It turned out that General Pei had just sent someone to the palace to summon the emperor back, but the emperor had already returned and was standing outside the Luohua Pavilion. Upon hearing General Pei's report, his face turned green, and he exuded a murderous aura, leading his men straight over.
"What happened?"
As Ye Lingfeng walked towards the bed, he frowned and asked Ji Shaocheng. Ji Shaocheng quickly reported, "Your Majesty, that woman Ruan Jingyue attacked the Empress at night. The Empress was drugged. We don't know what kind of drug she was given. She can't move or speak now."
Ye Lingfeng's face was terrifyingly gloomy, and he subconsciously felt a lingering fear in his heart. He quickly stepped forward, grasped Hailing's hand, and called out in a deep voice, "Ling'er, how are you? Where does it hurt? Where does it hurt?"
Hailing wanted to shake her head, but she couldn't move, so she could only blink.
Seeing her expression, Ye Lingfeng finally breathed a sigh of relief, but then felt a surge of anger and ordered Shizhu, "Immediately check on Her Majesty the Empress to see what kind of poison she has been poisoned with?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Shi Zhu stepped forward and quickly examined Hai Ling, while Ye Lingfeng ordered Ji Shaocheng and General Pei: "Go to the other side of the post station immediately and arrest everyone in the fiefdom, leave no one alive."
"Yes," Ji Shaocheng and the others had been waiting for this answer, and they quickly led their men out.
Inside the room, Wenbin and the Imperial Physician accompanied Ye Lingfeng as they watched Shizhu examine the Empress's pulse. After examining her for a while, Shizhu breathed a sigh of relief and stood up to report, "Your Majesty, the Empress is fine. They were only poisoned by a kind of incense. This incense is extracted from the sap of tall trees on those islands. It is not harmful to the human body, but it can make people unable to move or speak. The incense will dissipate on its own in about an hour. Presumably, Ruan Jingyue will not be able to do anything else to the Empress in a short time. She wants to take the Empress away first."
Although Ling'er and Xiao Mao'er were unharmed, Ye Lingfeng was still very angry. He had to get rid of Ruan Jingyue. If this woman lived, she would definitely be a threat to Ling'er and Xiao Mao'er, so he had to get rid of her.
The crowd remained silent, waiting patiently.
Shi Zhu went to the side and helped Shi Mei onto the soft couch. He then examined her and found a large swelling on her head. It seemed that Shi Mei had been the first to notice Duan Ni and had intended to warn General Ji and the others outside. However, when she jumped off the bed, she lost her balance and hit the corner of the couch, causing her to faint. Fortunately, the Empress was alright; otherwise, the Emperor would certainly not have spared Shi Mei. Shi Zhu sighed and gave Shi Mei a pill. He, Mei'er, Lan'er, and the other two had followed the Emperor from south to north, all the way to this day. Although they were devoted to their master, they cared for each other like siblings, so he did not want anything to happen to her.
Footsteps soon sounded outside, and Ji Shaocheng and General Pei walked in, their faces pale and green. They clasped their hands and said angrily, "Your Majesty, I did not expect that all the people of Feng Kingdom had fled overnight, not a single one left. I searched everywhere, inside and out, but I could not find a single person."
Those inside the room understood. Ruan Jingyue had naturally anticipated this move. What if they failed? So, before taking action, she sent away all the servants of Fengguo. If something happened, they wouldn't be able to find them.
Ji Shaocheng said angrily, "We need to go find the young emperor of Nanling immediately and make him hand over the person, otherwise this matter is not over."
Ye Lingfeng narrowed his eyes, his lips pressed into a straight line, showing that he was very angry. However, he did not rush to make a decision, but looked at Wenbin. When Wenbin saw the emperor looking at him, he calmly stood up and replied.
"Your Majesty, I believe it is unnecessary to demand the people from the young emperor of Nanling. Nanling has just ceded a city to us and is already furious. If we were to confront the young emperor of Nanling about this matter, I fear it would only further enrage him."
"Are we just going to let it go like this?"
General Pei spoke in a cold, deep voice, giving Wenbin an unpleasant glare. Civil officials are always hesitant and cautious in their actions; in his opinion, he should just storm into the palace of the Southern Ling Kingdom and demand that they hand over the person.
Wenbin paid no attention to General Pei's anger and continued, "Even if we enter the palace, what can we do if the young emperor says he doesn't know? It would be better to bring this up directly. If something really happens to Ruan Jingyue in the future, the Southern Ling Kingdom will hold us responsible. But if we remain calm now, Ruan Jingyue will not let it go. She will definitely follow us and seek revenge. In this way, we can lure her out and kill her. Then, the Southern Ling Kingdom will not hold us responsible. Who will see us hurt Ruan Jingyue?"
After Wenbin finished speaking, Ye Lingfeng's eyes showed approval, and even Ji Shaocheng and General Pei fell silent.
That's right. Right now, their going to the palace to demand people is clearly a way of telling the young emperor of Nanling Kingdom that if Ruan Jingyue dies, Nanling Kingdom will definitely blame Beilu. But if they kill Ruan Jingyue quietly, Nanling Kingdom won't dare to blame Beilu.
