So what if she's my sister-in-law? You seduced me first.

Inside the carriage, Ning Yu heard the sound of the city gates opening wide and lifted the curtain to look outside.

Under the cover of night, a man dressed in riding attire rode his horse into the city. The creaking city gates slowly closed, and only a faint black shadow could be seen as he rode away into the distance.

A sudden gust of wind blew in, scattering Ning Yu's long hair. She watched the handsome figure disappear and then lowered the carriage curtain.

"Let's go."

Ah Zhou raised his whip and rode away, kicking up dust.

The moonlight shone on the majestic city walls of Shangjing, and the menacing owls roared loudly in the sky. In the darkness of the night, an inconspicuous carriage slowly drove out of Shangjing.

The carriage was dimly lit. Ning Yu lit a candle, leaned back on the small couch, and opened the bundle that Xie Yan had placed in the carriage.

The necessary documents, household registration, and money were all prepared, along with two sets of well-fitting men's clothing.

When she opened the box, she found a thick stack of silver notes and nearly a hundred taels of loose silver inside. She didn't need to rush to the bank to exchange them for silver notes; everything was settled perfectly.

Perhaps out of consideration for her traveling at night, there was some food under the carriage seat, and when the cover was lifted, a sharp knife could be seen.

Ning Yu took weapons quite seriously, so she quickly took them out to examine them. This dagger had probably seen blood, as the tip of the blade still faintly showed traces of blood.

She tried it out and found it wasn't as good as Xie Xun's dagger, which could cut through iron like mud. She should have tried to find a way to check out the armory in the East Garden.

However, this dagger is sufficient for self-defense.

Ning Yu breathed a sigh of relief, put the dagger in her boot, gathered all her belongings into her bundle, and closed her eyes to rest against the carriage seat.

She had only dozed off for a short while when she suddenly remembered something and said to A-Zhou outside, "A-Zhou, let's take the road to Fuzhou."

Fuzhou?! A-Zhou was suspicious. Wasn't this the direction to Liangzhou? Then, another voice came from inside.

"Qinghe is still waiting for me in Fuzhou. Let's pick her up and go together."

"I see," Ah Zhou breathed a sigh of relief and replied, "Understood, Your Highness."

Ning Yu was taken aback by his form of address. Hearing the sound of horses' hooves following behind, she said, "Let them go back first."

"Princess Consort, rest assured, they will leave once they have escorted us to Shili Pavilion on the outskirts of the city."

"Okay." After a pause, "By the way, A-Zhou, don't call me Princess Consort anymore. It's better to keep my identity hidden when we're out and about."

Ah Zhou lowered his head, "Your subordinate understands."

The sounds of battle raging inside and outside the palace were incessant, terrifying the people of the capital who shut their doors in fear, leaving the city and its surroundings desolate.

That night, the elders issued an emergency decree stating that the seventh prince, Xie Chizhang, had launched the Jinghe Gate Incident and burned down the Eastern Palace, which constituted a rebellion, and that troops should be dispatched immediately to kill him.

Several hours later, the elders captured Balin and several important leaders of the clan alive, and beheaded them all in front of the Taihe Hall.

The air was thick with the smell of death and fear. In just one night, the palace passageway of Jinghe Gate was filled with blood, swords, and corpses.

The massacre spread all the way to the Eastern Palace. A raging fire completely engulfed the Crown Prince's bedroom, and the flames, carried by the east wind, spread to the Crown Princess's quarters.

Before Wei Qingrou, who had been rescued by the assassins, could even speak, she saw the Crown Prince, his face covered in blood and carrying a sword, rushing back, followed by a group of soldiers who were all shouting and cursing.

She saw that the man at the head of the group was the Crown Prince's uncle, who seemed to be criticizing him for rushing back to the Eastern Palace at this critical juncture, and the atmosphere around them was tense.

It's unclear what Xie Jingchen roared and cursed, but the soldiers behind him hurriedly headed towards the northwest city gate.

The crown prince's uncle, furious, flung his robes and was about to leave when he discovered a large group of archers gathered in the palace passage, aiming at the Eastern Palace generals who had come out.

Wei Qingrou heard the sounds of fighting outside, and her body, which was about to rush out, suddenly felt a sharp pain.

When she learned of the coup in the court, she rushed back to beg her father for his support in the crown prince's ascension to the throne. However, the power structure of the elders' council was too complex, and the Xiao family had split into several factions.

The Xiao family's faction supporting the Crown Prince participated in this struggle, but tonight news suddenly came that her second brother had died, and her father, Ji, who was in the Elders' Council, was suddenly assassinated while giving a speech to the patrolling army.

Ji's father was a senior member of the Elders' Council, and his sudden murder at this time made her suspect that the Elders' Council did not want the Crown Prince to ascend the throne at all.

But the Seventh Prince is also being suppressed, and the Xie family has killed so many leaders in the Northeast and suppressed the Muhe clan. What are they trying to do?!

A wave of pain surged through her, and before she could take two steps, she felt dizzy, clutched her stomach, and fainted.

"Princess?!"

The piercing wind howled in his ears. Xie Jingchen looked at the archers on both sides of the city wall, his gloomy eyes filled with a chilling and murderous aura.

With the throne changing hands and surrounded by wolves, he cannot fall; he absolutely cannot fall.

At the palace gate, Xie Xun, dressed in a black robe and cloak, rode on horseback, looking down at the generals who came out of the East Palace. Finally, his gaze settled on Crown Prince Xie Jingchen's face, and he chuckled.

"Your Highness, the Seventh Prince has been executed, and the ringleader is here."

With a thud, a bloody head was smashed towards the doorway, and the gushing blood splattered onto the generals' clothes. They were furious but dared not utter a sound, gripping their swords and staring intently at the soldiers on the palace road and the archers on the city walls.

Xie Jingchen's face was grim. "Why were the Elders' Council's troops transferred away?"

"Has Your Highness forgotten that there have been more than a dozen rebellions by various lords in the Great Xia Dynasty? The Elder Council and aristocratic families have personally gone to quell these rebellions for the sake of the stability of the Great Xia Dynasty."

Xie Jingchen didn't believe his words at all. The old fogies in the Elders' Council were all waiting for other aristocratic families to come to their aid first. At this time, they were still fighting amongst themselves. He couldn't help but suspect that the person in front of him was planning a rebellion!

Looking at Xie Chizhang's head on the ground, with the raging fire behind him, his gaze was fixed on Xie Xun's face.

Xie Xun's expression remained unchanged, still as calm and collected as ever. "The Prince of Yun has rebelled, and all communication devices in the capital have been disabled. Your Highness should return to the palace now."

Xie Jingchen could clearly see the blatant coercion, but now was not the time to tear off the mask. Looking at the generals following Xie Xun, a deep-seated rage and murderous intent swept over him.

Xie Xun had no more desire for idle chatter. He turned the reins around and said, "Please, Your Highness."