bookcurios Chapter 228: Face to face (Part )
Chapter 228: Face to face (Part )
The man who came to report the news was a yamen runner. Tao Yao thought he looked familiar, perhaps she had seen him before when she was detained in the government office. The runner looked panicked and rushed out of the door with a package in his arms, shouting something like "Save the prince!"
Tao Yao was startled and rushed to meet him. At that moment, several palace guards were holding the yamen runner back, forbidding him from trespassing. When Tao Yao appeared, the yamen runner's expression lit up, as if he had come specifically to find her.
"Miss Taoyao! It's urgent, go and save the prince."
The guards who had stopped him all tried to hold back their laughter when they heard him say this. Not to mention Chu Huanjun's martial arts prowess, no one had been able to injure him even slightly, but it was simply unbelievable that this yamen runner, who had appeared out of nowhere, was yelling for someone to rescue the prince without any evidence.
"Go back to where you came from. Prince Yi's Mansion is not a place where you can just mess around." The leading guard shook his fist in front of the yamen runner in a domineering and arrogant manner.
Tao Yao went forward, bowed to the guards, and said, "My dear brothers, please let him finish what he is saying."
As soon as Tao Yao finished speaking, the guards relaxed their guards and let the yamen runner in. The yamen runner immediately ran in, held the package in his arms high in front of Tao Yao, and said hurriedly: "Miss, this is a token that the prince asked me to give to you. He said that you will understand everything after taking a look at it."
"Okay, speak slowly." Tao Yao took the package and quickly uncovered the cloth, only to see the blood-stained white jade porcelain box lying quietly inside.
In an instant, Tao Yao's heart seemed to be struck by thunder, and millions of possibilities suddenly surged from his mind.
The bailiff said anxiously, "Young lady, the situation is critical, so I'll cut to the chase. The Emperor is hosting a banquet in the palace tonight, and during it, General Zhenbei Hou suddenly attempted to assassinate the prince. The prince was being induced to drink by a group of people, and was already drunk, so he wasn't on guard at all. So... so he was stabbed in the heart and lungs by General Zhenbei Hou's sword."
"Marquis Zhenbei...my father?!"
For a moment, Tao Yao's thoughts were as tangled as a mess and she couldn't make sense of them at all.
"Why? Why did my father want to assassinate the prince?"
The yamen runner shook his head and said anxiously, "The matter is still under investigation and has not yet been concluded. Lord Song sent me to inform the young lady of this matter and told me to deliver this item to her."
Tao Yao held the blood-stained white jade box in her hand and unconsciously clenched her fist. Tao Yao said anxiously, "I understand. Do you have a way to take me to see Lord Song?"
The yamen runner nodded and said, "Thank you for following our carriage, young lady. Lord Song is currently in the palace, waiting to pick you up."
Tao Yao took a deep breath, then turned to the leading guard and instructed, "Big Brother, I need a favor. My luggage is in the treasure chest in the prince's bedroom. There's some money in there. If I don't return in a few days, please take the money to Fuxiangzhai and give it to a girl named Huai Ling."
After hearing Tao Yao's tone, the group of guards realized the seriousness of the situation. While agreeing to Tao Yao's request, they hesitated as if they had something to say.
Tao Yao knew what they were worried about, but she herself wasn't sure, so she could only give them a reassuring look and said seriously, "Lord Song is a reliable person. Since he is with the prince, you don't have to worry too much. The prince will be blessed by heaven. Everything will be discussed after the prince returns safely... While the prince is away, you are the palace's reassurance. During this period of time, the situation is still turbulent, and there may be people with ulterior motives who will come to Prince Yi's mansion to cause trouble. I beg you brothers to protect Prince Yi's mansion well."
The leading guard bowed to Tao Yao, and changed his previous look of contempt. There was some admiration in his eyes when he looked at Tao Yao.
"Miss Taoyao, please be careful on your way."
Tao Yao nodded and said calmly, "Don't worry, just guard Prince Yi's Mansion well and wait for the prince's safe return."
After saying this, he quickly followed the messenger out of the mansion gate and jumped onto the carriage like a flash of lightning.
On the way to the palace, Tao Yao was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, unable to sit still. In all the time she had known Chu Huanjun, she had never worried about his safety. In her heart, he was always so strong, so strong that it seemed that no one could hurt him.
He seemed to have a body of steel that was indestructible to all swords and could withstand anything - precisely because of this, people overlooked that he was also a human being and could get hurt.
The blood-stained white jade porcelain box was still tightly held in her hand. It felt cold to the touch and could not be warmed up no matter how hard she tried.
Tao Yao felt like her heart was hanging in her throat, neither going up nor down, but she could do nothing about it. She was like a dying prisoner waiting for the verdict of fate, at a loss as to what to do.
Pierced the heart and lungs - Tao Yao pondered these words over and over in his mind, wondering what they meant.
"Is the prince... okay?"
Tao Yao asked.
The bailiff glanced at her evasively, a look of worry on his face, and whispered, "It's hard to say... but when I received the news, it was said that the imperial physician was already treating the prince. Don't worry, young lady, the best doctors in all of Da Chu are in the palace, and they will definitely do their best to treat the prince."
For a moment, Tao Yao felt a dull pain in her heart as if she had been hit by a club - the best medical staff in the whole Chu State were concentrated in the palace. If these doctors couldn't save Chu Huanjun's life, who else could?
She didn't dare to think any further, so she simply stuck her head out of the car window, letting the cold night wind blow on her face, trying to clear her confused mind.
Why? Why at this moment? When she finally figured it out, when she finally convinced herself to tell him her feelings, he couldn't hear her.
Clearly, they had cuddled together and slept in each other's arms last night. She regretted not telling him her feelings last night, regretted her procrastination. If she had confessed her feelings to him last night, would he not have gotten drunk at the banquet today, would he not have been assassinated by Shi Yiqian, would all of this have never happened?
It's a pity that there is no if.
Tao Yao knew very well what she was doing now - she could no longer avoid all this and had to face Shi Yiqian and Chu Huanjun head-on.
Although everything is still unknown now, she doesn't know why Yi Qian wants to assassinate Chu Huanjun, and she doesn't know if there is someone behind this - she doesn't have time to think about so much. If possible, she just wants to get to Chu Huanjun as quickly as possible.