I have suffered enough in my previous life, my cousin will never marry me

Chapter 190 Mountains of Swords and Seas of Fire

As dusk settled, a dark figure suddenly darted into the quiet Prince Qi's mansion. Just as the person was about to head towards the main hall, he was noticed, and the guards, holding torches, quickly surrounded him.

"Who dares to be so presumptuous as to break into Prince Qi's residence at night?" the leading guard shouted sternly.

The man in black tore off the black cloth covering his face, revealing a familiar face.

The guards looked surprised: "Young Master Gu."

Gu Tingzhou said in a deep voice, "I want to see Prince Qi. Please lead the way."

Hearing the commotion outside, Prince Qi and Ji Ningxi hurriedly came out.

Upon seeing that it was Gu Tingzhou, Prince Qi was displeased: "Young Master Gu, what refined taste you have, daring to grace my humble abode so late."

"Your Highness, why be so sarcastic?" Gu Tingzhou said, "I have come here with important matters I wish to discuss with Your Highness."

Prince Qi and Ji Ningxi exchanged glances. Prince Qi was about to dismiss the guards when Ji Ningxi stopped him.

"Wait a minute." Ji Ningxi glanced at Gu Tingzhou with little interest: "Young Master, are you perhaps planning to scheme against my Highness?"

"Miss Ji, what makes you say that?" Gu Tingzhou raised an eyebrow. "Your Highness and I are in the same boat. At this time, we should be united against a common enemy. How could I possibly scheme against Your Highness?"

Without much thought, Prince Qi guessed Gu Tingzhou's purpose.

He was originally the pride of the Rongguo Duke's mansion, but now his younger brother has taken the position of heir apparent. He must be very resentful.

"I'd like to hear how the eldest son plans to join me in this fight against a common enemy," Prince Qi said with interest, as he was about to approach him. Ji Ningxi stopped Prince Qi again with a wary look on his face: "Your Highness, you must not believe this man's nonsense."

Ji Ningxi glared at Gu Tingzhou with annoyance and smiled coldly: "The eldest young master is not the kind of person who knows how to endure hardship and bide his time. He broke off his engagement with my elder sister, and recently went to Yuezhou to get entangled with her. Perhaps he was bewitched by her to come and plot against His Highness."

"What nonsense is Miss Ji spouting?"

Gu Tingzhou said angrily, "Your elder sister and I were both tricked by Gu Tingchen, which ruined this marriage. That's why I want to avenge the loss of my wife and position."

With Empress Dowager Gu about to assume the throne, Prince Qi was worried about not having any help. Gu Tingzhou's uninvited arrival undoubtedly gave him hope.

Thinking of the grudges between the two brothers, Prince Qi had no doubt whatsoever.

Ji Ningxi hated the brothers to the core. If it weren't for them and Gu Tingchen taking care of her elder sister, she and her mother would never have ended up in this state.

Now that Gu Tingzhou has lost power, she would never let go of this perfect opportunity to take revenge on him.

"Your Highness, please don't be fooled by this person."

Ji Ningxi advised, "Tingfeng just returned from Yuezhou, and the eldest son came to see Your Highness. If the eldest son of the Gu family really wants revenge, he should seek out the Prince of Yongning. Your Highness, don't forget that these two brothers have never taken you seriously."

Ji Ningxi glanced coldly at Gu Tingzhou and said in a low voice, "Perhaps he has already colluded with Prince Yongning and wants to use Your Highness to give Prince Yongning a legitimate reason to fight."

Upon hearing this, Prince Qi also fell into deep thought.

If I were to raise an army, Fu Mingchi would indeed be able to legitimately lead his troops into Lin'an, which I must be wary of.

“Second Miss Ji, I think you’re just using this as an excuse to settle personal scores,” Gu Tingzhou rebuked. “When Prince Yan was demoted to Qianzhou, most of his family members died of illness as soon as he arrived there. Does Second Miss Ji want Prince Qi to suffer the same fate as Prince Yan?”

The thought of Gu Tingchen's depraved nature sent chills down Prince Qi's spine.

His two daughters were murdered by that scoundrel for no reason, and this hatred has not been avenged to this day. After Empress Dowager Gu takes over the court, the grandmother and granddaughter will probably be even less tolerant of him.

His expression shifted slightly, and he was about to speak when Ji Ningxi continued to plead, "This matter is of great importance. If Your Highness wishes to trust him, why not let me test his loyalty first?"

After saying that, she looked coldly at Gu Tingzhou: "Young Master Gu, whether you are seeking revenge or have ulterior motives, if you have the courage to go through fire and water, even if you really have ulterior motives, His Highness and I will accept it."

Gu Tingzhou smiled disdainfully: "I know that Miss Ji hates me, but now, for your elder sister and to avenge the overwhelming hatred in my heart, I am not afraid of even mountains of knives and seas of fire."

Ji Ningxi clapped her hands with a sinister smile, and soon several guards carried up a bench about two meters long and placed it in the courtyard.

The bench was covered with gleaming knife tips, which looked particularly sinister in the firelight, sending chills down one's spine at a glance.

Gu Tingzhou had just turned his gaze away from the bench when he saw several guards laying down a blazing charcoal fire on the way to where Prince Qi was standing.

"Young Master Gu, please."

