The most noble destiny
However, Qi Shang was not a martial artist. He could identify the Louyue Sword by its shape. A Qiu knew that this was mostly due to the connection between Guigu and Zhuyoumen.
But at this moment, A Qiu did not want to reveal too much about her relationship with the Zhu You Sect in front of Zhao Lingying, so she immediately replied, "That's right, I am a disciple of the Junior Master, and the sword was given to me by my master." At the same time, she stopped Qi Shang with her eyes, signaling him not to ask any more questions.
Qi Shang was a clever man; his eyes flashed and then quickly returned to their original position. He slowly straightened his fire-damaged robe and said, "It seems that Your Highness has forgotten that although we are just two nameless soldiers, without Your Highness's illustrious power and status, the Qi family of Yixing is still your Zhao family's neighbor, and still controls seven or eight thousand retainers and villagers. If Your Highness insists on making things difficult for us innocent shamans, aren't you afraid that your relatives in Wu will suffer the calamity of war?"
Only then did A Qiu realize that although the Zhu You Sect didn't have much power, the families from which these two great shamans came were among the most prestigious in Wu, and they weren't people who could be easily manipulated. This was probably why Xiao Yu deliberately recruited disciples from local powerful families like Meng Jue when he was revitalizing the Hidden World Sect.
Zhao Lingying smiled slightly and said, "Do you think I have a very good relationship with those cousins? My mother died early, and I entered the palace for two reasons: first, to save my family money for a dowry, and second, to make room for my stepmother's sister to marry into the royal family. I have fought alongside His Majesty through thick and thin to get to where I am today. Do you think I really care whether the Zhao family in Wu is doing well or not?"
Qi Shang was not like his sister; his words were sharp and incisive. Even as a prisoner, he still managed to hit the nail on the head with every sentence, demonstrating his shrewdness and skill. Upon hearing Zhao Lingying's words, he was speechless and had no reply for a moment.
Zhao Ling smiled and said, "May I begin asking?"
Qi Shang, devoid of any of his previous arrogance, said in a deep voice, "Ask away. However, I must still remind you that although we sorcerers do not know martial arts, we are not without the ability to retaliate. It's just that one of the sorcerers' precepts is that we must not use magic to kill ordinary people. Zhao Rong, you only imprisoned us before, but you did not harm our lives, so we did not use magic to retaliate. But if you harm Qi Luo, I'm afraid we will all perish together. No matter how high your martial arts are, it will be the same. Do you understand?"
A Qiu knew that what Qi Shang said was mostly true. She had seen Bai Shi perform magic and knew that the Zhu You Sect was truly capable. However, it was possible that, as Qi Shang said, they would not easily resort to fighting to the death.
Zhao Lingying smiled and said, "As long as you answer truthfully, I naturally won't harm your sister. First question,"
Her smile vanished instantly, and she said coldly, "In the fifth year of the Xiyuan era, who summoned you to the palace, and for what purpose?"
Qi Shang returned the gaze without flinching and said, "It was Zhang Guang, the Grand Commander of Eastern Wu and the father of Consort Zhang at the time, who asked us to enter the palace to use witchcraft to determine whether the child born to Empress Shangguan was the last emperor's biological child."
A Qiu heard Shangguan Yuqi beside her gasp softly, her beautiful face drained of color, and she could no longer maintain her serene expression. She opened her mouth to ask a question.
Zhao Lingying seemed to have anticipated her reaction, and raised her hand to signal her not to speak, so as not to interfere with the questioning.
Zhao Lingying continued, "So what was the result of your prayers to the gods? Was that child actually the last emperor's biological son?"
Qi Shang stared intently at Zhao Lingying, and replied irrelevantly, "The previous dynasties are long gone, and the last emperor is now a departed soul. Throughout history, there have been countless children in this palace. Whether they are or not, death is the greatest event, so why should Consort Zhao press for an answer?"
Shangguan Yuqi roared, "But this concerns my aunt's innocence! How can you let this slide and make baseless accusations!"
This was the first time A Qiu had witnessed Shangguan Yuqi lose her temper and become enraged. Connecting this with Shangguan Yuqi's repeated nighttime intrusions into Qiwu, she realized that this former Empress Shangguan must hold an extraordinary place and hold special significance in Shangguan Yuqi's heart.
She also vaguely guessed that the reason why the last emperor had planned to use the "Heart-Pulling Powder" to force Empress Shangguan to commit suicide must have been related to this child.
Recalling the immense prestige and influence of the previous Empress Wen throughout the entire Great Huan era, if the child she was carrying was not the bloodline of the last emperor, this would truly be a momentous event that could shake the court and the public even if it were brought up again twenty years later.
Moreover, the blow to the Shangguan family was far from insignificant.
A Qiu reviewed the only impressions of the former emperor that he had in his mind at this moment, and found something surprising: throughout the entire dynasty, no one had ever mentioned that Empress Shangguan had any children.
If Empress Shangguan had given birth, regardless of whether the child was male or female, or even if it died at birth, she would receive a corresponding title, be recorded in the royal genealogy, and be passed down in history books.
Not to mention that the child's maternal great-uncle was none other than Shangguan Jin, the then-powerful former Grand Secretary and a renowned minister.
so……
A sense of foreboding crossed A Qiu's mind for Shangguan Yuqi.
Qi Shang remained silent and did not answer.
