The Return of the Seventh Young Lady-Chapter 189 - 188

Chapter 188

Meanwhile, the gate guards swiftly closed all city gates securely, without any announcement or warning. They acted as if it was a routine procedure. However, closing the city gates at this time was highly unusual, causing great surprise among the patrolling soldiers. They wondered what was happening.

Why the gates were closed.

Only the gate guards knew the reason. The patrolling soldiers did not question them, merely glancing curiously, assuming it was an order from above.

Shortly after the gates were closed, before the guards could realize what was happening, they were suddenly attacked by a mysterious group. Both sides engaged in chaotic combat. By the time the guards understood that a rebellion had erupted, they had already been captured. They were unable to resist or send word to their superiors in time.

Soon, the rebel group easily seized control of city gates in all directions, capturing the guards. The entire operation concluded in less than fifteen minutes, with the rebel group successfully taking over the capital from within.

The Throne Room

Inside the grand throne room, a hundred officials were oblivious to the unfolding events outside. They continued their heated debates, starting with the Fifth Prince’s faction attacking the Crown Prince’s side, and the Crown Prince’s supporters retaliating. Both sides hurled accusations at each other, attempting to undermine one another’s power.

"His Majesty is wise. Do you think you can lie however you want?"

An official from the Crown Prince’s faction said harshly, glaring angrily at an official from the Fifth Prince’s faction. The accused official stepped forward before the Emperor, defending himself.

"Your Majesty, someone is trying to frame me. I know nothing of this matter. Please consider the facts."

The dispute revolved around the suspicious disappearance of the central budget, a major issue impacting the region’s stability. The central budget was not something that could be touched.

The issue began when the Crown Prince’s official in the treasury was severely injured and unable to perform his duties fully. The remaining treasury officials had to manage without him. When the Crown Prince’s official returned to work, he discovered a portion of the budget missing, a portion under his jurisdiction, making him the prime suspect inevitably.

This situation infuriated the Crown Prince’s faction, as they lost a powerful ally in the treasury. To retaliate against the Fifth Prince, they filed a petition today. The arguments had been ongoing since the start of the assembly, with no resolution in sight.

The Emperor watched the proceedings with weariness. He had seen this same scene play out for months. It was tiresome and annoying, especially the childish back-and-forth.

As the heated debate continued inside the throne room, a commotion erupted outside, capturing everyone’s attention. They paused their arguments and turned to look outside.

"What is happening?"

The Emperor’s gaze shifted from the courtiers to the outside. No one had an answer; they only exchanged confused glances and looked towards the closed throne room doors.

Soon, the large doors burst open, and a large group of people, dressed in imperial guard uniforms, stormed in. However, what was different was that they all pointed their weapons at the officials with a menacing demeanor. This was not the action of the real imperial guards.

"Arrest them all. Anyone who resists, kill them!"

At the command, the imperial guards quickly surrounded the throne room occupants, their weapons aimed threateningly. The officials retreated, gathering in front of the Emperor’s throne. Some attempted to resist, leading to a violent clash. In the end, the resisting officials were mercilessly killed, causing the others who saw the scene to not even dare to move and submit to arrest without further struggle.

In no time, the chaotic situation quickly calmed down. The officials were herded together in front of the Emperor’s throne, with the Son of Heaven protected at the center. All of them displayed expressions of continuous fear and shock, unable to believe such an event was happening.

"How dare you! Your audacity is beyond measure! To commit rebellion in broad daylight!"

The Crown Prince shouted at the intruders. Since weapons were not allowed in the court assembly, he and everyone else were unarmed, making it difficult to fight against the well-armed enemies. Their only option was to intimidate the enemy and try to negotiate a way out.

Following the Crown Prince’s outburst, many officials began shouting at the rebels, berating and cursing them incessantly.

"You vile traitors!"

"Release us immediately. What you are doing is wrong!"

"It’s not too late to stop. Release us now!"

