Chapter 71: Take refuge

"It's alright." Jin Prince Chao Yinxi gently patted the princess's cold hand in a soothing tone. His voice was low and steady, and no emotion could be heard.

Those two sharp gazes like hawks penetrated the shadow under the hood and fell accurately on Xie Wuqi's face.

His brows knitted ever so slightly, and then a tiny gesture moved silently.

"Clang."

The sound of the guards sheathing their swords was uniform.

Prince Jin did not look at Xie Wuqi again, nor did he make any comment on his rough act of breaking the branch.

He just naturally put his arm around the princess, turned slightly sideways, and was about to leave the small open space in another direction.

That gesture showed a complete disregard for the lowly and ill-behaved person in front of him.

The noble man has come! But he didn't notice me at all! He even disliked his presence!

No!

Don't miss it!

At this critical moment, Xie Wuqi didn't care about being rude or disrespectful. He took a big step forward and shouted with almost all his strength. His voice was dry and trembling with anxiety:

"Your Highness! I, Xie Wuqi, have something to report! It concerns Pei Ji, the Junior Minister of the Dali Temple!"

The moment the word "Pei Ji" came out of his mouth, the tall figure of King Jin, who was about to leave, suddenly stopped in place.

Even the light steps of Princess Bai Shiyin of Jin in his arms were forced to stop.

A very brief flash of surprise flashed across Bai Shiyin's eyes, and then turned into a stronger impatience. Her rosy lips moved slightly, but in the end she just moved closer to her husband and remained silent.

The King of Jin did not look back.

He just paused.

Xie Wuqi felt a chill running from his tailbone to his limbs and bones, and the hairs on his body stood on end.

He knew he was taking a gamble! A gamble on a chance so slim it almost didn't exist!

But he also knew that if he retreated at this moment, his life would be completely ruined and he would never have a chance to turn things around!

He almost used his hands and feet to roll and crawl a few steps until he was three steps behind King Jin before he suddenly stopped.

This position allows one to neither get too close nor offend the emperor, while ensuring that one's whispers can be clearly heard by the person above.

He plopped down on one knee in the cold snow, his forehead almost touching the fallen leaves. He raised his head, his gaze fixed on the dark gold Qilin pattern embroidered on the hem of his black cloak in front of him, and spoke in a very low and rapid voice:

"Your Highness! I have a long-standing grudge against that villain Pei Ji!" He took a breath and continued to lower his voice with all his strength, "He is definitely not as upright as the rumors say! The commotion between the Earl of Changning and his wife in front of the palace today is definitely not as simple as it seems! I suspect that it was all orchestrated by Pei Ji himself!"

He paused, as if to confirm the effect of his words.

Xie Wuqi made up his mind and threw out his last chip:

"Because Pei Ji already has someone in his heart, he doesn't even look down on Princess Liuyang!"

"What he wants is Miss Luo Zhaohan, the one I once arranged to marry with General Fuyuan's mansion!"

"Disobeying the imperial decree and refusing marriage is a grave crime punishable by the death of nine generations of his clan! Only by ruining his reputation and making the royal family ashamed to marry him can he escape the imperial decree of marriage. Only by being 'disgraced' can he have the opportunity to choose another lover!"

The last three words - "sweetheart" - were almost squeezed out by Xie Wuqi from between his teeth, filled with deep jealousy, resentment and the humiliation of having his love taken away from him.

Snow powder was lifted up by footsteps and swirled down in the dark plum forest.

Xie Wuqi hurriedly ran a few steps before suddenly stopping. He faced the shadowed open space, his chest heaving violently, his heart nearly bursting out of his throat, and the cold air he inhaled felt like a knife slicing through his lungs.

Done!

He suddenly turned around, looking into the thick night and the depths of plum blossom fragrance, the corners of his mouth pulled upwards uncontrollably, forming a twisted smile.

Prince Jin! He saw it! His words, like a poisoned arrow, accurately struck the most hidden fear in the heart of the almighty.

He did not reveal the strangeness of his "rebirth", but just cleverly pointed out Pei Ji's "premeditated plan", implying that the prince had also become a chess piece on someone else's chessboard. That was enough!

As long as the seed of suspicion is planted in the heart of Prince Jin, there will be a time in the future when this ambitious prince will take the initiative to look for him.

Xie Wuqi no longer hesitated, turned around, and deliberately made his steps light and steady, as if he really went to pick a plum blossom that he liked. He walked leisurely out of the plum forest along the way he came.

But the occasional glance at the shadows of the surrounding trees, with vigilance and anxiety, revealed his deep-seated anxiety to escape from this place.

…

Deep in the darkness, Luo Zhaohan almost buried himself in the shadow of the old plum tree's twisted branches.