Zhao Lingying stared at Qi Shang, a half-smile on his face, and said, "I have no interest whatsoever in who the child's biological father is. But I am very interested in whether the two great shamans of the Qi family of Yixing have real skills and can communicate with the gods of heaven and earth before I can decide whether or not to have you treat His Majesty. In my eyes, witchcraft and astrology are no different from frauds. If a fraudster can walk out of my sight alive, he must have some skill."
Ah Qiu then remembered that Consort Chen had also mentioned that Zhao Lingying had summoned two great shamans to the palace, ostensibly to treat Xie Lang's headaches. It seemed that this was not a lie. Zhao Lingying had indeed intended to have the shamans take action when the medicine was ineffective, but of course, the premise was that the shamans were not frauds.
Qi Shang's eyes shone brightly, seemingly filled with a captivating and mysterious power. Even the most clueless person could tell that he was no ordinary person.
He said coldly, "If we were just liars, Zhaorong probably wouldn't have been interested in coming all this way to find us."
Zhao Lingying sneered, "Even a liar knows what happened in the palace back then, which doesn't contradict what I need to know. Great Shaman Qi Shang, you'd better tell the truth quickly. What was the result of your prayer? Is that child truly of royal blood?"
Qi Shang glanced at Shangguan Yuqi and muttered to himself, "If I answer 'no,' this girl next to me will probably kill me right now."
Shangguan Yuqi's eyes were bloodshot, as if they were about to spit fire. He shouted, "You silver-tongued coward, you ruin people's reputations with empty words! Not only will my Gentleman's Sword not let you off the hook, but the Shangguan family will not let you go either!"
Zhao Lingying smiled nonchalantly, "Then you can say nothing at all, and I'll just chop your two corpses into pieces and feed them to the dogs in this Imperial Garden."
Qi Shang sighed, a serious expression appearing on his face for the first time. He said, "This was the situation my brother and I faced back then. Whether we said yes or no, someone would make us suffer. Do you understand, Zhaorong?"
Zhao Lingying finally lost his patience, his face turning fierce as he shouted, "So your so-called divination and fortune-telling are just about using your mouth to seek advantage and avoid harm? Whether it is or not, there should be a result. Even if you are afraid of death, are your gods also afraid of death, so they refuse to explain?"
Qi Shang remained silent for a moment, clearly enduring a great inner struggle. Shangguan Yuqi drew her sword, her long hair flowing freely. Her posture suggested that if Qi Shang's answer did not meet her expectations, she would immediately behead him, regardless of the fact that she herself was struggling to even stand.
Inside this abandoned palace, it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, with only the breathing of a few people rising and falling.
Qi Shang finally made up his mind, raised his head and said, "The real answer is that my brother and I don't know."
Not only Shangguan Yuqi, but even Zhao Lingying was so angry that she laughed and shouted, "What a great shaman! Is this how you work for the royal family? No matter how despicable the royal family was back then, they still summoned you from afar to the palace to resolve doubts. And now you're telling me you didn't know? Your prayers and shamanic rituals are really all just for fooling ghosts?"
Qi Shang's eyes hardened, and he replied, "Consort Zhao, although my brother and I are savages, we are not fools. Under the circumstances at the time, whether that child was truly the heir to the throne was not important. What mattered was whether the last emperor wanted this heir and whether he was willing to trust Empress Shangguan. Such selfish desires have no need to consult the gods! Nor are they worthy of consulting the gods! Therefore, my brother and I did not actually perform divination for him."
Zhao Lingying was speechless at his sudden rebuttal, but she knew perfectly well that he was absolutely right.
The last emperor was licentious, autocratic, tyrannical, and capricious. In truth, no one knew what kind of answer he truly desired. But everyone knew that if they couldn't provide him with the answer he wanted, they risked their own demise at any moment.
Therefore, in the later years of the last emperor's reign, everyone in the palace was in danger and tried every means to guess the emperor's intentions. This is how the matter of inviting shamans into the palace came about. But even the shamans saw through this and did not even bother to set up an altar to perform rituals for him.
Qi Shang clearly stated, "My sister is kind-hearted. She said that if that child is truly the imperial heir, wouldn't it be a waste to have her die unjustly if we didn't speak up for her? But I retorted that the Empress and His Majesty share the love of husband and wife, and the imperial heir is the object of His Majesty's maternal love. If His Majesty truly chooses to believe them, why should he seek help from two outsiders like us? And why should the imperial family's own grievances involve our two heads?"
Zhao Lingying sneered, "You answered very well. You have no relation to Sister Shangguan, so there's no need for you to protect her. Then let me ask you, how did those two great sorcerers, who were adept at judging situations, manage to save their lives in front of the last emperor?"
Qi Shang replied, "After three days and three nights of seclusion and prayer, we declared to the last emperor that this child has an extremely noble destiny, one in ten thousand, but as for who his father is, the gods have not given any special revelation. In short, this is a child favored by the gods."
Upon hearing these words, Zhao Lingying was first taken aback, then burst into laughter.
Her laughter shook the dust off the beams, but Shangguan Yuqi remained expressionless, as if she hadn't heard a thing.
After laughing, she said fiercely, "You truly are a member of the Qi family of Yixing; your ability to change your tune with the wind is unparalleled. If the last emperor wanted this child, your answer was tantamount to implying that this child would be the future emperor, and that answer was enough to satisfy him. If the last emperor had already decided in his heart that this was not his child, the gods' silence was tantamount to denial in his mind, and he still got the answer he wanted. Great Shaman Qi, your skill in using flattery and manipulative language to read people is something even I must admire!"
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