Calculated without error
Zhao Lingying's idea could be described as wildly imaginative, yet it truly matched Shangguan Yuqi's current situation and state of mind. Although A Qiu found it unbelievable, she couldn't help but admire Zhao Lingying's brilliant idea.
Before she could even express her admiration, Zhao Lingying flicked her sleeve, and a tinderbox in her hand lit up, illuminating a faint smile on her lips. She said, "An incense stick's time ago, I sent people to douse most of the houses here with oil. Of course, the prison where Shangguan Yuqi is imprisoned will not be doused, but you'd better hurry, or the charade might become real."
At this moment, A Qiu had no time to distinguish herself. In order to force Shangguan Yuqi out, whether it was worthwhile to burn down this century-old palace prison was a matter of great concern. As soon as Zhao Lingying waved her long sleeves, a raging fire immediately broke out on the courtyard wall where they were standing, and the fire quickly spread to the front courtyard and other houses, with the potential to become a prairie fire.
A realization dawned on A Qiu: just an incense stick's time ago, Zhao Lingying had met her and Xie Tiao outside the Vermilion Bird Palace. Presumably, from the moment Zhao Lingying saw her, he had already devised a plan for her to handle Shangguan Yuqi's matter tonight.
Zhao Lingying was indeed quick-witted, anticipating the enemy's moves, and adept at maximizing the benefits of various situations. Even though she and Zhao Lingying were on opposing sides at this moment, she cleverly used this to relieve the pressure on Shangguan Yuqi. Moreover, even though A Qiu knew this, she still had no choice but to willingly serve her. This was Zhao Lingying's brilliance.
As the fire spread, A Qiu disregarded everything else and immediately leaped up the wall, trying to find a place untouched by the fire to land on. At the same time, he used his high vantage point to assess the situation and saw that the houses in the southwest area were burning on all sides, but this one was not yet showing any signs of catching fire. He immediately understood and sped down towards that side.
Zhao Ling watched as she leaped into the trap without hesitation. In the firelight, the gold hairpin in her hair still gleamed. After a moment's hesitation, she finally said in a clear voice, "Once you've rescued her, tell her that the affairs of the previous generation... will be handled by the elders. Teach her not to do anything foolish again!"
Ah Qiu understood, though he didn't quite grasp the meaning, he responded from afar, "I understand!" Without stopping, he rushed forward.
At that moment, the palace was on fire, but the area where Shangguan Yuqi was located was still relatively unaffected. The guards on duty had no time to attend to this area and rushed to other places to put out the fire. Aqiu ran in without encountering a single person. She thought to herself that Zhao Lingying's act of setting the fire was indeed brilliant. It not only put pressure on Shangguan Yuqi to leave but also diverted the guards away. However, the price was quite high.
But then I thought, if we don't do this, given Shangguan Yuqi's indifferent yet stubborn nature, he might really stay in prison indefinitely. In that case, with all the gossip in the court, the consequences would only be more precarious.
The most valuable thing has always been people's hearts, not houses or prisons. From this perspective, resolving the Shangguan family's coup attempt with a fire wasn't a bad deal.
The fire spread extremely quickly, far exceeding everyone's expectations, because it did not burn naturally, but had been doused with kerosene beforehand. When A-Qiu landed in front of the women's prison, there was no fire yet, but as she rushed inside, she could feel the temperature rising all around and thick smoke billowing in.
A sudden sense of foreboding arose in A Qiu's heart, recalling Zhao Lingying's seemingly mocking words: "You'd better hurry up, otherwise the charade might become real."
If she and Shangguan Yuqi had perished together in the fire at the Yeting Palace, how would the situation have changed?
In any case, for Zhao Lingying, even if it wasn't as satisfying as getting rid of two thorns in her side, it certainly wouldn't be a bad thing.
At this moment, A Qiu realized that she might have been too trusting of Zhao Lingying. After all, she was the kind of person who could even scheme against Emperor Xie Lang. A Qiu's actions based on Zhao Lingying's words were not only impulsive and rash, but also contrary to her previous ways as an assassin.
But even now, she doesn't regret it, all because Shangguan Yuqi was involved. If given the chance again, she would probably make the same choice.
Whether it was due to her intuition or not, she simply couldn't feel genuine hostility towards Zhao Lingying.
At the narrow, cramped end lies the last prison cell.
As A Qiu traveled along, she used "Crescent Moon" to cleave open all the prison cells in her path, allowing the female prisoners to escape. Most of them were palace servants being punished, but their numbers were few. This shows that Xie Lang's harem did not have many harsh punishments for its palace servants.
A Qiu was almost certain that Shangguan Yuqi was in the last cell, because just by looking at it, it was very different from ordinary prison cells. It did not have iron bars and stone doors, but rather a light and sturdy vermilion wooden door, which could be considered the best room in this women's prison.
In the past, among the palace women who were investigated and punished for crimes, there must have been noble ladies such as concubines and high-ranking officials. The Yeting prison must have been prepared for them. But it probably wasn't used many times from its completion until now.
If a concubine commits a minor offense, she won't be sent here; she'll only receive a minor punishment as a warning. If she truly commits a serious crime, she'll be stripped of her title, demoted, or exiled to the Cold Palace; she won't be sent to the Director of the Inner Palace for torture and interrogation.
Even in cases as serious as Empress Shangguan of the former Huan Dynasty, it was still a family scandal that was not to be aired in public. A white silk ribbon and a bottle of anesthetic powder were all that was needed to execute her.
Therefore, Shangguan Yuqi is probably the only high-born lady in the Southern Dynasty in recent decades to have gone from being imprisoned to being placed in the Imperial Ladies' Prison. If she were to become the future Crown Princess, this would likely be even more unprecedented and unparalleled.
