Reincarnated into a Female-Dominated World to Build Infrastructure (Translated)

Chapter 12 Fei Shuang's Thoughts

Chapter 12 Fei Shuang's Thoughts

However, Feng Xiran quickly calmed down. It seemed this person had come prepared, but was the fall deliberate or accidental?

"Explain yourself. What's the situation with these city bricks?"

She spoke coldly to the prefect, whose foot was injured and who was now kneeling on the ground, trembling and repeatedly kowtowing. If a heavy rain fell and the city's residents climbed the walls... she dared not imagine the outcome.

"Please spare me, Your Highness! Someone told me I could make a profit by cutting corners. I only wanted to earn some extra money, and I had no idea something like this would happen! I didn't know that wicked woman would not only replace the bricks with yellow mud but also dare to attempt to assassinate Your Highness. Please believe me, I would never dare to harm you, not even with a thousand times the courage!"

Tears streamed down her face as she begged, not even bothering to wipe them away. In her heart, she cursed the dead woman, who had dragged her down with her even in death.

The county magistrate, standing nearby, felt a bittersweet satisfaction upon seeing the prefect groveling. She had often been scolded by her before, but now it seemed the tables had turned. Thankfully, this matter had nothing to do with her, or she would have been in trouble too.

Her smugness hadn't fully faded when she noticed Feng Xiran looking her way, and she quickly knelt down, swearing an oath: "Your Highness, I am loyal to you and would never engage in corruption or deceit."

Feng Xiran found her oath tiresome. The rain was falling harder and showed no signs of stopping.

Fei Shuang, her bodyguard, was skilled in interrogations. Feng Xiran instructed Fei Shuang to take the prefect back, along with her husband. The assassination attempt also needed to be reported to Jing Sa and Mo Yan to prevent the enemy from exploiting the situation.

Jing Sa and Mo Yan were both shocked to hear that Feng Xiran had been attacked. Jing Sa's gaze briefly paused on Xing Zhu, who was still kneeling, before quickly shifting away.

Mo Yan, on the other hand, was extremely anxious about whether Feng Xiran was hurt. Only after hearing that she was unharmed did he finally relax.

"Your Highness knows what needs to be done. Leave the rest to your husband," Fei Shuang said.

Fei Shuang didn't understand why the matter needed to be handed over to Feng Xiran's husband, but she simply followed orders and left to interrogate the prefect in another room.

Jing Sa, seeing that Mo Yan was still present, found an excuse to send him away. He then instructed Feng Zhu to keep an eye on the prefect's husband and took Xing Zhu into the inner chamber.

"Did you know about the assassination attempt on Feng Xiran?"

Xing Zhu shook his head, and from his eyes, Jing Sa could tell he wasn't lying. It seemed there was another group besides their own trying to kill Feng Xiran. But who could it be?

On the city wall, Feng Xiran and Lan Yun were still overseeing the repairs. "This rain is getting heavier. If we hadn't discovered the issue in time, it would have been too late to fix it."

The rain was washing away the bricks, making them less sturdy than they would be in dry weather. All they could do now was identify the yellow mud areas and avoid them. Fortunately, the yellow mud had only been used recently, so the affected area wasn't too large.

Lan Yun and Yao Xiang, holding umbrellas, inspected the wall but found no further issues.

"Your Highness, someone intends to use the deaths of the people to bring about your downfall," Lan Yun said, frowning. She didn't know who was behind this plot against the Crown Princess. Did the capital know?

Feng Xiran and Yao Xiang calculated when the rain might stop and whether the relief supplies from the capital would arrive in time.

Unbeknownst to them, the relief supplies in the capital were being slowly transported, with many soldiers mysteriously dying along the way.

"General, that makes ten now. Each one first suffered stomach pain before slowly succumbing to death," the military doctor reported to the heroic woman leading the group.

The leader was Feng Xiran's cousin, Ling Shuang, the second daughter of the Ling family. Her father was the twin brother of Ling Yu. Ling Yu, concerned about Feng Xiran's safety, had specifically requested  Feng Tianhuang to assign Ling Shuang to this task.

Although Ling Shuang and Feng Xiran had never gotten along since childhood, Ling Shuang was a person of great integrity, highly skilled in martial arts, and the most promising of the younger generation in the Ling family. This made Feng Xiran quite jealous, and she often picked on Ling Shuang. Meanwhile, Ling Shuang always found Feng Xiran distasteful. She believed that Feng Muqing, with her gentle nature and wisdom, would be a better successor to the throne if not for her health issues.

Ling Shuang frowned as she looked at the soldiers behind her. There were only about a hundred people in total responsible for escorting the provisions this time, all of whom she had carefully selected. Yet, after just a few days, ten of them had died. She wasn't sure if they could deliver the provisions on time, and she wondered how things were going on Feng Xiran's side. Her uncle had said that Feng Xiran had changed, but she wouldn't believe it unless she saw it with her own eyes. However, knowing that Lan Yun was with her provided some reassurance—at least Lan Yun was keeping an eye on things.

Her dark eyes were filled with a cold frost as she tightened her grip on the sword at her side: "Bury them on the spot. When we return to the capital, I will report to His Majesty and ensure their families are taken care of."

"Speed up the march."

The soldiers, upon receiving the order, could only press forward. The military doctor had just checked their provisions and found nothing wrong, but despite their inner fear, they dared not show it on their faces.

Feng Xiran was unaware of what was happening on Ling Shuang's side. Fei Shuang soon came over to report. That prefect had indeed been deceived; the person responsible deliberately chose an unfamiliar prefect for this matter instead of a county magistrate or other officials. The prefect's husbands had taken advantage of Feng Xiran and the magistrate's absence to act, and one of the prefect's husbands had whispered sweet nothings to her.

"It's rare that the prefect has so many handsome husbands, yet she hasn't forgotten the old, neglected one," Feng Xiran said with a meaningful smile.

"Your Highness, Lord Jing also sent a message. It indeed seems that this was the work of the prefect's husband. It looks like someone is intentionally pulling the strings behind the scenes."

Fei Shuang stood quietly by Feng Xiran's side, reporting the situation, but then she hesitated, as if she had something else to say.

Feng Xiran glanced at her, "If you have something to say, just say it. Don't hesitate."

Fei Shuang lowered her head and glanced at Feng Xiran's expression, "Mo Yan has requested to come over to be with you. He's worried."

"He doesn't know how to fight. He should just stay with Jing Sa and the others. I'll call for him if I need him."

At the moment, she was feeling somewhat irritable and didn't want to drag Mo Yan into the situation. After all, Mo Yan had always treated her well—seeing him was like seeing her younger brother. She then gave some instructions for Fei Shuang to pass on to Lord Jing and the others, telling them to take good care of themselves. She had brought them out, so they all had to return together.

Fei Shuang didn't say anything more and turned to leave. She happened to run into Fei Yu on the way. Seeing her, Fei Yu sighed and said, "Sister, I know what you're thinking. You're worried about Mo Yan, but his heart and eyes are all for Her Highness. Aren't you afraid that Her Highness will find out what you're doing? What will you do then?"

Feng Xiran noticed Fei Shuang's departing figure and felt a strange sense of melancholy. Could it be that Fei Shuang...?

She carefully reflected on it. Could it be that Fei Shuang had such feelings? How had she never noticed before?