Chapter 6: Humiliation
Slap!
A sharp, deafening crack echoed through the massive hall.
A collective gasp sucked the oxygen out of the room. The elders froze. The servants dropped their trays. Even Lin Wan stopped her fake coughing, her eyes widening in sheer disbelief.
Xiao Chen’s head was thrown violently to the side, his hair slipping from his golden crown. A bright, livid red handprint was rapidly blossoming on his left cheek. He stood completely frozen, his eyes wide, staring blankly at the floor in utter shock.
I slowly lowered my hand, lazily rubbing my palm. "Your Highness has incredibly thick skin. My hand actually hurts."
"You... you struck me?" Xiao Chen whispered, disbelief choking his voice. He slowly touched his stinging cheek. "I am the Crown Prince! You dare strike the future Emperor?!"
"And I am the future master of the Shen family, sanctioned by the Emperor himself," I retorted coldly, stepping aggressively into his personal space, forcing him to stumble backward. "This is my home. You are a guest. You raise a hand to me in my own hall without an investigation, without a trial, based purely on the crocodile tears of a bastard child? Has the Royal Tutor taught you nothing of imperial law, Xiao Chen? Or are you simply a brainless thug?"
He stared at me, completely overwhelmed by my aura. In the past, I had only ever looked at him with fawning adoration, desperate for his approval. Seeing me look at him like he was a piece of rotting garbage completely short-circuited his arrogant brain.
"Sister!" Lin Wan cried out, scrambling to salvage the situation before the narrative slipped away from her. She crawled forward, spitting out another mouthful of black blood. "Don't be angry with His Highness! It's my fault! If you wanted the Nightshade poison to kill me, I should have just drank it silently! I deserve this for making you jealous!"
She pointed a trembling, pathetic finger at a small, open paper packet resting on the central table. "The guards found this under your bed, Sister. Please, just confess. His Highness might show you mercy. I will beg for your life!"
I looked at the packet, then at Lin Wan's tear-streaked face.
[System Alert: Scanning substance... Target Lin Wan has consumed 'Fake Death Powder' purchased from her Heroine System Store. It perfectly mimics the agonizing symptoms of fatal poisoning but is completely harmless. Duration: 1 hour.]
A cruel, chilling smile stretched across my face. "Nightshade, you say?"
I walked past the dumbfounded Crown Prince, approached the table, and picked up the paper packet. I dipped my pinky finger into the dark powder and raised it to the light, inspecting it casually.
"Eldest Miss, don't!" an elder cried out in panic. "It is highly toxic! A single touch to the lips is a death sentence!"
"Is it?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. I turned my piercing gaze to Lin Wan. Her eyes flickered with a sudden, deeply hidden spark of panicked uncertainty. "Tell me, Wan'er. If you consumed lethal Nightshade, why is the blood you are coughing up pitch black?"
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