assassination
The Queen finally ordered the Crown Princess to be locked up in this monk's room and strictly guarded because of her affair, and ordered all palace servants not to tell anyone about it, not even a word.
The matter was finally settled.
Qi Qinghe sat on the cold mud ground, his hands tied to the beams behind him, his legs crossed, his cheeks flushed with anger and specks of mud on them, his trembling body gradually slowed down.
She looked around, sizing up the monk's room.
I hadn't noticed when I was having tea earlier that the room was quite bright. There was only a crack in the window on the west side, and bright yellow light filtered through the window sill and fell at my feet.
She lowered her eyes and saw that a corner of her carefully selected dress was torn.
It must have been torn during the tug-of-war just now.
Qi Qinghe pursed her lips. The Queen and the others would return to the palace tomorrow, so she would have to stay here for most of the day.
Just half a day was enough for them to bribe the monks and convict her of the crime.
As expected, he couldn't stay in this palace.
Just as she was lost in thought, she suddenly heard the sound of quarreling outside the door.
The girl's voice was clear and clear, full of confidence. "The Empress only said that the Emperor's sister-in-law was not allowed to enter or leave, but she didn't specify that no one else was allowed to enter or leave. Besides, I am a princess with a noble status. How can you stop me?"
Xiao Junluo rarely does things like this where he uses his power to overpower others, so he is quite unfamiliar with the technique and seems to lack confidence.
Several palace guards looked at each other in confusion. "Your Highness, please don't embarrass me. The Empress has given an order, and we are powerless to do anything."
"If the Empress blames you, just come find me." Xiao Junluo pursed her lips and advised again, "The Empress hasn't confirmed that the Emperor's sister-in-law is really having an affair. The Emperor's sister-in-law is still the Crown Princess, so why can't she go in to visit?"
The palace maid remained unmoved and advised the princess to go back.
Seeing that nothing he said convinced them, Xiao Junluo ran out of patience and decided to force his way in. He asked the palace maids following him to push these people aside, and then he rushed in at a trot.
Qi Qinghe listened to the voices outside and thought calmly, these words seem a little familiar.
When Xiao Junluo rushed in, he saw the emperor's sister-in-law sitting on the ground. Her face was disheveled and depressed, with tears falling from her red eyes. He hugged her tightly and called her "emperor's sister-in-law" with sobs.
Qi Qinghe was quite helpless, "I didn't cry, why are you crying?"
Xiao Junluo sobbed as she untied the ropes for the emperor's sister-in-law. "How could they do this? I clearly explained to them that the emperor's sister-in-law has always been with me."
Qi Qinghe pulled her to steady herself, but just as she was about to stand, her vision went dark and she stumbled. Fortunately, she quickly held onto the wall, and with the support of Xiao Junluo, she did not fall.
She calmed her breath and warned Xiao Junluo: "Don't worry about this matter, I..."
Halfway through his words, he heard a few puffs outside the door, followed by the sound of something heavy falling to the ground, and the tightly closed door was pushed open with great force.
Several masked men in black rushed in, each holding a sword. The sharp weapons shone silver, and drops of blood dripped from the blades.
Looking outside the house, a group of palace maids were lying on the ground, lifeless.
Qi Qinghe was horrified and his pupils shrank suddenly. He saw the man in black coming at him aggressively, and then saw Xiao Junluo beside him who was shocked. In panic, he suddenly pushed open the window that was not closed tightly, dragged Xiao Junluo out, and then climbed out through the window.
She grabbed Xiao Junluo and ran away.
This monk's quarters is not remote, and the crisscrossing paths lead directly to the various halls in the temple.
However, the monks who were chanting scriptures and meditating in the hall disappeared without a trace.
The two men just ran with their heads covered, not paying any attention to which hall they were in.
Those men in black were very fast. They blocked the two men from the front and chased them from the back, and soon they were blocked.
Hearing the footsteps getting closer, Qi Qinghe trembled, cold sweat broke out on his back. He stood in front of Xiao Junluo and asked in a trembling voice what they wanted to do.
"Kill you." Seeing that the two men had nowhere to retreat, the leading man in black raised his thick eyebrows with a hint of mockery in his eyes. He waved his hand, and the four or five men in black around him slowly raised their swords and approached the two men.
"What should I do, my sister-in-law?" Xiao Junluo asked softly with sobs, her whole body shaking uncontrollably.
Qi Qinghe held her cold hand and slowly moved back. He caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of his eye, picked it up, and threw it away without even looking.
I threw away everything that was at hand, including the incense burner, incense box, scripture stick holder, and so on. There was nothing left to throw away.
It was still useless, those silver-shining swords were getting closer and closer.
She suddenly turned her back and hugged Xiao Junluo tightly, covering the eyes of the person in her arms so that she could not see.
In an instant, the breeze passing through the hall stopped and no longer ran. The bright yellow sunlight was still so dazzling, and she closed her eyes tightly.
However, the expected pain did not come, only a whooshing sound was heard.
The sharp arrow came through the wind, piercing straight through the approaching man in black and nailing him to the wall.
The man in black glared angrily, as if he didn't understand why he died.
The sudden change made the men in black who had relaxed their vigilance instantly alert and look around.
Not far away from the main entrance of the hall, Xiao Junbai strode in against the sunlight, and the many guards who followed him rushed forward and surrounded the men in black.
The situation immediately reversed.
Qi Qinghe slowly opened her eyes, and what came into view was the unclear face of the prince.
Run, run quickly, run faster!
This was the only thought in her mind. Taking advantage of the moment when the men in black were distracted, she grabbed Xiao Junluo and ran away.
