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

Chapter 195 Farewell

Outside the south city of Lin'an, Fu Mingchi and his three thousand men had gathered at the city gates.

Looking at the towering and solid city walls, Fu Mingchi felt a chill creep into his heart.

If Han Jin hadn't sent a messenger early in the morning, it would have been quite difficult for him to storm the city with his small force.

"Yan Jin, tell Han Jin to open the city gates," Fu Mingchi instructed.

Yan Jin had just spurred his horse forward and shouted towards the city wall when a dense array of archers appeared from within the wall.

Fu Mingchi looked around and immediately recognized Ji Yunze standing in the center.

“Prince Yongning, you are truly audacious to dare to enter Lin’an without permission.”

Ji Yunze pulled the bound Han Jin closer, smiling as he gestured, "Do you think your little tricks with the Grand Secretary can fool everyone?"

After saying that, he immediately boasted to the commander of the Divine Might Army beside him: "General Qian, now you should believe what I said, right?"

"The top scholar is indeed a cut above the rest." Commander Qian glared fiercely at Han Jin, then turned his gaze to Fu Mingchi with a hint of doubt in his eyes: "Your Highness, since you volunteered to go to the northern border to defend against the enemy, how could you come to Lin'an without permission? Wouldn't that be deceiving the emperor?"

Fu Mingchi was worried about Wan'er's safety, but looking at the archers covering the city walls, he felt somewhat helpless.

He clenched his fists secretly, and had no choice but to patiently shout towards the city wall: "Ji Yunze, Prince Qi will surely rebel. Wan'er has also entered the palace today. How can you bear to see her and His Majesty humiliated in the palace?"

"The spies I arranged have just left the palace. There was no unusual activity in the palace. Why should Your Highness deceive yourself?"

Ji Yunze sneered: "If you quickly retreat to Yuezhou, I can pretend that today's events never happened. As for the princess, I will find a way to rescue her, so Your Highness need not trouble yourself."

Fu Mingchi shook his head helplessly, knowing that a fierce battle was inevitable today, and immediately ordered Zhu Wencai and Yan Jin: "Attack the city."

As soon as Zhu Wencai and Yan Jin drew their swords, Ji Yunze signaled the archers to draw their bows and nock their arrows: "Prince Yongning, have you thought this through? I know you are quite capable, but today's Lin'an City is not Huizhou, and I am not the Duke of Rong. If you dare to take a step further, don't blame me for being ruthless."

Looking at the archers standing guard on the city wall and the incredibly thick walls, Fu Mingchi knew that it would not be easy to breach the city.

But the thought of Wan'er still in the palace made him extremely uneasy.

Fu Mingchi plunged his spear deep into the ground and said with unwavering determination, "Even if we all die in battle beneath Lin'an City today, we must not allow the Princess and His Majesty to suffer any harm."

"The last general takes orders."

Zhu Wencai had followed him for many years and knew his methods of attacking cities best. As long as His Highness could climb to the top of the city wall, even the most fortified city would be as easy as walking on flat ground.

Ten suicide squads were quickly organized, each consisting of two hundred men, with archers and crossbowmen on their backs. Zhu Wencai personally led the suicide squads toward the city wall, solely to provide cover for the archers to fire arrows at the wall.

In front of the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Gu Tingzhou led the Cavalry in a fierce battle with the Imperial Guards for nearly two hours. As all the troops in the palace gathered, the breach that had been torn open was finally retaken by Gu Tingchen.

He had clearly lost patience with Gu Tingzhou and ordered all the archers to shoot him with all their might. In a short while, they had wiped out all the cavalrymen.

Seeing his men almost wiped out and with no sign of Prince Qi's army coming to his aid, Gu Tingzhou couldn't help but sneer.

"This good-for-nothing is truly not destined to be the emperor. If he had led the people of the Prince Qi's mansion to go all out, the entire palace would probably be his by now."

He grumbled in dissatisfaction, then looked at Xue Ren, who was riddled with arrows, and quickly ordered, "Old Xue, you try to get His Majesty and my cousin away from the Hall of Mental Cultivation. I'll hold them off."

"Young Master, don't argue with me about this. Let me handle it." Xue Ren pushed Gu Tingzhou back into the Hall of Mental Cultivation and shouted to the rest of the people, "We swear to protect His Majesty to the death!"

The hundred or so men had only taken a few steps forward when they were all shot dead by the Imperial Guards' crossbows. Gu Tingchen led his men straight to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

Ye Wanshu was hacking at a pillar inside the hall with a knife when Gu Tingzhou rushed in. Seeing her actions, he asked in confusion, "Wanwan, what are you doing?"

