73 Betrayal
"I have no intention of betraying you."
A series of orderly footsteps suddenly came from outside the stone chamber, interrupting Ying Jianhua's deep thoughts.
At first, he thought it was the emperor who had finally shown himself. But then he realized something was wrong.
There was more than one person; there were more than five people present.
Sure enough, the next moment, ten masked men in black entered the room, sealing off the walls tightly and leaving no gaps.
Grand Eunuch Hu: "Please calm down. Things have been rather unsettled in the capital these past few days. These people were specially sent by His Majesty to protect you."
Consort Li turned pale instantly, as if recalling a bad memory: "Indeed, many strange things have been happening lately. Ever since giving birth to the Fifth Prince, I've been having bizarre dreams every night, dreaming that an orchid is talking to me. Isn't that strange? How can an orchid speak? It's not a demon..."
After saying that, she immediately realized her mistake, glanced nervously at the two guards standing behind her, and fell silent.
Upon hearing this, Ying Jianhua turned her gaze to her and uttered her first question: "Does Your Majesty experience any other discomfort after giving birth?"
Lady Hou chimed in, "Young Master Mo's medical skills are superb. Once, when I fainted, he cured me with acupuncture. Even Physician Lin praised him highly."
Upon hearing this, Consort Li's eyes lit up, and she quickly said, "That's wonderful. Actually, it's not a big deal, it's just that... I'm often troubled by dreams at night and often can't sleep."
Hu Dajian also said, "Coincidentally, this old servant has the same problem."
Grand Tutor Sun, standing to the side, remained silent, only nodding slightly in agreement.
"Do they all have symptoms of dreaming?" He looked at Madam Hou and received an affirmative look.
People who consume the "elixir" will have bizarre dreams.
He asked, "There are many reasons for recurring dreams, such as the common saying that what you think about during the day, you dream about at night. I wonder what Your Majesty dreams about?"
Consort Li pondered for a moment, then hesitated and said, "I can't remember very clearly. But that orchid kept appearing, making it impossible for me to forget it."
"Only one plant?"
Taken aback by his question, Consort Li was stunned. Suddenly, a thought struck her: "No, there are actually two! Could there be another story behind the two orchids?"
Ying Jianhua nodded: "I think it must be a dream about the pregnancy. Perhaps Your Majesty will be pregnant again soon."
"Really?" Consort Li was overjoyed and raised her hand to reward him, but found that her maids and eunuchs were not by her side.
She grumbled softly, "When will I be able to see His Majesty?"
As soon as the words were spoken, the Imperial Guards, who had been standing silently behind the crowd like a wall, suddenly knelt on one knee and shouted in unison, "Your Majesty."
His Majesty?
Ying Jianhua looked around, but before he could even admire the sky, a cold wind blew by, and the once bright and clear lighthouse went out in an instant.
The wind lingered beside his ear, yet he felt no pulse or heartbeat of any living being, only to hear Eunuch Hu announce, "The Emperor has arrived—"
Then everyone shouted in unison. Ying Jianhua was stunned for a moment, and after being reminded by Madam Hou, she knelt down stiffly.
"No need for formalities. We're all family, why stand on ceremony?"
The emperor's tone was warm and familiar, but his Imperial Guards acted with cold-blooded ruthlessness. They stepped forward from the left and right, parting the crowd, and silently pressed two knives against the sides of his neck.
The cold blade grazed her hair, and Consort Li couldn't help but scream. Eunuch Hu panicked completely, stammering, "Your Majesty, what...what do you mean by this?"
Even Grand Tutor Sun was so startled that he dropped his cup, spilling tea all over the floor. Only Lady Hou remained calm and unmoved.
The emperor smiled and said, "There's no need to panic. I've said before that family members don't need to stand on ceremony."
“But—” he changed his tone abruptly, his words chilling and icy, “I fear that some people may betray my trust.”
The blade flashed with a cold light, and the five people were pinned to the spot, unable to move.
The painting should be a picture of thoughts racing through one's mind.
The emperor certainly trusted the other four men. But what about him?
He didn't think the emperor would readily believe someone based on a few flawed words, especially since Du Zhijin had been lured away from the mountain, indicating that the emperor was wary of them.
What roles did he and Du Zhijin play in this game?
In an instant, a flash of inspiration struck him. The only difference between him and everyone else present was that he had never taken any elixirs and would not be possessed by demons.
Seemingly confirming his suspicions, the emperor spoke again in the darkness, saying to him, "Young Master Ying, your father was once my closest friend, and I trusted you the most. Tell me, who among them is the traitor?"
Titled "Who is the Traitor?", it is actually "Who is Possessed?"
The knife that had been resting on his neck loosened, replaced by three piercing gazes.
Hu Dajian knelt down with a thud and crawled a few steps toward him, only to be stopped by the guard's sword.
His voice trembled as he sobbed, "Little Ying, you know that before I came here, I said many things to you! Those words can prove my loyalty to His Majesty! I am innocent!"
Consort Li was still out of her mind, repeatedly calling the Emperor "Your Majesty" incoherently, and weeping bitterly.
Grand Tutor Sun did not testify to Ying Jianhua. He and Lady Hou remained silent, but Lady Hou's silence stemmed from her awareness of her inability to reverse the situation, while Grand Tutor Sun was torn between the pros and cons.
No matter how he tried to think in the manner of the imperial court, he could never have imagined that he was in danger because of a single medicine.
