Chapter 173
Translator: NovelMultiverse | Editor: NovelMultiverse
The towering palace gate slowly closed behind her, and Yu Linglong’s carriage drove unhurriedly along the long palace road, crushing countless petals scattered on the ground.
The spring was just right now, but Yu Linglong was not in the mood to appreciate the charming scenery outside. She sat in the carriage, thinking about the current situation.
Lord Xu hadn’t returned to the house for several days, but he sent people to deliver letters to her every day to tell her the latest trends of the prince. As soon as she and Lord Xu began to plan to push the prince against the prince, Lord Xu arranged the most capable secret guard to monitor the prince’s actions for twelve hours. They knew that if people like the prince planned to rebel, they would definitely be fully prepared, and there were still many officials who supported the prince in the court. It was possible that many people would support the prince’s actions.
From the immediate point of view, Lord Xu did take the lead and did enough preparations. However, the prince’s power was deeply rooted. Although the empress was temporarily out of power, there was still Gan Taifu outside. If they acted carelessly, they might still give the Prince a chance to comeback.
Thinking of this, Yu Linglong lifted the carriage curtain, looked at the endless flowers and trees beside the palace road, and her face gradually became serious.
The arrow was on the string and was about to be shot. Now they must go all out to defeat the prince without losing the opportunity.
Yu Linglong was thinking about it, and suddenly she saw a carriage coming from the opposite side. Seeing the direction of the carriage, it was obvious that it was coming towards her.
Yu Linglong frowned slightly. This was the palace road. Even an assassin sent by the prince would not choose to do something here. Thinking about this, she was relieved and told the coachman to stop the carriage and wait.
The carriage drove to her and stopped. Then, Yu Linglong saw a familiar figure hurriedly get off the carriage and walked towards her quickly.
“Princess, I finally found you...”
Shi Huiru’s complexion was crimson, and she was short of breath. She only wore an ordinary blue bamboo brocade dress on her body. She had a casual bun on her head, and it was apparent that she had rushed out the door.
Yu Linglong nodded, stretched her hand, and got into the carriage.
Seeing Shi Huiru in such a hurry, it was obvious that something had happened.
The maid lowered the curtain, and the carriage started slowly.
Looking at Shi Huiru, who was both rushed and anxious, Yu Linglong asked calmly, “What’s the matter?”
Just now, Shi Huiru was still panting and anxious, but when she saw her, she didn’t seem to dare to speak directly. She just lowered his head and said, “I just went to the Xu Palace to look for you. The person said that you are in the palace, so I rushed out to see you. I also know that this is too abrupt, but I... I really have no other way now...”
Shi Huiru had never hesitated like this before. She seemed to be uncomfortable. Seeing her embarrassed appearance, Yu Linglong vaguely guessed a bit, and then slowed down and said, “Don’t worry, just tell me. If I can help, I naturally won’t stand idly by.”
Shi Huiru took a deep breath. She suddenly reached out and squeezed Yu Linglong’s hands, and said in a low voice: “Princess, please help me, please help him!”
It was so warm outside, but her hands were cold, and her palms were full of cold sweat. They seemed to be unable to grasp Yu Linglong’s hands because they were so slippery, “Princess, I know in this situation I should not beg you, I know you are also having difficulties, but besides you, I really don’t know who else can help me...”
Yu Linglong took out a kerchief and wiped the teardrops from her face, with a rare gentle tone: “Don’t worry, speak slowly.”
Shi Huiru settled down and said, “It’s... it’s Brother Yang... I don’t know when the news was released. It says that Brother Yang belongs to His Royal Highness, and Brother Yang is also part of the rebellion, so they arrested him! But when the Yang family went to Magistrate Jing to ask, they realized that Brother Yang was not in Magistrate Jing’s prison. It took the Yang family a lot of work to find out that... it was the people of Lord Xu who took Brother Yang away to a very secret place. The Yang family was in a hurry, and they wanted to find Lord Xu but couldn’t find him. Yunzheng knew that I had a good relationship with you, so she came to me, begging you—”
Seeing Yu Linglong’s calm face, Shi Huiru hurriedly said: “No, no, no, not for you to release him. Yunzheng said that she just wanted to ask for help. She just wants to know Brother Yang’s situation.”
Yu Linglong asked faintly: “Are they sure that the prince sent someone to arrest Prince Yang?”
Shi Huiru took out a small piece of jade from her cuff and said in a low voice, “This is the news brought by Brother Yang. He carried this piece of jade with him. I...I will never admit it.”
Shi Huiru’s head was too low, and her voice was as thin as a mosquito’s.
Yu Linglong glanced at the piece of jade and said, “Since you are sure that you are right, then I will ask the prince, and I will let you know if there is any news.”
Shi Huiru raised her head in surprise, her round face filled with excitement: “Really? Then...thank you so much!”
After speaking, she seemed to have something else to say. After hesitating for a while, she said, “There’s one more thing... Yunzheng said that the Yang family supported His Royal Highness before. Perhaps because of the fact that he was close with His Royal Highness, it aroused suspicion from others and Big Brother Yang was also implicated. But this time I saw that His Royal Highness was going to raise troops. The Yang family regretted it and wanted you to intercede with Lord Xu and talk to His Royal Highness and set a boundary.”
Yu Linglong frowned slightly and said, “Changting Hou can tell the emperor himself about this matter. I believe the emperor will believe his words.”
Seeing Yu Linglong’s reluctance to intervene, Shi Huiru hurriedly said: “Princess, the Yang family really wants to part ways with the prince. Yunzheng said that they have evidence of the prince’s plotting a rebellion and can be handed over to Lord Xu. “
Yu Linglong’s heart moved and she said, “What evidence is it?”
Shi Huiru shook her head and said, “I asked Yunzheng, but she refused to tell me, only that she wanted to tell you in person. She is now waiting for you in my other courtyard.”
Yu Linglong thought for a moment and said, “Okay, let’s go there together.”
If there was evidence of the prince’s rebellion, then the situation would become more favorable, and the slogan of the prince’s so-called purgatory side would be self-defeating.
Seeing Yu Linglong’s promise, Shi Huiru burst into tears and smiled, holding Yu Linglong’s hand gratefully: “It’s great that you are willing to go!”
Yu Linglong ordered the coachman to change his path, and then looked back and smiled at Shi Huiru, and said, “Quickly wipe your face, I don’t want to see you cry.”
Shi Huiru smiled embarrassedly, quickly drew out a kerchief, and carefully wiped the tears off her face.
The Shi family’s other courtyard was in a remote location, and it was more than half an hour before they finally arrived.
Shi Huiru got out of the carriage first, and went to open the gate in person to see if there was no one around before taking Yu Linglong into the yard.
She said: “You will see Yunzheng in a while, but you have to comfort her. You don’t know, she was terrified. She was told not to be discovered by others. I sent all the people out, so don’t worry, no one here will know.”
As soon as she walked into this quiet yard, Yu Linglong felt that something was wrong. Shi Huiru said that her servants had been driven out by her, but she always felt that there seemed to be a few pairs of eyes in the dark, secretly looking at her.
Opening the door of the room, Shi Huiru smiled apologetically, and said, “No one has lived here for a long time. Although there are people cleaning, it always feels chilly. Princess, please go in.”
Yu Linglong walked into the room, but found that there was no shadow of Yang Yunzheng in the room. The room was empty, and only a few tables and chairs covered with white cloth were on the ground.
Seeing her suspicious eyes, Shi Huiru walked towards the west wall and said: “This matter is too serious. Although I sent all the people away, I still worried, so I hid Yunzheng in the secret room. Princess, come here.”
Yu Linglong stepped forward, and saw Shi Huiru lift up a landscape painting on the wall, revealing the turntable inside. She twisted it two turns to the left and three turns to the right. A strip of black paint suddenly cracked on the original smooth wall. Only one person could enter the lacquered gap.
Shi Huiru stretched out her hand to Yu Linglong and said, “Come on, take my hand. It’s dark inside.”
Yu Linglong felt a little uneasy. She frowned and said, “Tell her to come out.”
From the moment she entered the Shi family’s courtyard, she felt that something was wrong, but she couldn’t tell what it was. The first thing she felt was that she couldn’t get in easily.
This keen sense of danger had saved her many times. This time, she decided to follow her instinct.
Seeing that she refused to come in, Shi Huiru thought she was afraid of the dark, so she didn’t force it, and said, “Okay. Stay here and wait for me.”
After speaking, Shi Huiru entered the wall, Yu Linglong could hear her dull footsteps, and they spread along the gap, drifting away.
As if it was only seven or eight steps away, Shi Huiru’s surprised cry suddenly came from the wall: “Yunzheng, what’s wrong with you!?”
Despite the thick wall, Shi Huiru’s voice still sounded sharp and frightened: “Yunzheng, Yunzheng!”
Yu Linglong was sensitively aware of an accident. She rushed into the wall and said in a deep voice, “Huiru, come out, hurry up!”
Shi Huiru’s voice cried a bit, and she said, “Yunzheng fell on the ground, as if she was injured... or poisoned... I, I can’t pull her...”
Yu Linglong quickly scanned the circle of empty rooms. Obviously, it was not suitable to stay here. With Shi Huiru’s character, she would not leave Yang Yunzheng alone in the dark room. Yu Linglong was a little helpless and had to walk quickly into the secret room.
There was no candlelight in the dark room, and Yu Linglong could only rely on the slight shimmering light from outside. She saw two figures on the ground. One was Shi Huiru, desperately pulling a soft figure, trying to move towards the door.
As soon as Yu Linglong was about to step up to help, she heard a clatter, and the gap behind her quickly closed, and the secret room suddenly fell into darkness.
This sudden change obviously surprised Shi Huiru. There was a messy sound in the darkness, as if she had placed Yang Yunzheng on the ground and stumbled over in the direction of Yu Linglong.
“This...what’s going on? Why is the door closed!?”
Yu Linglong came over in surprise, and immediately recovered her senses. She took two steps back and touched the wall that should have been the one that was cracked, only to find that there was a tight fit and there was no crack at all. They couldn’t get out.
It seemed that someone had been guarding outside, and when he saw Yu Linglong entering the dark room, he immediately activated the mechanism and closed the secret room.
Shi Huiru’s voice in the dark was full of horror: “Where are you... where are you?”
Yu Linglong stretched her hand in the direction of the sound, fumbled and grabbed Shi Huiru’s arm, and said in a low voice, “I’m here.”
Just like a drowning person grabbing a life-saving straw, Shi Huiru grabbed Yu Linglong’s hand and said while trembling, “What, what is going on?”
Yu Linglong shook her head, and then remembered that Shi Huiru couldn’t see her movement at the moment, and took out the purse that Lord Xu had given her, and took out a match and lit it. This was the only way to see the surrounding situation clearly.
In the light of the jumping fire, Shi Huiru’s face was full of fear. Even the light did not relieve her tension in the slightest.
“What’s wrong? Why did the door close? What do we do now...”
Yu Linglong patted her hand and said, “Don’t be afraid. Think about it, there should be a mechanism for going out.”
After speaking, she walked to Yang Yunzheng’s side, leaned over and turned her face.
Shi Huiru said nervously: “I just touched her face and hands are cold, she... is she dead?”
Yu Linglong paused for a moment looking at the tightly closed face under the firelight.
As she expected, this secret room was indeed a trap.
Patting the dust from her hands, Yu Linglong stood up and said, “Yes, she is indeed dead.”
Shi Huiru screamed, and her petite body slid weakly from the wall to the ground.
Although her courage was not small, she was after all just a noble lady who had no strength to butcher a chicken. Now it suddenly changed, and she was staying in an airtight dark room with a dead body. At this moment, if she didn’t pass out, it was considered bold.
Yu Linglong looked at Shi Huiru and said calmly: “It’s just that she is not Yang Yunzheng.”
Shi Huiru was shocked and looked at the corpse on the ground subconsciously: “This... how is this possible?”
There was no candle in the dark room just now, and the first impression is the strongest. She thought that the woman lying on the ground was Yang Yunzheng, but now looking at her, she found that the corpse was just a strange woman in Yang Yunzheng clothes.
Shi Huiru was not a fool. She immediately understood the cause and effect of this incident. She raised her head to look at Yu Linglong. Her expression on her face was both sad and pained: “She...she actually lied to me...I also implicated you... “
The more she thought about it, the sadder she became, and she couldn’t stop crying.
Being so deceived by a good friend was really not something an ordinary person could bear. Yang Yunzheng used her with a lie to make her deceive Yu Linglong to come here, with the obvious purpose of wanting their lives.
It seemed that Yang Yunzheng was right in at least one thing, that is, that the Yang family was loyal to the prince.
If she could get rid of Princess Xu for the prince, then it would be a great achievement for the Yang family.
However, Shi Huiru naively obeyed Yang Yunzheng’s words, and even told Yang Yunzheng the secret of how to open and close her secret room, but she ended up being locked up here with Yu Linglong.
The pain of being betrayed by the person you love and your most trusted friend could not be imagined.
Yu Linglong looked at her distraught manner and said in a deep voice, “Now is not the time to cry. Think about it, how can you get out of here?”
Shi Huiru came back to her senses, reached out her hand and wiped the tears on her face. She leaned on the wall to stand up, and said, “I remember...”
As soon as her hand touched the wall, she quickly shrank back: “Why is it so hot?”
Yu Linglong’s heart sank and she immediately stretched out her palms to touch the wall to test the temperature. Shi Huiruwas right. The wall that was cold just now became extremely hot, and the temperature in the dull and small dark room was constantly rising. It was becoming more and more unbearable. Even the calm Yu Linglong couldn’t help but burst out a curse: “Damn!”
It was not enough for Yang Yunzheng to lock them in a secret room, but she also had to burn them to death!
Drops of sweat came out on Shi Huiru’s forehead, from either heat or fright. She looked at Yu Linglong, her eyes full of guilt: “It’s all my fault you...”
