Chapter 53: Fight to the Death

Shen Changhe lowered his eyes, tightly grasping the token in his hand, with struggle and hesitation in his eyes.

By dispatching troops to surround the Second Prince's residence, An An could naturally be rescued, but what would happen to the Fourth Prince? An An is just one person, but behind him are half of the official families, countless lives and futures.

A person walking on the edge of a knife, if he makes a wrong step, everything will be ruined. He cannot be too selfish!

His five fingers slowly curled together, the backs of his fingers turned pale blue, and he finally handed the token to Li Huaiyan, "Keep it for the Fourth Prince."

Li Huaiyan glanced at him, took it silently, and put it away carefully.

Lin Yurou watched in silence, thinking that her eldest brother's guess was indeed correct. The Fourth Prince's love for An An was incomparable to ordinary love.

Fortunately, she didn't find the wrong person.

She raised her eyes to look at Shen Changhe, pursed her lips, and spoke softly, "You go, and be sure to pay attention to safety. I will go to the Shen Mansion to inform Lord Shen, my father, and the elders of the family, and ask them to go to the palace to meet the emperor immediately."

It is not difficult to break into the Second Prince's mansion, but the difficult part is how to end it and get away safely.

Shen Changhe tilted his head and looked at the beautiful woman in front of him. She was the wife his mother had arranged for him to marry. Before today, he didn't even know what she looked like.

"Ms. Lin, thank you very much today." He bowed to her with a sincere tone.

Lin Yurou smiled softly, with a hint of shyness on her face, "This is what I should do."

From now on, we are a family. Only by supporting each other and being united against external things can we live a good life. Since we are engaged to the Shen family, we are members of the Shen family.

Unconditional help.

"Don't worry, my father works in the Imperial Academy and is a civil servant. He has many students under him who can all be helpful. Although I can't help you much, I can still help you clean up the mess."

Shen Changhe pursed his thin lips tightly and looked deeply at the girl in front of him. He seemed to have no idea what else to say except thank you.

Lin Yurou pushed him and said, "Go quickly. I'll...wait for you to come back safely."

Tomorrow is the day they will propose marriage.

If everything goes well, there won't be any delay.

Shen Changhe paused, then finally nodded, kissed Lin Yurou, and walked towards the Second Prince's Mansion.

Li Huaiyan sighed, "Okay, I have to go back and get some help."

After saying that, he jumped on his horse and galloped towards the direction of Yongning Marquis' Mansion.

Lin Yurou always paid attention to the demeanor of a noble lady, but today she made an exception again and again. She took off the hairpin that was swinging back and forth on her head and threw it to the maid, then climbed onto the carriage without caring about her image, "Hurry, let's go to the Shen Mansion first."

The maid suddenly remembered something and asked in a low voice, "Miss, why don't you go to the Duan Mansion to inform them? The two girls of the Duan family are also there. Mr. Duan is of high status, so maybe he can be of some help?"

"No need." Lin Yurou's face was serious and her eyes were full of anxiety.

The fact that the Duan family could raise a girl as pedantic as the second Miss Duan shows that their obsession with reputation is deeply rooted. The only person who can have a say, Old Man Duan, is still lying on the hospital bed.

Even if the women of the Duan Mansion are notified, it won't matter whether they can help or not. If they become an obstacle, it will be more trouble than gain.

After all, one cannot hold much hope for an elder who can teach a girl in the family that her reputation is more precious than her life.

——

Xiao Yuan was followed by Qing Feng and fought his way into the garden of the Second Prince's Mansion. Wherever he passed, people were lying on the ground in all directions. The servants of the Prince's Mansion retreated again and again, looking at the noble man with a face like a demon in horror.

The servants and maids were trembling with fear and no one dared to step forward.

The frightened soldier stared at the cold sword in Xiao Yuan's hand, feeling a chill down his spine.

Not to mention that they couldn't defeat him, even if they could, they wouldn't dare to be ruthless to the Fourth Prince.

"Where is Xiao Ze?" Xiao Yuan turned his wrist and put the tip of the knife against the neck of a palace soldier.

"I...I don't know." The soldier trembled with fear and moved his butt backwards.

Xiao Yuan narrowed his eyes, exerted force mercilessly, and thrust the tip of the knife into the man's throat.

The remaining people were so frightened that their hearts were in their throats. They looked at Xiao Yuan's bloody knife in horror, their pupils dilated, and their legs went weak.

Xiao Yuan had no expression on his face. He continued to walk forward. His arm was like the pen of the King of Hell, pointing at a person on the Book of Life and Death. "Where is Xiao Ze?"

The man who was pointed at felt his legs go limp and he knelt on the ground. "Reply...Reply to the Fourth Prince, my Second Prince is...in the study room in the waterside pavilion."

