly looked outside.

She remembered that Prince Chen had said that the courtyard was surrounded by traps and mechanisms, making it difficult for ordinary people to get close.

With a loud bang, the courtyard gate was kicked open.

Dozens of men in black emerged from the layers of bamboo forest like ghosts, standing eerily in the courtyard like Yama, the devils of hell.

The leader narrowed his eyes slightly, his sharp gaze passing over the small door of the house and landing on Xu Jiaojiao's face.

"Found her! Kill her!"

The hoarse voice sent chills down one's spine.

At his command, the men in black swarmed forward, raising their knives and rushing towards the small bamboo hut.

At the same time, five shadow guards emerged from the deep and quiet bamboo forest, appearing like gods descending from the sky to block the group of men in black.

"Five shadow guards?"

The man in black who had been giving orders murmured in surprise, then sneered, "It seems this woman really is Zhao Yunzheng's darling..."

Outside, the men in black and the shadow guards were locked in a fierce battle in the small courtyard, a faint smell of blood permeating the air.

Inside the house, Lianye was dumbfounded and stood motionless in place.

Xu Jiaojiao reacted quickly.

She remembered Zhao Yunzheng telling her that there was a secret passage under the bed that led to the official road outside the forest.

The moment the man in black appeared, she got up, deftly threw off the covers, and began to feel for the mechanism to open the secret passage.

She had just found the mechanism when she felt a chill on her neck...