Yu Linglong clenched her fist tightly and said, “Don’t talk about it, just think: is there a mechanism that can get us out!?”
Shi Huiru calmed down and walked quickly to the direction of the entrance. While looking on the wall, he said, “Yes! I remember my father said that there is a button in this secret room—”
Yu Linglong immediately walked to her side and held the match for her. The two of them endured the higher and higher temperature, searching quickly on the dark wall.
After a while, Shi Huiru let out a cheer: “Here!”
Yu Linglong handed the match over, and saw a thumb-sized iron button embedded on the wall on the right, glowing with gray light under the firelight.
Shi Huiru could not wait to reach out and press it. Who knew that as soon as she touched the button, she immediately shrank back in pain: “It’s hot—”
The fire outside had been scorching this wall, and this button had been baked for a long time, the temperature was naturally not low.
Yu Linglong hurriedly pulled the hairpin from her head and reached out to push the button on the wall. Who knew that the button was very smooth, and although the hairpin was hard, the size was far from enough.
Except for jewelry, the two of them no longer had any tools available.
Yu Linglong suddenly thought of the dagger in her purse, and immediately took it out, but the size of the dagger’s handle happened to be larger than the button, and the button was embedded in the wall. The dagger was completely useless.
Shi Huiru endured the pain in her hands, tore off half of her sleeves, hurriedly wrapped it around her fingers, and slammed down the button!
A scorching smell of fabric burning suddenly rose in the sultry air. The temperature was so high that it must have burned through the thin cloth and the fingers of Shi Huiru in an instant...
Yu Linglong was taken aback: “Huiru—”
Before the voice fell, she saw that the button sank, and a gap opened in the wall, and the long-lost light immediately plunged into the dark room.
Although they had not been locked in for a long time, in the eyes of the two of them, it could almost be regarded as passing through hell.
But before they could cheer on their success, they were shocked by the sight in front of them.
The room that was still empty just now was full of flames everywhere at this moment, burning crackling. Obviously, Yang Yunzheng was afraid that the secret room would not be able to trap them, and even lit the whole courtyard on fire!
In this way, even if Yu Linglong and Shi Huiru escaped from the secret room, they could not escape the flames outside!
Although the secret room was warm just now, there was also no open flame, but when they came out, they were almost immediately plunged into a sea of fire. The flames were like poisonous snakes, rushing towards them, licking their dresses and hair. The ground was full of greasy kerosene, and there was nowhere to go.
Shi Huiru clutched her burnt finger tightly, crying desperately: “What should we do? What should we do!?”
Yu Linglong gritted her teeth and quickly tore her skirt into two pieces. One piece was tucked into Shi Huiru. One piece was waved by herself, flapping the flames attacking them frantically, and she said loudly, “Go!”
She was never a person who gave up lightly. Even if she couldn’t escape, she would never be able to wait for death here!
Seemingly inspired by Yu Linglong’s courage, Shi Huiru stood up, waved the dress in her hands like Yu Linglong, and ran towards the door of the room.
It was just a few steps, but it was the distance between life and death.
The fire seemed to be frightened by their boldness, but after a while, it rushed towards them even more fiercely. The clothing on Yu Linglong’s hand caught fire soon, and it was burned to ashes in an instant. Shi Huiru was also not much better. The flame on the fabric burned more and more until it was so hot that she had to throw it away.
The door of the room was right in front of them, and the two of them rushed in front of each other, guarding their heads and faces.
It seemed that it was unwilling to let them go. As the flames expanded, the door beam over her head made a loud noise, with sparks flying around, pressing down directly on their heads.
Yu Linglong ran in the front, unable to hide. She was about to be hit by the heavy door beam, but at this moment, a huge force suddenly came from her back, directly hitting her and she flew out of the room, escaping this thunderous blow.
Even though she had escaped the catastrophe, Yu Linglong’s heart sank suddenly. She turned around quickly and saw the burning door beam at a glance.
She guessed correctly. It was Shi Huiru behind her, pushing her out with all her strength, saving her life, but also letting herself lose the chance of escape.
Looking at the motionless body under the door beam, Yu Linglong suffered a lot of heartache. Regardless of if that door beam was still burning, she immediately kicked the door beam out, and pulled Shi Huiru out of the room. She didn’t know if she was alive or dead.
The house was burning fiercely, but the yard paved with bluestone bricks was extremely cool. The evening sun had lost its temperature and fell on the two gray-headed women in the middle of the yard.
Shi Huiru’s face was stained gray and black by smoke and dust. She was not injured. Her clothes were burnt to pieces and there was no obvious trauma. However, the corners of her mouth were bleeding constantly. The door beam just now hit her back, obviously causing her to suffer a very serious internal injury.
Yu Linglong hugged Shi Huiru’s head tightly, and her voice trembled: “Huiru, Huiru! Wake up!”
After a long time, Shi Huiru opened her eyes with difficulty, and her scattered pupils condensed for a long time before she could see Yu Linglong’s face clearly.
“Are... are you okay?”
After opening her eyes, the first sentence was to ask for her safety. Yu Linglong’s throat was choked a little: “I’m fine. What about you?”
Shi Huiru moved her body slightly, but her beautiful face was instantly distorted with pain: “It hurts...it hurts...”
Every time she said a word, there was a stream of blood pouring out and spilling on the lap of her clothes.
Seeing her almost unable to breathe in pain, Yu Linglong pressed her lips tightly.
What a squeamish woman Huiru used to be. Even if she accidentally stabbed her finger with an embroidery needle, she complained for several days, but now, in order to save her, she had suffered such a serious injury...
Yu Linglong carefully carried Shi Huiru on her back, and said softly: “Don’t be afraid, I will take you home.”
Trying to stabilize the pace as much as possible, Yu Linglong walked out of the gate, glanced at the carriage lying on the ground outside, and walked towards the setting sun without looking back.
Yang Yunzheng was indeed a delicate woman. She will do her best, even taking the carriage and coachman outside.
The setting sun gradually sank to the horizon. The ice cold night gently covered Yu Linglong’s figure.
With her small head next to Yu Linglong’s sideburns, Shi Huiru seemed to have no strength at all. Her voice rang in Yu Linglong’s ears, as thin as a gossamer.
“Linglong... can I call you Linglong again... I miss the days before...”
Yu Linglong bit her lip desperately, resisting the pain in her heart, and said in a deep voice, “Don’t talk, save your energy.”
Shi Huiru tugged the corners of her mouth with difficulty, trying to show a faint smile, but twitched from the pain in her body. She whispered: “Linglong, listen to me, if I die, don’t blame...him...”
Hearing Shi Huiru’s words, Yu Linglong couldn’t help feeling a bit of anger: “You still have to protect him now!?”
Hearing Yu Linglong’s angry tone, Shi Huiru suddenly coughed a few times violently. Yu Linglong only felt her shoulders hot, and a damp liquid flowed down her shoulders. She knew that it was the blood that Shi Huiru vomited.
Forcibly suppressing the inner indignation, Yu Linglong said in a deep voice: “Okay, I promise you that.”
The stiff body behind her relaxed. Shi Huiru leaned on her shoulders, and her feeble voice was somewhat dull: “Linglong, no one knows what I want for him better than you... Do you know? I really like him... I used to think that if I could be his wife, even if only for one day, I would be willing to give my life... But now, I am dying, but I won’t even be able to see him for the last time... ...”
Yu Linglong held back the choking in her throat and said in a low voice: “Don’t worry, you won’t die, I won’t let you die!”
Shi Huiru laughed softly, her voice resounding in Yu Linglong’s ears, like a dying butterfly flapping its fragile wings.
“Linglong, I’m stupid enough, how are you stupid than me? I know I’m going to die...” She coughed.
The wet liquid on her shoulders was cold and hot, hot and cold. Yu Linglong hardly dared to look back. She couldn’t imagine how much blood was flowing out of Shi Huiru’s body, or think about how long she could hold on.
The setting sun was like blood, dragging Yu Linglong’s long shadow, and the sky was already dark.
Shi Huiru leaned on Yu Linglong’s back. Yu Linglong only felt that her body was getting heavier, but her voice was getting softer and lighter, floating intermittently in the cold evening breeze in the spring night.
“...Linglong, I once heard a saying that those who love the hardest live the shortest... When I heard it, I thought, is it true that I have deep love for him? If so, he treats me like this, then how long can I live?”
Yu Linglong gritted her teeth and said in a low voice: “I promise, as long as you live, you will live a long time, live happily, and live better than anyone else! Shi Huiru, support me! You must not die!”
Shi Huiru’s icy face was pressed against Yu Linglong’s neck, as cold as the December snow, with not a touch of warmth.
“Linglong... I’m so tired... I want to sleep for a while...”
Looking at the city gate looming in the darkness in the distance, Yu Linglong lifted Shi Huiru’s body up and said: “Huiru, don’t sleep. I will sing to you.”
Shi Huiru’s voice was low, with a faint smile: “I have known you for so long, and I have never heard you sing... well... I won’t sleep. You can sing, and I will listen carefully...”
As the evening breeze started to rise, Yu Linglong sang softly: AABA/AAAAA/AAAAAA/AAAAAAA
Your smiling eyes bend into a bridge, I will be here until the end.
Your arrival was like the whistling of the wind, and the longing feels like bitter medicine, and I can hardly bear it, every minute and every second.
I can’t find it, I can’t make it, the so-called beauty of the future, I don’t want anything, do you know, do you understand me this second?
I want to see, I want to find, the so-called beauty of love, you keep me light, I hold you tight, I don’t want to miss a moment, please understand...
Her voice was floating in the night, as if it could spread far and far.
Shi Huiru whispered: “Linglong, what kind of song is this? I’ve never heard of it...”
Yu Linglong said, “This is the song of my hometown. It’s far, far away.”
Shi Huiru smiled and said softly: “It’s so nice...”
Her voice disappeared into the night sky, and there was no more text.
Yu Linglong only felt that Shi Huiru’s body sank, as if she could no longer hold her back. She tried her best to hold Shi Huiru, but Shi Huiru had no move sound, no more movements, no more breath.
“Huiru, we will be home soon...”
Yu Linglong no longer knew what time it was, where she was, or how much time had passed. She just walked mechanically, carrying Shi Huiru in a fixed posture, her feet aimlessly moving.
Her subconscious brought her back to the Xu Palace. When she walked to the gate of the Xu Palace, it was completely dark.
The red-lacquered door of the palace looked so tight. Yu Linglong only felt cold all over, and she didn’t even have the strength to shout.
A slender figure walked towards her, and she stared at the visitor in a daze. At this moment, she almost thought she was dreaming.
The colors falling down fell on the thin shoulders of the visitor, exuding a rosy fragrance in the middle of the night, which seemed to dilute the bloody smell all over her.
In the darkness, Ling’er’s eyes looked extraordinarily bright. She looked at her steadily and whispered: “Princess, I’m back.”
...
Every time there was chaos, the people in the capital were panicked. Every day before it got dark, every family closed their doors and windows for fear of being encumbered by the insurgents outside.
The prince’s army was not large. After occupying Chaoyangmen, Lord Xu immediately deployed his troops. The most elite troops were responsible for guarding the palace. The others were divided into two parts. One guarded the other gates of the capital, and the other guarded the Chaoyangmen and the Prince’s Mansion controlled by the prince’s forces.
The imperial court was also in turmoil. Civil officials quarreled in the imperial hall every day. Some supported the prince, some supported Lord Xu, and some remained neutral. The generals mostly stood still, but they were also closely observing the situation. Some military commanders who were loyal to the prince mobilized their forces to support the prince, causing the situation in the capital to become more and more unstable, and even more rebellious soldiers took the opportunity to rob the area where many people gathered.
At some point, the common people gradually had rumors that were unfavorable to the prince. Some people said that the prince had long been rebellious. The last time he asked the emperor to issue a tax reduction order, he wanted to win over the hearts of the people and prepare for his future rebellion. Others said that the prince had been the prince for many years and the emperor complained about him in every way, and his brothers were cruel. Even his wife, the princess, was dismissed for dissuading him from being too cruel and irritating the prince. This kind of disloyalty to his father, unrighteousness to his brothers, unkindness to his wife, if he became emperor, the people would suffer a lot. Some people said that the rioters who robbed the people’s homes were actually instigated by the prince who was raising gold and silver for his own rebellion and to disturb the people’s unrest, make the situation more turbulent, and to gain an excuse for his own rebellion.
Of course, these words were spread by the Dragon and Tiger Gang according to Yu Linglong’s orders. However, these rumors spread quickly at a speed that even Yu Linglong hadn’t expected, and they soon spread to everybody in the streets and alleys of the capital.
The result was obvious. The prince’s image of benevolence and filial piety for many years had been completely subverted. He had become an out-and-out tyrant among the people, a villain who was inferior to animals, and an unfaithful and unfilial beast. Naturally no one wanted to support such a person, let alone help him.
Most of the prince’s pro-military officers were the children of wealthy families of officials in the capital. At the beginning, they joined the pro-military side to fight for the future, but now they have become a chaotic party. The relatives of these people were scolded by public opinion. This method ordered his children to leave the prince’s army. Although the prince occupied Chaoyangmen, he was surrounded by Lord Xu’s troops outside, and the army’s heart was shaken, and people even left every day. This made it difficult for the prince to stop what he started.
More terrible things were still to come. Those officials, generals, military guards, and guards who were loyal to the prince were assassinated in a short period of time. The prince’s wings, which he had cultivated for many years, were killed in less than ten days.
The crown prince believed that it was Lord Xu’s secret tricks, and he was furious, but he didn’t know that those highly skilled personal guards were indeed killed by the guards sent by Lord Xu. However, there were many officials and generals who were killed by the killers Yu Linglong cultivated on the stone mountain.
Although the slaves were young and didn’t spend a long time in martial arts, many of them were talented and smart, and they were willing to practice martial arts. The harsh environment on the stone mountain could make people feel free. These slaves were almost as good as Ling’er. They practiced hard day and night, and strived for diligence, so one year of practice was worth ten years to other people. According to their specialties, Gong Cheng and Lei Shi used their strengths to make up for their weaknesses and divided them into groups of three or five to maximize their strengths, both offensive and defensive, which greatly increased their lethality.
