Chapter 1104: Entering the Palace Alone

The moment she emerged from the army's encirclement, Xuan Wei headed straight for a horse. When she pointed her sword at the soldier holding its reins, he hurriedly let go and backed away in fright.

Xuan Wei seized the saddle. Her skirts flared as she vaulted onto the horse in one motion. With one hand on the reins, she turned the mount in place twice, then pointed her sword at the guards who had followed her out of Tianwei Residence. "Go to every residence at once. Summon the civil and military officials. Tell them to hurry to the imperial palace to see me!"

"Yes!" The guards accepted the order and scattered. They seized mounts from the surrounding troops one after another. Horses whinnied and hoofbeats rapidly spread in every direction.

The commander of the encircling army had been cut down by Xuan Wei on the spot. With no one left in command and no one daring to issue orders, the soldiers could only watch as Xuan Wei's men took their horses and rode away. Not one dared resist her.

The sight stirred something in Ximen Qingkong. When he first learned that Tianwei Residence had been surrounded, he had prepared himself to protect Xuan Wei and carve a way out through the encirclement. In the end, there had been no need.

Xuan Wei had even made him stand aside. She had merely borrowed Tang Yi's sword, and with one woman and one blade had cowed the entire force into silence.

Once the guards carrying her orders had dispersed, the blood-covered Xuan Wei pulled on the reins and wheeled her mount around. She slapped the horse with her sword, and it immediately broke into a gallop.

One woman, one sword, one horse. Her skirts and sleeves streamed in the wind as she thundered over the debris strewn across the streets, slender hand gripping the sword as she headed straight for the imperial palace.

Ximen Qingkong flashed forward and followed through the air.

Tang Yi waved a hand and led the Shangqing Sect disciples after them, racing across the rooftops on either side of the street to guard Xuan Wei from above.

In a guest room on the upper floor of an inn at the oblique street corner across from Tianwei Residence, the graying Shao Pingbo stood with his hands clasped behind his back, watching the residence through the window.

He had come to the capital of Wei in person. After putting everything in place, he had taken command here himself. Every part of the operation had been meticulously planned by him.

It was precisely because of his planning that Xuan Chengtian's men had been able to move so swiftly and accurately against so many of Nan Renyu's subordinate generals.

After watching Xuan Wei cow the mutinous troops and depart, Shao Pingbo murmured, "Worthy of being a pillar of Wei. I'm afraid the palace guards won't be able to stop her."

Shao Sansheng said, "If we'd known, we should have arranged an assassination."

"If we mobilized large numbers of cultivators, whether the assassination would succeed is one question. More importantly, the moment Wei's three great sects were alarmed and realized foreign enemies were behind the disturbance, their cultivators would move to protect the officers, and we would no longer be able to dispose of those generals so smoothly. They might also urgently warn every region to take precautions. We need to buy time for our people across the state.

"At present, Wei's three great sects probably still haven't realized what is actually happening. They'll assume this is nothing more than a struggle for power between elder sister and younger brother. By the time messages go back and forth and they finally understand the truth, it will already be too late."

Just then, a man dressed as an inn attendant hurried upstairs and handed Shao Sansheng a secret letter.

After reading it, Shao Sansheng immediately reported, "Eldest Young Master, all of Xuan Chengtian's decrees have been sent out."

"Good." Shao Pingbo gave a slight nod. "Notify our people immediately. The moment disturbances begin in the various regions, spread rumors around Wei's army garrisons. Say that Xuan Chengtian, in order to seize military authority, has already killed Nan Renyu, confiscated the households of Nan Renyu's generals and exterminated their clans, and now intends to purge all soldiers and officers aligned with Xuan Wei and Nan Renyu.

"At the same time, send word back to the State of Jin. Tell His Majesty that everything is ready. The army can begin assembling."

"Yes!" Shao Sansheng accepted the order and left.

