With legs weak, the sickly stable boy became a mad regent.

As the third alarm bell rang, Xiao Yunzhao got up and walked towards the screen.

Shen Nannan sat on the soft couch, watching the man put on his armor piece by piece, and then put on his black outer robe as the outermost layer.

That outfit wouldn't make anyone recognize Prince Zhao at a glance.

But as soon as he gripped the knife, the aura between his brows and eyes could no longer be concealed.

The regent covered in blood from his past life seemed to overlap with the person before him once again.

Shen Nannan's fingers, which were resting on her lower abdomen, tightened slightly.

Xiao Yunzhao had his back to her and stopped when he tied the last wristband.

He turned around and walked back to Shen Nannan.

"My little girl."

"Um."

"I have to go now."

The palace alarm bells have already sounded, and the crown prince has truly drawn his sword.

He wanted to enter the palace that Shen Nannan had dreamed of countless times.

He faced the emperor, the crown prince, and the imperial edict that had already prepared his crimes.

Shen Nannan looked at him, forced a smile, and said, "Go ahead."

Xiao Yunzhao didn't move. "Don't you have anything else to say to me?"

"Haven't we said this many times already?" Shen Nannan straightened his collar. "You're not allowed to believe messages without a token, you're not allowed to shoulder everything alone, and you're not allowed to risk your life for anyone else."

"Anything else?"

"besides……"

Shen Nannan paused for a moment, then said, "Remember to come back."

Xiao Yunzhao's Adam's apple bobbed slightly.

He bent down, knelt on one knee in front of her, and pressed his face against her protruding belly.

The baby in her womb was probably awakened by the sound of the bells outside, and was moving gently, one chime after another.

Xiao Yunzhao placed his hand on hers, "Don't bother your mother when I'm not around."

Shen Nannan lowered her head and stroked his long hair. "He's still so young, how can he protect me?"

"I know." Xiao Yunzhao's voice was very low. He was just reluctant to leave. Even though he knew that his people were all inside and outside the palace, and that Shen Ce and Shen Run had already made arrangements, he still wished he could hide Shen Nannan in a place that only he knew.

But she wouldn't agree.

He had already promised that he would no longer make all decisions for her under the guise of protection.

"Ah Chao".

Shen Nannan called to him softly.

Xiao Yunzhao raised his eyes,

"In your past life, you walked into the palace gates alone. No one was waiting for you, and no one told you which way to go."

"But this life is different."

She cupped his face in her hands.

"Niannian risked her life to give away the jade pendant, and the Third Prince gave you the old route to avoid Chengtian Gate. The Third Prince is also waiting in the palace."

"The Shen family, the Qiu family, and those soldiers who once fought alongside you through thick and thin, are all standing behind you."

You are not alone.

She paused, then gently traced his face with her fingertips.

"I'm not sending you to kill someone."

"I am waiting for you to pay back, one by one, the sins that should not have been placed upon you."

Xiao Yunzhao took her hand.

Shen Nannan's eyes did not show the fear and disgust of the people in her dream.

Only trust.

No matter how much blood his knife will be stained with tonight, she believes that he will never again become a knife that can be controlled by others.

"Aren't you afraid I'll lose control after I enter the palace?"

"I'm scared." Shen Nannan didn't lie to him. "But I'm even more afraid that you'll be too worried about losing control to do anything."

"Ah Chao, you can kill those who deserve to die."

"Just stop letting them decide for you who to point your knife at."

Xiao Yunzhao remained silent for a long time.

The next moment, he suddenly stood up and hugged Shen Nannan.

The hug was so tight that it made her back ache a little, but she restrained herself and stopped before it touched her lower abdomen.

Xiao Yunzhao buried his face in her neck, his breathing heavy.

"Wait for me to come back."

"I'm waiting for you."

Shen Nannan wrapped her arms around his waist and gently patted his back twice.

"I have something to ask you when you get back."

"What did you say?"

"I won't say now."

"My little girl."

"Ask me when you get back."

She deliberately refused to admit it.

Xiao Yunzhao raised his head, stared at her for a long time, and finally lowered his head to kiss her lips.

The kiss didn't last long; he was afraid that if he didn't leave soon, he really wouldn't be able to let her go.

Even as their lips parted, Shen Nannan was still clutching his clothes.

"You promised to come back and tell me everything."

