107

The three-day deadline had arrived, and Xu Nanheng placed the drafted imperial edict in front of the emperor.

His eyes passed over Cui Yuhuai who was being held by the guards nearby.

The threat is self-evident.

"Your Majesty, no!"

Cui Yuyao shook her head. She would rather die than become a handle to threaten the emperor.

"Xu Nanheng, you can't take away what's not yours."

He is not suitable to be the emperor of Yu Dynasty.

The court officials would not submit to a traitor.

"Don't worry about these, Father."

He refused to stamp the imperial seal, so Xu Nanheng simply held his hand and helped him stamp the imperial seal on the imperial edict.

The imperial edict has been written, why are you still pretending to insist on something?

Xu Nanheng's face was full of sarcasm, and he left triumphantly with the imperial edict in his hand.

Upon seeing this, the guards let go of Cui Yuhuai and followed her out of Chaowu Palace.

The emperor stood in front of the door with his hands behind his back, looking at the lush flowers and plants in the courtyard and sighing.

Let's finish it soon...

*

On that day, the news that the emperor was ill and could no longer continue to manage the Yu Dynasty and that the throne would be officially passed to the seventh prince Xu Nanheng spread quickly in Sheng'an.

People in the court and the country have different opinions.

The neutral party began to waver, and the Seventh Prince's party shouted victory.

Some people are also waiting for the attitude of Quling Marquis Mansion.

At this time, the Quling Marquis Mansion was exceptionally peaceful.

Since Song Jin closed himself off from the public, he sat in the yard every day basking in the sun and feeding the fox slaves, living a very comfortable life.

Anyone who wanted to approach the courtyard would be driven back by Meng Shu's cold sword.

The courtyard is very quiet.

"Madam." Qing Wu walked up to her and whispered in her ear.

Song Jin was lying on the beauty couch basking in the sun. Hearing this, his eyebrows did not move, and he just told her: "Bring it in."

"yes."

After a while, Qingwu came in from the backyard with someone.

Meng Shu glanced at him indifferently and continued to wipe his sword with his head down.

The sword was large and heavy, and he polished it carefully, so that the polished parts reflected a cold light.

The sword strikes silently.

Zhao Wuan stood still calmly.

He had been in the officialdom for more than a year and was not a rookie, so he did not take Meng Shu's threat seriously at all.

"My dear lady." Zhao Wuan bowed respectfully, "I know I shouldn't come to see you at this time."

Song Jin smiled, without any blame: "I know you are not a reckless person, why are you looking for me?"

"I have some news for you, young lady."

Zhao Wuan remained silent for a moment, his eyes swept across the man who was quietly wiping his sword, and he lowered his eyelashes again.

"The fifth princess escaped from the palace. She seems to have a lot of troops under her command. I found out that she is hiding in Wang Anlin's mansion."

"Wang Anlin..."

Song Jin is no stranger to this name.

Half a year ago, when Xu Li'er held her hostage, she had met this prince consort several times.

After Xu Lian'er asked to leave Sheng'an forever and never return, she left a divorce letter and set Wang Anlin free. From then on, they had nothing to do with each other in marriage.

Wang Anlin also moved out of the eldest princess's mansion.

This man was depressed for several months, but he picked himself up a year later and rose through the ranks, second only to Zhao Wuan.

This is why it attracted Zhao Wuan's attention.

But this person doesn't seem to support either side.

When the Crown Prince and the Seventh Prince were fighting the most fiercely, he remained silent, closed the door of his mansion, and refused to see anyone who came to arrest him.

Song Jin had to take it seriously.

"Mr. Zhao, what do you think of this prince consort?"

Zhao Wuan frowned, recalled carefully, and then spoke: "Although I have talent, a little setback can make me depressed for months, and it is difficult for me to hold a high position. However, if I have a mentor to guide me, I may be as good as you."

Hearing these words from Zhao Wuan's mouth, it seems that he is a rare talent.

Those who serve the country are talented, and those who harm the country should be eliminated.

There are only a handful of people who are not controlled by Xu Nanheng's men at the moment, and Wang Anlin is one of them.

"You pretended to be loyal to Xu Nanheng, how much did he believe it?"

Zhao Wuan raised his lips slightly, "I didn't believe it before, but now I believe it about 80% to 90%."

Xu Nanheng valued his talents, but was also concerned about his previous loyalty to the crown prince, and wanted to threaten him with the matter of Grand Tutor Zhao.

The loyalty gained through threats made Xu Nanheng feel at ease.

As for Zhao Wuan's life experience, Song Jin had already learned about it from Cui Huaiji.

But she was still curious.

"Master Zhao, has there never been a moment of hesitation?"

Zhao Wuan shook his head: "Although I really want to help my father clear his name, the education I received over the past decade has taught me that I cannot be a treacherous person."

