Le Jianghu de Feng Qingcheng et Mo Xibei

Chapitre 95

"Then you should have realized that she wouldn't actually let you become the Crown Princess!"

“I never really wanted to be the Crown Princess,” Leng Jie replied resentfully.

“But she doesn’t think that way! She wants to completely destroy you so that her son will give up on you. But she needs to use you to blackmail her son, so she can’t kill you…” The old Taoist priest stopped there.

"What exactly does she want to do to me?" Leng Jie gritted her teeth in anger at the mere mention of that old witch. She didn't want to speculate on just how vicious she might be.

"She..." The old Taoist looked at Leng Jie with concern, seemingly finding it truly difficult to speak. He also seemed worried that Leng Jie wouldn't be able to handle the blow.

"Speak! You just bled me, and I didn't even blink!" Leng Jie pressed impatiently. She wanted to see just how vicious that woman really was.

The old man saw that she was already so angry even though she hadn't listened. He was worried that if she listened, she might hurt the baby in her womb in her agitation. So he tried to comfort her:

"Oh well, forget it. You're fine now anyway."

The old man didn't realize that the more he acted this way, the more it aroused Leng Jie's desire to know.

"Hmph! Whether I'm alright or not, I must find out what she did to me!"

Seeing that he couldn't persuade her otherwise, the old man had no choice but to say it tactfully:

"After she made the palace maid remove your clothes, she handed you over to her shadow guards without letting her dress you in anything else. Because there were too many people present, I couldn't act immediately. I had to wait until the three shadow guards took you back to their quarters before I could make my move. But don't worry, I've already killed everyone who saw your body." The old man spoke while carefully observing Leng Jie's expression. Seeing that she seemed largely unchanged except for a slightly strange expression, he dared to continue.

Hmph! Just as I expected. Leng Jie had already anticipated this when she saw the old man stammering and unable to speak. However, she was determined to get to the bottom of it. Only then could she return everything to her!

Did those men succeed?

"Cough! Cough cough!" The old man was so startled by Leng Jie's question that he almost choked on his own saliva. He thought that after hearing that several men had seen her body, she would be so ashamed that she would want to die. Even if she was strong, she should at least cry and make a scene, or just stare blankly for a while? But she actually asked as if nothing had happened, "Did you succeed?" He really wanted to crack her open and see what this Empress's brain was made of.

"With the Imperial Uncle there, they probably didn't succeed, right?" Leng Jie understood the old man's reaction, and she answered herself.

"Cough, cough, um, um!" the old man coughed as he nodded vigorously in response.

"Even if my royal uncle saved me, you have no right to hang me up and bleed me dry, do you?"

"Uh!" The old man didn't expect Leng Jie's tone to suddenly change again. The coughing that had just stopped started again.

"To be honest, your internal energy is too strong. I'm afraid that if I help you unseal your internal energy, you'll take care of me as soon as you hear me speak. So I dare not unseal your acupoints. As for tying you up, I'm really afraid that you'll suddenly move around when I'm borrowing your blood and hurt the baby in your womb."

"Looks like I really have to thank you, Imperial Uncle!" Leng Jie said with a smile. But that smile was unsettling no matter how you looked at it!

The old man quickly waved his hand and declined, saying, "No thanks, no thanks! My royal uncle stole the Empress's precious dragon and phoenix blood without permission. This is already a grave offense. How could I dare to claim credit!"

"By the way, why is Uncle so certain that a woman with a phoenix on her body must be Jinghe's Empress? And how can you be so sure that this child is not someone else's, but definitely a dragon seed of your Xuanyuan family?"

Finally, a light topic was asked. The old man immediately relaxed his brow and smiled, replying:

"You've come to the right person. I'm the only one who knows this right now. Although you were born with the phoenix mark, it won't manifest without dragon blood. You wouldn't see this mark on your body before your wedding. You should know that, right? And only the emperor and empress of Jinghe can have dragon blood. That's why I'm certain you're the empress."

