"Isn't this General Meng?" Chu Moyu took a few leisurely steps forward, as if he had bumped into Meng Yuxiu while taking a stroll.
Meng Yuxiu made no attempt to conceal his murderous intent. He sneered, "It seems that no matter where I am or what I'm doing, I always run into Deputy Commander Chu. Could it be that Commander Chu has been watching my every move?"
Chu Moyu seemed to have heard something amusing, and he couldn't hide his smile: "General, you are joking. I am just a deputy commander of the palace guards. My job is naturally to guard the imperial city and ensure the safety of the palace. My presence here today is also due to my duty."
Meng Yuxiu's face showed impatience. He could sense that Chu Moyu was up to no good and was probably going to ruin his plans again. He had no intention of getting entangled with him and turned to leave.
Chu Moyu blocked his way: "I didn't expect to run into the General while on night patrol. But the palace gates are closed right now. Why did the General sneak into the palace in the middle of the night without making a sound?"
"This general will not get in your way, and please do not confront me again." Meng Yuxiu's words at this moment had lost all politeness and were laced with ruthlessness.
Chu Moyu smiled indifferently: "I already said it's my duty. No matter what General Meng wants to do, sneaking into the palace at night, I must stop him."
Meng Yuxiu's hand reached for Meng Li at his waist, and a murderous aura enveloped Chu Moyu. The latter, however, did not care much, but the smile on his face faded, replaced by coldness.
Chu Moyu knew he was no match for Meng Yuxiu, but he could stall for as long as he could, and his hand unconsciously moved to the sword at his waist.
The tension was palpable for a moment, and the two men, as if by prior agreement, drew their swords simultaneously.
The sword in Chu Moyu's hand was naturally a fine sword, light and slender, yet full of killing intent when wielded.
But at this moment, that sharp edge was suppressed by the sword in Meng Yuxiu's hand.
The moment Meng Yuxiu raised his hand, his long sword was drawn, and in the dim light, it seemed as if ten thousand rays of light flowed around it, giving the illusion of being as bright as day.
Chu Moyu was stunned for a moment, but in an instant, he was completely suppressed by Meng Yuxiu.
The two swords clashed, producing a loud, clear, and even deafeningly sharp sound.
But Chu Moyu could sense that it was the wailing sound coming from the longsword in his own hand. He was no match for Meng Yuxiu to begin with, and now that Meng Yuxiu had the divine weapon in his hand, he was simply invincible.
A sudden clap of thunder shook the sky, startling both of them. They stopped fighting and took a few steps back.
Meng Yuxiu glanced quickly at Chu Moyu, who immediately understood his thoughts. He suddenly stepped forward to block Meng Yuxiu's path and shouted, attracting the attention of the palace guards.
Meng Yuxiu glared at Chu Moyu with hatred, feeling extremely annoyed.
These people are no match for him, but if they really get entangled with him, they are extremely annoying, and he doesn't know when he will be able to get away.
Meanwhile, in the dungeon, the drowsy jailers were also startled awake by a clap of thunder. They hurriedly got up, but one jailer lazily said, "Don't be nervous. What could possibly happen so late at night?"
"Yes, the secret execution of that girl is tomorrow's matter, so we can still get a good night's sleep tonight."
After another jailer finished speaking, the group tacitly understood each other and went back to dozing off.
But just as they closed their eyes, hurried footsteps approached, followed by a young and sharp voice. In their field of vision appeared a young eunuch.
"Imperial decree has arrived!" The eunuch, holding a gleaming object in his hand, stood arrogantly at the dungeon entrance.
The prison guards were terrified, their faces pale. They never saw an imperial edict under normal circumstances.
Panic gripped them: "Could it be that they were discovered to have allowed Meng Yuxiu into the dungeon without permission? Has the Emperor issued this decree specifically to punish them?"
While he was lost in thought, the eunuch raised his head and said, "By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees that the criminal Chang Lili has committed heinous crimes and is beyond redemption. He shall be executed immediately."
"immediately?"
After finishing his words, the young eunuch shoved the imperial edict into the hand of the head jailer, turned and left, leaving the jailers shivering in the wind.
"I...I didn't hear wrong, did I?" a jailer said incredulously.
Those around him chimed in, "It seems Chang Lili won't survive tonight."
Another jailer sighed, "What can we do? Our lives are all in the Emperor's hands. Whatever the Emperor says goes. How dare we disobey him?"
"Of course I wouldn't dare..."
As the group talked, they felt a pang of regret. Meanwhile, in the dungeon, Chang Lili slept peacefully, her breathing long and even, her brows relaxed.
She was completely unaware that death was approaching her.
She was roughly shoved awake and dragged out of the dungeon by several jailers.
Chang Lili was shocked and had a premonition that something was about to happen.
"What are you doing? Let me go!" Chang Lili struggled to her feet. "If you dare do anything to me, General Meng will not let you get away with it!"
She was drenched in cold sweat and wide awake.
The jailer looked troubled: "Of course we don't want to offend General Meng, but the Emperor has issued an imperial decree, and we can only obey the Emperor, otherwise it would be disobeying the decree!"
Chang Lili was stunned for a moment before asking, only to find out that the Emperor had actually issued an imperial edict.
Her face turned pale, she was bound and unable to move, and her heart was filled with a deathly silence.
After the thunderclap, there was a continuous rumble of thunder, but Chang Lili couldn't hear anything; everything seemed like a distant memory.
At this moment, the jailer had already raised the large knife in his hand, the gleaming blade looking like it had the power to kill instantly.
Chang Lili stared blankly at the blade of the broadsword, and couldn't help but think: This cut should be over before the pain even begins, right?
But thinking about it, her heart was filled with sorrow.
Meng Yuxiu's face appeared in her mind. He was cold and austere, petty and jealous, gentle and soft-spoken. Every image was as clear as if it were engraved.
She used to think that Meng Yuxiu was just a passerby in her life, but she didn't know when it started, he became an indispensable part of her life.
He said he wanted to pledge his life to her and promised to let her learn mechanical arts and arithmetic. So, after being dejected for a few days, she felt a glimmer of hope.
She trusted Meng Yuxiu, and her heart began to flutter with excitement as she looked forward to life after leaving this place.
But the gleaming broadsword cruelly stood between them, blocking their path; she was leaving him.
My eyes stung, and hot tears rolled down my cheeks uncontrollably.
She felt ashamed, but she didn't have the hands to wipe away her tears.
The jailer picked up a large white porcelain bowl, filled it with strong liquor, took a swig, and then sprayed it onto the blade.
They started muttering incoherently, saying things like "don't come looking for them after you die."
Thunder rumbled, and a cold raindrop landed on Chang Lili's face. The sadness on her face dissipated, replaced by calm, yet carrying a despair that seemed ready to die.
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