Royal Strife: The Astute Grandson

Mutou looked at the woman in confusion and asked, "Who... are you?"

The woman hurriedly knelt before Mutou, crying out, "Mr. Mutou, I am the maid specially arranged by His Highness to serve you. I am... not with her! Please spare my life!"

Sensing her fear was genuine, Mutou asked, "You don't recognize her?"

The woman replied, "I do. She is a maid living in the same quarters as me. But I never imagined she would be an assassin!"

A brief contemplation led Mutou to realize that the dead maid was a spy planted in the royal palace by a rival competing for the throne. Seeing that he was about to cure the king's illness, the rival naturally viewed him as a thorn in the side and was willing to expose a hidden operative just to eliminate him.

Immediately, a chilling thought struck him: Yaxin had used acupuncture and medication to save the prince, so the assassins would certainly not spare her either. Sure enough, the moment the thought crossed his mind, the bedroom door was smashed open with a loud bang. Mutou hurriedly grabbed a bathrobe, putting one on himself and tossing the other to the maid.

Jabbar, the palace steward who had forced his way in, asked anxiously, "Mr. Mutou, something terrible has happened—!" Then, sweeping his gaze across the room, he spotted the kneeling maid and the other lying naked by the pool. Blushing, he stammered, "I'm sorry, Mr. Mutou. I didn't mean to interrupt your evening!"

Mutou shook his head slightly and said, "You came just in time. This maid here is an assassin; she was caught by me and took poison to commit suicide."

Jabbar was greatly startled. Upon seeing the maid's bare body earlier, he had assumed Mutou was engaged in a tryst and hadn't looked closely. Now, hearing Mutou's words, he stepped closer and saw the dark, bluish tint on the dead woman's face, which clearly indicated poisoning. He apologized, "I am terribly sorry, Mr. Mutou. Our security arrangements were flawed. Your esteemed wife also faced an assassin just now. His Highness was worried about your safety and sent me to check on you."

With that, he barked at the guards by the door, "Drag this corpse out and feed it to the dogs! Take the living one away for strict interrogation. We must extract the mastermind behind this."

The surviving maid turned pale with terror, threw her arms around Mutou's legs, and cried piteously, "Mr. Mutou! I am not an assassin! Please save me! Please save me!"

Having spent a long time in the palace, she knew all too well the grim fate of traitors; she would rather die than endure those brutal tortures. Thus, she clung tightly to Mutou, pleading desperately.

Remembering that she had just shared an intimate encounter with him, Mutou relented. "Very well. This maid is not an assassin; there is no need to interrogate her." Endowed with spiritual insight, a mere thought was enough for him to perceive that this woman truly harbored no intent to harm him. Moreover, her expression moments ago had been one of genuine shock and panic, proving she was by no means a well-trained assassin.

Jabbar, however, argued, "This maid lived in the same room as the assassin. Even if she isn't an assassin herself, she must know something. We must question her thoroughly!"

Mutou said in a deep voice, "What does a young woman like her know? I said there is no need to question her, so there is no need... Do I need to intercede with His Highness Naser on her behalf?"

Jabbar hurriedly replied, "How could we trouble Mr. Mutou in person? I will explain the matter to His Highness myself!" As he spoke, he glanced at the maid. Seeing her delicate features and pitiful appearance, he assumed Mr. Mutou had developed some attachment after sleeping with her. A thought formed in his mind, and he probed, "Mr. Mutou, I trust this maid has served you well?"

Recalling the wonderful experience just moments before, Mutou curved his lips into a mysterious smile and said, "Not bad. Thank His Highness on my behalf."

Delighted, Jabbar said, "As long as Mr. Mutou is pleased. We are deeply unsettled to have subjected you to consecutive shocks, and we hope you will forgive us."

Mutou waved a hand dismissively. "Forget it. How could such petty tricks ever harm me? By the way, is my wife all right?"

Jabbar then answered, "As for that... an assassin did sneak in earlier intending to harm your esteemed wife, but she subdued the intruder, who also committed suicide by taking poison!"

Just as the two were speaking, a rapid series of footsteps echoed outside, and a terrified maid announced, "Lord Steward, the master... has taken a turn for the worse again! His Highness requests the presence of Mr. Mutou."

Hearing this, Jabbar's face drained of color. An assassination happening right within the palace was a breach of security he, as steward, could not possibly evade responsibility for. If any further mishap befell the prince, he would likely be buried along with him.

Following the maid in haste, they rushed to the prince's bedchamber, where Yaxin had already arrived and was meticulously taking the pulse of the unconscious prince. Servants and attendants knelt in rows across the floor, surrounded by numerous guards holding firearms, while Naser raged in fury.

"A bunch of good-for-nothings! My father was doing fine, why has he suddenly lapsed into unconsciousness again? How have you been taking care of him?" Pausing for a moment, he shouted, "Guards! Seize everyone who served today and interrogate them one by one. There must be a traitor plotting against my father."

Just as he finished speaking, he saw Mutou enter, guided by the steward and the maid. Naser suppressed his thunderous rage and said, "Mr. Mutou, I am sorry to disturb you at this hour, but my father..."

Mutou raised a hand to indicate it was no trouble, turning first to ask Yaxin, "How is it?"

Yaxin released the prince's wrist and said, "He has been poisoned!" She produced a bluish-green pellet and added, "Just like before. Dissolve it in water and administer it in three doses."

