Chapter 80

The Queen's eyes became serious, and the protective golden light that had just injured the Nascent Soul transformed into a golden phoenix that flew out of her body. It let out a long cry, raised its sharp claws, and grabbed the Nascent Soul fiercely.

"This pressure... is impossible!" The Nascent Soul struggled hard, barely avoiding the frontal attack of the sharp claws, but was hit by the wings of the golden phoenix that attacked from the side, and screamed on the spot.

"What's that sound?" The clear and melodious sound of a phoenix's cry echoed far from the palace. The captain of the guards patrolling nearby noticed something was wrong and immediately led his team to rush to the empress's bedroom using light skills: "Protect the emperor! There's an assassin!"

Guard Captain: Who is this idiot trying to assassinate her today? The empress's protective golden light, when fully unleashed, can cover most of the imperial city. Last time, the Mahayana cultivator who tried to hold the empress hostage as a puppet secretly attacked the golden light barrier for five years but was unable to break it. Who is this conceited fool trying to walk into this trap today?

"Ah! You ant!" The wound on the Nascent Soul was difficult to heal on its own. The Nascent Soul found that it was actually injured by the ant in its eyes. It went completely crazy: "I originally thought that this was a shell to be used in the future, so I didn't use much force. Now... die!" Anyway, all he needed was the identity of the queen. Even if the shell was broken, he could put it together and use it again!

"Ants? No wonder you failed to transcend the tribulation." The Queen held her sword horizontally in front of her and made a hand gesture: "The Emperor's order: Flying is prohibited within the palace!"

Snap! The Yuanying, madly charging forward with the power of thunder and lightning, suddenly paused and fell straight to the ground from mid-air, scorching several floor tiles. It seemed as if more cracks appeared on its body: "Ah! Damn ant! You..."

"You're lucky. I like my chambers and don't plan to move out just yet." The empress sheathed her sword, slinging it around her waist. She picked up the green lamp on the table beside her and pointed the wick at her Nascent Soul. With a hiss, the previously extinguished wick spontaneously ignited, the small candle flame flickering intelligently twice.

The Yuanying struggled on the floor, raising its head. Before it could react, it felt a sudden suction coming from the tiny candle flame, and was startled. It cursed loudly and struggled hard, but it was still unable to resist and turned into a wisp of green smoke. After being absorbed by the wick, it condensed into a mottled drop of wax, adorning the side of the wick.

"He is indeed a scumbag." The color of the soul-fragrant wax penetrates the heart, and this drop of wax tear is so black and mottled, I am afraid that I can't describe it in words.

The confrontation between the two men started suddenly and ended quickly. When the guards arrived, the assassin was no longer in the room. There were only palace maids and eunuchs lying on the ground, and the empress holding a lamp and observing carefully in the room.

"I am late in coming to your rescue. Please forgive me, Your Majesty!"

"The enemy this time is very strong. Your presence will only hinder us." The Queen placed the lamp back on the table. "Wake up everyone on the ground. Give those who can't be woken a bowl of soothing soup. Search the entire city to see if the assassin has any accomplices. Make sure everyone else is safe, especially the Queen Mother."

"yes!"

After everyone in the room woke up and returned to their posts, the guards left the Queen's bedroom. Some of them continued to patrol outside, while the others split into small teams and went to various palaces to check the situation.

After the maid cleaned up the floor and closed the door, Yan Zi, the secret guard who was guarding the beam, jumped down and knelt before the empress to apologize: "Your Majesty, I am incompetent."

"That's a Mahayana cultivator. Even if there's only one Nascent Soul left, you can't deal with him." The Queen hung the Imperial Sword back on the wall. "Inform An Yi and An Er to check the dragon veins for any accidents. Anyone found violating the dragon veins will be killed without mercy. The rest of you, take the soul lamps and search the entire city. At the same time, investigate how this Nascent Soul got in. Anyone who aids and abets the evil or knows about it but doesn't report it will be executed immediately and their entire clan will be exiled. The identity of the Nascent Soul that attempted to take over another body will be discovered and their entire clan will be exiled to prevent it from resurfacing."

There are always those who, after cultivating into immortals, feel that they are second only to Heaven and never take mortals seriously. What do they think the Human Emperor is? He who wins the hearts of the people is blessed by Heaven and Earth. As long as the Imperial Temple remains intact and the people's hearts remain strong, the Human Emperor will not fall, and neither will the human race!

"As you command." Yan Zi accepted the order and said, "Your Majesty, I have one more thing to report."

"explain."

"An Shiliu just sent a message via crow. Several people have recently arrived in the city, establishing connections with Elder Qiu. They plan to use their identities as commoners to rally support for Elder Qiu during the next court session and ask His Majesty to grant amnesty to the entire nation."

"Again?" The Queen sat at the table, picking up her teacup and then putting it down again. "What's the reason this time? Is there something wrong with these people, or is there something wrong with the person they want to sue?"

