Ask the Nine Ministers

Chapter 479 A Pair of Deviant Ones

Xue Sui maintained his strength, keeping a close eye on Tian Shu and Yao Guang.

"I urge my fellow disciples not to throw your lives away in vain. No matter how exquisite the Big Dipper Formation is, it cannot withstand a thousand troops... I don't want to see any of you get hurt."

Tian Shu finally reacted. He looked at Xue Sui, and his gaze made people inexplicably feel sore.

"What a fine excuse..." Before he could speak, Jing Shan suddenly exerted her strength, her body jerking forward as if trying to break free from Xue Sui's grip, but in reality, she crashed heavily into her sword.

Xue Sui instinctively sheathed his sword and tried to help her, but Jing Shan took advantage of the moment when she lost her balance and, with her accurate judgment of sound and airflow, flicked a sharp short blade from her arm, stabbing straight at Xue Sui's heart.

This sudden change was swift, ruthless, and incredibly cruel.

"Peace!" Li Zhao's eyes widened in horror as he leaped forward.

Jing Shan smiled, and unexpectedly changed the direction of her short blade mid-strike, aiming for Li Zhao's throat as he lunged forward...

"Your Highness, be careful."

Xue Sui was startled.

Shouting, she instinctively twisted her wrist, and the longsword shot out suddenly...

"flutter--"

The sound of a sharp weapon piercing flesh was exceptionally clear.

Time seemed to freeze at this moment.

Xue Sui's long sword plunged deeply into Jing Shan's chest.

Blood gushed out, staining Jing Shan's bluish-gray robes red.

Her merciless assassination attempt, however, was thwarted by Xue Sui's bump and pull, avoiding vital points and barely piercing Li Zhao's shoulder.

Xue Sui's hand holding the sword trembled violently, his face turned ashen, and his eyes were filled with disbelief.

“Master…why didn’t you dodge? You taught your disciple that in the art of offense and defense, intention comes first, form follows, and the combination of feints and real attacks is crucial for self-preservation. You could have easily avoided it, so why did you run into it…”

If she abandons the assassination attempt on Li Zhao, she can escape unscathed.

But she didn't.

Instead, he chose to perish together with Li Zhao...

A faint smile flickered in Jing Shan's empty, gray eyes—perhaps a sense of relief, perhaps disappointment, or perhaps... a helpless acceptance and compromise with fate before death.

"Thirteen, you and Li Zhao... in the end... only one of you can live... take care of yourself..."

Having said that, she coughed up a mouthful of blood, her voice growing weaker, her eyes filled with a pleading tenderness. It was as if, in a daze, she had transformed back into the master who taught her to read and practice martial arts in the old mausoleum, unchanged.

"Let them leave alive, this is my...last...master's command..."

"Master..." Xue Sui's voice was broken and incoherent.

Jing Shan opened her mouth, and blood spilled from the corner of her mouth. She seemed to want to say something, but in the end, she only sighed very softly, almost inaudibly.

"Qihuang..." Emperor Chongzhao suddenly struggled to his feet, reaching out towards Jingshan, tears streaming down his face.

"Qihuang... I regret it... I really regret it..."

"Qihuang... I should have taken you with me back then... and flown far away..."

Before he could finish speaking, the dagger in Tian Shu's hand had already decisively slashed across his neck.

The emperor's hand fell limply to his side, and his body went limp.

The portrait, treasured for many years, suddenly fell to the ground and was stained red with blood.

"Your Majesty!" Exclamations arose from all sides in the hall.

"Move!" came the command from outside the palace from the Imperial Guard commander.

Tian Shu released Emperor Chongzhao, grabbed Jing Shan's limp body, and shouted in a hoarse voice, "Withdraw!"

Yao Guang and Yu Heng immediately moved to his side, their swords pointing outwards, their eyes resolute.

A large number of imperial guards poured into the palace, brandishing swords and spears.

