Chapter 170 Yuwen Hong's True Identity
Suppressing the turmoil in her heart, Su Luoxue immediately ordered, "Li Dehai, quickly and carefully carry Prince An back to the side hall of the Sizheng Hall, wipe his body with warm water, and change him into clean and warm clothes!"
"Fuling, summon two more imperial physicians to the Sizheng Hall. They must take good care of the patient and there must be no mistakes!"
Yuwen Hao still held onto Su Luoxue's hand with some fear, refusing to let go. "Mother..."
Su Luoxue gently comforted him, "Hao'er, be good, don't be afraid. Your mother and father will come to see you after they finish dealing with their business. Go change out of your wet clothes first, or you'll get sick." She then gestured to Li Dehai and Fuling, and the group carefully picked up Yuwen Hao and hurriedly left.
Han Ying remained kneeling in place, head bowed, his clenched fists revealing his inner humiliation and lingering fear.
Yuwen Che's cold gaze swept over the kneeling palace servants around him, finally landing on Han Ying: "Han Ying, get up."
Han Ying was taken aback, seemingly not expecting his lord to be so calm, but he still stood up as instructed, though his body remained tense.
Yuwen Che didn't look at him, but slowly raised his head, his gaze like a sharp sword shooting towards a seemingly empty shadowy corner of the Imperial Garden. His voice wasn't loud, but it carried a penetrating chill and an unquestionable authority:
"Night Shadow... You've had your fill of the show, why aren't you getting out here for me?"
Bai Xiao and Han Ying were both shocked and looked at Yuwen Che in disbelief. Even Su Luoxue looked at him in astonishment and subconsciously wanted to ask a question.
Yuwen Che pulled her behind him, shielding her with his body, his gaze still fixed on the shadow, his voice as cold as a knife:
"Night Shadow—does it mean that you will only appear if I call your name... Yuwen Hong?"
Upon hearing this, Bai Xiao and Han Ying instantly understood, and a terrifying killing intent erupted in their eyes!
With a flick of his wrist, Han Ying drew his soft sword from its sheath like a silver snake, emitting a buzzing sound. Bai Xiao also drew his soft sword, and together with Han Ying, they formed a protective triangle in front of Yuwen Che.
Not far away, from the shadows of the palace wall, a dark figure slowly emerged, landing on the ground like a ghost. The person raised their hand and slowly removed the Night Shadow Mask, a symbol of their identity as the leader of the Shadow Pavilion.
Then, to everyone's astonishment, he tore off a layer of human skin mask as thin as a cicada's wing, revealing a young face that resembled Yuwen Che by five or six points, but with a more effeminate and handsome appearance.
A half-smile curved his lips as he looked at Yuwen Che with a deep gaze, his voice carrying an eerie intimacy of a long-awaited reunion:
"Brother... how have you been? Nine years have passed, and your demeanor... is even more impressive than before."
Su Luoxue instinctively gripped the dragon robe on Yuwen Che's back, where he held her firmly.
Yuwen Che looked at that familiar yet unfamiliar face and let out a cold sneer: "Yuwen Hong... your life is tough enough. You survived nine years ago, and now you've learned to hide in the shadows like a rat."
His eyes were sharp as knives. "That fire at Guanju Palace... you ordered it to be set, didn't you?"
Yuwen Hong's gaze, however, bypassed him and landed on Su Luoxue, whom he was protecting tightly, with great interest. His tone was flippant: "Brother... this must be your sister-in-law, right? She is indeed a beauty that could topple kingdoms. No wonder she could make you so infatuated, even... willing to risk your life to travel all the way to Nanzhao for her."
Yuwen Che instantly unleashed a terrifying killing intent, his voice as cold as ice: "You...are...courting...death."
Yuwen Hong seemed to have heard something utterly ridiculous, letting out a series of low, gloating laughs that echoed through the empty imperial garden, carrying a chilling malice.
