131 The Wrath of Eunuch Guan

Daichuan’s voice rose again, "What is going on? Speak!"

"Eunuch Lu entered the Mingde Hall, but he did not enter alone; there was another young eunuch with him."

The other young eunuch, of course, referred to Guan Shiyin.

At this moment, Guan Shiyin was busy pressed against Fang Rulai, ravaging her lips. Half of Fang Rulai’s body was already hanging outside the window. Had it not been for Guan Shiyin’s heavy legs pinning her inside, his arm locked tightly around her waist, and her own hands clutching his, she would have long since tumbled out of the window under the weight of his body.

Hearing the voices of the Imperial Guards outside, she had no mood left for flirtation. She released her grip on Guan Shiyin and reached up to seize his hair instead.

She pulled with all her might!

Guan Shiyin’s scalp stung instantly, and he was forced to pull away.

Fang Rulai glared at him, silently mouthing the words, "Get out of here already!" She tilted her head toward the window, signaling that he should leave through there. The perimeter outside the window was not yet heavily guarded; it should be easy enough for him to escape alone.

Guan Shiyin looked at her, then suddenly jabbed a finger at her waist.

She was paralyzed. She remained stuck in a ninety-degree angle, leaning out of the window. Fang Rulai maintained her glare, her eyes screaming, "Guan Shiyin, you absolute idiot, don't you dare go brain-dead on me right now!"

Guan Shiyin used his free hand to pull her arms down and pin them behind her back. Instead of lifting her up, he leaned back in, pressing against her again. His other hand flicked at her collar, and the phoenix-embroidered bodice reappeared.

A breeze blew, causing goosebumps to rise on the pale skin of Fang Rulai’s chest. Against her fair complexion, the golden phoenix and the alluring curves of her bust became even more enticing.

Guan Shiyin reached out and hooked the strings of the bodice tied behind her neck.

From outside the room, a knock sounded. "Eunuch Lu, Commander Daichuan of the Imperial Guards requests an audience."

Fang Rulai was beyond embarrassment now, her gaze toward the back of Guan Shiyin’s head filled with the frantic urgency of "Why won't you just leave!"

Guan Shiyin didn't see it; his eyes were fixed entirely on the phoenix bodice. With a flick of his finger, the red string at the nape of her neck came undone. Fang Rulai’s chest heaved instinctively; Guan Shiyin’s eyes grew hot, and he swallowed hard.

The knocking quickened. "Eunuch Lu? Eunuch Lu?"

Guan Shiyin ignored them as if he hadn't heard a thing. He withdrew his hand from behind her neck, snaked it beneath her clothing, and slid it upward.

"Eunuch Lu! If you do not come out, I shall be forced to break in!"

He felt the knot tied at her back, flicked his pinky, and the knot at her waist came undone.

*Crash*—the door was kicked open.

Guan Shiyin covered the bodice on Fang Rulai’s chest with his hand, grabbed it, tore it away, and tossed it. The bright red fabric fluttered down onto the grass outside the window like small willow leaves.

"Fu'an! Eunuch Lu!" Upon kicking the door open, Daichuan immediately spotted the two figures lying near the threshold of the inner chamber.

"Guards, go report to the Crown Prince!" Daichuan commanded, rushing into the inner room himself.

The room was indeed empty. A pile of precious items lay on the bed, left behind in the haste. The window was open, and Daichuan rushed to check it. There were no footprints on the grass outside, but there was a large scatter of what looked like fabric scraps.

He picked them up, felt them, and confirmed they were from a bodice. He couldn't figure out exactly why, but he was certain someone had escaped through here.

"Guards!" he shouted toward the outer edge of the willow grove.

An Imperial Guard rushed over. "Yes, Commander?"

Daichuan flung the shredded fabric into his face. "How are you doing your jobs? Did you not see anyone escaping from here?"

The guard looked bewildered. "We did not."

