The seductive princess is no longer being pursued; the aloof prime minister is facing a crematorium.

Chapter 156 The Mask of the God of Slaughter

Jiang Jinshuang moved her eyes.

"Lu Xiao," she suddenly called out to him.

"what?"

Jiang Jinshuang felt a little tired.

She chuckled softly, then looked up at him: "You want the Tiger Tally?"

Lu Xiao stared at Jiang Jinshuang.

He shook his head slowly but firmly: "No."

"Then why did you go to such lengths to set up this scheme, just to find the Mask of the God of Slaughter?" Jiang Jinshuang paused, then smiled. "You know the Mask of the God of Slaughter is in my hands."

Lu Xiao looked at her seriously: "I admit that I approached you because I thought the God of Slaughter Mask was probably in your hands."

If we were to ask who His Highness Prince Ruiyang misses most in this world...

That leaves only Princess Zhaoming.

She should know the whereabouts of His Highness Prince Ruiyang's belongings.

"But the more important reason is that His Highness Prince Ruiyang trusts you, and therefore, you are the only one I can trust in the entire capital."

Jiang Jinshuang smiled casually: "You still haven't answered me. What do you want to do with the Tiger Tally? To rebel?"

Lu Xiao didn't reply immediately. He stared at her, his eyes filled with a cold, icy light.

"I just want the 300,000 Black Armored Cavalry to survive."

Jiang Jinshuang remained silent, only looking at Lu Xiao.

"Your Highness should know what the fate of the Black Armor Cavalry will be if the Tiger Tally falls into the hands of some treacherous people."

“Treason, rebellion,” Jiang Jinshuang replied calmly.

Yes.

If the Black Armored Cavalry were to fall into the hands of some unscrupulous individuals, their 300,000 invincible troops would be unstoppable in conquering cities and seizing territories.

They will become tools for the powerful and wealthy to plot rebellion, and they will point their weapons and swords at the soldiers and people of Wan Jin.

That's not good.

When Prince Ruiyang first established the Black Armor Cavalry, only a handful of men participated in the battle.

Most of them were lonely people who had lost their relatives, wives and children. They believed that their lives were worthless and that going to the battlefield to kill the enemy was a way to avenge themselves.

Later, as the troops advanced deeper and faced resistance, the army finally rescued the border people from the hands of the Beihuai soldiers.

From then on, more and more people joined the Black Armor Knights.

Everyone knew that when that black banner with gold patterns and a black horse appeared, it meant they were saved!
The Black-Armored Riders have come to their rescue.

The Black Armor Cavalry was originally established to defend against foreign enemies and protect the country.

They are an invincible sword.

It would be truly unjust to let them point their swords at the people of Wan Jin.

Jiang Jinshuang will not let such a thing happen.

"So, Lu Xiao, you took control of the Tiger Tally to ensure that the Black Armor Cavalry wouldn't become a tool of the Party and the government, right?"

Lu Xiao nodded: "I am the deputy general of the Black Armor Cavalry. If you want to use them, you will have to step over my dead body first."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Jinshuang chuckled lightly: "If what you say is true, that Uncle Wang secretly conveyed a death order to all the soldiers of the Black Armor Cavalry, would you still be willing to do it?"

Lu Xiao looked at her intently, his expression serious: "I don't understand His Highness Prince Ruiyang's intentions yet, but the loyalty of the Black Armor Cavalry will never waver."

Jiang Jinshuang nodded: "Alright, in that case, I will bring you the God of Slaughter Mask."

“Your Highness,” Lu Xiao said in a deep voice, looking at her seriously, “I will only use the God of Slaughter Mask to verify my conjecture first, and then I will return the mask to you.”

Jiang Jinshuang raised an eyebrow: "General Lu, are you willing to trust me?"

Lu Xiao nodded solemnly: "Yes, I now entrust you with my full trust."

Jiang Jinshuang waved her hand: "I will find a way to bring the mask over the next few days. Just wait for news."

"Thank you, Your Highness."

After speaking, Jiang Jinshuang seemed to remember something and asked again, "Regarding... what else does General Lu know about Uncle Wang's affairs back then?"

Lu Xiao frowned slightly: "What does Your Highness mean?"

