“If I block your ears, how will you operate the box?” Sang Tong asked Jing Hengbo.

“No problem,” Jing Hengbo replied. “Block my ears, then make a gesture to indicate you’re about to speak. I’ll naturally open the box for you.”

Sang Tong used two cloth balls to plug Jing Hengbo’s ears, then made a gesture. Jing Hengbo pressed the record button on the recorder and adjusted the angle.

Sang Tong spoke very quickly and at great length, her expression quite agitated, but then gradually calmed down, presumably beginning to convey some important matters.

The carriage moved slowly forward while the two subordinates gazed at the dense crowd of people outside, their expressions showing considerable pressure.

After a while, Sang Tong made a gesture, and Jing Hengbo pressed the button. Sang Tong removed the cloth balls from her ears. Having now settled her affairs, she appeared calmer than before and asked, “The box?”

Jing Hengbo sighed, loosened her fingers, and let the recorder drop, saying, “Press that silver button, and sound will come out.”

Sang Tong followed suit, and indeed sound emerged. She seemed startled by her own voice, listened carefully to a few sentences, showed a satisfied expression, then quickly turned off the recorder.

“I say,” Jing Hengbo observed her expression, “you’ll need to leave someone to deliver this thing to your young master, won’t you?”

At these words, both Sang family subordinates’ brows twitched. They exchanged glances, then quickly looked away.

“That’s true,” Sang Tong mused, turning around as if wanting to choose one of the two to carry this message to Sang Tianxi.

The two subordinates immediately tensed up.

Obviously, whoever was sent to deliver this box to the young master would have a chance to live.

Both men had already embraced the thought of certain death, but still felt unwilling in their hearts. Now that hope had appeared, who would let it slip away?

But this task required only one person. Who would live? Who would die?

Jing Hengbo seemed to suggest casually, “If you ask me, keep both of them. In the current situation, one person might not be able to escape either. Isn’t it enough that I’m here to die with you?”

For the first time, the two Sang family subordinates looked at Jing Hengbo with immense gratitude.

“No,” Sang Tong said resolutely. “At most, only one can leave! Our Sang family is a centuries-old noble house! We are aristocrats! I am the twenty-fourth generation family head! No matter how a noble family head dies, there must be loyal retainers by her side! Even if only one, there must be one! Otherwise, I would disgrace the noble lineage of the Sang family, and I wouldn’t even have a place for my ancestral tablet in the shrine!”

Jing Hengbo shook her head, glanced apologetically at the two subordinates, and muttered, “I’ll never understand the aristocrats’ obsession with face… Sorry, it seems you two will have to defer to each other.”

The two men’s faces changed color, and they exchanged glances again, sparks seeming to fly in their eyes.

Sang Tong suddenly turned around, glaring fiercely at the two, “What? Are you two planning to fight over this?”

The two subordinates hurriedly bowed and stammered that they wouldn’t dare.

Sang Tong’s voice became shrill and full of sarcasm.

“With me here, I won’t allow you to kill each other! No matter what, one must stay to accompany me!” she said coldly. “I know even ants cling to life. I don’t want to designate who stays and who leaves, lest you hate me even in the underworld. Draw lots!”

She flicked her sleeves and extended two fists, saying indifferently, “One hand holds a red gem, the other a green gem. You guess. Whoever guesses correctly takes the box containing my last words and leaves. Don’t worry, since I’m letting you carry my final message, I have ways to ensure your safe departure. Just guess.”

The carriage moved slower and slower, but was getting closer to the Imperial City Plaza. The dense tide of people had been blocked outside the plaza, while the Kang Long Army and Jade Radiance Army had mobilized, forming a long cordon. The people, unlike their noisy clamor when gathered in groups, now held their breath, focusing intently on that carriage—the life and death of the woman in that carriage tugged at everyone’s hearts.

This was also the most attention a queen had received from the people based purely on personal ability and charisma in Dahuang’s history.

