Chapter 398
At a single command, the death knights who had been tailing them the entire way leaped out.
Chu Ruoyan, lacking any interest, told Heiya to finish the battle quickly.
Who knew that Shadow would suddenly strike halfway through? In less time than it takes to drink a cup of water, he slaughtered the group of death knights until only two remained.
Heiya glared at him in dissatisfaction and walked up to the two surviving death knights. "Speak, who sent you?"
The two exchanged a glance and both prepared to bite down on the poison hidden in their mouths.
However, Shadow struck their acupoints, effortlessly pried the poison out, and even flaunted it in front of Heiya.
Heiya gritted his teeth and punched one of the death knights in the face...
A miserable shriek rang out, and in no time at all, the man confessed, "It was Prince Yu who sent us! And Princess Jiahui!"
Chu Ruoyan massaged the space between her eyebrows. "Send them into the palace and leave them for Yan Zheng to deal with."
Soon, the two were escorted into the palace.
Yan Zheng, however, did not even spare them a glance. He directly commandeered a horse and galloped toward the Chengtian Gate.
This left Yin Shun and the others miserably chasing after him on foot. Even the palace servants cast sidelong glances, unable to understand how this usually cold and composed emperor could suddenly lose his composure to such an extent!
In front of the Chengtian Gate.
Chu Ruoyan's imperial carriage had just been carried in when she heard a cold, anxious voice call out, "Ah Yan!!"
She hurriedly lifted the curtain, only to see the man dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe riding toward her. The jade beads of the nine-dragon imperial crown on his head swayed wildly. After stopping in front of her carriage, he practically flew forward to pull her into his arms. "Are you alright? Did those assassins hurt you?!"
Chu Ruoyan froze for a moment before the corners of her lips slowly curled up into a smile. "No."
The man felt his wildly beating heart finally settle back into his chest. He held her tightly for a long moment before ordering coldly, "Men! Arrest Jiahui and everyone in Prince Yu's estate. Do not let a single one escape!"
Meng Yang hurriedly complied. A violent aura erupted from Yan Zheng for a fleeting moment. "Furthermore, I ordered the former royal family to be detained long ago. Investigate how those two could still collude with them!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Only after issuing a series of commands did the Emperor's wrath subside slightly.
Chu Ruoyan stood obediently to the side without making a sound. The man turned back to look at her, the coldness in his eyes melting away into gentleness like thawing ice and snow. "Let's go. We are going back."
The woman smiled and nodded, and the two returned to the palace hand in hand.
The future Empress had been assassinated, and on the eve of the coronation ceremony no less. For a time, the Supreme Court and the Ministry of Justice were thrown into an uproar. In less than a night, they had interrogated the suspects and rooted out their accomplices.
"It was... Princess Qingping?" Chu Ruoyan raised an eyebrow in surprise. The newly appointed Minister of the Supreme Court standing below wiped away his cold sweat. "To reply to Her Majesty the Empress, it is indeed Princess Qingping. The Emperor is merciful; aside from confining the former royal family, he did not implicate the other members of the imperial clan. Princess Qingping took advantage of this loophole, moving between the palace and Prince Yu's estate. She was also the one who passed on the news of Your Majesty leaving the palace."
Yan Zheng's eyes turned icy. "She's courting death!"
Chu Ruoyan, however, said, "Princess Qingping is only the late emperor's cousin, not his blood sister. Why would she take such a great risk? Unless..."
She exchanged a glance with Yan Zheng. The man frowned. "No matter the reason, since she dared to make a move against you, she can forget about living!"
Chu Ruoyan soothingly patted his hand. "Don't be angry. I can tell she didn't actually want my life, otherwise she wouldn't have formulated such a flawed plan. Let the person she wants to see go and see her, so we can get what we want."
Yan Zheng raised an eyebrow. "Then on your uncle's side..."
The woman blinked. "Uncle doesn't even like her. But as a minister, isn't it only natural to share the monarch's burdens?"
