Several figures walked around the bamboo grove under the octagonal palace corridor.
As soon as everyone passed through the corridor, they saw Li Ruoxue fall into the lake, and Chu Changning, who was standing on the shore, tried to save her but was pulled down with her.
Yan Beimo, the leader, suddenly turned fierce on his gentle face. He moved with lightning speed, leaping into the lake to save people.
"Yan Er".
Wang Hezhan flung Xie Rongyue away from his embrace and rushed over, shouting angrily.
"Quickly, go down and save them."
The guards around them quickly drew their swords and jumped down.
The lake to the north is not like the capital of Yan; it is wide and deep, and connects to the moat outside the city.
The northern desert of Yan is fond of ferocious beasts, and has kept many large, wild animals at the bottom of the lake.
Chu Changning only realized the ferocity of the lakebed after falling down.
The icy water poured into my body, soaking my clothes and making them feel heavy.
Seeing that she had also jumped down, Li Ruoxue deliberately held on tightly to her.
Their bodies sank lower and lower.
At a depth of only a few meters, she could see a large, bright red mass at the bottom of the water. She couldn't make out what it was, but it was very big.
She turned back to try to swim upstream, but water snakes attacked her from all directions.
Chu Changning didn't have time to look around before he pulled out a knife from his sleeve and slashed at the attacker.
Blood splattered everywhere, blurring the view ahead.
Seeing this, Li Ruoxue's eyes flashed with murderous intent. She reached out, grabbed the woman's neck, and threw her forward forcefully.
A large swarm of water snakes attacked, surrounding the area.
Holding his breath, Chu Changning grabbed the water snake by the neck and nimbly dodged.
Seeing her movements, Li Ruoxue used the momentum to kick her downwards, and then desperately swam upwards herself.
There were many aquatic plants at the bottom of the water, which stretched for who knows how many feet deep. Before long, my ankles got tangled.
Chu Changning turned around and saw the white figure entangled in the water plants. He swam over and wrapped the water snake in his hand around her neck, and deliberately released the Bloodlust Beast.
Li Ruoxue was so angry that her face contorted, and she wanted to curse.
But as soon as he opened his mouth, the water gushed down.
She felt nauseous and wanted to vomit, but dared not open her mouth to spit it out.
Chu Changning sneered, shoved her away without mercy, and swam upwards on his own.
But the two struggled for too long, their clothes became heavy, and they sank to an unknown depth. Surrounded by water, they could not see any way out.
Moreover, the deeper you go, the more ferocious beasts you'll encounter underwater.
Chu Changning swam in the direction of the current, when suddenly, water splashed in front of him, and he heard heavy breathing.
She sensed something was wrong, slowly turned around, and suddenly her eyes widened.
It is a giant, ferocious beast.
This ferocious beast was of unknown origin. It was enormous, resembling the Golden Lion Beast in appearance, with a crimson body, resembling a bull and a boar, and its fangs were fierce and terrifying.
Her back was stiff, and she dared not move.
The ferocious beast could not distinguish objects or smell anything in the water, and slowly moved forward.
Chu Changning didn't dare to move, holding her breath as the giant beast walked past her. Her clothes floated in the water, carrying a faint fragrance.
The ferocious beast sensed something was wrong, opened its blood-red maw, and pounced on her.
Chu Changning was shocked. At the critical moment, someone swiftly pulled her away from behind.
The force of the blow sent her flying.
Chu Changning turned around and saw a man in a white robe not far away, with a ruthless look in his eyes. He was holding a special soft whip in one hand, which was tightly strangling the neck of a ferocious beast, while he was playing a flute in the other.
Upon hearing the sound, the ferocious beast suddenly stopped struggling, let out a shrill and piercing cry, and its body burst open, spitting out green Gu worms.
The surrounding water snakes instantly twisted and coiled into a ball.
Chu Changning was also thrown back by the force, spitting out blood as he sank to the bottom of the water.
The mist swept by, leaving no trace.
Suddenly, someone grabbed him around the waist.
The moment she opened her eyes, she met those bloodthirsty, deep eyes.
Yan Beimo glanced at her a few times, then put his arm around her waist and lifted her up.
The lakebed is teeming with ferocious beasts drawn by the blood.
Li Ruoxue's body was covered in tiny scars from being bitten by water snakes, and her arms were covered in bloodstains from an attack by some ferocious beast.
But the guards arrived very quickly and rescued her.
When Chu Changning emerged from the water, he saw her nestled weakly in a man's arms, crying with tears streaming down her face.
When Wang Hezhan saw the two finally come out, he immediately threw the cloak over to them.
Yan Beimo took the cloak and wrapped Chu Changning tightly, then pushed her into Xie Rongyue's arms.
He then walked directly to Li Moran's side and kicked Li Ruoxue, who was in his arms, away. His gentle face was full of violence.
"Are you looking for death?"
Li Ruoxue was in excruciating pain and instantly vomited blood.
She stared in disbelief at the god-like man above her, then pointed at Chu Changning with trembling anger.
"She pushed me down, trying to kill me. Lord Yan, why did you injure me so indiscriminately? Are you trying to protect her?"
Li Moran never expected Yan Beimo to embarrass someone in public.
His expression was unpleasant as he walked over and scooped up his cousin from the ground.
"This matter is still unresolved. Is Marquis Yan trying to convict us?"
This time, his grandmother sent him to bring his cousin back to Taiyuan so that they could form a marriage alliance with the fourth branch of the Yan family. He couldn't let Ruoxue die in Libei, and the Li family of Longxi couldn't suffer such humiliation.
Yan Beimo's face was cold, devoid of his usual gentleness.
"Go back and tell Li Xiqing that the Yan family and the Li family cannot form a marriage alliance, so let's call it off."
Upon hearing this, everyone was astonished, and Li Ruoxue fainted on the spot from anger.
Wang Hezhan glanced back at Chu Changning, his eyes conveying an ambiguous meaning.
Chu Changning naturally noticed his unfriendly gaze and stepped back slightly, her face pale.
Xie Rongyue supported her and leaned forward to block her view.
Li Moran hadn't expected things to escalate to this extent, and her expression showed a hint of disbelief.
My grandfather was looking forward to this marriage alliance, hoping to use the Yan family's influence to climb the ranks among the northern lords and also establish nepotistic relationships with the four major clans.
If things go wrong and harm the family's interests, then---.
Li Moran dared not think about it.
He suppressed his hostility and softened his tone.
"This might just be an accident; isn't this making a mountain out of a molehill?"
Yan Beimo ignored him, picked up the weak-looking Chu Changning in his arms, said in a low voice to see him out, and went back into the palace.
When the news of the canceled marriage reached Taiyuan, the head of the Li family was furious, especially when he heard that it was because he had fallen into a deep lake and almost injured someone.
In a fit of anger, he sent Li Ruoxue back to her hometown, and even made Li Moran kneel in the ancestral hall as punishment.
They had intended to arrange a marriage with another legitimate daughter, but before the news reached Yandu, they heard that the fourth son of the Yan family was already engaged to a young lady from the Cui family of Qinghe, and that they would be married in a few days.
Although the Li family of Longxi was not as powerful as the four great families of Yandu, it was still a superior family. Yan Beimo's actions aroused Li Xiqing's dissatisfaction.
The interests of powerful families are complex and their influence is deeply entrenched. After Yan Bei Mo took over the Yan family, he became ruthless and merciless, making him a poor leader.
Knowing that Yan Beimo would soon launch a southward attack, passing through Taiyuan, he wrote a letter overnight and sent it to Beidu.
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