Si Lisao stroked the back of Ye Siyuan’s head as he would a pet and said, "Well, your keen nose is impressive. Aren’t you less afraid now?"
Ye Siyuan nodded, then shook her head. "I... I think I’ve been drugged! Get out of here quickly, find my brother!"
In a comforting tone, Si Lisao spoke close to her ear, "We can’t leave just yet. Do you trust ?"
Ye Siyuan nodded, her hands clutching him tightly, never letting go. She was terrified, a deer caught in headlights.
Si Lisao whispered into her ear, "Then play along with . Let’s flush out the one courting death, how about it?"
"Wasn’t it that man from before?"
Si Lisao’s gaze turned icy as it fell on the man on the ground, his voice as if laced with ice. "He’s just a pawn. The mastermind isn’t him. Let’s put on a show and see what other drama unfolds, shall we?"
Ye Siyuan’s head felt heavy and dizzy. She pinched her arm hard, trying to stay alert.
She nodded vigorously. "Okay! What should I do?"
"Just cling to ..."
Suddenly, Si Lisao slipped the straps of her slip dress off her shoulder, exposing a large expanse of her shoulder and back. Ye Siyuan’s breathing imdiately beca erratic. A wave of uncontrollable heart palpitations coursed through her. Her fingers tightened, her freshly manicured nails digging deep into her flesh; the sharp pain was the only thing keeping her alert.
Just then, soone gently pushed open the dressing room door.
Si Lisao whispered in her ear, "Soone’s coming."
Ye Siyuan imdiately clung to Si Lisao, acting completely under the drug’s control, as if desperate to do sothing unspeakable...
The person peeking into the room clearly witnessed this scene. They also saw a man lying by the sofa, apparently knocked unconscious. After taking in the situation, the peeker quietly withdrew and closed the door.
Si Lisao imdiately pulled her slipped dress strap back up, walked to the bathroom door, and knocked. "Co out."
At that mont, the bathroom door was pushed open from the inside.
Si Mingjing calmly walked out of the bathroom.
Earlier, Si Mingjing had entered the dressing room with Si Lisao. One of them had knocked out the man assaulting Ye Siyuan, while the other had quickly hidden in the dressing room’s en suite bathroom, remaining unseen until that point.
"Detoxify her," Si Lisao said.
"Mm."
Si Mingjing approached the sofa, took Ye Siyuan’s racing pulse, then brought out her Silver Needle to perform acupuncture.
"Is it you, Sister-in-law?" Ye Siyuan was in great distress; her own nails had torn the flesh of her palms.
While performing the acupuncture, Si Mingjing comforted her, "It’s . Don’t be afraid. I’m going to detoxify you right now."
"Sister-in-law, what exactly is happening?"
Si Mingjing said, "I’m not entirely sure, but everything will co to light soon."
In the banquet hall, the celebration continued unabated. They were approaching the cake-cutting, yet the birthday princess was nowhere to be seen.
"Si Yuan is taking forever to change. Ye Shen, go hurry her up. Tell her to get dressed quickly and co out; it’s ti to cut the cake." Ye Xinguang sent Ye Shen to find her.
Ye Shen had just stood up when he heard a waitress hurry over, flustered, exclaiming, "Your Majesty the Queen, sothing terrible has happened! The Third Princess, she... she..."
Ye Xinguang frowned deeply, thinking the waitress incredibly ill-mannered. On such a grand occasion, to be so flustered and tongue-tied.
Her voice was stern. "What happened to her? Speak clearly!"
The waitress trembled, her voice shaking even more as she stamred, "The Third Princess... she’s been assaulted... She was assaulted in the ladies’ changing room..."
"What did you say?" Ye Shen erupted. "Who dares assault my sister? Do they have a death wish?"
"It’s... it’s... it was Crown Prince Lisao from Mu Continent... I realized sothing was wrong and tried to call for help... I called for Geshu Chen... After Geshu Chen entered the changing room, none of them ca out for a long ti... I was scared, so, so... I ca to report..."
Ye Shen was furious. "Si Lisao actually dared to assault my sister? I’ll kill him!" Enraged, he stord off.
Mo Yinhe sat in his seat, frowning. He didn’t believe Si Lisao would assault his sister; it was more plausible that Siyuan had thrown herself at Si Lisao.
Sothing is fishy, he thought, then called out to Ye Shen, "Stay here. I’ll go take a look."
However, soone had already stood up and slamd the table hard, his righteous indignation palpable. "Today is the Third Princess’s birthday feast," he declared, "and Crown Prince Lisao from Mu Continent dares to assault her! This is outrageous! Does he think we people of Mu Continent are to be trifled with?"
His words inflad the crowd. Instantly, many in the banquet hall stood up to follow the man, intending to rescue Ye Siyuan.
"Stop!" Mo Yinhe commanded coldly. He rose to stop everyone from rushing off to watch the spectacle, sensing sothing was amiss and that the man was deliberately stirring up trouble.
"Your Highness, what are we waiting for?" Instead of stopping, the man hastily left the banquet hall, eager to catch them in the act. He feared that if they delayed, Ye Siyuan might actually be... defiled... by Si Lisao.
The others—whether shocked, angry, or rely seeking entertainnt—also followed him out of the banquet hall.
Ye Xinguang and Ye Junqing exchanged a look. Sharing their son’s intuition that soone was orchestrating events, they also got up and followed.
Ye Shen said to Mo Yinhe, exasperated, "Brother, hurry up!"
"Idiot!" Mo Yinhe snapped, falling a step behind. His gaze landed coldly on the man leading the charge—Quan Yong!
Quan Yong strode forward rapidly, the first to reach the changing room door, which he kicked open without hesitation. He couldn’t wait for the crowd, following close behind for the drama, to see Ye Siyuan and Si Lisao entangled. That would leave Si Lisao with no way to explain himself!
Si Lisao thought he was the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware that Quan Yong was the siskin waiting behind!
Yes, I calculated that with Si Lisao’s abilities, he would definitely co to play the hero and save the damsel! But so what? The drug Ye Siyuan ingested is Dragon Enchantnt Fragrance, exclusive to the Mu Continent’s imperial palace. Even if Si Lisao wasn’t the one who administered it, he can’t clear his na now! Everyone will assu Si Lisao drugged Ye Siyuan with ill intentions, and that Geshu Chen, who tried to save her, was knocked out by Si Lisao! He’ll have no defense! Mo Yinhe cherishes Ye Siyuan; he’ll never let Si Lisao off! I will completely sever any possibility between Ye Siyuan and Si Lisao. Atlantis’s most esteed Third Princess can only be mine, Quan Yong!
Quan Yong was the first to spot Geshu Chen lying on the ground. Heh, the perfect scapegoat! he sneered inwardly.
Feigning fury, he stord in, ostensibly to rescue Ye Siyuan, cursing, "Crown Prince Lisao, you beast! Release the Third Princess— What? How can this be?"
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