Chapter 181

"I underestimated the Fourth Prince; he turns out to be both brave and resourceful." She finished writing with one stroke before placing the small wolf-hair brush on the side of the desk.

"I've come today, only for you." When Yan Qizhen raised his head, the burning gaze in his eyes seemed to want to devour the woman opposite him. His heart had long been tormented by her, even though he knew she was merely toying with him...

But he still came, didn't he?

"Father has already issued a decree to hold you accountable. You suffered this calamity because of me, Aning. There are too many grudges between us that cannot be settled."

"Bai Chuning's matter was my own personal affair, but now it is beyond my control."

Yan Qizhen paused, then revealed his purpose for the day: "A'ning, Father will not let you off the hook. Come with me to the Northern Border."

“After arriving in the North…” He lowered his eyes and took a few steps toward the desk.

"Whether you stay or leave is up to you."

With a squeak.

It seemed that the small window inside the hall had been touched by the fierce winter wind and had secretly opened a crack.

"Fourth Prince." Ying Ning adjusted her robes. The collar of her robes was lined with a strip of soft white mink fur, and the diamond pattern on the hem swayed slightly as she walked, almost mesmerizing.

She didn't dress up today; instead, she put a diamond-shaped dot on her forehead, and her expression looked somewhat tired.

The understated elegance, combined with her features, is captivating.

Yan Qizhen's nose seemed to be tinged with the scent of pirimica again, and his eyes gradually became deep and dark, the red mole on his earlobe resembling a drop of blood.

He heard Yingning say, "You have hurt A-Chu so badly, yet you still dare to dream that I will go to the Northern Border with you?"

"Your Highness, please take care of yourself first."

Upon hearing this, Yan Qizhen chuckled, but his voice was full of helplessness: "A-Ning, I don't ask for anything anymore."

The throne...

He was destined to be apart from her.

His past actions of hurting Bai Chuning completely severed his connection with her.

At this moment, all he wanted was to take her away from the palace.

Once they reach the North, he won't stop her from going wherever she wants.

His final delusional wish...

All I wanted was for her safety.

“There will be some disturbance in the palace tonight. At that time, most of the Imperial Guards stationed outside Lingyun Palace will temporarily leave. I will send someone to pick you up then.” Yan Qizhen lowered his palace hat to cover a hint of spring.

"I will also give you Bai Chuning's antidote."

“A-Ning.”

"You shouldn't have to suffer like this because of me."

He gently pushed open the palace gate, and turned to look at Yingning one last time: "Even though the past is set in stone, it is all irreversible now."

"But I don't want to make the same mistake again."

Yan Qizhen turned around, forcing himself to look away from Ying Ning, but he still felt a lump in his throat. He looked up at the desolate scene in Lingyun Palace.

He took a step and stepped out.

*

As night fell, the lights of Qiankun Palace almost engulfed the entire palace.

"All of you, die!" The emperor's furious roar almost echoed through the sky, terrifying the palace servants who immediately prostrated themselves on the ground.

"Your Majesty, spare my life!"

"Spare me!!"

......

Cries for mercy echoed incessantly throughout the palace, hoping to escape calamity under the emperor's might.

The emperor seemed to be suppressing his pain, then a cup of tea flew out from behind the curtain, followed by a sinister voice: "Li He."

Li He had witnessed this scene countless times, and at this moment he instantly understood the emperor's meaning. He then beckoned to the guards in the hall to pull these people out.

These unlucky guys...

A newly arrived palace maid accidentally lifted the curtain while serving His Majesty, briefly revealing the face of the "Son of Heaven"...

Naturally, they were doomed to die.

"Your Majesty...this servant truly did not see it!"

"Your Majesty...this servant saw nothing! Please spare this servant!!"

"Spare me! Your Majesty, spare me!"

......

A series of wails rang in Li He's ears, and eventually, he felt his heart gradually become numb.

It's a pity that their precious lives...

They were about to die in this palace.

Li He suddenly thought of...

Serving a ruler is like serving a tiger. If I can't find a way out, knowing too many secrets, I probably won't survive more than a few days by His Majesty's side.

"Liu Yun greets Your Majesty." A figure walked lightly past the guards who were dragging people away.

Li He immediately stepped aside. He was terrified of Liu Yun. It was one thing to be favored by the Emperor, but she was also ruthless. He had heard that those who offended her were almost all killed without a trace.

Li He saw Liu Yun brazenly walk behind the curtain, bow, and say a few words to His Majesty; from his position, he could only hear a few words.

"Fourth Prince...as expected..."

"Killing two birds with one stone..."

"That princess from the Western Regions... cannot be allowed to live."

...

Upon hearing this, the emperor chuckled, his voice chillingly eerie: "Liu Yun... this matter is entirely entrusted to you."

"That unfilial son...I will make him wish he were dead!"

Liu Yun agreed and then took out a jar from his bosom: "Your Majesty, this is today's dose of pills."

The Emperor of the Min Dynasty took the pill and swallowed it immediately, only then did he feel that his energy had been replenished: "You must send me the Hundred-Ingredient Pills you have refined regularly."

"Yes," Liu Yun replied.

Li He, listening from the side, felt somewhat uncomfortable...

