Afterward, there was a long silence.
Outside the carriage, only the howling winter wind swept through the treetops, branches scraping against each other with a harsh sound, blending into something akin to the cries of wild beasts.
The setting sun hung low among the branches, gradually descending. Fiery twilight pierced through the gaps in the carriage curtains.
The rustling of footsteps on dry leaves sounded from afar, rapidly approaching.
A figure appeared atop the canopy. Xuan Yi, sword in hand, looked down at the assassins charging with their blades. He lightly stepped, moving like an arrow loosed from a bow, and shot towards the attacking assassins.
The clash of weapons echoed incessantly. Nan Shiying, hearing the commotion outside the carriage, resettled herself.
The sounds soon ceased. Xuan Yi, dragging the sole surviving captive, walked towards the carriage.
"Your Highness!"
Nan Shiying lifted the curtain, her gaze falling on the captive in Xuan Yi's hand. She leaped from the carriage and took the person from Xuan Yi.
The captive's jaw had been dislocated by Xuan Yi. Nan Shiying found a poison pill in his mouth.
Nan Shiying smiled and took out her needle bag.
The piercing screams startled the birds nesting in the trees. Nan Shiying's interrogation on the spot yielded significant results. Stripping away the useless chatter, she finally learned the name this organization of Miao疆 remnants had given themselves.
Chang Sheng Dao!
Yet, the name sounded familiar to Nan Shiying.
Had she heard it somewhere before?
Nan Shiying shoved the broken pill back into the assassin's mouth, tightly closing his teeth. Once bitten, the poison took effect within seconds, and the assassin died.
Xuan Yi leaped onto the carriage and drove them back.
They returned to the 왕府 near dusk. The mansion was brightly lit, and the gatekeepers, upon seeing the carriage, were nearly overcome with joy.
"Your Highness, you've finally returned!"
Lu Wan's voice was choked with tears. Her Highness had gone to the palace alone today and had been gone for so long. The Prince had already gone to the palace to demand her release. Realizing this, Lu Wan suddenly slapped her forehead, hastily saying, "Your Highness, the Prince has gone to the palace!"
"With the Demon Hunting Army!"
The Demon Hunting Army marched, charging straight into the city gates. The guards at the gate attempted to block them, but they now lay in beds at the medical hall. Nan Shiying hurried to the Imperial Palace. Under the moonlight, clad in pitch-black Xuan armor, the Demon Hunting Army stood five paces apart, completely surrounding the palace. The Commander of the Imperial Guard, along with a host of heavily armored guards, manned the palace gates. The atmosphere was heavy, the air seemingly frozen and viscous, making it suffocating. Even the cold wind seemed to hesitate, circling around as it passed.
The sound of the carriage was exceptionally clear in the solemn environment as the hooves drew closer.
Nan Shiying leaped from the carriage and shouted to the Commander of the Imperial Guard, "Please trouble the Commander to announce my arrival. Nan Shiying seeks an audience!"
The name Nan Shiying acted like a peculiar switch, and the heavy atmosphere instantly eased. The Commander of the Imperial Guard, upon seeing Nan Shiying, finally felt his suspended heart settle.
He quickly responded, "Your Highness, rest assured, I will go and announce your arrival!"
"You all guard the palace gates and wait for my return!" the Commander of the Imperial Guard instructed, then hurried into the palace.
The Deputy General of the Demon Hunting Army turned his head, his gaze falling on Nan Shiying, his expression unreadable. Xuan Yi stood half a step behind Nan Shiying and glanced at the Deputy General.
It was then that the Deputy General noticed Xuan Yi.
They recognized the Prince's Xuan Guards. They hadn't seen Xuan Yi by the Prince's side for some time and had assumed he was on a crucial mission. Now, it seemed he had been bestowed upon the Princess by the Prince.
So, this entire action was indeed because of the Princess?
Though they pondered this, not a single soldier of the Demon Hunting Army moved. Military orders were absolute. Their command was to surround the palace city, and this was not the time for salutes.
...
Jing Ren Palace.
Ji Jin Mo sat in his chair with great authority, his overwhelming killing intent surging out as if it had condensed into black mist. The blood-red hue reflected in the slightly upturned corners of his eyes, making anyone who met his gaze feel as if they were being dragged onto a battlefield, amidst scattered corpses and seas of blood.
The Imperial Guards' hands, gripping their weapons, began to slip. Sweat dripped from their palms down the hilts of their swords, the "pat pat" sound echoing in the tense hall. Even though the Imperial Guards had already surrounded Ji Jin Mo, both the Empress Dowager and Ji Hong, shielded behind them, and the surrounding Imperial Guards felt a profound sense of dread, their breaths growing heavy.
"Ji Jin Mo, how many times must I say it, the Princess left long ago!" the Empress Dowager shouted at Ji Jin Mo, her voice trembling at the end, clearly terrified, clutching her prayer beads.
If only she hadn't listened to Qin Momo and summoned Nan Shiying to the palace. Now, in cornering a tiger, she had inadvertently trapped herself within the alley.
Ji Hong held the Empress Dowager's hand, comforting her fear and unease. He raised his head, his gaze passing through the heavily armored Imperial Guards to look at Ji Jin Mo, his thoughts filled with what the Empress Dowager had told him earlier.
Ji Jin Mo must die.
"Imperial Uncle, I know you are worried about the Princess's safety, and thus your actions might be somewhat excessive. But this is no reason for you to storm the Imperial Palace and question the Empress Dowager. If it weren't for my consideration of your contributions over the years, even ordering your execution would be a form of leniency."
Ji Jin Mo's phoenix eyes flickered, the blood-red hue within them appearing and disappearing. Facing Ji Hong's impassioned reprimand, he let out a low laugh. He stood up and strode forward. With each step he took, the Imperial Guards before him retreated, until they had nowhere left to go.
"Do you know why this Prince has never forced his way to the throne?"
Ji Jin Mo stopped, gazing directly at Ji Hong, who was hiding behind the Imperial Guards. Ji Hong's face was slightly pale, but his back remained unbent, as he met Ji Jin Mo's murderous gaze. Anger, resentment, unwillingness, and shame mingled in those eyes, fixed upon Ji Jin Mo. If looks could kill, Ji Jin Mo would have been sliced into a thousand pieces by now.
"Because your imperial brother had only you as his bloodline!"
"And all of this is thanks to your mother, my imperial sister-in-law!"
"Imperial sister-in-law, do not use your tactics on this Prince. This Prince is not your imperial brother, and the Princess is not one of those imperial concubines. Today, if this Prince does not see the Princess, do not blame this Prince for disregarding kinship."
"Kinship?"
Ji Hong scoffed.
"Ji Jin Mo, you are merely looking for an excuse to force me to abdicate. Why speak such high-sounding words now? If our father were in heaven, he would surely hate himself for not strangling you at birth!" Ji Hong glared at Ji Jin Mo, his face contorted with rage. Veins bulged on his face, neck, and even the back of his hands, his agitation irrepressible.
At this moment, the last pretense between them was stripped away, the veil of veiled hypocrisy torn asunder, exposing their struggle for imperial power for all to see.