She had a strange sense of familiarity and security about the man she had just met, but now he and Xu Yanli, the man she had fallen in love with at first sight, had fallen into the water together.
Unable to say who she cared about, Wu Yanmeng anxiously prayed that the two people could be rescued.
On the river, the Imperial Guards jumped into the water one after another, like dumplings being dropped into boiling water, trying to pull out a figure.
An hour later, there was clearly no trace of anyone.
"Your Majesty, no."
"Your Majesty, no."
"No."
...
With repeated calls, Emperor Chongzhao irritably kept touching the thumb ring in his hand.
The guards who reported the incident trembled with fear, terrified that His Majesty would punish them for their incompetence, especially since they had witnessed the extremely cruel scene His Majesty had just witnessed.
In silence, Emperor Chongzhao forced himself to calm down. The fact that they hadn't found the person meant that he was still alive. All he had to do was send people to search downstream, one by one.
"All soldiers, listen to my command! Grand Secretary Xu Yanli has rendered meritorious service in protecting me. Find them at all costs! Whoever finds and escorts them first will be rewarded with one thousand taels of silver and promoted one rank!"
"Yes, Your Majesty is wise!"
Where there's a good reward, there are bound to be brave men. What's more, His Majesty not only values him but also offers the temptation of an official position. The guards, who were just moments ago afraid, now had their eyes light up and were no longer as frightened as before.
...
The mask that Qingyin was being thought of had already been washed away from his face by the rushing river. The handsome young man had a face as fair and smooth as porcelain, and his long, smooth black hair was spread out and floated on the water, seemingly floating on his face, which could be described as a masterpiece of Nuwa. He looked like a fairy in the water, dreamlike and ethereal.
Xu Yanli, who had fallen into the river and regained consciousness due to suffocation, was forced to open his eyes. What came into view was a face so beautiful it left him speechless. He was so shocked that he couldn't help but open his mouth: "You... who are you? Could it be the imperial envoy I saw after I died?"
The next second, Xu Yanli was hit on the head by a stone in the river and passed out again. He was still thinking that the imperial envoy from hell was so good-looking.
Qingyin: "..."
Having witnessed the male protagonist wake up and speak, only to be knocked unconscious again by a rock, Qingyin felt that the will of this world had probably given this ill-fated male protagonist a bad luck aura.
Wherever people are, accidents happen, and the male protagonist is always the one who suffers. It's as if the world's will is deeply in love with him.
Thinking this, Qingyin increased her swimming speed. Worried that the male protagonist would be killed by the will of the world, Qingyin anxiously avoided the boulders in the water and swam forward.
A short while later, Qingyin, pale-faced, dragged the tall and strong Xu Yanli with one hand and climbed up the bank by clinging to the vines with the other.
To be on the safe side, the handsome young man who had cleared the male protagonist's mouth and nose and given him artificial respiration collapsed to the side. Leaning against the tree, Qingyin used her last strength to treat the wounds on her body, mainly to cover up the blood on her body so as not to attract any wild beasts, before she finally fainted with peace of mind.
After dusk, the sky quickly darkened.
The handsome man lying on one side seemed to be having a nightmare while unconscious; his brows were furrowed, and his long eyelashes trembled. "No! No, no! Mother, Father..."
In his dream, Xu Yanli seemed to have returned to the prosperous Prince Huai's mansion, where his father and mother were vying to hold him during the day.
"Does Li'er like her father or her mother more?"
The chubby little boy had an innocent smile on his face and said in a childish voice, "I like Mommy. Daddy's big beard pricks me."
The elegant lady chuckled, then said angrily, "Really? Hahaha, Xu Yicheng, even your son is disgusted by your beard, why don't you shave it off quickly!"
The tall, imposing man with a beard, who looked fierce, had one arm around his wife and held a young child in his other arm. He chuckled and said, "Oh dear, my wife, you know what kind of face I have. If I shave my beard, I'm afraid the people in court will laugh at me."
What the world doesn't know is that Xu Yicheng, the invincible and powerful king of a different surname, actually has an extremely youthful baby face. In order to hide his face, this general started growing a beard when he was a teenager.
The little boy watching chuckled and tugged at his father's beard, managing to pull out a few of the dignified whiskers.
Unfortunately, the good times didn't last long...
The sun, high in the sky, was blocked by dark clouds, and a series of piercing screams rang out.
"The Prince of Huai has betrayed the country! His Majesty has issued an imperial decree! Suppress the Prince of Huai's residence and do not let a single person escape!" The eunuch's cold and bloodthirsty voice rang out.
"Help! Help! I'm just a maid in the Prince of Huai's mansion!"
"Ahhh! My child!"
"Brother!"
"younger sister!"
...A series of piercing, familiar screams rang out.
The little boy was trembling with fear and was stuffed into his mother's arms by his father, whose expression had changed drastically.
"Ling'er, take the child and run! I'm coming!"
"Husband!" The beautiful lady's eyes were filled with tears, but her hands holding the child were unusually strong.
In the blink of an eye, the loving couple, as if by unspoken agreement, ran off in different directions.
The chubby little boy, pale-faced, was shoved into a filthy cellar by his mother. Before him stood his mother, her hair disheveled but trying to remain calm, managing to force out her usual gentle smile as she comforted her child.
"Li'er, be good. Daddy and Mommy are going on a long trip. Be good, okay? No matter what you hear inside, you can't come out. You absolutely can't come out, understand?" When she said the last sentence, the beautiful lady's tone clearly became a little sharp.
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