My Love Rivals Have All Reborn - Chapter 75

The contract marriage was established on a basis of self-interest. Xiao Wenxue wanted to extricate herself, and Wen Yuke also had her own goals.

The person behind the bead curtain was graceful. As she turned slightly, her shadow was cast by the candlelight. Her expression changed from surprise to worry. “Official Wen, has something bad happened?”

Wen Yuke avoided eye contact as she collected herself. She slowly walked to one side and told her softly, “No matter how much commotion happens outside, do not leave the bridal chamber.”

“What about you?” Xiao Wenxue blurted out.

Wen Yuke turned her back. Ghouls and demons surged in the dark courtyard. Malice and viciousness lurked in the shadows. She took a deep breath. “I have people protecting me. I will have Grandmother brought here shortly. Please take care of her, Miss Xiao.”

Her voice was steady, without much emotion, sounding much like she did when handling cases at the Ministry of Justice. Xiao Wenxue did not hesitate and agreed immediately: “Since I am in the Wen residence, I will certainly guard the residence well, and I will do my best to look after Grandmother.”

“Thank you for your trouble.” Wen Yuke quickly walked away, leaving only a serious back. Xiao Wenxue, standing by the door, seemed to sense a dangerous atmosphere. Being in the eye of the storm meant that quiet days were impossible.

The things she wished for would not come true, but Xie Yu’s profound intelligence was evident to all. She gambled that this step should be the right one.

The guests in the front courtyard were drinking and chatting merrily, exchanging toasts. After Wen Yuke arranged matters within the residence, she walked to the Old Prince’s side, raising her wine cup with a smile. “This official is very grateful that Your Excellency could come today.”

“It’s only for a cup of wine…”

Before he could finish speaking, Shen Siyuan’s face suddenly changed. He grabbed Wen Yuke by the shoulder and pulled her over, kicking out at an assassin holding a knife, and shouted, “Assassin!”

Before the word fell, several figures in black surged in from outside. The hall instantly erupted into chaos. Screams drowned out the sound of clashing blades.

Xie Yu entered the palace at dusk and spoke with the Emperor about old anecdotes. Zhao Can sat by her side.

Palace servants set the dinner table. The long table was filled with exquisite dishes. Xie Yu sat down. The Emperor found it awkward to send her away, so he instructed the palace servants to set out chopsticks and bowls for her.

The light outside dimmed completely. The silent palace was so quiet that the footsteps of the palace servants could not be heard. The servants held their breath. Xie Yu sat with a proper posture. Zhao Can picked up a piece of fish and placed it in her bowl. “Mister Xie, please eat.”

Xie Yu looked up, her clear, indifferent eyes shimmering with light. “Zhao Can, do you hate me?”

“Mister Xie is joking. Why would I hate you?” Zhao Can’s expression shifted slightly, and she subtly suppressed her surprise.

“You hate me for taking Wang Qingqing, but what you don’t know is that I also hate your father…”

“Your Majesty…”

A sharp cry from outside the hall interrupted their conversation. Shen Nan shouted from below the steps, “Your Majesty! Assassins infiltrated the Wen residence! Many officials have been tragically murdered! This official sent troops to capture the assassins, and they claim it was the Commandery Princess who ordered it.”

Shen Nan burst into the hall, covered in blood. The stench of blood surged into their nostrils. The Emperor rose abruptly, his eyes involuntarily showing surprise. “Which people were injured?”

“There are too many people. This official has not had time to investigate. I will report back after clarification. Right now, the ministers are demanding to confront the Commandery Princess.”

“Presumptuous!” Zhao Can slammed the dinner table, her face ferocious. “When did I ever do such a thing? They are deliberately framing me!”

Shen Nan held the hilt of his sword and took two steps forward, his expression showing difficulty. “Your Highness, more than half of the officials attending the feast are dead or injured. Who would risk their lives to frame you?”

“I…” Zhao Can was speechless. Her peripheral vision caught Xie Yu sitting quietly. She pointed her slender index finger fiercely at Xie Yu: “Xie Yu, you did this, didn’t you?”

“How could I do it? They accuse you, yet you slander me. Do you think they will believe you?” Xie Yu slowly stood up and walked toward her.

Xie Yu’s face held a faint smile, her gaze dark and menacing, closing in step by step. Zhao Can could not bear her intimidating demeanor and backed away two steps. Just at that moment, Shen Nan approached the Emperor with his sword drawn.

