Chapter 92 Elopement
In the end, Lin Xiao did not choose to take Chen Panyan with him.
He once said, "A princess is a princess, and Mingyue is Mingyue. Since she is Mingyue, he would never take her away."
She should have been high in the sky.
*
The Imperial Palace in the capital.
Shadow finished his shift for the day, left the Imperial Study, returned to his room, and pushed open the door. In an instant, a familiar yet unfamiliar figure appeared before his eyes.
“You…” Shadow paused for a moment, then slammed the door shut and scrutinized him from head to toe for a long time. “An Jiu?”
Lin Xiao bowed and said, "Your subordinate greets the leader."
After the ceremony, he straightened up. "An Jiu is dead. My name is Lin Xiao. You can call me Lin Xiao, leader."
In a moment, Shadow realized something and laughed angrily, "Since you're not Dark Nine, what are you doing here?"
He looked at him coldly, "You betrayed His Majesty, yet you dare to come before me, An Jiu..."
“My name isn’t An Jiu, it’s Lin Xiao. Leader, please don’t get my name wrong.” Lin Xiao interrupted him again, getting straight to the point, “I want to see His Majesty, please help me, Leader.”
"You want to see His Majesty?!" Shadow's eyes were filled with disbelief as he sized him up. "You, a traitorous bodyguard, want to see His Majesty? Do you think you can die too easily?"
"Have you forgotten the rules of the Dark Guard Camp?"
Lin Xiao hadn't forgotten, but he had to do it, and could only do it. "I know."
Shadow sat down, poured himself a cup of tea, and said calmly, "Since you know, then you also know that I will not help you see His Majesty. Lin Xiao, you betrayed His Majesty and left the Dark Guard Camp, so you are my enemy."
"For the sake of our past camaraderie, you should kill yourself. That way, I can leave you with a whole corpse."
Lin Xiao had already known that the leader wouldn't agree so quickly. "Then I'll have to offend you, leader."
Lin Xiao's attacks were swift and fierce, and An Ying was no less so. The two wielded daggers, and their moves were sharp and deadly.
Lin Xiao possessed exceptional lightness skills, his figure vanishing and reappearing like a ghost. Each time he appeared, he aimed directly at the vital points, striking with extreme ruthlessness. Shadow was no match for him and was forced to retreat steadily.
The tables and chairs inside were broken, and the shadowy figure couldn't catch Lin Xiao, so he could only defend passively. Although Lin Xiao seemed to have the upper hand, he had lost too much blood and was weak. He couldn't maintain the upper hand forever. Once the shadowy figure found an opening, he would surely die.
Therefore, he must act quickly.
However, Shadow was no pushover and was not someone he could easily defeat. The two were locked in a stalemate, neither able to gain the upper hand.
Lin Xiao forced himself to remain calm, not wanting An Ying to notice his weakness.
Suddenly, the shadow revealed a very obvious flaw, and Lin Xiao's eyes flickered.
Knowing it was a trap, he still stepped into it without hesitation.
Almost instantly, he let out a muffled groan. Even though he had avoided his fatal wounds, he was still seriously injured.
Blood dripped from his shoulder; just a hair's breadth away from slicing through his neck and killing him instantly.
However, he didn't lose either.
To deceive a master like him, the flaws revealed by Shadow could only be real and effective. In the blink of an eye, Shadow was subdued by Lin Xiao. The dagger fell, but Lin Xiao kicked it away. As Shadow watched the dagger in Lin Xiao's hand heading towards his heart, Shadow's pupils shrank slightly.
Shadow thought Lin Xiao would kill him, but he didn't expect Lin Xiao to stop, only restrain him and give him a muscle-weakening powder, making him unable to use his internal energy.
Without internal energy, no matter how skilled Shadow is, he is no match for Lin Xiao.
Watching Lin Xiao slowly and methodically treat his injuries with bandages and ointment from his room, An Ying was completely baffled. "You went through all this trouble just to catch me?"
After saying that, he sighed, "As expected of the best secret guard in the secret guard camp, even though I taught you, your strength has long surpassed mine."
When faced with a threat to their life, even if they don't want to, their bodies will instinctively back down. But Lin Xiao is different. When faced with his own life or death, he doesn't hesitate and goes straight for his target. Such a bodyguard is the most effective weapon.
It's a pity that he betrayed His Majesty.
Shadow sighed regretfully, "You mean you, Shadow..."
