General, your wife has gone to deliver another calf for your horse.

Chapter 659 "Xuan Lang! How dare you!"

The words were spoken softly, but they were clearly heard by the group.

The two guardians, Azure Dragon and Black Tortoise, exchanged a glance. The Black Tortoise glared at the Azure Dragon, then turned to Jiang Nuanzhi, cupped his fists, and said, "Young Master, don't listen to Azure Dragon's nonsense. There must be another way."

The Azure Dragon Protector shrank his neck and pursed his lips—Young Master, have you ever considered that you could also kill Xuan Ting?
However, it seems the young master has deep feelings for this crown prince, so he shouldn't play the villain. After all, right now, what he really doesn't want to see is that bastard Xiao Yuanshan sitting in this position.

Xuan Ting, standing beside Jiang Nuanzhi, was taken aback by her words and looked up at her.

The aunt in front of me was dressed completely differently. In the past, she always wore plain clothes, almost spotless. Now, however, she was wearing a dark purple official robe, stained with blood, and the hem was covered with mud.

She used to be carefree and unrestrained. Now, she is always frowning.

It seems that Aunt Nuan never considered anything that might be detrimental to him. She didn't blame herself for dragging him into such filth; instead, she was thinking about how to win over the people after she ascended the throne.

Looking back at myself, I realized that for a fleeting moment just now, I had actually doubted her.

His life was saved by Aunt Nuan time and time again. He was on the verge of death several times, and Aunt Nuan protected him from the desolate wilderness to the capital. She protected him from being pristine to being imprisoned.

Xuan Ting, Xuan Ting, you have royal blood flowing through your veins, yet you cannot escape suspicion of those close to you?
Almost instinctively, he looked at his father, the emperor, sitting at the head of the table.

Is that what you want?

A sudden, suffocating tightness gripped his heart, making it hard to breathe. But just then, a gentle hand grasped his fist. Slowly, it gently loosened the nails that had unknowingly dug into his palm.

"Xuan Ting, it's alright."

Jiang Nuanzhi tilted her head and smiled faintly at him, patting his hand reassuringly. Inwardly, however, she sighed. How could she not know what Xuan Ting was thinking?
"Don't worry, Aunt Nuan has a solution."

Jiang Nuanzhi patted his head, then turned to look at the Xuanwu Protector beside her and asked, "What if someone comes to our aid?"

The Xuanwu Protector suddenly looked over: "Young Master, what do you mean?"

Jiang Nuanzhi narrowed her eyes slightly and lowered her voice again: "How many troops do you think Xiao Yuanshan can actually mobilize?"

"This is not hard to deduce. The Black Feather Guard's elite force previously numbered nine hundred. No matter how much Xiao Yuanshan's forces grow, under the Emperor's nose in the capital, they would never exceed fifteen hundred. Now, judging from the current situation, the rebel army that joined Xiao Yuanshan in his rebellion is about twice the size of the Imperial City Guards. It must be Lin Zhong's personal guards from the Imperial Guard camp. In the Imperial City, the general's ambush forces are sufficient to protect the lady as she travels to the front lines to reunite with the general."

Li Jiu said calmly.

"That's not right. But now all 100,000 Imperial Guards are under his command. If he really goes all out and massacres the entire capital, we'll be like trapped beasts, with no way to break out."

Xuanwu Protector Path.

Jiang Nuanzhi's eyes flashed: "One Lin Zhong can command 100,000 Imperial Guards? Don't forget, he's just the deputy commander. Liu Ling is dead, and the Imperial Guards don't only recognize Lin Zhong."

Upon hearing this, the pupils of the people around him immediately contracted, and a name almost popped into their minds.

"Princess Xiao!"

Oh yes, and Princess Xiao too!

The people in this Imperial Guard camp were all Golden Feather Guards trained when the former Prince was alive and later incorporated into the Imperial Guard.

Jiang Nuanzhi's eyes flashed, and she beckoned to the group, then huddled together and whispered to them. After a while, the group stared blankly at Jiang Nuanzhi.

"Young Master, is this really feasible?"

"Whether it works or not, we'll find out by trying," Jiang Nuanzhi said, stroking the jade pendant at her waist. "Now, it's up to you all."

The group exchanged glances, then clasped their hands in a fist salute and replied, "Yes."

At that moment, a sudden scream pierced the entire bedroom.

Jiang Nuan looked through the poisonous gas and couldn't see clearly. She took a few steps forward before she could see clearly that the eunuch in front of the Empress Dowager had his arm cut off by the guards around the Emperor.

The old woman cried out in pain, but because she had been given the "muscle-softening powder," her cries were short-lived. She was too weak to continue and collapsed there, barely clinging to life.

"Emperor, what are you doing?!" The Empress Dowager's eyes flashed fiercely as she stared intently at the emaciated emperor who lay paralyzed on the bed.

In an instant, her eyes flashed, but she forced a smile and sighed to herself, "When you were little, Granny Su took care of you. How could you be so cruel to her? She was just serving you a bowl of soup."

"Alas, as the Empress Dowager, I am now at this age, and naturally I long for a house full of children and grandchildren."

"Your Majesty, let me speak from the bottom of my heart. Whether you ascend the throne today, or Xuan Ting, or Xiao Yuanshan, to me it is simply a matter of being the Empress Dowager, the Grand Empress Dowager, or the Empress Dowager."

What else could I possibly be thinking? It's just that seeing you like this makes me sad. I want her to take care of you as she did when you were a child. Seeing you like this truly breaks my heart.”

"Yes. To you, there's no difference. Your grandson can't understand it either. What else could you be dissatisfied with?"

The Emperor finished speaking, then coughed heavily twice. He glanced at the ground with annoyance. "Still there?" The groaning Su Mama frowned. She wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth: "Kill her. The noise is giving me a headache."

With a soft "plop," the low sobbing and wailing abruptly stopped.

Granny Su stared wide-eyed at the Emperor as he handled her, as if she were seeing him for the first time. However, the bodyguard beside her was quick and agile, and to prevent the corpse from getting in the Emperor's way, he grabbed her foot and dragged the body aside.

The magnificent, bright yellow curtains fell, slowly covering Su Mama's wide, empty eyes. Apart from a trail of blood on the ground, there were no other traces.

The Emperor, however, was still not satisfied. His eyes remained filled with murderous intent as he glanced around. The guards beside him understood his meaning, and in the blink of an eye, everyone around the Empress Dowager, except for the Grand Empress Dowager herself, had been slaughtered. Even the highly skilled bodyguards who had been by the Grand Empress Dowager's side for many years, due to poisoning, did not have time to struggle before being beheaded.

In the blink of an eye, the Empress Dowager was left all alone, with only a few pools of blood remaining, appearing and disappearing amidst the swirling poisonous mist.

"Xuan Lang! How dare you!"

The Empress Dowager's face was ashen, her eyes fixed on the Emperor above her.

The emperor stared at him intently, his eyes dark and gloomy, and amidst the swirling poisonous mist, he seemed less than human.

The Empress Dowager gritted her teeth, suppressing her murderous intent. She turned around, and in an instant, a look of bitterness appeared on her face: "Xuanting, good child, even you would watch me being bullied like this."

As she spoke, she walked slowly toward Xuan Ting with slightly unsteady steps: "Xuan Ting, help me."

(End of this chapter)