Chapter 632 Empress (Part 2)
Consort Jin was both shocked and angry, scolding, “So this was a trap! Are you not afraid of retribution for scheming against your own sisters?” “Retribution? Fleeing after three days of mourning, unfilial and disloyal, that’s what will bring retribution.”
First Prince Lin Guo sneered and said to Eunuch Ma, who was extending his hand, “Go, you must arrest the Sixth Princess in full view of everyone, so that everyone in the Imperial Capital knows she is an unfilial daughter.”
“Yes!”
Eunuch Ma received the order and left with two masters.
“To be safe, you should also go and help Eunuch Ma.”
The other three princes also said to their master followers behind them.
“Yes!”
The followers received the order and followed one after another.
Consort Jin slumped powerlessly onto the chair, tears of despair streaming from her eyes.
Lin Ran left the Imperial Palace, looking back repeatedly, her face was absent-minded, and she had not fulfilled her duty as a child. How could her heart be at peace?
“Sixth Princess!”
Lin Ran was a celebrity in the Xihui Dynasty, so the passers-by recognized her identity and respectfully saluted her.
“Mmm!”
Lin Ran absent-mindedly returned the salute and walked out of the city like a walking corpse.
“Strange! Why did the Sixth Princess leave the Imperial Palace?”
“What’s wrong?”
“Are you stupid? The Emperor has only been dead for a few days. According to custom, shouldn’t she stay in the palace day and night to observe mourning? Leaving like this is disloyal and unfilial.”
“What do you know? She’s a cultivator, she doesn’t need to care about folk customs.”
“Nonsense, aren’t cultivators also born and raised by parents?”
“Yes, cultivators also have to pay attention to filial piety. As the Sixth Princess of the dynasty, she should pay more attention to her image!”
“Now that she has openly walked out like this, even if she is not punished, she will definitely lose the hearts of the people, which means she has lost the qualification to inherit the throne. It seems that the Xihui Dynasty will not have a female emperor.”
The passers-by on the road soon noticed something was wrong and began to point and whisper.
Lin Ran was absent-minded and did not notice that others were discussing her.
“Sixth Princess, please stop for a moment.”
Just then, a hoarse voice came from behind.
Lin Ran froze for a moment, then turned her head in confusion. She saw a man in black, wrapped tightly, looking at her. Not to mention his appearance, one couldn’t even tell if he was male or female.
“What advice do you have, sir?”
Lin Ran asked vigilantly.
“Sixth Princess, can we talk in private? I have something important to discuss!”
The uninvited guest asked.
“Not interested!”
Lin Ran turned and walked away. She was not a three-year-old girl to casually leave with an unknown “strange uncle.”
“What about the murderer of your father the Emperor? Not interested in knowing that either?”
The uninvited guest’s voice rang out again.
Lin Ran’s feet gradually became rooted. With a trace of hope, she asked, “Do you know who the murderer is?”
“It’s not suitable to discuss such matters on the street!”
The uninvited guest reminded her.
Lin Ran pondered for a moment, then turned back and said, “Lead the way!”
The “uninvited guest” said nothing more and led the way into a nearby inn.
The two entered a luxurious private room. Lin Ran carefully set up a Spiritual Sense Shield and crushed a soundproof charm before sitting down and asking, “Tell me, who is the murderer of my father the Emperor?”
“It’s me!”
The uninvited guest said astonishingly.
“What?”
Lin Ran jumped up and took out her treasure sword, angrily reprimanding, “How dare you! The crime of regicide implicates nine generations of your family. You dare to deliver yourself to my doorstep?”
“Don’t you want to ask why I killed him?”
The “uninvited guest” calmly poured a cup of tea.
“Why did you kill him?”
Lin Ran suppressed her anger and questioned. Perhaps because she knew the true nature of her father, she did not lose her mind immediately.
The “uninvited guest” did not answer. Instead, she removed her hat and veil, revealing a beautiful face. Who else could it be but Qi Huang?
“It’s you?”
Lin Ran was dumbfounded. After a moment, she asked with a shred of hope, “Did you really kill my father the Emperor?”
“I killed him!”
Qi Huang reiterated fearlessly.
“Why did you kill him? Just because of the Imperial Concubine matter? Although he did cause you some trouble, he didn’t deserve to die, did he?”
Lin Ran’s lips trembled as she asked.
“Do I seem like such a narrow-minded person in your eyes?”
Qi Huang smiled self-deprecatingly and then asked sternly, “Before I answer this question, I would also like to ask the Sixth Princess to recall if there is anything you are hiding from me.”
“What?”
Lin Ran’s face became a little unnatural, and her eyes flickered.
“Do I need to remind you?”
Qi Huang’s face showed a hint of disappointment. If this Sixth Princess lacked the courage to “admit her mistakes,” then she was not suitable to be the Empress.
Lin Ran opened her red lips. After a moment, the treasure sword in her hand softly drooped, and she mumbled, “Yes, I have something to hide from you. My father the Emperor, to save face, sent people to awaken the source of Yin Energy in the Pingshan Mass Grave, with the purpose of completely eliminating Huangtian Capital, this burden.”