How could she use something that happened before the wedding?

Seeing that Leng Jie remained silent, the old man took it as tacit agreement and continued:

"Another point is that the phoenix on your body is a double phoenix, which means it is Jinghe's true empress. Once the true empress appears, the dragon and phoenix will surely bring good fortune! However, although the dragon is passed down from generation to generation, the phoenix must go through reincarnation."

Chapter 124 Evil Begets Evil

After explaining what had happened, the Imperial Advisor released Leng Jie's blocked acupoints. She couldn't wait to return to find Qingfeng and Ziying, and also to seek revenge on the old emperor and the wicked empress. She dared not imagine what would have happened to her if her uncle hadn't been there. And what would happen now that Qingfeng and Ziying were waiting for her?

"Your Majesty cannot return to the Beifeng Palace now," the Imperial Uncle said, stopping her without giving a direct answer.

"My name is Xiao Jie, Leng Jie," Leng Jie corrected her uncle's form of address seriously. Then she asked, "Why can't we go out?"

"Alright, Xiao Jie," the Imperial Uncle said sternly, "First, your body hasn't recovered, so you can't use your internal energy casually. Second, there's currently an internal conflict in the Beifeng Imperial Palace. That's their own business, and it's not appropriate for Jinghe to interfere."

"But didn't you participate too? Weren't you helping the Second Prince?" Leng Jie asked in confusion.

"My story is a long one..."

The Imperial Advisor wanted to keep Leng Jie, so he transformed her into the Imperial Advisor and became involved in the affair. The story was recounted in detail.

It turned out he was a conscript forcibly brought in by the emperor. The emperor of Beifeng somehow learned of his elixir of immortality and forcibly bestowed upon him the title of Imperial Preceptor, demanding he hand over the elixir and its formula. The formula was something the imperial uncle had obtained at the cost of never being able to return to his homeland, and the elixir itself represented decades of his hard work; naturally, the imperial uncle refused. Then the emperor used his most common tactic: the lives of the guards who had followed the imperial uncle to Beifeng for many years, their families, and his alchemy furnace. In the end, the imperial uncle was forced to submit.

Then the second prince approached him, promising that once the imperial advisor helped him ascend the throne, he would release all those people and provide him with better conditions for alchemy. This led to the emperor and empress suddenly being poisoned by mercury.

"Does the Imperial Uncle already know that those golden pills are poisonous?" Leng Jie couldn't help but ask.

"Sigh, at first I really thought it was successful. But then I saw the workers who worked in front of the furnace falling ill one after another, and their symptoms were similar. So I started to suspect that there was something wrong with the cinnabar. But I had lost too much for it, so I kept deceiving myself and giving up."

Leng Jie understood his persistence, but she was always curious as to why the elixirs refined by ancient Taoist priests were always given to the emperors, while they themselves did not consume them.

The Imperial Uncle shook his head and smiled, "Taoism emphasizes cultivation, and alchemy is also a form of cultivation."

Leng Jie seemed to understand. The emperor sought immortality, while the Taoist priest sought a natural ascension to heaven. She knew what she needed to know. After drinking the blood-nourishing soup from her uncle and circulating her internal energy several times, Leng Jie felt her strength had returned. She touched the wound on her wrist; it was tightly bandaged, which should be enough to handle the trouble ahead.

"Alright, Imperial Uncle, I've fully recovered. My identity is merely that of the First Prince of Beifeng's junior sister, and my actions represent only myself. If there must be a connection, then let them go find my master. Therefore, I must return to the palace now. However, if you don't want anything to happen to me, then lend me some weapons and equipment!"

****************************************

After pulling the fuse, Zi Ying hurriedly returned to Qingfeng Palace. From afar, she saw a palace maid peeking furtively through the back door of the palace. Without a sound, Zi Ying landed behind her, immobilized her by striking her pressure points. At the same time, she asked sharply:

What are you doing here?