They were separated from this spot by a dense willow grove. Unless they had been staring fixedly at this specific window, they would never have noticed it was open. Besides, who would dare stare at this place? This was the residence the Crown Prince had declared would belong to the "future Empress." They would have to be tired of living to keep watch on the Empress's window.

However, if someone had escaped in this direction, they would have had to pass through their outer perimeter. The truth was, they truly hadn't seen anyone.

Daichuan’s mind raced. These guards were his trusted men; they wouldn't lie. If they had escaped, they must be hiding...

Daichuan looked up at the dense, leafy crowns of the willow trees. "Search them all!"

At that moment, a loud voice rang out from outside: "The Crown Prince arrives—"

Daichuan turned around as Crown Prince Li Yincheng stormed into the room. "Where are they?"

Daichuan fell to his knees instantly. "I have failed in my duty, Your Highness, please punish me!"

The Crown Prince kicked him into the corner. "Of course you failed!"

Daichuan didn't even dare to groan in pain. He rolled back from the corner and grabbed the Crown Prince’s leg just as he was about to land another kick. "Your Highness, please calm your anger. They cannot have gone far. Please allow me to redeem myself."

"Then go! Now!"

"Yes." Daichuan lunged out of the window.

"You, you, and you! What are you all standing there for? Go and search!"

The Crown Prince’s voice was distorted with fury. He had clearly sensed traces of Ping Shi being with the Crown Princess, yet he couldn't find anyone. Just as he was interrogating the Crown Princess, her younger sister, Cheng Yuexiao, arrived. That meant the Minister of the Ministry of War had sniffed out clues. Just as he was trying to cover his tracks, he received the news that Lu Xi had died in the Mingde Hall.

He had rushed here, only to find the people gone. If he had known this would happen, he should have taken her to the Lifang Studio with him.

The Crown Prince paced in circles, fuming. Kong Kongzi hadn't sent any news back, which likely meant he had met a grim fate. Lu Xi was dead, and while Daichuan had a brain, his wit was limited. That left his only remaining confidant...

"Minister Xu! Guards, go fetch Minister—" He stopped halfway, realizing the room was empty. In his rage, he had ordered everyone to go outside and search.

The Crown Prince had to swallow his words and head out, intending to go find someone to summon Xu Zhenglin to the palace himself.

But as he reached the threshold of the inner room, with one foot already across the doorframe, he sensed a murderous aura violently striking at his back.

They hadn't left! Who?

The Crown Prince shifted his weight, using his lightness skill to leap forward out of the inner chamber. The killing intent followed closely. He dodged, spun around, and struck out with both palms.

The person who entered his vision had a strange face, but the technique was familiar.

He recognized him instantly: Guan Shiyin.

Taking advantage of the moment Guan Shiyin caught his palms, the Crown Prince vaulted into the air, pulled a soft sword from his waist with one hand, and thrust it forward with lightning speed.

Seeing the sword, Guan Shiyin did not dodge. He extended his long arm to meet it. As his fingertips touched the tip of the blade, he twisted his wrist, circled around, and when he flipped his hand back, he pinned the blade with his index and middle fingers and flicked it. At a distance of one finger-length from the tip, the soft sword snapped with a crisp sound.

Li Yincheng was horrified. He suddenly remembered Ping Shi’s warning to be careful of the "Sun-Splitting Finger," the broken-sword technique that Guan Qinghuai had once used to dominate the battlefield.

In that moment of shock, Guan Shiyin snatched the broken tip of the sword. He spun it in his palm, pointed the tip forward, and moved with the speed of lightning. With a *swish*, he slashed across the wrist that had just reached out toward him.

*Sss.* A faint sound.

A thin red line appeared on Li Yincheng’s wrist.

Before Li Yincheng could even feel the pain, a mist of blood erupted before his eyes.

In his blurred vision, he clearly saw that the hand still thrusting forward—the hand that had left his wrist—was his own.