They were young, but they had also become an advantage for people to underestimate the enemy. These assassins lied in ambush on the way to the target, attacking it at an extremely fast speed. Before the opponent could react, they had already lost their lives.
The crown prince’s cronies were becoming fewer and fewer, and his military strength was also falling sharply. As his reputation was getting worse, the slogan of “get rid of those surrounding the emperor” had become so funny.
Just imagine, how could a person who didn’t even respect his own father, who didn’t even care about his wife, think for the people and the community?
At this time, although he occupied the Chaoyangmen, one of the fortresses in the capital, he was like an isolated island in the sea, without any support. Looking around, the surrounding people rebelled, and even the counselors who had followed him for many years began to secretly plot against him.
By his side was the Daoist Jingming who had been unswervingly supporting him. Regarding the difficulties before him, Daoist Jingming believed that it was the test of the prince from the heavens. To the person who started it all, the prince must have more tribulations. How could it be possible to grow into a good emperor without experiencing these hardships? That dragon chair was not so easy to sit on.
If it weren’t for the guidance and help of the Daoist Jingming, the prince would probably not be able to hold on to the present. When he realized that the people around him were all untrustworthy, the prince was relieved. He relied more and more on the Daoist Jingming and believed him more and more.
Now that you have chosen this path, you must stick to it!
You would become the emperor, or lose!
The only thing he didn’t understand was that public opinion was now completely leaning towards Lord Xu, and he still had the strongest force to guard the capital. Lord Xu only ordered heavy troops to surround Chaoyangman, but did not order them to be attacked. The most conservative strategy was adopted.
The prince did not know the true intentions of Lord Xu’s actions, but Yu Linglong, who had been watching the game from a distance, guessed the purpose of Lord Xu at a glance.
When the prince rebelled, it was the prince who made the mistake first, but if Lord Xu took the opportunity to defeat the prince in one fell swoop, then those who did not care about brotherhood would become Lord Xu.
Lord Xu ordered people to surround Chaoyangmen. One reason was to control the prince’s actions so that he could no longer take any further actions; the other was to give the prince time to think. If he still insisted on raising troops, then Lord Xu would protect the emperor and the capital. For the safety of the people, he would take action to deal with the prince. In this way, Lord Xu would put himself in a position of last resort, and the longer the delay, the worse the situation would be for the prince.
This was how the old saying goes, a soldier defeated without fighting.
In this matchup, from the very beginning, the prince was doomed to fail.
If the prince was smart enough, he would choose to surrender to Lord Xu when he found that he was surrounded by heavy encirclement, but Yu Linglong knew that the prince would never give up. He waited too long for this day, and even if he knew that the throne was surrounded by sharp knives and sharp blades, he would not hesitate to go forward.
This was the temptation of power. Even if people knew that they were hopeless, they would fly toward their destiny like a moth to the fire.
...
The situation on the prince’s side was not good, and his followers naturally didn’t have a good life.
Changting Hou Mansion was highly powerful, and it naturally bore the brunt. The emperor had issued an edict to inform the world and abolished the prince’s position. The party members around the prince immediately scattered. The Changting Hou Mansion had a close relationship with the prince, and although he had not publicly followed the prince, Changting Hou was ordered by the emperor to recuperate at home, and he was not allowed to be summoned, so he was put under house arrest in disguise.
This was not a good sign. Changting Hou, who had been in the court for many years, did not understand. The entire Yang family immediately moved around like an enemy, trying to borrow the relationship from the past to exonerate the Changting Hou Mansion.
Changting Hou couldn’t go out, so this matter could only be handed over to Lady Changting Hou, Yang Huanian, and Yang Yunzheng. Yang Yunzheng was really busy these days. She went out early and returned late, visiting people who were close to her.
On this day, Yang Yunzheng went to another courtyard on the outskirts of the capital, and did not return to the capital until dusk.
In recent days, there had been a great chaos in the city, and everyone was in danger. Although it was not dark at the moment, there were no people on the bustling streets as before. Every house was closed and there was no noise.
The carriage turned into a remote alley, and the sparkling sound echoed in the depths of the alley. On this cool breezy night, it had an uneasy feeling.
Yang Yunzheng told the maidservant a few words and the maid lifted the curtains and said to the coachman, guards, and women outside: “The lady said it’s getting late, hurry up. Wait at the house, and she’ll give you hot shochu.”
The people who had been blown all the way by the wind couldn’t help but lift up their spirits and said in unison: “Yes. Thank you, Third Lady.”
After these few words, the deserted alley seemed to have gained a lot of spirit. The women who followed the carriage shrank their necks, and accelerated their pace with the speed of the carriage.
The setting sun finally sank completely, and the entire capital city was suddenly shrouded in a gray sky, and the night was suddenly chillier.
As soon as she was about to pass through the alley, a dozen black figures suddenly flew down from the roofs on both sides of the road, and quickly approached Yang Yunzheng’s carriage.
The guards immediately stood in front of them, pressing their hands on the handle of the knife, and the leader raised his voice and said, “Who’s there? This is the carriage of the third lady of the Changting Hou Mansion, you can’t move it! Don’t—”
Before he could finish his threatening words, it stopped abruptly.
The sharp blade pierced through the air, pierced his muscles and split his bones. In an instant, the head of the leader flew high into the sky, sprinkling countless drops of blood.
The coachman and women screamed in shock, but before their screams disappeared, the ghostly shadows disappeared, leaving only the corpses all over the ground.
In just a blink of an eye, the corpses of the several guards who were still alive were everywhere, and the evening breeze was full of a strong smell of blood, and it was nauseating.
The faces of the coachman and the women were splattered with drops of blood, and they looked at each other, seeing the extreme fear in each other’s eyes.
Were those dark shadows just now humans or ghosts? How did they come up and kill people without saying a word? What was their purpose, was it just to kill these irrelevant guards?
The women’s hands firmly grasped the carriage so that their violent trembling bodies would not fall down.
The night had dimmed for a few minutes, and the surroundings were extremely quiet, and there was no one in sight.
If it weren’t for the terrible corpses on the ground, they almost thought the shadows just now were their own hallucinations.
After some time Yang Yunzheng’s voice sounded in the carriage, apparently trying to keep calm: “Hurry up!”
This awakened them, and the coachman hurriedly picked up the reins, and his voice was so frightened that he screamed: “Drive! Drive!”
Although the terrifying shadows disappeared, they didn’t know when they would appear. The guards who have experienced many battles in the Hou Mansion were all dead, and they had to flee this nightmare place.
The horse seemed to be infected by their fearful emotions, and rushed through the empty street. Those women had to run as hard as they could to barely keep up with the speed of the carriage.
Seeing this familiar street, everyone’s mood became a little more stable. There would always be no sneak attacks here, right?
However, they were obviously too optimistic.
The horse pulling the cart had been running for a day, and he was obviously exhausted. After sprinting for a long time, it was already panting and slowed down unknowingly.
As they passed by a pawnshop with a closed door, a few black figures suddenly flew down on the roof. This time, before the women yelled out, a few corpses had fallen by the side of the carriage.
Just like before, these figures were as fast as ghosts, and there was no sound at all. They arrived like lightning and left when they killed people.
The women who were laughing just now didn’t even have a trace of breath this time.
The coachman was so scared that he didn’t need Yang Yunzheng to urge him this time. He waved the whip in his hand desperately and whipped the cart horse until the horse’s back was covered with blood.
In the violent whipping of the coachman, the tired horse speeded up again, and rushed in the direction of Changting Hou Mansion.
In the carriage, the maid was so scared that she cried without tears. Yang Yunzheng looked out in a panic. At this moment, she didn’t care about etiquette. She stretched out her hand and raised the curtain, her eyes fixed on the movement outside.
As the night darkened, she couldn’t see anything at all, but she didn’t dare to lower the curtain, as if she could only protect herself from assassinations.
At this moment, she saw an erratic figure flashing in the dark sky, and suddenly screamed hoarsely: “Here! He’s here again!”
Hearing this urging sound, the coachman was almost frightened. He waved his whip even faster, as if this would be able to shake off the terrifying shadow.
The figure did not seem to be affected by the speed of the carriage at all, and fell on the roof of the carriage in an instant. Yang Yunzhen could not see the movements outside, only heard the scream of the coachman from the door of the carriage: “Ah—”
The sound seemed to rise from the ground, and before the end of the reverberation, it flew farther and farther. With a wet thud, the scream of the coachman came to an abrupt end.
Obviously, the black shadow threw the coachman out and he fell to his death.
The frightened horse didn’t even realize that the coachman had disappeared, and he ran wildly in the street in pain. The carriage bumped violently, almost throwing Yang Yunzheng and the maid out of the carriage.
Yang Yunzheng had to hold on to the frame of the carriage desperately to stabilize her body. She screamed at the maid: “Go! Go outside!”
The frightened maid also clung to the frame of the car, and when she heard Yang Yunzheng’s order, she shook her head in terror, “No...no! Miss, you can spare me... I really dare not...”
Yang Yunzheng gritted her teeth and kicked the maid violently, but even so, the maid did not dare to stretch out her head to see the situation.
The maid wasn’t brave enough, and Yang Yunzheng was even less brave. The two of them were sitting in a horse-drawn carriage drawn by a frightened horse, and even though the carriage drove them up and down, they did not dare to go out at all.
The horse ran aimlessly on the street, ran into a bend, and turned abruptly. It was because of inertia that the horse-drawn carriage broke away from the shaft and rolled over on the ground.
Yang Yunzheng and the maid were thrown out of the carriage. They didn’t care about rubbing the sore spots on their bodies, and they ran all over the street, screaming, “Help! Help—”
On the empty street, the two of them screamed in sorrow and horror. Their cries resounded in the night sky, but no one came out to check.
In this world, who would dare to come out to be nosy, did they want to die?
Yang Yunzheng carried the cumbersome hem of her skirt and ran forward desperately. She couldn’t see the surrounding streets and didn’t know where she was. The huge fear made her run desperately, but she didn’t know where she was going.
Suddenly a whistle sounded in the darkness, Yang Yunzhen couldn’t hold back her steps, and slammed into the maid who was running in front of her.
A few drops of warm and viscous liquid splashed on her face, with the nauseating smell of blood. Yang Yunzheng opened her mouth wide, unable to even scream, and watched the maid fall softly on her own.
A heavy arrow that was more than half a meter long pierced the maid’s chest, and the tremendous strength turned her into a pool of flesh and blood. Yang Yunzhen didn’t need to look at it to know that her maid must have been shot to death in an instant.
Looking at the bloody corpse in front of her, Yang Yunzhen didn’t even have the strength to run this time. Her legs were soft and she slumped on the ground.
Now she was alone.
Changting Hou Mansion seemed to be far away, she didn’t know how to get there, and in the endless darkness all around, there were countless pairs of cold eyes staring at her.
This feeling was as if she had become a fragile little beast, surrounded by hungry wolves. She had nowhere to escape, and was powerless.
Yang Yunzheng raised her head in horror and watched them approach step by step until the dark shadows formed a circle around her.
Did they finally come to kill her? Would she die here like those guards, women, coachmen, and maids?
Before she screamed, she received a heavy blow in the back of the head. She rolled her eyes and fainted to the ground.
When she woke up again, she found that she was already in a place similar to a big prison, surrounded by iron railings on all sides. There were no windows and no lights. The only light source was the burning fire in the room.
The fire was right under her feet. And she was also awakened by the scorching temperature.
Yang Yunzheng twisted her body in horror, but found that her hands were tightly bound together, and her whole body was hung high on the beam of a house, and she couldn’t get out.
She raised her head helplessly and looked around, but through the railing opposite herself, she saw a figure that couldn’t be more familiar.
“Brother! Brother!” Yang Yunzheng struggled desperately, her sharp voice almost changing in fright, “Brother, help me!”
Yang Huanian was obviously knocked out. In Yang Yunzheng’s sorrowful cry, he finally woke up. When he saw Yang Yunzheng like this, he immediately rushed towards her: “Yunzheng, why are you here?”
Seeing her brother, Yang Yunzheng burst into tears: “Brother, save me, I’m so scared!”
Yang Huanian’s hands tightly grasped the railing, and the seemingly strong railing fell off after only being shaken by him a few times.
Yang Huanian didn’t think much about it. He hurried over to Yang Yunzheng, but just less than a meter away from Yang Yunzheng, he stopped.
Yang Yunzheng looked at him in surprise and shouted, “Brother, what’s wrong with you, come and help me untie the rope!”
Yang Huanian raised his hands, and by the light of the fire, he saw that his wrists and ankles were tied with thin iron chains. This length just made him walk one step away from Yang Yunzheng.
At such a short distance, he was completely unable to touch Yang Yunzheng, let alone save her.
Yang Huanian desperately pulled the iron chain on his hand, but although the iron chain looked thin, it was extremely strong. After pulling it with all his strength for a long time, the iron chain did not even change its shape.
The flames under his feet rose from time to time, licking Yang Yunzheng’s feet. Yang Yunzheng was in pain and scared, and cried: “Brother, save me... I’m really scared...”
Seeing his sister suffering right in front of his own eyes, Yang Huanian was heartbroken, but unable to do anything. He tried to calm his emotions and said, “Yunzheng, don’t be afraid. I will find a way and I will save you soon—”
Before the words fell, a cold voice suddenly sounded in the darkness, with an ice cave-like coldness: “Yang Huanian, do you really think so?”
The brother and sister looked in the direction of the voice in surprise. In the bright fire, a woman in a black robe slowly walked over. Her obsidian eyes glanced at them coldly, stabbing into their bodies. They shivered
Looking at this woman, Yang Huanian stopped the needless tearing in his hand, and called in a deep voice: “Princess Xu.”
