Chapter 530 The Emperor Falls from Grace

"Your Majesty, oh my God, leave quickly! Leave quickly! Commander Wu is dead, the east city wall has been breached, Mengjin is about to fall!!!"

The eunuch beside the emperor scrambled in from outside and screamed at the emperor, his shrill voice piercing the emperor's eardrums.

The Duke of Jin sat leisurely in his tent, sipping tea. The men who rushed in were the King of Chu. Their family was related to the Chu Queen's maternal family, so they wouldn't be fatal.

The emperor and the man surnamed Qi next to him were unaware of the situation, especially the man surnamed Qi, whose repeated attempts to trip up his eldest son were known throughout the court and the country. His mistreatment of the legitimate son born to his deceased wife had made him the laughingstock of the people in the capital.

The eldest son of the family was raised by his aunt and uncle. After obtaining the title of heir, he repeatedly made great achievements on the frontier. I don't know what's wrong with the Qi family.

Instead of supporting her perfectly good eldest son, she insisted on promoting that纨绔 (wan ku, a spoiled brat) in the mansion to the position of power. He was neither good at literature nor martial arts, and was a lawless troublemaker spoiled by his own mother.

The Crown Prince of Qi has now been sent back to Taiyuan by the King of Chu to defend the city. This time, the attacking force is the King of Chu and his generals. Perhaps the Crown Prince of Qi cannot take action against the Duke of Qi due to ethical and filial piety reasons.

The King of Chu probably didn't have so many concerns. This man surnamed Qi was never good to Qi Lao Er, who was also the child he had raised himself. This man was also promising, but he was stuck with a useless father. He might just get angry and kill the man surnamed Qi.

The emperor was filled with mixed emotions. He quickly walked out of the tent, looked up at the approaching sounds of battle, and sighed softly. In the end, the Prince of Xiang was unable to send troops to conquer Taiyuan within a certain time.

The emperor stood there, somewhat dazed, while the Duke of Qi beside him nudged him, saying, "Your Majesty, I urge you to leave immediately, for it will be too late if you delay any longer."

The emperor turned to look at the Duke of Qi with a somewhat subtle expression: "I understand."

After saying that, he turned to the Duke of Qi and said, "Then the Duke should come with me."

When the Duke of Qi heard the emperor say this, he hesitated. The current situation was extremely unfavorable to the emperor, and he, the King of Chu, and his eldest son had always had disagreements.

If he were to follow the emperor, he would sever the last shred of affection between himself and the King of Chu, and if he were caught, he would not escape the fate of being stripped of his title and beheaded.

The Duke of Qi slowly began to have his own little scheme. Listening to what the emperor said to him, he silently calculated that if he captured the emperor and presented him to the King of Chu, his eldest son and the King of Chu would probably not want to kill him. He could even consider it a meritorious deed, and perhaps he wouldn't even have to lose his title.

The Duke of Qi's expression slowly became subtle. He turned to look at the Duke of Jin, who was calmly sitting in his tent drinking tea: "Duke of Jin? Let's go together. The King of Chu is ruthless. If you stay here, I'm afraid..."

Before he could finish speaking, the Duke of Jin interrupted him: "No need for the Duke of Qi to worry, Your Majesty. There is no one in the tent now. I am willing to take over the command to buy Your Majesty time to escape. Please grant my request."

After speaking, the Duke of Jin put down his teacup, bowed to the emperor, and said, "May Your Majesty have a safe journey..."

The Emperor glanced at the Duke of Jin and nodded slightly, saying, "I have heard that the Duke of Jin's family is related to the Princess Consort of Chu. I presume that if the Duke stays here, the Prince of Chu will not be so ruthless as to take the life of his own relative. Then I will trouble the Duke."

As the emperor was speaking, he prepared to mount his horse. Just then, the Duke of Qi, who was standing beside the emperor, suddenly drew the sword from the emperor's bodyguard and held it to the emperor's neck.

"Your Majesty, please do not leave!"

A ruthless glint flashed in the Duke of Qi's eyes as he gripped the blade tightly against the emperor's neck. The emperor straightened his back and stood beside the Duke of Qi, letting out a soft chuckle.

The next moment, the Duke of Qi felt a dagger pierce through his chest. He turned his head in disbelief to look at the little eunuch beside the emperor, his eyes wide open, seemingly incredulous.

The emperor gently pushed away the Duke of Qi's arm around his neck, mounted his horse, and looked at the Duke of Qi, who was lying on the ground, seemingly lifeless: "You have ambition, but unfortunately you've used it in the wrong place."

After saying this, he sighed and prepared to ride away. Just as the horse started to trot, an arrow flew past behind him and whizzed past, striking the emperor in the shoulder.

The emperor lost his balance and fell off his horse with a thud. When he turned around, he saw Lin Changning drawing his bow and shooting an arrow, and Li Mingxiu beside Lin Changning.

Seeing that the arrow had hit someone, Lin Changning's phoenix eyes flashed with a hint of calm. He immediately waved his hand, signaling the soldiers on both sides to surround the people.

The cavalry behind them circled out from both sides, instantly forming an encirclement that surrounded the emperor and his men in the center.

Li Mingxiu and Lin Changning slowly rode their horses to the side of the Emperor and the Duke of Qi. When they saw the Duke of Qi looking up at the gray sky with blood seeping from his body, Lin Changning frowned.

Isn't this Qi Erge's biological father? Why does he look like he's about to die?

Li Mingxiu naturally recognized him, but he only glanced at him briefly before shifting his gaze to the emperor.

"Your Majesty, it has been many years since we last met. How is Your Majesty's health?"

The emperor, who was squatting on the ground, pale with pain and sweating profusely, almost laughed in anger when he heard this. He had been wounded by arrows shot by Li Mingxiu and the people around him, and they were asking him if he was in good health.

The emperor, enduring the pain, slowly stood up with the help of the eunuchs and guards beside him. He looked up at Li Mingxiu, who was standing high above him, and said, "I am fine. But cousin, I heard that your sister was recently assassinated? I wonder if she is alright now?"

Li Mingxiu slowly clenched his fist. The emperor meant that A-Shu and his mother had been assassinated, and he was probably involved in it.

"Ah Shu is naturally very good."

A wicked glint flashed in the emperor's eyes as he looked up at Li Mingxiu and chuckled softly, "I don't think so. The Ji family poisoned your sister two years ago. I'm afraid she won't live a long life!"

Li Mingxiu's expression changed, and he quickly dismounted, grabbed his knife, and strode towards the emperor, seemingly enraged and ready to kill him with a single blow. Just as Li Mingxiu was about to approach the emperor with his knife, Lin Changning's expression changed.

He dismounted and quickly grabbed Li Mingxiu. Li Mingxiu, somewhat confused, turned to look at Lin Changning: "Little Six! Why are you pulling me? I'll chop him down!!!"

Lin Changning frowned as he looked at the seemingly inconspicuous eunuch beside the emperor. Just now, when his elder brother approached the emperor, this eunuch made a barely perceptible movement in his sleeve, and half of his body silently blocked the emperor's way.

With his head bowed, it was impossible to tell what the little eunuch was thinking, but Lin Changning suddenly felt a burning sensation between his brows. Realizing that the little eunuch might be dangerous, Lin Changning quickly grabbed Li Mingxiu.

“Brother, when you dismounted just now, the little eunuch’s sleeve moved. I had a feeling that this person was dangerous. Don’t let your guard down.”