Her upright personality can also be seen from this.
Wherever A Qiu's palm struck, the wooden door opened effortlessly, and she quickly rushed inside.
Inside the smoke-filled room, a person dressed in pristine white sat cross-legged on the ground, circulating their internal energy. Upon seeing her enter, a hint of surprise appeared on Shangguan Yuqi's beautiful and serene face. "It's you!" she exclaimed.
Then he asked, "When did you return?"
Before Ah Qiu could catch up with her, he immediately said, "The fire outside is raging, and it will soon reach here. Miss, come with me."
Shangguan Yuqi remained unmoved and said with a wry smile, "I must have been drugged tonight. My limbs are weak and I have no strength at all."
A-Qiu exclaimed in disbelief, "Is this really true?"
At this moment, Shangguan Yuqi was unable to even walk. If A Qiu did not come, wouldn't she really be burned alive here?
But another thought flashed through her mind: this was probably also part of Zhao Lingying's flawless plan. If Shangguan Yuqi could move freely, she might not have been willing to leave with A Qiu. In any case, the fire wouldn't reach here for a while, and with her superb martial arts skills, she could have simply watched from the sidelines and remained unmoved.
But at this moment she was powerless to resist. Even if she didn't want to leave, A Qiu could forcibly take her away, which saved her a lot of trouble and effort.
Besides, she had temporarily lost her martial arts skills, and if she didn't leave, she would surely perish here. Of course, she wouldn't object anymore.
A Qiu thought that, in terms of cunning and intelligence, there were truly few people in the palace who could match Zhao Lingying. If she set a trap, she could make you go east, and you couldn't go west. Therefore, what Xie Lang couldn't solve even when he was so angry that he had a headache, Zhao Lingying solved with a single fire.
Thinking this to herself, she reached out to Shangguan Yuqi and said, "If Miss doesn't mind, I'll carry you out."
Shangguan Yuqi hesitated slightly, instinctively, when she saw the hand covered in soot. Aqiu knew that she must be extremely clean by nature, and that he had come through smoke and fire, breaking through walls and locks, so his hands and face must be covered in soot. So he smiled and said, "Please forgive me, Miss. I don't have time to take a bath and change clothes now."
Without waiting for Shangguan Yuqi's objection, he pulled her up, squatted down, and said, "Please make do, Miss."
Shangguan Yuqi smiled and said, "It's not that I find you dirty, but I've never been this close to anyone before, so it feels a bit abrupt." She didn't mince words and leaned down to lie on A Qiu's back.
A Qiu carried her outside, the sound of the fire raging and crackling filling the air. She casually replied, "The Shangguan family is a prestigious family with a history of over a hundred years. The eldest daughter should have sisters."
Shangguan Yuqi lay on her back, seemingly lost in thought. After a moment, she said, "Before I was seven, I lived a life of dependence on others, always having to be mindful of their moods. After I turned seven, my aunt selected me to attend a private school and personally took me under her wing, carefully guiding and teaching me. I gained her favor and eventually stood out from my cousins, becoming the Shangguan Yuqi you see today."
For some reason, when A Qiu heard her speaking while leaning over him, he was deeply moved, and a feeling of trust and warmth washed over him.
She could feel Shangguan Yuqi's complete trust in her.
Shangguan Yuqi suddenly asked, "I heard that you were struck twice on the back the day you left the capital. Are you feeling better now?"
In fact, as A Qiu carried her, leaping high and low, passing through beams and rooftops, and swiftly traversing the palace walls, it was clear to anyone with discerning eyes that her skills had fully recovered and even showed signs of further improvement. With Shangguan Yuqi's keen eyesight, it was even more impossible for her not to notice. Yet, she deliberately asked this seemingly superfluous question, which must be because this thought had been lingering in her mind. It's likely that she had been thinking about this matter ever since A Qiu left the capital.
A Qiu suffered two blows from Wan Qiqing at the Martial Saint Shrine that crippled her martial arts. Shangguan Yuqi did not witness this herself, so she must have heard about it from others afterward.
Her focus on A Qiu's martial arts skills likely stemmed from a mutual respect. As a top swordswoman from a powerful clan in the Southern Dynasty, she knew that mastering superb martial arts required years of dedicated practice and refinement, and was no easy feat. Therefore, if A Qiu's martial arts were truly crippled, she would feel sorry for her.
Ah Qiu swallowed hard and said, "I'm perfectly fine. I can still carry you around now, can't I?"
Shangguan Yuqi smiled and said, "Not only are you doing very well, but I see that you have not only fully recovered your skills, but you also have the potential to make further progress. Young Master really has a way. Alas, it has relieved me of my worries these past few days."
Then he asked, "Where are we going now?"
A Qiu paused slightly, as she was in a hurry to carry Shangguan Yuqi out, but hadn't thought about this problem.
Shangguan Yuqi suddenly said, "Put me down quickly. I just remembered something. There are two other prisoners in the next cell in the Yeting Prison. Go and rescue them quickly."
A Qiu stopped in his tracks, hesitatingly saying, "If that's the case, I'm afraid it's already too late."
She was in such a hurry to break down the door to find Shangguan Yuqi that she didn't notice there was someone else in the next cell. Looking back now, there was indeed a small, tightly closed door next to Shangguan Yuqi's cell, but because it was inconspicuous, she hadn't paid much attention to it.
Most strangely, the door was extremely narrow, allowing only one person to squeeze through sideways; it must have been a hidden compartment. Therefore, it can be inferred that the person imprisoned inside must be someone with extremely important secrets.
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