ITOTIABSAM | The Tyrant in the Deep Palace | 81
"The sound of rain..."
The evening breeze gently swept through, bringing with it the first rain since Xie Ye arrived at the palace.
Roughly calculating the timeline from the original story, it was also the point where the "antagonist" should exit the stage with death looming. He felt a sudden and intense pain in his previously improving condition, as if being split open by an axe or drilled through by an electric drill, yet he stubbornly held on, keeping himself conscious.
Gu Cong was the first to notice something amiss with the young emperor, gently prying open the fingertips that were pressing into his palm. "Your Majesty?"
With rain tonight, Prince An would certainly launch a strong attack. Though the palace seemed calm on the surface, many of the palace guards had changed into eunuch uniforms, ready to capture Xi Jinyu once he ascended the mountain, as if catching a turtle in a jar.
"Stay away from me later." Knowing that this rain was definitely the world consciousness favoring the protagonist, Xie Ye decisively abandoned the sedative that would cloud his mind.
His words were firm, but his hand continued to greedily seek the warmth higher than his own, gripping tightly.
"Away?" Alone in their room, Gu Cong spoke softly. "Where else can I go except by Your Majesty's side?"
The courtyard where the young emperor usually resided was undoubtedly the most dangerous place tonight, still occupied by Xie Hai, who would occasionally stage some drama by tossing things around.
So, it was unusually quiet around this former servant's room where Gu Cong had once lived, situated near the palace.
"Calculating the distance, Ning Wei should be near the palace."
Although he had made thorough preparations and even thought to himself that he would rather die with the other person by his side, Xie Ye's mouth uncontrollably revealed the escape route he had prepared early for the man: "If there's really any unforeseen circumstances, this place is close to the exotic beast garden. You can run downhill and head north. You'll surely encounter a savior along the way."
Having experienced too many similar scenarios, aside from Gu Cong, he wouldn't trust anyone completely, nor would he put all his eggs in one basket. Even though he had an eighty percent chance of flipping Xie Hai, he needed another backup.
—He was the antagonist, but Gu Cong wasn't. It was logical that the latter could survive.
"There won't be any unforeseen circumstances," Gu Cong reassured as he interlocked his fingers with the young emperor's, speaking with firm conviction. "Your Majesty has already done your best. Xi Jinyu is too arrogant and underestimates his enemies, so he has no chance of winning."
As if to confirm his words, in the distance, there came the clear sound of metal clashing, despite the steady rain making it sound even clearer.
Although those brought by Xi Jinyu's side were undoubtedly elite soldiers, the palace guards had calculated their moves and occupied advantageous positions. Xie Hai's sudden betrayal caught them off guard.
In the heavy rain, despite Xi Jinyu's protagonist aura, he still appeared somewhat embarrassed.
Water droplets streamed down his helmet with red tassels as he barely blocked Xie Hai's thrust.
Although he spoke quickly, his tone was innocent to the extreme: "Father-in-law! What are you doing..."
"Father-in-law? You colluded with that Pei Yi! How can you face my daughter!"
Just the thought that the person in front of him had deceived him with this hypocritical gentleman facade, using it to deceive his beloved jewel, made Xie Hai's spear thrusts even more fierce and relentless, like a sudden storm.
Xi Jinyu had indeed trained in martial arts, and even disguised himself as a soldier and fought on the battlefield during his travels. Eventually, his "accidental exposure of identity" laid the groundwork for gaining support from the Ministry of War in the later stages.
But deep down, he was still a pampered prince. Although Xie Hai was a military general responsible for guarding the capital, he trained daily. Not to mention that at this moment, he was also an angry father. Seeing Xi Jinyu falling into a disadvantageous position, the palace guards around him quickly rushed forward, preventing the noble Prince An from being pierced through by a spear.
The palace guards, born and raised for covert operations since their inception, were more suited for ambushes and assassinations. Engaging in direct combat with them was not significantly different from facing the imperial guards. Furthermore, Xi Jinyu had divided his forces to block the roads leading down the mountain, so for a moment, they couldn't break out of the encirclement at the fastest speed.
Intentionally, only sporadic lights were lit within the palace, making it difficult to discern directions in the rainy night.
People also have a natural tendency to seek light. By the time Xi Jinyu realized something was wrong, they had been driven like animals into a vast garden emitting a strange odor.
As lightning flashed across the sky, illuminating the three characters on the plaque: "Exotic Beast Garden."
No matter how powerful the warhorses were, they couldn't escape their animal instincts. The roars of tigers and leopards, the pitiful cries of prey being torn apart... the scent of blood filled the air.
Even the imperial guards, who had halted in time, could feel their own horses trembling. They quickly followed the instructions given by the senior palace attendant, sprinkling medicinal powder from the incense burners outside the Exotic Beast Garden and lighting it with firebrands, shielding it from the rain with umbrellas to prevent it from being extinguished.
The specially made torches, soaked in oil, wouldn't be easily extinguished, and they also helped to some extent in containing the wild beasts within the garden. Stealthily assessing Xie Hai's expression, the deputy officer next to his superior quietly breathed a sigh of relief and whispered, "That palace attendant, Gu, seems to have some skills. Even with the cages open, he found a way to keep these big fellows in line."
Until Prince An and his men rushed in, he remained calm. It was only then that he became agitated.
And surprisingly, the young emperor had a boldness about him. He actually dared to trust Gu Cong, Xi Jinyu. If there were any mistakes, they would be running around the palace now.
