“Mother…” the word sounded bitter in Lan Qi's mouth. She fell to her knees, with her knees hitting the grass beneath her. As if her soul had crashed into the earth, Lan Qi was struck by the reality she had just heard. Empress Na Xing had sent her back to the Palace but not as Princess Li Ming. But as a slave because after her father's death, she is worthless. What do they mean? What does Mother mean—One of the bodyguards approached and grabbed Lan Qi's limp hand. But Xiao Zhun immediately brushed it off.“Lan Qi watch out—” before Xiao Zhun's sword lifted from her waist, Lan Qi quickly restrained the young man. “Enough,” Lan Qi said almost in a whisper. Her eyes were blurry. Her breath was labored and her mind was too empty to decide anything. All that was in her throat was a lump of emotion from the question that exploded as if demanding an answer. Xiao Zhun lowered his head, his brow furrowed in worry as his gaze dived into Lan Qi's thoughts. Without Lan Qi needing to e
The blue bow man's gaze occupied Lan Qi's mind. One by one the memory fragments that Lan Qi had started to merge. “Princess Li Ming, you must leave here immediately. You are not allowed to meet the Queen.” Lan Qi's forehead creased in annoyance, “Why can't I meet my mother? I don't want to let my father die unfairly. I have to kill those robbers, those who killed my father, although I'm sure the Queen must have intervened." “You can't go against Empress Na Xing now. No one can bring down the Queen as long as the Emperor has not appointed anyone to replace his throne. Trust me, Princess Li Ming. You have to hide, disguise yourself and get as far away from the palace as possible.” Lan Qi shook off the blue bow man's grip. His eyes shining under the moonlight looked so beautiful and clear. Like crystals in the deep blue sea. “Why are you saving me now if I can't meet the Queen? Are you—” Lan Qi's gaze fell to the back of the blue bow man. Behind his back, a bow with arrows whose tai
Xiao Zhun dropped her off when they reached a mountain cliff. Far away from the palace grounds—from the palace prison—Xiao Zhun only carried Lan Qi, jumping over the roofs of buildings and tree branches with his strength, and then they arrived at a lonely and dark mountain cliff."Lan Qi—"Before Lan Qi could utter a word, her tears, which had been frozen by the air that had been sprayed on their way, melted away in a single breath.“Xiao Zhun, the palace will be destroyed…” Lan Qi whispered. She fell to the ground, letting her knees hit a rock and she cried with the feeling of her heart being torn apart.Today, the Empress declares herself as the successor to the throne. It was just like what the blue bowman had said—no one could bring down the Empress as long as there was no descendant that the Emperor had officially appointed.Of course, there was no officially appointed descendant because her mother—Empress Na Xing had planned this all out. Lan Qi bit her lower lip, clenching her
"Makes sense. If that Lightning Villain was paid to kill the Emperor, then there's no need to deny it because he does have special powers,” Jing Hua commented further. “That said, the Lightning Villain has strong sword and bow powers and is as fast as lightning. That's why they call it that."Xiao Zhun added, “Some people who have met him have said that the Lightning Villain has been killing since he was a child. But I don't care how great he is, I dare to duel swords with him. I don't think my Snow Tiger sword is that bad.” Taking out a silvery flat sword from his waist belt, Xiao Zhun flashed it. There were thin strokes that thickened and engraved into the iron of the blade. Impressed with a sacred bloodline sword.Was that also what made Xiao Zhun carry Lan Qi that hard on the trip earlier?“It's just that if we can say the Empress is the killer of the Emperor… Now, the question is, why can the Empress kill the Emperor? Why… did your mother kill your father, Lan Qi?”Lan Qi's m
"Just go home. Lan Qi should rest, she's too tired from today."Jing Hua pushed Xiao Zhun who was standing not far from the big tree beside the cottage. He looked slightly at the door and saw the girl lying and her back. Even though she looked asleep, Xiao Zhun wasn't sure if she was really sleeping."I can't leave you two out here unattended. What if there is a palace guard who checks the mountain? There's no way they can't check the mountain,” whispered Xiao Zhun who was being pushed around by Jing Hua.Even though Xiao Zhun had been to Jing Hua's cottage many times and knew the woman's character exactly—what Xiao Zhun thought more of was Lan Qi. The girl had just been crying from the reality crumbling before her eyes. The problem was, Xiao Zhun had been in that position before, and the palace's mysterious affairs until now had always nudged Xiao Zhun to continue to dig deeper."Ever since the Eagle Warrior said that the Zainan Mountains have many wild animals and it is said tha
Under the moonlight, Xiao Zhun examined an invisible ice blade made of ice-type stones. In Xiao Zhun's hand, the blade that was twice as small as his sword was like it was made of a lump of ice but had a sharp and hard edge.Xiao Zhun put his finger on the tip of the dagger and clicked his tongue. “It's filled with something. But I don't know what." He handed the knife back to the silent Lan Qi.In Lan Qi's eyes, there was nothing but a blank stare. Those brown eyes were filled with invisible mist. Making the light reflecting from the irises slightly flash hoarsely.“You… want to talk about it?”Lan Qi took a deep breath, wiping away all the sadness that had been etched into her expression. Humbly, she accepted the ice knife and wrapped it back in the brown cloth she kept under her belt.“I still feel like this is all a dream. In fact, everything is clear. That you are here, I am here, Jing Hua even gave her a warm bed for me. Everything, down to that ice knife. For some reason,
"Xiao Zhun guarding all night?"Jing Hua yawned as she blinked her eyes. She muttered incoherently as she lifted the blanket. "Yes. But it looks like he's gone."So last night, Xiao Zhun was guarding? Lan Qi thought that Xiao Zhun hadn't gone home yet. Wonder if she knows ..."You want to wash your face, Lan Qi?" With a sleepy face, Jing Hua picked up clothes and some flower petals from the wooden cupboard. Jing Hua's long flowing hair was slightly tangled, she looked at Lan Qi who was silent at the doorway.She had been washing her face since a few hours ago. Woke up earlier with a slightly lighter mind because last night's conversation with Xiao Zhun made her fresher. She had also been burning wood for Jing Hua's stove because she knew for sure that this morning that woman would be heating the dumplings that were to be sold later.“I was awake earlier, Jing Hua. I've also been burning wood. It's getting cold outside, the river water is freezing!” Lan Qi exclaimed with a small smile.
It's been one week. Since the Emperor's death, all news was spread through the mayors of each city. The news was such a stir that several cities attended the funeral of His Royal Highness. All the eunuchs, palace attendants, ministers, and officials were busy taking control in spreading this news. However, Guo Fen could only stand among the darkness, between the corners of the room to silently watch all their pretense moves. "Are you going to stand there all day?" Guo Fen turned his head. He found Empress Na Xing wearing a hanfu cloth and her hair in an upward bun with various trinkets and gold earrings hanging from her ears walking closer to him. Guo Fen turned his eyes away, looking straight at the small pond of the Empress pavilion. No palace guard could step on this place. The Empress's Pavilion was the Empress's most private place. If not for all of this, Guo Fen might not have received this special treatment. "Or did you see something you didn't tell me about?" Empress Na X