Yan Zheng choked on his words for a rare moment. "Alright, then I will issue the decree."
When the imperial decree was announced at the Cao residence, Cao Yang said expressionlessly, "Madam, I don't even need to think to know whose idea this was."
Chu Jing covered her mouth and giggled, while Old Madam Cao rolled her eyes at him. "If you're told to go see her, just go. A grown man acting like a timid little wife!"
Cao Yang said helplessly, "Mother! I'm just afraid of wronging my wife..."
"Your wife is right here, and she doesn't feel wronged. Hurry up and go!"
Thus, under the urging of his mother and wife, Cao Yang reluctantly made his way to the Princess's estate.
The estate was already completely empty. Ever since Yan Zheng had breached the capital, the male concubines here had all run away.
Princess Qingping sat alone by the edge of the bed. Hearing the commotion, she looked up full of joy, but when she truly saw the figure she had been yearning for day and night, she hastily covered her face and cried out, "Don't come in! Just stand right there!"
She was afraid he would see her face, a face that had been slashed beyond recognition on An Sheng's orders.
Cao Yang paused his steps and stood quietly for a moment. "Princess Qingping, why did you collude with Prince Yu and Princess Jiahui to murder the Empress?"
His calm tone held not a trace of emotion. Qingping could no longer hold back her sobs. "Do you not know why? It was just to see you once! Cao Lang!"
"Ever since my face was ruined, I never dared to appear before you again. But now that my imperial cousin is dead and the Murong family is about to be wiped out, I knew that if I didn't see you one last time, I would never have the chance again!"
Cao Yang furrowed his brows, and only after a long while did he speak. "Princess, why go to such lengths? Murdering the Empress is a crime punishable by death. Is it worth throwing your life away?"
Qingping was ecstatic. "Cao Lang, you're caring about me, aren't you? I knew it, you still care about me, don't you?"
Cao Yang instantly shut his mouth. Sure enough, he shouldn't have said that.
However, Qingping, who was inside the room, laughed and then burst into tears again. "I know you're not caring about me. Even if it weren't me, if it were someone else, or even a stray cat or dog, Lord Cao would say the same thing. Because you are simply the best kind of person, and what I love but can never have is exactly this goodness of yours!"
After she finished speaking, there was a loud thud, sounding like a heavy object falling to the ground.
Cao Yang clenched his fists and took a few steps inside, only to see Qingping collapsed heavily on the floor.
She wore a veil over her face, but blood was seeping out from underneath it. She had taken poison!
"Princess Qingping?" Cao Yang said in surprise. He saw her reach a hand out toward him, her gaze full of obsessive longing. "Cao Lang, I know you came today for my written confession. That's fine, that's fine... At least, for this final time... I still... got... to see..."
Before she could finish the sentence, her outstretched hand slammed heavily onto the floor.
Cao Yang looked at this woman who had entangled herself in half his life and shook his head. After taking the confession letter from the bed, he gave a slight bow and left without looking back.
After Yan Zheng obtained this written confession, he immediately announced it to the world. Prince Yu and Jiahui, who had stubbornly refused to admit their guilt, finally gave up all hope.
This time, the former royal family was uprooted entirely and purged cleanly. With the exception of the former Empress Pei and the Second Prince Murong Rui, no one was spared. Murong Rui also stepped forward at the first opportunity to harshly denounce Prince Yu and Jiahui. Then, he changed the subject to praise Yan Zheng's capabilities and benevolence, repeatedly emphasizing that he had voluntarily yielded the throne to a wiser man.
With this, any lingering murmurs of discontent among the common people regarding a minister usurping the monarch's throne completely vanished.
Inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation, everyone was bustling about before dawn.
Chu Ruoyan personally dressed him in the imperial robes and crown for the coronation ceremony, straightening the beaded fringes. Just as she fastened the bright yellow belt at the end, he tightened his grip around her waist and pulled her into his embrace. "Ah Yan, I want you to rule the world by my side."