A rain of arrows fell like an overwhelming force. A feathered arrow pierced his right shoulder, and blood gushed out...
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"
Li Longze suddenly opened his eyes, cold sweat soaking his inner clothes. The eunuch knelt in front of the bed in panic: "Your Majesty, are you having a nightmare? Should we call the imperial physician?"
Outside the window, a flash of lightning split the night sky, illuminating the emperor's pale face.
"No need." Li Longze's voice was hoarse. "What time is it?"
"Just after midnight," the eunuch said cautiously, pushing open the window lattice. A damp morning breeze, tinged with rain, lashed the air with rain. The palace walls in the distance loomed in the mist, like a wet ink painting.
"Issue an order," the emperor suddenly said, his voice colder than the night dew. "Order the abbot of Xiangguo Temple to personally go to the outskirts of the city and hold a seven-day water and land ritual for those ancestral tombs that have been washed away."
He tapped his fingertips lightly on the windowsill. "Especially the tombs of the Xingyuan Marquis's mansion. They need to be properly saved."
Deep in the rain, a group of Jinyiwei were galloping towards Xiangguo Temple. The leader held a secret decree in his arms, with six small cinnabar characters clearly written on it: "Investigate the remains of the Xue family's ancestral tomb."
Heavy rain washed the bluestone steps. Abbot Huiming held a nine-ring staff in his hand, and his robes were soaked by the rain and turned dark brown.
He looked at the Xue family's ancestral tomb that had been washed open in front of him. The yellow soil mixed with rainwater formed a muddy stream, and several broken coffins were half exposed.
"Amitabha." Huiming closed his eyes and chanted, the Buddhist beads in his hand turning rapidly.
Behind him, the Jinyiwei captain held his embroidered spring sword and whispered, "Abbot, His Majesty wants to check the coffin that was buried three years ago."
Huiming suddenly opened his eyes, a gleam of light flashing in his old eyes: "Master, disturbing the dead is a taboo..."
The captain sneered and waved his hand to signal his men to move forward: "Dig!"
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