Forced to be a third person: I turned around and left the palace to marry a villain

Concubine Jin changed the subject and hinted that if Lu Linyi was pregnant, it would be a different matter, but then she began to mock the awkward situation between the Zhenbei Marquis family and the Nan family.

Faced with such provocation, Lu Linyi gritted his teeth and endured it. When he was about to pick up the wine glass on the table to show respect, a slender hand took the glass of wine first.

Jiang Xue picked up the wine glass in front of Lu Linyi, drank it all in one breath, then put the empty glass back on the table with a slight but firm sound.

"In that case, does Concubine Jin have any objections?" She looked directly at Concubine Jin, who immediately felt an invisible pressure.

"The news that my cousin can't hold her liquor has spread all over Yujing City on Prince Duan's ship. As a descendant of the nobility, you should have heard about it." Jiang Xue gave an obvious warning:

"She is kind-hearted and doesn't know how to refuse. If Changle hadn't stopped her in time, this glass of wine would have cost her half her life.

How will you explain to the Marquis of Zhenbei then? I heard that he is currently investigating the illegal salt case at the docks, and your father seems to be involved in it."

After hearing this, Concubine Jin froze. This woman actually dared to threaten her in public. However, looking around, she found herself isolated and helpless, just like Concubine Cheng just now.

Forcefully forcing a smile, Concubine Jin took a step back and said, "Princess Changle misunderstood. I really didn't know that Miss Lu couldn't drink. If I had known earlier, I would never have made things difficult for her."

"Thank you, Xiaoxue." Lu Linyi breathed a sigh of relief and smiled at Jiang Xue gratefully.

"You're welcome, cousin." Jiang Xue responded with a smile and turned to the Queen Mother to toast.

At this time, Concubine Feng noticed that the wine in front of Qu Xin was still untouched, so she asked, "Why doesn't Miss Qu drink?"

"According to Beiling's tradition, guests cannot refuse wine at the Queen Mother's banquet." Concubine Feng explained, motioning to the maid to push the wine glass closer to Qu Xin.

Qu Xin remained calm and composed: "The Ninth Princess is pregnant, and Miss Lu shouldn't drink. Their situations are special, but I don't have these reasons."

Concubine Feng sneered: "Miss Qu is from Qian Country, so she may not be familiar with our customs. But your situation is different from theirs, so how can you compare them?"

"So, Qu Xin should be inferior to others?" There was obvious provocation in Concubine Feng's words.

Qu Xin's eyebrows raised slightly, but her expression did not let anyone notice.

She turned her head and silently mouthed to Jiang Xue: "What should I do? It all depends on you."

Jiang Xue stood up, picked up the wine glass in front of Qu Xin and said, "Queen Mother, Qu Xin is indeed not suitable for drinking."

However, Qu Xin once said that she didn't want others to know that she didn't want to get pregnant, so this reason cannot be used now.

Moreover, even if he used this excuse, after the example of the Ninth Princess, others would only think that Qu Xin was just making excuses. Therefore, Jiang Xue decided to drink the glass of wine for Qu Xin.

However, when she picked up the wine glass, Jiang Xue suddenly smelled something, and her eyes instantly became cold... It was poisoned wine! She didn't expect that the Queen Mother would want to use this poisoned wine to deal with Qu Xin.

"Changle, rules are rules. Since you have already drunk a cup for Linyi, you can't drink for her again." There was a hint of worry in the Queen Mother's eyes.

She wondered why her granddaughter always protected the woman from the Five Poisons Sect?

Concubine Feng agreed, "Yes, Princess, you can't always drink for others. Many people here don't drink normally. If you drink for them, wouldn't that cause chaos?"

Realizing that a direct refusal might cause unnecessary trouble, especially at the Queen Mother's banquet, Jiang Xue thought of a solution.

Just as the maid reached out to take the wine glass, she deliberately let go of her hand, and the glass fell over, spilling the wine.

"Ouch!" The maid hurriedly dodged, fearing that she would be splashed with wine.

The wine fell to the ground with a sizzling sound and white foam appeared. This scene stunned everyone present, and the whole room suddenly became quiet.

Qu Xin still sat there, looking at the foam on the ground and said, "It seems that this wine is really not drinkable."

The hand hidden under the table was tightly holding a poisonous insect, and a cold light flashed in his eyes.

"Empress Dowager." Jiang Xue looked up at the Empress Dowager sitting on the high seat and called softly.

"Come here, change a glass of wine for Miss Qu." The Queen Mother ordered, and at the same time looked at Jiang Xue, "Xiaoxue, the person who poured the wine is not clean, I will definitely punish him severely."

Jiang Xue suddenly felt a sense of loss in her heart. Only the royal family and the nobility could possess such a rare thing as the dove poison, and ordinary people had no way of obtaining it.

The banquet was hosted by the Queen Mother herself, and every guest was strictly searched. Without the Queen Mother's tacit consent, who could have brought the poison into the palace?

Now, the Queen Mother wanted to cover up the truth with just one sentence "punish him severely". How could Jiang Xue not feel chilled?

"Oh, the Queen Mother is absolutely right!" Concubine Feng immediately echoed, "The person who poured the wine was really despicable. She actually dared to poison. Come, drag her away and execute her immediately." Following her order, the maid who had just poured wine for Qu Xin was beaten to death with sticks.

Then, Concubine Feng personally picked up the newly filled wine glass and handed it to Qu Xin: "Miss Qu, please rest assured to drink this glass, it will be safe."

"It seems that Concubine Feng is very persistent about toasting." Seeing that Concubine Feng was determined to make Qu Xin drink, Jiang Xue said lightly.

She turned her back and quietly made a gesture to Qu Xin, indicating her to put away the poisonous insect in her hand.

Qu Xin raised her eyebrows slightly after seeing the gesture, as if asking: Do you have eyes behind your back? But she still hid the insect obediently, thinking that since the other party promised to protect her, she should believe it for once.

"Princess Changle, please don't misunderstand. I am not deliberately making things difficult for Miss Qu. I just can't break the rules." Concubine Feng smiled proudly and approached Qu Xin again.

However, just as she took a step forward, she suddenly felt a sharp pain in her leg, and when she looked down, she saw a black snake hissing and biting her hard.

The venom spread rapidly, and Concubine Feng felt dizzy instantly. The wine glass in her hand fell down, and she collapsed to the ground.

The wine glass fell again, and a layer of white foam appeared on the ground.

"Someone come quickly! Concubine Feng has fainted, please call the imperial physician."

The maids rushed forward, and in the panic no one noticed that the black snake that was wrapped around Concubine Feng's leg had disappeared.

Concubine Feng was foaming at the mouth, her body was shaking violently, her eyes were rolled back and she lay on the ground. The maids were so frightened by the scene that they dared not approach her.

Seeing this, Qu Xin raised the corners of his mouth slightly, slowly walked towards Jiang Xue, and whispered: "You are more cruel than I thought."

If it weren't for Concubine Feng's repeated provocations, she would not have resorted to such a desperate measure.

"It shouldn't be difficult for you to handle this situation." Jiang Xue pointed at Concubine Feng and said to Qu Xin, "Save her."

Qu Xin shrugged, looking reluctant: "Why should I save someone who wants to harm me?"