I'm Competing With The Male Lead For A Woman - Chapter 12

Xiao Jin looked at the black wound on Chu Shao’s arm and was silent for a long time.

Could it be… that these assassins were targeting Chu Shao?

Just now, when that black-clothed man wounded her, he showed mercy in every move and didn’t poison his sword. But when he attacked Chu Shao, he did use poison.

Xiao Jin recalled the Crown Prince walking to the palace wall, turning his head, and looking back at the frost-covered ground.

Because she was far away, she couldn’t see the Crown Prince’s expression clearly, but she knew that the male lead had stopped by a withered tree for a long time before disappearing at the end.

From the looks of it, the male lead was very likely the one behind it.

Xiao Jin understood all this, but looking at the smile on Chu Shao’s lips, she was still greatly shocked.

How could someone be poisoned and not react at all?

Chu Shao’s observation skills were very sharp, so she quickly noticed that Xiao Jin’s gaze seemed to be on her arm.

She didn’t feel that there was anything new about her arm, but since Xiao Jin was looking, there must be a reason for it.

So Chu Shao raised her hand and decided to take a look.

But when she saw the blackness on the edge of the wound, she was also stunned for a moment.

Xiao Jin’s expression was serious as she stared at Chu Shao.

After Chu Shao came back to her senses, she smiled slightly. “So it’s the poison of the gelsemium elegans. No wonder I felt a slight itch in my abdomen just now.”

“…”

Xiao Jin was silent for a moment, then asked in a low voice, “The poison is the gelsemium elegans?”

“It should be.”

Chu Shao’s smile didn’t change. She even raised her arm with great interest and observed the black blood seeping from the edge of the wound. “After all, only when a person is poisoned by the gelsemium elegans will they feel an itch in their abdomen. Then their intestines will rot, and the poisoned person will die from the extreme pain.”

Looking at the smile on Chu Shao’s face, Xiao Jin often felt out of place with the female lead because she was too normal.

…This is the gelsemium elegans, for goodness’ sake. Can you at least react? Does the gelsemium elegans have no dignity?

The so-called gelsemium elegans was one of the nine great poisons in web novels. Its lethality was no less than that of the upas tree or the seven-star begonia.

The rumors said that this poison was so potent that if the antidote wasn’t taken within three cups of tea, the victim’s intestines would turn black, stick together, and they would die a painful death.

The number of cannon fodder who died from the gelsemium elegans was probably not a thousand, but at least eight hundred.

But Chu Shao was the female lead. How could she die at the beginning?

Xiao Jin had a feeling that something was wrong, but in a short period of time, she could only attribute the magical plot to the chain reaction caused by bride snatching.

And also, the female lead was probably possessed by another person.

Chu Shao stood beside Xiao Jin, watching her fingers gradually turn pale and transparent.

Because of the severe pain in her abdomen, her entire body’s blood also turned cold.

It had been a long time since she had felt such pain. Chu Shao even missed it a little. It was just a pity that this pain wouldn’t last long.

After the time it took to drink three cups of tea, everything would become boring again.

“Tear!”

The sound of tearing cloth interrupted Chu Shao’s thoughts.

Chu Shao looked up, following the sound, only to see Xiao Jin holding a piece of cloth and handing it to her.

It looked like it was torn from a robe. It wasn’t torn very well. It was wide in the front and narrow in the back, lacking in aesthetic appeal.

Xiao Jin explained, “I don’t have any handkerchiefs left. Use this cloth to wrap it first. It might slow down the spread of the poison.”

Of course, this was just her wishful thinking.

In fact, if Xiao Jin had handed her a piece of white silk, Chu Shao would have found it more reasonable.

After all, logically, she was poisoned and was about to die a painful death. It was better to hang herself than to die in agony.

But looking at the piece of cloth, Chu Shao found it very interesting. So she took the cloth and managed to wrap it around her arm.

Thin sweat had already appeared on her forehead, but the calm smile on Chu Shao’s lips remained. “Your Highness, what’s next?”

Xiao Jin was basically sure that Chu Shao wasn’t afraid of death, but she still wanted to complete the mission and go home. She couldn’t let Chu Shao die just like that.

So she turned her head and said to the coachman, “Go to Cangjin Alley at the fastest speed.”

••••

As evening approached, the wind and snow in the capital city grew heavier.

Mixed with light rain, it made the pedestrians’ teeth chatter. They pulled their cloaks tighter.

