Chapter 81: Seeking an Imperial Decree to Grant Marriage
Mrs. Gao died in a foreign country.
Even so, Luo Qingling could not show any fear, as that would only make the people of Liuqiu Kingdom more excited, and then they would rack their brains to think of how to torture her.
The people of Liuqiu State like to watch people struggling in pain. The more painful the situation, the happier they are, especially the Liuqiu State officer who had previously killed Madam Gao. He was extremely bloodthirsty, especially the blood of people from the Central Plains.
He seemed to have a huge hatred for the people of Central Plains.
After chopping off Mrs. Gao's head that day, the officer pinched Luo Qingling's chin in front of everyone and forced her to watch him lick the red blood on the tip of the knife until all the blood entered his mouth and the blade regained its shine.
Liuqiu Kingdom, a group of inhuman monsters!
Luo Qingling sat cross-legged on the ground, the blanket under his feet was soft, flames danced in the niche not far away, the heat wave hit his face, and he could not feel the cold wind outside the house at all.
Three days ago, on the night of Madam Gao's death, Officer Ge had her taken to his residence. Luo Qingling had thought she would never escape. But the moment Officer Ge entered, a servant from the palace burst in.
"Sir Ge, the king orders you to enter the palace immediately." The servant glanced at Luo Qingling with an unclear expression.
"What's so urgent that you have to see me tonight?"
The servant did not answer, but looked Luo Qingling up and down. The fierce look in his eyes made her particularly frightened.
Until today, Luo Qingling has been locked up in this house and has not seen anyone in the past few days, except for the maid who brings her meals every day.
It is now late autumn. The sky outside the window is gloomy and there is not a trace of sunshine. The whole mansion is filled with a sense of desolation.
Royal Palace.
There was a piece of flying letter on the table, with the handwriting on it extremely elegant. Wang Jun glanced at Officer Ge standing below and sneered.
"The man from the Central Plains Dynasty has detained your son and demands that the woman you brought back to the mansion tonight be safely returned to the Central Plains." Wang Jun threw the letter at Officer Ge's face.
Officer Ge bent down, picked up the letter, and roughly read two lines. His expression became more and more ferocious, and his fingers almost tore the letter apart. He looked up at Wang Jun.
"How does that person know what's happening overseas?" Officer Ge couldn't believe it.
"I told you not to underestimate the princes of the Central Plains, especially one whose fame has spread across the land since birth. I long ago instructed you to use the Soul-Calling Ghost to dispatch those two thieves and immediately drive them out of Liuqiu State, but you insisted on keeping a close eye on them."
Officer Ge hung his head with his hands shaking with anger. He had thought that after catching the two female thieves from the Central Plains for the king, he would be valued by the king, but he did not expect that it would lead to such a disaster.
And how did that man capture his son who was far away in another country? Officer Ge really couldn't figure it out.
"Let her go. Your son can still be useful." There was no sympathy on Wang Jun's face, only greed for power.
"yes."
Officer Ge walked out of the palace in anger and kicked a passerby hard where the guards couldn't see him. His official robe, which made people very afraid, was clearly visible to the passerby. The passerby who was kicked could only grit his teeth and swallow his grievances.
Ge's mansion.
Inside the room, Luo Qingling changed her posture again, with the Golden Dragon Sword hidden in her sleeve. Now the situation was unknown, and she could not choose to escape - after all, this mansion was as big as a palace, and even if she escaped from the room, she might not be able to leave smoothly.
There were heavy footsteps outside, and Luo Qingling suddenly looked towards the closed wooden door. She recognized the voice; it was Officer Ge.
"Open the door." Officer Ge spoke to the guards outside.
The wooden door slowly opened, and Luo Qingling was already standing by the door, waiting for Officer Ge's words. Seeing this, Officer Ge's gloomy expression softened a little, and he was very satisfied with Luo Qingling's very sensible approach.
"I like this young lady from the Central Plains," Officer Ge said to Luo Qingling in his not-so-fluent Central Plains dialect, "but the people behind you are too clever. They captured my son and forced me to let you go."