After his eyes adjusted to the sudden darkness, Ying Jianhua was able to see vaguely. He scanned the four people on the ground, taking in their expressions of despair, panic, or paleness, and finally, his gaze slowly settled on the "person".
All I could see was an outline.
Noticing him watching, the emperor moved his head and asked, "Is there anyone suitable for the position of Director of Painting, Ying?"
The men watched him like a dying man desperately seeking a lifeline, their eyes glued to him, not wanting to miss a single detail. He shook his head: "This humble subject is not skilled in this art and dares not speak presumptuously."
"However, my friend might be willing to give it a try."
"Oh?" The emperor became interested. "Is it that Ouyang Muzhou?"
When did she adopt such a pseudonym?
"......yes."
The emperor shook his head: "It's a pity, she took her leave half an hour ago."
He's lying. Du Zhijin would never leave without saying goodbye. The emperor's words are nothing more than the lowest level of sowing discord.
He readily accepted the suggestion: "In my humble opinion, Your Excellency Eleven and Your Excellency Twelve are capable of undertaking this task."
"Well, that's unfortunate. They both have other missions."
At this point, it should be clear that Du Zhijin was stuck on the eleventh and twelfth paintings. He glanced around calmly, then suddenly stopped.
Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen... six, five, four.
There are no numbers one through three.
————
The iron blade dodged the sword wind, then, like a vine breaking through the soil, changed its dodge into an attack, quickly catching up with the sword's momentum. A drop of blood, whose identity was unknown, clung to the tip of the Awakening Moon Sword, particularly conspicuous in the dim environment, like a sun hanging in the sky.
The sun streaked across the sky, its golden light blazing. Du Zhijin spun around to dodge the blade from behind, simultaneously thrusting out Drunken Mist with his left hand. His movements were fluid and graceful, as if he had eyes on the back of his head.
Despite being attacked from both sides, she showed no fear and remained calm and composed.
For a moment, Twelve was in a daze, his hand holding the sword frozen in mid-air. Du Zhijin seized the opening and struck the hilt of the sword with his sword, causing him to stagger.
"Excuse me." She tossed out a completely unapology, then leaped into the air, swords wielded in both hands, slashing down at Eleven from above. With Awakening Moon in front and Drunken Mist behind, the two swords were inseparable, merging into one without the wearer's will. With a crisp metallic clang, fine cracks appeared on Eleven's mask. She instinctively covered her face with her hands, seemingly afraid of being seen. Du Zhijin had no time to care about the face beneath her mask; he recalled his sword and ran away.
However, she took a step forward and then turned back the next moment.
With his two swords held horizontally in front of him, Du Zhijin's eyes reflected the figures of three people.
The leader had a single embroidered mark on his chest.
Damn it, I underestimated them.
She never expected that the special mission mentioned by Twelve would be to intercept her, and she never expected that the emperor would be able to spare troops to deal with her at such a critical moment.
Du Zhijin was very anxious. Because this precisely proved that things were indeed as she had thought.
The emperor needed to consume a demon pill to achieve immortality, and the second orchid became his target.
The possessing demon thought it had driven the emperor into a corner, but little did it know that the mantis stalked the cicada unaware of the oriole behind, and the emperor had also woven a trap for it.
But that person originally intended to "live as long as the sun and moon," and killed more than a dozen people. How could the emperor kill only one demon?
What's frightening is that, besides the second orchid, Amo is also his target.
Thinking of this, Du Zhijin's mind cleared, and he acted without hesitation. Xingyue and Zuilan were as light as clouds, but in reality, they moved like thunder. The slender sword light carried a killing intent that could shake the sea and mountains.
The three opponents were clearly more skilled than Eleven and Twelve, and their teamwork was impeccable. As the two swords attacked, they remained calm, their movements perfectly synchronized as they simultaneously drew their blades.
Near the dragon vein, the magic array became increasingly tight, preventing the use of many sword techniques, leaving only the most primitive and simple moves. But over the past ten years, she had never slacked off, and as a result, her sword had never been defeated.
The two blades, pointing in the same direction, were unstoppable. The three swords, like a row of continuous mountains, formed an impregnable wall.
She gritted her teeth.
They couldn't do anything to her, and likewise, she couldn't harm them in a short time. If this continued, what about Amo...?
"You can leave now."
Just when she was at her wit's end, Twelve's voice rang out behind her.
Du Zhijin was stunned and looked at him incredulously: "You..." "You and me."
Seemingly finding it difficult to speak, after a moment, Twelve swallowed the blood foam in his mouth and continued, "We are friends."
"Leave it to me. You can go."
He repeated himself, then gently nudged her, signaling her to go first.
Du Zhijin glanced back at the three expressionless men, then at his slightly trembling wrist, and finally weighed the pros and cons.
The claim of living as long as the sun and moon was a hoax; the person who claimed it eventually went mad and became a scourge to the region. If the emperor had also fallen into this madness, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
Finally, she gripped her sword tightly and said to him, "Wait for me."
I will definitely come back to save you.
Twelve smiled and watched her leave.
"Twelve, you have betrayed your master." Number One witnessed the entire process and coldly pronounced the verdict.
"According to the law, he should be beheaded."
Facing three identical longswords, Twelve showed no fear whatsoever.
He tied the emerald green sword tassels to the hilt of his sword, lingered over them with affection, and then looked up at his former companions.
"I have no intention of betraying you."
[Author's Note]
I've been rushing to catch the high-speed train these past two days, so I've been a bit busy.orz
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