Chapter 261: Chapter 261: Beili’s Dragon Vein, No Loose Ends
"Right, Young Master Yu Wen?"
The moment Ji Qingwu uttered his surname, the leader tightened his grip on his sword and swung it at her.
"You know too much!"
The tall man behind him pressed down on the leader’s upper arm.
Yu Wen Tianqing admitted his identity, saying, "I’m truly touched that Miss Ji still remembers me."
He wore a black mask with a red pattern, adorned with a black and gold datura snake head relief. Paired with his grayish-blue eyes, it gave him a fiendish, almost venomous snake-like aura.
Ji Qingwu met his gaze.
"Young Master Yu Wen is a dragon among men. Once seen, never forgotten."
She had previously given Duan Mingfeng a heads-up, telling him to pay close attention to this Imperial Merchant from Xijin.
Later, Yu Wen Tianqing had sought her out, claiming he was on this trip to find his ailing sister.
Ji Qingwu had even written a letter specifically to ask her elder brother in Nanchu.
Lan Ling, the female guard by Ji Changlin’s side, couldn’t remember her childhood clearly after suffering a high fever once, but she was indeed familiar with the official Xijin dialect. It was possible she was Yu Wen Tianqing’s sister.
Because of this, Ji Qingwu had let her guard down around him.
If she had known sooner that the purpose of Yu Wen Tianqing’s trip was Yuan Heng, she would have sent him to see King Yan the very first time they met.
Ji Qingwu remained calm on the surface, but inwardly, she wished she could end him with a single arrow.
But she couldn’t, so she could only try to stall for time.
Yu Wen Tianqing said, "Miss Ji, you’d best tell the truth. Where is the little prince? You’re a smart woman, and I’d rather not make you suffer too much."
Yu Wen Tianqing advanced with his men. Ji Qingwu stepped forward to block them, the light silver hair band in her hair fluttering.
He ordered, "Search."
Several men ran toward the bookshelf, only to be suddenly enveloped in a cloud of faint purple smoke.
The tall leader shouted, "Hold your breath! It’s poison!"
As they held their breath and sealed their acupoints, two men in black leaped down from the rafters, striking out with their palms and plunging into a chaotic melee with them.
A small vial had appeared in Ji Qingwu’s hand at some point, and she casually tucked it back into her robes.
The amount of powder was small, but its poison was potent, affecting the assassins’ movements.
Sanchuan and Si Hai had already taken the Antitoxic Pills Ji Qingwu had tossed them. Now fighting five men, they were holding their own.
Ji Qingwu’s tone was as calm as ever. "I thought Young Master Yu Wen was an honorable man, staying briefly in Lin’an only to search for his sister. It turns out you were here to assassinate a prince of my court."
Yu Wen Tianqing’s gaze was cold and gray. "How many people from Xijin has the Beili Army slaughtered? The life of a single prince is not enough to quell the hatred in Xijin’s heart!"
Listening to the sounds of the ongoing struggle behind her, Ji Qingwu said, "You want to kill the Young Master, but have you considered the consequences? Do you think the Emperor will let you go?"
Yu Wen Tianqing sneered. "My death would be a small price to pay for Xijin. But Beili has only this one prince. If he’s gone, Beili’s fortune will run out."
Ji Qingwu said, "How can you be so sure Beili won’t have another prince? There are so many concubines in the rear palace. Surely one of them can bear the Emperor a child. How could Beili’s fortune be tied to this?"
Yu Wen Tianqing drew the sword from his waist. "The Emperor of Beili is fated to be childless. This prince is destined for an early grave sooner or later. I am merely carrying out Heaven’s will."
"The Shamans of Xijin have long since divined it: Beili’s Dragon Vein lies in its imperial succession."
Yu Wen Tianqing walked toward her, sword in his right hand.
The light glinting off the sword in his hand was strange, shimmering with iridescent colors.
