Chapter 265 Awakening of Memories (First Update)
The old priest's temple suddenly throbbed!
The Marquis of Xuanping's arrival is a death sentence!
He didn't genuinely admit his mistake; he was clearly deliberately making the mistake worse.
Empress Dowager Zhuang was recuperating at the imperial palace. Who could say that the woman outside who was nominally his wife was actually an empress dowager?
Even if the emperor disliked Empress Dowager Zhuang, the reputation of the imperial family was intertwined; if one prospered, the other prospered, and if one suffered, the other suffered. Even in order to preserve the reputation and dignity of the imperial family, the emperor would not admit that the woman outside who had cuckolded the late emperor was Empress Dowager Zhuang.
Moreover, the emperor originally wanted to get rid of Empress Dowager Zhuang, but the emperor had more concerns than Marquis Xuanping. In addition, Empress Dowager Zhuang also possessed something that the emperor had always wanted. However, if Marquis Xuanping really killed Empress Dowager Zhuang, the emperor would be angry and regret not getting what he should have gotten, but he would not really take Marquis Xuanping's life.
Well, it wasn't his imagination last time; Marquis Xuanping is indeed cunning!
People always say that Marquis Xuanping won many battles because of his bravery, but they are all wrong. Bravery is certainly important, but if Marquis Xuanping didn't have any brains, he would have been completely outmaneuvered by the enemy.
The old chief priest was the one whose identity had been exposed and caught red-handed. He had to endure the confusion caused by his guilty conscience, but he also couldn't let Zhuang Jinse be killed. He hurriedly said, "Can't we just look alike? What's with all this talk about pretending?"
Marquis Xuanping sneered: "Ha, it's one thing for my illegitimate son to look like my legitimate son, at least they're brothers. But what's this person's relationship with that one in the palace? Sisters? Hmm?"
The old chief priest was speechless for a moment.
Can't you just be a quiet military man? As a military general, your quick wit and sharp tongue will leave the civil officials with nowhere to turn.
The old chief priest said he could still hold on a little longer and was determined not to lose to a military general. He looked at Marquis Xuanping and said solemnly, "You can't kill her! She's Liu Lang's great-aunt!"
After a pause, remembering that his great-aunt was his grandfather's sister, and that Marquis Xuanping naturally didn't have such an aunt, the old chief priest wrote in a stroke of genius: "His elder brother's father's aunt!"
This "elder brother" refers to Chen Yunniang's eldest son from her previous marriage. If he is indeed her elder brother's great-aunt, then it wouldn't be wrong for Xiao Liulang, as her half-brother, to also call her "great-aunt."
Besides, that elder brother treated Liu Lang very well, so it wouldn't be unreasonable for Xiao Liu Lang to take care of his elder brother's aunt in her old age.
Marquis Xuanping scoffed and said, "Do you think I would believe that?"
The old chief priest pointed to his fingers: "Absolutely true! If it's a lie, may I be struck by lightning—"
Rumble—
A thunderclap boomed across the sky!
The old chief priest: "..."
Are you being so disrespectful?
It's about to rain; the sky is overcast, with dark clouds rolling in, like a chaotic sea of clouds pressing down beneath the heavens.
The atmosphere suddenly became oppressive.
Chang Jing didn't rush to make a move, not because he was intimidated by the old chief priest's words, but because his marbles were missing. He looked down and searched his pockets for his marbles.
Marquis Xuanping looked at the old lady, and the old lady looked at him. Their eyes met, and lightning flashed across the sky, their faces flickering in the darkness and lightning.
Even a dragon in shallow waters remains a dragon.
Even though she had lost her memory and was dressed in coarse linen clothes, the old lady's aura was still no less powerful when facing the great killing god, Marquis Xuanping. In fact, in the confrontation of their eyes, she even faintly exuded the aura of Zhuang Jinse.
The old chief priest felt a deep headache. He said to Marquis Xuanping, "Listen to me, what happened back then might have been a misunderstanding..."
"Misunderstanding? What misunderstanding?"
What happened back then?
Marquis Xuanping and the old lady spoke almost in unison.
"Ah, this..." The old chief priest looked at the old lady, then at Marquis Xuanping, and shielded his eyes with his hand, whispering, "She doesn't remember anything, you shouldn't do this!"
