When Lord Luo met the Tibetan prince's murderous gaze, his whole body went limp, and his teeth chattered uncontrollably, making soft, grinding sounds.
“Your Majesty, someone is interfering with the matter of the Holy Maiden. I will not pursue the rest, but I want him dead.”
The Tibetan prince's face was contorted with rage, and his voice was like that of a roaring lion, as if he were resenting his earlier hesitation and cowardice.
"I want him to suffer the most extreme pains of the world, just as he said, and die in the end!"
Song Xizhi kept his eyes fixed on Lord Luo's face, seemingly understanding the fear in his eyes, and then asked in a low voice, "Lord Luo, is someone deliberately instructing you to frame me?"
"If you can reveal the mastermind behind this, and atone for your crimes by performing meritorious service, perhaps His Majesty will pardon you?"
As Song Xizhi spoke, he narrowed his eyes slightly and shifted his gaze to Prince Yu in the corner.
Prince Yu simply pursed his lips, staring intently in Lord Luo's direction, trying his best to minimize his presence.
The emperor remained silent, as if waiting for Lord Luo's reply.
It must be said that Song Xizhi's words were extremely tempting, but Lord Luo hesitated for only a moment, and then, as if he had thought of something, his eyes flickered before he gritted his teeth and said, "No! No one instructed me!"
"It's all because this old minister is not skilled enough; this old minister has misjudged everything!"
Lord Luo crawled two steps on his knees, tears streaming down his face: "This old minister has never harbored any disloyalty, nor did he ever intend to harm Daqian! Never!"
He was truly afraid, and his words carried a greater sense of sincerity: "Your Majesty, please spare me, considering my past dedication to the cause!"
Emperor Guangqi listened indifferently to his tearful pleas, only taking a small step back: "You've asked the wrong person."
"Luo Shoumin, the Director of the Imperial Observatory, neglected his duties and endangered the court. He was ordered to choose an auspicious day to offer sacrifices to Heaven."
The emperor's casual words caused a huge uproar in the entire camp. Several senior officials hurriedly exclaimed, "Your Majesty! You mustn't!"
"To sacrifice a third-rank official of the imperial court to the heavens! This has never happened since the founding of the Great Gan Dynasty! Such a brutal act is shocking and will likely draw criticism from all over the world!"
Other senior officials also said, "Putting everything else aside, if she is burned to death, who will be in charge of the Fengshan ceremony and the divination of the world's fortune? I'm afraid everything will be in chaos."
Su Shaoyuan's mustache twitched, and he sneered angrily: "When you knelt down and begged to burn the guardian deity of Da Gan to death, you didn't say this. Now you think it's violent?"
Emperor Guangqi simply turned his head to look in the direction of Master Yuanhui. Seeing that Master Yuanhui did not refuse, he said, "Master Yuanhui will temporarily assume this position from now on. The Fengshan ceremony will be held on a later date."
"With him out of the pass, how can the people's hearts not be unsettled?"
Emperor Guangqi had even planned out his escape route?
Upon hearing this, Lord Luo was drenched in cold sweat. He glanced at Prince Yu, who was pale-faced, out of the corner of his eye.
Knowing that all was lost, his body went limp like a lump of mud. He rushed forward and knelt down in front of Song Xizhi.
"Please, you are the guardian deity of the Great Gan, magnanimous and merciful, please spare me..."
He kowtowed repeatedly to Song Xizhi, tears streaming down his face, looking utterly dejected and pathetic.
Lord Luo thought to himself that she was just a sheltered woman who had never seen much of the world, and now that she was doing this in front of so many people, he figured that if he just begged her, she would take pity on him.
But when he looked up with hope, he was met with Song Xizhi's cold and ruthless eyes.
"I'll let you go, but who will let me and that girl go?"
After saying this, Song Xizhi glanced lightly at the unconscious saintess beside him and took a step back with some disgust.
Lord Luo was startled, and his heart began to pound wildly again.
Immediately afterwards, guards stepped forward and dragged both the begging Lord Luo and the crazed witch doctor out.
Whether it was the Tibetan envoy or the high-ranking officials, they all watched this scene in silence, not daring to utter another word.
At that moment, the previously closed curtain was once again lifted.
Emperor Guangqi frowned as he looked outside, but his expression softened when he saw who it was: "Mother, what brings you here?"
"Weren't you frightened this morning and resting in your tent right now?"
The Empress Dowager was dressed very thickly, with a dark red cloak draped over her shoulders. When you entered the tent, you could still feel the chill she brought from outside.
Upon hearing this, Song Xizhi looked up and saw a middle-aged woman with a dignified and gentle appearance.
She was dressed simply and elegantly, with only a few plain-colored pearls and jade ornaments on her head, but even that could not hide her stunning beauty.
The Empress Dowager appeared to be over fifty years old, but the years had not left any marks on her face; instead, they had added to her dignified and elegant demeanor.
Although she had lived in the deep palace for a long time, Song Xizhi found it difficult to see the condescending attitude of Consort Liang and Consort Li in her. On the contrary, perhaps because she had been a Buddhist for many years and had washed away all worldly desires, her eyes were calm and gentle.
But when she looked at Master Yuanhui, her expression showed even more anticipation and joy, and her watery eyes shone exceptionally brightly.
The Empress Dowager clasped her hands together and gave a slight bow to Master Yuanhui, her tone filled with respect: "Master Yuanhui, it's been a long time."
"I know you have just come out of the pass, so I rushed here late at night. I hope I have not been presumptuous."
Before his retreat, Master Yuanhui was already an old acquaintance of hers, and he smiled and bowed slightly, saying, "Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress Dowager."
Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager's smile became even more genuine.
However, after looking around, she frowned and asked the emperor, "What's going on? What happened?"
With just a glance from Emperor Guangqi, Eunuch Shen gave the Empress Dowager a brief explanation of the matter.
As the Empress Dowager listened, her gaze hurriedly searched for Song Xizhi's face, finally settling on his face with loving eyes.
"You're saying this is the guardian deity personally appointed by Master Yuanhui? And she even saved the Tibetan holy maiden?"
Eunuch Shen nodded: "Yes, Your Majesty the Empress Dowager. Even today's Fengshan ceremony was saved because she promptly dispersed the crowd, notified His Majesty, and saved many lives."
The Empress Dowager's eyes lit up again: "So it was she who came to inform us! This is truly a compassionate act of saving people from suffering, and her merits are immeasurable. No wonder Master Yuanhui said that."
As she spoke, she frowned slightly and turned to look at Emperor Guangqi: "Since she has rendered meritorious service in saving the emperor and has received praise from Master Yuanhui, does the emperor not intend to reward her and announce it to the world?"
Before the emperor could speak, the empress dowager's voice continued, tinged with interest: "I see that she is destined for this world, possesses Buddhist wisdom, and has also rendered meritorious service. I will therefore adopt her as my goddaughter."
"Having saved so many lives, maintained diplomatic relations between the two countries, and even received the golden words of Master Yuanhui, it would be worth it to be granted the title of princess."
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