He asked, "I’m quite curious. Why are you so intent on protecting the son of the Emperor of Beili?"
Ji Qingwu frowned. "I am from the Empress Dowager’s maternal family, so naturally, I must protect the Imperial Family. You may want revenge, but the child is innocent. He is only a four-year-old boy."
Beneath his mask, Yu Wen Tianqing’s lips curved into a sneer. "Do you think the Emperor of Beili can escape?"
Ji Qingwu asked, "What do you mean by that?"
"Are you waiting for him to come back and save you?"
Yu Wen Tianqing shook his head. "Don’t wait. The large force sent by the Xijin Faction has already begun its ambush. The villages near the Emperor Temple are all filled with our people. The road back will be the site of a bloodbath for the Beili Royal Family."
Ji Qingwu’s breath caught. The situation there would be even worse than in Qianyuan Hall. ’If the villages near the Emperor Temple are full of Xijin Assassins, the original residents must have all been killed.’
Yu Wen Tianqing said, "This little one is all that’s left in the Imperial Palace. Of course I won’t leave behind such a future threat!"
Ji Qingwu’s eyes blazed, burning with fury.
"You pity the soldiers of Xijin, but what about the innocent commoners, monks, and nuns of Beili that you’ve slaughtered? Do they not deserve pity?"
Yu Wen Tianqing arrogantly lifted Ji Qingwu’s Silver Embroidery Ribbon with the tip of his sword.
"The winner is king, the loser is a bandit. It’s been this way since ancient times. Do you really think that Zhao Mingyan ascended the throne through benevolence?"
The blade of the sword reflected the woman’s crystalline, jade-like face.
"Miss Ji, why be so stubborn? Why insist on pairing up with the Emperor of Beili? He’s been quite cruel to you. The flower may yearn for the stream, but the stream flows on, unfeeling. Why not find someone better?"
Yu Wen Tianqing’s gaze fell on the hand Ji Qingwu had used to throw the poison.
He extended a half-sincere invitation. "We have many fine men in Xijin. Why not come with me?"
Before his words had even faded, a Willow Leaf Blade flew in from the window, striking the tip of his sword and grazing past Ji Qingwu’s throat.
CLANG! The blow knocked Yu Wen Tianqing’s sword from his hand, and the powerful throwing knife embedded itself deep into the wall.
’Someone has come to save us!’
’Has Emperor Wu Su returned? Did the ambush fail...?’
Tears uncontrollably welled up in Ji Qingwu’s eyes.
But when she heard the man’s voice, she forced them back.
It was simple: it wasn’t the man she had been hoping for.
Wei Ting’s unique, laughing tone rang out. "What the Fourth Prince said makes a lot of sense."
Yu Wen Tianqing looked toward the man who had appeared in the doorway, his grayish-blue pupils trembling.
Wei Ting continued, picking up his earlier thought.
"Doctor Ji should find someone better. On that point, I find myself in rare agreement with the Fourth Prince."
"But there’s no need to go to Xijin. The quality of our Beili men is far superior."
Yu Wen Tianqing asked, "When did you get here?"
Wei Ting replied calmly, "The guard at the palace gate is my brother. He happened to fall ill, so I, a city gate guard, am covering his shift today."
"As for when I arrived..."
Wei Ting walked to Ji Qingwu’s side and said in a suggestive tone, "I’ve been here since the moment Doctor Ji mentioned looking for me at the city gate."
Ji Qingwu felt he was too close and edged away.
Wei Ting grinned at Yu Wen Tianqing. "See? Throwing a little tantrum again."
Yu Wen Tianqing asked, "What is your relationship?"
Wei Ting pulled out the Willow Leaf Blade and toyed with it in his hand.
"It’s a ’I want to marry her, but she hasn’t said yes yet’ kind of relationship. So all you men from Xijin will have to get in line."
As he spoke, the throwing knife in his hand flew unexpectedly behind them.
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