The scabbard at his waist jolted violently, and the blade was pressed against the Emperor’s neck.

The Emperor trembled in fear. “Shen Nan, you… what are you doing?”

“Just giving you a taste of your own medicine. You slaughtered the attending officials for your own selfish gain. Now, I am forced to do this by you.” Shen Nan’s handsome eyebrows held the killing intent of a battle-hardened soldier. A slight movement of the blade would cut the neck.

“Shen Nan, do you dare commit regicide?” Zhao Can’s sharp scream echoed in the solemn, cold palace. Xie Yu stood opposite, moving her unsteady feet. “Zhao Can, I was able to put your father in that position, and I can pull him down without a single soldier. The Shen family supported him because of me. The Shen family kills him because he forced them to. He hadn’t even secured the throne before he started suppressing and suspecting loyal officials.”

The Emperor never expected to be counter-attacked at this moment. The sharp blade was pressed against his neck, and he dared not breathe. He spoke with held breath: “I forced you? If the Shen family were innocent, why would this happen? The Shen family is secretly colluding with you. That is a fact.”

“More than ten years ago, I went alone to the frontier to find the Prince of Zhennan. Instead of ‘colluding,’ let’s say the Prince of Zhennan recognized my mother, Princess Leping. If it weren’t for your informing back then, why would my mother disappear in the Imperial Mausoleum? You should know what you did. You also know how she went mad. The Empress Dowager may be the murderer, but are you any less guilty?”

A dark ferocity showed through Xie Yu’s calm expression. The wolf that had lurked in the darkness for so long was about to break out of the trap.

“No…” The Emperor trembled all over. His neck muscle twitched, causing a red mark to appear. He suddenly shrank back. “Xie Yu, I never harmed her.”

“Is that so? You didn’t? Gaoyang said that you, the former Emperor, and Jingyang went to the mausoleum with the former Empress’s coffin. Why did something happen to her, but not to you? Why did the former Emperor spare you? The former Emperor told me on his deathbed that he spared you because of Leping.” Xie Yu slowly walked to the palace gate and used all her strength to close it. Her slender arms trembled slightly.

Only four people remained in the hall. The inner attendants and guards outside were blocked, all filled with anxiety. Before long, the soldiers of the Patrol Camp entered the palace with an imperial decree, replacing the Imperial Guard.

Zhao Can tried to seize the opportunity to act, but Shen Nan gave her no chance. He tightly gripped the hilt of his sword, blocking her line of sight.

Xie Yu’s footsteps echoed softly in the hall. She recalled the former Emperor’s words: “Zhao Chulin always secretly supported Leping. He was the one who ultimately betrayed Leping, yet We always felt We owed him a great deal. Zhao Mian is selfish. If he were Emperor, Zhao Ji would inevitably suffer, and brothers would turn on each other. This brother of Ours is kind and humble and would at least treat his nephew well.”

Recalling the former Emperor’s dying words, she somehow laughed out loud. She gazed at her ‘kind and humble’ uncle. “You used my mother’s possessions to pledge allegiance to him. He considered you humble. It truly is laughable. He was stupid, and I was also foolish, almost believing your words. You will do anything to save your life.”

In her previous life, she killed everyone in the Zhao family, yet out of respect for him being the younger brother her mother raised, she allowed him to become a monk. That was foolishness.

The Emperor still wanted to argue, his cheek muscles twitching. Shen Nan pressed the sword closer. He looked down at the cold blade and swallowed. “Xie Yu, your mother is a woman. She should never have fought for what she shouldn’t have. Even if she became Emperor, what then? It is difficult for a woman to rule. The defeat was inevitable. She was pregnant with Yan Huaizhen’s child, and the Yan family didn’t support her. I was helping her…”

“Helping her?” Xie Yu sneered, turning her gaze to him coldly. “Deceiving her was helping her? Poisoning her food was helping her? Coldly watching her suffer in the cold palace for years was helping her? Zhao Chulin, do you think what you did was helping her? How about I help you today too?”

“Xie Yu…” The Emperor trembled all over. Recalling Xie Yu’s ruthlessness, he couldn’t help but run backward. Shen Nan dared not truly kill her and watched helplessly as he ran out of his range.

To prevent his escape, Shen Nan took two quick steps and slashed his ankle with the sword.