Ling’er picked up a heavy chair and placed it behind Yu Linglong. Seeing Ling’er’s light movements, Yang Huanian’s heart was shocked.
It was just a seemingly ordinary maid, but who would have thought she had such a great strength. This Princess Xu really had many hidden targets.
Yu Linglong sat steadily on the chair, as if she hadn’t heard Yang Yunzheng’s sharp and miserable cry. Her eyes only looked at Yang Huanian, and she said faintly: “Prince Yang, long time no see.”
Yang Huanian involuntarily clenched the iron chain in his hand and said in a deep voice, “Princess Xu, what do you want to do with us here?”
Yu Linglong smiled coldly and said calmly: “You’re asking me what I want to do? Why don’t you ask your sister?”
Yang Huanian looked at Yang Yunzheng questioningly. Yang Yunzheng was so frightened that her face was full of tears, and she no longer looked like the solid and generous person she usually did. She trembled and said, “Brother, I...I know I was wrong. You shouldn’t listen to the Prince’s words... But don’t you like her? She died and it’s nothing... His Majesty said, as long as we kill Princess Xu for him, he will not forget the support of our Yang family in the future... “
She spoke incoherently, Yang Huanian couldn’t understand, but there was an ominous premonition in her heart.
He turned his head abruptly, looked at Yu Linglong, and said loudly, “Princess Xu, what did my sister do wrong? Why are you doing this to her?”
Yu Linglong’s eyes finally fell on Yang Yunzheng. She looked at Yang Yunzheng who was panicking and said, “Why don’t you tell your brother what you have done?”
Yang Yunzheng glanced at Yu Linglong timidly. She didn’t expect that Yu Linglong could escape unscathed from the self-confident trap she set up.
However, Shi Huiru died...
Yang Yunzheng was not a fool. Of course she knew that Yu Linglong had put on such a position. Clearly that she wanted to avenge Shi Huiru.
Yang Yunzheng cried to Yang Huanian: “Brother, I really know I was wrong! Help me beg Princess Xu, as long as you let me go, I’ll do anything...”
Yu Linglong interrupted her coldly: “As long as you can make Shi Huiru come back to life, I can let you go.”
Her voice was not loud, but it sounded like a bolt from the blue in Yang Huanian’s ears: “What did you say? Shi Huiru...Lady Shi is dead!?”
Hearing his surprised voice, Yu Linglong couldn’t help but clench her fingers tightly, her voice became colder unknowingly: “Yes.”
She knew that all these lies were caused by Yang Yunzheng deceiving Shi Huiru. Yang Huanian did not understand. At the beginning, Yang Huanian was willing to paint Shi Huiru’s portrait, which showed that he was not a heartless person. From then on, she could also vaguely feel that Yang Huanian and Shi Huiru’s relationship had undergone subtle changes.
If they continued to develop like this, they may not really be together. But none of this was possible, because Shi Huiru was already dead.
Seeing Yang Huanian’s pale face instantly, Yang Yunzheng cried: “Brother, what’s wrong with you? Don’t you dislike her? She...she is dead, she won’t bother you anymore...”
Yang Huanian turned his head abruptly. His usual gentle and elegant face had a somewhat unfamiliar ferociousness, and he said angrily: “Shut up!”
His long figure swayed slightly in the flames. Yang Huanian was obviously overwhelmed by this sudden news. He grabbed his hair with both hands desperately, and cried out in pain, “Why!? How could...”
Yu Linglong said coldly: “Your sister said that you were taken away by Lord Xu. She begged Shi Huiru to come to me and intercede for you. She tricked Shi Huiru and I to go to another courtyard outside the capital, and set it on fire. She wanted to burn the two of us together.”
Yang Huanian suddenly raised his head and looked at Yang Yunzheng, “Is it true what she’s saying?”
She had never seen Yang Huanian so upset. Yang Yunzheng was so scared that her face changed. She trembled and said, “I...I really know that I was wrong. His Royal Highness made me...”
She went back on her words because of Yang Huanian’s sudden actions. Yang Huanian stood up quickly and was about to hit her with his hand. However, his violent movements were restricted by his chains. He was so angry that his face was distorted and he cursed loudly: “Yang Yunzheng, why are you so stupid!?”
Yang Yunzheng cried loudly: “I was wrong! I was really wrong! I wouldn’t dare! Princess Xu, please let me go! I’m scared... I’m so scared...”
Quietly looking at Yang Yunzheng’s tearful face, Yu Linglong whispered: “When you shut us into the secret room and set fire outside, did you ever wonder if Huiru and I were afraid?”
Looking at Yu Linglong’s unmoving pretty face, Yang Yunzheng finally realized that the woman in front of her would not be softhearted.
There was a huge fear in her heart. She looked down at Yang Huanian, who was close to her, and shouted desperately: “Brother, plead for me! I don’t want to die, I don’t want to die! Did Shi Huiru really like you? She and Princess Xu are good friends, please plead for me—”
Yu Linglong was furious. She stood up from her chair suddenly, pointed to Yang Yunzheng, and said, “Shut her up for me!”
Ling’er raised her hand and accurately threw a walnut into Yang Yunzheng’s mouth. Yang Yunzheng was immediately blocked and could no longer speak.
Yu Linglong looked at Yang Yunzheng being hung in the air and cursed: “Do you still have the face to speak!? Huiru regarded you as her good friend, but you killed her, and now you still want to use her name!?”
Yang Huanian, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly knelt down towards Yu Linglong.
This unexpected behavior stopped Yu Linglong’s scolding. She lowered her eyes and looked at the seven-foot man who was kneeling in front of her, and a feeling of pity suddenly surged in her heart.
This feeling had nothing to do with the Yang brother and sister. What Yu Linglong thought about at the moment was Shi Huiru, who had not yet passed the period of mourning.
Huiru, if you have spirit in the sky, just open your eyes and have a look. This was your good friend, and this was the love you have never forgotten.
Do you regret once loving such a man?
Yang Huanian lowered his head and said softly: “Princess Xu, I’m begging you, let Yunzheng go. She was confused for a while and did something wrong... Lady Shi is dead, and I am also very sad, but people cannot come back to life. You can’t kill another person for the sake of a dead person. As long as you are willing to free Yunzheng, I promise that she will never go out of the gate of Yang Mansion again in the future, I guarantee—”
“Okay,” Yu Linglong interrupted his assurance coldly, “To me, she is already a dead person. And you are no different from a dead person.”
After saying this, Yu Linglong no longer bothered to look at Yang Huanian, and reached out to make a gesture in the dark.
As her gesture fell, a sound of mechanism turning suddenly sounded in the room. Yang Yunzhen only felt that her body sank suddenly and fell straight toward the flame!
“Oh,” Yang Yunzheng groaned in horror, and her body twisted more violently, but her struggle was completely futile. The mechanism above her head made a ruthless click, bringing her a little closer to the fire.
The embroidered shoes on her feet were ignited by the flames, and they burst into flames, igniting the corners of Yang Yunzheng’s skirt. The flames grew bigger and bigger, and the small underground prison was suddenly filled with the burning smell of clothing.
Yang Yunzheng struggled in pain, but the thick twine on her wrist restrained her mercilessly, making her unable to escape from the fire.
Seeing Yang Yunzheng’s pain, Yang Huanian stood up from the ground suddenly, ignoring the iron chain on his wrist, and desperately stretched out his hand in Yang Yunzheng’s direction: “Yunzheng, Yunzheng! Hold on!”
After that, he turned to Yu Linglong, and said hurriedly: “Princess, you can just let her go! Yunzheng knows she is wrong, let her go—”
Looking at Yang Yunzheng who was struggling in the flames, Yu Linglong said quietly: “Since she knows she is wrong, then she should pay for what she has done.”
Life was irreversible, and if giving benefits was like death, then Yang Yunzheng must give her life for a life!
Her ink-colored eyes squinted coldly, and Yu Linglong glanced at Ling’er next to her. Ling’er understood, raising her little hand, a silver light flew out and directly pierced an inconspicuous small bucket on the beam of the room.
A golden-yellow sticky object rushed out, and every single drop was poured on Yang Yunzheng’s body, immediately covering her body with a layer of greasy oily substance. Those little flames surrounding Yang Yunzheng’s body instantly expanded by tenfold as soon as it encountered these kerosene. It was like a hideous monster, swallowing Yang Yunzheng’s body completely.
“No!” The chains on Yang Huanian’s body straightened suddenly, and he tried his best to reach out to Yang Yunzheng who had turned into a ball of fire. It seemed that he would be able to rescue his sister from the sea of fire, but those chains tied him firmly, and he could only watch Yang Yunzheng burn to death from a step away.
The dungeon was full of the smell of burnt human flesh. Yang Yunzheng’s screams gradually faded, and finally disappeared. The beauty who was just alive turned into a scorched black corpse. Even her face was burned beyond recognition.
Yang Huanian slumped to the ground, his eyes staring at the dead body of Yang Yunzheng who was still hanging in the air, his eyes dull and hopeless.
His sister died in front of him in a miserable way.
His regret was like a poisonous snake biting his heart. If he could sort out his emotions earlier and accept or reject Shi Huiru completely, or if Shi Huiru was not filled with hope because of his detached attitude that led to her being used by Yang Yunzheng. If he could discover Yang Yunzheng’s abnormality earlier, perhaps Shi Huiru would not fall into Yang Yunzheng’s trap, and then everything at this moment would not happen.
But in this world, there had never been an if.
He did not kill her, but she died because of him. He was a man, but he bore unshirkable responsibility for the death of these two women.
The fire gradually extinguished, and the dungeon was plunged into a dim, dim light. Yu Linglong slowly got up, the black hosta on her head exuding a cold and moist light.
“Before she died, Huiru begged me not to kill you, so I promised her.”
Looking down at the man who seemed to be ten years old in an instant, Yu Linglong said coldly: “But this does not mean that I will let you go. Do you know why I let you watch Yang Yunzheng burn to death? I want you to remember, life is better than death.”
In the darkness, the iron chain on Yang Huanian’s body made a crisp clicking sound and slipped from him, but Yang Huanian didn’t seem to realize that his body had been freed, and he still sat on the ground blankly.
The person who loved him the most was killed by his sister, and his sister died because of it. From now on, he would live in regret and pain.
Looking at the lifeless man, Yu Linglong turned around and left the dungeon decisively.
...
On this day, Yu Linglong took Ling’er out of Ruyi Gambling House and walked outside Baihua Lane.
No matter what kind of world it was, the business of brothels and gambling houses was always exceptionally good. Even though the city was in chaos, business was still prosperous in Baihua Lane, and there were many people coming and going.
Walking out of Baihua Lane, the street seemed deserted, and the pedestrians on the road looked hurried, obviously unwilling to stay outside.
Walking to the corner, Yu Linglong was about to turn, but was suddenly hit hard by a figure flying over. Before Yu Linglong could react, she heard Ling’er scream: “Who is it!?”
Seeing that someone hit Yu Linglong, Ling’er immediately made a subconscious move. She kicked the person and flew away. Accompanied by a string of women’s painful cries, the person who hit Yu Linglong had fallen into the corner.
Yu Linglong was a little surprised. She knew that Ling’er’s skill was no longer what it used to be, but she didn’t expect Ling’er to move so fast now, so fast that she didn’t even have time to see the person’s face.
As the woman fell to the ground, a person who looked like a maid came out from the alley and rushed directly on the woman who was kicked against the wall. There was a bit of crying in her voice: “Mistress, mistress, are you okay!?”
The maid immediately turned her head and screamed at Yu Linglong and Ling’er: “You are so brave, how dare you kick my mistress, do you want to die?”
Yu Linglong raised her eyebrows. In her impression, no one had dared to talk to her like this for a long time.
Ling’er refused to suffer even more, and she scolded the maid before she could say a few words, but was stopped by Yu Linglong.
It wasn’t that Yu Linglong was afraid of the little maid, but she felt she looked a little familiar when she saw the figure of the woman curled up against the wall in pain, so she told Ling’er: “Go and see where the person was hurt.”
Ling’er glared at the little maid fiercely, and stepped forward and turned the kicked woman over. When she saw the woman’s face, Yu Linglong couldn’t help frowning slightly: “Why is it you?”
The woman who was kicked by Ling’er turned out to be Princess Zhou who hadn’t seen her for a long time.
When Princess Zhou saw Yu Linglong, she forgot to feel the pain, so she hurriedly hid until her back touched the wall.
Yu Linglong looked up at the depths of the alley, but found no other figures, and said, “Why are you here?”
In such a chaotic world, how could Princess Zhou only take a little maid and run around on the street. Wasn’t she afraid of danger?
Princess Zhou’s face was pale, and she was obviously in pain. Seeing Yu Linglong recognized herself, she couldn’t help but lower her head, and whispered, “Ninth Sister, you...you don’t tell the prince...”
Yu Linglong gave a faint hum, and Princess Zhou said in a low voice: “The city is very chaotic, and I am not allowed to go out. I was hiding in the palace, so I secretly ran out...No, no, I just want to go home and visit my parents......”
Seeing the gleaming look of Princess Zhou’s expression, Yu Linglong realized that Princess Zhou was lying.
If you want to visit your parents, then what was she doing so quickly just now? It was obvious that she was escaping from something.
It’s just that it didn’t matter to her what Princess Zhou’s reason for coming out was and why she avoided her, she didn’t care.
Concubine Zhou couldn’t make it up by herself, so she raised her head to look at Yu Linglong, and quickly changed the subject: “Ninth Sister, why are you here?”
Yu Linglong did not answer her question. She looked down at Princess Zhou’s leg and said flatly, “You’re injured.”
Ling’er was not weak, and she regarded Princess Zhou as an assassin, so naturally she would not be merciful. This kick threw Princess Zhou into the wall. At this moment, Princess Zhou had already shed a lot of blood on her calf and her trousers were soaked.
Concubine Zhou shrank her feet subconsciously, but hissed with pain and did not dare to move.
