The little heroine investigates a mysterious case

Chapter 373 I Can Only Kill Myself

Shi Shu looked at Gu Zhanghua with tears in her eyes, her voice ethereal, as if from another world.

"Your Highness... there's something I've been keeping from you..."

Seeing the pain on Shi Shu's face as she spoke, Gu Zhanghua quickly stopped her.

"Shishu, don't say anything, I don't want to hear anything! I just want to stay with you for a while..."

Shi Shu loosened her grip on the dagger, tightly grasped Gu Zhanghua's hand, and forced a smile.

"Your Highness...please let me finish what I have to say. If I don't say these words, I...I will die with my eyes open in disgrace!"

After saying that, Shi Shu tilted her head and suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood!

Seeing this, Zhao Xuan was extremely worried and was about to step forward again when Little Fairy Doctor grabbed her arm tightly and slowly but firmly shook her head at Zhao Xuan again, her voice so soft that only the two of them could hear it.

"Don't go and disturb them. Let them have a good talk."

Zhao Xuan took a deep breath, but her eyes were fixed on Gu Zhanghua, fearing that Shi Shu's injuries would cause Gu Zhanghua's emotions to fluctuate too much and harm himself.

Gu Zhanghua choked back tears as he gently wiped the blood from Shi Shu's lips.

"Okay, whatever you say... Say whatever you want..."

Shi Shu's gaze drifted to a spot in the void, a mixture of bewilderment and helplessness in his eyes.

"Your Highness... I, I was originally the youngest prince of the Chen Dynasty. When the Chen Dynasty was destroyed, I was still an infant. My mother's brother was Qi Kai, the prime minister of the Chen Dynasty at that time. He rescued me from the palace and took me all the way to the outskirts of Jinyang City in the Yue Kingdom, where we entrusted a farming family in the mountains to take me in..."

Before she could finish speaking, Shi Shu coughed up another mouthful of blood, her face contorted in pain.

Gu Zhanghua was at a loss. He reached out and wiped the blood from the corner of Shishu's mouth again. He seemed not to have heard what Shishu was saying at all, and just kept stopping her.

"No! No! Stop talking, I don't want to hear it, I don't want to know anything... I only know that you are my best friend and brother..."

Gu Zhanghua held Shishu's hand, buried his head deeply in Shishu's chest, and choked with sobs.

When Zhao Xuan and Little Fairy Doctor heard Shi Shu recount the past, they both stared wide-eyed in shock. What had they heard?

Chen State?!

The State of Chen, destroyed by Emperor Gu Li of Xia?!

Shi Shu is actually the youngest prince of the Chen Kingdom?!

Qi Kai, the wicked prime minister of Chen, was the subject of the Xia emperor's rebellion. The slogan for attacking Chen was: "Purge the court of corrupt officials and execute Qi Kai!"

Moreover, it is said that all the direct descendants of the Chen Kingdom died in the great fire that King Chen personally set before committing suicide, and none of them survived!

Both Emperor Xia and Zhao Xiaoman had mentioned this matter to Zhao Xuan and Gu Zhanghua, whether intentionally or unintentionally.

When Xiao Yixian was young, the Chen Dynasty was in power. To avoid the ravages of war and to escape the fact that her older brother and father had been conscripted into the army, she and her family fled.

Later, she also heard her father mention the fall of the Chen state, which was widely known at the time and was not a secret.

But now, Shi Shu is actually the only remaining member of the royal family of Chen Kingdom. How is that possible?!

Zhao Xuan and Little Fairy Doctor exchanged a glance. Neither of them could discern the truth or falsehood in Shi Shu's words, so they could only patiently listen to Shi Shu continue.

Shi Shu barely managed to raise her hand and gently stroked Gu Zhanghua's head, with the tenderness of a true elder brother caring for his younger brother, filled with boundless affection.

Yes, he wasn't afraid of death; the only person he cared about in this world was Gu Zhanghua.

Gu Zhanghua raised her head, her eyes filled with tears, and looked at Shishu. Shishu gently wiped away Gu Zhanghua's tears.

"Your Highness, don't cry... listen to me..."

Shi Shu's gaze returned to the void, seemingly lost in deep memories, a bitter smile playing on her lips.

“It wasn’t until I was nine years old that my uncle found me and told me the truth. He told me to always remember the deep hatred my parents had for me… So I followed his instructions and returned to the Xia Kingdom, looking for an opportunity to get close to the kindest and most innocent Fifth Prince, Gu Zhanghua, and to try to gain your trust, acting as an undercover agent and inside man to wait for the opportunity to restore the kingdom…”

At this point, Shi Shu sighed, her eyes suddenly flashing with a dazzling light, and her voice became even gentler.

"The Fifth Prince is indeed easy to fool... Not only did he make me your personal page and give me a new name, Shishu, but he also found me the best master to teach me martial arts..."

Tears welled up in her eyes again, and Shi Shu sobbed uncontrollably.

"But so many years have passed, and I've been following the Fifth Prince around every day, full of idealism and kindness. Especially seeing the lives of the people of Xia Kingdom getting better day by day, I really start to doubt whether my uncle's plan to restore the country is right or wrong!"

"Stop talking, it's okay, it really's okay. I don't care who you are, just stop talking!"

Gu Zhanghua tried to cover Shishu's mouth, but the resolute look in Shishu's eyes made Gu Zhanghua withdraw his hand. He just held Shishu tightly, his eyes devoid of any light.

“My uncle has never contacted me all these years, until half a year ago when he sent someone to ask me about the Princess’s background. I told him, but I have never done anything to betray His Highness… I really haven’t!”

Shi Shu was panting heavily, as if he had reached the end of his life and this was just a final burst of energy before death. He continued to murmur as he tried to hold on.

“Three months ago, he secretly sent someone to deliver another order to me, instructing me to take advantage of the war between Xia and Yue to kill His Highness, causing chaos in Liyang, so that it would be easier for them to attack Fengcheng. But, coincidentally, His Highness requested to go to the Northern Army, so I went with His Highness…”

Shi Shu looked at Gu Zhanghua with teary eyes and shouted in grief and indignation.

"Your Highness, do you know?! I risked my life to protect you that time, I didn't even want to live. I thought if I died, I wouldn't go against my uncle's wishes! But you all brought me back to life! I don't want to live! I don't want to live!"

Shi Shu's painful and suppressed cries moved Zhao Xuan. She tried hard to keep her face straight and not let her tears fall.

She remembered the situation at the time. It turned out that Shi Shu was willing to risk serious injury to protect Zhang Hua's safety because she had another obsession in her heart.

Faced with an inescapable dilemma, Shi Shu chose to die.

She looked at Shi Shu's tear-streaked face and felt both hateful and pitiful.

The attendant continued:

“A few days after returning to Liyang, I received another order from my uncle. This time, he also wrote me a personal letter, recounting the tragic events of the fall of the country and the deaths of my father and mother, and urging me to avenge them no matter what… I hesitated at the time. Your Highness, can you understand my feelings?”

"I understand, I understand everything..."

"No! Your Highness, you don't understand!" Shi Shu tightly closed her eyes. "Two days ago, the people my uncle sent found me again and gave me this dagger, telling me that I must kill Your Highness no matter what!!"

At this point, Shi Shu's eyes lost their light, as if veiled by a deathly gray.

"I... I cannot disobey my uncle's orders, that would be disloyal and unfilial! But I cannot actually kill His Highness with my own hands, that would be betraying His Highness, that would be unjust! So, to balance loyalty and righteousness, I can only... I can only... kill myself!"