A few months ago, someone settled at the end of Cangjin Alley and rented a pharmacy. The shop was small, and the owner only treated minor illnesses like colds and fevers, occasionally prescribing some herbs for patients.

Over time, the patients came to know that there was a doctor named Su Tan in Cangjin Alley. She was a very good doctor, and her herbs were cheap.

The wind and snow were heavy today, so after sweeping the snow, Su Tan closed the shop early.

Sitting in the shop, Su Tan brewed a pot of tea over a gentle fire. While waiting for the tea to brew, she added a scoop of feed to the cage of the white parrot.

The aroma of the tea filled the air. As she held the tea brewed with honeysuckle flowers, she suddenly felt that the harsh winter in the Northern Qi Kingdom was not that cold after all.

The honeysuckle flowers in the Great Yao Kingdom were the most abundant.

But ever since the country fell, Su Tan had not drunk honeysuckle tea for a long time.

The cold wind was biting today. She missed her hometown and the taste of honeysuckle, so she still found some honeysuckle flowers to brew tea.

The fragrance of the honeysuckle was still there, but Su Tan’s state of mind had changed, and she could only taste a slightly bitter aftertaste.

Before the bitterness in her mouth dissipated, Su Tan sighed softly and put down the porcelain cup.

A moment later, she looked at the porcelain cup and frowned.

It wasn’t unusual for tea buds to float on the surface of the tea. But at this moment, if Su Tan wasn’t mistaken, the water surface seemed to be… moving?

Su Tan’s eyebrows were tightly furrowed, and a sense of alertness arose in her heart.

Just then, the sound of carriage wheels rolling came from outside.

The coachman whipped the horse, and the iron hooves sank into the snow, sending broken ice flying.

Su Tan instinctively felt that something was wrong. Although Cangjin Alley was located in the capital of the Qi Kingdom, it was in a remote area, and few people would venture there at night.

The weather was also cold today. How could anyone be willing to visit? The person who came was probably not a good person.

Thinking this, Su Tan got up and looked out the window. Just as she saw the shiny armor of the guards, there was a knock on the door.

The parrot in the cage let out a sharp cry.

Su Tan didn’t ask who it was. Instead, she quietly took out a bamboo tube from her sleeve.

The bamboo tube contained three silver needles tipped with poison. If the other person tried to force their way in, Su Tan was confident that she could at least take down two or three people.

After gripping the bamboo tube in her hand, Su Tan said, “It’s late. The clinic is closed. Please come back another day.”

A cold voice came from outside the door. “Doctor Su, lives are at stake. I must trouble you to treat a patient.”

Upon hearing this, Su Tan was shocked.

She was not familiar with the voice outside the door, yet the person knew her name.

Besides, the people in the alley all called her “Doctor Su.” Who would respectfully call her “Doctor Su”?

Su Tan gripped the bamboo tube tightly, preparing to give a few perfunctory answers and find a way to escape. But then the person outside said again, “Also, I forgot to tell Doctor Su that my name is Xiao Jin.”

“So, you can put away the silver needles in your hand.”

••••

Xiao Jin held the porcelain cup and took a sip of hot tea. She immediately felt the chill all over her body disappear.

While drinking the tea, she looked at Su Tan, who was busy running around, looking for herbs to detoxify Chu Shao. She couldn’t help but nod in admiration.

She truly deserved to be the male lead’s right-hand person throughout the novel. She was practically a walking, human detoxification machine.

Why did such a good girl get involved with the male lead?

While Xiao Jin was lamenting, Su Tan had already prepared charcoal ash and lye. The guards were also following her instructions and brewing the antidote.

As they fanned the gentle fire with a palm-leaf fan, they wondered, How did His Highness find this place?

In reality, Su Tan still couldn’t figure out why the Prince of Yan of the Qi Kingdom would know her, and even know that she was holding a bamboo tube with silver needles.

Xiao Jin saw Su Tan glancing at her from time to time, her eyes filled with confusion.

She still sat calmly in her wheelchair, sipping her tea, thinking, It’s good that you don’t understand.

After all, in the original novel, Su Tan was known for her unyielding personality, so she had to be on guard against her.

In one part of the plot, after the male lead found out about Su Tan’s true identity, he concealed his identity as the Crown Prince of the Qi Kingdom and specially visited her. But as soon as he stepped through the door, he was almost hit by a needle.

If the male lead’s martial arts weren’t so great, the novel might have had to be changed to a no-romance genre.

So for Su Tan, Xiao Jin was both impressed and wary.

