“Impossible!” Yun Lang said firmly. “Ever since Yan Zheng warned me about a traitor, I’ve purged the entire pavilion from top to bottom. Absolute loyalty! Including those I introduced to you a few days ago—they’re all death warriors of the Yun family, willing to die rather than betray!”
Chu Ruoyan hesitated for a moment, seeing how resolute he was, but still spoke up.
“But do you remember the person we planted inside the palace? After such a huge incident, why didn’t he send any messages?”
Yun Lang’s expression darkened. “Miaomiao? It can’t be him. Back when that treacherous late emperor hunted everywhere, if not for him, the Pavilion of a Hundred Whispers wouldn’t have lasted till today.”
Chu Ruoyan nodded. “Second Brother, I’m not doubting him. I just mean, what if he did send a message, but someone intercepted it?”
Yun Lang’s gaze instantly turned cold. That was indeed possible!
But only a handful in the pavilion could pull off something like that—Old Du, Hongxiu, Bai Xiucai, and Heiya.
In other words, there’s a traitor among those closest to him…
Yun Lang fell silent.
Chu Ruoyan knew her brother was hurt, but if they didn’t find the traitor, it would be like burying a ticking bomb right beside them!
She was about to urge him again when Yun Lang suddenly said, “Heiya, notify Tianshu and check who tampered with the letters sent out from the palace.”
Heiya bowed and left. Less than an hour later, someone was brought in.
It was Hongxiu.
She had clearly been tortured severely; her whole body looked like she’d been pulled from a pool of blood. Heiya couldn’t help but ask, “Why? The Pavilion Master treated you so well, even entrusted you with the entire business of the capital’s flower houses. Why betray him?”
Hongxiu’s voice was sharp. “Who said I betrayed the Master? I—I’m helping him!”
She gasped for breath after a few words but still summoned strength to raise a trembling finger at Chu Ruoyan. “It’s her. It’s all because of her! Bringing back the Frost Snow Sword, it’s worn down the Master’s resolve, made him forget his duty to the country!”
Heiya was shocked and turned to look at Yun Lang.
The man’s peach blossom eyes flickered with a chilling light. “All for this?”
“Master!!” Hongxiu collapsed to the ground, blood steadily seeping from beneath her, yet she shouted without awareness. “You are the bloodline of the Regent Prince! When you raise your arm, the whole world answers. Taking back the realm is just a matter of time. How could you let a woman hold you back?”
A cruel smile curled at Yun Lang’s lips. “So you leaked secrets to try to kill Miaomiao and force me to rebel?”
“Not force—legitimate, rightful, and timely!” Hongxiu’s eyes burned with fanaticism. “You were meant to be the ruler of this world! The empire of the Great Sheng should have belonged to you, but you refused it, letting it fall to Emperor Yun Ning. Now you have a chance to reclaim it all, a grand ambition within reach, and you—”
Before she could finish, Hongxiu suddenly clutched her neck, eyes wide with terror.
Yun Lang turned his head. “Miaomiao, go inside first.”
Chu Ruoyan understood what he was about to do, sighed softly in her heart, and stepped inside.
A faint voice drifted from outside—the elder brother’s voice, ethereal and cold: “Hongxiu, you came out of the Western Frontier with my mother, so I’ll give you two chances. The first time, you acted on your own, using the Butterfly Dream Zhuang Zhou on Miaomiao—I won’t hold that against you. This is the second time. I’ll give you the time it takes for one incense stick to burn to leave. If I find you after that, then according to the rules of the Pavilion, you’ll suffer the punishment of slow slicing.”
Heiya lit the incense stick, but Hongxiu remained motionless.
Her eyes gazed longingly at Yun Lang, a faint smile playing on her lips: “Pavilion Master, you must be joking. In this world, who can escape the Hundred Knowledge Pavilion’s grasp… I only beg you, for the sake of old ties, to personally send me on my way.”
Yun Lang closed his eyes for a moment, then finally uttered a single word: “Fine.”