"I've told you so many times, leader, my name is Lin Xiao, don't call me An Jiu."
He doesn't like the name.
Shadow touched his nose. "Alright."
"Lin Xiao, since you faked your death and escaped the Dark Guard Camp, why did you come back?"
This is something he can't understand.
Lin Xiao treated his wounds.
"Because I want to appear openly and honestly beside someone, to become her consort, her husband."
Embrace her with an open and aboveboard identity, and become someone who walks hand in hand with her.
His Highness gave him courage, allowing him to face this matter without fear.
Shadow thought he had misheard. "What did you say? Whose prince consort do you want to be? Whose husband?"
The guards in the Dark Guard Camp do not get married unless they are injured and leave the Dark Guard Camp, thus returning to the light, at which point they have the opportunity to marry and have children.
However, most of the bodyguards wouldn't live to see that day, and even if they successfully retired, they might not get married.
They have grown accustomed to darkness, to bloodshed, and to obeying orders, and have forgotten how to interact with women. They will only marry someone to complete their mission if ordered by His Majesty in order to successfully infiltrate enemy territory.
Therefore, most bodyguards die alone.
Right now, upon suddenly hearing Lin Xiao say that he wanted to get married, An Ying was so shocked that his mind couldn't process it.
Lin Xiao answered him calmly, "It is Princess Mingyue."
shadow:"???"
shadow:"!!!"
"Princess Mingyue?!"
Shadow was surprised and scrutinized him for a while. Seeing his cold and indifferent expression, she seemed to realize something. "So, you faked your death and left the Dark Guard Camp to see Princess Mingyue?"
"You like Princess Mingyue?"
Lin Xiao made no attempt to hide his feelings for His Highness, "Yes, I love Your Highness."
"I want to be her husband, her prince consort."
To do this, it is unavoidable to see His Majesty.
“You…” Shadow was completely shocked. He was used to Lin Xiao’s decisive, ruthless and cold demeanor, and he could never have imagined that he would be the kind of person who would disregard everything for love.
Shadow paused for a moment, then said, "I'll just ask you one question: Did you betray His Majesty?"
Lin Xiao: "No."
"I will always be loyal to the royal family."
He was raised from childhood to be a loyal servant of the royal family; loyalty is his instinct, and he will always be loyal to the royal family, not to mention that his princess is a royal princess.
He would never betray the royal family.
Shadow pondered for a moment, then said, "Alright, I'll take you to see His Majesty."
"However, you should think carefully. Once you go to see His Majesty, you will not be able to hide the fact that you faked your death and escaped from the Dark Guard Camp. His Majesty will definitely be furious."
"I know." Lin Xiao cupped his hands in thanks. "Thank you, Chief."
*
When Emperor Gan Ning saw the shadow suddenly appear, he thought the shadow had something to report, but when the shadow said that An Jiu requested an audience with His Majesty, he was taken aback.
"Just let him come out."
Emperor Gan Ning was quite lenient with his subordinates.
Unexpectedly, Shadow shook his head, "Your Majesty, the Shadow Nine I'm referring to isn't the current Shadow Nine, but the Shadow Nine from before."
"The old An Jiu?" Emperor Gan Ning frowned. "Wasn't he dead?"
As if realizing something, Emperor Gan Ning's face gradually darkened. "He faked his death and betrayed me?"
He said coldly, "Let him in."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The shadow vanished in an instant, and Lin Xiao pushed open the door to the Imperial Study and entered, kneeling and kowtowing. "Your Majesty, I have seen you. I left the Dark Guard Camp without Your Majesty's permission. Please punish me."
An Jiu used to be by his side often, so Emperor Gan Ning was somewhat familiar with him. Emperor Gan Ning's gaze fell on him, his eyes neither too strong nor too weak, his voice calm, "Since you know you were wrong, then commit suicide. Considering your past loyalty, I am willing to give you a complete corpse."
He was nothing more than a traitorous bodyguard. No matter what his reasons were, the moment he entered, he was already a dead man.
Lin Xiao calmly replied, "Your Majesty, I regret that I cannot comply."
Emperor Gan Ning finally looked at him seriously: "Oh? Give me a reason."
His voice was unreadable, "Since the founding of Zhaoyan Kingdom, apart from the secret guards who were captured and forced to reveal the truth, you are the first secret guard to voluntarily defect from the secret guard camp."