Following the Emperor’s scream, Xie Yu took the sword from Shen Nan’s hand, her eyes flashing with cold light. Zhao Can realized something was wrong and lunged forward to stop her, but Shen Nan blocked her way.

Xie Yu plunged the sword into Zhao Chulin’s chest, watching him struggle a few times. Blood spurted from his mouth.

“Xie Yu…” Zhao Can cried out in pain, kneeling at Shen Nan’s feet.

The inner attendants and palace servants outside shivered at the sound. Realizing what had happened, they turned and ran outward. Within a hundred steps, they were beheaded by the soldiers of the Patrol Camp. Their heads rolled down the steps like watermelons.

The Wen residence was also a scene of slaughter. Shen Siyuan stood in the hall, stretching his limbs. The surviving assassins were captured and tied up in the courtyard. The remaining officials sat in the corner, breathing heavily.

Outside the gate, they suddenly heard the neighing of a horse. A moment later, a swift figure rushed in. “Assassins entered the palace! His Majesty was stabbed and has passed away…”

“What…”

“Passed away…”

“What kind of assassins? How dare they be so rampant and vicious?”

Shen Siyuan pushed through the crowd, rushed out of the Wen residence, snatched the reins, and mounted his horse, heading toward the palace.

The others also tidied their clothes and rushed toward the palace. Wen Yuke returned to the bridal chamber to change her clothes. Xiao Wenxue sat quietly on the couch, her skin fair and soft. Wen Yuke paused. “You rest first. I must go to the palace. I leave the residence in your care.”

Xiao Wenxue was slightly nervous and nodded quickly. “Okay, I’ll wait for you to come back.”

I’ll wait for you to come back… The words resonated in Wen Yuke’s heart. Her hands, reaching for her clothes, paused. A warmth surged in her chest. She smiled at Xiao Wenxue. “Good.”

Sharing life’s joys and sorrows was nothing more than this.

At dawn, the assassins from the Wen residence were taken to the Ministry of Justice for interrogation. The Emperor’s coffin was placed in the Hanguang Palace, and the officials mourned.

The officials who entered the hall noticed that the Imperial Guard outside had been replaced today. They were checked upon entering and exiting. They dared not express their anger and knelt in the hall, afraid to speak.

The Old Prince sighed while standing in the hall, poking the Emperor’s coffin. “At least you were left with the title of Emperor. You will still be an Emperor down below.”

After staying for half a day, the people gradually realized they could not see Commandery Princess Zhao Can, nor the inner attendant the Emperor valued. They linked this to the events at the Wen residence last night and felt something was deeply wrong.

The Patrol Camp controlled the entire palace. The Imperial Guard had been replaced. By dusk, some people began to accuse Shen Nan of improper conduct.

Shen Nan offered no defense. The Zhao imperial clan deliberately ignored Zhao Can to reject the new Emperor. Disagreements quickly turned into a brawl, stopping just short of armed conflict.

At this moment, Xie Yu was at the Xiao residence, pulling Xiao Mingwang aside to discuss the wedding in the twelfth lunar month. Xiao Mingwang was rushing to keep vigil for the Emperor, but her interruption prevented him from leaving. He was so angry he nearly slapped Xie Yu’s face. The Emperor’s sudden death left the ministers without a leader, and chaos was imminent.

“Mister Xie, the marriage is not urgent. You are also a member of the Zhao family. Don’t you want to do something?”

“No, I only want to marry your daughter. I have no love for the throne,” Xie Yu said with a cheerful smile. Seeing that he truly could not wait, she changed her request: “How about this? You allow Miss Xiao to return to my residence today, and I will send her back on the tenth day of next month?”

“You…” Xiao Mingwang froze. Recalling the chaotic situation within the imperial clan, he suddenly seemed to realize something and waved his hand. “Fine.”

Xie Yu stood up to thank him, smiling broadly as she brought Xiao Kunning back to the Xie residence.

After leaving the Xiao residence, Xiao Kunning still didn’t understand what had happened. She sat in Xie Yu’s arms, muttering, “Why did he let go so easily?”

Xie Yu crooked her finger at her.

Xiao Kunning leaned in curiously, bringing her face close. Xie Yu gently sucked on her small, jade-like ear, whispering, “Because your father thinks I will become the new Emperor.”

“New Emperor?” Xiao Kunning was confused. Her ear hurt slightly from being nibbled by teeth. She tried to dodge, but Xie Yu wouldn’t let her, leaning over to kiss her lips. “Bowing to circumstance.”