The atmosphere across the plaza was oppressive and tense, with heads crowding together, yet in front of the palace there wasn’t a single soldier. All guards who might face dangerous attacks had been cleanly withdrawn. On the plaza of pure white stone, clean as water, apart from the massive statue of the founding empress permanently standing at the plaza’s center, only Gong Yin stood quietly, dressed in white as pure as water.

Sang Tong poked her head out to look around. The completely undefended plaza satisfied her greatly.

She showed slight regret. Originally, she had wanted a carriage charged with wind and fire, like a death coffin, suddenly appearing in the Imperial City Plaza, breaking through all obstacles with the fastest speed and most ferocious force, crashing thunderously through the gates of Jade Radiance Palace. She wanted all the people of this Imperial Song to have their hearts shattered by this sudden sound echoing throughout the universe.

To shock all of Dahuang in such a manner, perishing together in mutual destruction—she felt only this could vent the evil anger in her chest.

However, being able to leave final words for Tianxi was an unexpected gain. Thinking that her son could hear her voice from time to time in the future provided some comfort in this bitter, lonely life, softening her expression and gradually consoling her.

Jing Hengbo watched her expression closely. She felt the plaza looked completely undefended, but there must be arrangements above. As a longtime state minister, Sang Tong surely understood this better than she did, yet Sang Tong still appeared confident, seemingly having great faith in this carriage, believing it could evade all obstacles and achieve her desired goal.

She wondered if the time delay would allow for more perfect arrangements to stop her.

Jing Hengbo didn’t dare look outside. She feared seeing Gong Yin with a sword ready for suicide, and she feared even more seeing Gong Yin without a sword and not preparing for suicide. She also feared that randomly poking her head out might disturb Gong Yin’s thoughts, and she feared that if she did poke her head out and didn’t see anyone, it might disturb someone’s thoughts… Sigh, actually she didn’t know what she feared…

“Guess,” Sang Tong said coldly, withdrawing her gaze.

The two subordinates, unlike women with their complex thoughts, stared intently at those fists, breathing rapidly, faces flushed red. Yet neither dared speak first.

Matters of life and death are always difficult to decide.

But Sang Tong had no such patience, saying coldly, “If you don’t guess, you’ll die together.”

“Left hand, red!” The younger Sang family subordinate finally couldn’t bear it and shouted out.

After speaking, he closed his eyes and exhaled deeply, not even daring to look at the result.

The other man glared at him angrily, feeling he had stolen his chance at survival.

When given the chance to guess, he didn’t dare, but once someone else took the initiative, he felt deprived of choice.

Such is human nature.

Sang Tong opened her palm without expression.

In her left palm, the red gem sparkled brilliantly.

The young man who had guessed correctly exhaled deeply as if granted a great pardon. The other man’s face changed drastically, and he stared viciously at the youth.

“Shen Jin, you take the box and leave. I have something to give you…” Sang Tong opened her other palm, revealing the green gem sparkling in her palm. She was about to discard the gem when her face suddenly changed.

The other two also changed color.

The red and green gems had suddenly moved by themselves!

Before their three pairs of eyes, quick as lightning, they exchanged positions—the red gem in the left hand moved to the right hand, and the green gem in the right hand moved to the left!

“Ah!” Sang Tong exclaimed in disbelief.

What was happening?

The other two were completely stunned, watching as these gems that determined their fate suddenly reversed their judgment.

The one who had just been overjoyed stood dumbfounded, while the one whose face had been ashen with despair became overjoyed.

“Heaven’s will! Heaven’s will!” The middle-aged guard who had guessed wrong was overjoyed, tremblingly grasping Sang Tong’s hands. “It should be me who lives! It should be me! Family head, thank you! Thank you! I will definitely establish a longevity tablet for you and offer sacrifices for generations!”

He was moved to tears, almost wanting to kneel and kiss Sang Tong’s hands—the gems had clearly been decided, but suddenly switched, naturally meaning the family head had switched them, probably seeing his years of service to the Sang family and deliberately wanting to give him a chance to live.