"I am already showing you mercy by granting you a complete corpse, An Jiu. Your ambition is too great."
Lin Xiao felt no fear in the face of the emperor's calm and suppressed rage.
Emperor Gan Ning will not kill him, whether it is because of what he is about to say or because of His Highness.
As long as His Highness remains afflicted by the Gu poison and still needs his blood, Emperor Gan Ning will not let him die.
"Your Majesty, I have not betrayed the royal family. After faking my death and leaving the Dark Guard Camp, I have been in the capital and by Princess Mingyue's side."
"I have come here today to ask Your Majesty for a favor on one matter."
Emperor Gan Ning was amused by his words, "You faked your death to escape the Dark Guard and now you want to ask me for favors?"
He grabbed the memorial and slammed it down on him, yelling, "Have you eaten the heart of a wolf or the gall of a leopard? How dare you ask me for favors!"
Talented people are rare, let alone a powerful expert like An Jiu; he cherishes him.
But he never expected that An Jiu would betray him.
It's bad enough that he faked his death and betrayed us, but now he even dares to come back and ask us for favors.
Emperor Gan Ning suppressed his anger. "What is it? And what does this have to do with Mingyue?"
Linxiao: "Back to Your Majesty..."
As he listened to Lin Xiao's words, Emperor Gan Ning's face grew darker and darker... until he stopped speaking and the entire room fell silent.
In an instant, a furious shout echoed throughout the entire palace, "How dare you!!"
"Guards, seize him!"
Princess's Residence.
After being rejected by Lin Xiao, Shen Panyan was not disappointed for long. She believed that as long as she persisted, Lin Xiao would agree.
Just like how persistent he was with her back then, she never expected that Lin Xiao would disappear the very next day.
At the same time, Eunuch Deyuan also arrived in a hurry and summoned her to the palace.
Shen Panyan's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly asked, "Eunuch Deyuan, what does Father want to see me about?"
Eunuch Deyuan looked at her with complicated emotions. How could the princess, who used to be the most timid, now dare to do something so audacious?
"Princess, the young master of the Gu family has come to the palace, saying that you want to elope with an unknown nobody."
"His Majesty is angry."
Upon hearing this, Shen Panyan nearly fainted. "Gu Jinyan is talking nonsense! Father, you can't believe what he says..."
Eunuch Deyuan sighed, "Princess, whether His Majesty believes it or not, that secret guard has already been arrested."
"You'd better think carefully about how to explain this to His Majesty!"
Upon learning that Lin Xiao had been captured, Shen Panyan staggered and almost fainted. Zhu Zhi quickly supported her, saying worriedly, "Princess!"
Suppressing her fear, Shen Panyan spoke rapidly, "I'm fine. Quickly, go to the palace! I need to see my father!"
She was going to save Lin Xiao.
Grandpa Deyuan said he was arrested, which means he is not in any immediate danger.
But the fact that his life is not in danger does not mean he will not be punished.
She must rescue him from her father as soon as possible.
Shen Panyan hurriedly mounted her horse, urging it along the way. Upon arriving at the palace, she lifted the hem of her skirt and rushed towards the imperial study.
Before she could even inform her subordinates, Shen Panyan rushed in, knelt down, and begged, "Father, this is all Mingyue's fault, it has nothing to do with Anjiu, please release him!"
Her voice choked with sobs, "Father, it was all Mingyue's idea. Mingyue knows she was wrong. It was Mingyue who wished he would take her away. He didn't agree to Mingyue's request. It has nothing to do with him. Father! Please have mercy and release him!"
Emperor Gan Ning stopped writing his imperial edict, looked up at her, and said in a deep voice, "Mingyue, you really have a lot of nerve!"
Shen Panyan flinched, but she suppressed her fear and stubbornly said, "I beg Father Emperor for mercy. This is all Mingyue's fault, it has nothing to do with him!"
Emperor Gan Ning laughed in anger, "None of his business?"
They've all come to him begging for the position of imperial son-in-law, and you still say it's irrelevant?
However, Emperor Gan Ning did not reveal that An Jiu had already been there, but said coldly, "He betrayed me, and I will never let him go."
Shen Panyan knelt and looked up at him, "Father, Mingyue made him do all of this. He didn't mean to do it. He has always been loyal to you, and he has completed the tasks you assigned him perfectly. Apart from this matter, he has never disobeyed your orders. Father, please spare him!!"
