Chapter 725

The shouts of killing all around grew closer, and Jinzhi could even smell the strong scent of blood.

"Hurry up!" Zhao Lang shoved Jinzhi and the children out of the carriage.

Jinzhi's worry deepened a few points, and she grabbed Zhao Lang's sleeve with her backhand.

"Be obedient, hurry up!"

Zhao Lang's face flashed a soft, warm smile, and he whispered, "No one in this world capable of killing your husband has been born yet!"

"Wait for me, and don't believe anyone's rumors about me—hurry up and go!"

Having said that, Zhao Lang left Jinzhi no choice but to go.

She had always respected her husband and believed his words without doubt.

Since her husband had made such arrangements, he surely had his reasons; if she stayed here she would only drag him down.

Jinzhi loosened Zhao Lang's sleeve, took the two children, and, under the escort of the Imperial Guard, got off the carriage and began climbing up the small slope on the other side.

Where they were, towering mountains flanked both sides, with a valley running between them.

Jinzhi didn't know if she could make it up, so she grit her teeth and followed behind the Imperial Guard.

Unexpectedly, after scrambling up a small dirt slope and turning into a grove, another left turn revealed a pitch-black cave.

The cave mouth was hidden among the bushes; the Imperial Guard pushed aside the branches, exposing the opening, then bowed to Jinzhi and said, "Madam, please this way."

Gu Jiu Ling never imagined there was another passage hidden in the middle of this cliff.

She suddenly realized that, although today's situation seemed to threaten the Zhao family, her husband had made thorough preparations everywhere, as if he were deliberately luring the enemy deeper.

Jinzhi had never been interested in court affairs, but seeing this array she could imagine that her husband might also have set a trap for the other side.

Thinking this, her heart eased a little, and she stepped inside.

Here Zhao Lang led his men into a melee with the black-clad attackers who had come to surround them, then fled northwest with his retinue.

Those behind pursued relentlessly, and Zhao Lang kept retreating until he reached the edge of a cliff.

Zhao Lang fled to the cliff's edge, was forced to slide down the slope, and afterward nothing remained but the wind blowing across the wilderness.

Everything seemed to have settled like dust, yet unseen secrets still lay hidden in the shadows.

The black-clad assassins chasing Zhao Lang all arrived at the cliff edge, stood there stunned, wondering if Zhao Lang had really jumped off the cliff.

"Someone! Chase! If alive, bring back the person; if dead, bring back the corpse!"

The news of Zhao Lang's fatal fall spread quickly throughout Southern Qi.

It was said that the Grand General of the Pillar State returned to the capital to assume regency, but met with an accident on the way, fell from a cliff, and died.

This news spread rapidly through Shang Jing, instantly causing an uproar at court, leaving everyone dumbfounded.

"How can this be? How could the junior general suffer such a major mishap?"

"Yeah, who would have thought that on the way back to the capital he would fall off a cliff in that valley?"

"I heard that when General Zhao was returning to the capital with his wife and children, he encountered bandits midway; while fighting them he fell off the cliff, and now General Zhao is dead, his wife and children have vanished."

"Heh? General Zhao surely isn't someone easily killed; maybe it's somebody else…"

"Shh! Keep quiet—do you want to get yourself killed?"

In the teahouse, order was instantly restored, and attention shifted from Zhao Lang to the usual petty gossip of the eastern and western families.

Over in the Hall of Nurturing Hearts, however, several officials found themselves entangled in trouble.

Now the emperor is absent from the palace, and the regent general has died midway.

A state cannot go a day without a ruler—what, then, are we to do?

Suddenly a Vice Minister of Rites stepped forward, looked toward the Senior Grand Councilor standing at the head, and said, "Sir, I have a proposal I'm not sure whether to voice."

The Left and Right Grand Councilors exchanged glances, their faces slightly chilling: "The court is unstable now; please, speak your minds."

The Vice Minister of Rites hastily bowed and said, "If we are to find another regent, we must select someone from the imperial clan; only then will it be proper and legitimate."

"If we let things take their natural course, we may later find the situation hard to control, brewing even greater chaos."

Others nodded, agreeing that the urgent priority was to nominate someone promptly.

"A state cannot go a day without a ruler; who knows what turmoil it might become—this could truly be the beginning of an endless catastrophe."

"My meaning is, since the regent must be chosen from the imperial family, we need a suitable candidate, yet there is not a single young prince of appropriate age capable of shouldering such a burden in the royal clan."

"Minister Gu Kang is the prince consort of our Princess Fuqing, which makes him, in a sense, half‑royal."

"Minister Gu has always enjoyed high prestige; in earlier years he punished corrupt officials, reorganized the eight great clans, and thus naturally earned the people's affection."

"Although the emperor has issued no edict, given that his whereabouts are unknown and the court cannot remain unattended, why not ask the prince consort to step in and manage affairs until the emperor returns, when we can discuss a long‑term solution?"

As soon as the Vice Minister of Rites finished speaking, everyone sucked in a breath—wasn't this a blatant usurpation?

Others remained silent, yet they had no alternative.

At present, aside from Minister Gu, there truly is no one else fit for this position.

If Princess Fuqing were to serve as regent, a woman would be inconvenient; as for the other young princes, some are still in swaddling clothes—how could they act as regent?

Any of these ministers put forward—even the Left and Right Grand Councilors themselves—would lack even half of Minister Gu's authority.

Minister Gu had recently punished corrupt officials, regulated the princes, eradicated the eight great clans, and carried out land reform; he could be seen as the people's paragon of justice, and having him serve as regent would be perfectly reasonable.

But assuming the regency is not a matter of mere words; everyone worries and fears it, and no one dares to undertake it.

After all, acting as regent differs from other affairs; if mishandled and the emperor finds out upon his return, he might very well demand their heads.

The Vice Minister of Rites had hoped to gain others' support, but instead found only a feeble echo, with most adopting a wait‑and‑see stance.

But that very night, several bands of bandits slipped into Shang Jing, specifically targeting the great clans, and for a time panic spread among the populace.

The court had descended into utter chaos; the Five City Military Command refused to submit to the Imperial Guard's authority.

The Imperial Guard likewise disliked the Five City Military Command; the Ministry of Revenue was unwilling to allocate funds to other departments, and other officials, because the emperor was absent, found many policies impossible to implement.

Furthermore, those mysterious individuals who appeared that night trapped the neutral parties in their mansions, set them ablaze, and these people barely escaped being burned alive.

By the third day, everyone's tone had changed.

Gu Kang stepped forward to regain control of Southern Qi's authority; from an idle prince consort, he once again walked into the heart of Southern Qi's power.

Gu Kang also tried to shirk responsibility, but in the end he had no choice but to take his place in the Southern Qi court.

One night, after leaving court, Gu Kang rode back to the princess's residence in a carriage; these days he even stayed to rest in the barracks of the military affairs office in the palace, rarely coming back.

Just as he entered the rear courtyard, he saw Princess Fuqing personally holding a lamp, waiting at the gate.