This Hundred-Ingredient Pill... it sounds so...

Bai Chong Dan (a traditional Chinese medicine)?

*

That night.

"Fire!!"

"The Qiankun Palace is on fire!!!"

"Quickly call the Imperial Guards! Go now! Go now!!" The palace servants running from the direction of Qiankun Palace shouted in a panic.

"What are you still standing there for?!"

"Hurry and save the emperor!!" The one who said this was an older eunuch. He hurriedly called to the people beside him to take buckets of water and run to the Qiankun Palace.

But then a thin figure ran in the opposite direction. The old eunuch immediately tried to call out to the figure, "Oh dear, who is this blind fool!"

...

Yan Qizhen stopped in front of the deserted palace. Everyone in the palace was running towards the Qiankun Hall. The palace where he lived in his childhood was particularly deserted. There was not a single person around the palace at this time.

He gently pushed open the palace gate. The dilapidated gate still seemed to retain some of its former glory, and a lot of dust fell as the gate was opened.

The three characters "Mingchen Palace" can still be clearly seen on the plaque above the palace, written in a vigorous and elegant style.

*

Most of the Imperial Guards outside Lingyun Palace seemed to have rushed over due to the sudden commotion in Qiankun Hall, leaving only two people stationed in place.

Having served as a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard for many years, Sui Feng was naturally highly skilled, and he quickly rendered the two Imperial Guards lifeless.

When Sui Feng climbed over the wall and entered Lingyun Palace, he unexpectedly encountered a dark figure flying out of the wall. Upon closer inspection, he found that several palace maids had already fainted on the ground in the courtyard.

He turned to look at the figure that was almost disappearing into the night.

So...

The figure from just now...

Is it Princess Zhaoning?!

...

With a determined heart, Sui Feng leaped up and chased after her, finally bumping into Ying Ning, who had been waiting for a while, at a corner.

"Princess Zhaoning, Your Highness..."

He noticed that Yingning's expression was a little off, and then he heard her say:

"Please pass on a message for me: I wish Your Highness a life of freedom and happiness, to roam the world without worry." The phoenix-eyed woman, almost blending into the darkness, spoke softly.

Sui Feng noticed her wary look and followed her gaze as she looked back, and instantly understood.

For a moment, he even seemed to show some respect to this Western Region princess he had never met before, bowing and saying, "This humble servant is willing to draw away the tail behind for the princess."

But then Yingning spoke up: "Since they are using me as bait, they will certainly not be easily lured over by you."

"Moreover, even if the emperor wanted to make things difficult for me, because of my status, it wouldn't be too embarrassing."

"You should just protect your master."

Sui Feng's lips tightened, and thinking of his prince, he still managed to say, "But what about His Highness..."

He had initially thought that the matter between His Highness and this princess was merely one-sided wishful thinking on His Highness's part, but now it seemed that was not the case.

Your Highness risked entering the palace for the sake of the princess.

If we were to let her risk her life for His Highness...

"Tell Yan Qizhen that after I leave the Min Dynasty, I plan to return to the Western Regions."

Yingning pulled her dark cloak tighter around herself and said, "Besides..."

"I don't want to owe him a favor."

Upon hearing Ying Ning's explanation, Sui Feng felt much relieved, realizing that the Western Region princess had found a way to leave the palace, and he no longer hesitated.

He was already worried about his prince's safety, but the prince insisted on sneaking into the palace, and now the situation was actually the best.

"Then I, Suifeng, will thank the princess on behalf of His Highness."

*

The outside of the Qiankun Hall.

"Your Highness the Regent."

"His Majesty was frightened, and the imperial physician just left," a palace servant whispered, leading the person beside him toward a palace near the Qiankun Palace.

The person beside this palace maid was Yan Chaoji. He walked with an imposing gait, his black hair simply tied up with a jade crown, and the solemnity between his brows was chilling.

He received the imperial decree and entered the palace, only to learn that something had happened in the Qiankun Palace.

However, the Qiankun Palace in front of them was not bustling with people as expected; instead, it was unusually quiet.

"Has anything been found out about the Qiankun Palace incident?" Yan Chaoji had been feeling uneasy these past few days, his hawk-like eyes filled with barely concealed melancholy.

I have a feeling something's about to happen...

"I heard... that the trouble was caused by the Fourth Prince," the palace servant said meaningfully.

But then the tall, imposing figure suddenly stopped in his tracks: "Fourth Prince?"

"Yes, Your Highness Regent," the palace servant replied as instructed, then secretly glanced at Yan Chaoji.

But then he saw that the famous Regent Prince, after hearing his words, showed a hint of worry in his eyes and was about to turn and leave: "In that case, I will go and search elsewhere first, and then come to visit His Majesty later."

"Your Highness!"

"Let's go see His Majesty first!" The palace servant seemed to want to stop him, but before he could, his face immediately tensed up.

Just as Yan Chaoji took a step and was about to head to Lingyun Palace, dozens of Imperial Guards suddenly appeared around him, along with flute-wielding men in brocade blue robes, who surrounded him.

At that moment, a person suddenly appeared from a dark corner. Liu Yun sneered as he saw Yan Chaoji:

"Your Highness."

"It won't be so easy to leave now."