The Double-Chapter 579 - 170: The Real Culprit_2

Among them, one person said, "Thankfully the child in the Princess’s belly is finally gone. Now, the Eldest Young Master Li doesn’t have to go to all the trouble of tampering with the Princess’s fetus-preserving medicine, which had no reaction anyway. Could it be that the Princess did not drink the medicine? Otherwise, why was there no sign of trouble? If it weren’t for the Eldest Young Master going to extreme measures this time, we might never have been successful."

"How could we not? If we had waited until her belly grew larger, it would’ve been harder to take action and easy to cause a fatality. Before this, our Eldest Young Master Li tried countless methods, involved in using medicines and solutions on the ground—none worked. If even being pushed down the stairs didn’t do it, I would’ve started to suspect she wasn’t human and had learned some kind of secret martial art."

Another person then said, "Keep your voice down. If someone overhears us, we’ll be in trouble. In any case, this outcome is for the best. Now that it’s done, let’s stop discussing it and get to work. After the Princess causes a few more days of commotion, won’t His Highness find a fall guy and then it’ll be settled?"

Mei Xiang listened on the side, her heart pounding with fear. She wanted to eavesdrop further, but the two turned their conversation to other matters. There seemed to be the sound of footsteps in the distance, and Mei Xiang didn’t dare linger, for fear of being discovered. She dared not burst into the room and expose these two, for after all, this was the Li’s residence. If what these two said was true and the culprit was Li Xian, the Li family would surely silence anyone involved to protect their secret. She might be killed before she even had the chance to tell Princess Yongning.

So she pretended as if nothing happened, stood up, and quietly left. She continued to the kitchen to fetch the medicine, then returned to Princess Yongning’s room. She put down the medicine, feeling incredibly uneasy, thinking about how to broach the subject with Princess Yongning.

Finally, Princess Yongning noticed something was amiss.

After hearing the whole story, Princess Yongning’s lips trembled, she said, "They have quite the nerve." Then, raising her voice, "They have quite the nerve!"

"Princess, please don’t!" Mei Xiang quickly interjected.

Princess Yongning’s eyes widened, "What should I do then? Li Xian has killed my child; I want his life! I will confront Li Xian right away and see what excuse he has to offer. No wonder..." She scoffed coldly, "I always felt that the Li family was evasive in finding the culprit. So it turns out that the real culprit is Li Xian himself. It’s like the thief crying ’stop thief.’ I suppose my actions are nothing but a joke in their eyes!" freewebnoveℓ.com

Princess Yongning was extremely agitated. Mei Xiang lowered her voice and said, "Your Highness, this matter has not been confirmed yet. This is why I was afraid to tell you initially; I am also unsure whether it is true. If someone deliberately led me to that room so that I would overhear that conversation, in order to frame the Eldest Young Master Li, wouldn’t we be falling into their trap? Your Highness must stay calm!"

"Oh?" Princess Yongning said furiously, "How do you expect me to stay calm? Now you’re telling me that Li Xian might have killed my child. Even if it’s just a possibility, I really cannot stay calm!"

"I am not trying to speak for Eldest Young Master Li, nor am I trying to absolve the Li family of guilt. Rather, it is for your consideration, Princess. Please think, if it was truly done by the Eldest Young Master Li, why would he do such a thing? Does the Li family not want a grandson? Or have they noticed something already."

Princess Yongning paused, then slowly calmed down. After a while, she said, "Li Xian must have known from the start that the child I was carrying was not of Li blood. When he first looked at me, there was not a trace of emotion in his eyes."

The first time the imperial physician was invited to the residence to announce the "happy news," Princess Yongning felt there was something off about Li Xian and his sons. Especially Li Xian, who though his words were gentle and his manner caring, had clearly no trace of a father’s joy at learning he was to have a child, and even a hint of disgust. At the time, Princess Yongning wondered if she was mistaken, but now she realized it was not a mistake at all. Perhaps Li Xian knew from the beginning that the child was not his, so he was not surprised by the child’s coming. With the child’s departure, he pretended to be upset for a while, without shedding a single tear.

"That bastard!" Princess Yongning hissed through clenched teeth, "He played me like a fiddle!"

In the past two months, the lies Princess Yongning had told for the sake of the child must have seemed ridiculous in the eyes of Li Xian. He clearly knew everything yet pretended to be ignorant, even participating in the charade with Princess Yongning. Looking back, Princess Yongning herself found it laughable, feeling as if she had been toyed with, stripped of her dignity.