Jiang Jinshuang opened her mouth, then shook her head: "Never mind, let me find the mask first, then we can talk." Jiang Jinshuang still didn't know how to tell Lu Xiao about that matter.

Given how much Lu Xiao trusted Uncle Wang, one wonders what he would think if he knew that Uncle Wang had voluntarily written those secret letters, thus imprisoning himself.

He shook his head.

Jiang Jinshuang stepped out of the room and took a deep breath.

With things starting to look promising, Jiang Jinshuang decided to first find the God of Slaughter mask and have Lu Xiao examine it.

On the way back to the princess's residence, Jiang Jinshuang sorted out her thoughts.

Back then, after Uncle Wang was imprisoned, the mask of the God of Slaughter was brought to the imperial family by the Imperial Guards who had confiscated his property.

The Empress Dowager said that the thing had wide, angry eyes, looked frightening, and was shrouded in an ominous aura.

They all say that when Prince Ruiyang wears this mask of the god of death, he is like a demon possessed, and his attacks are decisive and ruthless, killing with a single blow.

This mask is stained with the blood of many dead people.

When the concubines in the harem learned of this, they were plagued by nightmares and cried out in despair every day.

Jiang Huayan was deeply troubled by this, and the Empress Dowager disliked it, so he eventually threw the mask of the god of death into the well in the inner palace.

Jiang Jinshuang retrieved the mask from the well.

Afterwards, she wiped the mask clean and buried it in front of Uncle Wang's tombstone.

Mass graves.

The mask of the God of Slaughter should be in a mass grave by now.

Taking a deep breath, Jiang Jinshuang suppressed her impatience and returned to the princess's residence.

She could have gone to the mass grave today and retrieved the mask.

But people, both overt and covert, are watching her. Now, whenever she leaves the city, people in the shadows will investigate her whereabouts.

When she retrieves the God of Slaughter Mask from the mass grave, anyone with a discerning eye will be able to guess that the God of Slaughter Mask in her possession is no ordinary mask.

She could also send Yan Jue to act secretly; with Yan Jue's martial arts skills, shaking off those eyes wouldn't be a problem.

However, this would also involve the inkstone technique.
-
Not safe.

He frowned slightly.

Jiang Jinshuang's eyes lit up as she suddenly remembered that tomorrow was the Qingming Festival.

Visiting Prince Ruiyang's grave during the Qingming Festival is a perfectly legitimate reason.

Moreover, tomorrow is Qingming Festival, and the imperial family will be leading everyone to Huguo Temple to pray for blessings and pay respects to their ancestors, so there will be far fewer spies on her side.

This is a good opportunity.

Having made up her mind, Jiang Jinshuang calmed herself down and first sent Chun Tao to spread the word that she had caught a cold, felt dizzy and feverish, and should not go out.

He then sent someone to the palace to inform His Majesty that he might not be able to participate in the ancestral worship ceremony at Huguo Temple the next day.

Jiang Huayan was still angry with Jiang Jinshuang. Upon hearing this, he waved his hand, telling her to rest in the mansion and not to go out.

Having done all this, Jiang Jinshuang waited quietly for tomorrow to arrive.
-
Before dawn the next day, preparations for the ancestral worship ceremony had already begun in the palace.

Although the imperial ancestral worship ceremony during the Qingming Festival was a small ceremony, the scale of it was still quite grand. Zhao Yungui, the Imperial Observatory's chief advisor, was dressed in a long blue and white robe and was said to have already gone to Huguo Temple to make preparations.

Jiang Jinshuang had Chuntao pretend to be her resting in the bedroom, while she changed into plain clothes and rode away through the back door.

The mass graves are quite a distance from the capital city.

The procession for ancestor worship entered through the south gate.

Jiang Jinshuang deliberately avoided the north gate.

After walking for a while, Jiang Jinshuang saw mounds and graves everywhere.

Along the way, there were also many straw mats lying on the ground, with corpses wrapped under them, and flies swarming around them.

Soon, these unburied corpses will be devoured by wolves at night.

Jiang Jinshuang dismounted.

The mass grave was surrounded by a desolate wasteland, which became more and more desolate the further one went in. Partridges cried mournfully, and vultures hung in the sky.

I don't know how long it took.

Jiang Jinshuang finally saw a simple tombstone.

May everything go smoothly at the start of the new year. Let bygones be bygones, and let the future be pursued.