Chapter 25: Jing Chi Saves His Sister Like a Hero

A sharp cry pierced the silence of the practice hall.

Shen He jerked her head around, only to see the silk ribbon supporting Chen Suixin snap in mid-air. It strained under Chen Suixin’s weight, fraying thread by thread, until with a sudden "rip," it parted completely. Chen Suixin fell from the height like a butterfly with broken wings.

"Suixin!"

Without a second thought, Yan Qingyi lunged forward and caught her steadily. Chen Suixin’s eyes were squeezed shut.

*Crash!*

A series of porcelain shattering sounds followed, accompanied by the thunderous collapse of a wooden rack. Because of the ribbon’s snap, the palace servants holding the other end stumbled, crashing into a wooden stand displaying musical instruments. Shen He, standing right next to the stand, did not sense the impending danger, her focus entirely fixed on Chen Suixin.

"Watch out!" Xiao Jingchi, quick-witted and agile, rushed forward and shielded Shen He with his own body.

*Thud!* The entire wooden rack slammed into Xiao Jingchi’s back.

The palace servants were terrified out of their wits. "Your Highness!"

The practice hall was in chaos, dust billowing into the air. Once the others regained their senses, they scrambled to their knees, trembling.

Upon seeing the scene, Xiao Jingchen’s expression shifted violently. He rushed to Chen Suixin in two strides, asking anxiously, "Suixin, are you alright?"

"I am fine..." Chen Suixin whispered, her face pale as she leaned into Yan Qingyi’s arms.

Xiao Jingchen stood up abruptly, his gaze sweeping across the room with icy intensity. "No one is allowed to leave!" His voice was cold, laden with suppressed fury. "Investigate! Find out why the ribbon broke! I want the truth brought to light!"

Aunt Dong looked as though she might faint. Her earlier promise to protect Chen Suixin seemed to echo in the hall, yet such an incident had occurred, even implicating the Sixth Prince. Could she possibly keep her head now?

"Jingchi, are you alright?" Shen He scrambled up from the floor, rushing to check on Xiao Jingchi’s injuries.

"I’m fine." Xiao Jingchi helped Shen He stand, his eyes filled with concern. "Are you hurt?"

"I’m fine. What about you? How is your back?" Shen He asked anxiously.

Xiao Jingchi shook his head, suppressing the pain. "Just a minor scrape, it’s nothing." He spoke lightly, though he could not hide the pain etched in his brow. "As long as you are safe, sister."

Shen He felt a warmth in her heart, followed by deeper worry. "Why are you so foolish?"

Xiao Jingchi chuckled. "Mother said that men are born to protect women. I told you, I would protect you, sister."

Shen He bit her lip, a complex swirl of emotions rising within her. "Someone, send for the imperial physician at once!"

Hearing this, Aunt Dong shouted, her voice raspy, "Quick... quickly... fetch the physician!"

Shen He helped Xiao Jingchi up and moved toward the practice stage. Yan Qingyi was still busy comforting the shaken Chen Suixin, oblivious to the situation nearby. Xiao Jingchen stood by with a dark expression, his gaze like burning torches. The servants of the Imperial Music Conservatory were deathly pale, kneeling on the ground and knocking their heads in desperate pleas for mercy.

This sudden accident had transformed the tranquil practice hall into a slaughterhouse. Even the young women resting in the inner chambers came out to see what had happened.

Aunt Dong was the first to regain her composure. She immediately began clearing the scene, ordering chairs to be brought for Chen Suixin, Xiao Jingchi, and the others. Once Yan Qingyi had calmed Chen Suixin down, he stood up and said coldly, "Bring me the broken ribbon."

A young eunuch hurried over with the piece of silk and handed it to Yan Qingyi. Yan Qingyi noticed that about two inches of the break were cleanly cut, while the rest showed the irregular signs of a natural tear. Just as he was about to pass it to Xiao Jingchi, he caught a look from him and quickly diverted his hand to present it to Xiao Jingchen instead.

Xiao Jingchen took the ribbon, his brows knitting together. "Who was responsible for preparing the ribbons today?"

Aunt Dong looked up and plucked a small eunuch from the kneeling crowd. "Reporting to the Fourth Prince, it was... it was Little Hu-zi."

The boy, who looked quite young, was already streaming with tears. "Your Highness, mercy! Please have mercy! Before the rehearsal today, I personally inspected these ribbons! I tested them myself—they shouldn't have snapped! Your Highness, even if I had eight hundred guts, I would never dare to be negligent!"

Yan Qingyi said coldly, "This ribbon doesn't look like it snapped suddenly; it is clear someone intentionally cut a notch into it. Shouldn't you have been watching it at all times? Even if you inspected it, you are guilty of negligence for failing to guard it properly!"

Little Hu-zi’s tears flowed down his face. "I... I don't know why, but I had a stomach ache today, and that is why..."

Xiao Jingchen scoffed. "What kind of excuse is that? Even if you had a stomach ache, you should have delegated the task to someone else. It seems to me you were simply careless. Go to the Internal Affairs Department, take fifty lashes, and lose three months' salary. Tell them to reassign you elsewhere."

Little Hu-zi knocked his head against the floor, begging for mercy. "Fourth Prince! Please, give this servant another chance!"

As he spoke, two guards entered to drag him away.

"Wait a moment," Shen He said, stopping the guards. The guards looked to Xiao Jingchen, and only upon his nod did they release the boy.

Shen He stepped forward. "What did you eat yesterday that gave you a stomach ache today?"

"I... I ate dinner with the others from the conservatory. I didn't eat anything else."

"Since everyone ate together, why were you the only one with a stomach ache?"

"I don't know..."

"Today, besides the group meal, did you eat or drink anything else?"

"The Internal Affairs Department provided tea for everyone today. After I finished inspecting the ribbons, I drank some water from my own cup. That was all."

Shen He mused, "Go fetch your cup and let me see it."

Xiao Jingchen signaled the guards, who nodded and followed the boy. When they returned with the cup, Shen He sniffed it slightly, then took her handkerchief and poured the remaining tea onto it. Turning to Xiao Jingchen, she said, "Fourth Prince, there is the scent of medicinal powder in this cup. While I cannot identify the substance, it is certainly not ordinary tea. Please look, Your Highness—there are undissolved white powder particles in the tea."

She handed the handkerchief to Xiao Jingchen, who took it and examined it. Indeed, beyond the wet patches, there were fine white specks.

"It seems someone took advantage of the eunuch's distraction to spike his drink, just to force him to leave and make it convenient to tamper with the ribbons."

Xiao Jingchen said coldly, "That only proves this was no accident, but it does not change the fact of his negligence. As I said, he could have found a replacement before leaving; clearly, he did not take his duty seriously. Take him away!"

This time, the guards did not hesitate and dragged the wailing eunuch out.

Suddenly, among the crowd of onlookers, Shen He spotted a nervous figure hiding at the back.

Shen Yan!