ATMIWPT Chapter 5 The Position of Crown Princess

Qin Muyao slowly pressed the dagger deeper into the man in black’s heart. The excruciating pain made him wish for death. 

She could only craft simple talismans at this point, so her control over him was limited—just enough to prevent him from moving.

The man’s veins bulged, and his voice rasped, strained with agony. “She’s dead… If you don’t believe me, I have her jade pendant on me. You can take it out and see for yourself…”

Qin Muyao rummaged through his clothes and found the jade pendant. She asked in a cold, detached voice, “Where is the body?”

“At…” 

Before he could finish his sentence, his body began to tremble violently, and an overwhelming stench of decay filled the air.

Moments later, he collapsed into a pool of blood and gore.

Qin Muyao furrowed her brows, muttering under her breath, “Why would a forbidden technique of the Xuan Sect appear here?”

Before she could contemplate further, the jade pendant in her hand began to glow faintly.

From it, a faint soul emerged—none other than the soul of the Marquis of Zhongyi’s legitimate daughter, Qin Muyao.

She seemed to want to speak, but the soul’s energy was too weak, and the words stayed trapped within her.

Creak—

The sound of a door opening startled the soul. In a swift motion, it retreated back into the jade pendant.

Madam Qin, her face full of panic, hurried into the room. Her eyes were wide with fright as she rushed to Qin Muyao’s side. “Yaoyao, are you alright? I had a nightmare… In it, you were killed by someone…”

Qin Muyao quickly hid the jade pendant, her expression turning fearful as she clung to her mother. “Mother, I’m scared…”

Madam Qin enveloped her in a tight embrace and patted her back soothingly. But as she noticed the bloodstain on the floor, her face paled. She quickly checked her daughter from head to toe. “Yaoyao, are you hurt?”

Qin Muyao shook her head. “No, Mother. I’m not hurt. I don’t know why there’s blood here…”

Relieved, Madam Qin let out a sigh of relief. She instructed the maid to clean up the room and make sure everything was in order.

Still uneasy, Madam Qin decided to stay by Qin Muyao’s side and sleep with her that night.

Qin Muyao didn’t say anything, but deep in her heart, she wondered: How could Madam Qin have coincidentally shown up at such a critical moment?

Could it truly have been because of a nightmare?

She must find an opportunity to tell Fu Hanzhou about the unusual events tonight.

…

The weather was fine, with the sun shining brightly and the sky clear.

After breakfast, Qin Ningxin stood anxiously at the door, eagerly awaiting Qin Muyao, afraid that she might back out of attending the Chrysanthemum Banquet.

Qin Muyao stretched lazily before following Qin Ningxin to Minister Liu’s residence for the event.

When they disembarked from the carriage, they were greeted by Liu Fangya, the legitimate daughter of the Liu family, who was waiting at the entrance.

“Muyao, Ningxin, you’ve finally arrived…” Liu Fangya greeted them warmly, but her tone hinted at some underlying frustration, as if she had been waiting for them for quite some time, with a hint of both reproach and mockery.

Upon closer inspection, Qin Muyao noticed that Liu Fangya quickly suppressed her surprise, though a trace of irritation remained in her expression.

Qin Muyao picked up on the subtle change but chose to remain silent, not responding.

Qin Ningxin, on the other hand, smiled faintly and casually explained, “Second Sister spent quite a bit of time getting ready, almost missing the banquet. It was only because I dragged her here that we made it in time…”

The implication was clear—it was Qin Muyao who had delayed, and it had nothing to do with her.

Liu Fangya shot Qin Muyao an annoyed look before complaining, “Muyao, if you’re going to keep dragging your feet next time, I won’t invite you again.”

Qin Muyao raised an eyebrow, her tone calm and unhurried, “Then I’ll leave?”

Qin Ningxin: “…”

Liu Fangya: “…”

She had only intended to assert some control over Qin Muyao, not actually make her leave.

This person was harder to manipulate than she had anticipated. With no choice but to change tactics, Liu Fangya quickly steered the conversation in another direction and ushered Qin Muyao into the residence.

