Chapter 394 Chaos

Five days later, in the early morning, before the capital city gates were opened, a fast horse carrying a listless figure arrived at the gates.

Mu'er's lips were pale, her face was bloodless, and there were large patches of dried blood on the back of her shirt.

The wound caused by the golden-tailed plum blossom dart was only treated with a simple bandage, but due to the long journey, the wound had festered and was emitting an unpleasant stench.

"Who is coming?" the guards guarding the city shouted.

Mu'er was exhausted and finally fell off the horse.

The guard covered his nose and moved closer to her to check, and finally heard a weak sound coming from her mouth.

"Zhao De...I want to see General Zhao De."

Zhao De was born in the Northern Frontier Camp and is now a junior officer guarding the capital, responsible for patrolling near the city gates.

When he heard the news and rushed over, he immediately recognized Mu'er, so he waved away his men and came to Mu'er alone.

Mu'er opened her eyes with difficulty, and after seeing that it was Zhao De, she slowly took out a bloody envelope from her arms.

"Give this letter to... His Royal Highness Prince Qi, quickly." Mu'er fainted after saying this.

Zhao De knew that Mu'er was a close confidant of the prince, and that risking his life to deliver the letter must be a big deal, so he did not dare to delay it at all.

He ordered people to go to the city to find a doctor, and he found an excuse to ask for leave from the commander, and hurried to Prince Qi's palace with the letter.

…

Qi Wang Mansion.

"Your Highness, what happened?"

Murong Lian came to the main hall and saw Yan Changwen sitting there without saying a word. He couldn't help but express his concern.

Yan Changwen didn't say anything. Not much emotion could be seen on his wealthy face, but there was a sinister look in his eyes.

After realizing something was wrong, Murong Lian came to Yan Changwen, saw an open envelope on the table, and picked it up.

After reading the contents of the letter, Murong Lin was shocked.

"Your Highness, who... dares to spread rumors and cause trouble like this?" Murong Lian's eyes moved, "Could it be that person from the East Palace?"

After saying that, she shook her head again, thinking it was unlikely.

Ever since the confrontation with Chen's mother and daughter in the Golden Palace, the Crown Prince had returned to the Eastern Palace and had been sick and had not come out. Murong Lian had sent people to secretly investigate and found that the Crown Prince had been sighing and groaning in the Eastern Palace all day, waiting for the Emperor's order to depose him, and he had become a useless person.

Moreover, Prince Qi and the Crown Prince have been fighting for many years, and Prince Qi's Mansion, as the opponent, knows the Crown Prince's scheming and cunning very well.

The content of this letter was definitely not something the prince could have designed.

Yan Changwen rubbed his brows and said, "This is the news sent by Mu'er."

"Mu'er!?" Murong Lin was shocked again.

Mu'er is my father's confidant, so her information cannot be false.

"Where is Mu'er now?" Murong Lian asked immediately.

"She was seriously injured and is being treated. She risked her life to deliver this message."

Murong Lin's heart sank, and he quickly picked up the letter and read it carefully again.

She read it several times, and finally put it down, mumbling the contents of the letter:

“Then Zhu Lan and the other two should be bringing the Ning’an Earl’s son from Longyou to the capital, and they will arrive soon.

The Ning Anbo Prince actually has so-called evidence on him that is related to your life experience?"

Murong Lian thought for a while, slowly shook his head and calmed down.

"Your Highness, this matter has not been confirmed yet. Even if the Prince of Ning'an has evidence against you, it is just a confession and cannot be considered as ironclad evidence.

Moreover, after so many years, it is not impossible for us to overturn the confession as long as we prepare in advance."

Yan Changwen sighed softly and held Murong Lian's hand.

"Lian'er, if what is written in the letter is true, and I am really not a prince...will you regret choosing me?"

Murong Lian held his hand in return and gave a faint smile.

"Your Highness, I don't ask for anything else in this life. Your Highness treats me sincerely, and I am willing to follow you for the rest of my life and help you realize your ambitions."

The two looked at each other, and there was a faint gleam of water in their eyes.

Yan Changwen quickly calmed down, took a deep breath and said, "As you just said, although we still have a chance to overturn the evidence in the hands of the Ning Anbo Prince, it is already difficult to save the situation."

"Why?" Murong Lian asked.

Yan Changwen took out another secret letter from his sleeve with two fingers. "This is what the people I sent out took great pains to find out. That year, Chen Zao never entered the palace. The Chen mother and daughter lied."

Murong Lian was shocked, "Why did they lie?"

"I don't know either." Yan Changwen said in a deep voice, "But one thing is certain, the crown prince is the real prince. The rumor of 'a cat replacing a crown prince' that we have been making a fuss about is completely false."

Murong Lin's eyes widened slightly, "If there is no problem with the prince's background, and the rumor about the real prince falls on our Qiwang Mansion——"

Yan Changwen nodded slowly, "As long as the position of the crown prince is secured, whether my identity as a prince is real or fake, I will have no chance of taking that position."

The air became quiet again.

After an unknown amount of time, Murong Lin slowly raised her eyes. The charming look on her beautiful face was gone, and it now looked a bit colder.

"Once you take this step, there is no turning back. Your Highness, have you really thought it through?"

Yan Changwen chuckled, "There is no turning back in this world. This king wants to fight for this world, and there is no turning back. Are you willing to accompany me, Lan'er?"

"I will be with you through life and death."

Yan Changwen gently embraced her in his arms and stroked her long hair. Murong Lian leaned in his arms and said:

"Your Highness, now that we have made the decision, the sooner we act the better.

While the Prince of Ning'an has not yet entered the capital, and no one is paying attention to Prince Qi's Mansion, let's leave as soon as possible. I will write a letter to my father and ask him to send someone to pick us up."

"No hurry, I'll write the letter." Yan Changwen took Murong Lian's hand again, "You have to find an excuse to go to the palace as soon as possible and try to get mother out. Otherwise, if we start a rebellion, she will be implicated in the palace."

Murong Lian's eyes moved, and he had already come up with a plan:

"My mother is a Buddhist. There happens to be a Buddhist meeting at the Golden Bell Temple today. Why not take this opportunity to take my mother out of the palace and say that we are praying for Your Majesty and the people. This way, people won't be suspicious."

"Very good." Yan Changwen gently kissed the back of her hand.

"It will be hard work again, Lian'er."