Hongmei was suddenly frozen in place from behind. She trembled with fright at first, but when she saw the purple figure appear before her, she was filled with both anxiety and joy. However, she couldn't move or speak. She could only express her emotions through her eyes.

Zi Ying then recognized the woman as Hong Mei, the Empress's personal maid. She recognized Hong Mei because Hong Mei had come to Qingfeng Palace several times to get medicine from Leng Jie to save her brother. Seeing that Hong Mei seemed to have something to say, Zi Ying casually released her pressure points and asked:

"Are you looking for me?"

As soon as Hongmei was free, she nodded quickly and said:

"Quick, quick, go save Miss!" As he spoke, he grabbed Ziying and ran.

Zi Ying didn't understand what she meant at all, so naturally he wouldn't let her pull him away. He grabbed her sleeve and asked, puzzled:

"Save what young lady? Where are we supposed to rescue her?"

“Your family, Miss Leng, Miss Leng,” Hongmei stammered in a hurry.

"Xiao Jie? What happened to Xiao Jie?" Upon hearing that something was wrong with Xiao Jie, the large hand holding her sleeve immediately pressed down on Hong Mei's slender shoulder, and asked anxiously.

Hongmei trembled with fear at Ziying's appearance.

Zi Ying quickly let go of her hand.

Hongmei swallowed hard, steadied herself, and after a moment's hesitation, quickly said:

"Miss Leng has been knocked unconscious by the Empress's scheme and has been taken away by several shadow guards. You must hurry and rescue her, or it will be too late. Miss Leng is a good person..."

Before Hongmei could finish speaking, Ziying grabbed Hongmei by the shoulder and asked at the same time:

"Where is it?"

Hongmei, who was suddenly lifted into the air, was trembling with fear and her face turned pale, but she still pointed in the right direction as if by reflex.

Following Hongmei's directions, Ziying quickly arrived at the courtyard where the Empress's shadow guards lived. Upon entering the courtyard, a strong stench of blood assaulted her nostrils, and the surroundings were eerily quiet. Ziying threw the person she was carrying to the ground and immediately rushed towards the room emanating the bloody scent.

"Bang!" He kicked the door open, and all he saw were three gruesome male corpses. After scanning the room and not seeing Xiaojie, Ying's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally calmed down a little.

"Ah!" Hongmei, who followed in, screamed and ran out in terror at the horrific scene inside. Ziying tried to stop her, but it was too late. A squad of guards happened to be passing by outside and rushed in as soon as they heard the scream. They immediately spotted Ziying chasing after Hongmei.

"What happened?" the guard asked, staring warily at Zi Ying.

"You'll see for yourself when you go in," Zi Ying replied calmly. Since he hadn't found Xiao Jie, he couldn't go on his own; he had to take the little palace maid with him to find her.

The guards, of course, also smelled the pungent stench of blood. The leading guard left four men to watch over Zi Ying and Hong Mei, who was cowering and trembling on the ground, while he led the rest inside. Just as they reached the door, Zi Ying leaped forward, scooped up Hong Mei, and vanished from the courtyard in a flash. Zi Ying's movements were so fast that the guards watching him could only watch helplessly as he disappeared from sight, unable to stop him in time.

Zi Ying wondered if Xiao Jie had killed those men herself and returned to Qingfeng Palace? Therefore, carrying the terrified Hongmei, he returned to Qingfeng Palace. He placed Hongmei inside the hall and began screaming at the top of his lungs.

"Xiao Jie! Xiao Jie, are you there?" Instead of Xiao Jie's reply, Qing Feng answered.

"Ying, Xiaojie isn't here."

People arrived as soon as they heard the voice. Qingfeng carried the Empress in one hand and the Emperor in the other, landing in the garden outside the main hall.

"Miss Leng went out this morning and hasn't returned!" The eunuch from Qingfeng Palace ran out to report upon hearing Zi Ying's cry. However, when his gaze fell upon the two important figures that the First Prince was carrying like two dead dogs, he immediately collapsed to the ground.