Ye Wanshu glanced at the other pillars that had been cut down and said urgently, "Prince Qi has not yet appeared. If Gu Tingchen is allowed to enter, we will surely die. I heard His Majesty say that the foundation of the Hall of Mental Cultivation is tilted to the south. If we cut down all the main pillars, we can seize a chance to survive when the hall collapses."

Looking at the emperor and the old eunuch, who were panting heavily, Gu Tingzhou smiled with satisfaction: "Wanwan, you are really smart."

Before he could finish speaking, Gu Tingchen had already led his troops in. Glancing at the scene inside the hall, all the pillars supporting the roof beams had been cut down, and Liu Zhang was immediately terrified: "Your Highness, Miss Biao is going to destroy the Hall of Mental Cultivation, you must get out quickly."

"Stop her!" Gu Tingchen shouted, trying to stop her.

"Let's see who dares to step forward," Gu Tingzhou shouted, blocking Ye Wanshu's path and raising his sword at the soldiers who were about to approach.

Gu Tingchen could no longer tolerate this fellow and shouted sternly, "Release the arrows!"

Seeing the archers around her drawing their bows and aiming their arrows at Gu Tingzhou, Ye Wanshu suddenly stopped.

"Wanwan, don't worry about me, do what you want to do!" Gu Tingzhou shouted angrily, picked up his sword and charged forward without regard for his own safety.

In an instant, a barrage of arrows was unleashed, all aimed at Gu Tingzhou.

Seeing Gu Tingzhou covered in arrows, Ye Wanshu felt a pang of anxiety, but worried that the emperor would fall into Gu Tingchen's hands. She could only grit her teeth and swing her sword fiercely at the pillar in front of her.

With a sharp crack, the bright red pillar snapped in half, and the main hall swayed and collapsed with a crash.

Gu Tingchen was stunned. Just as he was about to rush forward, Liu Zhang forcibly pulled him out of the main hall.

Just as the main hall collapsed, Ye Wanshu quickly pulled Gu Tingzhou, the emperor, and the old eunuch to hide under the dragon table.

Once the surroundings had quieted down, she quickly lifted the rubble and helped Gu Tingzhou, the emperor, and the old eunuch escape westward.

They walked for an unknown amount of time until they reached a narrow wooden door. Gu Tingzhou suddenly pushed her away and collapsed to the ground, powerless.

"Take His Majesty with you, don't worry about me," he said weakly.

"Gu Tingzhou, we've already escaped. Just hang in there a little longer. Once we're out of the palace, I'll find a doctor to treat you."

Seeing him covered in blood, with arrows piercing his chest and abdomen, Ye Wanshu felt a pang of heartache and bent down to help him up.

"That's too late."

Gu Tingzhou forced a smile: "It was my carelessness. I shouldn't have trusted Prince Qi so easily. Fortunately, His Majesty is safe and sound. As long as you can get His Majesty out of the palace, our plan will not be considered a failure."

"You did very well, it's not your fault," Ye Wanshu said, shaking her head repeatedly as she held back the tears welling up in her eyes.

Gu Tingzhou raised his hand, whose color was no longer discernible, and slowly reached into his robes. He took out a gold hairpin and placed it in her hand, saying in a broken voice, "I... I once thought I could personally put this gold hairpin in your hair, but unfortunately, my cousin doesn't have that blessing."

Looking at the gleaming gold hairpin in her hand, Ye Wanshu clearly remembered that this was the mandarin duck and butterfly purple gold hairpin that she had asked Empress Dowager Gu for as a token of their love when she first arrived in Lin'an.

"You still keep it?"

Memories of the past kept flooding back, and Ye Wanshu's eyes flickered and gradually became blurry.

Once upon a time, he was also the older brother who cherished her dearly. Now, this feeling is still so familiar, yet it has become somewhat strange, making her feel uneasy.

Looking into his expectant eyes, Ye Wanshu choked up and said, "I'll show you how to wear it now."

With trembling fingers, she raised the golden hairpin and slowly inserted it into her hair. The dazzling golden light reflected on her face, just like the autumn scenery, making her exceptionally beautiful.

"nice."

Gu Tingzhou smiled faintly. Hearing the approaching footsteps in the distance, his brows furrowed. He staggered to his feet, leaning against the wall, and pushed Ye Wanshu out the door.

"Remember your cousin's words, live well."

As the palace gates were slammed shut, Ye Wanshu's thoughts suddenly became even more chaotic.

"Girl, don't let him down." The emperor hadn't expected Gu Tingzhou to be so righteous. He secretly gave the chief eunuch a look and together they helped Ye Wanshu head west.