"lead the way."

"Yes." He stood up tremblingly, trying to keep as much distance as possible from Xiao Yuan, and walked towards the water pavilion in the backyard with light steps.

The servants in the Second Prince's Mansion witnessed the Fourth Prince killing someone with their own eyes. Now they all huddled aside obediently, and no one dared to step forward.

"That...that is it." When they were still some distance away from the water pavilion, the servant stopped and said to Xiao Yuan.

Perhaps out of fright, he stepped on something and stumbled for a moment, then quickly stood up again.

Further ahead was the lake. Xiao Yuan's gaze was fixed on the side rooms in the water pavilion, then slowly moved, scanning every corner of the water pavilion.

"Master, there are quite a few secret guards." Qingfeng held the knife vigilantly, guarding Xiao Yuan solemnly and nervously.

He advised in a low voice, "Master, why don't you wait a little while? Qing'an and Master Shen have already gone to call for help. It's not worthwhile to take action now."

Now that they are standing on the Second Prince's territory, the number of people is a major disadvantage. Taking action without knowing the opponent's strength is tantamount to seeking death.

If the master makes a move first, the second prince can completely retaliate by claiming that the master is doing something bad to him, and the master's life will be in his hands.

"Master." Qingfeng was afraid that Xiao Yuan would not be able to bear it any longer, so he continued to persuade him, "The Second Prince hated you to the core because of the refugee incident. You must not..."

"Shut up." Xiao Yuan scolded him coldly, narrowing his eyes and staring at the place where the soldiers in front of him were standing.

His face suddenly turned gloomy and ugly, and the coldness around him made people feel cold all over.

Qingfeng followed his line of sight and was only vaguely dazzled by something. In the afterglow, the object emitted a faint light that was somewhat dazzling.

Xiao Yuan watched, then suddenly walked over.

The soldier swallowed his saliva, stepped back involuntarily, staggered and crawled away, and fell into the lake in panic.

Xiao Yuan did not try to catch him, but stood where he had just stood.

He suddenly bent down and picked up the thing that was stepped into the mud. He used a handkerchief to wipe off the mud bit by bit, revealing its original appearance.

The red gold pearl hairpin is exquisitely crafted, especially the tail of the hairpin which is polished to an unusually sharp point. If it is inserted into a person's throat, it will definitely kill the person instantly.

He had seen this hairpin before. At the palace banquet when they first met, she used it to cut her palm and refused the marriage proposal.

Xiao Yuan's face was instantly covered with frost. His bony palm slowly tightened the hairpin, which pierced his palm and blood dripped.

Qingfeng's temples were throbbing. He opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it again. He hunched his body slightly, squinted his eyes and looked around, with the knife in his hand ready to strike.

He still had hope that his master would listen to his advice, but now, as soon as Miss Shen's hairpin appeared, he knew that it was useless to say anything and it was impossible to settle the matter peacefully today.

The master will not give up unless the Second Prince's mansion is overturned. He must fight to the death!

really.

Xiao Yuan remained silent and said nothing. He just slowly put the hairpin into his chest, tapped it lightly with his finger, then raised his head and slowly glanced around.

The next moment, he suddenly rose from the ground and headed towards the nearest room.

At the same time, several black shadows fell down and blocked the way of the two.

The leading man wanted to say something, but Xiao Yuan and Qing Feng didn't give him a chance. The swords were swung quickly in their hands with fierce moves, aiming straight at the vital points.

——

There were flashes of swords and sabers outside the pavilion, but the room was filled with fragrance, warmth and sweetness.

An unknown fragrance was rising in the room, making people's throats itch.

Shen Anan glanced at Duan Yingying who was huddled in the corner, her eyelids twitched, and she vomited in her heart.

If the situation did not allow it, she really wanted to open her brain to see how it was formed and why it became so conservative.

Duan Mengmeng, who was humiliated, was not so polite and almost cursed at Duan Yingying.

Duan Yingying looked unhappy, but she did not argue. She only said firmly from time to time, "This is the Duan family's ancestral precept, and no one is exempt from it."

In fact, she had never expected this result, or rather, she had never thought that the second prince would be so bold.

Shen Anan leaned against the window frame without saying a word, impatient to pay attention to the two sisters.

Who can tell whether it was because he didn't expect it, or because he was resentful, or whether he did it on purpose?

She was thinking about how to deal with Xiao Ze at night when she suddenly heard the sound of weapons clashing outside the yard.

She suddenly sat up straight and put her ear to the window frame, trying to discern whether there was a familiar voice, or whether it was someone coming to rescue them.

But he could break into the Second Prince's Mansion without permission, and in such a rough way, and he felt that it should be impossible to do it with Shen Duan's second residence.

Of course, it is even more impossible for the Duan family to risk everything for a girl like that.

