Fireworks burst in the night sky, and Xiao Xun, inside the courier station, naturally saw them.
He raised his head to watch the fireworks, and when they faded, he lowered his gaze, his vision blurred.
"Who is behind this?"
"Has the Third Prince sent reinforcements?"
"Are the Crown Prince's men attacking?"
"Perhaps it's the Xie family—they have secretly amassed troops."
Those inside the room murmured in low voices, watching as the night sky returned to silence and listening to the sound of more galloping hooves on the streets.
Soon, news arrived: the Imperial City was engulfed in slaughter.
Ning Kun's expression shifted, and he looked at Xiao Xun again. "Your Highness, we cannot wait any longer."
It seemed the fighting outside the city was about to end. If the Third Prince and the Xie family's forces, along with the Crown Prince's men, surrounded the Imperial City, it would be difficult for them to enter.
"We don't necessarily have to go in," Xiao Xun said. "We can remain outside the Imperial City and protect His Majesty."
After all, it wasn't for His Majesty to see—it was for the people of the world to witness.
Ning Kun grabbed him. "We don't have enough manpower. That would be too dangerous."
At this, Tie Ying stepped forward. "Allow me to scout the way for Your Highness."
But once again, he did not make it out the door. Someone rushed in frantically.
"Your Highness, something is amiss at the Chu residence."
Something amiss at the Chu residence? Everyone in the room halted. What could be wrong?
What could that group of elderly, weak, women, and children at the Chu residence possibly do?
Because they had laid a net of heaven and earth around the Chu residence, they hadn't been closely monitoring it, waiting only for updates.
If Chu Lan did not act by dawn, they would act on her behalf.
Of course, they hadn't completely ignored the situation.
"We've been checking regularly," the messenger said. "The signals all matched."
So then, what was the problem?
The messenger looked at Xiao Xun. "But just now, when we tried to approach, we were prevented."
Prevented? What did that mean?
"As we advanced, they—" the messenger said, "attacked."
He pointed to his own body, which was stained with blood, one arm still oozing, and upon closer inspection, a small throwing dagger was embedded in it.
"We questioned them again," he said. "They still responded with the correct signals, but they refused to let us approach. Isn't that suspicious—"
Before he could finish, Tie Ying kicked him to the ground.
"Is it still not clear?" he cursed. "Have you lost your minds? Do you even need to ask?"
Of course, it was suspicious!
Something had happened at the Chu residence.
"I'll go check," Tie Ying said, stepping forward to leave.
Xiao Xun stopped him. "No need." He looked outside at the fading night and then up at the sky. "We miscalculated. The Chu residence is no longer under our control."
Those fireworks—
Perhaps this was the real reason his father had always believed Chu Ling was worth befriending.
Ning Kun's expression also changed. "Your Highness, now—"
Xiao Xun said, "Now, we must leave the capital immediately and return to Zhongshan Commandery."
With that, he turned to leave but, remembering something, picked up the imperial decree that had been thrown on the ground and strode out of the room.
The previously quiet courier station became chaotic, filled with the clamor of countless footsteps, but everyone moved swiftly. In the blink of an eye, they had gathered around Xiao Xun and galloped off into the night, their dark mass once again clouding the night that had begun to clear.
Xiao Xun galloped on horseback, and as he left the street, he turned to look back at the Imperial City.
Was it her in the slaughter at the Imperial City just now?
He had considered many who might go to the Imperial City—the Third Prince, the Zhao family's followers, the Crown Prince's remnants, the Xie family, and, of course, himself—but he had never thought of that girl.
What would happen next?He couldn't figure it out, but this time he had no chance to enter the Imperial City.
His hand clenched slightly as he lowered his head and saw the imperial edict scroll in his embrace.
At least he wouldn't have to face that dilemma.
Should he feel relieved? Or regretful?
......
......
The night gradually faded, allowing people hiding under a bridge arch to see each other's faces.
Qi Leyun couldn't resist leaning out, only to be immediately pulled back by her elders.
"Mother," she whispered, "it seems quiet outside."
Madam Qi held her daughter close: "Don't go out."
Qi Leyun still insisted on peeking outside and murmured: "Our home has burned completely."
Hearing this, Madam Qi trembled again - she had been trembling all night, but recalling the earlier danger still made her shake nearly to the point of fainting.
The chaos had erupted suddenly, without warning. Heavy hoofbeats sounded outside the door, and torches were thrown in. The moment the servants opened the door to demand answers, they were cut down by blades.
The household immediately fell into chaos, everyone scrambling to hide. But the Qi residence was small, offering few hiding places. Master Qi gritted his teeth and led the family and servants to charge out.
Fortunately, the attackers seemed to be in a hurry. After setting the Qi residence ablaze, they didn't pursue to kill everyone, but left noisily.
The streets filled with coming and going battles, the entire capital engulfed in flames.
The family hid under the bridge arch, soaked in water all night, but their lives were spared.
Qi Leyun stared blankly at the hazy blue-gray sky. She had never woken this early before - this was what the sky looked like as night receded and before morning light appeared.
"I wonder how many people will wake up as usual today," she murmured.
How were her girlfriends faring?
Especially Chu Zhao—
"Father," Qi Leyun couldn't help turning to call out, searching for her father among the crowded family members, "you said these people were the Third Prince—"
Before she could finish, her family covered her mouth with hushes.