Sang Tong stared at him dumbfounded, then at her own palms, murmuring, “This…”

Jing Hengbo quietly curled her lips.

“Family head!” The youth who had fallen from joyful heaven into desperate hell finally snapped back to reality and roared, “No, it can’t be like this! Family head! You’re showing favoritism in front of us! You can’t!”

“I…” Sang Tong still didn’t understand, just staring stupidly at the gems in her hands.

“This is the family head’s will, how dare you defy it!” The middle-aged subordinate roared at the young subordinate.

“I clearly guessed correctly first, the family head helped you cheat!” The youth roared back defiantly.

“The family head’s will is sacred and inviolable, violators die!” The middle-aged subordinate suddenly drew his blade.

“It was agreed that whoever guessed correctly would live, even the family head can’t change that!” The youth immediately drew his sword.

“Enough!” Sang Tong raged, shrieking, “I’m not dead yet, and you want to kill each other in front of me! Do it over, guess again!”

She bent down, her sleeves covering the gems. After a moment she straightened up, clenching her two fists tightly. “Guess!”

“Right hand, red!” This time the middle-aged subordinate rushed to speak first.

Sang Tong opened her palms. In her right hand, the green gem stared at everyone like a sinister, dark eye.

The middle-aged subordinate’s face turned ashen.

“Hahaha this time I didn’t steal from you and you’re still wrong you should be the one to die!” The youth threw back his head and laughed wildly.

Sang Tong slowly opened her palm, sighed, “Old Wang, accept it…”

“No—” The middle-aged subordinate roared, and the blade in his hand suddenly stabbed toward the youth who was laughing at the sky, “It shouldn’t have been redone! Die! Die!”

The youth’s laughter stopped abruptly.

He slowly lowered his head, looking at the wound at his waist. Large patches of blood surged out like a tide, bubbling and frothing like rolling lava.

“Ah.” Sang Tong screamed, and both bewildered men instinctively turned to look at her, only to see she wasn’t staring at this sudden scene of murder, but was still looking down at her hands.

In her palms, right hand held the red gem, left hand the green gem.

The gems had switched again!

The middle-aged subordinate looked at the gems in confusion, seemingly unable to process this anymore.

But the youth laughed, laughing while coughing up copious blood, “Damn it, who are you toying with…”

Then his waist shook, a black light shot out like electricity, and with a soft “thunk,” it penetrated the chest of the middle-aged subordinate who was still in a daze.

The middle-aged man shuddered all over, clutched his chest and staggered backward. Looking at the youth, then at Sang Tong, his facial expression became very strange, as if he couldn’t figure out what was happening, couldn’t distinguish the true faces of the people before him.

Sang Tong’s fingers went limp, and the two gems rolled into a corner. She opened her mouth, seemingly stupefied.

The two blood-soaked men stared at each other in bewilderment for a long moment, seeming to finally understand what had happened, and suddenly roared in unison.

“Damn it, who are you toying with!”

In their roars, both men turned simultaneously, their blades and swords stabbing viciously into Sang Tong’s body.

“Ah!” Sang Tong cried out in anguish, struggling to retreat. The two dying men, however, lacked the strength to pursue further. Each gave a bitter laugh, swayed twice, and collapsed with a thud.

The two lay face-up in their mingled pool of blood, both dying with eyes wide open, their large, lifeless eyes staring at the carriage roof, or perhaps, gazing up at heaven asking—why toy with them like this? Why arrange such an ending?

Jing Hengbo turned her head away, not looking at the corpses at her feet. These two men were essentially killed by her. She felt sick, physically repulsed, but had no remorse.

They were all people seeking death—let them research those ever-changing red and green gems in hell!

Only Sang Tong remained, though she was severely wounded. Although the two men’s dying strikes didn’t seem to have pierced any vital organs in her chest, Sang Tong hung her head and seemed to have lost consciousness. Jing Hengbo breathed a slight sigh of relief, thinking this should be basically safe now. What method should she use to notify those outside and escape?

