The battle in the canyon swiftly concluded with the Marksmen Battalion of the Imperial Stables, led by Huang Jin, the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs Supervising Eunuch, opening fire.
The volley of gunshots not only extinguished the candle Jiajing Emperor had just lit but also alerted Wei Caiwei, who was treating injured court maidens at the foot of the mountain.
Wei Caiwei gazed toward the direction of the gunfire, her heart suddenly racing as if sensing impending disaster.
By then, the imperial physicians had arrived at Qionghua Island. Wei Caiwei handed her patient over to them, mounted a horse, and galloped toward the Western Hills.
In the dense forest of the Western Hills, gunshots rang out. The guards leading the pursuit of Lu Ying had already been shot and fallen—the Marksmen Battalion of the Imperial Stables was composed of elite soldiers selected from various imperial guard units, renowned for their precise marksmanship. As the only military force in the palace led by eunuchs, their sole duty was to protect the emperor.
The fallen guards intimidated those behind them into halting, while Lu Jingfei and Jing Wang stood stunned.
Seizing the opportunity, Lu Ying ordered the guards to release Wu Xiaoqi and four other subordinates. The six of them fled together into the dense forest where Wang Daxia was hiding.
Enraged, Jing Wang commanded his guards to enter the forest and kill Wang Daxia. However, as they ran in the same direction as Lu Ying’s group, Huang Jin mistook them for pursuers of Lu Ying and ordered the Imperial Stables to fire again.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Another round of gunshots echoed, this time farther away and obstructed by rocks, so no one was hit. Yet the deterrent effect proved effective—despite Jing Wang’s frantic urging, the guards remained frozen in place.
Jing Wang could only watch helplessly as Lu Ying and the five others rushed to rescue Wang Daxia.
Meanwhile, Wang Daxia swung through the dense forest like an ape, clinging to vines to evade arrows and crossbow bolts. The gunshots did not deter the pursuing guards, who remained unaware of the Imperial Stables’ involvement and continued targeting Wang Daxia as their prey.
Cornered by over a dozen guards, Wang Daxia was gradually forced out of the forest.
Below the forest lay the flat terrain at the foot of Qionghua Island, lined only with a row of willow trees along the shore. With nowhere to hide, Wang Daxia was trapped, and the hunters sensed victory.
Driven to desperation, Wang Daxia’s will to survive burned fiercely: I still have a three-year promise with Wei Caiwei. If I die, Doctor Wei will become a true widow.
Forced out of the forest by an arrow, Wang Daxia dashed toward the lakeside willows, planning to gamble everything by leaping into Taiye Lake to escape—his swimming skills were decent.
But the hunters discerned his intent and raised their bows, firing a volley of arrows. Wang Daxia had no choice but to flip behind a rock to evade the projectiles, remaining motionless.
If he fled, he would be shot dead on the spot; if he stayed, the hunters would surround him, leaving him to await death.
What to do? Wang Daxia was trapped in a dilemma.
Just then, the sound of hoofbeats approached from the east. Wang Daxia, lying prone, looked over and saw a figure on a white horse riding through the vibrant sunset glow. The setting sun cast a dazzling halo around her flowing hair.
It was Wei Caiwei.
Wei Caiwei saw Wang Daxia bursting out of the forest like a stray dog, pursued closely by guards who shot arrows to drive him behind a rock. As they closed in, Wang Daxia was like meat on a chopping block—utterly vulnerable.
Her deadbeat husband was in peril! About to be riddled with arrows!
Wei Caiwei had no idea what Wang Daxia had done to warrant such a pursuit. She only knew he must not die—she would save him at any cost.In desperation, Wei Caiwei could no longer care about the consequences and shouted loudly, "By the Emperor's decree! Spare his life!"
To save Wang Daxia, Wei Caiwei risked everything, even going so far as to falsely claim an imperial edict.
The hunters were all guards from Prince Jing's residence. Neither Lu Ying nor even Lu Bing's words would have swayed them, but who would dare disobey the Emperor's decree?
