Chapter 65 The Emperor's Enrage and the Divine Calculation
Xiao Yu pulled Ah Jiu behind him, using his tall body to shield her from all the flying dirt and impact. Ah Jiu hid behind him, only daring to peek through the gap, her face pale and excited.
Finally, after a deafening roar, the massive "Mother Gu Hotbed" completely disintegrated in a golden glow, transforming into a pool of pitch-black charcoal, devoid of any life. The tormented faces on the wall also seemed to find relief, gradually fading away, returning to their ordinary stone appearance.
The entire stone chamber finally returned to peace, except for the lingering disgusting smell.
"Huh... Huh..." Chu Xuanyi retracted the Bagua Mirror, his face pale. It was obvious that the previous attack had exhausted him greatly. He looked at the mess before him, then at Ah Jiu, who looked innocent, as if he had just thrown a stone. The corners of his mouth twitched wildly, and he couldn't say a word.
He spent half a day preparing for a shocking move, but in the end... this little girl got the upper hand by "littering" and almost caused an explosion.
As soon as the danger was over, Censor Qian immediately jumped up from the ground, straightened his messy official robe, and cleared his throat with a serious expression.
"Ahem! You all saw it!" He pointed at the pool of charcoal. "This monster is incredibly ferocious! Fortunately, I'm here to suppress it with my righteous spirit, disrupting its mind. Combined with the Imperial Master's thundering strike, we were able to annihilate it in one fell swoop! This is... the achievement of a perfect union of both civil and military prowess!"
Although the officials behind him were terrified, their desire to survive made them nod frantically: "Yes, yes, it's all thanks to your majesty!"
Chu Xuanyi was too lazy to pay attention to him. He walked to the pile of charcoal, poked it with his scabbard, and found some burnt remains of poisonous insects inside.
At the same time, Xiao Yu had already brought two Yulin Guards to tie up the several stunned Withered Vine Cult members in the corner of the stone chamber. From one of them's arms, they found the other half of an identical token and some poison that had not yet been taken.
The two halves of the token fit together perfectly, and a complete withered vine totem appeared before our eyes.
Both human and material evidence are available!
Xiao Yu glanced at Censor Qian, who was slumped on the ground, still boasting about his "demon-slaying achievements," with a cold look in his eyes. He walked over to Chu Xuanyi and said in a deep voice, "This matter is settled. Return to the camp immediately with the witnesses and evidence to see His Majesty!"
"Alright!" Chu Xuanyi nodded, then ordered the Imperial Guards, "Bring these prisoners and all evidence! Also..." He glanced at Censor Qian, "Please send Lord Qian back as well. His meritorious service in the outer perimeter security must also be reported to His Majesty!"
He emphasized the word "please".
When Censor Qian heard he was about to meet His Majesty, he perked up and straightened his back. "As it should be, as it should be! I'm about to give Your Majesty a detailed account of tonight's perilous battle!"
The group escorted the captives and brought evidence, leaving the cave full of stench and evil.
Ah Jiu, walking at the back, glanced back at the dark cave entrance, then at Xiao Yu, who walked in front of her, his posture as straight as a pine tree. Her nose wrinkled. For some reason, she felt that although the "big bad guy" had been eliminated, it seemed that it seemed to have left a little bit of... very unpleasant things in Xiong Xiong's body.
The autumn hunting camp was brightly lit and the atmosphere was solemn.
Inside the emperor's tent, it was warm like spring and filled with the aroma of incense, but the air seemed frozen, so oppressive that it made one breathless.
The Emperor of Great Chu, clad in a dragon robe, sat upright on the throne. He was a middle-aged man who appeared quite refined, but at this moment, his well-maintained face was covered with dark clouds, and his dragon eyes were filled with undisguised rage.
On the imperial desk lay the burnt secret letter and the withered vine token that had been combined into one.
Chu Xuanyi and Xiao Yu stood below with their hands hanging down, while several members of the Withered Vine Sect, whose mouths were blocked, were forced to kneel on the ground by the Yulin Guards like dead dogs.
"Brilliant! Bravo! Bravo! Bravo! The Holy Tree Will Awaken!" The emperor slammed the secret letter down on the table, creating a resounding thud that shook everyone in the tent. "Under my very nose, in the capital, they dared to plot a blood sacrifice and overthrow the Chu Empire! Truly... such audacity!"
"Your Majesty, calm down!" Chu Xuanyi bowed and said, "Fortunately, we discovered it in time, and their conspiracy has not yet succeeded. Now we have witnesses and evidence. As long as we follow the clue of Bishui Villa, we will definitely catch this group of traitors in one fell swoop!"
"Investigate! Investigate thoroughly!" the emperor roared. "Xiao Yu! I order you to hold this token and command the Imperial Guards, the Supreme Court, and the Ministry of Justice. The three courts will conduct a joint trial! I don't care who is implicated behind this, even if they are members of the royal family, bring them all under investigation! I will ensure that none of these rats hiding in the gutter escape!"
"Your Majesty, I obey your order!" Xiao Yu stepped forward and took the token with both hands.
The emperor's anger subsided a little, and his gaze slowly fell on the small figure who had been hiding behind Chu Xuanyi and quietly picking at the patterns on the carpet since he came in.
"Ajiu..." The emperor's voice softened a lot.
When Jiu heard someone calling her, she looked up blankly and said "hmm" in a low voice.
"Haha..." The emperor looked at her timid and cute appearance, and a smile finally appeared on his tense face. "Xuan Yi, this girl is really a treasure! First, she calculated the account book of the Minister of Revenue, then she found the lair of the Withered Vine Sect, and... she also performed remarkable feats with 'candy beans' and 'tokens'?"
"Your Majesty, you are too kind. Ajiu... is just lucky." Chu Xuanyi twitched the corner of his mouth and said against his will.
"No! This isn't luck, this is blessing!" The emperor waved his hand, his mood bright and cheerful. "This is a blessing for our Great Chu! I've said before that this little god is our Great Chu's lucky star! Come on!"
A senior eunuch immediately stepped forward.
"Reward! A generous reward!" the emperor said proudly. "Give the little fortune teller Ajiu a thousand taels of gold, a hundred pieces of brocade, and a box of oriental pearls! I will also give her a gold medal that says 'As if I were here in person.' From now on, no one in the palace can embarrass her except me and the empress dowager! Oh, and the door to the imperial kitchen will always be open for her. Whatever she wants, she can ask the imperial chef to prepare it for her!"
This series of rewards was so overwhelming that even Chu Xuanyi's eyelids twitched. This favor was even greater than that bestowed upon many princes and princesses!
However, Ajiu, the protagonist who was rewarded, had no reaction to the gold, brocade and pearls until she heard "the door of the imperial kitchen is always open for her", and her big eyes like black grapes suddenly lit up.
She swallowed hard, tilted her head back, and asked expectantly, "Really? Can you make anything? I want to eat... sweet and sour pork with bear paws, egg custard with bird's nests, and chicken soup with thousand-year-old ginseng... Is that okay?"
"Hahaha!" The emperor laughed heartily at her greedy look, and his anger dissipated for the most part. "Sure! I'll make them all for you! As long as you want to eat, my imperial kitchen will make it for you!"
"Thank you, Uncle Emperor! Uncle Emperor, you are such a good man!" Ajiu immediately smiled sweetly and gave the emperor a good guy card from the bottom of his heart.
The atmosphere in the tent became much more relaxed because of this little episode.
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