Then she saw Sang Tong slowly lift her face.

Jing Hengbo’s breath caught in her throat.

The dim carriage, the sprawled corpses, the blood-soaked floor, the men who died with eyes wide open, the woman soft in the pool of blood, lifting her disheveled head, a pale face with hate-filled eyes, her face streaked with splattered blood…

All the essential elements of a horror film were present.

Jing Hengbo’s heart pounded rapidly, her instincts telling her this was bad.

Indeed, Sang Tong gasped a few times, then bizarrely smiled at her.

“Just now…” she said hoarsely with difficulty, “…it was you, wasn’t it.”

Though the question seemed random, Jing Hengbo naturally understood. She chuckled, “Fun, wasn’t it?”

Sang Tong stared at her and nodded, “…Seemingly useless, yet with endless tricks and schemes emerging one after another. In the end, everyone was outsmarted by you… Our mistake was underestimating you too much…”

“Keep underestimating, keep underestimating.” Jing Hengbo waved her hand. “You’re tired, aren’t you? Want to take a nap? Should I play ‘Little Apple’ for you? It’s very hypnotic.” She picked up the recorder that had rolled near her hand, about to play her own soul-stirring rendition of “Little Apple.”

Listen to it until you’re so annoyed you bash your head to death—that would be perfect.

“Hehe…” Sang Tong smiled, a trace of mockery crossing her pale face, “…I have more important things to do…”

Jing Hengbo’s heart jumped. She wanted to pounce forward to stop her, but Sang Tong suddenly flicked her foot, and with a clang, a blade flew across and with a crack embedded itself horizontally between her and the carriage walls on either side.

Jing Hengbo didn’t dare move. She sat in the corner of the carriage with a blade positioned horizontally, its edge facing inward, right at her neck. The slightest movement would risk slitting her throat.

She couldn’t tell this woman still had this trick up her sleeve in such a condition.

Then Sang Tong tore off a piece of her hem and stuffed it into Jing Hengbo’s mouth. The rich bloody smell blocked her throat, making Jing Hengbo feel waves of nausea.

Sang Tong smiled coldly, lifted her chin, and said, “Now… let’s watch the show together.”

Jing Hengbo’s instincts screamed danger, but she couldn’t make a sound, only managing “mmph mmph mmph mmph” in confused protest. She deeply regretted that there was nothing in the carriage she could use to bash someone with, otherwise she could have given this rapidly demonizing old hag a good blow and the world would be peaceful.

Sang Tong turned around, wiped her face clean, and somehow triggered something. Though no one was driving, the carriage suddenly surged forward rapidly.

This movement immediately alarmed everyone waiting. Countless people stretched up to see, the Kang Long Army stood ready for battle, crossbows on the palace walls creaked as they were drawn, and Gong Yin in front of the palace gates raised his head.

On the pristine white plaza, before the deep red palace gates tightly closed, he stood alone, holding his ancient silver snow chain, facing the wildly charging carriage from afar.

Everyone saw Sang Tong’s face appear at the carriage window.

“Gong Yin!” she called out. “We’re here! Thirty zhang from the palace gates! If you don’t put your sword to your neck now, I won’t have time to throw the queen out!”

Jing Hengbo: “Mmph mmph mmph mmph mmph!”

Countless curses from ten thousand alpacas trampled through her heart—this thousand-year-old turtle of an old hag had indeed broken her word!

She still wanted to force Gong Yin to suicide!

No, it was a trick!

With Sang Tong’s current appearance and physical condition, she couldn’t possibly throw her out of the carriage. She was definitely going to die with Sang Tong!

The carriage charged forward wildly, overlapping with black shadows, emanating the acrid smell of death. Sang Tong shrieked with mad laughter, and people watched in amazement as her black hair scattered in the wind gradually, bit by bit, turned white.