Ji Ningxi pursed her lips with interest and provocatively said to Gu Tingzhou, "If you're scared, you can leave right now." Gu Tingzhou closed his eyes, took off his coat without hesitation, and lay down on the bench. The sharp tip of the knife pierced into his well-proportioned muscles, and the sizzling sound of the knife cutting through flesh could be faintly heard.

As a tempting appearance was instantly turned into a bloody mess, Prince Qi, Ji Ningxi, and their guards were all horrified.

Prince Qi couldn't bear it and wanted to stop him, but Ji Ningxi stopped him silently.

Despite the excruciating pain coursing through his body, Gu Tingzhou rolled across the two-meter-long bench.

Standing up straight, Gu Tingzhou took a deep breath, his body trembling. He glanced indifferently at the bloodstains covering his body before turning his gaze to the blazing charcoal fire in front of him.

“Young Master Gu, my elder sister is nothing but a promiscuous slut, she doesn’t deserve your treatment.”

As soon as Ji Ningxi finished speaking, Gu Tingzhou glared at her and said, "Shut up."

After saying that, he took off his boots and stepped barefoot directly into the charcoal fire. The burning pain immediately swept over his whole body, and the smell of burning filled the air, instantly filling the cold courtyard with the aroma of meat.

"Wanwan, your cousin will definitely grant your wish," Gu Tingzhou murmured silently, gritting his teeth and holding his breath.

In a distance of less than three meters, it seemed as if he had traversed a long life.

The crackling sound of firewood kept coming to his ears. His face was burning red, and large beads of sweat kept rolling down his forehead. His vision gradually became blurry, and he vaguely saw his cousin standing in front of him.

But her beautiful face was only partially visible. He tried to get closer, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't reach her. He could only clearly feel that his entire lower body was gradually losing sensation.

He didn't know how much time had passed when, in a daze, he stepped onto a smooth stone slab. A bone-chilling coldness washed over him, and he realized that he had stepped out of the sea of ​​fire. His legs gave way, and he collapsed to the ground.

“Your Highness Prince Qi, you and my second brother have long been sworn enemies. If you don’t kill him, he will not tolerate you sooner or later. You only have this one chance.”

Gu Tingzhou mustered his strength and said emphatically, "I am willing to serve Your Highness with utmost loyalty, but I only ask that Your Highness allow me to take Princess Jinghe away from Lin'an after you have reclaimed the Fu family's legacy."

Seeing him on his deathbed, yet still thinking about his elder sister, Ji Ningxi's hatred intensified.

She simply couldn't understand how such a lowly woman could be worth the two brothers risking their lives for, and even how the Prince of Yongning was willing to travel to the northern border for her.

Enraged, Ji Ningxi drew the sword from the guard's waist and viciously plunged it into the back of Gu Tingzhou's left hand, which was braced against the ground, causing blood to gush out.

"You bastard, what else do you want to do?" Prince Qi shouted, unable to contain his anger any longer.

"Your Highness, this Young Master Gu is definitely not sincerely trying to help you," Ji Ningxi explained urgently.

Gu Tingzhou smiled and said, "Miss Ji, don't let hatred blind you. Now only I can help Prince Qi. There are still 50,000 troops stationed in Lin'an City. Without the Imperial Guards, Prince Qi will probably not be able to even enter the palace with just a few hundred guards in his mansion."

Prince Qi kicked Ji Ningxi aside, drew the sword from Gu Tingzhou's hand, and asked urgently, "Young Master Gu, how do you intend to help me?"

Gu Tingzhou replied, “I have a close friend who is the deputy commander of the cavalry in the Imperial Guard’s three divisions. He is in charge of the Eastern Garden of the Imperial City and can mobilize two thousand personal guards. Currently, the Divine Might Army is in charge of the outer city. Although there are thirty thousand troops in the Imperial City, most of them are infantry. If Prince Qi can get the help of this cavalry, it will be as easy for you to lead your guards into the Imperial Palace as to walk on flat ground.”

Prince Qi was very interested in hearing this.

His mansion only had eight hundred guards. Although he had secretly expanded his force by several hundred men without the court's knowledge, and added the assassins he had recently recruited, he still only had two thousand men at most. If he added the cavalry, his chances of winning would be much greater.

"Young Master Gu, have you thought this through? If we fail, both you and I will be accused of treason," Prince Qi reminded him, feigning composure.

"If I can avenge my great wrongs, I will not hesitate to die ten thousand times," Gu Tingzhou said with unusual determination.

"Very well, if I ascend to the throne, I will certainly not mistreat the eldest son."

Prince Qi was overjoyed and immediately ordered people to carry Gu Tingzhou away for treatment. Ji Ningxi, however, was extremely annoyed: "Your Highness, you..."

Prince Qi interrupted her in a fit of rage: "If you, you vile woman, continue to sow discord between me and Young Master Gu, I will send you back to the Ji family."

After saying that, he hurriedly rushed to treat Gu Tingzhou.

Watching Prince Qi leave in high spirits, Ji Ningxi had no choice but to swallow her anger.

Now that Fu Mingchi has gone to the northern border, as long as he can bring down the Gu family, Prince Qi will continue to rely on his father in order to win over the hearts of the people, and then she will become the empress who governs the world.

It's not too late to deal with the eldest sister and the eldest son of the Gu family after Prince Qi ascends the throne.

"Ye Wanshu, you harmed my mother, I will make you pay a heavy price."