Those outside dared not go in, clearly out of fear of Jun Beiyue’s supposedly contagious cold!

The Medicine Clan leader’s words carried undeniable weight—no one wanted to fall ill for no reason, especially not on the eve of the Prince of Nanzhao’s own wedding. Missing such an occasion would be a bitter regret indeed!

Those inside, without question, all had guilty consciences of their own—whose conscience was guiltiest of all, well, the situation inside would soon reveal that.

Either way, an all-out brawl was absolutely out of the question. Even though Xuanyuan Zhaoxi had grabbed hold of Ziqing, that had only been possible amid the chaos, holding her back for the briefest moment, just enough to buy the Empress of Eastern Qin some time!

She hadn’t dared hold Ziqing back for long at all. In a situation where an open fight simply couldn’t happen, speed was everything—and aside from Ziqing’s own wind-blade zither attacks and her hand-to-hand combat skills, when it came to sheer speed, no one could match Situ Haonan.

No matter how fast the Empress of Eastern Qin was, she couldn’t outpace Situ Haonan. He now stood with arms outstretched, blocking the doorway. Ziqing and the Empress of Eastern Qin had arrived at nearly the same moment, with Yingzi close behind, Xuanyuan Zhaoxi arriving last, and Imperial Physician Gu and the Medicine Clan leader trailing even further behind, only just now approaching.

“The assassin is inside. Master Situ, what exactly do you mean by this?” The Empress of Eastern Qin, that cunning old fox, finally spoke up!

Anyone with half a brain could guess the assassin had been her own arrangement, meant to give herself an excuse to force her way in!

And this old woman had executed it flawlessly—just now, nearly everyone present had clearly witnessed a man in black break into the room!

Before Situ Haonan could even answer, Ziqing spoke up coldly. Since the other side had opened her mouth, Ziqing certainly wouldn’t hold back either. She said mockingly, “Haonan, since when did our prince become a rat?”

A rat?

What did that mean?

Not just the Empress of Eastern Qin and Xuanyuan Zhaoxi, but even Situ Haonan and Yingzi were left utterly baffled—why on earth had the Princess Consort suddenly compared Prince Yao to a rat?

“Your Highness, you… what do you mean?” Yingzi asked, confused.

“Isn’t there a saying back in Da Zhou?” Ziqing said, deliberately leaving it hanging. Regardless, even if Jun Beiyue were actually inside, even if he were sick to the point of death, how could a mere assassin possibly hurt him? Besides, there was no one in the room at all!

What they needed to do was drive this dog—the Empress of Eastern Qin—away.

“Oh! I understand now!” Situ Haonan suddenly caught on, exclaiming loudly, “A dog catching rats—meddling in affairs that don’t concern it!”

This was, without question, a roundabout way of answering the Empress of Eastern Qin—calling her a dog!

The Empress of Eastern Qin’s sharp eyes darkened instantly. Things had gone this far—why would she bother with courtesy toward them now? She said coldly, “The assassin is inside. I absolutely will not allow an assassin to roam freely in and out of where I’m staying! Get out of the way!”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk, Your Majesty the Empress, this is truly the first time I’ve ever seen someone lie with their eyes so wide open. This is clearly our prince’s own quarters.” Situ Haonan sneered coldly.

“This is the envoy’s compound. If you refuse to step aside and the assassin escapes as a result, can you bear that responsibility?” Xuanyuan Zhaoxi said coldly, while the Empress of Eastern Qin added icily, “Zhaoxi, go fetch the Prince of Nanzhao. I’m certain Prince Yao’s illness can’t possibly be so severely contagious that it would spread all the way out here through a doorway!”

“Yes!”

Xuanyuan Zhaoxi immediately set off to obey, and Ziqing was about to stop her when Yingzi tugged at her sleeve. “Your Highness, let her go.”

Ziqing, sharp as she was, immediately grew alarmed at this—there had to be something behind this.