Qin Muyao greeted the elders and several distinguished ladies, then took a seat at the table.

The spread was lavish, with an array of delicacies, and there was even a thoughtful selection of fruit wine nearby.

Qin Muyao took a small sip of the fruit wine, finding it to her liking. Just as she was about to take another sip, Qin Ningxin nudged her elbow.

“Second Sister, look—it’s the Third Prince!”

Qin Muyao looked up, her gaze falling on the so-called Third Prince. He wasn’t bad-looking, especially in his bold red attire, which exuded an arrogant and flamboyant air, leaving a strong impression.

The Third Prince, Fu Kuangze, was indeed as his name suggested—wild, unrestrained, and free-spirited.

At that very moment, Qin Muyao could distinctly feel the jade pendant in her chest growing warm.

Could it be that the death of the original Qin Muyao was somehow connected to him?

Frowning, Qin Muyao pondered how best to strike up a conversation with the Third Prince, curious about the extent of the relationship between the original and him.

After all, according to the information provided by Fu Hanzhou, the original Qin Muyao had no connection with the Third Prince whatsoever.

As she lifted her gaze, she was met with a surprising scene.

The Third Prince, Fu Kuangze, was also looking at her. He raised his tea cup, giving a slight wave, as though inviting her to join him in a drink.

Qin Muyao raised an eyebrow and mimicked his gesture, returning the greeting with a similar motion.

Before long, a maid who was serving tea slipped a small note into Qin Muyao’s hand while the others were distracted, and quickly left.

Opening the note, Qin Muyao read that the Third Prince, Fu Kuangze, had invited her to meet him in the side room.

She raised an eyebrow and, without a word, tore up the note. Calmly, she turned to the turtle, Xiao Ba. “Follow Fu Kuangze discreetly and see if he heads to the side room.”

Xiao Ba, looking at its tiny legs, seemed exasperated. “…Are you sure you want me to go?”

Qin Muyao nodded. “I’m not asking you to crawl back and tell me. Just use the conch to send me a message when you can. No need to make a fuss, just go!”

Reluctantly, Xiao Ba sighed. “Fine.”

Qin Muyao continued eating and drinking at her seat, completely unfazed and showing no signs of preparing to leave.

Meanwhile, Qin Ningxin furrowed her brows, a calculating look flashing in her eyes. She picked up her wine cup and handed it toward Qin Muyao. “Second Sister, this fruit wine tastes quite good. Would you like to try some?”

“No need,” Qin Muyao waved her hand in refusal, not taking the wine. “I don’t drink.”

“Just one sip…” Qin Ningxin seemed unwilling to give up, still holding the wine cup close to Qin Muyao.

“Ah!” 

In a careless move, she spilled the fruit wine from the cup, and it happened to land on Qin Muyao’s clothes.

Qin Ningxin flashed an apologetic smile. “Second Sister, I’m so sorry! It wasn’t intentional! Your clothes got dirty; would you like to go change?”

It was, of course, intentional. Her goal was to get Qin Muyao to leave the table and go find the “Third Prince.”

The envelope from the maid earlier had been nothing but a trap—one she had orchestrated to make Qin Muyao believe it was genuine.

She didn’t expect that this little bitch didn’t fall for it.

No matter. She still had plenty of tricks up her sleeve!

Today, she would ruin Qin Muyao, for the position of Crown Princess was hers and hers alone!

Qin Muyao slowly picked up a wine cup and, with a nonchalant motion, splashed the contents directly onto Qin Ningxin’s clothes. Then, innocently blinking her large, watery eyes, she said, “Fifth Sister, I wasn’t intentional either…”

Fury surged through Qin Ningxin as she jumped to her feet, shouting angrily, “Qin Muyao, you did that on purpose!”

The room was immediately abuzz.

Everyone turned to look in their direction, and it was only then that Qin Ningxin realized they were at a banquet, not in their residence. Flustered, she forced a smile and sat back down.

Qin Muyao blinked her almond eyes, feigning innocence. “Don’t get so worked up, I was just learning from you.”

——