"I said I would go through fire and water for you, and I won't easily turn to others."

Even if Song Jin and the prince were on the same side later.

Zhao Wuan knew clearly that Song Jin was not on the same side as the prince. She was helping the prince because the people she cared about supported him.

"By the way," Zhao Wuan's face flashed with embarrassment, "I wonder how Manager Qin is doing in the Dali Temple?"

Song Jin understood immediately and said with a smile: "Your Highness has informed them, and those people will not embarrass her."

"That's good."

Zhao Wuan can be seen with the naked eye and it is much easier.

Song Jin never expected that these two would become a couple.

Not to mention that Qin Wan is several years older than him. One is as cunning as a fox, and the other is calm and sophisticated. It seems impossible that they are two people who can get along with each other.

Forget it.

Song Jin was not interested in their affairs.

No one is the type to suffer losses.

I’m afraid that Qin Wan won’t be able to defeat Zhao Wuan in the end, and I’ll be so angry that I’ll question my life.

"There is one more thing..." Zhao Wuan coughed a few times and spoke slowly, "Yesterday, after Xu Nanheng came out of the Marquis' Mansion, he went to General Dingguo's Mansion. General Yu and Miss Tai were together."

It was obvious why Xu Nanheng went to General Dingguo's Mansion.

He transferred Yu Qin and Cui Huaiji away from Sheng'an one after another, just because he didn't dare to kill them openly.

Only by sending people out can your plan be implemented.

Song Jin nodded thoughtfully: "Young General Yu will not bow her head, and Xu Nanheng will not dare to do anything to her. Let's hold our troops in place and wait for news from Lord Hou and the others."

A day ago, Cui Huai sent her a message telling her to wait and see what happens.

He has escaped Xu Nanheng's surveillance and is hiding in Sheng'an, waiting for the right opportunity to meet Yu Qin.

Yes, Yu Qin was also secretly rushing back to Sheng'an.

There was no need for him to take action against the enemies on the border.

Yu Qin realized something was wrong halfway through the journey, and in order to avoid alerting the enemy, he asked someone to disguise himself as him and continue on his way to the border.

Calculating the time, I will be back in a few days.

"yes."

Just like when they came here, Qingwu took him to the backyard.

The entire mansion was under the surveillance of Xu Nanheng.

But Song Jin opened a secret passage in the backyard, leading directly to the backyard of Zhaiyue Tower.

No matter how confused Xu Nanheng was, he could not have imagined that Song Jin would be able to dig out a secret passage with just a few people while being trapped.

*

At the same time, Xu Zhaoran, who had just escaped from the palace, fell into the courtyard of the prince's mansion.

Wang Anlin's mansion is very ordinary, just slightly larger than ordinary people's houses.

Xu Zhaoran brushed off the dust on his body, the disgust on his face was self-evident.

"Wang Anlin!"

she cried out.

Even though she was the one being hunted, she didn't feel nervous at all.

The place where she fell happened to be in front of Wang Anlin's study.

The shouting could be heard through the door.

"The fifth princess."

Wang Anlin opened the door with a gloomy face, expressing his diswelcome to the uninvited guest.

"Now the Seventh Prince's men are searching the whole city for you. You should have some awareness of being a fugitive."

"Fugitive?" Xu Zhaoran seemed to hear a joke. "I am the fifth princess of the Yu Dynasty. Others are blind and regard me as a fugitive. Are you blind too?"

The arrogance is as ever.

Wang Anlin was too lazy to waste time talking to her, so he turned and went into the study.

Xu Zhaoran chuckled and followed in, holding up the hem of her skirt.

There are no valuable artifacts in the study, mostly common writing instruments, ink, paper and inkstone.

But there is a painting hanging in the center. In the painting, a woman with gentle eyes and brows is sitting upright under a tree with a book in her hand. Judging from her expression, she seems to be leaning over a low table, reading something.

The corners of Xu Zhaoran's eyes drooped, and a hint of murderous intent floated up in his eyes.

"Hey, didn't you divorce your elder sister? Why do you still keep her portrait? Is it because you miss her?"

Wang Anlin glanced at her coldly: "Fifth Princess, if you have nothing else to do, please go back."

"Wang Anlin, recognize your position!"

Xu Zhaoran's authority was challenged again, and the days of bullying made her anger soar to another level.

The blank paper on the table was suddenly pulled away.

A long black line remained on it.

Wang Anlin was immediately filled with anger, and the murderous intent in his eyes could hardly be hidden.

But in an instant, he suppressed it again.

"Fifth Princess." He stared at her coldly, "It's not me who should recognize that you are a fugitive. I can report you to the Seventh Prince. After all... he is the future emperor of the Yu Dynasty."

"emperor?"