Li Zhao pressed his bleeding shoulder, his brow furrowed, but did not give the order to act.

"You can't leave now. Lay down your weapons and surrender, and you might save your lives."

Tian Shu surveyed the hall, where the Eastern Palace guards were layered upon each other, their swords like a forest, surrounding them completely.

Outside the hall, it was a dark mass of people, their armor reflecting light in a continuous line, making the ground tremble under their feet.

On the palace walls and pavilions, archers drew their bows, ready to fire, their arrows gleaming coldly.

At this moment, the Zichen Palace was like an impenetrable iron cage. Without the support of the ambush troops, there was no way they could escape unscathed...

"Form ranks and break through." Tian Shu's voice was hoarse.

"Yes," Yao Guang replied, twirling her sword. "Senior Sister, once we've created an opening, you go first..."

Yuheng gripped his long sword tightly, his eyes reddening.

"What nonsense are you talking about? If we're going to leave, we'll leave together; if we're going to die, we'll die together."

Li Zhao smiled coldly, "To put up a stubborn resistance is nothing but courting death."

"Your Highness..." Xue Sui felt cold all over, staring blankly at Jing Shan, who was already lifeless in Tian Shu's arms. He staggered back two steps, then suddenly reversed his longsword and held it horizontally against his neck, his voice as light as a feather.

"Let them go, shall we?"

Li Zhao quickly stepped forward, snatched the blood-stained longsword from her hand, threw it to the ground, and held her trembling body tightly in his arms.

"It's not your fault, Ping An, it's not your fault."

Xue Sui lowered her eyes and gripped his clothes tightly with both hands.

"Let them go."

Li Zhao remained silent for a moment, then looked up at the commander of the Imperial Guards and waved his hand.

"Let them go."

"Your Highness!" the Imperial Guard commander shouted urgently, "Releasing a tiger back into the mountains will bring endless trouble! These traitors harbor rebellious intentions and will surely become a major threat in the future..."

Everyone urged, "Your Highness, please reconsider!" The old mausoleum was a lesson learned from failing to eradicate the root of the problem, and they did not want His Highness to be soft-hearted again and repeat the same mistake.

"I don't want to repeat myself," Li Zhao said coldly. "Get out of the way! Let them out of the palace."

The commander of the Imperial Guards looked unwilling and waved his hand through gritted teeth.

The guards stepped aside, making way for a passage.

Tian Shu picked up Jing Shan's body and carried it out step by step.

Yao Guang and Yu Heng stood guard beside him, watching their surroundings warily.

As she passed Xue Sui, Yao Guang paused for a moment, her voice hoarse: "Little Thirteen, this is our parting today. If we ever meet again, we will be enemies."

Xue Sui stared at him blankly, then looked at Tian Shu's broad back.

She recalled how, when she had a fever as a child, Tian Shu stayed by her bedside, feeding her medicine and wiping away her sweat all night without sleeping.

She recalled how her hands trembled violently after her first murder, and it was Yaoguang who handed her a handkerchief and told her, "You'll get used to it."

She remembered the medicine bottle that Tian Shu secretly slipped to her when she went to the capital.

I remember Yuheng practicing swordsmanship with her until late at night, helping her through the checkpoints patrolled by the Imperial Guards, and being shot through the shoulder by an arrow...

She remembered so many things...

Those tender memories are like needles pricking my heart.

She slowly closed her eyes, her voice as soft as a feather, "Senior brothers and sisters, take care."

Yao Guang looked at her, her eyes red-rimmed, "Even so, are you still going to let us leave?"

Xue Sui looked at them, his voice low but clear, "Let's go, stop thinking about revenge."

Tian Shu turned back and gazed at her deeply, his eyes filled with regret, disappointment, and reluctance... His gaze was so complex that it was hard to describe. In the end, it turned into an almost inaudible sigh, and he turned and left resolutely.

The group carried Jing Shan's body away slowly amidst the heavy encirclement.