The room was quiet, and no one spoke until a soft voice broke the silence.
"I agree with what Lord Wen said."
When Hai Ling woke up, everyone in the room was overjoyed. Ye Lingfeng was naturally the happiest of them all, finally able to relax. Hai Ling had been conscious for a while, and although she couldn't speak before, she knew from Shi Zhu's words that she was alright, so she wasn't too worried. Instead, she glanced at everyone and said in a deep voice, "Let's do as Lord Wen says."
"Yes, Your Majesty, we obey."
Ji Shaocheng and the others responded, then bid each other farewell and withdrew.
As Shi Zhu was leaving, she also took Shi Mei, who had just stirred in the room, away. If Shi Mei were to say anything at this moment, the Emperor would surely be very angry. It was better to wait until the Emperor's anger subsided. Everyone withdrew.
Inside the room, Ye Lingfeng, still shaken, reached out and pulled Hai Ling into his arms, holding her tightly: "It's good that you're alright. That Ruan Jingyue is truly hateful. I will not forgive her. This time, I must capture her and kill her. Otherwise, you and Xiao Mao'er will never have peace again. From now on, I will not let go of anyone who poses a threat to you and Xiao Mao'er. I will kill them all."
A strong killing intent rose in Ye Lingfeng's eyes, and besides Ruan Jingyue, Feng Zixiao was also on his mind.
He wouldn't let Feng Zixiao go; keeping this man around would only bring trouble, so he had to get rid of him.
"I'm fine."
Hai Ling knew Ye Lingfeng was still scared, so she spoke softly. The little cat beside her stared at its father with its big, bright eyes, and suddenly grinned.
The night passed quickly, and at daybreak, the people of Beilu packed up all their belongings and prepared to leave Nanling.
Early in the morning, envoys from the two small kingdoms, Xiao Jin and Wu Fan, came to bid them farewell. It turned out they were also leaving. As for the Great Zhou Dynasty and the vassal state, they had long since disappeared.
Nguyen Hee Tong sent two ministers to see them off from Nam Ling. After finishing their breakfast, everyone got into their carriages or mounted their horses, preparing to leave Nam Ling.
To everyone's surprise, as soon as they stepped out of the main gate of the post station, they were stopped by a guard from the War King's mansion. He was on the War King's orders to deliver a letter to the Queen of Northern Lu.
Hai Ling raised an eyebrow, not understanding why Ruan Xiyin wanted to send her a letter. She ordered someone to take the letter and then opened it to read it.
The letter didn't contain many words. War King Ruan Xiyin said that he was afraid his days were numbered, so he asked the Empress of Beilu to come to the War King's residence because he had something to say.
Hai Ling handed the letter to Ye Lingfeng, whose eyebrows immediately rose, and he said coldly, "Why bother with him? We should go."
“Alright,” Hailing nodded, and the group left the post station. The guard from the Prince of Zhan’s mansion sighed and then led his horse back to the mansion. What could he do if he couldn’t see the prince? Thinking of his own prince, he couldn’t help but feel a little moist in his eyes. The prince was really something. There are plenty of fish in the sea. Why was he so fixated on one woman? Since the princess had already committed suicide, why was he torturing himself like this?
Inside the luxurious carriage of the Northern Lu Kingdom, Ye Lingfeng and Hai Ling sat side by side. The little cat sat in Ye Lingfeng's lap, occasionally tugging at his father's long hair, playing happily. Seeing that Hai Ling looked thoughtful and absent-minded, Ye Lingfeng couldn't help but slowly ask, "Do you want to go see that War King?"
Hai Ling didn't deny it: "I want to hear what he has to say. Is it really over, or is it another plan? If it's another self-inflicted injury, then Xi Liang's unwavering devotion back then was truly not worth it. If he really regrets it and is heartbroken, even if they don't end up together, at least he made this man feel heartbroken for a while, and Xi Liang's suicide that day was worthwhile."
"Alright, let's go to the War King's Mansion then."
Ye Lingfeng gave the order to go outside and head to the War King's Mansion.
The carriage turned around and sped towards the Prince of War's mansion.
Even before entering the War King's Mansion, one could see a deathly stillness. As soon as the guards at the gate saw the luxurious carriage stop and a person get out, it was none other than the Empress of Beilu who had broken into the War King's Mansion a few days ago. Ye Lingfeng did not get out of the carriage, but only instructed Shizhu, Shimei, and Ji Shaocheng to protect Hailing into the War King's Mansion. He played with his son in the carriage.
As Hai Ling led a few people through the gates of the War King's Mansion, she saw the guards bowing in a panic: "We respectfully welcome the Empress of Bei Lu."
His attitude is completely different now, but what's the use? Hai Ling smiled self-deprecatingly. The reason she came here was to see that man's self-reproach. Only by seeing his self-reproach would she believe that Xi Liang's suicide was not in vain. Otherwise, she would have died for nothing. If it weren't for this, she would never have come to the Prince Zhan's mansion.