The cold texture of the bark brought a real chill through the heavy palace dress.

She looked at Xie Wuqi's back as he ran a few steps in panic and then suddenly stopped, looked at his stiff and weird "pretended to be calm" steps, and looked at the last trace of smug grin on his face.

That smile, like an ice-cold hand, instantly took her breath away!

There is indeed someone in the dark!

When Xie Wuqi's figure completely disappeared at the bend of the Merlin Trail, Luo Zhaohan slipped out silently from his hiding place like a dormant cheetah.

Her footsteps were more cautious and light than before, stepping on the dead branches and snow, making a sound subtler than the wind, and she sneaked into the deepest part of Merlin step by step.

The sharp fragrance of plum blossoms in the air seemed to be infected by another heavier and colder breath.

The light from the palace lanterns ahead finally penetrated the sparse shadows, casting a halo on the small open space that was not very clear but enough to make out the outline.

The moment the two figures standing side by side among the dead branches and snow came into Luo Zhaohan's sight—

Her pupils suddenly contracted.

The majestic figure in the ink-black cloak, the slender figure in the silver fox fur cape—Chao Yinxi, Prince of Jin! Bai Shiyin, Princess of Jin!

How...how could it be them?

She clenched her fists tightly, and the stinging pain from her nails digging deep into the soft flesh of her palms could not suppress the cold shudder that swept through her body.

The so-called "noble man" that Xie Wuqi secretly met turned out to be this person! This seemingly gentle and elegant Prince Jin, who had little real power in the court and even had a relatively weak presence among the many princes?

impossible!

This thought exploded in Luo Zhaohan's mind like thunder.

Prince Jin Chao Yinxi had no power, no influence, and no powerful relatives to support him. He acted in a lukewarm and mediocre manner. In her last life's memories before her death, this prince seemed like a vague shadow, and had hardly left any deep mark in the ever-changing capital.

How could he be able to become Xie Wuqi's support? Not to mention...

A terrible thought suddenly invaded her mind like the thickest ink.

In her previous life, she was the real culprit behind the destruction of her Luo family and the bloodbath in Kyoto!

Could it be... it's actually him? !

impossible! ! !

As soon as this thought arose, Luo Zhaohan suppressed it with his tremendous willpower.

The Luo family was accused of treason and collaborating with the enemy. What a heinous crime! The interests involved, the conspiracy and calculations required, and especially the so-called "ironclad evidence" that would convince the emperor and the entire court, how could a rootless Prince of Jin easily fabricate it?!

Her eyes were fixed on the beautiful couple in the open space.

The next second after Xie Wuqi completely disappeared, the profile of Prince Jin Chao Yinxi suddenly showed extremely clear fluctuations.

A trace of suspicion spread like ripples, followed by a kind of astonishment at having a secret exposed.

His whole body stiffened suddenly, and he shook slightly.

This tiny, almost unnoticed movement, like a bolt of cold lightning, split the doubts in Luo Zhaohan's heart.

Xie Wuqi's words... stung the very core! He was right, and it was a big taboo!

Immediately afterwards, Luo Zhaohan saw that Prince Jin seemed to have finally broken free from that terrible inference, and he took a deep breath.

The movement was extremely small, but it was extremely clear under Luo Zhaohan's focused gaze.

"Your Highness..." Bai Shiyin, the Princess of Jin, who was clinging to him, clearly sensed her husband's sudden change of mood. She raised her face, which was as frightened as a swan but clearly terrified, and her voice suddenly rose with a barely perceptible tremor. "What's wrong with you? Why do you look so grim? That Xie Wuqi is just a vulgar man who talks nonsense! How can you believe his words? You... are you still thinking of going..."

She shook her head in panic, her eyes brimming with tears. "I beg you, humbly! This boy has evil intentions, and his words are untrustworthy! The matter of Linde Palace has been settled, why stir up trouble again? I beg you to stop interfering, okay?"

She pleaded almost in tears, her thin body trembling slightly with fear and worry.

Under the moonlight, that tearful look is enough to make anyone feel pity.

"Don't be afraid, Yinyin." King Jin's voice was low and soft, like the melting ice and snow. The cold and iron-blue color faded away completely in an instant, as if the loss of composure just now had never happened.

He turned slightly to the side, raised his hand very naturally, and used his fingertips to very gently wipe away the crystal tears that were about to fall from the corners of his wife's eyes.

"With this king here, why worry?"

He even stretched out his arms, completely holding the slender and trembling body under his thick black cloak, and using his body temperature to protect his petite wife tightly.

The silhouettes of the two people stood hugging each other against the backdrop of the cold moonlight and the snow covering the ground.

The cool fragrance of wintersweet floats in the air, as beautiful as a fairy couple in a painting walking out of the painting.