What's the meaning?
Luo Qingling was stunned for a moment. She didn't know whether the person behind the scenes that Officer Ge was talking about was Qin Yanheng.
But apart from him, no one in this world has such tremendous power to cross the ocean to protect her.
"The prince is soft-hearted and has given you half an hour to leave," General Ge leaned over Luo Qingling and said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "If you haven't boarded the boat in half an hour, you will stay here with your sister."
Luo Qingling suddenly looked up, then stepped sideways past General Ge and ran out the door, tears streaming down her face.
She couldn't bring Madam Gao's body back to the Central Plains, so she could only take the sachet she had brought with her. She hoped that Madam Gao wouldn't blame her after she passed away. The only thing she could do now was to clear the names of the Gao and Luo families and redress the injustice done to Scout Gao.
Pushing aside the guards in the mansion, the gate was just around the corner.
"Come up quickly, my lady!"
The coachman who had been accompanying her and Madam Gao had already been waiting outside the mansion. Luo Qingling did not even ask the coachman whether he was Qin Yanheng's man, and just jumped into the carriage.
The wheels turned rapidly and the carriage rushed straight towards the ferry, knocking over many stalls along the way and cursing was heard everywhere.
Luo Qingling had no time to apologize. Less than a quarter of an hour had passed since the half hour the prince had given her, and she hadn't even reached the ferry yet. She didn't know what tricks the prince would use to keep her in Liuqiu State if she couldn't board the boat within that time.
I'm afraid I'll have to go to hell to accompany Madam Gao...
"Don't be afraid, my lady. I'll take care of everything!" The driver never revealed his identity, but his fluent Beijing dialect gave him away. "My lady, you must return to the capital safely and bring the news to His Highness."
Yes, you will definitely arrive in Beijing safely.
Luo Qingling grabbed the hem of her skirt above her knees, her heart pounding.
The surroundings were filled with a clamor of voices, and the carriage suddenly stopped on the road. Luo Qingling threw herself forward, hastily lifting the curtain and jumping out of the carriage, dashing towards the ferry, where a ship was about to set sail and the steps were slowly being retracted.
As if she sensed something, Luo Qingling suddenly stopped and looked back, only to see that the city gate had been filled with soldiers. At this moment, the soldiers had their bows and crossbows drawn, and their sharp arrows were aimed at her.
Someone stood among them and waved slightly, and in the blink of an eye, long arrows stabbed at her from all directions.
She can't leave.
Luo Qingling clenched the paper in his hand, which recorded the information that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was killed by a ghost. It was the only evidence to clear the names of his father and Scout Gao.
"Run, my lady!"
The driver abandoned the carriage and ran towards Luo Qingling, pushing her onto the ship.
The stairs were folded up behind him. Luo Qingling opened his eyes wide and looked at the coachman who was stabbed by countless long arrows. He couldn't stop crying.
The prince had never intended to let her go; he simply wanted to tease her, to make her think she had a chance to survive. The people of Liuqiu were truly vicious. However, Luo Qingling escaped because the coachman risked his life to push her onto the boat.
The driver fell face down on the shore, his back riddled with arrows, his blood mingling with the sea water.
He still maintained the posture of raising his hands to push Luo Qingling forward, and the direction his outstretched hands were pointing was the Central Plains Dynasty.
The driver brought the letter to the king. It was a life-saving talisman that Young Prince Qin had written in advance for Lady Luo. If this letter could not allow Lady Luo to leave Liuqiu Kingdom safely, Young Prince Qin would raise an army.
Fortunately, Madam Luo successfully brought the evidence back to the Central Plains. The person personally selected by His Highness Qin was indeed very capable.
The driver finally relaxed, smiled and closed his eyes.
*
Two months later, outside Beijing.
Qin Yanheng galloped northward, returning to the capital from Raocheng in just a few months. The magnificent city gate finally appeared before his eyes. He sneered and whipped his horse forward.
