Yunfeng's voice was filled with excitement. Lianyi and Xiaoke stepped forward and took the princess's hand, helping her walk out of the palace. Yunfeng and Fengqian walked out side by side. Although they couldn't see the princess's face clearly, her beauty could still be vaguely seen through her bright red wedding robe. A faint fragrance wafted from her body, and Yunfeng was already intoxicated. The group walked out.
Feng Qian boarded the bridal sedan chair in front of the palace, Yun Feng mounted his horse, and Xiao Ke and Lian Yi helped carry the sedan chair. In addition to the two of them, there were several other palace maids following the sedan chair, followed by a long procession of guards and ceremonial guards. Once the sedan chair was in place, the grand procession headed out of the palace.
As soon as Feng Qian sat in the sedan chair, she lifted the veil from her head and began to think about her thoughts.
Sese and the others were traveling with the sedan chair, which made her feel at ease, but she was also a little worried. Today, besides these guards, there were probably many experts hiding around the sedan chair. Could Helian Qianxun really take her away?
However, she trusted him. With his abilities, he could easily take her away not only from the street, but also from the palace.
The bridal sedan chair left the palace and headed towards the Yun residence. Today was the princess's wedding day, and the capital was packed with people, all craning their necks to watch and occasionally whispering among themselves. Everyone felt immense sympathy for Princess Chang Le. Let alone a princess, even the daughters of ordinary officials would not want to marry into the Yun family, let alone a princess. For a moment, everyone held the current emperor in contempt and disdain. No matter what, he should not have pushed the princess into such a dangerous situation. Such an emperor was truly a cause for concern about the future.
Whispers and discussions filled the streets, their voices rising and falling, reaching the bridal sedan chair. Feng Qian naturally heard them too, a cold smile playing on her lips as she silently chanted in her heart.
Brother, you really should come out and see what the people of the capital think of you. Are you deaf and blind now? One day you will destroy everything you have with your own hands.
Feng Qian was lost in thought inside the bridal sedan chair when suddenly, the sound of horses' hooves rang out, causing a chorus of exclamations from the street. In the blink of an eye, a group of people blocked the way from the sedan chair, and the street immediately descended into chaos. A member of the Yun family pulled his horse forward and arrogantly demanded, "Who are you people, daring to block the Yun family's path?"
"My name is Helian Qianxun. I have heard that Princess Changle is a woman of unparalleled beauty, a rare beauty in heaven and earth. Therefore, I believe that this young master is not worthy of the princess, and I wish to abduct him as her bride."
Helian Qianxun leaned against his horse, looking languid. He wore a white brocade robe, the ribbons at his waist fluttering in the wind. He had silver hair, black eyes, and a delicate face. A lazy smile played on his lips, yet it revealed a bloodthirsty ferocity. The murderous intent emanating from him was overwhelming, making everyone in the Yun family tremble with fear.
Only Feng Qian, inside the bridal sedan chair, was completely relieved and wished she could rush out of the sedan chair immediately.
However, she was curious to see how Helian Qianxun planned to steal the bride. In any case, she was relieved that he had appeared.
Outside the carriage, as soon as Helian Qianxun finished speaking, a climax immediately erupted on the street. Everyone was excited, agitated, and also fearful. Many people backed away, and for a moment, the whole street was in chaos.
The palace guards who were escorting the princess to the Yun residence had already rushed over. The leader of the guards pointed his long sword at Helian Qianxun and said, "How dare you! You're courting death."
After a furious shout, he ordered his men behind him: "Kill all these scoundrels who dare to cause trouble."
"yes."