Qi Huang smiled. This meant she had not misjudged the person.
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”
Lin Ran immediately bowed and apologized.
“If that’s the case, do I need any other reason to kill him?”
Qi Huang questioned word by word.
“Pa…”
Lin Ran’s legs went weak, and she slumped onto the chair. Her hair was messy, her face was pale, and she looked even more dispirited. She knew that the person sitting in front of her was the murderer of her father, but she had no reason to strike. The pain and internal struggle in her heart were imaginable.
“Let me tell you the truth, my Recording Mirror can not only spy on others, but it also has a recording function. So, not only this matter, but also the matter of him using warfare to persecute those young men, I am also completely aware of it.”
Qi Huang broke it down completely.
Lin Ran closed her beautiful eyes painfully. This was the matter she least wanted to face.
“Now you should understand what I’m saying. I killed him not for personal revenge, but for the entire Xihui Dynasty.”
Qi Huang stated powerfully.
“So? You found me just for this matter?”
After half a day, Lin Ran finally opened her tear-blurred beautiful eyes and asked.
“Of course not. The main reason I found you is to discuss the future of the Xihui Dynasty. Your father is dead, and now the princes are scrambling for the throne, causing chaos inside and outside the palace. Those enemy countries are also taking the opportunity to attack, and the people’s lives are getting worse. As the saying goes, a country cannot be without a king for a day, so a new emperor must be chosen as soon as possible.”
Qi Huang explained her intention.
“So what does this have to do with me?”
Lin Ran asked expressionlessly.
“Because you are the most suitable candidate, I intend to support you as the Empress of the Xihui Dynasty.”
Qi Huang said with burning eyes.
“I’m sorry, I’m a woman and a cultivator, and I’m not interested in being an Empress at all.”
Lin Ran shook her head and refused. She really had no reason to avenge her father, but that didn’t mean she had no hostility towards Qi Huang.
“Then what is your purpose for cultivating?”
Qi Huang asked from a different angle.
“Of course, it is to protect the Xihui Dynasty.”
Lin Ran answered without hesitation.
“But have you ever thought about it? No matter how strong you are, you can only solve external troubles. What about internal worries? Since ancient times, powerful countries have collapsed from within. If you don’t become the Empress, how can you solve the current internal worries of the Xihui Dynasty?”
Qi Huang questioned word by word.
“I appreciate your good intentions, but I’m really not interested in being an Empress.”
Lin Ran was slightly moved by these words, but after a moment of struggle, she stood up to leave. She knew that once she competed for the throne, she would have to draw swords against her brothers and kill each other, which she could not bear.
Qi Huang shook her head helplessly. As the saying goes, everyone has their own aspirations, and she couldn’t force it. However, it would not be so easy for this Sixth Princess to stay out of it. Just now, she had used the Recording Mirror to see the situation in the Imperial Palace clearly.
Lin Ran left the inn with a heavy heart, only to be blocked by someone. She looked in confusion and saw that it was Eunuch Ma and others.
“May I ask what else Eunuch Ma has?”
Lin Ran steadied her mind and asked as kindly as possible.
“On the orders of the First Prince, to arrest the Sixth Princess and bring her back to be punished.”
Eunuch Ma bowed with a blank expression.
“Punished? What crime?”
Lin Ran asked, dumbfounded.
“According to the customs of the Xihui Dynasty, when parents pass away, children must stay at home and observe mourning for three years without leaving. You left the Imperial Palace after a few days of mourning, which is unfilial! Moreover, you are a princess, so you are both a child and a subject. Therefore, disloyalty must also be added! Disloyalty and unfilial conduct naturally warrant punishment!”
Eunuch Ma spoke fluently, as if he had prepared his lines long ago.
“Weren’t you the ones who told me to leave the Imperial Palace?”
Lin Ran asked in shock.
“Us? When did we tell you to leave? As a member of the royal family, the Sixth Princess should understand that everything requires evidence. If you cannot provide evidence, you may also be charged with ‘slander’.”
Eunuch Ma bit back.
“Audacious slave, how dare you play tricks on this Princess!”
Lin Ran was furious, but then she seemed to realize something, and her face turned ashen: “Hehe… I understand… So that’s how it is… So that’s how it is! Are these my own brothers? To fight for the throne, they don’t even care about sibling affection and have resorted to such despicable means.”
“Your Highness Princess, it is best that you return with this old servant willingly. Otherwise, even if you leave, Consort Jin might be accused of failing to educate her daughter properly.”
Eunuch Ma threatened.
“Let’s go!”
Lin Ran no longer struggled and resigned herself to following Eunuch Ma and the others back the way they came.
“Lin Ran! Lin Ran! You are truly naive. Do you think they will let you and your mother go after you return?”
Qi Huang sighed helplessly, then continued to use the Recording Mirror to observe the situation in the palace.
