Chapter 29 In the Dark Room
Qian Deng was startled and stood up immediately.
But Prince Linhuai had already entered through the door, and she would definitely run into him if she went out. The prince was also at a loss for a moment.
Seeing that the majestic figure like a deep mountain had already crossed the courtyard, Qiandeng grabbed his bow and veil hat, slipped into the inner hall, and pressed himself against the wall, not daring to breathe.
Prince Linhuai's footsteps were swift and steady, and he walked through the door in an instant. His imposing aura seemed to be transmitted through the thin wooden wall, making Qiandeng's heart rise to his throat.
He greeted His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, then sat down and asked, "The war is at its apex, and the situation is changing rapidly. Why is Your Highness not accompanying me to Daming Palace, but instead wasting time here?"
The prince stammered and said nothing.
Qiandeng in the inner hall held his breath and secretly looked outside through the crack in the door.
Prince Linhuai sat with his back to her, his Mingguang armor stained with blood. After he left the battle, apart from his helmet, from her vantage point, she could see a little blood behind his ears and on his jaw.
The flickering candlelight illuminated him, making him appear hidden in the blood and shadows, like a god of death.
Her heart secretly tightened, knowing that he looked like he had rushed out from the front line to find the prince.
"Should I go now? Is the Daming Palace... under control?" The Crown Prince, having been pampered and raised in the deep palace, was inevitably a little afraid of the fierce and murderous aura surrounding him, and his words were also timid. "What is this blood stain on Prince Linhuai's body..."
Prince Linhuai, however, was unconcerned, casually wiping away the bloodstains. He said, "It's not mine. There was a bloody battle just now in front of Danfeng Gate, and I hurried back to greet Your Highness, so I didn't have time to clean up. Now that the gate has been breached, the main force of the Shuofang Army has taken control of Danfeng Gate. Your Highness, please follow me and others into Daming Palace immediately."
Qian Deng breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing his words. Judging from the current situation, the Prince of Linhuai was planning to send the Crown Prince to Hanyuan Palace—although, whether this was to aid him or to hold him hostage was still unknown.
She pondered the life of Prince Linhuai, remembering how, at the age of eighteen, he had beheaded the military supervisor, how he was so tyrannical and bloodthirsty that no one could stop him; how, in his quest to annihilate the rebel army in one fell swoop, he had caused the dismemberment of her father and grandfather; and yet, despite everything, even because he had considered her the crown prince, he had still saved her twice...
While she was still struggling with internal conflicts, she heard the Crown Prince's voice from outside: "I heard that the bodies of Prince Kunyang and Duke Qi..."
This slight tremor of fear only elicited a half-smile from Prince Linhuai: "So, Your Highness is worried about coming face to face with the corpse of someone you know? If so, I will have it cleaned up in advance to prevent Your Highness from being startled."
"No, I just..." The prince said in a low voice with difficulty, "With the protection of Prince Linhuai, I am naturally at ease. However, the Shuofang Army is not familiar with the layout of the palace, and I am afraid that the rebels will slip through the net... I heard that the Duke of Qi was hiding in a secluded palace room, but was found..."
Prince Linhuai raised his eyebrows slightly and said, "No problem. I will personally help Your Highness enter the palace and will not let Your Highness be disturbed in any way."
Even after he had said this, the prince still hesitated to answer. Qiandeng peeked through the crack in the door and saw that the prince's hands behind his back were unconsciously clenched and trembling slightly.
She suddenly realized that perhaps what the prince feared most was Prince Linhuai, who wanted to take him into the Daming Palace.
She looked up at Prince Linhuai's back. He was still sitting in his chair, silent, twirling the ring on his finger with an indifferent expression.
Looking from the side and back, the line of his jaw was sharp and clear, and his overly thick eyelashes cast heavy shadows over his eyes, revealing no expression.
As she was guessing, the bow in her hand tilted unconsciously and hit the door with a bang.
She was startled and immediately tightened her bow, sticking to the door and not moving.
Just outside, the gentle rustling of armor could be heard. Prince Linhuai had already risen, his voice slowing as he addressed the Crown Prince, "Your Highness is the Crown Prince. Your safety is paramount. We should have waited until the situation stabilized before inviting Your Highness into the palace. But now, the situation is critical. Zhu Ci is allowing the rebellious army to burn and kill in the city, while the Emperor, Empress, and other officials have hurried west. The people in the city are in a state of panic and unable to organize any resistance. The only solution now is for Your Highness to enter the palace immediately to calm the situation, organize the scattered troops, and secure victory in one fell swoop."
