I'm Competing With The Male Lead For A Woman - Chapter 21

Xiao Jin’s voice was firm, and Su Tan couldn’t help but smile slightly.

The aromatic pill has a problem?

It must have a big problem.

But Su Tan felt that the person with the most problems was Xiao Jin herself. After all, she could see through everything. That was the biggest problem.

Of course, even though she had seen through everything, she was still lying through her teeth, which was also a big problem.

But it had to be said that this person’s nonsense was so coherent that it sounded quite plausible.

“His Highness is right. The wounds in the deceased’s mouth do seem to have been bitten by a Gu worm. When I took out the aromatic pill, I found that the Gu worm was wrapped in the pill. So the pill must have been swallowed by the assassin at the beginning.”

Su Tan paused and continued, “But when the assassin died, the aromatic pill hadn’t dissolved, which is also a big mystery.”

Xiao Jin also felt that this was a mystery. She nodded. “Indeed. Judging from this person’s appearance, he doesn’t seem to have gone through the various stages of the Gu poison.”

The implication was that the Gu on the assassin was only in its first stage.

Su Tan knew that Xiao Jin had probably thought the same thing as her. “Yes, I also think that the Gu poison on this person should have just entered its first stage.”

“So we can tentatively infer that this person was infected with the Gu not long ago. But we still don’t know whether this Gu was planted before or after the assassination attempt.”

Xiao Jin frowned slightly. According to what Su Tan said, were there two masterminds? And was there a sequence to it?

Or, the person who planted the Gu and the person who assassinated her were the same person.

After listening to the two women, Chu Shao smiled. She was always in a state of clear-headedness. “Doctor Su, I believe we should investigate this aromatic pill before we look into the truth.”

Even though the two people in front of her were talking in circles, it didn’t interfere with Chu Shao’s logical reasoning at all.

However, the reason Chu Shao spoke now wasn’t because she wanted to help Xiao Jin. It was because she was a little bored and didn’t want to stay here anymore.

After saying this, Chu Shao lowered her eyes and said nothing more.

Ever since Su Tan came, things have become much more boring. So it’s all because of Su Tan that the originally very interesting Xiao Jin has become as boring as everyone else.

Chu Shao frowned and began to think about what she could do to get rid of Su Tan and make things fun again.

Su Tan didn’t notice Chu Shao’s strange behavior, but she agreed that the aromatic pill should be investigated first. So she picked up the sliced aromatic pill and carefully placed it on a white handkerchief.

Then she took a small amount of water and washed off the blood.

After doing this, Su Tan took out a bottle of potion from her medical bag, drew a drop, and gently dripped it onto the aromatic pill.

The original scent of the aromatic pill immediately filled the dark room.

“White plum, peony, clover, spikenard, red Poria…”

Hearing Su Tan accurately identify the ingredients in the aromatic pill, Xiao Jin’s face was calm, but her heart was a little shaken.

So the second female lead is not only a human antidote machine, but also a walking perfume expert? She’s too powerful.

Under the multiple halos of the second female lead, Xiao Jin gradually forgot about the confrontation she had with Su Tan just now. She even had the idea of increasing Su Tan’s favorability and pulling her into her camp.

Before long, Su Tan had smelled all the ingredients in the aromatic pill.

She turned her head, only to find that Xiao Jin was looking at her with a very strange expression, which made Su Tan feel a little creeped out.

After looking away, Su Tan said, “This aromatic pill should be from the Yanyu Pavilion. It’s their ‘Chunshankong.'”

Yanyu Pavilion?

When Xiao Jin heard these three words, she frowned.

In the original novel, the Yanyu Pavilion was the largest brothel in the capital. It was mostly filled with talented courtesans who only sold their art, not their bodies. It was managed by the side character, Bai Zheng.

The Bai family had a good reputation in the capital. Bai Zheng’s father was also a high-ranking official. Logically, he shouldn’t be involved in the muddy waters of the original owner’s assassination.

Now that even the Yanyu Pavilion was involved, the development of the plot was a little too absurd.

Su Tan looked at the slight frown on Xiao Jin’s forehead. Although she didn’t want to help this person, Chu Shao was still Xiao Jin’s princess consort.