However, Su Tan was not impressed with Xiao Jin and couldn’t see through her. The reason she let Xiao Jin in just now was that the other person had revealed her identity, and she couldn’t leave the Prince of Yan of Northern Qi outside the door.

Su Tan had no good feelings for Xiao Jin, but when she saw Chu Shao’s face, she was stunned.

Because Chu Shao had a silver-blue flower-shaped ornament on her forehead, and the shape of this ornament seemed familiar to Su Tan.

She remembered the prophecy orchestrated by the national master many years ago, and her face changed slightly.

Could it be… this person is…?

“Doctor Su, you are distracted.”

Chu Shao’s eyes were gentle. She smiled and said softly to Su Tan.

But when Su Tan looked up and met Chu Shao’s eyes, she felt that they were bottomless, like ink, staining everything they touched.

After Chu Shao lowered her eyelids, the so-called ink disappeared and was replaced by a clear pool of water, so clear that it could be used as a mirror.

It almost made Su Tan think she was mistaken.

Of course, it was only “almost.”

Su Tan looked at Chu Shao’s eyebrows and eyes and felt that this person was extremely similar to a certain lady in the Great Yao Imperial Palace.

When she was a child, she was fortunate enough to have met that lady.

At that time, the national master had not yet caused chaos. The Great Yao Kingdom was prosperous and its people were strong. The Jiangyun Palace was filled with singing and dancing, and the distinguished guests toasted to each other. It was a lively scene.

The guests were about to toast the Emperor of Yao when a dancing girl walked into the hall.

Her water sleeves were as red as peonies. Her dance was enchanting, and her figure was graceful, making it impossible for the nobles to look away. They raised their cups and praised her repeatedly.

The peony was certainly beautiful, but when the last dancing girl entered the hall, all the flowers immediately lost their color.

The woman was dressed in blue, with silver sleeves like ribbons. A feather was hanging from her earlobe, making her more aloof and proud than a fairy in the palace.

After the dance ended, the entire hall held their breath in silence.

Su Tan recalled the rumors she had heard these days and found them hard to believe.

Since the Prince of Yan had come, could it be that the person who was poisoned was the Prince of Yan’s consort? But how could someone want to harm the princess when she had just married the Prince of Yan?

Su Tan couldn’t figure it out.

When she came back to her senses, she found that Chu Shao had already removed the silver needles from her acupoints and had drunk the antidote herself.

By the time Chu Shao took the antidote, there was only about the time it took for half a stick of incense to burn left until the poison took effect.

Su Tan looked at Chu Shao, her expression complicated. She knew that Chu Shao must have been in extreme pain while enduring the torment just now.

The Princess of Great Yao, who should have been showered with a thousand kinds of love, was now not only a prisoner but also forced to marry the crippled Prince of Yan.

She was clearly in so much pain, yet she still had to show a gentle smile in front of the Prince of Yan.

Su Tan clenched her fists, feeling both sorrowful and angry.

Xiao Jin finished a cup of tea. Looking at Su Tan’s ever-changing face, she gave up on the idea of a refill.

She thought that since the original character had just destroyed the country of the second female lead, Su Tan, it was normal for her to not give her a good look.

But Chu Shao’s eyelids seemed to be trembling.

Xiao Jin keenly noticed this detail. She looked up at Chu Shao’s face and saw her smiling on her lips and saying softly to Su Tan, “Thank you, Doctor Su. I feel much better now.”

She instantly understood. Because of the pain, this lunatic, Chu Shao, was starting to get happy again.

This trait… was weird, too weird.

Unfortunately, Su Tan didn’t notice anything unusual. She looked at Chu Shao with pity and said softly, “You’re too kind, Princess Consort. Let me take care of your wound for you.”

Chu Shao sat on the couch and nodded.

Xiao Jin watched Su Tan take a piece of white cloth and some crushed herbs, carefully applying the medicine to Chu Shao. She couldn’t help but feel a sense of admiration.

She was truly a lifesaver, a professional angel in white.

But gradually, Xiao Jin suddenly realized that she was also wounded, yet Su Tan didn’t even look at her.

And the way Su Tan looked at Chu Shao was too gentle and kind.

Wait a minute, Su Tan is the second female lead.

So why is she being so gentle?

Xiao Jin was dumbfounded. If the second female lead and the female lead fell for each other, then the male lead, that scoundrel, would be useless.

No, Chu Shao is her Princess Consort in name, and she was the one who led Chu Shao to Su Tan. So doesn’t that mean…

Am I cuckolding myself?