Marquis Xuanping said coldly, "She may not remember, but I do. The hatred for killing my son is irreconcilable!"
The old chief priest scratched his head: "How can that be called killing? At most it was poisoning, right? It happened when Aheng was four or five years old. He was poisoned in the palace, supposedly by the Empress Dowager."
Marquis Xuanping said coldly, "If you didn't kill her, does that mean you didn't kill her? My son survived because he was lucky, not as an excuse to exonerate her!"
"I...harmed your son?" The old lady couldn't remember, but she wasn't in a hurry to apologize, because she often felt that she was indeed full of bad intentions and might have really been a great villain in the past.
Marquis Xuanping didn't care why Zhuang Jinse was here. He didn't need to ask the reason or the details. He only wanted the result, which was that he wanted to kill Zhuang Jinse!
"Chang Jing! Are you deaf or stupid? Can't you understand human language? Why aren't you attacking me!"
"Found it!" Chang Jing pulled the marble that had fallen into the gap of his pocket, put it into another intact pocket, his expression turned cold, and he switched to assassin mode in a second.
"Oh! Liu Lang, you're back!" The old chief priest glanced behind Xuanping Marquis, and taking advantage of the slight pause in Xuanping Marquis's hand, pulled the old lady back into the house, slammed the door shut, and bolted it!
"Go through the back door!"
He said to the old lady.
"What happened?" Yao asked as she came out after hearing the commotion.
"It's alright, it's alright, you should go back inside!" The old chief priest waved his hand at Yao Shi. The Marquis of Xuanping's target was Zhuang Jinse, and he wouldn't kill innocent people indiscriminately. He wasn't worried about Yao Shi's safety.
He pulled the old lady out the back door and fled. The most urgent thing was to find Liu Lang as soon as possible, because only he could stop Xuanping Hou.
But as soon as the two stepped across the threshold of the back door, they saw Chang Jing standing in front of them, exuding a murderous aura.
The old sacrificial priest gasped!
We can't go back any further, because Marquis Xuanping is blocking the front gate.
"Um, young man, can we talk about this?" The old chief priest chuckled awkwardly, then suddenly rushed over and hugged Chang Jing, saying to the old lady, "Quick! Let's go find Liu Lang! He's at Lin's house!"
Lin Chengye's home is nearby, and it's only a 15-minute walk away on weekdays.
But how could the old chief priest possibly hold onto a killer like Chang Jing?
Chang Jing grabbed him and lifted him up. Chang Jing had no interest in anyone other than his target. After throwing the old priest aside, he reached out to kill the old woman.
He simply grabbed the old woman by the back of her neck and twisted it gently, breaking her neck.
At the critical moment, a small figure flashed over, stood in front of the old lady, and raised her small arm to block Chang Jing's arm.
Chang Jing used his right hand, but no one knew that his dominant hand was actually his left hand. He swung his left hand and chopped at Gu Jiao.
Gu Jiao took the blow head-on, and the immense force forced the two of them to separate, each taking two steps back.
Chang Jing looked at Gu Jiao in astonishment, then at his own hand. Huh? He actually managed to take a blow from her?
Gu Jiao: Uh... half of my arm is going numb. Where did this expert come from?
"Grandma, Grandpa, you go first!" Gu Jiao stopped Chang Jing and said to the two of them.
The old chief priest couldn't care less about formalities at this moment. He grabbed the old lady and rushed towards Lin Chengye's residence. Of course, he didn't forget to turn back and remind Chang Jing, "She's the daughter-in-law of the Marquis of Xuanping! You're not allowed to get serious!"
These words worked, and Chang Jing's murderous aura subsided by half.
Chang Jing's martial arts skills far surpassed those of the masters in the martial arts school. Even with half of his killing intent gone, it wouldn't be easy for Gu Jiao to defeat him. Of course, it would also be a little difficult for Chang Jing to get rid of Gu Jiao.
The two engaged in a fierce fight.
The old priest and the old lady kept running. The reason they could still run at their age was mainly because Gu Jiao took good care of them. Both of them were much healthier than before. The old priest even felt that they had more black hair.
However, misfortune never comes singly. Although they escaped the clutches of Marquis Xuanping and Chang Jing, they encountered a group of masked men in black.
The men in black quickly blocked the alley entrance.
