TFDC Chapter 41.2

Chapter 41.2 - A string of rosary beads

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Thinking it through, the empress purposely gave Lou Qingwu and Xiahou Rui some personal time alone, letting Xiahou Rui personally send Lou Qingwu back.

Lou Qingwu didn’t reject because she didn’t think that Xiahou Rui’s appearance was a coincidence.

She feared, that he had something to say to her.

Sure enough, she was right.

In front of the palace gates, Xiahou Rui asked the first phrase of the day, “I heard them say that you were met with an assassination attempt on your way back to the residence last night?”

“Yes, luckily the Night Prince was able to rescue me and that it was only a few hoodlums.”

“Did you get injured?” Xiahou Rui’s eyes darkened, his eyes becoming more focused on her.

Lou Qingwu couldn’t decide if he was truly concerned or if he had some other thoughts.

After last night’s hysteria powder and voodoo doll affair, the empress might not have noticed, but she didn’t believe that Xiahou Rui still thought of her as an innocent miss from a rich family.

Or maybe he’d noticed from the start, but avoided speaking of it, only sounding her out.

She was afraid that if it wasn’t for this voodoo affair, he wouldn’t have let his guard down around her.

Following that line of thinking, then this voodoo affair could be turned into a good thing.

As she already decided on destroying Xiahou Qing completely, then he definitely wouldn’t be able to become the emperor.

In which case, she would have to support someone else on the throne.

Then, should she choose Xiahou Rui?

Before yesterday, she might’ve hesitated. But if they’re on the same side now, then following last night, even if she didn’t want to stand on the second prince’s side, everyone else probably thinks she’s already one of his people anyway.

So if everyone’s the same, then …

Her eyes flashed a strange light as she deeply looked at Xiahou Rui, shaking her head, “Thanks to the second prince for his concern, but I wasn’t injured severely.”

She had clearly only looked at him briefly, but Xiahou Rui felt like his back was going numb, like the hairs on the back of his neck was raised for some unknown reason.

It felt like a snake was watching him, making his whole body feel strange.

He silently looked at her a few more times, unsure, “You’re really fine?”

“Of course.” Lou Qingwu glanced at him, “Otherwise, did the second prince hope that I’d get injured?”

Xiahou Rui was silent as he began to agree with his seventh brother’s words.

A single phrase from this woman really … could make a person choke.

Lou Qingwu didn’t notice Xiahou Rui’s strange reaction because her eyes fell on another man in a palanquin behind him from the very beginning.

He wore a dark red court gown as he gently and humbly stepped forward.

When he saw her and Xiahou Rui, he first froze, before walking over and smiling, not speaking.

But his smile didn’t reach the bottom of his eyes.

His dark grey eyes gave off a cold feeling.

Lou Qingwu furrowed her brows, narrowing her eyes as she watched Mu Yunqing walk closer.

She saw him stand in front of them and Xiahou Rui finally noticing his presence, exchanged a few words before Mu Yunqing excused himself to enter the palace.

But when he walked past Lou Qingwu, the extremely ordinary looking rosary beads on his wrist scattered suddenly on the ground.

The beads scattered in all directions, spreading out over the ground.

Mu Yunqing seemingly froze and in that moment, Lou Qingwu seemed to see his silhouette freeze as if it had been struck by lightning, like his whole person was lagging.

But what made people even more astonished was the normally smiling justice department’s young official suddenly becoming like he had been possessed by the devil.

The guards guarding the Vermillion Bird gate watched as he frantically crouched down to scrabble for the beads, searching desperately for every single one.

One bead rolled to Lou Qingwu’s feet so she crouched down to pick it up.

The bead was made of sandalwood and was quite weathered, it was a bit old and some of the colour had started to fade.

Her fingers rubbed it a bit and felt like there was a word on it.

She lifted up her hand, her icy cold fingertips pinching the rosary bead in the light as she could just barely make out a “Sheng” carved out.

But before she could look more carefully, she felt her eyes darken as Mu Yun Qing’s long figure covered up the light in front of her

*

TL note:

Sheng - a name? Direct translation is reed.

Leave a comment and follow if you’re not getting off Xiahou Rui’s sinking ship because the male lead’s not dependable and never here xx

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