Yu Linglong nodded to Ling’er: “Take her to the nearby medical clinic.”
Hearing Yu Linglong’s words, Princess Zhou moved her lips a few times, but after all she did not say anything to refuse Yu Linglong’s kindness.
When the little maid heard that Princess Zhou called Yu Linglong Ning Sister, she no longer dared to contradict her.
Fortunately, there was a hospital not far away. Ling’er entered the door carrying Princess Zhou on her back and said, “Can someone help, someone is injured!”
Ling’er’s arrogant voice made people know that her status was not insignificant. The doctor inside quickly picked up his gown and ran out to greet her, saying: “Come in, bring her over there—”
As soon as the doctor looked up, he saw Yu Linglong who was the last to enter the door.
When Yu Linglong saw the doctor, she couldn’t help but frown. Why did she meet people she knew everywhere today?
The doctor in front of her was the one who found out that Lady Yu had been poisoned at first, that is, one of the members of the Blue Lotus Cult, Doctor Huang.
When Doctor Huang saw Yu Linglong, he immediately bowed, his expression could not hide his excitement: “All hail the saint!”
Upon hearing this name, Yu Linglong couldn’t help but get a headache, but Doctor Huang was still surprised. He bowed to give up his seat, while hurriedly saying: “Holy saint, how are you doing these days? Last time... “
He raised his eyes and looked around, lowering his voice: “The leader said you were taken away by Lord Xu to save us. The Blue Lotus Cult, thousands of people, will never forget your kindness. “
Yu Linglong thought he was getting more and more outrageous, and couldn’t help interrupting him: “I am not a saint!”
Only then did Doctor Huang realize his gaffe. He quickly glanced at Princess Zhou over there, and whispered: “Yes, I was abrupt... Please forgive me.”
Yu Linglong tightened her lips and did not want to waste her tongue any more. She knew that for people like Doctor Huang who had deep-rooted Blue Lotus doctrines in their minds, no matter how she explained or denied them, he would consider her to be a saint.
Yu Linglong stood in the middle of the doctor’s room. Ling’er stood by, and the mistress and servant obviously didn’t intend to stay long. Doctor Huang didn’t dare to neglect, he personally inspected Princess Zhou’s injuries, and confirmed that it was only a slight injury to the calf and no major physical problems, so he truthfully reported it to Yu Linglong.
Of course, from beginning to end, he didn’t dare mention the topic of the Blue Lotus Cult and the saint again.
Seeing that Princess Zhou was okay, Yu Linglong didn’t want to stay longer, so asked Ling’er to leave a few silver coins for diagnosis and treatment and left the hospital.
As for Princess Zhou’s matter, she was not interested in asking about it. Sending the injured Princess Zhou to the hospital was already enough charity for her.
But she didn’t know that this seemingly ordinary episode almost caused a fatal disaster.
Three days later, Yu Linglong’s carriage left the Xu Palace and was surrounded by a large group of people who came out of nowhere.
“It’s her! This is her carriage!” An angry voice resounded from the crowd. With this voice, Yu Linglong suddenly felt that the carriage swayed a few times, as if being pushed vigorously.
“Demon girl, get out!”
“Wicked girl! Scoundrel!”
“Die, vixen who harms the country and the people!”
Ling’er’s face sank and she said in a low voice, “Princess, I will go out and have a look.”
Yu Linglong reached out her hand and stopped Ling’er’s movements.
Countless hands stretched out, desperately pushing the carriage, and the thin curtain shook violently, making them dizzy. Looking around, there were dense angry faces of men, women, old people, and children. Everyone’s face was full of deep hatred as if they wished to pull Yu Linglong out of the carriage immediately and tear her to pieces.
In the distance, more people rushed over. It seemed that the news spread quickly. More and more people knew that Yu Linglong was the saint of the Blue Lotus Cult, the demon girl who was hated by countless people.
With this feeling, Yu Linglong could understand how many people the Blue Lotus Cult had caused to abandon their parents, wives, children, and family business, and just go deep in the mountains to practice. Although they made this decision, it was with their relatives. It seemed that Blue Lotus Cult was the demonic sect that took away their relatives. How could they not hate and get angry?
She could understand the emotions of the people, but this did not mean that she would make herself a scapegoat for Blue Lotus Cult.
More and more hands reached out to her carriage, and the carriage swayed more severely. If this continued, the carriage would soon be overthrown by the crowd.
At that time, both she and Ling’er would have nowhere to hide.
The situation outside was critical, but Yu Linglong was not afraid. She had seen scenes greater than this and experienced times more dangerous than this. What she had to consider was how to minimize the loss without letting herself be harmed.
Although it happened so suddenly, she knew very well that the person who exposed her identity as the saint of Blue Lotus Cult was Princess Zhou.
She didn’t have time to think about the psychology of Princess Zhou’s promotion of her identity. The most important thing at the moment was how to rush out of these excited crowds.
She didn’t want to hurt these innocent people. They were just being used by others.
Suddenly there was a clicking sound from outside the carriage. Ling’er looked outside and said, “Princess, the shaft of the carriage is cracked.”
If this continued, the carriage would really be torn apart by the crowd.
Yu Linglong was thinking about countermeasures in the carriage, but did not notice that on the other side of the street, a vigorous horse carrying a pine-green figure was slowly passing by.
Seeing the noisy situation here, Gan Lin frowned. Just as he was about to ride away, he heard the follower’s surprised voice: “Hey, isn’t that the carriage of the Xu Palace?”
Gan Lin was shocked. He immediately looked over there and saw that the carriage had golden bells on its four corners, and it made a crisp jingle under the push of the crowd. Such carriages could only be used by the master of the palace.
Lord Xu had not returned from fighting, so the only person in this carriage was...
Gan Lin didn’t think much about it. The horsewhip in his hand hit the horse buttocks fiercely and he rushed towards the carriage.
At this moment, hundreds of people were yelling: “Demon girl, demon girl, come out and die!”
Looking at the crumbling carriage in the crowd, Gan Lin was very worried and couldn’t help but cry out loudly: “Stop! She is not a demon, she is not!”
But his voice was immediately drowned in the angry screams of everyone, and he couldn’t even hear himself.
The crowd pushed and shoved each other. His horse couldn’t get in at all. Gan Lin pushed and pulled his horse, and squeezed towards the carriage.
Linglong, don’t be afraid, I’m here to save you!
He didn’t know where his strength came from, he just pushed hard to push away from the bustling crowd around him. He got into the crowd, and while struggling, the jade crown on his head fell down. It was crushed by the crowd, and his brocade robe was torn to pieces. There was sweat and dust all over his body, but he really squeezed into the crowd and reached the side of the carriage.
Trying to push away the countless pairs of hands that stretched out to the carriage, Gan Lin climbed onto the carriage and shouted desperately: “Stop it!”
No one listened to him, his voice disappeared like water droplets into the sea among hundreds of angry screams, and could not be heard at all.
Gan Lin was alone, unable to deal with these angry people at all. Thinking of Yu Linglong, he didn’t think much about it, so he lifted the carriage curtain.
“Linglong, are you okay?”
Yu Linglong was sitting in the carriage, and only frowned slightly when she saw his embarrassed appearance: “Why are you here?”
Gan Lin said anxiously: “I’ll save you!”
Yu Linglong’s pretty face sank. Save her? This kid was really too much.
At this moment, seeing Gan Lin climb into the carriage, the situation outside suddenly changed.
Most of these people were ordinary people. There was no leader. In the face of Yu Linglong’s carriage, they only used pushing and yelling to vent their anger and did not take any further action, but they saw Gan Lin crawling first. After getting on the carriage, raising the curtain, and revealing the true face of the so-called demon girl inside, the anger of everyone finally reached a high point.
Immediately someone climbed up to the carriage like Gan Lin and reached out to grab Yu Linglong. They shouted: “Demon girl, you ruined my family, I want to kill you!”
Gan Lin was shocked. He quickly reached out to touch the man’s hand and shouted: “You misunderstood! She is not a demon, she is—”
Ling’er obviously did not have the patience of Gan Lin, and she had the mind to explain to people blinded by hatred what her sole purpose was, that is: whoever dared to hurt the princess must die!
Seeing Ling’er draw out the short sword in her hand, Yu Linglong immediately reached out and held her hand.
Ling’er turned her head. Her face was puzzled and surprised: “Princess!?”
Everyone rushed into the carriage. Wouldn’t the princess still refuse to do it? This was not the style of the princess at all!
Yu Linglong lifted her foot and kicked the person who climbed into the carriage gently and skillfully, and said in a deep voice, “Do you want me and the prince to bear the charge of injustice and killing innocent people!?”
Hearing these words, Ling’er immediately understood Yu Linglong’s intentions.
Yu Linglong had never been a person who was good at forbearance, but today facing so many misunderstandings of the common people and facing such a dangerous situation, she had been holding back her hands, not because of her timidity, but because of her identity of Princess Xu.
In this sensitive period, if Yu Linglong did something, even if it only hurt one of the people, it would also have a huge impact on Lord Xu. The prince was bound to seize this matter and make a big fuss, making Lord Xu finally lose. The people’s minds were completely dissipated.
Needless to say, the ambassador behind this incident was likely to be the prince. Only he could calculate people’s minds so finely. He knew that with Yu Linglong’s temperament, the common people would definitely not be bullied. Therefore, as Yu Linglong was a demon girl, he gathered hundreds of people and surrounded Yu Linglong’s carriage to provoke trouble. In this way, Yu Linglong would be unable to resist, and the prince could use Princess Xu to beat the civilians as an excuse to destroy Lord Xu’s reputation.
This was a battle for people’s hearts. The enthusiastic people were like a large grassland full of weeds. It only took a little spark to ignite a raging fire.
Whoever provoked this spark would fail.
Therefore, Yu Linglong chose silence and patience.
After fighting with the prince for so long, Yu Linglong had already determined the prince’s routine, and because of this, she could not be fooled.
It was not easy to hold back one’s temper, especially for people like Yu Linglong, but tolerance was also an offensive method.
Understanding Yu Linglong’s intentions, Ling’er couldn’t help but clench the dagger in her hand. She looked at more and more people rushing outside, and her voice couldn’t help but feel a little anxious: “Princess, are we just waiting like this?”
Yu Linglong’s eyes sank, and she answered Ling’er’s words with action.
A sudden kick threw Gan Lin from the carriage, and he fell onto the people closest to him. They subconsciously dodged the body of Gan Lin from the sky, and the crowd finally got a little loose.
Yu Linglong seized the opportunity, grabbing the short sword from Linger’s hand, and slamming it on the horse’s hip.
The horse pulling the cart was caught off guard, and after suffering, the people stood up in pain and let out a long, miserable hiss.
The frightened horse suddenly exerted its strength and rushed out into the crowd. The crowd could not avoid it and were knocked out of the way.
Before people could react, the horse had already rushed out of the crowd and galloped on the street.
How could a person’s feet catch up with a frightened horse? Seeing the carriage galloping away, the people couldn’t react.
It wasn’t until Yu Linglong’s carriage disappeared across the street that they came back to their senses, and suddenly became even more annoyed.
With so many people surrounding the two women, they escaped!?
Someone shouted: “Report to the officials! Let the government catch the demon girl!”
This sentence reminded everyone, and they immediately shouted: “Yes! Go to the officials, go to the officials!”
Gan Lin got up from the ground in embarrassment, but when he heard such words, he saw the crowd walking towards the capital magistrate’s office. He just saw Yu Linglong escape from the danger and relaxed, but suddenly became tense again.
Looking at the crowd going away, Gan Lin stomped fiercely, and ordered his entourage: “Go find father—”
After only saying three words, he suddenly stopped. Because of the prince’s rebellion, people close to the prince were ordered to stay put, and Master Gan was also placed under house arrest, and he couldn’t do anything at all.
Gan Lin gritted his teeth and jerked back on his horse.
The entourage hurriedly followed up: “Master, where are we going?”
Gan Lin kicked his horse’s belly and said, “To the palace! I’m going to ask my aunt!”
Gan Taifu couldn’t see the emperor, but the empress was in the palace. Although he knew that the empress was also implicated because of the prince, at this moment, Gan Lin really didn’t know whom to ask for.
He couldn’t just watch Yu Linglong be in danger, he must do his best to protect her!
...
The carriage rushed out of the crowd and ran out of the city quickly. Yu Linglong and Ling’er had to try their best to grasp the wooden frame on the carriage to barely maintain their balance and not to be thrown off by the rushing carriage.
At some point the exhausted horse fell to the ground, panting heavily, too tired to stand up.
The carriage finally stopped. It was already far away from the capital, surrounded by dense woods, and they couldn’t see the outside situation.
Linger quickly got out of the car and reached out to help Yu Linglong: “Princess, after you—”
Before she finished speaking, a whistle suddenly sounded in the woods, and then, there were countless rustling sounds from the trees that were silent just now, and they quickly approached them.
Yu Linglong was taken aback. The hand that had just been placed in Ling’er’s hand immediately tightened, and Ling’er pulled back into the carriage. She looked up and saw countless figures flashing in the dense leaves, encircling them.
Danger!
Yu Linglong looked down at the exhausted and drew her blood-stained dagger on the horse’s buttocks. The horse convulsed with pain and subconsciously wanted to struggle to get up.
Before the horse stood up from the ground, a long arrow flew out of the bushes and shot straight into the horse’s head. The seriously injured horse fell on the ground without a grunt.
Yu Linglong’s heart tightened. The enemy actually had an archer!
She immediately pulled Ling’er into the carriage, the curtain was lowered, and another cluster of arrows followed closely, nailing to the shaft of the carriage they were standing on, and the tail of the arrow was trembling slightly, which made them shudder.
They were in the wilderness, and the horse pulling the cart died again. There were only two of them, but they were encircled.
Although Ling’er’s skills were superb, she was still pale with fright at the situation in front of her. Yu Linglong stood up in the carriage without saying a word, blocking the door, and she pulled Ling’er and sat in the middle of the carriage as far as possible from the wall.