In order to get to Lin Chengye's house as quickly as possible, the old chief priest took the old lady on a shortcut, a secluded route with almost no one passing by, which also meant that there were no officials patrolling nearby.
It's over, it's all over.
This is what it means to be caught between a rock and a hard place.
The other party seems to have ill intentions. Whether they capture me or I go back and get killed by Chang Jing, neither seems good.
"Who are you people?" the old chief priest asked warily.
More than a dozen men in black quickly made way for a carriage. Behind them was a carriage, and upon hearing this, the curtain of the carriage was lifted, and Grand Tutor Zhuang stepped out of the carriage.
Grand Tutor Zhuang, with his hands tucked into his wide sleeves, looked arrogant and composed. He strode over to the two of them, glanced at the old lady and the old chief priest, and his eyes turned cold: "So it was you!"
He said that when he saw the other person in Bishui Hutong last time, he felt something was off. Turns out it was an acquaintance!
No wonder he closed the door in a panic, and no wonder he was too ashamed to face anyone.
How did you get here?
He's still with the Empress Dowager?
Before resigning from his post, Huo Jijiu fought fiercely with the Empress Dowager for two reigns, from the reign of the previous emperor to the current emperor. It is no exaggeration to say that their relationship can be described as that of mortal enemies.
They both appeared in the same place at the same time, and they seemed to be very close!
There must be something else I don't know, but I can't think about it in detail right now. The most urgent thing is to bring the Empress Dowager back as soon as possible!
Grand Tutor Zhuang's gaze fell on the old Confucian scholar's hand that was holding the old lady's wrist. His expression changed, and he shouted sternly, "Insolence!"
How dare you, an old geezer, defile the Empress Dowager's body?! Forget about pulling her wrist, you can't even tug at the hem of her clothes!
The old priest withdrew his hand guiltily.
Grand Tutor Zhuang dared not speak harshly to the old lady; he said gently, "Sister, go back with your elder brother."
The old lady gave him a disdainful look and said, "Get lost."
Grand Tutor Zhuang: "..."
Grand Tutor Zhuang took a deep breath and told himself that the Empress Dowager had only lost her memory, and that her words were neither her own intention nor an imperial decree.
Once the Empress Dowager remembers her status, she will forgive his actions today.
He turned and ordered the man in black, "Take the Empress away! That man..." He glanced at the old chief priest, "...deal with him!"
If the Empress Dowager of a country were to have an affair with a man outside the country, such a scandal would be the least of her worries. She would face condemnation from thousands of people, and her reputation and status would be at risk.
The emperor was just looking for an excuse to bring down Empress Dowager Zhuang, and he couldn't give the emperor any opportunity to do so.
The old chief priest said coldly, "Zhuang Boyong, are you crazy! Are you going to kill someone in the street?" These people really don't take human life seriously!
Grand Tutor Zhuang said calmly, "You attempted to assassinate the Empress Dowager. I killed the assassin. What crime have I committed?"
After saying that, he made a killing gesture and ignored the old priest.
On the other side, Gu Jiao and Chang Jing were locked in a four-way struggle. This guy's martial arts skills were too high. Gu Jiao's strength had only recovered to 30% of her previous life, so she really couldn't kill him!
Suddenly, Gu Jiao noticed the beads in his pocket. She remembered that when she first met him, he seemed to be looking for beads on the ground.
Gu Jiao's eyes flashed, and she thrust her knee towards his lower abdomen. Chang Jing instinctively freed one hand to block her attack, but Gu Jiao freed one hand and ripped off his pocket with a tearing sound.
His marbles rolled all over the floor.
Chang Jing: His marbles!
Chang Jing ignored Gu Jiao and went to pick up the beads.
Gu Jiao hurriedly chased after the direction in which the old priest and his aunt had left.
The sky seemed to suddenly tear open, and a torrential downpour began.
The old lady and the old priest were separated by the men in black. The men in black did not dare to be violent towards the old lady, but tried their best to hold her and pull her onto the carriage. They were not so polite to the old priest.
The old libationer was kicked to the ground and was in so much pain that he could barely straighten up.
"Stop!" the old lady said to Grand Tutor Zhuang.
Grand Tutor Zhuang ignored him: "Your Majesty, please get into the carriage!"