The guards on horseback leaped up, and dozens of figures rushed towards Helian Qianxun. Unfortunately, Helian Qianxun, sitting high on his horse, did not move. He simply rode forward, completely oblivious to the figures rushing towards him. As several swords were thrust at him, many people on the street gasped. Would this handsome and beautiful fellow be in trouble? Not only the common people, but even Feng Qian was worried. However, her worries were completely unnecessary. Those who approached Helian Qianxun did not even touch him before falling to the ground, sword and all, rolling around. In the blink of an eye, they were foaming at the mouth and dead. Dozens of guards died instantly. Meanwhile, the man on horseback did not move at all. He rode all the way to the bridal sedan chair and spoke in a wicked tone.
"Your Highness, I wonder if I have the honor of marrying you?"
After speaking, the sedan chair curtain was lifted without wind, revealing a charming and beautiful woman inside. Her face was full of smiles as she looked at Helian Qianxun, who was reaching out to her from afar. A bewitching smile appeared on her lips, and her eyes were full of charm. A pair of fair hands were extended in front of her. Without thinking, Feng Qian reached out and placed her hand in Helian Qianxun's palm. With a clench of his large hand, her body was lifted into the air and landed in Helian Qianxun's arms.
On a white steed, a man and a woman complement each other perfectly, a match made in heaven.
The Yun family was in chaos. Today was supposed to be their wedding day, but they had been abducted on their way. How could they swallow this insult? Besides, the princess was the wife Yun Feng had always wanted to marry. So, they anxiously shouted at the top of their lungs, "Quickly, catch this damned monster! Catch this monster!"
Yun Feng gave orders to the Yun family members behind him and the palace guards, but he himself hid far away and dared not approach.
This made many people look down on him. This was his bride who had been stolen, and he was so scared that he kept backing away. What a useless thing. It was a good thing that the princess was stolen. That silver-haired man was much better than this useless lecher.
However, seeing that fighting had broken out again in the streets, many civilians fled. Besides the palace guards, members of the Yun family and Lei Hongjun, who had been following them from the shadows, also emerged and charged towards Helian Qianxun and his men. Sese and the others leaped up to meet them, engaging in battle. The street was a scene of carnage, the sun and moon obscured, dust filled the air, and splinters flew everywhere. In the fierce fighting, many were injured.
Although Helian Qianxun brought few men, Lei Hongjun, the palace guards, and the Yun family had a large number of people. However, the Yun Jiang people were known for their skill in using poison, so after a fight, they quickly used poison. As a result, many of Lei Hongjun and the Yun family members were poisoned and collapsed on the side of the street groaning. Helian Qianxun was too lazy to deal with these people and gave an order.
"Walk."
The group pulled their horses and rode away, ignoring the countless wounded people behind them. In the blink of an eye, they galloped away, and in the distance, the princess's sweet voice could still be faintly heard: "Helian Qianxun, after you marry me, will you marry another woman?"
Helian Qianxun, who was holding her tightly, darkened his eyes. This brat actually dared to ask such a question. Why didn't she ask him herself, or hear the rest of the story? It was obvious that she only heard the first half and not the second half, which was why she was nervous. In fact, he rejected the elders' proposal and told them that he would not marry anyone else except Feng Qian. Moreover, such things happened in Yunjiang, and the elders should not interfere too much, so they did not say anything.
I want to spank you right now.
Helian Qianxun did not answer directly, but spoke in a sinister tone. Feng Qian felt guilty, so she obediently shut her mouth. However, she was still thinking that she must ask him later if he would only marry her. The group quickly disappeared from everyone's sight.
In the palace, Feng Zixiao quickly received the news and was nearly furious. The reason he married Feng Qian into the Yun family as quickly as possible was to prevent Helian Qianxun from causing trouble. He never expected that such a thing would still happen in the end. It was infuriating. Feng Zixiao's face was ugly. He smashed many things in the study, but the fact remained that Feng Qian had been taken away. There was no use in him getting angry. Moreover, he knew that after this, he and his imperial sister would have no more affection for each other. She would never come back.
...
