Mountains and rivers are waiting for you to return

Chapter 71 Underground Palace
Pei Nai and Gu Jinheng set off in a hurry.

On the way, she listened to the details of what happened. Two assassins broke into the palace last night and appeared in Xiao Mingyi's bedroom and the imperial study respectively.

The assassin who entered Xiao Mingyi's bedroom hid in the night and was discovered by Xiao Mingyi who got up at night while he was groping in the house.

The assassin became murderous the moment he was exposed, and Xiao Mingyi injured his arm while trying to restrain him. Fortunately, the imperial guards arrived in time to protect him.

The assassin dodged with his light Kung Fu, leaping and flying on the eaves, and hurried back to the imperial study to reunite with his companions.

Based on the assassin's movements, they deduced that he was one of the six imperial shadows under the Wu clan's God Lord.

What is strange is that after this person entered the imperial study, he and his companion disappeared.

The Imperial Guards surrounded the Imperial Study almost as soon as he arrived, but the two men seemed to have evaporated into thin air right under the eyes of countless people, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

Xiao Mingyi's matter is urgent, but Pei Nai and Gu Jinheng's whereabouts outside must not be exposed, otherwise it will bring disaster to the monks of Nan Temple.

No matter how anxious Pei Nai was, they had to return by carriage.

At sunset in the afternoon, the two finally returned to Chaoyang City, changed to a formal carriage and entered the palace.

When they rushed to Xiao Mingyi's bedroom, Xiao Mingyi was leaning on the couch with a book in his hand.

His arm was covered with medicine and wrapped in white cloth, and his face looked less blood-red.

Now, Concubine Yan, who is in charge of the harem, is kneeling beside her and serving.

After listening to the report from the servants, Xiao Mingyi looked up at them calmly.

He acted as if he didn't see Gu Jinheng. He just patted the seat beside him and said to Pei Nai, "Come and sit over here."

Pei Nai always felt that this action had a deeper meaning, but he didn't care about the twists and turns and strode over.

Gu Jinheng said coldly: "Your Majesty, you don't even care about etiquette now? Do you need me to remind you to remember to use the title of elder when addressing her?"

As he spoke, the pressure around him increased dramatically.

The palace maids in the hall could hardly lift their heads.

Even Concubine Yan lowered her head at this moment, not knowing whether it was because of Gu Jinheng's hostility or because Pei Nai came in front of her.

Xiao Mingyi was not moved by this pressure, and answered him coldly: "If I remember correctly, Mingzhi has nothing to do with you now. Uncle, you are stretching your hand too far."

A gust of wind blew and lifted the curtain in front of the hall. Some frail palace servants could not bear the force and fell to their knees.

"Okay, stop arguing!" Pei Nai shouted with a frown.

After the words fell, the air around him stagnated and suddenly slowed down.

Pei Nai didn't sit down either. He bent down to check his injured right arm. "Where did the assassin escape from? Have you found anything?"

Xiao Mingyi shook his head. "The last traces of the two were left in the imperial study. They were surrounded by the imperial guards and had no way to escape."

"If they came to assassinate you, why did they meet in the imperial study?" Pei Nai's eyes were full of confusion and puzzlement.

Xiao Mingyi put down the book in his hand and sat up.

Concubine Yan hurried forward to serve.

He put on his shoes, stood up and said, "Maybe they're not coming for me."

Xiao Mingyi walked towards a corner of the bedroom, and Pei Nai followed him.

"The imperial edict of succession left by my father was placed here and was taken away by that man." He took the empty wooden box off the shelf and handed it to Pei Nai.

Pei Nai looked at the box in his hand, but didn't find anything strange about it.

"The edict of succession?" Pei Nai repeated Xiao Mingyi's words, and said with a weary brow, "What use do they have for that? Anyway, your throne is so secure now, and it cannot be easily shaken. This is too unreasonable."

Xiao Mingyi looked at Gu Jinheng in the distance, "Lord Duan Ding should have heard that the Wu clan's garrisons in various places have been moving around frequently recently."

