ebookland Chapter 472 You really want me dead?
Chapter 472 You really want me dead?
Instead of heading immediately to the West Palace, Eunuch Guo and Shen Wen took a detour to the Inner Palace. The two were discussing something urgent. As expected of the Grand Eunuch of the Imperial City, Eunuch Guo was alerted by a eunuch as they walked through the alleys of the Inner Palace. At a fork in the road, they met up with Ji Zichu.
Ji Zichu had not seen Shen Wen for a long time. Ever since his good second brother discovered his feelings for Shen Wen, every time Ji Zichu went to the Duke of Ji's mansion, there were always trivial matters that prevented him from seeing the person he longed for.
Ji Zichu looked at Shen Wen, and the deep longing in her heart could no longer be suppressed. Her affectionate eyes said it all in just one glance.
Shen Wen was so frightened by his appearance that he took a step back. If it weren't for the fact that he had to capture Ji Zichu, this key figure, no matter what, Shen Wen would have wanted to run away immediately.
Shen Wen straightened his stiff expression and, as usual, first greeted Ji Zichu with pleasantries: "It's been so many days, I didn't expect the Third Young Master to have been promoted."
Ji Zichu silently watched her, his mind completely absorbed in the touching scene of their meeting across the Milky Way, and he didn't even realize he should say something to greet his beloved.
Seeing him standing there in a daze, Shen Wen waved his hand in front of his eyes and called his name twice. Ji Zichu, who had been lost in thought, snapped out of it and asked in a flustered voice, "What's wrong? What did you just say?"
Seeing the two of them behaving in a strange and awkward way, Eunuch Guo squeezed his overweight body between them and eagerly revealed his intention to see Zichu.
Then they looked expectantly at this wise and powerful young master.
Ji Zichu pondered for a moment and said, "I also think that what His Majesty has done these past two days has been too extreme."
Then he looked at Shen Wen seriously and asked, "Did you figure this out?"
Shen Wen nodded seriously and said, "If you still think that our relationship is not close, then you should trust me and do as I say. You must hurry up and save the lives of more innocent people. As for the young emperor's wrath if he finds out, you don't need to worry. Just put all the blame on me. You don't need to worry about me. The young emperor will not be willing to punish me."
Upon hearing her last sentence, Ji Zichu felt a moment of sadness.
Fortunately, he quickly dismissed this feeling and said, "There's no need for that. The safety of the capital city now rests on my shoulders. I'm the only person His Majesty trusts. You can rest assured that His Majesty wouldn't bear to punish me."
After saying this, the two looked at each other and smiled.
After the matter was discussed, Shen Wen turned to leave.
Ji Zichu asked her what she was going to do next.
Shen Wen looked southwest and said, "I think I've already guessed who's behind this."
Ji Zichu did not understand the meaning behind Shen Wen's words. He frowned and watched Shen Wen walk away into the distance.
Even though I was extremely reluctant to part with her, reason told me that at this moment, there was no reason to keep her by my side, not even for a little longer.
The bitterness in her heart slowly spread throughout her body. Ji Zichu now fully understood how painful it was to have a deep unrequited love, as described in the storybooks.
Ji Zichu, accompanied by the Imperial Guards, swaggered into the inner palace.
And the other side.
Eunuch Guo followed Shen Wen closely toward the West Palace, but halfway there, Shen Wen suddenly stopped, turned around, and looked at Eunuch Guo with a half-smile.
Puzzled, Eunuch Guo asked, "Aren't you in a hurry to go to the West Palace? Why aren't you leaving, young lady?"
Shen Wen said, "I, your father-in-law, have been away from the inner palace for a long time and do not know the situation of the West Palace. Do you, Eunuch Guo, not know the West Palace? It has been abandoned like an ancient wasteland. Let alone finding a person, it is impossible to find even a living animal. You don't need to go through all this trouble to accompany me."
Eunuch Guo smiled and said, "So, young lady already knew about the situation at the West Palace. So, where does young lady plan to go next?"
Shen Wen stood there pondering, without answering him immediately.
Just then, a group of people hurriedly found them. The leader was a captain of the Imperial Guard, and next to him was Guo Gonggong's most loyal young apprentice. The young apprentice wiped his sweat and was eager to tell Guo Gonggong what was going on, but he couldn't utter a complete sentence because he was too anxious.
The same Imperial Guard captain said, "It's fortunate that we found you first, Miss Shen. Please come with us quickly, and we will escort you to meet His Majesty. Miss, you may not know, but a small group of rebels has broken into the capital. The capital is now in chaos, and His Majesty is about to lead his people to relocate. If the situation becomes urgent, he may abandon the capital and seek refuge elsewhere. His Majesty has been worried about your safety, and he said he would not leave unless he could wait for you. The capital is in such danger now, so please come with us to see His Majesty quickly. Only you can persuade His Majesty to flee."