Hearing that it was poisoning once more, Naser felt a blaze of fury ignite in his chest. Glaring at the kneeling attendants, he said in a cold voice, "Very well! It is indeed true that enemies within are the hardest to guard against. Jabbar, how are you running things as steward? Take them away for immediate interrogation. Spare none of them!"

Bathed in sweat, Jabbar hastily ordered the guards to separate the servants and maids into different holding areas for harsh interrogation.

Once the others had retreated, Naser asked in bewilderment, "Mr. Mutou, ever since you told me my father was poisoned, I have been extremely vigilant. Even his drinking water was thoroughly inspected by designated personnel before being served. How did he get poisoned again?"

After a moment of deep thought, Yaxin asked, "What kind of incense is this?"

Everyone present froze slightly, failing to understand what incense she meant.

In truth, the moment Mutou entered the room, he had caught the scent of an unusual fragrance, but assuming it was merely the ordinary sandalwood commonly used on Earth, he hadn't given it a second thought. Hearing Yaxin's question, he said, "It seems to be sandalwood. What about it?"

Naser also came to his senses and said, "Father has always liked this kind of sandalwood incense. We smell it all the time and never paid it any special attention. Could this incense be poisonous?"

Without answering, Yaxin instructed, "Bring me all the food and drink the prince consumed today."

Naser hurriedly ordered the guards to fetch samples, saying at the same time, "I too suspected the food today, but I had already taken extra precautions, and after the incident, I had someone test all the food, yet nothing was amiss."

After pondering for a moment, Yaxin's gaze suddenly fell upon a small sachet hanging by the foot of the bed. Picking it up and sniffing it, she instantly understood. "Someone came to see the prince earlier!" she declared.

Naser replied, "It was a few of Father's concubines. Could it be..."

Yaxin asked, "Do you recognize this small sachet?"

Naser answered with uncertainty, "It seems to belong to one of the maids, though I didn't pay much attention."

Yaxin explained, "The sandalwood in the room is not poisonous in itself, but someone added a colorless, odorless substance to it. Combined with the fragrance of this sachet, it becomes a lethal poison to anyone with weak vital energy and blood."

Naser wondered aloud, "Then why are we and the servants in the room perfectly fine?"

Yaxin replied calmly, "Only your father has weakened vital energy and blood here."

Comprehension dawning instantly, Naser cursed, "Such vicious scheming! Guards, isolate Father's concubines at once. Do not allow them to communicate with the outside or leave without permission!"

At that moment, the guards brought over the food samples the prince had consumed. Naser waved a hand to dismiss them as unnecessary, then turned to Yaxin to ask, "How is my father's condition?"

Examining the prince's complexion, Yaxin replied, "Since we caught it in time, he will be fine once the poison is purged."

Overjoyed, Naser hurriedly arranged for someone to escort Yaxin back to her quarters to rest. Mutou intended to leave as well, but Naser detained him with a mysterious smile, asking, "Mr. Mutou, are you satisfied with my arrangement?"

Knowing he was referring to the maid, Mutou deliberately teased, "What? Should I thank you for arranging an assassin for me?"

Naser was startled once more. "What? Those two maids were assassins?" Having been ordered away by Naser the moment Jabbar entered earlier, he hadn't yet had the chance to be informed of Mutou's assassination attempt.

Mutou recounted the sequence of events and remarked, "Your Highness, I must say the security here has serious flaws. This is already my second assassination attempt today. If we hadn't been here, your father likely wouldn't have survived this plot either."

Naser sighed dejectedly, "Mr. Mutou is right. Father is too benevolent and never believes his own brothers would plot against him, always turning a deaf ear to my warnings. Who knows how many attendants and concubines in this palace are secret traitors now?"

He then added, "Rest assured, Mr. Mutou. I believe we will never suffer another internal assassination attempt after this. I had long taken precautions and trained a squad of utterly loyal fighters, whom I have already ordered to be transferred here. With them around, we can rest easier."

As the two were talking, two guards approached and whispered a few words into Naser's ear.

Naser's expression shifted, and he let out a cold laugh. "Hmph! She ran away? They are playing a long game, let's catch some big fish. Keep a close eye on her. See who she eventually contacts, and make sure she isn't silenced—she is a living witness!"

The two guards promised compliance and left. Naser turned to Mutou and said, "It truly was the work of one of the concubines. Seeing the guards isolating them, she actually tried to sneak away. I suspect she's going to find the mastermind! Heh, that plays right into my hands."

Mutou nodded, finding this clever and capable prince to possess extraordinary intelligence.

A short while later, Steward Jabbar approached with a bitter expression, kneeling before Naser to plead for punishment. With such a major incident occurring in the palace today, he, as steward, was naturally difficult to absolve of blame. To his surprise, Naser casually brushed the matter aside, saying, "You are the person my father trusts the most, and I believe in your loyalty. Just do your job well from now on. We can use this opportunity to root out all the hidden spies in the palace in one fell swoop!"

Overwhelmed with gratitude, tears streamed down Jabbar's face as he swore allegiance to the prince. Naser smiled and helped him up. After wiping away his tears, Jabbar whispered a few words into Naser's ear.

Naser's eyes lit up upon hearing this, and he turned to Mutou, asking, "Mr. Mutou, did you take a liking to Freda?"