Upon hearing the familiar voice, Su An opened her eyes and met Fu Zhun's gaze.
The next moment, her heart sank back into her stomach, and she exclaimed in surprise.
"Fu Zhun, didn't you already send troops to the Northern Hu? What are you doing here? Your acting just now was so realistic, it almost scared me to death."
Seeing her excitedly rambling on, Fu Zhun chuckled and shook his head.
"In the past, it was just that I didn't want to argue with him, but now that he's being unreasonable and trying to play dirty tricks on me, why can't I use some small tricks on him in return?"
That makes sense.
Su An nodded seriously and peeked his head behind Fu Zhun.
The secret passage was about the height of a person, long and dark, but fortunately a row of luminous pearls were embedded in the wall, which made it possible to see the way ahead with difficulty.
She stayed in the courtyard for a long time without realizing that the artificial hill was the entrance to the secret passage.
Su An couldn't help but click her tongue, touching the luminous pearl on the wall as she turned around to ask Fu Zhun.
"You knew there was a secret passage here, why didn't you tell me sooner? That way, I could have easily found an opportunity to leave the palace and wouldn't have had to stay here so bored for so long."
"The risk is too great; I don't trust you to act alone."
"It won't be long before he notices something's wrong. To avoid any unforeseen complications, let's leave as soon as possible!"
Fu Zhun naturally took Su An's wrist and led her toward the exit of the secret passage.
But when he opened the stone door at the exit, what came into view was the Imperial Guards standing ready for battle, and the person in charge was none other than Chu Yi, dressed in bright yellow.
Su An's hands clenched unconsciously, a bad feeling creeping into her heart.
Shouldn't he be sending people to search the palace for the assassin right now? How did they find us here so quickly?
It seemed as if their every move was under Chu Yi's control.
The next moment, as if Chu Yi had heard her thoughts, he leisurely lay back in the chair, crossed his legs, fanned himself, and chuckled unhurriedly.
"Uncle, you've always been arrogant. You probably never imagined that I knew about this secret passage in the palace all along, did you?"
"The reason I pretended not to know was to lure you into a trap. I never expected that my shrewd uncle would stumble over a woman. Tsk tsk!"
Su An's face flushed red with anger, and she couldn't help but grit her teeth and curse.
"Despicable and shameless, so this was also part of your plan? I was worried you would be assassinated. If I had known, I shouldn't have saved you. I should have just let Fu Zhun finish you off with one sword and be done with it."
As soon as he finished speaking, Chu Yi slammed his folding fan shut, his eyes flashing with coldness as he shot towards Su An.
He curled his lips into a sneer and let out a cold snort.
"Even without you, I would still not put myself in danger."
"All troops, listen to my command! The Prince of Zhenbei has defied the imperial decree, returned to the capital without permission, and attempted to assassinate the emperor, plotting a rebellion. I order you to arrest him. Anyone who disobeys will be executed on the spot!"
Upon receiving the order, the Imperial Guards, armed with weapons, charged towards them.
He was alone and in a secret passage, so he couldn't move freely and couldn't guarantee Su An's safety. It was best to leave first.
Fu Zhun quickly pulled Su An up and said in a deep voice.
"This place is no place to stay any longer, let's go!"
At this moment, Su An no longer cared about her image. Lifting her skirt, she took off running after Fu Zhun.
Compared to the Imperial Guards behind him, Fu Zhun was clearly more familiar with the secret passage. He led Su An through the winding passage and soon arrived at another exit.
The moment the stone door opened, a bright light appeared before them.
Fu Zhun quickly led Su An out.
At that moment, the Empress Dowager was feeding the fish by the pond when a crack suddenly appeared in the artificial hill next to her, and two figures rushed out, startling the palace maid beside the Empress Dowager so much that she fell to the ground and retreated repeatedly.
"Assassin! There's an assassin!"
Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager was also startled and hurriedly turned her head to look.
But before he could even see who it was, Fu Zhun held a sword to his neck and forced him to retreat to the doorway of the room.
"Your Majesty, I'm sorry to offend you!"
Just then, Chu Yi arrived with the Imperial Guards.
Seeing that the Empress Dowager was being held hostage by him, the Imperial Guards hesitated and stopped, watching Fu Zhun warily.
"If you don't want anything to happen to the Empress Dowager, prepare a fast horse and let us leave the palace!"
Fu Zhun's eyes darkened, and he threatened Chu Yi.
Seeing this, the Empress Dowager swallowed hard, her eyes flickering as she placed her finger on the blade and pleaded in a trembling voice, "Prince Zhenbei, calm down. Holding me hostage is a crime of treason. Do you not want to live?"
Live? Chu Yi did so much just to take his life, didn't he?
Now that he's been forced into this situation, even if he hadn't taken the Empress Dowager hostage, he would have had no way out long ago.
Fu Zhun narrowed his eyes and whispered something in the Empress Dowager's ear.
"I did not intend to use the Empress Dowager as a hostage. Today's actions were all out of necessity. Empress Dowager, rest assured, I will release you once we are safe."
As he spoke, he tightened his grip on the sword hilt, and the cold blade drew closer to the Empress Dowager's neck.
The bright red bloodstains stood out starkly against her fair neck.
The leader of the Imperial Guard turned to look at Chu Yi and anxiously asked for a solution.
"Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager is still in his hands. Should I prepare horses?"
Receiving the Empress Dowager's pleading look, Chu Yi raised his tongue and pressed it against his back teeth. A dark glint suddenly flashed in his eyes. He then snatched a bow and arrow from the archer behind him, nocked the arrow, and pointed it directly at the Empress Dowager.
The movements were swift and decisive, without the slightest hesitation.
The commander of the Imperial Guards standing to the side widened his eyes suddenly, his heart leaping into his throat.
"Your Majesty, what are you doing? This could accidentally harm the Empress Dowager!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Chu Yi let go of his hand.
The arrow in his hand shot through the air with a whistling sound, heading straight for the Empress Dowager's heart.
The arrows reflected in her pupils drew ever closer, and the Empress Dowager felt as if her blood had frozen. A chill surged from her limbs to her chest, leaving her mind blank and unable to react.
At the critical moment, Fu Zhun suddenly moved his sword aside, grabbed the Empress Dowager's arm, and pulled her aside.
The arrow instantly tore through the Empress Dowager's clothes on her arm, then forcefully embedded itself in the tree trunk behind her. The iron arrowhead went in halfway, which was enough to show how much force Chu Yi had used.
Fu Zhun frowned, his eyes dark and unfathomable as he looked at Chu Yi.
"She is your mother, do you really want to kill her with your own hands?"
Coming to her senses, the Empress Dowager turned her head and stared at Chu Yi in disbelief, her body trembling slightly.
Although Chu Yi was not her biological son, she raised him.
Not only did he fail to repay her kindness in raising him, but now he even wants to shoot her dead with his own hands for his own selfish desires!
The leader of the Imperial Guard swallowed hard, giving Chu Yi a look that was hard to describe.
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