As soon as she finished the arrangement, she heard a series of arrows coming from all around, and the swooshing sound kept hitting the carriage and dinged on the carriage.
The wooden wall of this carriage was thick, but numerous arrows shot holes in it. Yu Linglong and Ling’er were sitting tightly in the carriage, surrounded by densely shining arrows, more and more, almost tearing apart the carriage.
With a clang, a sharp arrow came in from the gap in the carriage door, brushed Yu Linglong’s shoulder and flew past, and plunged straight into the wooden wall behind the car.
Ling’er pulled out the arrow and stood up awkwardly: “Princess, I am going to fight with them!”
Yu Linglong pulled Ling’er back and said in a deep voice, “Now is not the time to be brave, sit down!”
Ling’er held the long arrow in her hand, and her voice changed anxiously: “Princess, shall we just wait like this? If this goes on, the carriage will sooner or later—”
Ling’er stopped talking, but she couldn’t understand what she meant. They just stayed in the carriage like this, just waiting to die.
Yu Linglong listened to the movement outside and said, “Sooner or later, their arrows will finish shooting.”
This word reminded Ling’er. Ling’er grabbed the arrow in his hand and pressed his lips tightly.
Yu Linglong took the arrow from her hand and observed it carefully. The arrow was well-crafted and sharp. Although there was no sign, Yu Linglong could tell at a glance that it was an arrow made by the government.
This also confirmed her suspicion that the person who chased them was indeed sent by the prince.
It seemed that she still underestimated the prince. She thought that the prince was just trying to instigate the people to surround her carriage, but now it seemed that the prince’s envoy was a serial strategy. If Yu Linglong did not harm the innocent people, then she could only choose to escape the siege of the people and take shelter temporarily. But the prince had arranged manpower to follow her all the way. Once he found that Yu Linglong had stopped, he immediately started to take her life.
Yu Linglong’s skill was well known, and there was a martial arts expert like Ling’er around her. The prince was afraid that they would escape, so he arranged for many archers to shoot them alive.
Such an arrow was like a circle of migratory locusts. Even if Yu Linglong and Ling’er had two pairs of wings, they couldn’t escape at all.
More and more arrows were shot on the carriage, almost covering the walls of the carriage. Although Yu Linglong was bold and calm, seeing this situation, she couldn’t help but clench Ling’er’s hand.
She didn’t know the situation outside. If the prince really arranged enough archers, then once the carriage was split by an arrow, she and Ling’er would no longer have a hiding place.
At some point, the rain of arrows finally decreased, and the surrounding silence returned.
Yu Linglong covered Ling’er’s mouth and motioned to her not to speak, while she listened carefully to the surrounding movement.
The archer’s arrows shouldn’t have been shot out. The enemy may just want to check whether the two of them had been silent and did not move for so long, as if they had been shot to death.
If this was the case, soon someone would approach the carriage, and then they would have a chance to escape.
Sure enough, as expected by Yu Linglong, there was a sound of curious footsteps in the bushes, apparently walking towards the carriage.
Yu Linglong felt it was a big enemy, and couldn’t help but clench the short sword in her hand. She listened to the movement outside with all her concentration, ready to make a move at any time.
She heard the man approaching the carriage and saw a hand stretched out from the back of the door as if trying to push the wood blocking the door aside to see what was inside the carriage.
Just after the door was pushed aside, Yu Linglong stabbed her dagger quickly, and the person outside immediately let out a painful cry. But before Yu Linglong could see where the injury was, she heard the arrow rain become dense again.
The person who pushed the wood away made a cry of fear again, but this time it was not Yu Linglong who hurt him, but his companion, who mercilessly shot a sharp arrow into his body.
Yu Linglong’s heart sank. She wanted to hold that person as a hostage or shield to block the migratory locust-like arrows, but now it seemed that those people wanted their own lives, even if they sacrificed other’s lives.
If so, it would be even more difficult to escape.
What was more terrible was that the wood at the door was pushed open by the man, and now the door was completely open, completely unable to stop the flying arrows.
At this critical juncture, a huge commotion suddenly sounded outside. Before Yu Linglong and Ling’er could react, a figure fell from the sky and landed at the door of their carriage, immediately blocking part of the flying arrows.
Yu Linglong and Ling’er looked at each other. Before saying anything, they heard the screams one after another in midair. One figure after another fell from the sky onto the carriage, but within a short time, the carriage door was blocked by dead bodies. It immediately solved the crisis.
Ling’er boldly looked out from the crack in the car wall. Yu Linglong only saw a blue figure flying quickly in the air, and heard Ling’er’s surprised cry: “Brother Feng, is that you!?”
Yu Linglong frowned. Feng Xuanyuan? Why was he here?
However, this was obviously not the time to think about this issue. Feng Xuanyuan’s sudden arrival attracted most of the enemy’s attention. The arrows shot at the carriage were obviously much less, and there was a mess of shooting arrows in the air, all directed at Feng Xuanyuan’s figure.
Feng Xuanyuan was dexterous. Even though he was in a rain of arrows, he still dexterously avoided the arrow clusters that were shot at him. From time to time, he pulled out the archers hidden in the bushes and threw them to the carriage to block the arrows for Yu Linglong.
Seeing that Feng Xuanyuan was alone, Ling’er turned her head and said to Yu Linglong: “Princess, I’ll go out and help Brother Feng.”
Yu Linglong took a deep look at Ling’er, then paused before nodding her head and agreeing: “Be careful.”
Ling’er replied, then pushed a few corpses away and flew out.
As soon as Ling’er went out, there were a few more screams in the bushes. After being forced to hide in the carriage for so long from the rain of arrows, Ling’er was obviously suffocated. She killed several archers in a blink of an eye.
Although there were two masters, Feng Xuanyuan and Ling’er, there were hundreds of archers sent by the prince. Even if Feng Xuanyuan and Ling’er could kill ten, they still could not completely block the enemy’s offensive.
Just when many archers were aiming towards the sky, continuously firing arrows that couldn’t catch up with Feng Xuanyuan and Ling’er in vain, someone suddenly shouted: “Turn around, shoot the carriage!”
The archers immediately woke up, and one after another they aimed their arrows at the carriage again. As long as they completed the task of killing Yu Linglong, they could retreat. There was no need to play hide-and-seek with Feng Xuanyuan and Ling’er.
Seeing a large cluster of arrows flying towards the dilapidated carriage, Ling’er shouted and subconsciously flew towards the carriage, as if she wanted to block the lightning-fast arrows with her body.
It was said that it was too late. Before Ling’er’s figure landed on the carriage, Feng Xuanyuan suddenly jumped over and pulled Ling’er from the air abruptly, avoiding a few flying arrows.
With just such a movement, Feng Xuanyuan’s figure exposed a large gap, and a sharp arrow flew out unexpectedly and deeply pierced Feng Xuanyuan’s chest.
Feng Xuanyuan let out a muffled groan. Before his feet landed on the carriage, he drew a long arrow from the hedgehog-like corpses at the door of the carriage. He waved back without looking, and a miserable sound suddenly sounded in the woods, apparently stabbed by an arrow.
When Ling’er saw the arrow on Feng Xuanyuan’s body, she suddenly exclaimed. She hurriedly pushed away the corpse, pushed Feng Xuanyuan into the carriage, followed by herself, and hurriedly blocked the door of the car with the corpse.
In the carriage, Ling’er looked at the arrow on Feng Xuanyuan with tears in her eyes. She stretched out her hand to pull it out, but she really didn’t dare. She burst into tears: “Brother Feng, what can I do with this...”
Feng Xuanyuan didn’t seem to notice the injuries on his body at all. From the moment he got into the carriage, his sight stayed on Yu Linglong’s body, and he did not leave for a moment.
Yu Linglong glanced at him coldly and said, “Why are you here?”
Feng Xuanyuan paused before saying, “I heard you were in danger.”
Yu Linglong looked away. No matter how powerful Feng Xuanyuan was, she couldn’t guess the trap the prince had set for her. That was to say, Feng Xuanyuan heard that the people knew about her identity as the Blue Lotus Saint and wanted to attack her. Feng Xuanyuan followed her all the way to the siege, but unfortunately fell into the circle of archers with them.
Looking at Yu Linglong’s indifferent face, Feng Xuanyuan’s lips evoked a familiar evil smile, and he whispered: “Yu’er, if it weren’t for this, I wouldn’t have seen you.”
Yu Linglong frowned slightly. Feng Xuanyuan was still thinking about this mess.
Ling’er was extremely worried and cried: “Brother Feng, what do you think, isn’t it painful? You... why are you so stupid...oh...”
Feng Xuanyuan smiled faintly as if he didn’t feel the pain at all. He glanced at Ling’er and sighed: “Silly girl, why are you crying? I won’t die, your princess...” he coughed, “...will not die......”
Perhaps he spoke too quickly. Feng Xuanyuan coughed abruptly, and with the violent coughing sound, a trickle of blood ran from the corner of his mouth, which appeared shocking on his pale face.
Yu Linglong only glanced at it and knew that he had hurt his lungs. She couldn’t help but frown slightly, and said, “Don’t talk anymore. Be careful of hurting your body.”
It was just a cold word, but Feng Xuanyuan suddenly raised his eyes to look at her, with an unconcealable surprise in his eyes: “Yu’er, do you care about me?”
Yu Linglong listened carefully to the movement outside. Her face was cold, and she didn’t pay attention to Feng Xuanyuan at all.
The look in Feng Xuanyuan’s eyes gradually dimmed, and a helpless, bitter smile appeared at the corner of his mouth, and he said softly, “You still refuse to forgive me.”
Yu Linglong didn’t even glance at him, and said coldly: “There is nothing to forgive. There has never been any relationship between you and me.”
Looking deeply at her expressionless pretty face, Feng Xuanyuan’s voice gradually lowered: “Yes... From the beginning, it was my wishful thinking.”
Even he himself didn’t know when he became like this. The iceberg-like beautiful woman in front of him always affected his heart. With a look in her eyes and a sentence, he was defeated.
But she belonged to someone else.
In her eyes, he was just an irrelevant person after all.
Feng Xuanyuan’s voice became lower and lower, and with every word he said, the blood in his mouth continued to gush out.
“But Yu’er, I always can’t control myself, and want to do a lot of things for you. Maybe only in this way, you may be moved by me, even if only a little...”
Ling’er supported Feng Xuanyuan’s slowly falling body, crying to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth, and said: “Brother Feng, don’t... don’t say any more...”
Feng Xuanyuan didn’t seem to hear her words. She still said to herself: “Sometimes I even think, if you are willing to stay by my side, I would rather give up my identity as the leader and be an ordinary person... Maybe only in this way, I will not think about the past and the future. I won’t have so many worries, and I can protect you like him... Heh, he protects you so well, even if I want to do something, I don’t have a chance... If not today...”
Yu Linglong suddenly stretched out her hand to cover Feng Xuanyuan’s gray lips.
This action made Feng Xuanyuan and Ling’er stunned together. Feng Xuanyuan struggled to lift his upper body but was pushed down by Yu Linglong. Yu Linglong listened to the outside sounds vigilantly, and said in a deep voice: “Don’t speak!”
There was still a burst of arrows outside the carriage, and the carriage that had been shot to pieces was already crumbling, and it might crack anytime and anywhere, but in the sound of these swish arrows and the cracking of wood, there was something strange. The sound was expanding rapidly.
It was the rapid sound of horseshoes, the shouts of soldiers, swept over with a wind-like whistling.
Ling’er’s face with teardrops suddenly appeared in huge ecstasy: “Princess, someone is coming!”
The galloping army came in an instant, and they could hear the crisp sound of the trees being stepped on, and the crisp sound of the weapons being smashed. The arrow rain outside suddenly became sparsely scattered. Instead, it was the sound of the archers fleeing.
The well-trained soldiers ruthlessly chased down the archers to death like they were cutting melons and vegetables. A familiar and anxious voice sounded in midair, no longer with his previous calmness: “Linglong, Linglong! Where are you!?”
Hearing the call of this voice, Yu Linglong stood up quickly, kicked the corpse away from the door, and jumped out of the carriage.
Before she could settle down, a black figure flew swiftly from the air and hugged her tightly into her arms, as if holding a lost treasure.
The familiar mint scent came to her nose, and his worried voice was in her ears: “I was worried that I would be late...How are you, are you injured?”
She subconsciously held Lord Xu’s waist. Yu Linglong’s nerves were tense for a long time, and they finally relaxed the moment she saw him.
“I’m fine, I’m fine.”
She knew that with him, she was really safe.
Yu Linglong raised her eyes to look around, and saw that the surrounding trees were scattered all over. The grass was full of blood and corpses lying on the ground. Bows and arrows were scattered everywhere, and several remaining archers were fleeing. Behind them, the dark guards were chasing.
Yu Linglong leaned on Lord Xu’s chest and said in a low voice, “Why are you here?”
Lord Xu’s handsome face sank, obviously suppressing his huge anger: “The dark guard’s news was sent late. When I found out that the prince secretly mobilized a group of archers, I thought that he was trying to disadvantage you... Fortunately, you are fine.”
The big hand holding her tightly, Lord Xu seemed to have forgotten that there were countless subordinates around him, he just hugged her in his arms, and carefully looked at her face: “Are you scared? Blame me for being late...”
There was a strange move in Yu Linglong’s heart. She leaned in the arms of Lord Xu and said softly, “It’s good that you’re here.”
At this time, Ling’er had cleaned the door of the carriage, and carried Feng Xuanyuan out of the carriage.
Seeing Feng Xuanyuan, Lord Xu’s sharp eyebrows wrinkled slightly, and his thin lips suddenly became a line.
Standing in front of the carriage, Feng Xuanyuan stroked his chest with one hand and leaned against the carriage with the other, staring at Lord Xu coldly.
Feng Xuanyuan faintly met Lord Xu’s murderous eyes, with a wicked smile on the corners of his lips, and whispered: “This time, I was here first.”