Qiandeng leaned against the wall, suddenly feeling dazed.
She remembered that four years ago, when Prince Linhuai was about the same age as the current crown prince, on the night of the old Prince Linhuai's death, the nineteen-year-old used thundering means to completely reverse his own fate and seize the powerful authority.
So it was naturally impossible for him to understand why His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, who had always lived in luxury, was so afraid.
Li Yingshang, he didn't understand the feeling of not being able to control his fate. Those who could fight their way out of a situation with blood and iron wouldn't understand the horror of being pushed and swept along by the current situation, unable to control their own destiny.
As she was thinking this, she heard Prince Linhuai raise his voice again and ask, "Your Highness, why are you hesitating? Could it be that you don't trust the Shuofang Army under my command?"
Before he finished speaking, he kicked open the half-closed door and jumped into the dark back hall.
The door behind him was suddenly kicked open. Qiandeng immediately staggered forward, avoiding the door that was knocking down, but failed to avoid the attack of King Linhuai.
He raised his hand and struck down, steady and fierce in the darkness, with the ruthlessness of killing with one blow.
Just as this fatal blow was about to land on Qiandeng's back, the prince's panicked and hurried voice rang out from outside: "Prince Linhuai, it's the Princess of Lingling County!"
These hasty words saved Qiandeng's life.
The moment the King of Linhuai's hand landed on her back, he just managed to retract it, grabbed the clothing on her vest, and pulled her back.
There was a crisp sound in the darkness. Summer clothes were thin, and Qiandeng was wearing simple clothes. She could not resist the fierce pull of King Linhuai, and her shirt was torn off immediately.
But his strength was too strong. Even though her clothes were torn and removed, her body still fell backwards and fell towards him.
In the darkness, her body, wearing only a chinstrap and skirt, crashed heavily into his bloodstained armor, and her bare shoulders and arms subconsciously hugged his body.
The armor was cold, and the smell of blood filled his face. Qian Deng's body trembled in pain, and his breathing became heavier as he pounced on his neck. A slightly painful gasp enveloped his right cheek and ear.
In the thick darkness, the strong smell of blood surrounded them. This tense moment turned into a strange situation of close contact.
He was stunned for a moment, subconsciously withdrew his hands from her body, turned around, pushed her away, and quickly walked out of the inner hall.
It was completely dark, and the inner hall was dark. The Crown Prince couldn't see the situation of the thousands of lamps inside, but he saw that Prince Linhuai's jaw was tense and his expression was strange, so he thought he was angry and said hurriedly, "The Princess of Lingling...she had something to ask me, but she didn't want to meet with the prince, so she stayed in the back hall."
Prince Linhuai nodded, said nothing, and raised his hand to close the door of the inner hall.
With his eyes lowered, he looked at his left hand which was pressing on the door, then unconsciously raised it and turned it to look at his palm.
His palms, thick with calluses from years of wielding knives, were still stained with blood, and it seemed as if he still retained the smooth and soft touch he had felt when he pushed her away.
His heart was pounding, and an inexplicable surge of blood was flowing slowly through his chest.
At this moment, for the first time in his life, he was distracted and dazed when facing a powerful enemy.
He clenched his fists, gathered his thoughts, and spoke in a deeper voice than before: "I just heard someone hiding in the back hall with a bow and arrow. I thought it was an assassin who had sneaked into Your Highness's residence with ill intentions."
"No, it was Lingling... She came here with a bow and arrow..."
"Your Highness, I suspect this bow and arrow is related to the murderer who killed my mother. Since no one in the village can identify it, I brought it here and wanted to ask the archers in the army to help me take a look." Qian Deng's voice sounded behind the door, but she was obviously also in a state of confusion, and her voice and breath were disordered.
Prince Linhuai could even immediately distinguish the sound of a bow and arrow hitting the door. He was naturally very familiar with bows, so he said, "Bring it here and let me see it."
Qiandeng was now only wearing a tube-skirted dress, her outer shirt torn in two, leaving her shoulders and back bare. She hesitantly picked up the bow on the ground, opened the door a crack, and passed it through the crack.
The prince was standing not far from the door. Seeing Prince Linhuai turned around with his hands behind his back and not looking at him, he walked towards the crack in the door to get the bow.
Qian Deng, who was hiding at the door, stuck out half of his face and winked at him through the crack in the door.
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