"Um."

"You're not allowed to hide your injuries."

"Um."

"You're not allowed to either..."

Before Shen Nannan could finish speaking, Xiao Yunzhao kissed her on the lips again. "If you continue, Madam, I won't leave tonight."

"Then why don't you hurry up and go?" Shen Nannan let go of his hand, pulled up his face mask, and covered his overly conspicuous face.

Come back soon.

Xiao Yunzhao glanced at her one last time before turning and leaving.

The door opened and then closed again.

His footsteps quickly disappeared into the courtyard.

Shen Nannan sat in place, placing her palm on her lower abdomen, feeling the baby's slight movements.

"Don't be afraid."

I don't know if I was comforting the child or myself, but I was saying, "Your father will come back."

Inside the palace, blood had spread from the east gate all the way to the emperor's sleeping quarters.

The prince's men acted swiftly.

The imperial guards were caught off guard, and it wasn't until the palace gates were breached that they discovered that the Eastern Palace guards had already infiltrated the personnel changing shifts that night.

Someone tried to ignite a warning rocket, but had his arm chopped off.

The three alarm bells were rung by an old Imperial Guard before his death.

After the bell rang, the prince no longer hid.

More and more people are taking off their outer robes, revealing their armor underneath.

The blade reflected the palace lanterns, its coldness blinding.

When the emperor awoke with a start, the sounds of fighting could be heard outside his bedchamber. "What's going on outside?"

He sat up, his face grim, and put on his robe.

The chief eunuch knelt beside the bed, his forehead covered in cold sweat. "Your Majesty, someone has broken in through the east gate. Judging from their clothes, they seem to be from the Eastern Palace."

"The Eastern Palace?" A flicker of disbelief crossed the Emperor's eyes. "Where is the Crown Prince?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than the tightly closed palace doors were flung open from the outside.

A member of the Imperial Guard was thrown in and crashed heavily to the ground. Blood quickly stained the carpet in front of the hall.

The crown prince stepped over the blood and walked into the bedchamber. He was also wearing armor, and blood was still dripping from the long sword in his hand.

"Is Father Emperor looking for his son?"

The emperor looked at the crown prince he had personally appointed, his shock gradually turning to anger. "You led troops into my bedchamber, what do you intend to do?"

"Your Majesty, I only heard that there were assassins in the palace, so I brought people here to protect you."

Although the crown prince said he was protecting the emperor, the people behind him had already surrounded the bedchamber.

The chief eunuch blocked the emperor's path, shouting, "Your Highness, why are you killing the Imperial Guards to protect me? Tell your men to stand back!"

The crown prince glanced at him. "A mere servant dares to question me?"

The next moment, the longsword pierced the chest of the chief eunuch.

The emperor didn't even have time to stop it.

Blood splattered in front of the dragon bed and also on his robes, which he had not yet put on.

The chief eunuch opened his mouth, as if he wanted the emperor to leave quickly, but in the end he only spat out a mouthful of blood and slowly collapsed.

The emperor stared at the corpse, his chest heaving violently.

"The traitor!"

He grabbed a teacup from beside the bed and smashed it heavily against the crown prince.

The prince did not dodge; the teacup grazed his forehead and shattered on the ground.

A streak of blood slowly trickled down the prince's temple.

"Father has finally decided to take a good look at his son."

He raised his hand to wipe away the bloodstain, and suddenly smiled.

"For so many years, your son has sat in the Eastern Palace, waiting every day to inherit your throne."

"But you are already old and can no longer hold onto the power, yet you are still unwilling to let go."

"You want me to compete with Xiao Yunzhao, yet you are also wary of the power of any one of us."

"Now that he has regained military power, do you feel that this son, who wasn't raised by your side since childhood, is more useful than me?"

The emperor's face turned ashen. "I have made you crown prince and given you the position of heir apparent. What more could you possibly want?"

"Give?"

The prince's smile grew even colder.

"Everything Father Emperor gives away, isn't he always ready to take back at any time?"

He took out a roll of bright yellow silk from his bosom and threw it in front of the emperor.

The abdication edict was already written on the silk.

All that's missing is the emperor's own handwriting and the imperial seal.

"Your subject does not wish to wait any longer."

The crown prince raised his longsword, the tip slowly pointing at the emperor.

"Please, Father, abdicate."