If something happened to Xiao Jin, it would inevitably affect Chu Shao.

After thinking for a moment, Su Tan decided to give a reminder. “Your Highness, if you want to find the mastermind, you’ll probably have to send someone to the Yanyu Pavilion to find out who was using this aromatic pill. Only then can you solve the mystery.”

Xiao Jin nodded. She understood these things, but the key problem was…

She didn’t have anyone she could trust.

The world of the novel seemed melodramatic, but in reality, there were undercurrents. Besides some simple and loyal guards in the residence, Xiao Jin really couldn’t trust anyone else.

This included Princess Zhaohua, who had already appeared, and the Crown Prince, whom the original owner was loyal to. They didn’t seem as simple as they appeared.

Furthermore, the original owner had inexplicably had her legs crippled and had been left with a severe illness. Xiao Jin really didn’t dare to be careless and blindly trust others.

This melodramatic novel left Xiao Jin speechless. She could barely recognize the words anymore.

If she were to casually open a page, the entire page would be filled with “killing the heart.”

Thinking of this, Xiao Jin looked at the two people from the Yao Kingdom in front of her. She suddenly felt that even a madman and a two-faced person seemed much more trustworthy than the people hiding behind the scenes.

So Xiao Jin decided to play the emotional card and see if she could soften Su Tan, who still had a conscience, and bring her over to her side.

“I don’t have anyone I can trust.”

Xiao Jin’s voice was calm, as if she were stating a fact that everyone already knew.

In reality, it was a fact.

However, Su Tan was not moved. On the contrary, she felt that Xiao Jin was just getting what she deserved.

With this person’s identity, status, and achievements, it was quite impressive that she could end up in this situation on her own.

“Undercurrents are flowing in the capital. Although I can’t see the faces of those people, I know that many people want me dead.”

Xiao Jin said these arrogant words. Every word was forceful and seemed very serious. “I can’t trust them, so I can only trust myself.”

This was Xiao Jin’s true thought. But when Chu Shao heard this, she let out a small laugh.

Xiao Jin frowned and looked at Chu Shao, who had laughed.

She’s being a little too disrespectful.

Just as she was thinking this, Chu Shao’s lips curved into a smile, and she said to Xiao Jin seriously, “In that case, it seems that Your Highness can only go to the Yanyu Pavilion yourself to find out what’s going on.”

Meeting Chu Shao’s gaze, Xiao Jin answered calmly, “I would like to find out, but my legs are crippled. If I appear at the Yanyu Pavilion in my current state, people will recognize me at a glance. How can I find the mastermind?”

Su Tan nodded. She felt that although Xiao Jin’s words were arrogant, she was still self-aware.

If Xiao Jin appeared at the Yanyu Pavilion in a wheelchair, and coughed up blood every now and then, even if people wanted to pretend not to know her, they wouldn’t be able to. Let alone investigate the case.

Chu Shao looked at the indifferent Xiao Jin and smiled. “Perhaps Your Highness can disguise yourself as someone no one would expect. That way, you won’t arouse suspicion.”

Xiao Jin was slightly stunned. Disguise herself as someone no one would expect?

What kind of disguise would that be?

••••

The next day was a clear and cloudless day.

In winter, it was rare to have such a peaceful and comfortable day in the capital. There was no wind or rain, and only occasionally would some snow fall that would melt as soon as it hit the ground.

The Prince of Yan, Xiao Jin, was also in a good mood. She took her wife, Chu Shao, to the outskirts to enjoy the plum blossoms and snow.

This kind of thing seemed a bit contradictory for a person whose legs were crippled. But fortunately, everyone in the capital knew that the Prince of Yan had never done anything normal in her life.

In spring, going on a trip to the outskirts was to enjoy the greenery. But in winter… The Prince of Yan must have gone to enjoy the snow.

However, Xiao Jin was not there to enjoy the winter atmosphere.

As soon as they arrived at Fengyang City, not far from the capital, Xiao Jin got off the carriage and went into a residence that Old Zhang had prepared beforehand. She was ready to begin the next stage of her plan.

Although Xiao Jin didn’t agree with Chu Shao’s plan at first, after thinking about it, there didn’t seem to be a better or more direct strategy.

