It was already dusk when Feng Xiyang received the news. She rushed to Jinghui Palace with a heart burning with anxiety, only to be stopped in the outer chamber. She had no choice but to turn back to the inner city and head straight for the Holy Emperor’s study.
When she pushed open the door, the Holy Emperor was calmly painting a peony flower stroke by stroke at his desk. “Why did you arrest him?” Feng Xiyang shouted angrily, forgetting to bow. “You promised you wouldn’t harm him!”
“I’m tired of playing games with them,” the Holy Emperor said without looking up, his silver brush steadily tracing a water-red hue on the rice paper. “Don’t you think that by detaining Xia Jingshi, they’ll surely make a move?”
Feng Xiyang was stunned. “But… that’s not what we agreed on before…” she stammered.
“Stay in the palace for the next few days,” the Holy Emperor interrupted her coolly. “Spend some time with the Empress Dowager. Once this matter is settled, you’ll be on your way, won’t you?”
“Your Highness might as well confess early to save His Majesty the trouble and allow this humble official to complete his duty sooner,” the Judicial Commissioner said maliciously through the prison bars, sucking his teeth with a tsk-tsk sound. “As the saying goes, an early death means early reincarnation!”
“What kind of creature are you to dare speak to this prince in such a manner?” Xia Jingshi said disdainfully. “To jump to conclusions without proper investigation is a grave offense of deceiving the emperor.” The Judicial Commissioner choked, covering it up with a dry cough before sheepishly returning to his desk to sip his tea.
Amid the silence, a figure in light cyan appeared. The Judicial Commissioner hurried forward to bow, “Ah, Your Majesty…”
“Have you learned anything?” the Holy Emperor asked casually, his eyes fixed on Xia Jingshi.
The Judicial Commissioner hemmed and hawed for a moment before saying awkwardly, “In response to Your Majesty, the Prince of Zhennan… he refuses to say anything.”
“Is that so?” The Holy Emperor’s lips curled slightly. “If he were so easy to break, he wouldn’t be the Prince of Zhennan.”
“Since that’s the case, why don’t you ask me yourself?” Xia Jingshi calmly pointed at the Judicial Commissioner. “After all, you know me better than he does, don’t you?”
The Holy Emperor raised an eyebrow, looking at him for a moment before waving to dismiss the Judicial Commissioner. He slowly approached the prison bars. “It seems that after all these years, you still hate me as much as I hate you.”
“Never compare me to you,” Xia Jingshi said calmly. “You’re not worthy.”
“The unworthy one is you,” the Holy Emperor’s eyes flashed with complex emotions – contempt, anger, satisfaction, even excitement. “Don’t pin your hopes on Xiao Weiran. Within three days, he’ll be here to keep you company. You’re so clever, why don’t you guess what I plan to do with you?”
Xia Jingshi looked at him coldly. “What else could it be but some trumped-up charge? Since it’s fabricated anyway, why bother asking me to guess?”
The two men stared at each other coldly.
Xia Jingshi’s heart was calm. He believed that Xiao Weiran would find Yi Xiao and rescue Ning Fei. Even if he couldn’t escape this calamity, he would die with dignity. He couldn’t tolerate anyone’s insult, including the Holy Emperor’s – his blood relative, the monarch he had served loyally for years.
“Guards!” the Holy Emperor called out sternly. “Put heavy shackles on the Prince of Zhennan. If he resists, treat it as treason.” He paused, revealing a wicked smile. “And his subordinates will share his crime!”
As they neared the imperial capital, Feng Suige became increasingly cautious. He avoided the conspicuous official roads, leading the team through secret paths in dense forests used by escort agencies.
Due to the unclear situation and Yi Xiao’s insistence, Xue Ying couldn’t return to Lu City alone. She continued with the team towards the imperial capital, which made her sulk for several days. Not only did she refuse to eat with Yi Xiao, but she also slept in a separate tent at night. Yi Xiao, already worried about Xia Jingshi and the others, had to take care of Xue Ying as well, causing her to lose weight quickly. Feng Suige watched with concern but could do nothing.
At noon that day, Feng Suige had the team stop in the forest to rest and replenish water. He took a few guards to the nearby town to gather information. The soldiers from both countries, who had been quite hostile when leaving Shusha, gradually became friendly due to Feng Suige’s clever arrangement of paired night duties. Now they sat scattered throughout the shaded area, filled with laughter and chatter.
Xue Ying listlessly got down from the carriage, intending to walk around nearby. As she rounded a large cart, she suddenly stopped. Yi Xiao was carrying a water bag, walking quickly towards four captured Yulin soldiers tied up not far ahead.
Watching Yi Xiao bend down to offer water to each of the four men, Xue Ying unconsciously pouted. She knew in her heart that Yi Xiao didn’t let her leave because she was worried about her safety, but now all Xue Ying could think about was Ning Fei’s well-being…
She wondered how Ning Fei was doing.
Lost in her thoughts, Yi Xiao had already straightened up and was about to leave with the water bag when suddenly, with a groan, the lead Yulin military officer collapsed, convulsing and vomiting all the water he had just drunk, soaking himself completely.
The three Yulin soldiers cried out in alarm. Yi Xiao tossed aside the water bag and rushed forward to support the officer. After checking his pulse, she frantically began to untie the tight hemp ropes binding him.
Seeing the chaos, Xue Ying took two steps forward to help, when she suddenly caught a glimpse of the sharp look in one of the soldier’s eyes that he hadn’t managed to conceal in time.
In a flash, Xue Ying screamed, “Look out—”
In that instant, the officer had already made his move. His newly freed right hand gripped a broken thick branch, stabbing directly at Yi Xiao’s abdomen.
Too late, it was too late. Although it was just a thick, hard branch, the sharp broken end, with such force behind it, would surely pierce through Yi Xiao’s thin autumn clothes…
Perhaps due to the intuition between friends, or perhaps due to the reflexes honed from long years on the battlefield, Yi Xiao instinctively stepped back a bit as Xue Ying’s cry rang out. This slight movement reduced some of the impact, but the remaining force was enough to make her double over in pain, falling to the ground unable to move.
The officer shook off the hemp ropes in two moves and was about to pounce again with the broken branch, but by then, Xue Ying had already rushed over. She instinctively grabbed the officer’s messy hair bun, pulling hard backward, and thrust the dagger in her hand deep into the officer’s exposed throat as he arched back.
Blood was sprayed everywhere.
Xue Ying was thrown far by the officer’s dying struggle.
The air was filled with shouting.
Nearby soldiers who heard the commotion were rushing over.
The officer’s eyes bulged, a hissing sound coming from his throat as he desperately tried to cover the red line bursting from his neck and pull out the fatal dagger. Yi Xiao had managed to struggle to her feet and was stumbling towards Xue Ying, who had been thrown to the side, shouting, “Call for the physician first!” Almost simultaneously, Xue Ying, half-lying on the ground, shouted to the approaching soldiers without looking back, “Yi Xiao is injured, quickly call for the physician!”
The entire camp was in chaos.
Amidst the commotion, Xue Ying, half-dazed from the fall, was carried to the side by many hands. She struggled to push away the physician’s hand on her pulse and sat up angrily, saying, “Not me, it’s Yi Xiao.” The physician was stunned for a moment, then turned to look at the other side.
Yi Xiao was standing not far away, supported by a maid, anxiously looking in their direction. She was covered in blood that had spurted from the officer’s throat, but her abdomen didn’t seem to be the bloody mess Xue Ying had imagined.
Xue Ying was stunned for a moment, then suddenly looked down at her own hands. A scream echoed through the entire forest, “I’ve killed someone!!!”