Luo Zhaohan stood in the shadows, but all the heat in his body was drained away in an instant, as if he had fallen into an icy cave.

The prospect of "taking refuge" was no longer just a possibility. The target of Xie Wuqi's flattery was crystal clear: Prince Jin Chao Yinxi!

He is Xie Wuqi's future supporter!

So, who was standing behind Xie Wuqi in that turbulent storm in his previous life?

Prince of Jin Chao Yinxi!

That prince who seems gentle, has no soldiers or power, and has never been at the center of trouble in his memory!

But if it was really him... the power and calculations hidden behind it completely overturned all her cognition!

In the previous life, the Luo family case shocked the entire court and implicated many. Prince Rui, Chao Yinlong, the Empress' son, was immensely powerful, commanding a large military force. He was also strongly supported by the Sun clan and established nobles, led by the Earl of Annan, making him unrivaled in his power.

But who could have imagined... the person who truly drove all of this would be this person right before our eyes?!

Luo Zhaohan only felt a piercing chill penetrating into his bones.

How deeply this King of Jin hides himself!

But there was an even greater mystery hanging over her.

Luo family!

Her Luo family has been loyal for generations. Her father, General Fuyuan, guarded the northern border and was a loyal and heroic family.

The crime of treason and collaborating with the enemy was finally condemned to death by the Emperor's personal order! My father cursed the heavens in the hall of the Ministry of Justice, unable to defend himself.

The four words "conclusive evidence" on the Dali Temple file pierced her soul so hard that it made every inch of it bleed before she died!

This evidence—where did it come from?

If the mastermind was the seemingly gentle and harmless King of Jin, how could he, a vassal king with no foundation, no power, and no relatives, do it?

How many secret spies could he have in his hands that could penetrate the northern border thousands of miles away? And how much power could he mobilize to forge documents, tokens, and witnesses that could deceive the world?

The strong fragrance of wintersweet still wafts into my nose, cold and suffocating.

The silver light on the snow reflected the moonlight, and it was so beautiful that it was chilling to the bone.

The figure standing still like an ice sculpture finally relaxed a little.

The soles of my shoes stuck to the dead leaves and snow covered with a thin layer of ice under my feet, and a slight tearing sound was heard.

Luo Zhaohan took a deep breath of the icy air that penetrated his lungs, and the cold shudder that penetrated deep into his bones was forcibly suppressed.

She raised her hand, her movements not smooth enough, her fingertips trembling slightly, as she brushed away the fine snow flakes that had accumulated on her shoulders for who knows how long.

Those eyes, like those tempered by cold springs and repeatedly washed by ice and snow, once again gathered a will as solid as a rock.

Behind Xie Wuqi was King Jin. This discovery was like a huge rock thrown into a deep pool, stirring up a whirlpool far beyond expectations.

The danger and fog ahead suddenly deepened, almost swallowing people up.

But the more this happened, the more she couldn't stop.

Go meet Sun Honglei!

This thought had never been as clear and firm as it was at that moment. That upstart who had risen rapidly in his previous life, becoming the wise king's right-hand man, and ultimately attaining immense power and influence!

He is about to step into this turbulent court, and she must seize this new and sharp power and use it for her own benefit.

Luo Zhaohan turned around and sank back into the shadow cast by the sparse plum branches.

We returned along the slightly messy snow path that had been trampled out by previous travelers, returning the way we came.

The snow crunched under my feet, and it was particularly clear in the quiet night.

The entrance to the wintersweet forest gradually opened wider, and the warm yellow light from the palace lanterns became brighter and brighter.

The subtle fragrance in the air was quietly diluted by an invisible clamor and liveliness. Ahead, the shadowy figures began to increase.

Luo Zhaohan paused slightly.

The entrance to the wintersweet forest in front is like a small stage under lights.

Groups of young men and women came here with great interest. They had obviously heard about the plum blossom scenery here and came out to relax and enjoy it after the dinner.

The sounds of talking, laughing, chasing and playing, and even the suppressed complaints of a woman came buzzing in, completely different from the dead silence in the deep forest before.

And at the edge of this slightly crowded and noisy crowd, under the thickest old plum tree, a figure standing like a boulder seemed out of place and extremely eye-catching.

It was Sun Honglei.

The tall figure was wrapped in a brand new black leather robe with gold patterns, like an iron tower embedded in the corner of this romantic place.

He did not join the crowd admiring the plum blossoms, nor did he even look at the well-dressed young men and women. He just crossed his arms, and his pair of copper-bell-like eyes, with a somewhat foolish yet extremely stubborn expression, stared at the only entrance leading to the depths of the plum blossom forest.

It seemed as if it was not a deep forest, but the entrance to a cave that was about to reveal a treasure!