In the Liuyue Palace in Beilu, Hailing was playing with the kitten. Over the past few days, the kitten had gotten used to living with the wet nurse and the female officials, but it was still very attached to her. Whenever it saw her, it would smile very happily. It already had tiny teeth and was starting to look like a handsome little boy.
"Little kitten, have you been a good girl/girl today?"
The little kitten stretched out its chubby little hands and hugged Hailing's neck, giving its mother two big kisses. Then, with a fawning smile, it babbled out some single-word sounds that sounded somewhat like certain words, but were not actually words. Hailing had its wet nurse and female officials train it every day, so although it couldn't speak, it could do many actions, such as saying goodbye and thank you.
Inside the main hall, all was silent. Everyone watched the Empress and the little prince playfully interacting. Seeing this scene every day made them happy. The little prince was very clever. When he was in a good mood, he was kind to everyone. But if anyone offended him, he would have a cold expression. Although he was only seven months old, he already showed the dignity of a little prince.
Hailing played with her son for a while, then asked the female official how the little prince was eating and living. The female official respectfully reported everything. Hailing nodded, finally relieved. At this moment, Fuyue entered the hall and reported: "Your Majesty, the chief eunuch Yuanfu has arrived?"
Upon hearing the name Yuanfu, Hailing recalled the recent events in the palace and felt extremely depressed. She gestured for the wet nurse to take the little prince away. The wet nurse took the little boy away, and the little boy was a bit unhappy. He pouted and finally helplessly stretched out his chubby little hand to wave goodbye to his mother. Hailing also waved back to him and watched her son leave.
Her son actually lived not far away, in a side hall of Liuyue Palace. In addition to the servants and protectors, he was also taken care of by a female physician. In short, there would be no problems whatsoever.
Now, her worries revolve around the murder of palace maids and eunuchs. More than ten days have passed, and there's been no movement from the palace. What does this mean? It means the person is hiding in the inner palace. And this thorough investigation hasn't uncovered anything. What does this mean? It means the person is either disguised as a eunuch or a palace maid, which is why it's so difficult to find. Think about it, there are hundreds of palace maids and hundreds of eunuchs in the palace. If one person is disguised and mixed in, it's very difficult to find them. Since he's hiding in the palace, he must know that the palace is preparing to arrest him, so it's normal that he hasn't moved. However, since he's infiltrated the palace, he won't give up easily. So, he's planning a protracted war with them. What should she do? She must find this person.
"Go, bring Yuanfu in."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Fu Yue withdrew and quickly brought in the chief eunuch, Yuan Fu.
Yuanfu first paid his respects to Hailing, and then awaited the Empress's instructions.
Hai Ling raised an eyebrow, gesturing for Yuan Fu to stand up, then questioned him about the investigation of eunuchs and palace maids in the palace: "Yuan Fu, how did you investigate the eunuchs and palace maids?"
Although Yuanfu was the chief eunuch, there were so many eunuchs and palace maids in the palace, how could he possibly know if someone had sneaked in without his knowledge?
"Your Majesty, to avoid any mistakes, I personally inspected them one by one. There were no problems. The eunuchs all took off their clothes to check. As for the palace maids, I had them ask each other questions, choosing the more private topics to answer. If there were any mistakes, then it was fake."
Hailing couldn't help but admire Yuanfu's actions after hearing his explanation. It was indeed quite clever. Eunuchs were checked by removing their clothes, making it easy to tell if someone was a eunuch. And the palace maids' questioning of each other about private matters was also a method that wouldn't easily lead to mistakes, especially since the maids had done a very good job. The person who had entered the palace and was only now doing this must have recently infiltrated. If they had been in the palace long before, they wouldn't have only now encountered trouble. Therefore, if she was a fake, she would easily give herself away during the questioning. So, this person hiding in the palace couldn't be a maid; could it be a eunuch?
Although the eunuch had taken off his clothes to check, what if the person hidden behind him was also a eunuch? Thinking this way, he had a hunch and looked at Yuanfu.