Old Qiu, let's call him a traitor, but his actions always yield results that surpass those of loyal ministers. Take the last time, for example, when someone reported him for putting a foreigner in a box and bringing him to the palace to assassinate someone. He had brought the box, and the foreigner was indeed inside, armed with a special weapon, ready to attack. Even the magnet at the door couldn't detect it.

However, when he was about to open the box, Mr. Qiu felt his pocket and said, "Oh no, the key is gone!"

Fearing his family would discover the truth, Mr. Qiu chose a box made of very sturdy material, difficult to break with force. It also had a special lock with only one key, so even an experienced locksmith would have spent a long time trying to pry it open. However, this box had a fatal flaw: it had no ventilation holes. By the time Mr. Qiu finally found the key and opened the box, the foreigners inside had already passed out from lack of oxygen. The guards carried them away as easily as if they were hauling sacks.

Minister of Revenue: It is hard to say whether this old fellow did it on purpose or unintentionally, but the ransom sent by foreign countries is really a lot. The Ministry of Revenue has not been embarrassed to cry poor to Your Majesty for half a year.

Because throughout the whole process, Qiu Lao was not in a hurry, and after getting the key, he handed it directly to the guards to deal with. It seems not right to directly call him a traitor. But if I say that Qiu Lao is a loyal minister... I feel a pang of conscience.

Leaving aside the drinking, whoring, and gambling, this old man's guest room was truly bustling with activity, its inhabitants so complex that he could be jailed ten times a day without injustice. But he hadn't done anything yet, and those suspicious individuals hadn't yet begun their actions, leaving their motives in doubt. For the time being, the empress could only dispatch secret guards to keep a constant watch on his courtyard, ready to eliminate any potential instability.

The secret guards once asked whether they should deal with Old Qiu as well, but the empress felt that it would be quite useful to keep him around, because, whether it was due to his special physique or luck, he would find someone to file a complaint with the empress every once in a while.

Queen: Just treat him as the drum in the story of beating the drum to redress grievances.

"Your Majesty, we haven't found any problems with their identities yet, but they do have relatives who have been sentenced to death and will be executed soon."

"Send someone to investigate again. If there's something fishy going on, give them a chance to overturn the verdict." The Queen put down her teacup and looked out the window. If there's no injustice, then when Elder Qiu makes his suggestion, we can demote him. Banishing him from the capital isn't necessary. Someone with a physique that attracts all sorts of strange people and events is quite rare. It's safer to keep him under our watchful eyes.

It's true, his courtyard is full of interesting things. One-third of the world's rebels are in his courtyard. He usually pretends to be a decent person, afraid that others will see through his rebel identity. Little do they know that the people he encounters every day are basically rebels too. They are basically acting for each other.

The next day, without attending court, the empress spent her time in her study reviewing memorials and meeting with court officials. Guards had patrolled the city all night and discovered a damaged statue in the storage room. Several off-duty palace maids and eunuchs had collapsed in the grass by the roadside near the palace. Having been possessed by a spirit and having spent half the night freezing outside, they woke up with fevers and were groggy.

In order to prevent other people from contracting the disease, the head aunt reported to the empress and sent these people home to recuperate.

The Queen Mother and other concubines in the palace did not encounter anything unusual. When they learned that the Queen had been assassinated, several concubines who happened to be staying overnight in the imperial city came to visit, but were coaxed and sent away by the Queen.

The Empress still has no one to carry on her family, and the concubines in the harem are not her wives, but rather her close friends. This status is a way for these friends to refuse arranged marriages by their families. In exchange, they occasionally visit the palace to chat with the Empress Dowager. Several current princes and princesses, including the most favored Princess Jinyang, are not the Empress's children.

By the time the news of the Soul-Suppressing Artifact auction reached the Empress, she had already finished most of her affairs. At that moment, the secret guards brought news from the Qiu Mansion.

The young men who had urged Elder Qiu to suggest the Empress grant a general amnesty were apprehended by the secret guards last night and presented the files and other documents they had brought with them. It was said that before the secret guards left, they knelt and kowtowed, tears streaming down their faces, weeping and laughing at the same time, almost like madmen.

"Another case of the emperor being far away?" The empress threw the file she had finished reading on the table: "What a case of the emperor being far away!" It has been a long time since I last made an incognito visit. It is time to call Zhaoping and the others back to supervise the country.

Bei Qiao was unaware of all that was happening inside and outside the palace. In a world without the internet, she was just a commoner with a small fortune, without many sources of information.

After driving back to the inn, Bei Qiao packed up the things she had exchanged that morning. In the afternoon, after a good nap, she rode out of the city, preparing to travel further north. She would return to the capital before dark to stay overnight and then set off directly for Yuanshan Village the next day.

In the afternoon, Bei Qiao left the city from the north gate and headed north. He did not see any other cities or villages, but only a road trampled by countless people, a series of rolling hills, and winding buildings on the hills that resembled the Great Wall.