Amidst the officials’ outbursts, a cold voice cut through the noise, commanding attention. "If anyone speaks again, kill them!"

At this command, the officials fell silent immediately. They realized that the rebels were serious and did not want to risk their lives. Shortly after, the rebels that surrounded them parted to allow someone to step forward, stopping before the officials as if he were the leader.

This man was tall and imposing, his face covered in scars that made him look intimidating. He exuded an aura of menace that demanded respect, clearly not an ordinary person. However, no matter how hard the officials tried to identify who he was, they couldn’t figure it out.

"Who are you?"

The Emperor asked coldly, his expression icy as he swept his gaze over the group in front of him with suspicions. Why had he not known about the movement of these rebels before? What was happening?

"We are here to reclaim justice from you,"

The rebel leader replied with a mocking smile. He had waited a long time for this day, and now it was finally the day when everything would be set right, and justice would be restored.

"How dare you!"

The Emperor roared, his voice echoing through the hall. He frowned deeply, staring intently at the man before him, trying to discern his identity.

“Do you not remember us, Your Majesty?”

An elderly man stepped forward from the group of rebels, stopping in front of the Emperor. His voice was eerily familiar to the Emperor, bringing back memories from the past.

"Chancellor Feng?"

The Emperor murmured in disbelief, his eyes widening as he stared at the elderly man as if seeing a ghost. He then turned his gaze to the tall man who had spoken earlier, and another figure overlapped with his memory.

“C...Commander Ye?”

The Emperor was now genuinely shocked upon recognizing these people. As he scanned the faces of the rebels around him, memories from the past came flooding back. These were people he had ordered to be eliminated decades ago.

Impossible!

These people were supposed to be dead!

How could this be happening?!

The Emperor, who had always been composed, began to feel restless. If these people were still alive and standing before him, he was afraid that his throne would surely be taken away.

"Guards! Arrest these rebels immediately!"

The Emperor shouted for the guards, but there was no response. That only intensified his foreboding. The officials, witnessing this, also began to panic.

“It’s useless. The palace is already under our control.”

Chancellor Feng, one of the rebel leaders, spoke in a measured pace. He narrowed his eyes at the current Emperor, who had ordered the massacre of his family, his gaze filled with icy hatred. His rage surged like a tidal wave, but he restrained his emotions to avoid ruining their plans.

"Eldest Prince, you call us rebels, but what does that make you?"

Commander Ye, standing beside Chancellor Feng, asked mockingly. He glared at the tyrant Emperor with undisguised hatred. Everyone in the rebel group had lost everything due to the tyrant Emperor’s greed. Their long-suppressed vengeance was now boiling over uncontrollably.

"Please surrender, Your Majesty. This throne was never truly yours to begin with. Do not cause more needless bloodshed."

Chancellor Feng spoke in a steady voice, advising the Emperor with good intentions. Despite his deep-seated grudge, he did not desire to see further violence.

“Not true! This throne belongs to me!”

The Emperor retorted instantly, his eyes blazing red, resembling a beast. The rebel’s words had touched a deep, festering wound he had tried to hide for decades. He struggled to control his emotions.

Even though he ultimately claimed the throne, he could never erase the shame of not being the rightful heir from his heart.

This caused the wound to fester within him, turning into an incurable wound.

The officials and princes, hearing the conversation and seeing the Emperor’s reaction, could not help but wonder what exactly was happening. What did the rebels mean by their claims? Why was the throne not rightfully the Emperor’s...?

“Rebels will always be rebels. Today, you commit this brazen act out of greed for what is not yours. Courtiers, do not yield to these vile traitors!”

The Emperor shouted with conviction, his expression more solemn than usual. His words revived the courtiers’ morale, quickly dispelling their doubts.

Commander Ye, witnessing this, could only let out a bitter laugh. He hadn’t expected the tyrant Emperor to so shamelessly deceive his courtiers like this. It truly befitted a tyrant...

“If Your Majesty will not heed my warning, then do not accuse me of being merciless.”