"Impossible." Emperor Gan Ning resolutely refused. "Without rules, there can be no order. If I were to let An Jiu off so easily after he has done such a thing, wouldn't everyone under me be able to do the same?"
Shen Panyan pleaded, "Father, I beg you, Mingyue has asked you for very few things in his life, but this is the only one: please spare him!"
Emperor Gan Ning couldn't understand why a princess would fall for a bodyguard and even elope with him.
"Mingyue, do you know what you're doing?"
“You are the princess of Zhaoyan Kingdom, my princess, a noble golden branch and jade leaf, but what about him? He is just a secret guard, of lowly status. What is it about him that you love, that you would even elope with him just to be with him!”
"You married him as a wife, then eloped as a concubine! You gave up being a princess to elope with him, do you even know that?! You're becoming someone's concubine! And a concubine of someone of such lowly status!"
Emperor Gan Ning was furious about this matter.
Shen Panyan trembled as he rebuked her, but she could not back down, for if she did, Lin Xiao would die.
She bit her lip. "But Father, didn't Mother also abandon everything to return to the palace with you?"
"Lin Xiao is fine. He's not like what you say, Father. Apart from his low status, there's nothing wrong with Lin Xiao. Please, please release him..."
Emperor Gan Ning, enraged, laughed and interrupted her, "What is my status? What was your mother's status back then? How can you confuse the two? You are a princess!!"
"I will never let him go. I summoned you here today to tell you that I will never agree to this. From now on, you will stay in the Princess's residence peacefully. Before the marriage, you are not allowed to leave the residence without my permission."
"Deyuan, escort Princess Mingyue back to her residence!"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Deyuan bowed and approached Shen Panyan. "Princess, please!"
Shen Panyan shook her head, "I won't leave, Father, please spare him!"
Emperor Gan Ning didn't even glance at her. "Someone, help the princess down."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Two palace maids came out. "Princess, we apologize for our offense!"
"Father, I beg you to release Lin Xiao! I beg you to release him! This matter truly has nothing to do with him, I beg you!!"
Shen Panyan struggled, but she was already weak and could not break free from the restraints of the two palace maids.
Shen Panyan was forcibly helped up from the ground by two palace maids and escorted out of the imperial study.
Shen Panyan tried to go back in, but the door was slammed shut. Panyan panicked and pounded on the door, her palms turning red from the effort. "Father, Father, Mingyue begs you, please spare him, Father!!"
No one paid any attention to her.
The door was being banged on loudly!
"Father, Mingyue begs you, please!! It's all Mingyue's fault, please forgive him, please forgive him!! Father!!"
"Father!!"
No matter how much Shen Panyan pleaded outside the door, Emperor Gan Ning remained unmoved.
He sipped his tea, his brows furrowed in a deep expression.
He spared An Jiu's life not because of Ming Yue's pleas, but because he couldn't refuse the condition An Jiu offered.
Recently, Zhaoyan Kingdom has been in turmoil. Enemy countries, seeing an opportunity to profit, have repeatedly harassed the border, attempting to provoke war between the two countries. Zhaoyan Kingdom has suffered from natural disasters in the past two years and is short of food supplies. Even if war breaks out, the chances of winning are slim. Emperor Gan Ning is already overwhelmed with this matter. However, An Jiu said that he would infiltrate the enemy country, take the heads of the enemy's pro-war faction and the enemy's most skilled general, and bring them back to Zhaoyan Kingdom. At that time, the initiative in this war will fall into the hands of Zhaoyan Kingdom.
Emperor Gan Ning had no objection to this matter.
If Dark Nine fails his mission, he will not suffer any loss, and the situation on the border will not be worse than it is now. The only difference is that Dark Nine will die.
The secret guard who betrayed his master deserved to die.
As for his success, which would offset his mistakes, Emperor Gan Ning was not one to treat meritorious officials so harshly. He could promise to spare his life and bestow him upon Mingyue to become her bodyguard. However, he wanted to become the emperor's son-in-law.
Don't even think about it!
However, Mingyue must not know about this.
She, a princess, fell in love with a lowly bodyguard, and even eloped with him to be with him... Just thinking about it made Emperor Gan Ning smash the teacup in his hand to the ground.
If he hadn't already promised An Jiu that he could stay by Mingyue's side, he would have sent him far away by now, banished him from Zhaoyan Kingdom, and never allowed him to return to the country again.
Emperor Gan Ning suppressed his anger and said, "Shadow."