Wild beasts don't distinguish between the high and low ranks of humans. Without anyone to protect them, even the emperor would inevitably die.
"Suspect not, but trust; use not, but rely," Xue Hai, sitting steadily on his horse, commanded, "The situation is settled. Send someone to deliver a message to His Majesty and send another group of men and horses to guard the road the rebels just took up the mountain, to prevent the enemy from having any backup."
"As for the others..." The pent-up anger in his heart finally found an outlet as he raised his voice sternly, "Keep your eyes wide open! Don't let a single one of them escape alive!"
The palace attendants had been gathered in a relatively remote courtyard early on. In this battle, it turned out that the flowers, plants, and buildings that couldn't speak or move suffered the most damage.
Dust settled.
When everyone thought this way, only the young emperor insisted on staying in the servants' quarters under Gu Cong's care and refused to move.
This place was close to the Exotic Beast Garden. After turning a few corners, there was a small path known only to the palace's elderly residents. The burning medicinal powder mixed with the smell of rust, which was unpleasant and choking. It rose into the air, only to be extinguished by the rain.
The imperial guards responsible for reporting the situation thought His Majesty was startled and afraid of any further accidents, so they were guarding the courtyard, which was the most convenient for escape.
But unexpectedly, half an hour later, after the heavy rain had subsided, the muffled sound of a heavy object falling to the ground awakened everyone's relaxed nerves once again.
"Cough, cough." Spitting out a mouthful of blood, Xi Jinyu's face was partially submerged in the dirty water.
The Exotic Beast Garden was surrounded by high walls on all sides, and the only entrance was heavily guarded. He should have died in the jaws of a tiger or been torn apart by a leopard, but as luck would have it, not far outside the wall, there was a tall and flourishing tree. Its thick and resilient branches hung like an umbrella, extending into the courtyard, giving him a chance to escape.
Having memorized the map of the palace beforehand, he headed southwest, climbing up the tree to evade the patrolling imperial guards. Just then, an arrow with golden feathers suddenly shot out from the thick darkness without warning, piercing through his shoulder and causing him to lose his balance. He fell uncontrollably from the tree, crashing heavily into the muddy water below.
Footsteps approached leisurely, stepping on the stone slabs as they approached. "Do you know why I'm waiting here?" came a voice.
"Because I believe this place is your way out. Heaven must have taken pity on you."
Trying to use his fingertips to support himself, he failed to lift his body. Xi Jinyu raised his eyes and saw the emperor's robe, as red as a ghost in the dark night. Above that was a bow stained with blood. Apparently, the emperor had underestimated his strength, as the bowstring had cut his hand, and the crimson liquid was dripping down, falling onto the ground one drop at a time.
It's not over yet, Xi Jinyu thought.
If he could lure the emperor to crouch down, seize the bow, and use the string to strangle his slender neck...
As if aided by divine intervention, he gasped a few times, pretending to be dazed and unable to hear clearly. The emperor indeed bent down, leaning closer to him, as if he had to make sure Xi Jinyu heard every word of his mockery, boasting of his victory.
However, before Xi Jinyu could fully recover, he suddenly launched a counterattack. A hidden arrow dropped from the sleeve of the youth and was firmly grasped by the blood-soaked fingers, fiercely stabbing into the palm of Xi Jinyu’s hand.
It shattered his last trace of hope.
"Forget to mention, even if heaven pities you, it's useless." Turning hope into despair, as if he had eyes on his back, Xie Ye didn't even turn his head. He raised his hand with precision and pulled out a new arrow from the wooden tube around Gu Cong's waist, slowly and deliberately aiming down to nail the protagonist's calf:
"What I excel at most is defying the heavens."
Boom.
As if in warning, a muffled thunder suddenly exploded in the air. Xie Ye paid it no mind, standing up and waving to the guards who hurriedly surrounded him, "Come."
"Take Prince An and his lover and lock them up together."
After Xie Ye's stern command, this matter was no longer a secret in the palace. They had thought that releasing the mastermind behind the rebellion would result in their own punishment, perhaps even following Prince An to their graves. But surprisingly, they faced no punishment.
The guards couldn't hide their surprise and quickly approached, dragging away the hedgehog-like Xi Jinyu, not daring to even look away, afraid that a similar mistake might happen again.
Many felt secretly ashamed: they had thought the young emperor staying behind was out of cowardice, but it turned out the real foolishness was their own.
The perfectly sized tree outside the Exotic Beast Garden might be mysterious, but what did it matter? Prince An had was still captured by the young emperor himself.
What did this prove? It proved that the emperor was the one chosen by fate!
For the first time, 1101 saw its host's aura fully unleashed, and it was completely awed, no longer doubting the seemingly lazy and inept figure it had first encountered, nor the ability it once possessed to swallow the consciousness of the world.
Promptly, it offered a sedative: "Keep your hands tucked into your sleeves, so as not to be discovered by Gu Cong."
【Endure it for now, and it will be better after sunrise.】
According to the original description, Xiao Hao died facing the palace gates, at the break of dawn.
But at this moment, apart from Gu Cong, Xie Ye wanted nothing and had no desire to grasp anything.
Plunk.
As they were being assisted back to their room to clean and bandage their wounds, the exquisitely crafted golden bow suddenly fell to the ground. Xie Ye lifted his relatively clean hand and gently grasped the man's collar, pulling him closer.
Their breaths intertwined, barely perceptible, Xie Ye murmured softly like a cat: "I'm in so much pain."
"Kiss me."
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