He ran straight towards Xiao Junbai who was walking towards them.
Xiao Junbai hugged Qi Qinghe, stroked her messy hair with his fingers, and comforted her not to be afraid.
Xiao Junluo, who fell to the ground, was half-supported by two guards on his left and right and hid behind the crowd.
All the men in black were captured. Seeing that the situation was not good, they either took poison or committed suicide with swords. Only one was left conscious. When he tried to commit suicide, he was stopped by the quick-witted guards and pinned to the ground.
Qi Qinghe calmed himself down, patted his chest to calm his breathing, and stuck his head out from behind the prince. He was surprised to see that the guard had actually broken the wrist of the man in black. He was so scared that he suddenly shrank back and hid behind the prince and stopped watching.
The man in black was pinned to the ground, which reminded her of today when she had been like that before, pinned down and unable to move or struggle.
The more she thought about it, the more wronged she felt. Qi Qinghe's eyes were filled with tears, her nose was red, and tears as big as beans rolled down her cheeks. But she said nothing and just fumbled with the handkerchief to wipe her tears.
As soon as Xiao Junbai turned around, he saw her like this. His furious heart instantly turned soft, and he gently embraced her in his arms.
"I've heard Chengxi's story about today." He raised his hand and gently wiped away her tears. "Let's go back to the palace first and discuss everything later."
When Cheng Xi saw the Queen's momentum, he headed for the capital without stopping. On the way, he happened to meet His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and arrived in time.
Qi Qinghe stepped back uncomfortably and whispered, "I'm fine. I was just anxious for a moment. Your Highness, don't worry."
"Where is the imperial sister!" Her Highness had just said this when she remembered Xiao Junluo who had escaped with her, and she looked around.
"She's fine." Xiao Junbai interrupted her, half bent down, picked up the person, and strode out of the temple.
Suddenly flying into the air, Qi Qinghe was so scared that she grabbed Xiao Junbai's robe. She caught a glimpse of other people in the hall, and immediately put her arms around the prince, with her face pressed against his chest, refusing to look at him or speak.
Xiao Junbai's lips curled up slightly, then calmed down. He carried the person all the way to the carriage, then put the person down and told the driver to set off. He said in a calm voice, "The Queen and my mother have already returned to the palace. There is no need to wait."
Qi Qinghe nodded absentmindedly, his thoughts mixed up and his head in a mess, unable to make sense of anything for a moment.
When they returned to the East Palace, the palace servants had already prepared hot water for the two masters to bathe and change clothes. They had barely sat down for a quarter of an hour when His Majesty sent a palace servant to invite them to
It was already late at night, with a waning moon hanging high in the deep blue sky, and no stars to be seen.
Qi Qinghe lagged behind the prince by half a step, his eyes subconsciously falling on the lamp in the hand of the palace servant who was leading the way, and he was secretly making plans in his mind.
Thinking about what might happen in a while and the Queen's difficulties, she felt a headache, and her relaxed heart was lifted up little by little.
A big hand suddenly stretched out from the front and held her hand tightly. She raised her eyes and met the eyes of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.
She looked away randomly and stared at the road under her feet.
Outside the Xuanming Hall, the palace maids serving on both sides all bowed their heads and waited. In the silence of the palace, you could hear a pin drop.
The emperor sat in the center, behind the desk, with his hands on his knees. When he saw the prince and his wife coming, he just raised his eyelids to take a look and called the palace maid to let them sit.
The Empress and the Imperial Concubine stood on His Majesty's left and right.
The Queen saw someone coming and smiled, "Oh, the Crown Princess is here. After doing something like that, she acted like nothing happened. It's rare."
The imperial concubine did not speak a word as she served tea to His Majesty. The brilliance in her slightly upturned peach blossom eyes faded, and in the flickering candlelight, it was difficult to distinguish one or two things.
They both bowed and saluted.
Qi Qinghe laughed and said, "Your Majesty, what are you talking about? What have I done?"
"You did something so shameful..." The Queen raised her eyebrows, but was interrupted by the Emperor mid-sentence, "Alright."
The Emperor glanced at Qi Qinghe vaguely, "The Queen said that the Crown Princess behaved improperly and was unworthy of being the Crown Princess. She has brought shame to the royal family. Crown Princess, tell me, what's going on?"
When His Majesty's gaze swept over, Qi Qinghe trembled for an instant for no reason, and all the speeches in his mind were forgotten. After a moment of stunned silence, he lowered his head and slowly clenched his fingers.
Then she slowly stood up, walked to the center, and knelt down politely. In a gentle voice, she spoke: "I have been married into the palace since July. It has been over a few months now. Under the instruction of His Highness and His Majesty, I have been very respectful and self-disciplined, not daring to be careless in the slightest. But I don't know why the Empress keeps making things difficult for me."
"Now, they have gone even further, falsely accusing me of having an affair with someone, hoping to force me to confess. However, I am innocent and would never dare to do such things. I hope Your Majesty will see clearly."
The woman's soft and gentle voice was quite pleasant, easing the serious atmosphere.
The emperor put his hands on the table, tapping it repeatedly, without saying a word.
After a while, the Empress, noticing His Majesty remained silent, spoke first, "You are so clever with your words and so good at coaxing people. It's clearly you who's disobeying the palace rules. Why are you blaming me? Besides, I'm the one who should be in charge of you, so why are you trying to make things difficult for me?"
"You said that I falsely accused you of having an affair, but the monks at Wanguo Temple didn't say that," the queen said with a smile.
"Even the heavily guarded Wanguo Temple was invaded by assassins. This is a testament to our ability. How can we trust the monks' words?" Qi Qinghe said with a wry smile.
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