Chapter 252: New Hope (4)

Qing Ling's expression remained as usual; she was neither annoyed nor compromising. Her neither humble nor arrogant reply left Xu Xunsi momentarily unsure of how to respond.

"How do you intend to proceed further?" Yan Hongtian, who had been sitting in the high seat and remained unfathomable, finally spoke.

"Dissection."

She spoke calmly. Many people did not quite understand her meaning, but Dan Yulan's brows were already knotted! He exclaimed, "Cut open the abdominal cavity?"

Cut—open—the—abdominal—cavity—?

Whispers of discussion arose in the great hall, which also brought Qingfeng back to her senses. Dan Yulan actually did not refute what her elder sister said, which meant that what her elder sister said must have a basis. However, the three of them had grown up together, studied poetry and painting together, and practiced calligraphy together; she had never known her elder sister could perform autopsies! And now, she even wanted to cut open a person's abdominal cavity? This? What on earth was going on?

Sensing a scorching gaze landing on her, Qingfeng lifted her head slightly, meeting Yan Hongtian's probing, dark, and cold eyes. Regardless of why her elder sister was so abnormal today, she could not expose her. Suppressing the heavy doubts in her heart, Qingfeng raised her eyebrows slightly, assuming an air of slight smugness and calm detachment.

Yan Hongtian withdrew his gaze, his expression turning even darker and more sinister. Was the woman in the great hall who kept insisting on cutting open a belly to perform an autopsy really the water-like beauty he had met before?! And what was going on with this impostor who was so stubborn she didn't fear death?

Did these two women think they could play him in the palm of their hands? Hmph, they didn't know what was good for them!

Yan Hongtian lifted his hand slightly. Gao Jin, who was behind him, hurried up and whispered a few words in his ear. Gao Jin glanced at Qingfeng, nodded in understanding, and stepped back.

Qingfeng was staring intently at her elder sister in the great hall when suddenly, there was a pain in her shoulder. Her two arms were tightly clamped from behind. The sudden pain made Qingfeng gasp, but before the sound could leave her throat, the Guard behind her immediately pressed an Acupoint three inches below her throat. She felt her throat tighten violently, and her cry was instantly drowned out in her mouth.

Qingfeng looked at the Empress in panic, only to see her face slightly pale, her hands tightly clutching her chest, her attention entirely focused on the corpse in the hall, with no time to spare for her.

Could it be? Yan Hongtian!

Qingfeng turned to look at Yan Hongtian on the high seat. He was holding a wine cup lightly in his hand, and the expression on his face had softened significantly compared to before. He did not look at her, but the deep eyes of the Chief Eunuch beside him were locked tightly onto her.

It was Yan Hongtian who sent people to take her away. What was his purpose in doing this? Did he want to harm her elder sister? Or did he have some even more vicious scheme?

Qingfeng's heart was filled with anxiety. She wanted to give her elder sister a warning, but she was no match for the pulling of the two Guards and was dragged out of the great hall.

Qingfeng thought Yan Hongtian would throw her directly into the dungeon, but she did not expect the two Guards to simply escort her around the great hall and head toward the inner palace behind it. The three of them stopped in front of a palace slightly smaller than the great hall. Candles were lit inside, the palace doors were tightly shut, and the Guards released her and unsealed her Acupoint.

The two men stood by her side like wooden stakes, not saying a word. The almost numbing pain in her shoulders reminded her not to act rashly; either of these two could break her arms with a little force. Her chest was already feeling stifled and breathless. The tossing and turning all night had left her physically exhausted, and the cold sweat on her back had soaked her clothes. When the wind blew outside, Qingfeng felt waves of chill piercing her heart. Wrapping her arms tightly around her chest, Qingfeng slowly squatted down and sat curled up on the stone steps in front of the palace.

One of the Guards frowned and reached out to grab Qingfeng's collar, but the other Guard blocked his hand and said in a low voice, "Forget it, bringing her here is enough."

This voice was low and clear, unlike the reckless and vulgar tone of ordinary martial generals. In the cold night, such a voice sounded exceptionally pleasant. Qingfeng lifted her head slightly and glanced at the man beside her. The lamp light in front of the palace was not very bright, and Qingfeng could only see a pair of cold eyes. There was not much emotion in them, somewhat like Fuling—indifferent and distant, yet always unable to be truly heartless. Because of these eyes that resembled Fuling's, Qingfeng looked at him a few more times.

Ming Ze knew this woman was looking at him. He did not know her identity, nor did he want to know. He had intervened only because he felt there was no need to relentlessly pursue a woman who had no strength to truss a chicken.

Qingfeng withdrew her gaze and rested her head on her knees. She had no way of knowing the situation in the front hall. Was the belly finally cut open for an autopsy? Who killed the Seventh Princess? Would her elder sister be implicated? And what was Yan Hongtian's intention in bringing her here?

Qingfeng was surrounded by countless questions. Everything seemed to be beyond her control. That fear of the unknown terrified her, like an invisible hand tightly gripping her heart, squeezing it from time to time, and then relaxing when she couldn't breathe, torturing her in a cycle.

Qingfeng did not know how much time had passed—perhaps an hour, perhaps three. It was not until footsteps were heard from afar that she temporarily struggled out of this fear.

