Cold Blooded Wife

73 Princess Shuchun (3)

As the dance continued, Princess Shuchun looked at the everyone who attended her birthday party. She recognized most of them from the past years but today, there were a lot of new faces.

Slowly scanning the faces, her eyes landed on an older female. Since the girl sat where General Wu was, she thought the girl must've been related to him.

There was something about the girl which made her stand out from the rest of hundreds of other guests. Princess Shuchun stared at the veiled girl until one of her brothers said something to her.

"Are you looking at Wu Yunxia? He's the one Imperial Father has chosen for you." She heard him whisper then realized he saw wrong.

I wasn't looking at him. I'm looking at that older miss.

She wanted to say that but smiled and pretended like he was correct.

"Ge, do you know who that girl is?" Princess Shuchun grabbed a piece of bread and put it in her mouth. She had a feeling that something was going to happen today.

"Ah, you mean Wu Xingxie?" The Crown Prince interjected. He didn't let the other prince speak as he answered his sister's question.

"She's the eldest daughter of General Wu. I've only met her once at a banquet. Rumor has it that the general kept her low-profile to prevent other families from seeing her real face."

Princess Shuchun listened carefully as she slowly drank her tea.

"Wu Yunxia was held under house arrest for ripping her clothes before many people. General Wu even slapped him!" The Crown Prince spilled the beans for her. After finishing, he smiled proudly before glancing at his other brothers. Even though they were smiling and seemed to be listening, they were waiting for him to make a mistake.

With so many eyes, one must be careful of their actions or words.

"She seems like a nice person." Commented Princess Shuchun as she noticed the strange movements of Wu Xingxie.

Wu Xingxie was whispering something to her maid which she couldn't hear but the princess felt her body shudder for a moment.

It happened so fast she remained frozen in her seat, everything going silent around her.

What's wrong with me? I've been having a strange feeling since yesterday.

Little did she know Wu Xingxie already had her in control. In that moment, her eyes met with Wu Xingxie's eyes that were filled with mystique.

The party continued peacefully and nothing had happened so far. It wasn't until the doors flung opened that everyone quiet down.

The emperor glared at whoever it was that dared to interrupt the party. He opened his mouth to speak when his words stuck in his throat.

People started whispering amongst themselves of what could possibly have happened.

The person that had entered was another general who bad been stationed in the north.

Everyone wondered why he was suddenly here but their thoughts were about to be answered when the general kneeled before the emperor.

"Your Majesty, General Tang here to report." The general spoke with confidence. He didn't even care that he was disrupting one of the most important celebrations of the time.

What he had to report was too urgent.

The emperor was a bit shocked at his appearance but gestured for him to stand.

"Thank you Your Majesty. The reason I have returned without early notice is because this matter needs to be heard. I would have sent a messenger but this issue I feel must be told by me." General Tang spoke as if he hadn't heard the remarks of the guests.

"What's wrong?" The Crown Prince asked with a bit of worry.

"Illegal drugs are being transported throughout the empire. I'm afraid they have been smuggled into the capital. One of the drug is an addictive substance that looks and smells like salt. Once digested, it causes hemorrhage.

My men have been investigating the case and it seems like someone dared to place them in the palace. Your Majesty, this matter cannot be ignored. It's not only a way to assassinate the royal family, everyone in the palace will be in danger as well!" General narrated loud and bold to let everyone know. He didn't stutter once and looked at the man sitting on the high seat.

Hearing of this, the Emperor's eyes widened by the sudden news.

As everyone heard General Tang's words, they looked at the food with suspicious eyes. What if the food had the drug in it?

This caused a panic so one of the officials stood from his seat and walked to the middle platform.

"Your Majesty, I request to have the food tested by General Tang." The man kowtowed to show his sincerity.

With so many people here, the shocking news would be spread like fire. The Emperor had no choice but to do as requested.

"Imperial Father, this involves the lives of many. Shun'er doesn't mind that the party has been interrupted. State affairs come first." Princess Shuchun finally knew why she had those strange weird feelings earlier. Such a crisis had reached the palace yet no one took notice. Despite being from the royal family, she always put the people before herself.

After all, what good is a ruler without his subjects?

General Wu, who had been watching the situation from his seat was awfully quiet.

How did General Tang find out about the smuggling of drugs into the palace? He couldn't have found out unless......

General Wu was in deep thought as he concluded one of his subordinates had betrayed him.

Wu Xingxie got a good look of his face and secretly smirked. The unease in his face wasn't visible to other people but she knew what he was worrying about.

"Your Majesty, to detect the drug, a special tool is needed. Regular metal will not work." General Tang pulled out a few needles. At first glance, they seemed like any other needles.

However, each point of the needles were covered with a coating that would identify the specific drug.

*****
This has got to be the longest chapter I've written.

Forgot to do this but,
Fun fact about me: My current favorite songs are Way Back Home by Shaun and God is a Woman by Ariana Grande. ;)