Like snow slowly covering a field, never to see spring return.

In the distance, on a low hill overlooking the Imperial City Plaza, someone stood quietly watching the black carriage on the white plaza, watching the black-haired woman’s hair turn white in an instant.

The wind lifted his robes, and a white paper money note fluttered and spun past his garments, carried away by the wind.

…

The carriage was racing wildly.

Jing Hengbo couldn’t move at all. The slightest tremor might cause the blade positioned in front of her to slash her throat.

Through the window, she could see the massive statue of the founding empress across the way. That was the iconic building of the Imperial City Plaza. The empress’s dignified face was slightly lowered, as if looking down with compassion upon all the winds and clouds of the imperial city.

“Whoosh.” The crossbows above the palace walls finally fired. In an instant, they tore through the air, black light flashing repeatedly. Four crossbows from four angles swooped and shot in a coordinated assault, charging straight at the carriage!

Sang Tong’s face showed only cold laughter.

“Hiss hiss” rang out repeatedly, the carriage body shook violently, and thud thud thud thud—all four crossbow bolts hit the carriage body. But what shocked everyone was that the moment those arrows struck the carriage body, they suddenly slid right past, scraping along the carriage sides and flying out at angles before nailing into the ground with thuds.

The iron arrowheads scraping against the carriage body sparked a trail of fire. If they hadn’t been flying too fast, the carriage might have caught fire.

Everyone stared wide-eyed at the arrows that had all slid off target, not understanding why they had clearly hit but then scraped past.

“This carriage has been modified! Ingenious! The entire carriage body is curved—arrows slide right off! A master! A master!” Someone in the crowd exclaimed loudly in admiration.

Then he was slapped into the ground by six hands. “What’s wrong with you! At a time like this, you’re still studying carriage construction? Don’t you understand rescue? Rescue!”

…

“Hahahaha.” Sang Tong’s wild laughter sounded particularly grating. “Gong Yin, I told you not to waste your efforts. This carriage can withstand any traps, any flying arrows, any siege. If you make another move, my carriage might just ignite! Why aren’t you dead yet!”

“Fine!” Gong Yin finally answered, his voice carrying far and wide. The restless crowd suddenly fell silent.

Yelu Qi, who had rushed over, looked up.

In the crowd, Yi Qi jumped up excitedly, “Did you hear that? Did you hear? He’s going to suicide! I’m going to rise in position! Life’s three great joys: promotion, getting rich, and the death of a love rival! I’m about to see my love rival die, quickly congratulate me!”

His answer came in the form of six vigorously congratulatory slaps, forceful enough to kill a man.

…

“…But I must see with my own eyes that the queen is safe!” Gong Yin’s next words were resolute as cut nails and chopped iron. “Otherwise, go ahead and ignite! You may be able to smash through the Jade Radiance Palace walls, but can you really destroy my hundred thousand Kang Long troops?”

Sang Tong hesitated slightly, turned to look at Jing Hengbo, who was hissing as she breathed. When the flying arrows had struck the carriage body earlier, the blade edge in front of her had trembled, slightly cutting the skin on her neck.

Sang Tong smiled coldly, first added another restraint to Jing Hengbo, then took the blade, dragged her to the window, lit a fire starter with one hand, and pushed half of Jing Hengbo’s body out the window to shield herself with the other hand, shouting, “See that! You can die now!”

Archers behind the plaza all took aim, but unfortunately, behind Sang Tong at the carriage window, a steel plate suddenly snapped out with a clap, shielding her body, creating a dead angle that no one could shoot. Meanwhile, Sang Tong’s hand holding the fire starter faced into the carriage, equally impossible for anyone to hit.

Jing Hengbo’s mouth was gagged, the wind struck her face, making her choke speechlessly. The strange sulfuric smell in the wind stimulated her eyes until they watered and became blurry. She feared that such an expression might be too pitifully touching and actually stimulate Gong Yin into doing something foolish. She desperately blinked, trying to blink away the tears, while also trying to signal him not to be stupid. But with all this blinking, tears came streaming down, making her look even more pitifully touching.