Upon hearing this, Shen Wen also looked anxious. She asked, "Which side is it? How many people are in this small group of rebels? Aren't you Imperial Guards supposed to be elite? Can't you really defeat those ragtag rebels?"
The captain of the Imperial Guard was momentarily embarrassed when she questioned him. He said, "It is Chu Yanqiu from the Duke of Ji's mansion. You should have heard of him. Behind him are highly skilled Jianghu soldiers. Although we Imperial Guards are stronger than others, those Jianghu people are all extraordinary individuals who have cultivated for decades since childhood. Those masters can fight ten against one."
Shen Wen agreed with what the imperial guard captain said.
Shen Wen didn't dare to delay and immediately followed them.
The group hurried on their way and, in less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, they met up with the young emperor in the Golden Palace.
The young emperor breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Shen Wen.
However, the current situation is extremely tense, because Chu Yanqiu has already led his troops to confront the young emperor's army.
Shen Wen was caught in the middle.
It was precisely because she stood in the middle that the imminent melee was temporarily halted.
Shen Wen turned to face Chu Yanqiu and saw the deep hatred in Chu Yanqiu's eyes as he looked at her. Shen Wen felt a pang of pain in her heart.
Chu Yanqiu looked much more haggard. The once gentle and refined gentleman had transformed into a rough, unshaven man in just a few days. Especially his eyes; such a resolute man, in the instant he met Shen Wen's gaze, an unyielding, deep pain was reflected in his calm, deep eyes, even though they were cold, unwavering eyes.
Damn it!
Despite being killed by this idiot so many times before, and despite harboring deep hatred for him, the situation has reversed. In fact, the moment she saw the pain on his face, she felt nothing but heartache and worry.
Shen Wen questioned him, "What are you trying to do? Has things developed to the point where you're about to launch a military campaign to seize the country?"
Shen Wen glanced disdainfully at the people Chu Yanqiu had brought and said, "It's not that I underestimate you, but with the troops you brought, it's impossible for things to go as you wish. You might as well take my advice and leave the capital city with your people right now. That way, you can save your life."
She confronted Chu Yanqiu here, while the young emperor, protected by a group of imperial guards behind him, shouted at Shen Wen's back: "Sister Shen, don't stand so close to him. He's here to seek revenge on you. Before you arrived, he forced me to hand you over. He brought people here specifically to kill you."
Upon hearing the young emperor's words, Shen Wen stared intently at Chu Yanqiu, scrutinizing the ice-sculpted Chu Yanqiu for a few seconds before suddenly smiling.
Shen Wen laughed and said, "You really want to kill me? To avenge your grandfather? Don't you ever suspect that I'm actually innocent? I was set up by someone with ulterior motives, whose purpose was to make you kill me. In fact, that person wanted you to regret it and suffer for killing me by mistake."
Chu Yanqiu was slightly moved by her words, but he felt that they were illogical. As the saying goes, what you see with your own eyes is the truth.
He sneered, "Do you think I'm a fool? I experienced everything firsthand. If you hadn't helped this little emperor kidnap my grandfather, he wouldn't have lost his life. Aren't you extremely loyal to the little emperor? Well, I'll grant your wish. If you pay for my grandfather's life today, I'll leave and let the little emperor stay in that position for a few more days. How about that?"
Shen Wen was so angry she laughed. She showed no fear of death whatsoever. Instead, she put her hands in front of her and said, "You really want me to die?"
Chu Yanqiu raised his hand and waved it slightly, and the Jianghu soldiers behind him became imposing, taking a step forward as if they were about to attack with murderous intent.
They thought Shen Wen would be scared, but to their surprise, she shrugged, turned around and ran back behind the young emperor. The guards surrounded Shen Wen and the young emperor, fully armed and on high alert, waiting for the battle to break out.
Seeing Chu Yanqiu's confused yet stubbornly persistent state, Shen Wen felt a surge of anger. He hadn't remembered anything about their earlier promise. Those days and nights of passionate devotion, their willingness to follow each other to the death, were so real. Now, all that love had been forgotten, all because of a trick set up by Yu Chi Lian. He recognized me now, but how come he couldn't recall even a trace of affection?
Looking at the Xiliang army that Chu Yanqiu had brought, Shen Wen couldn't help but feel angry again. She was really furious. If she hadn't been unwilling to let all these normal humans die, and if he had brought a bunch of blood talismans, she would have already pulled out firearms from her spatial storage and blown them all up.
Shen Wen's actions explained everything; a major battle between the two sides was imminent and eventually broke out.
Just as the Imperial Guard captain had predicted, when the war reached a stalemate, the Imperial Guard was no match for the Western Liang army and soon showed signs of defeat.
To make matters worse, another army of immortal cultivators, under Chu Yanqiu's command, also rushed into the palace to help.
The young emperor's personal guards, including the commander of the Imperial Guards and Eunuch Guo, had been urging him to leave quickly for the sake of his precious health. They even disregarded the young emperor's attitude and forcibly took him away.