The Side Character Wants to Lie Flat-Chapter 121: You Think I’d Believe Your Nonsense?
After spending so much time with Prince Zhao, Hua Manman could sense he was hiding many secrets.
From what she knew of him, he was deeply distrustful of everyone and everything. He would never willingly share his secrets with anyone.
She had only asked out of pure curiosity—it was a slip of the tongue.
She never actually expected to get the truth out of Prince Zhao.
Yet Prince Zhao had seriously promised her that one day, he would tell her all his secrets.
This gave Hua Manman a strange feeling.
She couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was.
As she met Prince Zhao’s narrow, ink-black eyes, Hua Manman’s mind seemed to go blank.
She nodded dumbly.
"Oh. Okay."
Li Ji got the response he wanted, and a smile finally returned to his face.
A subtle light shone in the depths of his dark eyes.
Jinxiu pushed the door open and came in, followed by a train of young maids.
They deftly helped Prince Zhao and Lady Hua wash up and change their clothes.
After breakfast, Hua Manman planned to return to her room for a nap. It was a rare day off, so she decided she would do absolutely nothing but sleep the day away!
’Just thinking about it feels amazing~’
When Li Ji learned of her holiday plans, he offered a three-word assessment.
"That’s so you."
Hua Manman returned to her bedroom with a spring in her step.
She took off her outer robe, burrowed under the covers, closed her eyes, and let out a satisfied sigh.
’There’s no place in the world more comfortable than one’s bed.’
Si Yun quietly left the bedroom.
The door was quietly closed.
As Hua Manman drifted in a drowsy sleep, she suddenly felt a large hand clamp over her mouth and nose!
She woke up with a start.
She opened her eyes to find herself face-to-face with a strange man.
The man wore the plain clothes of a guard. His features were unremarkable—the kind of face you’d immediately lose in a crowd.
When he saw that Hua Manman was awake, he immediately tightened his grip, pressing down hard on her mouth and nose to keep her from making a sound.
Hua Manman kicked out, aiming for his stomach.
The kick landed hard.
The man hissed in pain, but his hand didn’t loosen.
The vicious glint in his eyes intensified as he pulled a dagger from his robes with his other hand.
He pressed the dagger to Hua Manman’s neck and threatened in a low voice.
"If you move again, I’ll kill you."
Hua Manman immediately stopped struggling and froze.
She stared at the man with wide eyes, not blinking.
’Who is this guy?’
’How did he get in?’
’What does he want?’
One question after another surfaced in her mind.
But no answers came to her.
The man stuffed a handkerchief in her mouth, then took out a rope he had prepared and tied her up, bundling her tightly within the quilt.
After doing all this, the man relaxed a little.
He got up and walked to the window, carefully pushed it open a crack, and peeked outside.
It was still raining. From time to time, trusted aides on patrol passed by. A young maid was also standing guard at the bedroom door.
Everything was normal.
No one had discovered the uninvited man in Lady Hua’s room.
The man sat down beside the bed, holding the dagger in his hand, his eyes fixed on the door.
He seemed to be waiting for someone.
But after a long wait, still no one came in.
The man finally lost his patience.
He held the dagger to Hua Manman’s neck, pulled the handkerchief from her mouth with his other hand, and asked in a low voice.
"When is Prince Zhao coming to see you?"
Hua Manman had a sudden realization. ’So he’s waiting for Prince Zhao.’
She answered truthfully, "I don’t know either."
The man clearly didn’t believe her. "How could you not know? You’re Prince Zhao’s most favored woman."
Hua Manman retorted, "Who started that rumor?
It’s completely baseless! How could a remarkable man like Prince Zhao possibly be interested in an ordinary woman like me?"
The man sneered. "If he doesn’t favor you, why would he have brought you all the way to Yuqing Mountain to escape the summer heat?"
Hua Manman said, "That’s because Prince Zhao has such a vicious reputation. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶
All the women in the Prince Mansion’s rear courtyard go weak in the knees and their vision blurs the moment they see him. They practically wish they could faint on the spot. He’s so terrifying that women dread the very sight of him!
Who would dare come with a man like that to Yuqing Mountain for the summer?
I was the only one brave enough to bite the bullet and come along."
The man scoffed at her words.
"You think I’d believe that load of nonsense?
You’d better drop the act and just tell me honestly: when is Prince Zhao coming?
Cooperate, and I can make things easier for you."
Hua Manman said, "I really don’t know when Prince Zhao is coming. I swear, if I’m lying, may I be struck by lightning."
The moment she finished speaking, a loud RUMBLE of thunder echoed from outside.
It was accompanied by brilliant flashes of lightning.
Hua Manman: "..."
She met the man’s sinister gaze and offered an awkward, yet polite, smile.
"If I said this was just a coincidence, would you believe me?"
The man’s lips curled into a smirk. "What do you think?"
Hua Manman said, "I think you could give it a shot. After all, people should maintain a basic level of trust in one another."
The man realized this woman had a sharp tongue. Give her an inch, and she’d talk your ear off.
He didn’t want to waste any more words with her, so he picked up the handkerchief and stuffed it back into her mouth.
The room became quiet again.
The sound of the incessant rain outside was clearly audible.
Time passed bit by bit.
Soon it was nearly Noon, and still, no one had come in.
The man grew increasingly agitated.
He tore the gag from Hua Manman’s mouth again and asked impatiently.
"Don’t you eat lunch? Why hasn’t anyone come to get you for a meal?"
Hua Manman answered truthfully, "Because I told them I was going to sleep all day, and not to disturb me until I woke up on my own."
The man was speechless. "Are you a pig? Sleeping for a whole day."
Hua Manman protested, "You can disrespect me, but don’t you dare disrespect pigs!"
The man: "..."
’This woman is insane!’
The man’s name was Liu Shizhong.
He had been a member of the Flying Dragon Cavalry, but his identity as a mole was exposed after he helped murder Jin Zhi to silence her. Now, he was a prime suspect of General Wang.
He knew his capture was inevitable, so he decided to risk everything on one last desperate gamble.
If he could take Prince Zhao’s life, his wife and children would receive a large sum of money. With that money, they could flee far away and start a new life.
The rain outside grew heavier, and the sound of hurried footsteps mingled with it.
Liu Shizhong’s hearing was excellent.
He could hear that the footsteps were getting closer and closer.
This meant that a large group of people was approaching.
Liu Shizhong walked to the window, peeked out through the crack, and saw General Wang rushing over with a group of people.
They were searching room by room.
Prince Zhao was being wheeled in this direction, followed by a number of trusted aides.
Liu Shizhong’s heart sank.
He knew he couldn’t possibly take Prince Zhao’s head with so many expert guards around.
He paced back and forth anxiously, his gaze finally landing on Hua Manman.
Liu Shizhong had originally planned to use Hua Manman as bait, ambushing Prince Zhao when his guard was down.
But in this situation, an ambush would be impossible.
That meant Hua Manman, the bait, was now useless.
...