"Whoever the bandits are, the authorities and court will determine," Master Qi also scolded his daughter in a low voice. "Don't speak nonsense."
Qi Leyun pouted. Why were they all pretending? Throughout the night, amid the coming and going battles and noise, it had been clearly shouted out - first some people shouting that the Crown Prince had been assassinated, bandits were causing trouble, and the Third Prince was capturing the bandits, then later came shouts that the Third Prince was rebelling—
How obvious.
It wasn't that she particularly needed to know who was causing the trouble, but she was worried about Chu Zhao. The Third Prince resented Chu Zhao - would he take this opportunity to target Chu Zhao's family—
She leaned out to look again. Their home had already burned down, but she didn't know how Chu Zhao's home was faring.
In the hazy blue-gray light, the street that had only echoed with the crackling of fires suddenly rang again with hoofbeats, dense as raindrops, pounding also on the hearts of the Qi family under the bridge arch.
Their bodies, soaked in river water all night, turned cold, their faces pale.
Were they coming again!
The night had already faded - no deliberate search would be needed to easily find them—
"Imperial City Office on duty! Bandits have been executed!"
Imperial City Office?
The Qi family froze for a moment. Was it real? Qi Leyun leaned out again to look and indeed saw troops of soldiers and horses galloping past, followed by groups of officers carrying buckets and pulling carts, noisily splashing water onto fires burning along the roadside.
Simultaneously, similar commotion came from streets in all directions, accompanied by renewed sounds of battle.
"Lay down your weapons and you won't be killed!"
"Bandits have been executed!"
The sounds of battle made people's hearts tremble with fear, but the shouted words brought some peace of mind.
......
......The first light of dawn broke as hooves thundered along the road, kicking up clouds of dust. Xie Yanfang rode swiftly among them, a sword on his back and a crossbow in hand, his body stained with blood. At first glance, he appeared terrifying, but upon closer inspection, he still carried the graceful bearing of a noble young master.
"Third Young Master!"
A rider galloped forward from ahead, calling out loudly.
Du Qi, beside Xie Yanfang, signaled, and the man was allowed through.
"How is the capital?" Xie Yanfang asked.
The Third Prince and the Zhao Family had amassed considerable forces, blocking the roads to the capital tightly. The Capital Garrison in the rear was also unstable. Trapped between two fronts, they had fought fiercely through the night to break through.
But the most formidable obstacle was the city gate.
The Third Prince would surely have heavily fortified it with elite troops.
They couldn't shout that the Third Prince was dead to demoralize the enemy—doing so would only fuel the ambitions of the Crown Prince of Zhongshan.
"The assault on the city is extremely difficult," the messenger reported. "But then, fighting suddenly broke out atop the city gate."
"On the gate?" Du Qi asked. "Did Seventh Master make arrangements inside the city?"
Xie Yanfang shook his head. "We don't have that many people inside." He turned to the messenger. "What about now?"
"It's quiet now," the messenger said. "But we still can't approach."
Du Qi looked at Xie Yanfang and asked, "Is it Xiao Xun?"
Xie Yanfang gazed ahead, his expression fearless, and urged his horse forward. "We'll know once we see for ourselves."
……
……
The towering, imposing city gate seemed to have taken on a layer of gloom overnight.
Corpses and weapons lay scattered everywhere, alongside burning torches, a stark contrast to its former prosperity.
The gate stood silent, as if deserted.
But as Xie Yanfang approached, countless arrows rained down like a downpour, forming a dense barrier on the ground.
"The Imperial City is under strict lockdown! Unauthorized persons are forbidden entry!" a voice shouted from the gate. "Retreat at once!"
Imperial City lockdown, unauthorized persons.
"I am Xie Yanfang," Xie Yanfang raised his voice sharply. "I am guarding the bodies of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess. I must enter the palace to see His Majesty."
As he spoke, he urged his horse forward a step, crossing the line of densely planted arrows.
Du Qi tensely followed, shielding him at his side.
This time, no arrows came from the gate. Instead, a man stepped forward, looking down.
It was an unfamiliar officer, tall and broad-shouldered with a dark-red complexion, scrutinizing the young master below from the high gate.
"Xie Yanfang? Who are you?"
Whether this ignorance was genuine or feigned, as long as they weren't shooting at him, there was a chance. Even if Xiao Xun had seized the initiative, he could still persuade him—Xie Yanfang declared loudly, "I am the third brother of the Crown Princess."
The officer gave an "oh," unclear whether he understood or not, but he didn't press further and instead waved his hand.
"Step back and continue guarding the Crown Prince and Crown Princess," he said. "Await further arrangements from the court."
He still refused to let him enter the city.
Xie Yanfang gripped the reins. "Sir, I must see His Majesty. It concerns the Third Prince."
The officer remained unmoved. "Step back. You will be summoned for an audience once the court has made arrangements."
Just as Xie Yanfang was about to say more, the officer suddenly turned to the side, bowed respectfully, and stepped back, making way for another person to approach.
High on the gate, the figure came into Xie Yanfang's view. Clad in armor and armed, he was tall and slender, a black-red cloak fluttering in the wind behind him.
Clearly, this was an official of higher rank than the officer, but—
Xie Yanfang did not call out. Instead, he watched with surprise at the man.Beside him, Du Qi was also staring at the man, his eyes wide with disbelief. Was he seeing things? Why was he seeing—
"Xie Yanlai!"
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