Xu Zhaoran laughed out loud: "What kind of emperor is he!"

"Wang Anlin, you were the one who came to ask me for help. Why do you want to add insult to injury now that I'm in trouble? Don't forget who helped you get to where you are now."

How could I forget?

Wang Anlin knew very well who had caused his once happy family to be torn apart.

He should have had a happy life with the eldest princess.

After months of searching, he finally found the person who bullied and threatened the princess. How could he let him go so easily?

A sneer appeared on Wang Anlin's lips.

Those emotionless eyes stared straight at her.

"I will certainly not forget the Fifth Princess's great kindness."

The words "great kindness and great virtue" are especially important.

But Xu Zhaoran was so angry that he didn't hear anything.

He is still there, feeling smug, thinking he has the other party under control.

"Okay." Xu Zhaoran sat down slowly, raised his eyelids and glanced at the cold tea at hand, thought for a few breaths, and finally picked it up and drank it.

She ran around all night and didn't even have a sip of water to drink.

My throat is really dry.

I couldn't stand the angry scolding just now.

After a pause, Xu Zhaoran's tone became much lighter.

"I came here for other things. Xu Nanheng wants to ascend the throne, but I can't agree to that. He forced my father to issue this stupid imperial decree. You recognize me, Xu Zhaoran, but you don't!"

Besides, Xu Nanheng murdered her brother, how could she let him go!

For some unknown reason, Concubine Sun was so inspired to go and worship Buddha that she left her young brother and sister in this cannibalistic palace. If she didn't stand up on her own, they would be the only ones to be bullied.

The only thing she learned from the Emperor Sun's concubine was to fight for what she wanted.

There is no family affection in the royal family.

"What does the Fifth Princess want to do?"

"Hmm..." Xu Zhaoran actually looked at her nails, not seeming to be satisfied with the color she had painted a few days ago. "My people heard that he wanted to hold the ceremony of crowning the queen on the day of his coronation, so let's do it on that day."

As soon as he finished speaking, Wang Anlin's brows furrowed tightly.

Take action on the day of enthronement?

Does she know how strict the situation is when an emperor ascends the throne? How could she have let her people sneak in?

Xu Zhaoran seemed unaware. He blew on his nails and seemed somewhat satisfied.

"To catch a thief, first catch the leader."

"Isn't he going to hold a ceremony to crown the queen? This princess has to disguise herself as a palace maid to get close to Yang Chaoxue. Using my beloved as a bargaining chip, I can at least hold him back for a while."

At that time, her people will rush into Chaowu Palace and rescue the emperor and empress.

And she, Xu Zhaoran, will be the first person to rescue the driver.

She is not Xu Luo. She has no interest in the throne. What she wants is unparalleled respect!

"Wang Anlin, Xu Nanheng is not on guard against you now, so it would be most appropriate for you to bring this princess into the palace."

In Xu Zhaoran's eyes, these plans were perfect.

But in Wang Anlin's eyes, it was full of flaws!

With her eye-catching aura, how can she look like a palace maid?

Being too conceited is not necessarily a good thing.

And...she got the news wrong.

Using Yang Chaoxue to threaten Xu Nanheng is unlikely to succeed.

The man who had been silent finally raised his head.

There was a slight ripple in those dead eyes, but it was hardly noticeable.

He gently drew a tiny arc.

"Everything is going according to the Fifth Princess' plan."

Idiot, Xu Nanheng’s weak spot is not Yang Chaoxue at all.

Wang Anlin drew something on the white paper.

After a moment, he held up the drawing paper.

"Fifth Princess, here is the defense map of the imperial palace. If your people follow this route, they can bypass the Seventh Prince's eyes and reduce unnecessary losses."

Xu Zhaoran raised his eyes, lightly scanned the defense map, and an ambiguous smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

"Wang Anlin, you won't betray me at this time, right?"

Although the two of them reached a cooperation, human hearts are unpredictable.

Xu Zhaoran felt a sense of alarm in his heart.

"Wang Anlin, why did you agree to cooperate with this princess?"

Wang Anlin replied calmly, "Because of the eldest princess's affair, I should have started as a consort, but because of a divorce letter, I had to start as a low-ranking official. It was the fifth princess who gave me the opportunity."

"The culprit was the Seventh Prince. Although he hid his tracks very well, I still found evidence."

"Fifth Princess, my answer will not change. I hate him more than anyone else."

Xu Zhaoran did not express his opinion.

This reason still couldn't completely convince her.

But in the past six months, Wang Anlin has indeed done a lot for her.

So, half-believing and half-doubting, he took the defense map.

This person is too scheming. You can't keep him after the task is accomplished.

Xu Zhaoran smiled wryly: "Well, then... happy cooperation?"

Wang Anlin lowered his eyes and bowed: "It's a pleasure to work with you."