At the city gate, the guards spotted Qin Yanheng from afar and hurriedly ordered the gates opened. A moment later, several soldiers lined up on the roadside, watching as Young Prince Qin returned to the capital.
The horses' hooves were galloping at an extremely fast speed.
No one knows why Prince Rong An, who was supposed to be on tour in Jiangnan, suddenly returned to Beijing, and why he came in such a threatening manner.
No one dared to stop the young prince on his galloping horse from the city gate to the palace. Qin Yanheng did not slow down at all and rushed into the palace.
"Boy, why are you so reckless? Is it because I love you too much?"
The saint's beard exploded with anger. He walked out of the hall quickly, looked at his son sitting on horseback in front of him, and pointed at him with a trembling hand.
Not long ago, a report came from the city gate saying that his youngest son had flown to the capital on horseback and broke into the palace. It was really outrageous!
Qin Yanheng was in no hurry to explain. After all, the soldiers who had followed him into the capital had already rushed to Song Haisheng's mansion and had probably arrested Song Haisheng in bed by now.
Now Song Yutai is still missing. Qin Yanheng knows that he is definitely not in the capital at the moment.
"Father," Qin Yanheng rarely changed to a more intimate address, "Give me the military token, and I will explain it to you later."
"Military talisman?"
The sage knew his youngest son had always had an odd temper, but he never imagined Qin Yanheng would be so brazen in asking him for his military command. Was he planning a rebellion, or was he trying to usurp the throne?
"Why are you so anxious? Right now, you are my only prince. The throne will be yours sooner or later. I can eat and drink now..."
"I have no interest in your throne."
Qin Yanheng sighed and walked into the hall. This matter still needed to be discussed with the Saint, but there was no time to lose. He had to obtain the military order by today and lead his troops south to capture Song Yutai.
Before the father and son could sit down, they heard someone hurriedly approaching from the door. The Queen appeared before them. She looked anxiously at Qin Yanheng with puzzled eyes. Qin Yanheng knew what she was going to ask.
Since the Saint Queen was here, he told her everything.
Outside the hall, the autumn wind was blowing, fallen leaves were rolling on the ground, and a slight chill seeped into the body.
It was almost winter, and a fire was lit in the hall. The sage, no longer seated in the hall as usual, now sat beside his son, hugging the weeping queen with a look of sorrow on his face.
No one could believe that the uncle of the emperor, Song Haisheng, had committed treason and joined forces with Liuqiu State to kill the crown prince. This was even more unbelievable to the queen, who had always had a deep affection for her younger brother. After hearing this, the queen kept questioning herself whether she had neglected her brother Song Haisheng's feelings too much, which led him astray.
But the incident had already happened, and it was useless to reflect on it. The Song Mansion was surrounded, and Song Haisheng was imprisoned. The most important thing now was to find Song Yutai and stop him from rebelling.
"I can give you the military token, but how will you explain to the people why you inexplicably imprisoned the emperor's uncle? The Song family has enjoyed a good reputation in the capital over the years... Ah Heng, you are being too reckless."
"Besides, what is your identity as someone who led the troops south with a military token?" The sage looked at Qin Yanheng. "You are not a general, you are merely my prince. I cannot explain this matter to the officials in the court."
On one side were the people, and on the other were the appointed officials; neither side could be perfunctory. Qin Yanheng knew that the sages always valued the people and the appointed officials. If he didn't give them a reasonable explanation, it would be difficult to take this soldier away.
"As the son-in-law of Luochuan, the Great General of the Nation, I will temporarily inherit his title and lead my troops south to apprehend the traitor Song Yutai."
Qin Yanheng stood up and bowed deeply to the emperor and the queen with a stern expression.
"General Luo's son-in-law?"
The Saint was momentarily shocked, but then thought about it and realized it made perfect sense. After all, it wasn't surprising what Qin Yanheng did.
"So what you mean is that you also want to ask me for an imperial decree to grant you marriage?" The saint said with a smile.
"Thank you, Father."
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