His words reminded Pei Nai.

Ten years ago, she defeated the elite of the Wu tribe and severely damaged their vitality, but ten years was enough time for them to regroup and make a comeback.

Today, the countries in the western border are like being trapped in a volcanic sea. Several countries including the State of Lu have been destroyed, the mountains and rivers are broken, and the people are displaced.

In order to avoid war, some small countries voluntarily submitted to the Wu people.

The current Wu clan's strength cannot be underestimated. But what is Yu Ying, who is beside the Wu clan's God, doing here?
Thinking of the Wu clan spy who was captured on the day the Minister of War was murdered, Pei Nai became more and more suspicious.

"Has the imperial study been searched thoroughly?" she asked.

Xiao Mingyi nodded, "No one was left out, but they opened the secret room in the imperial study. I don't know why."

"There is a dark room in the imperial study?" Pei Nai asked in surprise.

Xiao Mingyi answered her, "Yes, but there are only some miscellaneous items placed there."

Gu Jinheng, who had been standing there, suddenly said, "If you are curious, why not go to the study and take a look."

He said this to Pei Nai, and did not seek the consent of his "master" Xiao Mingyi.

Pei Nai thought for a moment and nodded.

She asked Xiao Mingyi again, "Is it okay?"

Xiao Mingyi glanced at Gu Jinheng and said without emotion: "Of course."

Gu Jinheng accompanied her to the imperial study.

Because the two assassins had not been found yet, for the sake of caution, Gu Jinheng's silver-armored guards entered first.

Pei Nai did not sense any outsiders' presence after he entered.

"Is there anyone else here?" She looked at Gu Jinheng.

Gu Jinheng shook his head.

He turned a vase, and with a "bang", a bookshelf not far away sank into the wall, then folded inward, revealing a door that people could pass through.

The silver-armored guard walked in first to inspect the place, and only came out to report after confirming that everything was fine.

The four guards who had just entered stood at the four corners of the dark room, and the rest were guarding the door.

Pei Nai followed Gu Jinheng in.

The layout of this dark room was simple. The guards held torches. With the light from the flames, Pei Nai saw shelves placed against the walls on three sides, with some scattered things placed on them.

"Can I take a look?" Pei Nai asked.

"Whatever you want. No need to be polite to Xiao Mingyi." Gu Jinheng glanced at her.

Pei Nai had only one thought when she heard this: she wondered if Gu Jinheng would still answer her like this if she said this in the inner vault.
She walked around and didn't find anything unusual, until she reached the fourth wall and stopped.

There was a map painted on the wall. She looked closer and saw that it was a topographical map, but she couldn't recognize where it was drawn.

"What is this?" Pei Nai turned his head to look at Gu Jinheng.

Gu Jinheng shook his head. "I don't know. Xiao Mingyi has asked many people to look at it before, but they still have no clue."

Suddenly Pei Nai remembered something.

There was once a similar picture hanging in her father's study, but she was too young at the time and did not have a deep impression of it. She only felt that it was vaguely similar.

"I seem to have seen it in my father's study. But I don't remember it clearly, or maybe I remembered it wrong, but in the picture I remember, there is a red dot here."

Pei Nai said this while subconsciously pointing over there with his hand.

The moment her hand touched the wall, the ground beneath her feet began to shake violently, and the circle of floor tiles surrounding her suddenly and rapidly retracted toward the inside of the wall.

"Nail!" Gu Jinheng shouted in panic.

He hurriedly grabbed Pei Nai's clothes and fell heavily with her.

The silver-armored guard closest to them was very fast, but still couldn't match the speed of the floor tiles. He failed to grab them and fell in himself.

The moment the Silver-Armored Guard fell in, the floor tiles closed completely again, leaving no gaps.

There was a slope below, and they fell on it and began to roll down.

Pei Nai lost consciousness in the panic. She only remembered that Gu Jinheng pulled her over while she was rolling and held her tightly in his arms.

(End of this chapter)