Chancellor Feng left his last remark and sighed deeply. Soon after that, chaos erupted once more as the officials clashed with the rebels. The smell of blood filled the throne room. Amidst the intense fighting, the Crown Prince, along with the Third Prince and Fifth Prince, escorted the Emperor out through the back of the throne room.

In no time, they managed to use the chaos to escape through the secret exit behind the throne room. As they ran along the palace corridors outside the throne room, they suddenly encountered two figures standing in their path. These two were none other than Lu Jiu and Mu Yingying.

"See, I told you those turtle offspring would escape this way. Good thing I thought ahead and came here to wait, or else there would be endless trouble later on."

Mu Yingying couldn’t help but say to Lu Jiu. She glanced at the group before her and let out an exasperated sigh. She had only had a hunch that the enemy might seize the opportunity to take the secret passage to escape from the throne room, so she decided to wander around this area just in case.

She hadn’t expected this to actually happen!

Fortunately, they were there to intercept them; otherwise, if the enemies in front of her escaped, there would be unending chaos later. This matter needed to be uprooted completely!

"Who are you?"

The Emperor asked warily. Even though there were only two of them, and one of them was a delicate woman, he could sense the danger emanating from both of them. His instincts warned him continuously to be cautious of these individuals.

"Who I am is not important. What’s important is that I cannot let you pass."

Mu Yingying replied coldly, her beautiful face icy. Her large, once-bright eyes now glowed with a chilling light that made anyone who looked feel a shiver down their spine. The Fifth Prince and De Chaikun, who had encountered Mu Yingying before, began to suspect her identity.

It seemed this woman was undoubtedly connected to the rebel group!

"Insolent! There are only two of them. Go and deal with them."

The Emperor commanded his sons and De Chaikun who had accompanied them. Given the order, the four men had no choice but to rush toward the two according to the Emperor’s command. However, before they could reach Mu Yingying, Lu Jiu, who had been silent all along, stepped in front of her and confronted all four.

Amidst the four-against-one battle, Lu Jiu showed no signs of being at a disadvantage. His fighting skills were so formidable that the four men were shocked. Despite their numbers, they found themselves on the losing end.

The longer the fight went on, the more advantage Lu Jiu gained. He dealt with the enemies mercilessly, continuously inflicting wounds on his enemies without sustaining any injuries himself.

Watching the scene, the Emperor’s face darkened in an instant. As he had suspected, this young man was a master fighter!

Now, with his men locked in battle with this mysterious opponent, only the delicate woman remained. If the Emperor could eliminate her, he could seize the opportunity to escape safely.

With this thought, the Emperor turned to his trusted eunuch standing beside him. "Take care of her."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The eunuch responded and swiftly attacked Mu Yingying. Just as his palm was about to reach her, a mocking smile appeared on her beautiful face. Her delicate form vanished from the eunuch’s sight, causing him great alarm. He quickly scanned the area, looking for her, and found her beside him before he could react.

The moment he turned to face her, Mu Yingying struck him with full force, sending him reeling backward several steps and coughing up a large mouthful of blood. The eunuch looked at her with a mix of shock and fear. Despite her delicate appearance, she possessed martial prowess on par with the finest masters.

Meanwhile, the Emperor, standing and watching the scene not far away, was equally alarmed. He scanned the young woman with fear, before seizing the moment to flee in another direction while the two were engaged in battle.

Mu Yingying, still locked in combat with the eunuch, glanced at the Emperor’s fleeing figure briefly. Gathering her internal energy into her palm, she struck the eunuch’s chest with full force, causing severe internal injuries. The eunuch collapsed to the ground, utterly spent.

In no time, Mu Yingying dashed off in pursuit of the Emperor at her highest speed. She quickly caught up and blocked his path just in time.

"You! What do you want!?"

The Emperor asked in fear. He had witnessed her formidable skills and knew he stood no chance against her.

"I want your life," Mu Yingying replied coldly, her gaze fixed on him with the same look one would give a dead person.

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