Defying the decree was tantamount to rebellion, a burden no one could bear—not even Prince Jing or Lu Jingfei could shield them from such a charge.
Thus, upon hearing this, the hunters lowered their bows and crossbows, refraining from turning Wang Daxia into a human pincushion.
Wei Caiwei rode up and, to deceive the crowd, feigned composure, slowing her horse as she addressed the hunters, "I am here by the Emperor's verbal order to bring Wang Daxia before him for questioning."
The hunters scrutinized Wei Caiwei, noticing the medicine bag on her shoulder, and grew suspicious. "You're a Palace female physician? How could the Emperor send a female physician to deliver a verbal order?"
Having spent sixteen years in the palace in her previous life, Wei Caiwei was adept at spinning lies. She replied, "I am a Palace female physician recruited for the Imperial Concubine Selection. One of the selected women is attending the Emperor today and had too much to drink, so I was summoned to prepare a sobering remedy. That's why I am at the imperial presence. Seeing the chaos below and the conflicting reports, the Emperor ordered all involved parties to be brought to the Moon Palace for questioning. As for why he sent me—are you guards of the Jin Residence overstepping your authority?"
Unaware that the turmoil stemmed from Wang Daxia mistaking Prince Jing for a lecher, Wei Caiwei mixed truth with falsehood, leaving gaps in her story and using imperial authority to intimidate where her account fell short.
Before the Imperial Concubine Selection had even concluded, rumors had already spread that one candidate had gained the Emperor's favor ahead of the others. Of the forty-nine women attending the Chrysanthemum Banquet, forty-eight had returned, fueling widespread gossip that most of the guards had heard.
Their suspicions of Wei Caiwei lessened slightly, but the guards dared not simply release Wang Daxia. They said, "This man falsely accused Prince Jing of being a lecher—a grave crime deserving death. How can a woman like you handle such a cunning brute? We will escort him to the Moon Palace ourselves."
Wei Caiwei played her part so convincingly that even Wang Daxia was deceived. He hurriedly protested, "I falsely accused him? I saw Prince Jing using a telescope to spy on the women at the Chrysanthemum Banquet! Even—"
Hesitating out of respect for Wei Caiwei's presence as a woman, he avoided explicit details and continued, "Even his... arousal was so obvious it couldn't be hidden by his robe. When I discovered him, he tried to silence me, but I subdued him with one move, gagged him, and tied him up. Yet Prince Jing refuses to admit it and instead accuses me of being the lecher. I'm a nobody—where would I get a telescope? The accuser has become the accused, but I have reason on my side, even if this case goes before the Emperor."
Hearing this, Wei Caiwei grasped the situation: the "lecher" Wang Daxia referred to was Prince Jing! Prince Jing's disappearance was due to being bound by Wang Daxia!
No wonder Prince Jing's guards were hunting him down.
Wei Caiwei forced herself to calm down and maintained a facade of composure, saying, "Right and wrong will be judged by the Emperor's wisdom. I am merely a messenger. If you wish to follow, come along to the Moon Palace."
After all, these men wouldn't dare act out in the Emperor's presence.
Wei Caiwei led the way on horseback, while a dozen guards escorted Wang Daxia up the mountain. They soon encountered Lu Ying, who had come to rescue Wang Daxia.
Seeing Wei Caiwei riding calmly and Wang Dxia captured but still alive, Lu Ying breathed a sigh of relief.Lu Ying looked at the bows and crossbows in the guards' hands, still uneasy. "Eunuch Huang from the Directorate of Ceremonial has arrived. Everyone must lay down your weapons and cease fighting to avoid disturbing the imperial carriage. You may follow us up the mountain, but you must immediately surrender your arms."
The arrowheads gleamed with an eerie blue light, forcing Lu Ying to remain vigilant. Once they ascended the mountain, they would be exposing their backs to potential threats. Having come this far, the final stretch demanded extra caution—they could not afford carelessness.