Still standing at the window and looking toward Tianwei Residence, Shao Pingbo's thoughts churned. He had seen Tang Yi just now. Whatever had passed between them in the past, seeing her made him think of Niu Youdao.

He did not know Niu Youdao's exact circumstances inside the Sacred Realm. And the person behind the scenes who had urged him to start this war had still given him no reply.

The door opened. Shao Sansheng entered and came to the window. Lowering his voice, he said, "The two from the palace are here."

Shao Pingbo replied calmly, "Let them in."

"Yes." Shao Sansheng turned, opened the door, and gestured.

Two figures entered wrapped in black cloaks that hid their faces. As soon as they came in, the room slowly filled with the fragrance of women's cosmetics.

They stopped behind Shao Pingbo and lifted back their hoods together, revealing two beautiful faces. They were Noble Consort Chang and Noble Consort Sang, both deeply favored by the sovereign of Wei.

Now that their faces were exposed, the two women were visibly tense and frightened. They knelt together. "Greetings, my lord."

Shao Pingbo reached out and closed the window, then turned and looked down at the two women prostrating themselves before him. His voice was gentle. "Rise."

Only then did the women get to their feet. They glanced at Shao Pingbo once, then lowered their eyes, not daring to look at him directly.

"You did well. You've worked hard."

"Thank you for your praise, my lord," they hurriedly replied.

Shao Pingbo said, "Paper cannot wrap fire forever. Once this affair erupts, Xuan Wei will discover what happened sooner or later. When she does, she won't spare either of you. I keep my word. Once this is done, I'll take you away. I won't discard you after you've served your purpose."

"Thank you, my lord," they said again.

Shao Pingbo pointed at their clothes. "Take them off."

The two women exchanged a glance. At last they slowly began undoing their robes. Layer after layer came off, and under the direction of Shao Pingbo's finger they eventually stripped themselves completely naked.

Though neither was inexperienced with men, standing exposed like this still made them deeply uncomfortable.

Their bodies were graceful and exquisitely formed, every bit as alluring as their faces promised. Even Shao Sansheng, standing to one side, felt his blood heat. His Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed.

The two women stood there naked, exposed enough to feel the chill.

This was not the first time they had undressed completely in front of Shao Pingbo. When they had first been selected and brought before him, he had made them strip then as well.

He had done nothing improper to them. Just as now, he had walked around them and looked over their bodies. More precisely, it was less admiration than inspection.

As he examined them, Shao Pingbo said, "I prevented you from bearing Xuan Chengtian's children for your own good. I didn't want you to have attachments that would eventually harm you. You've maintained yourselves well. You're even fairer and more delicate than before. It seems palace life truly has treated you well. That's enough. Get dressed. In a little while, I'll take you out of Wei."

"Yes." The two women bent to retrieve their clothes, dressing with restrained embarrassment.

From time to time, they stole glances at Shao Pingbo from the corners of their eyes. In truth, both women almost wished he harbored improper intentions toward them and would do something. That would have made them feel safer. Yet they could see nothing unusual at all in Shao Pingbo's expression, and that only made them fear him more.

Once they were dressed, Shao Pingbo tilted his head. Shao Sansheng understood and escorted the two women out.

After returning, Shao Sansheng asked, "Eldest Young Master, are you truly going to take them away?"

"You want to silence them?"

"Are we really going to leave them alive?"

"I already said that paper cannot wrap fire forever. Xuan Wei will discover sooner or later that they were behind this. Whether we silence them or not no longer matters. Notify the people from Blackwater Terrace. Have them arrange our departure. We're going to the Qi capital."

The palace gates were tightly shut. Soldiers on the walls stood with weapons drawn, facing the people below.

No matter how Xuan Wei called out, the gates remained closed. Ximen Qingkong wanted to blast them open by force, but the cultivators guarding the palace stopped him.

