The Side Character Wants to Lie Flat-Chapter 117: She Brought It on Herself

Seeing the guards rushing menacingly toward her, Yichongyuan suddenly pulled the golden hairpin from her hair.

She aimed the sharp end of the golden hairpin at her own neck, her eyes filled with grim determination.

"I did all of this myself. I deserve to die!

But the Sixth Prince is innocent.

He is still young and doesn’t understand anything.

I beg the Saint, for the sake of him being your own flesh and blood, to spare his life."

The Emperor shot to his feet. "What are you doing? Put that hairpin down!"

The minute was up. The effects of the Truth Elixir had worn off.

But Yichongyuan didn’t notice.

Following her heart’s will, she forcefully plunged the golden hairpin into her neck!

Li Ji looked at her eyes, wide with excruciating pain, and heard the voice in her heart.

’I have committed such a great crime. Staying alive will only be a burden to Yi’er.

It’s better to atone for my sins with death on the spot. That way, the Saint might retain a final shred of fatherly affection for Yi’er.

Yi’er, my Yi’er, Mother has failed you...’

In an instant, blood splattered everywhere!

Lady Shu and Wen Zhaorong, who were seated nearby, screamed in terror.

Hua Manman had been sitting beside Prince Zhao the whole time, a professional spectator to the drama.

But now, even she was startled by this sudden turn of events.

She had never seen someone commit suicide before, and she never imagined Yichongyuan would be so resolute.

The scene was so gruesome that Hua Manman froze in place, her eyes wide with horror.

Suddenly, a large hand reached over from the side and covered her eyes.

The brutal scene before Hua Manman vanished, replaced by darkness.

She heard Prince Zhao whisper in her ear.

"Don’t look."

Hua Manman blinked her sore, stinging eyes.

Her long eyelashes brushed lightly against Li Ji’s palm, creating a faint, ticklish sensation.

The Emperor strode over to Yichongyuan’s side. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

Yichongyuan had collapsed on the floor. The golden hairpin had torn a large hole in her slender neck, and blood was flowing out endlessly, staining the front of her robes red.

Her fingers slowly released the golden hairpin as she struggled to grab the hem of the Emperor’s robe.

Her eyes were wide open, her lips parting and closing as if she wanted to say something.

The Emperor immediately crouched down, leaning closer to hear her final words.

However, the last thing he heard were two slurred syllables: "Yi’er."

She was calling the Sixth Prince’s name.

Even on the verge of death, the one she couldn’t let go of was her own son.

The Emperor’s feelings were incredibly complex.

Yichongyuan was not his most favored among the concubines, but he had always been fond of her tranquil and gentle disposition.

He never would have imagined that such a gentle, placid woman could commit crimes like framing others and murdering to silence a witness.

It was as if his entire perception of her had been a figment of his own imagination.

He had never known who she truly was.

The Imperial Physician rushed over.

The hand with which Yichongyuan clutched the Emperor’s robe was pried away.

The Emperor was helped back.

He looked down at the hem of his robe, which was stained with a patch of blood.

It was Yichongyuan’s blood.

A moment later, the Imperial Physician’s trembling voice was heard.

"Please forgive my incompetence. I did my best, but Yichongyuan... she’s no longer breathing."

The Emperor closed his eyes, suppressing the chaotic emotions in his heart. He ordered in a hoarse voice,

"Prepare Yichongyuan’s body properly and bury her in the Consort Mausoleum.

Not a word of tonight’s events is to get out. If anyone dares to discuss this privately, I will have them join Yichongyuan in the afterlife."

A chill went down everyone’s spines, and they responded in unison, "Yes, Your Majesty."

With such a commotion, tonight’s banquet obviously could not continue.

The banquet ended abruptly.

Everyone returned to their own homes.

The Emperor did not summon anyone to his bedchambers that night.

He remained alone in the spacious and silent bedchamber, staring blankly at the night outside his window.

After a long time, his low murmur was heard.

"She was in the palace for ten years, and I can’t even remember her maiden name..."

Even now that she was dead, all that remained of her in his heart was the title ’Yichongyuan’.

...

Hua Manman had always been a good sleeper.

But tonight, for a change, she had insomnia.

Whenever she closed her eyes, the gruesome image of Yichongyuan’s suicide would flash before them.

A living, breathing person, gone just like that.

Suddenly, Li Ji’s deep voice sounded in her ear.

"Are you still thinking about Yichongyuan?"

Hua Manman jumped.

She turned her head to meet Prince Zhao’s long, narrow eyes, dark as ink, and was quite surprised.

"Prince, you’re not asleep either?"

Li Ji said leisurely, "When someone next to me is tossing and turning, how do you expect me to sleep?"

As the culprit behind the tossing and turning, Hua Manman looked ashamed.

"I’m sorry, I disturbed your sleep. Should I just go back to my own room?"

Li Ji: "That won’t be necessary."

A question mark floated above Hua Manman’s head.

’Why not?’

But Li Ji had no intention of explaining. Instead, he continued their previous conversation.

"If you feel guilty about Yichongyuan’s death, you don’t have to. She brought it on herself. It has nothing to do with you."

Hua Manman sighed softly. "That may be so, but I still feel a little unsettled. After all, I saw Yichongyuan kill herself with my own eyes..."

She feared that image would be unforgettable.

Li Ji asked, "Have you never seen a dead person before?"

Hua Manman thought for a moment, then nodded. "I have."

When her maternal grandparents passed away, she was by their side, watching as their breath faded away bit by bit.

But that feeling was different from this.

Her grandparents passed away because they were very old and their bodies had failed them.

It was a natural death from old age, a very normal thing.

And they passed away peacefully, without much suffering.

So what Hua Manman felt was mostly reluctance to let go and sadness.

Unlike now, where she felt mostly unease and alarm.

Li Ji heard her thoughts.

He was silent for a moment before speaking again.

"The first time I saw a dead person, I was seven years old."

Hua Manman was taken aback.

Li Ji seemed to be lost in a distant memory, his gaze growing hazy.

He said slowly,

"My father was still alive then. He took me on a spring outing.

We were ambushed on the way. My father fought ten men at once and killed all the assassins.

I was sitting in the carriage and saw everything through the window.

I was terrified.

Afterward, my father comforted me. He said there’s nothing to be afraid of when it comes to the dead.

The truly frightening ones are the living."

He was too young then to understand what his father meant.

Only now did he understand the meaning of those words.

Once a person is dead, they are just a cold corpse.

But the living can do many filthy things that go beyond the pale.

Hua Manman pictured a miniature version of Prince Zhao trembling with fear, and surprisingly, found it a little cute.

Li Ji heard her thoughts.

Li Ji’s expression became a little strange. "What are you thinking about now?"

Hua Manman: "N-Nothing."

...