Jing Hengbo really wanted to cry—this wasn’t the time to cry! Ah ah ah ah… But with such bad luck, she might as well cry a bit anyway ah ah ah ah…

Gong Yin saw Jing Hengbo at a glance.

In that instant, his gaze moved—first falling on the thin line of dark red blood on her neck, then on her eyes streaming with tears.

Since they’d known each other, he had never seen her shed tears. This woman was bold and unrestrained, natural and carefree. Though she appeared delicate, her heart was actually strong—unbreakable after a hundred crushings, unkillable after a hundred deaths. He had almost never thought he would see her tears, nor imagined what she would look like crying.

Yet at this moment, in the death carriage racing through the wind, she faced the wind with red, swollen eyes streaming with tears—a rain-dampened rose.

A rose that should have been radiating brilliant light on a golden throne…

Deep in his chest, a cold pain seemed to curl up, like a blade buried in snow for a lifetime, suddenly stabbing into his heart and lungs. His face paled, and he almost instantly heard the sound of his blood freezing from deep within.

The time had come.

He looked away—just one glance, but his cold, pale face seemed completely unchanged.

Then he sat down.

The crowd fell silent, all eyes fixed intently on this sole man in the plaza.

This man who single-handedly controlled Dahuang and held power over all under heaven.

Watching to see if he would truly cast aside his kingdom and life for a woman, or coldly defend the Jade Radiance glory that belonged to him.

Most people thought it should be the latter. The State Preceptor had no reason to give up his precious life for a queen who wasn’t even his wife, and who might even compete with him for power.

But Meng Hu, who had been ordered to remain on the city walls, suddenly let out a great cry: “Master!” and ran wildly regardless of everything.

Everyone was awestruck, unable to believe their eyes.

At the far end of the plaza, the seated Gong Yin suddenly began to ice over!

At extreme speed, almost in an instant, a thick layer of ice formed around him. The cold air spread so quickly that hot and cold air clashed around him, dispersing into a light mist.

In just the blink of an eye, he had suddenly become a crystal-clear ice figure.

Then he spoke. The voice from within the ice sounded somewhat strange, but it was still his voice.

“The Prajna Snow Sword cannot self-sever. Someone come, assist me in military dissolution!”

A large man rappelled down from the city gate, sword in hand.

Sang Tong watched intently, her nostrils flaring, eyes wide—clearly in an extremely tense and excited mental state.

Jing Hengbo was also extremely nervous. She was going crazy—was Gong Yin really going to suicide? Going to suicide in front of her? Fine, she also felt she was going to die, and was praying that after death she could transmigrate back. If she died and he died with her, she wouldn’t mind, but was it really okay for him to suicide first in front of her like this? She couldn’t handle that kind of shock!

She’d rather die first! Ah ah ah!

Unfortunately, Gong Yin was someone who, once he made a decision, was more decisive than anyone—including suicide—that large man leaped down, while still in mid-air, suddenly raised his sword, creating a brilliant snow-white arc—

Everyone’s gaze was drawn to this arc, heads raised, pupils dilated, reflecting a streak of stunning white rainbow.

The next instant, the white rainbow swept mercilessly across the neck of that ice-adorned, snow-wrapped figure!

“Crack.” The sound of shattering rang out, ice and blood splashing together, and a head wrapped in ice flew into the air!

Blood like a rainbow, blocking out the sky and sun.

“Ah—” Ten thousand voices let out a suppressed, trembling cry of shock.

“Master!” Meng Hu ran down like a madman, nearly falling off the city wall.

Jing Hengbo made no sound. Her eyes were round as saucers, flashing with extreme terror, the light within continuously spinning with that head, that head, that head, Gong Yin’s head…

Her body tensed, shoulders stiffening, the light in her eyes gradually fading—she silently and soundlessly fainted.