The elders from Wei's three great sects who were overseeing the palace were also below the gate. They had brought their people into a line blocking Xuan Wei's group. One of them pointed at Ximen Qingkong, who had drawn the broad sword from his back, and warned, "Ximen Qingkong, try making a move and see what happens!"

Xuan Wei raised a hand to stop Ximen Qingkong. "Three Elders, I only want to see His Majesty. I only want to know why he has done this."

The elder from Lingxu Mansion said, "His Majesty has said he does not wish to see you. Chancellor, look at yourself. Sword in hand, covered in blood and bristling with killing intent. Does that look like someone who merely came to ask a question?"

Xuan Wei said angrily, "The capital is in chaos. Is this what your three great sects want to see?"

The elder from Shouzheng Pavilion said, "Chancellor, with things between you siblings having come to this, it is difficult for us to say who is right and who is wrong. We have already sent messages to our sects. We will wait for their judgment."

Xuan Wei laughed from sheer fury. "Wait for your sects to decide? Once the capital falls into chaos, the entire State of Wei will inevitably be dragged into it. Instead of taking control of the situation now, you still want to wait for replies from your sects?"

The elder from Dale Mountain said, "Lady Chancellor, who should control the situation now is not for you to decide. We cannot allow you siblings to go on tearing each other apart. That is what would truly throw the entire State of Wei into chaos. Xuan Wei, we do not wish to make things difficult for you, but I advise you to return to your residence and wait for news. Rest assured, we already have His Majesty under control here. He won't be allowed to act recklessly again. Our three sects will handle everything that follows."

Hoofbeats continued to arrive from behind. Xuan Wei looked back. In response to her summons, the court officials were hurrying in one after another and gathering there, every face filled with uncertainty.

What stood out was that nearly all of them were civil officials. Almost none of the familiar military officials were present.

The sight told her something was terribly wrong, and deep worry rose in her heart. She turned back at once and said decisively, "Three Elders, if you're worried that I might do something harmful to His Majesty, I won't take anyone with me. I will enter the palace alone and see him by myself. Surely you can be at ease with that?"

With that, she tossed the sword back to Tang Yi.

Ximen Qingkong shouted, "No!"

Given the present situation, how could he possibly let Xuan Wei enter the palace alone? If anything happened, she would not have a single person beside her to protect her. She would certainly die.

Xuan Wei raised a hand to stop him and said quietly, "Don't worry. Under the present circumstances, they don't dare kill me. Whether His Majesty controls the government or not, he still needs my cooperation. If I die, the court will fall into chaos and the whole State of Wei will suffer. That is not something the three great sects want to see."

"No." Ximen Qingkong refused flatly.

Xuan Wei suddenly shouted, "The situation has changed. At any moment the entire State of Wei could be thrown into chaos. I must find out what is happening as quickly as possible!"

Ximen Qingkong stared at her, stunned. It was the first time this woman had ever shouted at him like that.

Xuan Wei turned resolutely. Still covered in blood, she walked alone toward the people of the three great sects. Whether they agreed or not, she simply kept going, deliberately placing her life and death in the hands of those uncertain men before her.

The officials gathered behind watched her in silence. Grief and anger showed on many faces.

Ximen Qingkong's jaw tightened, his five fingers clenching the sword hilt. Tang Yi bit her lip, not knowing what to do either. One thing she understood clearly: the Shangqing Sect stood with Xuan Wei. If anything happened to Xuan Wei, there would no longer be any place for the Shangqing Sect to stand in Wei.

The three sect elders exchanged glances.

Xuan Wei stopped in front of them and said in a voice that struck like iron, "Take me into the palace. I want to see His Majesty."

Faced with a woman who had placed her life in their hands, and with the grieving, furious court officials watching them, the three elders could find no reason to refuse.

In the end, the cultivators of the three sects all flew back up onto the palace walls, taking Xuan Wei with them.

Those below could only watch as Xuan Wei disappeared beyond the palace wall.

[End of Chapter 1104]