"Why is Your Majesty angry? Speaking of which, that day when the Guanju Palace caught fire, if Your Majesty hadn't returned so promptly, and things had been any slower..."
He paused meaningfully, his gaze sweeping over Su Luoxue again, his tone filled with blasphemy, "I, your humble servant, might actually... enjoy this beauty of my sister-in-law's for a while before sending her on her way."
Yuwen Che's eyes turned cold, and he was about to take action himself when the cold shadow behind him could no longer suppress the raging anger and killing intent in his chest!
"Yuwen Hong! Traitor! How dare you desecrate Her Majesty the Empress! Prepare to die—!" Han Ying shouted fiercely, her soft sword transforming into a silver lightning bolt, aimed straight at Yuwen Hong's face!
A hint of surprise flashed in Yuwen Hong's eyes, as if he hadn't expected Han Ying to dare to make the first move, but he reacted very quickly, twisting his body strangely to avoid the sword's edge.
He slapped Han Ying's wrist with a backhand, and the two instantly became entangled in a fierce battle, with sword light and palm shadows clashing and energy overflowing!
Upon seeing this, Yuwen Che immediately shielded Su Luoxue, who was trembling slightly in his arms, and quickly retreated several steps to create a safe distance.
Seeing that Han Ying was unable to defeat Yuwen Hong for the time being, Bai Xiao's eyes sharpened. He no longer cared about the rules of one-on-one combat and shouted, "Why waste words with him!"
With a flick of his soft sword, like a venomous snake emerging from its hole, he aimed straight for Yuwen Hong's vulnerable ribs from the side!
Yuwen Hong was attacked from both sides, and the pressure increased sharply. Although he was highly skilled in martial arts and his moves were strange and ruthless, he was suddenly overwhelmed and in danger under the combined attack of Han Ying and Bai Xiao, two top masters.
However, he managed to barely withstand their fierce attacks by relying on his strange movements and profound skills!
While struggling to defend himself, he still managed to spare a moment to give a mocking sneer to Yuwen Che, who was watching coldly from a distance:
"Outnumbering the weak? Your Majesty, your dogs... they really don't know any rules as always!"
Han Ying's swordplay grew even fiercer as he roared, "Traitor! Cease your arrogance!"
As Bai Xiao made his move, he sneered, "If the late emperor knew that the person he risked his life to send away was such a worthless fool, he would probably be turning in his grave and want to clean house!"
Yuwen Che looked at Yuwen Hong, who was in a sorry state but still able to hold on despite being attacked by the two men. His eyes were filled with murderous intent, and he wished he could personally go forward and tear him to pieces.
But he still retained his rationality. Xue'er was defenseless and right next to him. If he were to leave, even for a moment, Yuwen Hong, that cunning man, could take advantage of the situation. He couldn't risk putting Xue'er in danger, so he tightened his grip on Su Luoxue.
Without further hesitation, he shouted in a deep voice, "Mo Ying! Take him down!"
Before the words were even finished, a dark figure appeared out of thin air, faster than Han Ying and Bai Xiao! Everyone only saw a blur before their eyes, and Mo Ying had already entered the battle, his figure as ghostly as a phantom and his attacks as swift as lightning.
With a few muffled thuds, Yuwen Hong, who had been barely holding on, was kicked away like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily to the ground and spitting out a mouthful of blood!
Mo Ying had already withdrawn his stance and stood silently in front of Yuwen Che, like the most loyal shadow, bowing his head and saying, "My lord."
Yuwen Hong clutched his aching chest, staring incredulously at the unfathomable figure in black, coughing up blood as he hissed, "Brother... heh... I didn't expect... you had... quite a few loyal dogs hidden around you..."
Yuwen Che looked down at him, his eyes cold as if he were looking at a dead man: "You infiltrated the Shadow Pavilion, and you naively thought... that the Shadow Pavilion was my only backup plan? Yuwen Hong, you and your short-sighted mother are the same, you will never... see the real situation."
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