The guards distrusted Lu Ying. "Why are you allowed to carry weapons?"
Lu Ying replied, "We have been serving directly under His Majesty for half a month. How would you, as Prince Jing’s men, know this? Of course, protecting the Emperor requires weapons."
The guards exchanged glances. "We will lay down our arms once we reach the Moon Palace."
Lu Ying pointed toward the dense forest. "His Majesty has dispatched Eunuch Huang to resolve this conflict. Did you hear the gunshots earlier? That was the Warrior Battalion of the Imperial Stables under Eunuch Huang’s command. By his order, aside from us Embroidered Uniform Guards, everyone must immediately surrender their weapons. Do you dare defy Eunuch Huang’s command?"
In truth, Lu Ying had rushed to save Wang Daxia without hearing what Huang Jin had actually said. Having spent so much time with Wang Daxia, she had been influenced by his cunning—even her usually rigid and principled self had learned to lie.
The guards set down their crossbows and bows, then handed over their sabers and swords.
With backup secured, Wang Daxia immediately regained his swagger, shedding his earlier wretchedness like a stray dog. "What about hidden weapons? Don’t think I don’t know about those."
The guards clattered out a small pile of concealed weapons—iron lotus seeds, throwing knives, and the like—and even drew short blades from their boot shafts.
Lu Ying signaled with her eyes, and her subordinates collected all the weapons.
With weapons surrendered, the group proceeded. By then, voices from the Imperial Stables could be heard calling for Lu Ying from within the forest—Huang Jin, worried something might have happened to her, feared he would have no way to explain it to Lu Bing.
Hearing this, the guards grew suspicious again. "Earlier, this female physician said she was acting on the Emperor’s oral decree to bring all relevant parties to the Moon Palace for questioning. Why, then, are the Imperial Stables still searching for Commander Lu? Aren’t we heading up the mountain now?"
An imperial decree? Lu Ying was baffled. She had only seen Huang Jin arrive—where was this imperial edict?
Lu Ying looked at Wei Caiwei, who silently mouthed the word "fake."
Lu Ying was instantly horrified! Wei Caiwei had just fabricated an imperial decree! If this were reported to the Emperor, and Prince Jing used it as leverage to counteraccuse, Wei Caiwei would face the charge of deceiving the sovereign—a capital offense!
Lu Ying made a decision.
She halted, and with lightning speed, her left hand drove a blade across the throat of the questioning guard while her right hand wielded a recently confiscated dagger, plunging it into another guard’s heart.
Two kills in one breath. Lu Ying swung her blade toward a third guard, simultaneously commanding her stunned subordinates, "Quick, act now! Leave none alive!"
Wang Daxia was the first to react. He raised his crossbow and fired repeatedly at the guards. Wu Xiaoqi and the others soon followed suit. Though they did not understand why Lu Ying had taken such drastic action, they trusted their commanding officer.
By the time Huang Jin arrived with the Warrior Battalion, he found over a dozen corpses strewn across the ground. Lu Ying was wiping the blood off her Embroidered Spring Blade with a handkerchief before sheathing it. She bowed to Huang Jin and said, "Elder Huang, these guards from Prince Jing’s residence refused to heed my warnings and persistently pursued Wang Daxia. We had no choice but to eliminate them on the spot."Wang Daxia presented the crossbow to Huang Jin, "Old sir, these people are truly vicious. They coated the arrowheads with deadly poison that kills upon contact with blood. Fortunately, I seized their weapons first and counterattacked. Otherwise, with blades being blind, it wouldn't matter if I got hurt, but if Commander Lu were accidentally killed, I would have no face to meet Commander Lu's father."
Author's Note: This chapter comes with 200 red envelope giveaways! Wishing everyone a happy weekend~ Stay joyful. I know everyone's been overwhelmed by all the melodrama lately, but even more dramatic twists are coming. Level 10 melodrama warning—please mentally prepare yourselves.
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