Lan Linxue watched as Xu Jinlan tried to struggle but was held firmly in Ling Jiuhong's hand and couldn't move at all, and couldn't help but sneer.

It's truly gratifying that Xu Jinlan has finally met her end. Perhaps he had been waiting for this day for too long; for someone like Xu Jinlan, this was the result she deserved.

Lan Linxue knew better than anyone what kind of person Ling Jiuhong was.

Although he blushes when he looks at frost flowers, and although his appearance is more gentle and shy than a woman's, his methods are indeed more ruthless than the cold wind and more piercing than swords.

Under Ling Jiuhong's command, there were never any prisoners who wouldn't talk, nor any men who had no backbone.

No one knows what methods Ling Jiuhong will use to deal with the enemy.

But those who know him well know how he would treat himself in order to gain even the slightest victory.

Once during training, Ling Jiuhong killed a hungry wolf by himself and tore the enemy's body apart. But when he crawled out of the last hole, it was as if the living ghosts below had crawled up.

Otherwise, if we were to judge Ling Jiuhong's strength based on his appearance, we would be so ashamed that we would gouge our own eyes out.

In this respect, Ling Jiuhong and Lan Linxue are famously similar: they can treat their friends with the warmest of hearts and deal with their enemies with the ruthlessest of methods.

These are the people who fought their way out of the palace.

This is precisely why Lan Shanyang values ​​Ling Jiuhong so much, which is why Ling Jiuhong often does things that others cannot tolerate.

Lan Shanyang greatly admired Ling Jiuhong's ruthlessness, because he knew that only Ling Jiuhong was the most suitable person to deal with those whose hearts were even more ruthless than wolves.

At this moment, Ling Jiuhong's face remained completely unchanged, but she was secretly exerting force, pulling Xu Jinlan forward by grabbing her hair so hard it could tear it off.

Shuanghua couldn't bring herself to be so ruthless towards a woman, yet Ling Jiuhong acted as if nothing had happened. She dragged Xu Jinlan in front of Lan Linxue, then gently released her speech-impairing pressure point, threw her on the ground, clapped her hands, and didn't look at Xu Jinlan again.

Xu Jinlan had never been treated like this before, so when she tried to shout angrily, she looked up and met Lan Linxue's even colder eyes.

Xu Jinlan immediately shut her mouth tightly, curled up in fear, and tried to lean back forcefully.

Lan Linxue shook her head with a wicked smile and said lazily, "Consort Xu, if you hide where I can't see you again, I don't know what I'll do to your subordinates then?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Jinglan was so frightened that she dared not move. She just looked at Lan Linxue in terror and waved her hands repeatedly, saying, "I don't know! I don't know anything!"

Lan Linxue chuckled, seemingly unconcerned about Xu Jinlan's answer. He simply walked leisurely to a chair and sat down, looking at her gently as he said, "I didn't ask anything, so what are you afraid of? Besides, even if others don't know the question I asked, you definitely will!"

Looking at Lan Linxue's face, which was even more obscured by the candlelight, Xu Jinlan was instantly overwhelmed by fear. She kept shaking her head and saying, "I don't know! I really don't know anything! Please let me go! I'm no longer a concubine, please let me live!"

As she spoke of these things, Xu Jinlan seemed overcome with grief and began to weep bitterly, lying on the ground.

Lan Linxue immediately frowned. Ling Jiuhong didn't say a word, walked up to Xu Jinlan, grabbed her hair, and slapped Xu Jinlan several times, making Xu Jinlan's face instantly red and swollen.

"Answer the prince's questions properly! If you dare to say you don't know even one more word today, I'll gouge your eyes out!"

After saying that, Ling Jiuhong looked at Xu Jinlan and smiled gently, "Your Majesty, you should know the methods we, the Emperor's secret guards, use. Don't make me use them on you. I also don't like the smell of blood!"

Upon hearing the words "secret guards," Xu Jinlan was so frightened that she immediately covered her mouth with her hand, not daring to utter another word.

Lan Linxue chuckled twice, twirling a ring on her finger, and looked at Xu Jinlan softly, saying, "Xu Jinlan, you really don't need to be afraid. Even if no one else can answer the question I'm asking, you will definitely answer it! Because this is ultimately just a matter for you!"

Xu Jinlan looked at Lan Linxue with fear in her eyes and tears streaming down her face, but she dared not answer.

"I only ask you, whose child is Lan Jiayuan?" Lan Linxue looked at Xu Jinlan and uttered these words one by one.

Upon hearing this, Xu Jinlan's face instantly turned deathly pale. She stared wide-eyed at Lan Linxue, then suddenly jumped up: "Of course Jia Yuan is the Emperor's child! Why do you ask that? What gives you the right to ask that?"

Seeing Xu Jinlan's somewhat excessive reaction, Lan Linxue couldn't help but laugh more easily and said, "Why are you so nervous? Since he's the Emperor's child, you don't need to be so nervous!"

Upon hearing Lan Linxue's words, Xu Jinlan knew she had definitely lost her composure, and tried to cover it up by saying, "With Your Highness asking such a question, surely no woman in the harem wouldn't be nervous!"

Lan Linxue chuckled immediately: "Yes, bloodline is the most crucial issue! Anyone would be a little nervous about it. But Consort Xu, I heard from the old nanny who served you back then that this child's background seemed to have some problems. That's why I came to ask you, why would that old nanny say such a thing?"

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!