As Xue Sui watched the departing figure, she suddenly felt weak all over and collapsed into Li Zhao's arms.

The sunlight outside the palace was like blood, staining the red walls and green tiles of the imperial city crimson.

The deep-seated hatred and grudges of the old mausoleum, spanning thirty years, came to a bloody end on this day.
-
The stench of blood lingered in the Zichen Palace, yet the wedding banquet in the Eastern Palace had already been rearranged.

Under the eaves and along the corridors, lanterns and colorful decorations filled the air, and red silk fluttered everywhere. Palace servants, heads bowed, deftly removed the cooled mats and replaced them with steaming hot wine and delicacies…

Despite his shoulder injury and advice against it, Li Zhao insisted on getting married today.

“Your Highness, you are injured and it is really not advisable for you to exert yourself. Moreover, His Majesty has just passed away, and according to the rites, we should observe the national mourning period. The wedding ceremony must be postponed…” The old Prime Minister Lu Jing knelt on the ground tremblingly, his forehead touching the ground, his voice full of anxiety.

He had lived most of his life and had never seen anything so absurd.

The emperor has just died, and the crown prince is about to get married. If this gets out, won't he be condemned by the whole world?
Li Zhao leaned back in his chair, watching the imperial physician apply medicine and bandage his shoulder.

"The news of Father's passing must not be leaked."

Li Zhao's voice was stern and left no room for doubt: "Three days later, we will announce to the world that the Emperor has fallen seriously ill and will be buried according to the established rites."

Lu Jing suddenly looked up: "Your Highness, this... with so many eyes watching in the Zichen Palace, I'm afraid we can't hide it..."

"Then let them talk." Li Zhao stopped him, looked at Xue Sui who was sitting silently to the side, and softened his tone.

"My bride and I are still in our wedding attire, and the grand ceremony must be completed; it cannot be delayed any longer—"

He paused, then emphasized, "Go and do it."

"Yes." Lu Jing knew the Crown Prince's temperament well and dared not persuade him any further. He sighed, bowed, and withdrew.

Only a few trusted confidants remained in the hall.

Suddenly, it became quiet.

The earlier clash of swords and bloodshed seemed to have been suppressed by an invisible force.

Li Zhao looked at Xue Sui, his tone carrying a hint of barely perceptible tension.

“Peace.” He leaned down and took her cold little hand in his. “If you feel it’s not right, I can wait… Actually, I… am not in a hurry.”

He stared intently into Xue Sui's eyes, trying to discern something from that deep, silent pool.

He had already planned out her rejection, her breakdown, or the grief or struggle she would show...

After all, today not only did he lose his father, but she also lost the mentor who raised her...

However, Xue Sui slowly shook his head, his eyes resolute.

"There's no need to wait any longer. I'm very happy to be able to marry Your Highness today."

Li Zhao felt as if he had been stung by something, his heart instantly aching and softening at the same time.

A thousand words are stuck in my chest.

He asked, "Are you really not bothered?"

Xue Sui looked up and met his gaze. She smiled slightly and spoke in a gentle voice.

"You and I are inherently rebellious people, so what harm is there in doing one more rebellious thing?"

Safety……

His unwavering courage and resilience in ensuring his safety are heartbreaking...

Li Zhao's Adam's apple bobbed, and his whole body felt as if it had been filled with warm water, heavy and sore. In the end, he could only hold her hand tighter, lower his head, and place a precious and tender kiss on her cold fingertips.

"If Heaven and Earth, and the spirits and gods, truly wish to punish me for this, I, Li Zhao, will bear the full responsibility."

Xue Sui did not reply, but slowly got up and said, "I'm going to change my clothes."

　Li Zhao: No, I'm lying. I don't want to wait any longer, not even a day longer. I want to consummate our marriage immediately...

　　Reader: Let him have his way!

　　Xue Sui: Satisfy him—

　　(End of this chapter)