On the winding palace path, Yan Hongtian strode over. His black robes and brocade attire were almost swallowed by the night, but that intimidating aura was something no one could ignore. Seeing his figure clearly, all the Guards in front of the palace knelt on one knee. Yan Hongtian's expression was as sinister as usual, and without a word, he kicked the palace door open with a bang and entered directly.

The tall wooden doors hummed from the impact of the immense force, and Qingfeng's heart trembled along with them. This capricious man was truly too terrifying.

Just as Yan Hongtian entered the palace, three blurred figures also walked slowly along the palace path. Walking at the very front was Gao Jin, and behind him were Lou Xiyan and... her elder sister!

What were they here for? Qingfeng stood up abruptly, just in time to meet Gao Jin who had walked over. Gao Jin sized her up secretly. He did not enter the palace to inquire but said directly in a loud voice, "The Emperor has an edict: summon Qing Ling to the palace." Gao Jin's voice did not sound as shrill as an ordinary Eunuch's, but those deep eyes were like two bottomless pools, making one unable to guess his thoughts.

Qingfeng looked at Qing Ling from afar, not daring to show too much emotion in front of Gao Jin, and turned to enter the palace.

The candlelight inside the palace was not very bright. Apart from Yan Hongtian, there was no one else. He stood alone in the center of the palace, and the vast palace suddenly became narrow. Staying in the same room with this man full of violent energy required courage.

Qingfeng stood by the door, pondering how to deal with this difficult man. She lowered her head, trying to appear relatively docile, but Yan Hongtian did not buy it. Not allowing her much time to think, Yan Hongtian asked coldly, "Was it Qing Ling who asked you to impersonate her and enter the palace?"

Qingfeng was shocked. He really did know her elder sister. How should she answer? Once she admitted she was not Qing Ling, would Yan Hongtian use this as an excuse to have her elder sister brought back to the Palace? No, under no circumstances could she let her elder sister enter the Palace.

The fact that Yan Hongtian asked her meant he himself was not entirely certain. As long as she insisted that she was Qing Ling, he would have no reason to forcibly take the woman beside Lou Xiyan, right! Qingfeng lifted her head, met Yan Hongtian's cold, black eyes, and replied loudly, "I don't know what you are talking about. I am Qing Ling."

"Your mouth is quite hard." Yan Hongtian's movements were swift. Before Qingfeng could react, his tall figure had already approached her side with an overbearing force. Qingfeng was so frightened she took a step back and bumped into the pillar behind her. Qingfeng had witnessed Yan Hongtian's violence; as he approached, she subconsciously gripped the vase on the wooden side table next to the pillar.

Looking at the vase in Qingfeng's hand, a flash of disdain and violence crossed Yan Hongtian's black eyes. He sneered, "Wanting to use the same trick again to assassinate this Emperor?"

While Qingfeng was still stunned, a warm, large hand had already landed on her slender neck, and a cold, ruthless voice sounded in her ear, "My patience is not as good as you imagine! Who exactly are you?"

His five fingers, like an eagle's claws, gripped her throat tightly. The gradually tightening force made Qingfeng's vision go black. She knew Yan Hongtian could take her life at any moment. Taking her life was easy, but wanting her to submit—don't even think about it! A perverse sense of vengeful pleasure made Qingfeng persist even at this moment, saying, "Me? I am Qing... Ling?"

Her face had turned dark red from suffocation, and the veins on her neck pulsed against his palm. He only needed to use a little more force to take her life. Even so, she actually still refused to tell the truth, and there was even a smug smile on the corners of her mouth.

She was truly damned!

Qingfeng's tightly clenched teeth gradually loosened. The suffocation in her chest and her burning throat caused her consciousness to gradually blur, and her hand gripping the porcelain vase loosened powerlessly.

Clang!

The ear-piercing sound of shattering woke the crazed Yan Hongtian. The pulse that had been jumping wildly in his palm had gradually weakened, and Qingfeng's complexion had changed from the initial dark red to a bruised black. Yan Hongtian narrowed his cold eyes; she really would rather die than speak.

Fine! He would have a way to make her speak! Laughing out of extreme anger, Yan Hongtian suddenly released his hand, and Qingfeng's body fell to the ground like a kite with a broken string.

Qingfeng couldn't even cough out a sound, lying on her side on the floor gasping for air. As soon as she regained her senses, she heard Yan Hongtian's voice, carrying a hint of a smile, say indifferently, "It doesn't matter if you refuse to speak; there will always be someone who will."

What did he mean by that? Qingfeng lifted her head in terror. Yan Hongtian had already walked behind the large desk and sat down, his black eyes coldly glaring at her on the floor, a faint smile on his face. To Qingfeng, he looked even more terrifying like this than when he was angry.

"Gao Jin, call that woman in." Yan Hongtian said it neither loudly nor softly, but Qingfeng felt as if a basin of cold water had been poured over her head, and she trembled all over. What did he want to do to her elder sister? Struggling to crawl up from the ground, "Yan Hongtian?" Her hoarse and weak voice made Qingfeng's roar sound devoid of any momentum, "If you have something, come at me! Don't hurt others."

(End of chapter)