Duan Mengmeng also came over immediately. She peeked through the crack in the door, and her gray eyes became brighter and brighter.

"It's the Fourth Prince. It's the Fourth Prince who came to save me."

The panic in her eyes slowly subsided and she shed tears of excitement.

She knew that her senior brother was not completely without feelings for her. He could break into the Second Prince's mansion for her, so how could he not love her?

He was just busy with government affairs and was devoted to clearing up the injustice for Concubine Shu, so he had no time for personal love.

Shen Anan relaxed and leaned back, the hope in his eyes slowly fading away until there was no ripple at all, like a pool of stagnant water.

She glanced at Duan Mengmeng's excited and happy face, then looked away after a while, lowered her head and stared at the ground, wondering what she was thinking.

The person coming is Xiao Yuan!

The hope in her heart was shattered in an instant. While thinking about how to escape from the chaos, her mind involuntarily emerged with her previous life.

At this critical juncture, he dared to break into the Second Prince's Mansion alone for her and fight to the death. It turned out that he loved Duan Mengmeng so much.

It seems that it was indeed her fault in the previous life. She broke up the couple and prevented them from getting married. It was not unfair that she ended up like that.

Duan Mengmeng was overjoyed and wanted to call Xiao Yuan to tell him that she was here.

She opened her lips, but was horrified to find that she could not make any sound. The sound that she managed to squeeze out was broken like a broken bellows and could not be pieced together at all, nor could it be heard outside the room.

She covered her throat in fear, making "ah ah ah" sounds, waving her hands around in anxiety and kicking the door hard with her feet.

Duan Yingying's eyes moved, and a hint of complexity seemed to flash across her clear and innocent eyes. Her gaze fixed on Duan Mengmeng had no clear meaning.

Shen Anan was too lazy to think about the undercurrents between the Duan sisters.

She listened attentively to the noise outside.

He thought that if Xiao Yuan was serious, the secret guards in the Fourth Prince's mansion should be more than enough to deal with the Second Prince.

She had seen how powerful those people were in her previous life.

She frowned slightly. Even if he didn't save her, if she was saved because of him, should she also accept this favor? And how could she repay him to make peace with the grudge?

Shen Anan's thoughts drifted away, and he immediately pulled them back and began to look for sharp objects in the house, trying to pry open the window frame.

In the water pavilion, one more person joined the two who were struggling, slightly turning the originally disadvantageous situation around.

Xiao Yuan glanced at Shen Changhe and his face immediately darkened. "What are you doing here? Where are the soldiers I asked you to mobilize?"

Shen Changhe swung his sword, deflecting an attack from a secret guard, and said, "It's my sister who needs to be saved, how can I stay out of it and let the Fourth Prince do it alone."

How can the Shen family be worth the thousands of lives he left behind!

Xiao Yuan glanced at Shen Changhe with cold eyes.

He used his own ideas?

He frowned, feeling heavy-hearted. To rescue the people quickly, a head-on attack was the best way. If it was just a confrontation between the secret guards of the two mansions, Shen An'an's safety would be Xiao Ze's weak spot to contain him.

He was not afraid of anything else, but he was worried that the longer he delayed, the more dangerous the woman would become.

Qingfeng, who was standing by, breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that no troops were being mobilized. As long as the emperor was not offended, it would at most be an internal conflict among brothers and would not rise to the level of rebellion.

Now, this is the best outcome for the master.

"Be careful. If you can't stop it, get out." Xiao Yuan's voice was particularly cold.

Shen Changhe took the time to look at Xiao Yuan. It was hard to tell what the look in his eyes meant. Could it be that he was concerned about him?

He frowned, feeling that the Fourth Prince was a little strange today. Based on his past understanding, he didn't think Xiao Yuan was a kind person who would sacrifice himself and help others.

Being able to help was a rare miracle that only happens once in ten years, not to mention that the person he saved was his own sister.

"Don't worry, Fourth Prince."

He is the one who should be careful.

Shen Changhe had been protecting Xiao Yuan from behind, and Xiao Yuan also helped intentionally or unintentionally, clearing away any dangers around him and trying to prevent him from getting hurt.

It was like protecting the woman he loved, which made Shen Changhe feel uncomfortable and cold sweat crawled up his back.

During this extraordinary period, neither of them said anything and focused on the battle.

Due to the large number of secret guards, the three of them did not have the upper hand.

As a cluster of fireworks suddenly exploded in the distant sky, the secret guards of the Second Prince's Mansion paused for a moment, looked up, and then engaged in a fierce fight, attacking faster and more brutally than before.

After several battles, everyone under the Second Prince knew what the fireworks represented.

Once the Fourth Prince's secret guards swarmed in as soon as he gave the signal to summon them, they would be no match for him.