A man in black drew his sword and slashed at the old priest's neck.
Suddenly, a silver needle pierced through the thick rain curtain and swiftly struck the black-clad assassin's wrist!
The assassin in black felt a sharp pain in his wrist, and the longsword fell to the ground.
Seeing this, the others turned to look at Gu Jiao, and in the next instant, they swung their long swords at her.
The rain was torrential.
Gu Jiao weaved through the rain of swords. Several men attacked her, but Gu Jiao leaped forward, grabbed the head of one of the black-clad assassins, rolled over his back, and drew the sword from his waist, slicing a longsword that was swinging at her in half!
She gripped her sword, knelt on one knee, her eyes blazing, and exuded a terrifying killing intent!
These people were not as skilled as Chang Jing, and she quickly fought her way through them to the old lady's back.
However, just as he reached out to grab the old woman, a man in black placed a long sword against the old priest's neck: "Don't move! Or I'll kill him!"
Gu Jiao suddenly threw the dagger in her hand, smashing the man's longsword away. Gu Jiao then rushed forward a few steps, caught the dagger falling from mid-air, and kicked the man to his knees. She grabbed the man's hair and could slit his throat with just one slash!
Gu Jiao has been very restrained since she arrived here. She doesn't use weapons, only silver needles that don't draw blood, because blood excites her.
The Godfather said she was the perfect killing machine.
Probably.
She practiced medicine and performed surgeries not to save lives, but as a form of self-cultivation.
She needs to control her violence.
However, right now, her blade had already cut through the other person's skin, and fine blood trickled down the blade along with the rain.
The violent tendencies within Gu Jiao began to stir, and her hand gripping the dagger began to tremble uncontrollably.
She kills one, and then she kills the last.
"Jiaojiao".
Suddenly, the old lady took her hand, her palm, dull and wrinkled with age, enveloped her tender hand: "My dear, come to your great-aunt."
The sound was right beside my ear, yet it seemed to come from above the water, drifting and fading away.
"Jiaojiao".
"Jiaojiao".
The old lady called her name again and again.
Gu Jiao finally suppressed the violence in her blood. The redness in her eyes gradually faded. She turned her head and threw away the dagger in her hand: "Aunt, I'll take you home."
The old lady nodded: "Okay."
Grand Tutor Zhuang was so stunned by Gu Jiao's murderous aura that he completely forgot to speak up and stop her.
The men in black also looked at Gu Jiao with apprehension, pointing their swords at her while carefully avoiding her.
Her strength lies not only in her physical skills, but also in her aura that seems to want to kill everyone in the world, which is truly terrifying.
Therefore, even though Gu Jiao was currently following the old lady and obediently letting the old lady hold her hand, none of them dared to make any rash moves.
The unexpected happened the instant they turned to leave. The rain was so heavy that a dilapidated building in the alley could not withstand the onslaught. With a snap, the beam broke, and the huge roof tilted down, crashing down on Gu Jiao and the old lady.
Everything happened so fast that the old priest didn't even have time to rush over and push them away.
Gu Jiao's ears twitched, and she looked up. The huge roof pressed down like a glacier, and even she couldn't push it open. She turned around, protecting her aunt's waist with one hand and the back of her aunt's head with the other, and fell to the ground on her elbows.
She shielded her great-aunt with her body.
The old lady watched as the roof pressed down on Gu Jiao. Unable to push Gu Jiao away, she could only reach out and protect Gu Jiao's head.
She protected Gu Jiao's head, but couldn't protect herself; a wooden board suddenly smashed into her forehead!
"Empress Dowager—"
"Zhuang Jinse—"
A sharp pain shot through my head, as if a crack had opened deep within my mind, and countless strange yet familiar images, along with memories, surged forth.
"Jinse, tell your father what you want to be when you grow up?"
I want to be a bird!
"Why?"
"It can fly! That way I won't be stuck at home all the time!"
"Jinse, from today onwards, you are the Empress of the Great Zhao Kingdom."
"May the Empress and I live a long and happy life together, forever united in heart and soul."
"His Majesty is resting at Wanfu Palace. Your Majesty need not wait for His Majesty to admire the moon. His Majesty can come again on the first day of next month."
"Jinse...did you ever love me in this life?"
"Long live the Empress Dowager!"
(End of this chapter)
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