Looking at Mu Tao again, his tiger-like eyes were filled with murderous intent—yes, a strong murderous intent!
A distant relative of the Marquis of Zhenguo's mansion, an unknown and weak scholar, a lowly commoner, dared to provoke the majesty of General Mu Er. He overestimated himself and was courting death!
He raised his sword and launched a fierce attack on Shen Lixue.
Their figures intertwined, flashes of cold light appeared, and the crowd could no longer see how the two made their moves. They could only see two figures, one in red and one in white, intertwined, dazzling the eye.
Ye Qianyue's heart jumped into her throat: "Third cousin, Brother Li is skilled in lightness skills. He's been entangled by Mu Tao and can't use his lightness skills. He'll get injured."
Lu Jiangfeng listened carefully to the sounds of fierce fighting, his handsome face very serious: "It's not just a simple matter of being injured!"
Ye Qianyue was taken aback: "What do you mean, Third Cousin?"
"I laugh as I brandish my sword to the sky... My lofty ambitions soar to the clouds, and the mountains seem small..." Mu Tao suddenly roared out these two disjointed lines of poetry during the fight, and his moves became even more ferocious.
Ye Qianyue was even more confused and snorted coldly: "What a brute, pretending to be refined and reciting poetry. Even the most beautiful poem sounds different coming from his mouth!"
Lu Jiangfeng gently pinched the porcelain cup in his hand with his pale fingertips, his dark eyes shining: "Qian Yue, didn't you notice that Mu Tao is different from before?"
"He's just pretending to be refined!" Apart from that, Ye Qianyue didn't notice anything different about Mu Tao.
The eunuch closest to her chuckled: "Princess, General Mu has a peculiar habit: when he's drunk, he likes to recite poetry!"
Ye Qianyue glanced at Mu Tao disdainfully: "He was clearly sober when he appeared, how come he got drunk after fighting for a while? It's not like he was drinking!" She had never heard of fighting making someone drunk before.
The eunuch chuckled again: "Princess, you may not know this, but General Mu Er was originally going to perform a drunken sword dance for the Emperor. He drank quite a bit of wine in the backyard, and after the fight, the effects of the alcohol kicked in, and he got drunk..."
A drunk person is not clear-headed, walks unsteadily, and is completely unaware of what they are doing. Under normal circumstances, you would have the upper hand in a fight with them. However, as Shen Lixue and Mu Tao sparred, apart from feeling that his moves were becoming increasingly fierce and his eyes were becoming increasingly ruthless, she did not see any signs of drunkenness in him.
Mu Tao's sharp sword sliced through the sky, instantly piercing Shen Lixue's white sleeve. A chilling aura surged into her skin, making her heart tremble!
Shen Lixue's gaze sharpened, and she gathered eighty percent of her strength in her small, white hand, striking Mu Tao fiercely. Looking down, she saw that a section of her sleeve had been torn off, revealing her smooth, alabaster skin. A cold smile appeared on her lips. Mu Tao was enraged and wanted to kill her.
Mu Tao retreated to dodge, looking at his gleaming longsword with some frustration. He was just a hair's breadth away from piercing Shen Lixue's arm. He had to keep trying. He stopped and shot his tall figure toward Shen Lixue.
"Stop! Stop!" Ye Qianyue's heart leaped into her throat as Shen Lixue's sleeve was pierced. Seeing Mu Tao pressing his advantage, Shen Lixue seemed still in shock. She cried out in alarm, "Brother Li is injured! Why are you still hitting him?"
Lu Jiangfeng's fair fingers tightened around the porcelain cup as he listened to Mu Tao's movements. He parted his thin lips slightly and said calmly, "Has the princess ever heard of killing someone while drunk?"
Ye Qianyue was suddenly stunned, her beautiful eyes glaring hatefully at Mu Tao: "Mu Tao, stop right now! Today is the Chrysanthemum Banquet, you can't be allowed to act so recklessly here!"
Mu Tao had already made his move, so how could he stop? His figure was as fast as lightning, and he instantly arrived in front of Shen Lixue. He thrust his long sword fiercely into Shen Lixue's vital point.
Behind Shen Lixue were large flowerpots filled with clusters of chrysanthemums. Unable to dodge, she suddenly ducked down and avoided the attack.
Mu Tao's gaze darkened. He turned around, long sword in hand, and relentlessly attacked Shen Lixue.
The ministers and their families' expressions changed slightly. Regardless of whether Mu Tao was truly drunk or not, his moves were ruthless and merciless, clearly intended to kill Shen Li.
