Chapter 145 Assassination
"What right does Qiu Lingyao have to tell me what to do? My brother hasn't even said anything yet, what is she pretending for in front of me?"
Upon hearing that it was the Empress who had summoned her, Qi Roufu revealed an even more mocking expression, speaking with cold sarcasm.
Qi Qianyu took a deep breath, her head lowered and a shadow of gloom flashed in her eyes.
This has nothing to do with her, so why take it out on her? It would be best if the two of them kept fighting, so that the mother would have a chance to impress the emperor.
Despite saying that, Qi Roufu still walked forward.
Qi Qianyu followed closely behind her.
Tao Tao watched their retreating figures, and heard Wu Mama's voice in her ears.
"The person who spoke to you just now was His Majesty's younger sister, Princess Qi Roufu. Fifteen years ago, she was sent to the Xia Kingdom for a political marriage. After the Xia Emperor passed away and a new emperor ascended the throne, the princess requested to return to the Celestial Empire. The Celestial Empire is not what it used to be, so she returned."
"This person is arrogant and domineering. She doesn't respect anyone except the Emperor. It was the Empress who proposed the marriage alliance back then, so she has a lot of resentment towards the Empress."
"The other one is His Majesty's fifth princess, Qi Qianyu, whose birth mother is Consort Shun."
She nodded, indicating that she understood.
"His Majesty has arrived! The Empress and the Crown Prince have arrived!"
Just then, a sharp sound came from outside.
Immediately afterwards, a middle-aged man dressed in a red and black dragon robe and wearing a crown appeared before everyone, with the empress in the same color scheme beside him, dressed in a very dignified and luxurious manner.
Everyone knelt down and shouted in unison, "Greetings to Your Majesty and Empress, may you enjoy boundless blessings and peace."
As the person entered, Tao Tao glanced up at them before looking down again.
But with just one glance, she noticed that the emperor's expression seemed a little off. She was about to take a second look but was afraid of being noticed, so she lowered her head.
As the group walked past, she saw the emperor's unsteady steps, and... that familiar purple robe.
"All of you, rise."
The group slowly rose to their feet.
"Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival, so don't be shy. Just do what you normally do."
Hearing the emperor's words, the ministers echoed him, offering one flattering blessing after another.
The musicians began to play, and the dancers began to dance gracefully.
Amidst the clinking of glasses and the exchange of toasts at the banquet, she vaguely sensed someone watching her from diagonally above and across from her.
Because it was a banquet, she didn't dare to look around or pay attention to anything, but the gaze had been fixed on her from the very beginning, which made her feel very offended.
She looked up impatiently, only to find that the person smiling at her was Duan Gan.
She was suddenly startled. After watching for a while, he still didn't look away, so she was about to lower her head when she suddenly felt as if someone was watching her.
She surveyed the area across the street, not daring to look up, but couldn't find where that gaze was.
But she saw something different. She noticed that the dancer in the middle seemed much taller and stronger than the others. Although she was thinner than the average man, she looked strange no matter how you looked at her.
Suddenly, Duan Gan's gaze shifted, landing meaningfully on the group of dancers in the center. Tao Tao noticed that his eyebrows were half-closed and his eyelashes trembled slightly.
The musicians' drumbeats grew more and more intense, the piano music became more and more urgent, and the dancers' steps were light and graceful, their long sleeves fluttering in the air as they waved.
Everything was so harmonious and joyful, filled with laughter.
Just then, the dancer in the center suddenly waved her sleeve in front of the emperor. The emperor, still smiling, reached out as if to grab the fragrant breeze that was blowing in front of him, unable to resist becoming intoxicated by it.
Suddenly, the dancer's eyes changed, filled with murderous intent, and a sharp dagger was revealed as her sleeve fluttered.
"Assassin! There's an assassin!"
"Help! Someone come and protect the emperor!"
Crown Prince Qi Heng, who was below the Empress, was startled and rushed forward, but he was too late. Someone leaped past him and stood in front of the Emperor to receive the dagger.
The emperor behind him was so frightened that he collapsed onto his throne, while the empress beside him was terrified and turned deathly pale.
But he still remembered to protect the emperor beside him and shouted loudly.
The ladies and gentlemen below were thrown into chaos, screaming and fleeing in all directions.
Tao Tao looked pained, her face turned pale, she clutched her chest, and kicked him away.
The moment the dagger was drawn, blood gushed out like a torrent, and she couldn't stop spitting out a large amount of blood from the corner of her lips.
Just as she was about to fall, someone caught her from behind.
The Imperial Guards finally arrived, and Gao Liangui shouted angrily, "Take them down! Take all these dancers down!"
Seeing that she couldn't escape, the dancer who made the move swiftly plunged her knife into the throat, determined to die and leaving herself no chance of survival.
The assassin was dead, and then the Empress was heard shouting, "Imperial Physician! Quickly, call the Imperial Physician! His Majesty has fainted!"
Only then did everyone realize that the Emperor had fainted and was lying unconscious on the throne.
Tao Tao looked up and saw who she was lying in, but that face was not what she wanted to see. She then forced her eyes open and looked behind her.
Before she fainted, she was still thinking that she hoped the emperor could see who she was, since she had deliberately turned her head to show her face.
If the emperor truly couldn't see it, it could only mean he was blind.
"Xiaotao, don't sleep, wake up..."
Qi Heng's face paled slightly, her eyes filled with anxiety. She even disregarded the emperor behind her and shouted urgently, "Where is the imperial physician?! Why hasn't he arrived yet!"
In a moment of desperation, he simply picked her up and carried her outside.
The Empress's eyes widened immediately: "Heng'er! What are you doing! Come back..."
She was extremely anxious and couldn't believe that he, as the crown prince, would disregard his father, the emperor, and carry a complete stranger around looking for a royal physician.
Or perhaps... they actually know each other...
Many people saw this and realized it, and couldn't help but mutter to themselves.
Duan Gan, who had been standing by and watching coldly from the sidelines, now looked rather gloomy. He hadn't expected Qi Heng to take Tao Tao away in front of everyone.
"The imperial physician is here... Your Majesty, the imperial physician is here..."
While the imperial physician was treating the emperor, Duan Gan knelt down in front of the assassin to examine him.
"Don't panic. The assassin is dead, and His Majesty is unwell. The banquet is over. Eunuch Gao, please arrange for people to escort all the officials out."
Upon hearing this, Gao Liangui nodded in agreement and then turned around to give the instructions.
While Murong Huaishi was searching for his son, Murong Yan had already followed the Crown Prince when he took Tao Tao out.
Qi Heng took Tao Tao directly back to the East Palace and immediately ordered Shen Lin to invite the imperial physician over.
He looked at the pale-faced girl on the bed, her hand pressed tightly against her wound, cold sweat pouring down her back: "Xiao Tao, it's alright, the imperial physician will be here soon, the pain will subside soon..."
His face looked terrible; anyone who didn't know better would have thought he was injured.
"Your Highness, the imperial physician has arrived!"
Shen Lin's voice was accompanied by footsteps.
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