He stepped forward, raising his palm—ready to give her a swift, decisive blow.
But in that instant, Hongxiu suddenly reached out and grabbed his wrist.
Swish!
A venomous gu insect darted from her sleeve, sinking its fangs deep into Yun Lang’s wrist.
His expression darkened with fury as his other hand swung down sharply toward her forehead—
Bang!
The sound echoed as the brothel’s madam collapsed, a trace of satisfied smile lingering at the corner of her mouth.
“Pavilion Master!”
“Second Brother!”
Heiya was shocked, and Chu Ruoyan rushed out as well.
Yun Lang pinched the gu insect on his wrist between two fingers and crushed it with a snap: “It’s nothing. Just a trivial gu insect. It can’t harm me.”
Chu Ruoyan exhaled in relief but still looked uneasy. “Are you sure you’re alright? Should we call Old Physician Qin to take a look?”
Yun Lang patted her shoulder reassuringly. “Don’t worry, I’m fine.” Then he added, “Tianshu has discovered that Hongxiu sent a letter to Xue Xian. The letter only mentions that you are a daughter of the former dynasty, raised by Chu Huaishan. Nothing else. She probably didn’t want to implicate the Hundred Knowledge Pavilion.”
Chu Ruoyan nodded. “That makes sense. The Hundred Knowledge Pavilion remains intact to this day, which means the Emperor only knows about me, not you.”
Otherwise, the one posing the greatest threat to him should be Yun Lang, not her.
Yun Lang fell silent for a moment. “What’s your plan? Should we replace the Emperor with someone else?”
Chu Ruoyan was startled. Remembering the person planted in the palace, she realized Yun Lang was capable of such a move.
“No. Yan Zheng is fighting on the front lines. If the Emperor dies suddenly, the army will be thrown into chaos! Besides…”
She was about to say that this would only play into Hongxiu’s hands—whether they resist or not, they’d lose either way.
Suddenly, Yun Lang shuddered violently, a black mist rising between his brows.
He looked down at his bitten wrist in disbelief before his head drooped, and he fainted.
“Second Brother!! Old Physician, quickly fetch Old Physician Qin!!”
Before the incense stick had finished burning, Heiya had already carried Qin Yiru over.
The old man grumbled under his breath but stopped when he saw Yun Lang lying there and hurried to his side.
He took Yun Lang’s pulse with two fingers. “Hmph, this is the Sleep Gu. Nothing to worry about, nothing at all!”
Chu Ruoyan was taken aback and asked Heiya, “What’s the Sleep Gu? Old Physician, can you explain it more clearly?”
Qin Yiru rolled his eyes at him. “Can’t you understand plain language? The Sleep Gu—it’s a type of gu that makes people drowsy! This gu is completely harmless to the body; it just causes the person to sleep for several days and nights without waking. Don’t worry, Young Master Lang will be fine after a few days of sleep.”
“Really?” Heiya still looked skeptical. “Then what was Hongxiu’s intention? She didn’t seek revenge before dying, just wanted the lord to sleep a little longer?”
Chu Ruoyan glanced at Hongxiu’s corpse and noticed the faint smile lingering at the corner of her lips. A few things became clear in her heart.
“She wasn’t targeting Second Brother, she was targeting me… Fine, Old Divine Doctor, I’ll entrust you with taking care of my brother these next few days.”
Qin Yiru was about to speak when three sharp knocks came from outside the door.
“Miss, are you asleep? There are people from the palace who wish to see you.”
Heiya instantly tensed up. Chu Ruoyan let out a light laugh. “That was fast…”
With Second Brother laid low, she was left to stand alone. If he truly died at the emperor’s hands, how could her brother not seek revenge?
They were willing to risk their lives just to force her brother down a dark path…
Hongxiu and her kind had truly lost their minds!
At that moment, more noises came from outside, followed by Yin Shun’s voice—respectful, yet leaving no room for refusal.
“Apologies for disturbing the county lord in the middle of the night, but the emperor has issued a command: you must see him immediately!”