The conflict between the Zhenguo Marquis's Mansion and the Muguo Duke's Mansion has a long history, and Consort Shu and Consort De have always been at odds. Just now, Consort Shu was embarrassed by Shen Li because of the little eunuch. Could it be that Mu Tao wants to take the opportunity to kill Shen Li and settle personal scores?
"Your Highness, Mu Tao has already won! Make him stop!" Seeing Shen Lixue cornered with nowhere to retreat, Ye Qianyue shouted anxiously.
Consort Shu glanced at the Emperor discreetly, her expression calm, showing no intention of valuing talent or recruiting capable individuals. She frowned slightly, looking troubled, and said, "Princess Qianyue, it's not that I don't want to help, but Mu Tao becomes extremely impatient and stubborn when he's drunk. No one can stop him from doing what he wants, and he simply won't listen to me!"
“Father, this is the annual Chrysanthemum Banquet. It’s not good if it gets stained with blood!” When Consort Shu didn’t help, Ye Qianyue glared at her and turned to the Emperor for help.
Consort Shu chuckled: "Princess, Mu Tao's strength is renowned throughout the capital. If the Imperial Guards come, they won't be able to subdue him; instead, they might provoke him and injure court officials, which would be disastrous..."
Ye Qianyue gritted her teeth. "That filthy Consort Shu! She's pretending to be afraid of hurting people, but she really wants to take this opportunity to kill Brother Li!"
"Crown Prince..." The Emperor and Consort Shu could not persuade her. She looked at Ye Qianlong, but saw that the Crown Prince's throne was empty, and there was no sign of Ye Qianlong.
Where is my elder brother, the Crown Prince? Where did he go?
Ye Qianyue's clear eyes quickly scanned the crowd and saw Ye Qianlong, dressed in black, standing quietly next to Shen Lixue, watching Mu Tao and Shen Lixue exchange blows.
Seeing Shen Lixue being forced into a state of disarray and her moves becoming chaotic, Mu Tao was overjoyed. His eyes turned cold, and he thrust his sharp sword towards Shen Lixue's vital points. A lowly commoner, trying to steal his thunder, he would either kill her or seriously injure her.
Shen Lixue looked at the sword thrusting towards her, a cold smile playing on her lips. Someone was coming to die, and she would naturally grant their wish.
With the cold sword almost touching her, she suddenly turned to the side, the long sword grazing her white clothes. With a flick of her slender wrist, the sharp sword in her hand pierced Mu Tao's right wrist. With a flying kick, she sent the eyesore flying three or four meters away.
"Ah!" Mu Tao was kicked to the ground, clutching his badly injured right wrist, letting out a shrill scream that was chilling and utterly miserable.
What happened? Everyone was stunned when they saw Mu Tao groaning in pain. Wasn't he the one who had the upper hand just now? How could he have suddenly lost?
Shen Lixue sheathed her longsword and coldly stared at the heavily injured Mu Tao. When she fought Mu Tao, she had already realized that Mu Tao's martial arts were superior to hers. However, he was single-minded and liked to do things in a hurry. If she wanted to beat him, she had to use her wits.
The defeat was just a ruse by Shen Lixue to deceive Mu Tao. He fell for it and relentlessly pursued her. He was blinded by victory, and his defense weakened, exposing his weakness, which is why she stabbed his wrist.
"Imperial Physician! Imperial Physician!" Consort Shu's expression changed slightly, a hint of coldness appearing in her beautiful eyes: "Quickly treat General Mu!"
"Yes!" Physician He hurriedly stepped forward and grabbed Mu Tao's wrist to examine the injury.
His gaze suddenly sharpened.
Consort Shu felt a bad premonition: "Imperial Physician He, how is General Mu's injury?"
After examining the wound carefully for a moment and considering it thoroughly, Physician He replied, "Your Highness, General Mu's tendons have been severed too badly; I'm afraid they cannot be restored..."
"What?" Mu Tao was shocked. He grabbed Physician He's collar with his left hand and shouted hysterically, "You're saying my right hand is useless?" He was a border general, and he relied on this right hand to kill and make merit. How could it be useless? How could it be useless?
Mu Tao was as strong as an ox, and the Imperial Physician He's collar was so tight that he almost couldn't breathe. He coughed lightly and said urgently, "General Mu, calm down, calm down!"
"My hand is crippled, how can I stay calm!" Mu Tao roared angrily. He was a cripple and could no longer wield a sword. How could he intimidate others? He suddenly turned to look at the culprit who had harmed him, his eyes bloodshot: "Chen Li!"
"Shen Li, it was just a small sparring match, yet you actually went so far as to kill General Mu Er by severing his tendons. Do you know your crime?" Consort Shu coldly stared at Shen Lixue and shouted angrily.