A figure appeared quickly and respectfully said, "Your subordinate is here."
"Tell An Jiu to leave the capital. I'm giving him two months. If he fails to complete the mission within two months, he shouldn't come back."
Shadow: "Yes, Your Majesty."
The shadow disappeared.
Emperor Gan Ning looked at De Yuan and said, "De Yuan, go and tell Ming Yue that no matter how much she makes a fuss, I will never agree to it."
He would never allow Mingyue to fall in love with a bodyguard; he had to cut off her feelings.
"Tell Mingyue that if she causes any more trouble, I will immediately have her killed."
"If she behaves well, I might consider whether to spare her life."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Shen Panyan stood outside the door, her hands red and swollen from clapping, her voice hoarse. Emperor Gan Ning still showed no sign of opening the door, and despair welled up in her heart.
She simply fell in love with someone, but because of his low status, she couldn't be with him, and even had to kill him. Why? Why is that?
Shen Panyan's body gradually went limp and she collapsed in front of the door, unable to stop sobbing.
If Father wants to kill him, why not kill her too?
She was only able to live because of his blood, so if he were to kill her, what difference would that make from killing her?
Suddenly, a creaking sound came.
Eunuch Deyuan came out and looked at Shen Panyan, who was slumped on the ground, and advised, "Princess, His Majesty just said that if you continue to make a fuss like this, he will immediately order his death."
"If you behave yourself, His Majesty might consider sparing his life."
You should just give up!
give up?
The smoke from the cigarette burned down my lips, leaving a bitter taste.
How could she give up? In her entire life, there was no one but him, and only him. For him, she was even willing to give up her status as a princess. Why would she give up?
Lin Xiao was willing to give everything for her, even his own life, so why couldn't she...? A decision gradually formed in her heart...
Shen Panyan got up from the ground, looked at Eunuch Deyuan, and bowed to him. "Please tell Father Emperor that if Father Emperor still cherishes Mingyue and remembers the promise made by Mingyue's mother before she left, hoping that Mingyue is safe and happy, then please let Linxiao go."
“If Father Emperor disagrees and insists on taking his life, then Mingyue will not live on alone in this world.”
“Mingyue was already poisoned by Gu. If it weren’t for him, Mingyue would have died long ago.”
"I like him, and I will only like him." Shen Panyan said firmly, word by word, "I don't want to marry Gu Jinyan. The only person I want is him, and I will only be with him."
"We may be born at different times, but we can die at the same time."
Eunuch Deyuan: "This..."
Just as Eunuch Deyuan was in a dilemma, Emperor Ganning's voice, suppressing his anger, rang out, "Are you threatening me?"
Shen Panyan knelt down, head bowed, "Mingyue dares not."
"Mingyue just wants to tell Father that love is hard to come by in this world. Father, you have lost Mother, so you should understand the heart-wrenching pain. For Mingyue, he is Mingyue's everything."
"Without him, Mingyue naturally lost the courage to live."
"You..." Emperor Gan Ning's beard trembled with rage, "I truly regret sending a secret guard to watch over you when you were at the royal villa. If I had known this would happen, I shouldn't have..."
“But Father, there is no such thing as knowing this in advance.”
Shen Panyan kept her head down, respectful and obedient, with a firm attitude. "Father, what's done is done. Either you let him go and allow him to be with Mingyue, or you watch Mingyue go to the Yellow Springs and then reunite with him."
Emperor Gan Ning's forehead veins throbbed. "What is it about him that you're so obsessed with? Why would you give up a perfectly good noble young master and imperial consort to be with a bodyguard?"
"A noble young master and imperial son-in-law?"
Shen Panyan smiled and shook her head. "Father, you only think Gu Jinyan has a good status, but do you know what he did to Mingyue?"
"He drugged Mingyue and had a concubine before they were even married. Father, do you think such a person is worthy of Mingyue entrusting her life to?"
"On the contrary, it is Lin Xiao, whom you consider to be of lowly status, who has repeatedly saved Mingyue from danger and is even willing to give his own life for her."
“Mingyue rarely had happy moments in her life, but after Father Emperor came, Mingyue became brave. The days she spent with him were the happiest days she ever had.”
“Father, Mingyue is not stupid. I know very well who is good to me and who is not.”
"What Mingyue wants is simply to be with the person she loves, regardless of their status."
Emperor Gan Ning did not speak, but turned and left.
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