Yu Linglong felt that Lord Xu held her hand tighter, and the atmosphere that had just become relaxed suddenly became serious again.
Lord Xu said in a deep voice, “This is the last time.”
Feng Xuanyuan’s gaze slowly shifted to Yu Linglong’s body. His voice floated in the forest wind, sounding so desperate.
“Yu’er, you won’t come to me, will you?”
Yu Linglong replied decisively: “Yes. You should not have this wishful thinking!”
Lord Xu raised his sharp eyebrows and looked at Feng Xuanyuan’s inky eyes full of anger: “Feng Xuanyuan, haven’t you harmed her enough? As long as I’m still alive, I will never let you approach her again!”
Finally, he glanced at the frosty Yu Linglong. Feng Xuanyuan smiled dismally, pushed Ling’er’s hand away, slowly turned around, and walked away.
Ling’er stared at Feng Xuanyuan’s back with tears in her eyes, but she suddenly wiped away the tears, as if she was afraid that the tears would blur her vision towards Feng Xuanyuan.
It wasn’t until Feng Xuanyuan staggered to the edge of the woods that Ling’er seemed to have made up her mind and suddenly turned around and knelt down to Yu Linglong.
“Princess, princess... I’m begging you...”
Seeing Ling’er hesitating and stopping, Yu Linglong faintly guessed something. She sighed and asked her, “Speak.”
Ling’er lowered her head, as if she didn’t dare to look at Yu Linglong’s eyes, she whispered: “Princess, Brother Feng was seriously injured, and I am very afraid... I’m afraid that something will happen to him...”
She talked faster and faster, as if she was afraid that Yu Linglong would interrupt her, she said hurriedly: “Please, let me take care of Brother Feng!”
Yu Linglong looked at Ling’er’s sad expression and nodded gently: “Okay, you can go.”
As if she didn’t believe her ears, Ling’er suddenly raised her head and looked at Yu Linglong: “Princess, maybe...maybe...”
Yu Linglong said: “I understand. If you want to, you can always follow him.”
Ling’er bit her lip and bowed her head deeply, with a cry in her voice: “Princess, I am sorry for you, I am really sorry for you!”
Yu Linglong cast her gaze into the distance. Outside the forest, Feng Xuanyuan’s figure appeared from time to time.
“Go. Quickly.”
Finally, she bowed her head to Yu Linglong. Ling’er stood up and chased in the direction Feng Xuanyuan was leaving.
Looking at the bird-like figure of Ling’er, Yu Linglong sighed slightly.
If Feng Xuanyuan could make Ling’er happy, perhaps it wouldn’t be a bad thing.
Lord Xu, who had been silent for a long time, seemed to understand her feelings, and gently embraced her shoulders, and said: “They will be fine, don’t worry.”
Yu Linglong retracted her thoughts and said in a low voice, “I wonder...what’s going on in the capital now?”
Thinking of the prince, Lord Xu’s handsome face was covered with deep anger, and he said: “This time, he is determined not to escape!”
If it was said that Lord Xu had always adopted a gentle policy towards the prince, then this time the prince’s action on Yu Linglong had touched his bottom line.
Waiting for him would be a storm.
...
Gan Lin knelt outside the hall for more than half a day.
No matter how he begged the head eunuch, the eunuch said the same words: “The emperor has a decree. The empress is unwell, nobody can see her. She is being taken care of.”
After being rejected countless times, Gan Lin had an unknown premonition in his heart.
In the palace, something important seemed to have happened.
He guessed correctly. At this moment, in Fengyang Palace, which had been deserted for many days, something that had been in the dust for many years was slowly being revealed.
Concubine Wu Zhao wore a moon-white brocade dress, with only two plain silver hairpins on her head, and no makeup on her face, making her look very helpless and pitiful. At this moment, she knelt on the ground. Her delicate shoulders trembled, and she cried bitterly, covering her face: “...Emperor, the concubine really doesn’t know what’s going on. The concubine just thought that she hadn’t seen the empress in a long time. I got up early in the morning to greet the empress, and who knew that when the empress saw me, she seemed to be frightened and talked nonsense... Emperor, the concubine was wronged, and the concubine didn’t even have time to talk to the empress...”
Concubine Wu Zhao knelt on the ground and cried very pitifully. The emperor’s long eyebrows frowned, and he glanced at the imperial physician standing beside him. The imperial physician hurriedly said: “Dear emperor, the empress has been having convulsions for a while, and I have given her a prescription. She will take the medicine and rest for a few days and she will be well.”
There was no expression on the emperor’s face. It had always been faint, as if listening to a matter of no concern.
Secretly glancing at the emperor’s face, Concubine Wu Zhao walked forward and whispered: “Emperor, the concubine has something to say. I don’t know whether to say it or not...”
The emperor looked at Concubine Wu Zhao and said in a deep voice, “Speak!”
Concubine Wu Zhao whispered: “After the empress fell ill, she said a lot of strange things, like she wanted to kill you, and not only that, but her sons will kill your sons...Emperor, I also knew that the empress was talking nonsense after being frightened, but I was really a little scared...”
Seeing the emperor’s frown, Concubine Wu Zhao took out her kerchief and wiped her face, and said in a mournful voice: “His Royal Highness...Oh no, the eldest prince, the eldest prince, the concubines, and other sisters are all I were very worried. The concubine watched the prince grow up, but I did not expect him to do such a thing. I was afraid that the prince would act on other princes...”
Concubine Wu Zhao seemed to be more frightened as she talked. She stretched her hand to grab the hem of his robe and said in a sad voice: “Emperor! Lord Qi and I only have you. Please, emperor, protect me and my son and the other princes!”
The emperor snorted heavily, and said in a deep voice, “Bring all the people who are waiting for the empress!”
Concubine Wu Zhao lowered her head in fear, hiding the joy in her eyes.
As long as the emperor’s suspicion was aroused, then the empress was a dead tree, and with just a light push, she could be completely pushed off the empress’s throne!
Several court ladies and eunuchs walked in, bowed their heads, fell on their knees together, and said while trembling, “Long live the emperor.”
The emperor’s voice echoed in the empty palace of Fengyang Palace, with a severe chill: “What did the empress say? Which prince is she going to kill this time!?”
Hearing the stern voice of the emperor, the maids and eunuchs were so scared that they fell to the ground and did not dare to lift their heads: “We don’t know, please forgive us!”
Concubine Wu Zhao rolled her eyes, and suddenly burst into tears, crying on the ground: “Emperor! You don’t have to ask any more. I know that the empress has always disliked me. This time, the empress is sick and is also my victim! Punish me, and I wouldn’t dare to make the empress angry anymore!”
This trick was ingeniously practical. Seeing Concubine Wu Zhao’s miserable and aggrieved appearance, the emperor was really angry. He patted the armrest and said angrily: “She dared to pretend to be sick behind closed doors? Nonsense! Who do you want to tell? I want to see what else she can do to harm people!”
The emperor was furious, and everyone in the palace hurriedly knelt down, only to hear the emperor say: “Come, pull the empress out for me, I want to interrogate her myself!”
Seeing that the emperor was really angry, a maid hurriedly stepped forward and begged: “Please forgive me, emperor! The empress is really sick and can’t bear it! Emperor—”
Concubine Wu Zhao immediately pointed to the maid and said angrily: “Bold! How dare you not even listen to the emperor’s words? Who gave you such courage!?”
The implication of these words was very obvious. This maid helped the empress to speak, and even dared to refute the emperor. Of course, she was relying on the empress’s power.
The maid was so scared that she bowed her head again and again: “Concubine Zhao, I am convicted! I’m just begging the emperor to be merciful, wait for the empress to feel better, and then ask the empress...”
Her forehead desperately touched the ground. Gurgling blood flowed out, and the maid cried: “My lady has lost a lot of weight these days, she has lost a lot of weight, and her body has completely collapsed. She really can’t stand the emperor’s interrogation...”
Concubine Wu Zhao turned to the emperor, pretending to wipe the corners of her eyes, and said in a sad voice: “Emperor, the concubine also knows that he should not provoke the empress now, but if you don’t ask about it, the concubine can’t let go... It’s nothing, I’m just worried about the princes...If something goes wrong with them, emperor, then it would be too late to regret it!”
Seeing the appearance of Concubine Wu Zhao fanning the flames, the maid gritted her teeth and said: “Emperor, Concubine Zhao, if it is only because of this, the emperor and Concubine Zhao don’t have to worry about it. The person mentioned by the empress is not Concubine Zhao and Prince Qi.”
Concubine Wu Zhao immediately grabbed the handle in the words and asked, “Who are you talking about?”
Even if it wasn’t to kill Concubine Zhao and Prince Qi, the emperor still had seven other princes. No matter who the empress was going to kill, they were all connected.
The maid didn’t speak any more. She just kept bowing desperately, as if she didn’t dare to say anything or she would be killed.
He remembered that the prince was still messing about in the capital, and the empress was not honest in the harem. The emperor couldn’t help being angry from his guts. With a wave of his sleeve, the tea cup on the table suddenly fell.
“Tell me! Who is she going to kill!”
The maid was so scared that she couldn’t help shaking, and said hurriedly: “This...this...”
Seeing the maid still didn’t dare to speak, the emperor directly ordered: “Come on, pull this old thing out and beat her to death with a stick!”
The guards outside the palace gate agreed in unison, and they went into the hall to pull the maid. The mother was scared to death, and immediately shouted: “Forgive me, emperor! I’ll say it, I’ll say it!”
The emperor waved his hand, and the guards put down the maid, and only listened to the maid trembling and saying: “I beg the emperor to pardon my death...”
She couldn’t hear the emperor’s promise, but the maid didn’t dare not to say it, she said quickly: “The person who the empress is talking about is senior concubine Ling...and Lord Xu...”
The emperor’s face suddenly turned pale, and even his voice changed: “What did you say?”
The maid hurriedly said: “This morning, the empress did not get up, so Concubine Zhao came to the palace to greet her. Seeing that the empress did not get up, she thought that she was sick, so she went to the bedside to visit her personally. In fact...in fact...”
The maid swallowed hard, and continued: “In fact, the empress saw Concubine Zhao as senior concubine Ling and thought it was the imperial concubine who came to claim her life, so she was frightened like this.”
The emperor suppressed the excitement and asked in a deep voice, “Why is she afraid of Concubine Ling, say it!”
The maid lay down on the ground, not daring to look at the emperor’s angry face, and tremblingly said: “When the imperial concubine was jealous of the harem. At that time, the disease was in the capital. The empress ordered the people from the clothing department to take the old clothes of the people who died of the plague and secretly stuff them with the clothes of the senior concubine. After a while, the senior concubine became infected with the plague. The empress used this as an excuse to seal the senior concubine’s residence and forbid visitors, let alone the imperial concubine and the emperor...”
The emperor became more frightened as he heard it. He stood up quickly, kicked the case in front of him, and said angrily: “This poisonous woman!”
Concubine Wu Zhao hurriedly knelt down and cried: “Emperor, please calm down, don’t get angry!”
She couldn’t help wiping her tears and said in a mournful voice: “I didn’t expect that the concubine was so unreliable... At first, I was also surprised. Why did the concubine never go out of the palace and contract the plague? I didn’t expect it to be...Oh...sister concubine, you died so miserably...”
For the emperor who just learned the truth, the cries of Concubine Wu Zhao were no different than a catalyst. The always calm and kind emperor was furious with rage, and shouted: “Come! Get the empress out of here! I’m going to banish this poisonous woman!”
Hearing these words, Concubine Wu Zhao’s heart was filled with great joy, but on the surface, she cried more miserably: “Emperor, you have to think twice...”
The emperor said angrily: “Think twice? Think twice? My concubine and prince will be killed by her!”
Concubine Wu Zhao pretended not to dare to say anymore, but fell on the ground and wept in sorrow.
In the inner palace, the empress slowly opened her eyes listening to the noise outside.
Really, was she going to be a dead end?
Her son became a waste prince and was conquered by the emperor and Lord Xu, and in the harem, she would also become a waste.
She seemed to have seen her end. In the near future, her son would be captured by Lord Xu, and she would also be guilty of this. In banishment, she has only two choices: poison or a noose.
There was a bitter smile on her pale face. She had the honor of a lifetime, and she was still going to return to the loess after all.
Gently closing her eyes, she said in a voice that only she could hear: “Ling Qinghe, the emperor is avenging you. This time, are you happy?”
Outside the palace, the voice of the emperor and the cries of Concubine Wu Zhao and others seemed to be more and more distant, but she fell into a long sleep.
After a lifetime of burdens, she finally let go of them at this moment.
The truth that had been hidden for many years finally surfaced. For the perpetrators, it might not be a relief.
...
At this moment, the prince did not know that his mother was on the verge of death, and he was being overwhelmed by the situation in front of him.
The army that had been surrounding Chaoyangmen but was still standing still, suddenly began to attack without warning. The prince’s army was already in disarray, and the remaining soldiers had already lost their vigilance under the situation where Lord Xu had been standing still for a long time. He suddenly mobilized nine battalions and twelve guards in one day and launched an attack on Chaoyangmen mercilessly.
The prince’s army was caught off guard and was unable to become an army in less than half a day. Under the protection of a dozen personal guards, the prince disguised himself as a commoner and fled the capital hastily.
In the hot summer, the prince and others fled for more than a dozen miles, and the heat was unbearably hot. Seeing that there were no chasing soldiers behind, they stopped and took a rest at a tea stand on the side of the road.
A rag was placed on the bamboo pole as a pergola. The prince and his guards sat on a dilapidated low stool and drank extremely bitter herbal tea. This situation was truly distressing.
But the few rural scholars sitting on the table next door were shaking their fans and talking freely about state affairs. Of course, the prince’s rebellion was a hot topic nowadays.
