Taking them down now would be a piece of cake!
Even now, the young master of the noble family still believed in this.
Meanwhile, his elder sister, Consort Cui, was waiting for his good news at the Cui family residence.
Today is the wedding day of both Prince Jing and Prince Xuan. She had told the emperor long ago that she would go out of the palace to deliver congratulatory gifts to the two princes.
With Empress Shen gone, Consort Cui now in charge of the harem, so her request was perfectly reasonable. The emperor had no reason to refuse and even ordered the Ministry of Rites to obey her and prepare whatever congratulatory gifts she wanted.
However, after Consort Cui left the palace, she used the excuse of visiting her family. But when she arrived at her family home, she "fell ill" and had to send her maidservant to deliver the congratulatory gifts. She herself did not appear.
She sent someone back to the palace to inform the emperor that she had fallen ill.
The emperor even arranged for a royal physician to examine her pulse, and Consort Cui took the opportunity to act as if she was seriously ill and unfit to return to the palace.
All of these actions were aimed at killing Yun Zhuo tonight, so she could quickly obtain information.
She wasn't worried when the imperial physician arrived; he could testify that she was recuperating at the Cui residence when Yun Zhuo was killed.
Behind the back of the imperial physician, Consort Cui, her brother, and her father had all discussed the matter. The Ninth Prince was now highly regarded by the emperor and was clearly being groomed as the crown prince.
The hatred between the Ninth Prince and Princess Jing, Ye Qingxue, had reached the point of irreconcilable enmity.
Cui Yan, the father of the Cui family, said at the time: "Since we are going to seize the throne, tonight is the best time to make our move. The defenses will be weakest on the day of Prince Jing's wedding. We can hire assassins outside without alerting anyone!"
Cui Yan's support for his daughter and nephew was naturally intended to help the Cui family achieve even greater success in the future.
The most urgent task is to get rid of Yun Zhuo!
“Prince Jing was once the crown prince. He was deposed, and he must be resentful. He will make a comeback. It would be best to eliminate him before he gains power. It’s just a pity that he chose to get married at such a crucial moment,” Cui Yan said.
So, Consort Cui continued to stay at the Cui family home to "recuperate," while Cui Yan and his youngest son spent a fortune to hire assassins from the martial arts world.
After nightfall, the father and daughter waited in the study for news from the Prince Jing's residence brought by their servants.
"The bride has entered the house smoothly, and the banquet at Prince Jing's residence has begun."
"His Highness Prince Jing is in a very good mood tonight; he's drunk."
"Our men have made their move, storming straight into the main hall. Prince Jing is doomed."
"Very good, very good!" Cui Yan rubbed his hands together with joy, even wanting to drink some wine to celebrate.
However, Consort Cui persuaded her otherwise: "It's not too late to have a few drinks together when my younger brother comes back."
But the good news was slow to arrive. A cup of tea, a quarter of an hour, and the time it takes for an incense stick to burn passed, and Cui Yan and Consort Xian began to feel uneasy.
"Didn't they say Yun Zhuo was drunk and our men were already at his doorstep? Why haven't we heard news of Yun Zhuo's death yet?" Consort Xian frowned deeply, her tone filled with anger.
This time it was Cui Yan's turn to persuade her: "Yun Zhuo is, after all, Prince Jing. Killing him and then retreating will inevitably take some effort! We will definitely succeed. Let's wait a little longer!"
She added, "Those assassins from the martial world are of lowly fate and may be easily killed, but your little brother also went. He was born into our Cui family and has a virtuous sister like you. His fate is extremely precious, and it's impossible for anything to happen to him!"
Consort Xian was comforted by her father.
Yes, that's right!
She took a small sip of tea, and just then, she heard stumbling footsteps outside, and a person covered in blood ran over.
Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be the personal bodyguard of the young master of the Cui family.
"Our entire army has been wiped out!" the guard exclaimed. "The young master has been captured alive!"
"What!" Cui Yan and Consort Xian were shocked. The teacup in Consort Xian's hand fell to the ground. How could this be!
The guard continued, "Two hundred assassins went, but some escaped. While they were escaping, the young master was captured by Prince Jing and was covered in wounds; his fate is unknown!"
Consort Cui nearly fainted!
What to do, what to do now? Not only did they fail to kill Yun Zhuo, but her younger brother was also captured alive?
Wouldn't they be investigated and blamed later?
Consort Xian felt dizzy and quickly grabbed the doorway for support. She took a deep breath, then another, and when she looked up at her personal guard, her eyes had turned icy cold.
"Go back to the young master's courtyard now! I will have someone treat your injuries immediately!"
The guard was taken away.
Only Consort Xian and Cui Yan remained in the study. Consort Xian looked at Cui Yan and said, "Father, my younger brother must die."
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