Since the Empress of Eastern Qin couldn’t force her way in, naturally she’d still need to bring the Prince of Nanzhao here. Ziqing no longer bothered urging Situ Haonan to step aside, instead saying with a smile, “Heh, since none of you care about your own lord’s safety, then we’ll just wait. Let the Prince of Nanzhao come and show his concern instead—this courtyard is surrounded several layers deep anyway, the assassin certainly isn’t escaping!”

With that, she still refused to move, crossing her arms and guarding the doorway.

Situ Haonan spread his arms wide as well, standing firm, though he shot Ziqing several worried glances. Not entirely certain of the situation herself, Ziqing simply signaled him to stay calm.

Soon enough, Xuanyuan Zhaoxi returned with the Prince of Nanzhao, along with a large retinue.

The Prince of Nanzhao was no fool either. The moment he saw the scene at the doorway, whatever reassurance he’d felt about Jun Beiyue earlier grew doubtful again. “What’s going on here! Where’s the assassin?”

“Inside the room!” the Empress of Eastern Qin said at once.

“Your Majesty, see? Didn’t I tell you? My mother simply cannot abide an assassin roaming free—if they hadn’t blocked us, my mother would have caught the assassin long ago!” Xuanyuan Zhaoxi immediately reported.

Before the Prince of Nanzhao could respond, Yelu Qianqian jumped in first. “Your Majesty, see? I wasn’t wrong either! Master Situ must be worried everyone might catch the illness, that’s why he’s blocking the door. Surely Prince Yao can handle a mere assassin without any trouble?”

Clearly, by this point, the Prince of Nanzhao had been thoroughly worn down by these two girls’ bickering along the way.

Still, as a ruler, he remained level-headed enough, immediately giving the order, “Guards, seize the assassin at once!”

At this, the Empress of Eastern Qin stepped aside immediately. With the Prince of Nanzhao himself ordering the guards to capture the assassin, this was perfectly justified—even risking contagion was simply part of a guard’s duty.

The Empress of Eastern Qin shot Ziqing a disdainful glance before settling her composed gaze back on the doorway, waiting for the exact moment it would open.

Situ Haonan, with everyone watching, had no choice but to step aside as well. If an assassin had truly broken in and Jun Beiyue were actually inside, there should have been some commotion from within by now—and yet there had been none at all. The truth, in fact, was becoming rather obvious.

For Situ Haonan to keep blocking the door any longer would only make things look even more suspicious!

The Prince of Nanzhao took a deep breath, finally fixing his gaze steadily on the door. Gradually, everyone’s attention turned toward it as well. The guards stepped forward, knocking sharply three times. “Prince Yao, are you inside!”

Even the guards themselves seemed to doubt whether Jun Beiyue was actually there.

What should they do?

A long silence followed. No response came.

“Break the door down!” the Prince of Nanzhao ordered coldly. Quickly, a group of guards moved to shield the Prince of Nanzhao and the others, while a burly guard raised his leg, gathered his full strength, let out a fierce shout, and kicked hard at the door!

But then! Suddenly the door flew open on its own, then slammed shut again just as quickly—so fast that no one could make out anything at all, except for a dark shadow that came flying out, landing on the ground with a heavy thud. It was the very same man in black, the assassin from before—already dead.

Everyone froze in shock. Lord Bomiluo immediately stepped forward. “It must have been Prince Yao who killed the assassin! It’s all right now, all is well!”

The Medicine Clan leader stepped up right after him. “Yes, yes, it’s all fine now, all is well. Perhaps everyone shouldn’t go in after all—catching the cold would be most unfortunate…”

But before he could even finish speaking, the Empress of Eastern Qin suddenly kicked the door open with tremendous force. She had been watching this whole group for quite a while now, especially Lord Bomiluo and the Medicine Clan leader, and combined with Shiliang’s secret reports, she was absolutely certain Jun Beiyue was not inside. This kick of hers was delivered with utter conviction—this kick was meant to drive Jun Beiyue completely out of Nanzhao for good.

The moment the door swung open, the Empress of Eastern Qin charged straight inside, while everyone outside stood frozen in stunned silence.

But then, almost immediately, an agonized scream rang out from within—the Empress of Eastern Qin’s voice, wretched beyond belief. “Ahh—”