To become a secret detective who would never be suspected, she first had to create a distraction by pretending to go somewhere else. This would eliminate any suspicion of her being at the scene of the incident.

Then, she would disguise herself as someone people were not familiar with and appear at the investigation site with a new identity. This was truly brilliant.

Chu Shao drank her tea and smiled as she proposed a great disguise strategy.

“For example, if you were to disguise yourself as a woman and appear at the Yanyu Pavilion, even if you were in a wheelchair, no one would ever suspect that you are the Prince of Yan.”

Su Tan looked at the expressionless Xiao Jin and felt a little like laughing. She echoed, “The Princess Consort is right. If you were to appear as a woman, this appearance would not fit the public’s perception of the Prince of Yan of Northern Qi.”

“So, even if the facts were laid out in front of them, the people would usually not believe it. After all, it is… a bit absurd.”

It had to be said that Chu Shao and Su Tan’s imaginations were very creative and logical. At the same time, they subtly used reverse thinking, trying to turn all the absurd brain circuits into something reasonable.

They are indeed the female and second female leads.

For Su Tan’s logic to have such a high degree of overlap with Chu Shao’s, her brain was definitely a rarity in this world.

At first, when she heard this suggestion, Xiao Jin thought it was ridiculous and didn’t want to accept it.

After all, if she really went along with these two and wore a dress, the nature of this behavior would be a bit complicated.

A woman pretending to be a man pretending to be a woman. Even a Russian nesting doll isn’t this complicated.

This return to one’s true nature was truly understood by Chu Shao, and it made Xiao Jin feel ashamed and impressed.

However, after weighing the pros and cons, Xiao Jin finally reluctantly adopted this suggestion.

The reason for adopting it was also very clear.

Although if she were to deviate from the original owner’s path of a woman disguised as a man and appear in public in women’s clothing, it would definitely be a collapse of her character’s persona.

But by doing something so out of character, something the original owner would never do, it would become a great protective umbrella.

The good thing was that even if she caused a scene at the Yanyu Pavilion, no one would ever associate a weak, disabled woman with the arrogant Prince of Yan.

After all, no one would believe that the Prince of Yan, with her arrogance and pride, would do such a thing.

In addition to this, Xiao Jin had some more compelling reasons. For example, she had been in this novel world for so long, and as a transmigrator, she had never worn a woman’s clothes.

Not even once.

Every day, she was forced to wear the original owner’s fur-collared cape, and Xiao Jin was already tired of it.

Another reason was that Xiao Jin didn’t trust the staff who didn’t know her well, nor did she trust Chu Shao, who could betray their alliance at any time.

Of course, not to mention Su Tan, who was holding a poisonous needle. Xiao Jin had never had any hope for this person.

These reasons combined made Xiao Jin fully realize that unless she went to the scene herself and caught the mastermind with her own hands, she would never be able to rest easy.

And the result of going to the scene herself was—

Chu Shao was now holding a wooden comb and standing in front of Xiao Jin. In her hand was a snow-colored robe embroidered with white peonies.

Since Xiao Jin and Chu Shao’s heights and body types were not too different, except that the former was a little taller, Xiao Jin could actually wear Chu Shao’s clothes.

So this snow-colored robe that Chu Shao was holding was one that the residence had tailored and sent to her a few days ago, but she hadn’t had a chance to wear it yet.

The white peonies embroidered on the robe were beautiful and luxurious. The double petals were embroidered with silver and white threads. From a distance, it looked like a slender hand parting a jade curtain, exuding an endless sense of lazy nobility.

Although this snow-colored robe was beautiful, Chu Shao didn’t like it much.

The peony was stunning, and when it was dotted on the bright robe, it was quite unique. However, if the wearer’s aura couldn’t suppress this charming flower, it would inevitably look a little vulgar.

With this thought in mind, Chu Shao held the long robe and looked at Xiao Jin, who was sitting in the wheelchair.

Meeting the eyes that were a few degrees colder than frost and snow, her mood suddenly became a little joyful. She couldn’t help but curve her lips.

She was looking forward to the moment when the white peony would bloom on Xiao Jin’s body.