“...How good is the emperor’s treatment of the prince? The reward for the prince is the first prize for any good deeds. In the southern riot that year, General Zhenyuan quelled the rebellion. The prince had neither money nor effort, but the emperor said General Zhenyuan was recommended by the prince. General Zhenyuan’s meritorious service is the prince’s contribution and the prince was rewarded with a full one hundred thousand taels of gold! But now, you see, the prince actually has to fight against him! What an immature, thankless ingrate!”
“You don’t understand this, to spoil a child is to kill a child. The emperor is so good to the prince so that he will grow his appetite more and more. Giving gold is not enough, but the emperor’s country is still needed!”
Several scholars nodded and sighed: “It’s really not enough!”
Another said: “A good prince doesn’t do it, so he has to rebel. Does this guy know what war is called? I heard that Prince Xu only used a little force to defeat the prince. From now on, it could be regarded as a good battle!”
A scholar hurriedly said: “Tell me, when this prince is deposed, who will be the new crown prince?”
Someone immediately laughed and said, “Does this need to be asked? It must be His Royal Highness. The emperor has treated Lord Xu very well in recent years. This time, Lord Xu has done a good job in rebelling against him. Who should he not stand for?”
“It would be great if it was Prince Xu. Prince Xu loves the people like a son, but he doesn’t want to be two-faced like the prince!”
“This time the prince’s downfall is a great thing for us people!”
These scholars spoke happily, scolding the crown prince indefinitely, and holding Lord Xu like a phoenix in the sky. It was obviously a joyful occasion.
The prince’s guards couldn’t hold back, and stood up awkwardly: “Your Royal Highness, go down and slaughter these ignorant people!”
Glancing at the gray-faced prince, Daoist Jingming on the side yelled in a low voice, “Sit down!”
The guard grabbed the hilt of the knife in his hand and sat down angrily.
Although he was fleeing, Daoist Jingming still wore robes and appeared calm and relaxed. He whispered to the prince: “In the previous Kang-Qian rebellion, tens of thousands of soldiers forced emperor Wu to abdicate and he escaped the capital with two little eunuchs...”
Speaking of the past, the prince’s eyes moved, and the light reunited.
The Daoist Jingming continued: “When Emperor Wu was at his worst, he couldn’t even fill his stomach and feed his hunger, but in the end, he still achieved hegemony and became a generation of famous emperors. Your Highness, the temporary difficulties are nothing. Until the day he takes the throne, if you think of today’s difficulties, you will definitely feel that this is a test from the heavens, allowing you to become an emperor through the ages!”
Hearing the words of Daoist Jingming’s encouragement, the prince took a deep breath and said in a deep voice: “Thank you, Daoist, I will do my best to make a comeback!”
Even if he was the traitor that everyone spoke up, and even if he was an unscrupulous rebellious son, as long as he could get onto the throne, these histories would be rewritten by him one by one. Later generations would praise his great cause, praise his fortitude, and he would be famous for generations to come!
And he knew that once he walked up this road, he could never look back. He could either succeed or die. This was the price paid to be an emperor.
A guard looked in the direction behind him vigilantly and said in a low voice, “Your Highness, it looks like someone is catching up.”
The prince stood up and said, “Go!”
Everyone got on their horses, raised their whips, and the road suddenly became dusty, and they began their next escape.
No one noticed that the Daoist Jingming fell behind, quietly using a dagger to leave a strange-shaped symbol on the shelf of the pergola.
Not long after, a group of people in black riding dark horses galloped over. When they saw the mark on the shelf, someone immediately said, “Commander, there is a mark here.”
The leader looked up at the sky, then at the panic-stricken shopkeeper, and raised his whip towards the setting sun.
“Chase them!”
Hundreds of people in black chased in the direction of the prince’s escape like a storm that swept through the night, and disappeared in a flash, leaving a few scholars and the shopkeeper looking at each other.
Who were these people and why did they look so terrible? Was it possible for those who were chased by them to escape?
...
The night sky seemed to have been splashed with ink, and it was so dark that it was disturbing. There were no stars in the sky, and the mountains and forests were full of dark and unknown shadows, which made weird calls from time to time.
The prince and his party were exhausted and walked towards the mountain road. The more they went up, the steeper the mountain was. They had to get off their horses, trying to identify the direction in the dark and climb up desperately.
Even they themselves didn’t know what was their destination.
When he walked to flat ground with slightly slower terrain, Daoist Jingming said, “Your Royal Highness, rest here for the night. It won’t be too late to leave tomorrow.”
The prince had already exhausted his strength, and only nodded, and took the lead to sit down.
On the opposite side was the endless night, and a guard tentatively threw a stone over there, but there was a rustling rolling sound, from near to far as if it had fallen into a deep place.
Daoist Jingming said in a deep voice, “Be careful, everyone, there is a cliff over there.”
The crowd was horrified and shocked, and couldn’t help but leaned in the direction of the mountain and gather together.
The summer night was cold on the mountain. They were afraid of being discovered by the chasing soldiers and did not dare to set a fire.
The prince was sitting alone on a rock, thinking about something.
The Daoist Jingming distributed dry food among the crowd, and finally walked to the prince and handed him a piece of dry food.
“Your Royal Highness, have something to eat.”
The prince took the dry food, and based on the feeling in his hand, he knew that it was a dry and hard cake. He had no appetite and couldn’t eat anymore.
Holding the dry food in his hand, the prince’s eyes looked even bleaker in the dark night. He began to miss the old life of luxury, and even for a moment, he doubted the purpose of his rebellion. He was a distinguished prince, so what if he didn’t become emperor? How could it be that he was in the cold wind on a dark mountain at this moment, eating such hard-to-swallow pancakes!
But the next moment, he immediately denied his idea. He chose this path himself, so he must bear the consequences.
What’s more, before the last moment, he was still not a loser!
After readying himself, the prince brought the crude cake in his hand close to his mouth, and when he was about to start eating, he heard an exclamation from the guards.
The prince looked up but found that at some point, a group of black figures had gathered around them, surrounding them in silence. In the darkness, these figures seemed to be ghosts, exuding bursts of biting chill.
“Who’s there!?” The cake in the hands of the prince suddenly fell to the ground. He stood up quickly and subconsciously grabbed the Daoist Jingming beside him. At this time, it seemed that only the Daoist Jingming was his greatest support.
But he grabbed at nothing and didn’t know when the Daoist Jingming left him and disappeared into the darkness.
The prince’s hands were left empty and hung in the air. Suddenly, there was a loneliness in his heart that he had never felt before.
Someone struck a match, lit a torch, and the wind on the cliff whizzed past, and the prince finally saw the people who came.
The figure in the black robe seemed to be completely integrated into the darkness, with only a handsome face like a sharp cut, staring at him coldly.
“Yu Lieyang, you are finally here.”
At the moment when he saw Lord Xu, the prince’s heart calmed down. The escape from day to night had made him exhausted. Seeing Lord Xu, the first thought in his mind turned out to be: He never had to run away.
Lord Xu took his secret guards and took a step closer to him, shrinking the encirclement tighter.
“You should go now.”
The prince smiled bitterly and took a few steps forward: “Okay. Take me to see the father, and I will personally appeal to him.”
In the darkness, Lord Xu looked at him quietly but did not answer his words.
An unknown premonition suddenly rose in the prince’s heart. He suddenly increased his tone and said, “Why, don’t you dare?”
Under the fire, Lord Xu’s eyes were piercing, and he looked at the prince steadily.
“You are not qualified.”
Hearing these extremely cold words, the prince’s legs suddenly softened.
He was not qualified?
What did Lord Xu’s words mean? Did they mean that he was not qualified to see the emperor again, or was he not qualified to live anymore?
Lord Xu shook the edict in his hand and said in a deep voice: “The emperor has an order. Anyone who sees the prince and his party will kill him on sight!”
The feeling of weakness in the prince’s legs became more obvious, making him almost unable to stand. He had to squat on the ground, barely supporting his body.
“Impossible...impossible! It must be you who preached the imperial decree! Father cannot kill me! This is absolutely impossible!”
Looking condescendingly at the prince’s desperate and horrified face, Lord Xu said coldly: “You are no longer the prince, and father no longer recognizes you as his son. Your current identity is just a chaotic party, a traitor, and a person worthy of punishment!”
The prince slumped to the ground with a face full of disbelief. How could it be possible that father loved him so much, and how could he order someone to kill him!?
He never thought that he would have such a day. He never thought that he would fail, and he never thought that he would be given death after failure. He was the crown prince, the eldest son of the emperor, and the prince of benevolence and virtue to the people for many years. His future should be soaring into the sky. How could he die here!?
Looking up at Lord Xu, who was approaching him, the prince begged: “Ninth Brother...take me to see father. I don’t want to die...You were always kind, you won’t kill me. Tight?”
He sent people to assassinate Lord Xu so many times without any resistance. This time his life fell in the hands of Lord Xu, and Lord Xu would definitely spare him!
Looking down on the prince’s hopeful face, Lord Xu said coldly: “I’m too kind to let you assassinate me again and again, and you even tried to take Linglong’s life!”
His voice echoed on the edge of the cliff: “Tell me, how could I let you go?!”
The prince shook his head desperately and said pitifully: “Ninth Brother, I promise, as long as you let me go, I will not harm you again! Look at me like this, how could there be a chance to harm you? Forgive me. You treat me like a dog, give me a break!”
Lord Xu suddenly clenched his big hand and said angrily: “Yu Liehua! You are the prince. Even if you die, you should have a little dignity! Look at what you look like now!? What a shame to the emperor!”
As if he didn’t hear Lord Xu’s scolding, the prince cried desperately: “I don’t want to die! I won’t die! The Daoist master said that my fate is to go down in history. I will become the emperor of the ages!”
Following his sharp howl, the Daoist Jingming walked out from behind Lord Xu and walked in front of the prince.
Seeing the Daoist Jingming, the prince’s howling stopped abruptly. He pointed his finger at the Daoist Jingming, his face was incredulous: “You...you...are you with him?”
The Daoist Jingming smiled slightly, gave a gift to the prince, and said loudly: “I forgot to tell you. My common name is Wang Jing. I am the personal guard of Lord Xu.”
Wang Jing?
Hearing this familiar name, the prince thundered.
Wang Jing, Wang Jing! He was one of the guards who followed Lord Xu to Mongolian territory, and he was the most loyal person to Lord Xu!
With his hands clenched into fists, the prince looked up to the sky and smiled: “Ha, ha ha! Heaven is going to kill me, no matter what, no matter what!”
After all, the prince actually got up from the ground, rushed straight through the crowd, and plunged over the cliff!
No one was surprised that he was struggling to survive the previous moment, but he chose to commit suicide the next moment. Lord Xu knew the prince too well. In this life, the prince was arrogant and brilliant, but he had plotted with the hearts of the people for most of his life, and in the end, he couldn’t see through the person he trusted most.
The true identity of the Daoist Jingming was tantamount to the last straw, crushing the prince and completely destroying his spiritual support.
There was a scream from far away from the bottom of the mountain, and it finally disappeared into the boundless darkness, leaving only the lingering sound.
Looking at the dark night sky, Lord Xu said in a deep voice: “Go back and tell the emperor that the prince killed himself in fear of sin and fell off the cliff with no bones left.”
Turning and walking down the cliff, Lord Xu only felt relaxed for a while. This long-lasting decisive battle was finally over.
At this moment, he had only one feeling, that was, he felt like an arrow at home.
The matter was over, he should go home.
Home was such a warm word. It not only represented the warm and bright building, the exquisite and delicious food but also represented that there was a person waiting for him in a permanent and unchanging posture.
He knew that no matter what happened, she would have been waiting for him, waiting for him to return home.
Epilogue
On an isolated island in the East China Sea, the water was clear and the sand was white, the water was green and the mountains were green, and the woods were full of the chirping of birds, and the fresh sea breeze was gently blowing in, blowing thousands of colorful blossoms.
Yu Linglong was wearing a peach blossom shirt, sitting on a swing gently swaying, and the golden earrings in her ears trembled with the swing of the swing, making her water eyes particularly agile.
Looking at the huge house in front of her, Yu Linglong’s mouth was filled with a small smile: “When did you arrange it? I didn’t even know at all.”
Lord Xu stretched out his hand to push the swing, and said with a smile: “Naturally I couldn’t let you know, otherwise, how would you come?”
Yu Linglong couldn’t help pursing her pink lips. Her delicate eyebrows couldn’t hide a smile: “I thought you were really just taking me to see the sea on a big boat. I didn’t expect to come to this place.”
This was really a big surprise. After only a few days of staying, she was completely fascinated by the beautiful scenery here and never wanted to leave.
Stopping the swing, Lord Xu gently hugged her from behind and whispered in her ear: “How is it, do you like it?”
Yu Linglong closed her eyes, feeling the warm sensation of the bright sun falling on her face, and said softly, “I wish I could live here for the rest of my life.”
Lord Xu chuckled and hugged her from the swing: “If you like it, then you will live here for the rest of your life.”
She lightly punched Lord Xu on the shoulder, and Yu Linglong smiled and said, “How is that possible? Could it be that you can just let go of things in the capital like this?”
Putting her on a cool stone bench, Lord Xu said: “You don’t know yet, but father has already appointed the fifth brother as the prince.”
Yu Linglong was startled and couldn’t help but blurt out, “Why not you?”
Lord Xu smiled faintly: “Because I don’t want to be an emperor, I just want to be with you.”
Grabbing her soft waist, he gently pressed her forehead: “Being an emperor will have a lot of unfreedom, and you will have to accept a concubine... I promised you that you wouldn’t be even a little wronged.”
Yu Linglong’s heart seemed to be immersed in hot water, and it became soft and warm. She hugged Lord Xu behind her, leaned on his shoulders, and said softly: “Well, you won’t be the emperor, and I won’t be the empress. We are on this island, living our fairytale life.”
Under the flowering tree, they leaned on each other, and in front of them was the boundless blue water. The fragrant petals were scattered on the stone tables and chairs, on their shoulders, and on their clothes. It was as perfect as a picture.
Plain, warm, happy, beautiful, this was the life they wanted.
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