Seeing Qingfeng's posture, Ziying knew he also knew about Xiaojie's assassination attempt by the Empress. When he heard the eunuch say that Xiaojie hadn't returned, his murderous gaze immediately turned towards the Empress in Qingfeng's hands. A sinister voice then rang out:

"Why would the Empress want to harm Xiao Jie? If anything happens to Xiao Jie, Jing He's army will surely raze your entire Beifeng Kingdom to the ground."

Qingfeng was about to explain to Ziying about Xiaojie's detention by the Empress, but he didn't expect Ziying to say it first. The main problem was that he already knew, so why was he still calling for Xiaojie here? He looked at Ziying in surprise and asked:

How did you know?

The Empress was also startled; her previously confident expression suddenly became shaky.

“She said it,” Zi Ying said, pointing to Hong Mei, who was still in shock. “But we just went to the place where Xiao Jie was being held, and those guards were dead. Xiao Jie is nowhere to be found?”

When the Empress saw the "answer" that Zi Ying had pulled out, she trembled violently. However, she quickly composed herself and threatened Hong Mei:

"Hongmei, I have treated you well, yet you dare to betray me. Don't forget you have family!"

Normally, her words would have terrified Hongmei. Unfortunately, Hongmei was already paralyzed with fear, so her threats had no effect on her at all.

Missing? Qingfeng's sharp gaze then swept over the Empress in his hand. He said coldly, "You'd better pray that Xiaojie is alright!" Then he turned to Ying and said:

"Shadow, they're all yours now."

Qingfeng tossed the two old things in his hand to Ziying, while he quickly drew out the golden needles and pierced several major acupoints on Hongmei. Hongmei, who had been trembling, instantly calmed down.

Knowing that the truth wouldn't come from the Empress, Qingfeng knew that the only way to find out what had happened to Xiaojie was through Hongmei. Therefore, he suppressed his anxiety and anger and asked gently:

"Hongmei, where is Miss Leng? What did the Empress do to her this morning?"

Ying had already silenced the Emperor and Empress by pressing their pressure points, and then led them to the back of the main hall, where Hongmei couldn't see them. This way, she wouldn't be subjected to further pressure after just being frightened.

"Your Highness, hurry and save Miss!" Hongmei seemed to have forgotten the bloody incident that had just occurred.

"Hmm, don't rush, tell me what happened?" Qingfeng gently guided.

Hongmei thought for a moment and then recounted the events of the morning from beginning to end:

"Her Majesty the Empress took poison herself, then had Miss Leng use her internal energy to heal her wounds. Her Majesty ordered the shadow guards to knock Miss Leng unconscious from behind when she finished her practice. Then, Her Majesty had Qiuju remove all of Miss Leng's clothes and give them to Miss Biao. Following this, Her Majesty bestowed Miss Leng upon three shadow guards, telling them that as long as they didn't kill Miss Leng, they could do whatever they wanted to her. Ideally, they should let her…"

Hongmei kept her eyes fixed on the floor as she spoke. If she dared to look at Qingfeng while she spoke, she would have noticed that the Crown Prince's face was already steaming, and his fists were clenched so tightly that his arms were trembling.

"Enough!" Qingfeng finally couldn't help but interrupt Hongmei, leaving Hongmei stunned once again. He rushed to Ziying's side behind the main hall and, without saying a word, slapped the trembling empress four times.

"Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap!" The Empress's face immediately swelled up like a pig's head. But her eyes were filled with surprise; perhaps she hadn't expected her son to actually lay a hand on her!

After hearing Hongmei's words, Ziying immediately had the urge to strangle the two beasts in his hands. However, before he could act, Qingfeng beat him to it. A son beating his mother! This was a grave act of filial impiety, but Ziying didn't think Qingfeng had done anything wrong.

"You wicked woman! How could you..." Qingfeng was too angry to speak. He stopped talking and directly gave the Emperor and Empress two "Palm of Bliss". Then, he had Ying release their speech acupoints and throw them into the array in the garden.