bookrandom Chapter 475 Joy of Life 31
Chapter 475 Joy of Life 31
Li Yunrui, the Crown Prince, and the Empress formed an alliance, attempting to kill Fan Xian together, but they all unanimously chose to use someone else to do the dirty work.
The "knife" they chose belonged to Lin Ruofu's second son, Lin Gong.
Whether as Lin Wan'er's brother or already on the side of the Crown Prince, Lin Gong could not refuse to become this "knife".
However, Lin Gong was not a fool, and naturally he would not be so reckless as to directly draw his sword to kill Fan Xian.
After learning that Si Lili, the top courtesan of Zuixianju, was a spy from Northern Qi, he threatened Si Lili to send someone to assassinate Fan Xian, hoping to achieve his goal through the power of Northern Qi.
However, when the eldest princess, the crown prince, and the empress learned of Lin Gong's plan, they were speechless.
As a spy from Northern Qi who had infiltrated Southern Qing, Si Lili's influence and abilities in Southern Qing were quite limited.
The chances of failing to kill Fan Xian in broad daylight are extremely high.
They went to great lengths to achieve this cooperation, aiming to succeed in one fell swoop and completely eliminate Fan Xian, and they would not allow any mistakes in the plan.
Especially Li Yunrui and the Empress, both of whom had met Ye Qingmei and knew how formidable she was.
Although it is unknown whether Fan Xian, as Ye Qingmei's son, has inherited his mother's strength.
But in any case, it's always better to be safe than sorry.
All they can do is make the plan as comprehensive as possible to increase the success rate of the operation.
So the three of them kept quiet and, after Lin Gong arranged for the Cheng Jushu that Si Lili had sent, they each secretly sent more experts to help.
This operation must succeed; failure is not an option.
Otherwise, it will be much more difficult to get rid of Fan Xian in the future.
Finally, after Fan Xian heard the news that Lin Wan'er had returned to the Prime Minister's residence, the assassination operation, meticulously planned and executed behind the scenes by Li Yunrui, the Crown Prince, and the Empress, and personally carried out by Lin Gong, quietly began.
Full of confidence, Fan Xian led Fan Ruoruo and Teng Zijing straight to the Lin residence, patiently explaining the key steps of the operation along the way. In short, the core objective was to get Lin Wan'er to say the words "annul the engagement".
Fan Ruoruo naturally supported her brother unconditionally, while Teng Zijing, now Fan Xian's bodyguard, although he had reservations about the move, ultimately did not voice his opposition.
This scene is utterly ironic.
Fan Xian was unwilling to accept this marriage, but instead of seeking out the instigator, Emperor Qing, to break off the engagement, he wanted to use this method to force Lin Wan'er to take the initiative to cancel the engagement.
It must be said that Fan Xian's actions were indeed somewhat despicable.
Fortunately, Fan Xian's wish was ultimately not fulfilled.
The crowds on the street had quietly dispersed at some point, leaving only an empty street and a few figures standing quietly at both ends of the road.
Cheng Jushu, who was eccentric yet possessed immense strength, stood there chuckling, announcing the official start of the ambush operation.
Seeing that things were not going well, Fan Xian immediately pushed Fan Ruoruo to a corner to hide, and then attacked Cheng Jushu together with Teng Zijing.
……
The Second Prince's Mansion.
Li Chengze held a teacup in his hand, standing quietly by the window, his gaze piercing through the layers of buildings and pointing towards Niulan Street.
Sensing the soaring battle intent over there, a faint smile gradually appeared on his lips, yet this smile also contained a hint of regret.
Currently, he doesn't know what Ye Qingmei's secret is, and he can't let Fan Xian die.
However, it would be a real shame not to take advantage of such a great opportunity.
"Have the messages been delivered to the Censorate and the Marquis of Sinan?" Li Chengze asked slowly and calmly.
Xie Bi'an glanced at the water clock placed in the corner of the room, silently pondered for a moment, and then replied, "If there are no unforeseen circumstances, the people from the Censorate and the Si Nan Marquis's residence should have received the news and are heading towards Niulan Street."
Upon hearing this, Li Chengze nodded slightly and then turned his gaze back towards Niulan Street.
He thought to himself: I wonder if I'll be able to see the Black Riders of the Overwatch Council and the Tiger Guards that Emperor Qing bestowed upon Fan Jian this time, so I can assess the strength of these two forces.
Li Chengze calmly analyzed the current situation and remotely controlled the pace of the ambush.
His telekinetic powers had already reached Niulan Street, where he coldly watched Fan Xian and Teng Zijing struggling against Cheng Jushu's fierce attacks.
The once spirited young man is now covered in blood and dust, looking extremely disheveled.
Fan Xian gritted his teeth and said resolutely, "Teng Zijing, this big guy's target is me. I'll stay here to hold him off. You take Ruoruo and leave quickly!"
Looking at her brother covered in blood, Fan Ruoruo felt a surge of emotion and blurted out, "I won't leave. Even if I die, I want to die with my brother."
Teng Zijing is a loyal and righteous person. Fan Xian had previously helped him reunite his family, so it can be said that he had done Fan Xian a great favor.
Now that his benefactor is in trouble, how can he escape alone?
"Fan Xian, you all run! I'll stay here and hold him off!"
Teng Zijing rushed straight at Cheng Jushu, but unexpectedly, Cheng Jushu easily knocked her to the ground.
Fan Xian's eyes widened in fury. Just as he was about to step forward to help, two more people suddenly appeared behind him and pounced on him without saying a word.
Judging from their skills, their strength was almost at least at the eighth rank.
Now, in order to deal with Fan Xian, the two of them completely disregarded the demeanor of masters and joined forces to attack one person.
Fan Xian has only just reached the eighth rank, and his internal energy has been almost completely depleted by Cheng Jushu. How could he possibly be a match for these two?
Just as Fan Xian was about to die by the swords of the two men, Fan Jian's red-armored knights arrived like divine soldiers, and reinforcements from the Censorate were also about to arrive at the scene.
At the same time, Ye Zhong, the garrison commander of Kyoto, also arrived at Niulan Street with his men.
Li Chengze, who was watching remotely using his telekinesis, took a sip of tea, and then a cold smile appeared on his lips.
The opportunity he'd been waiting for had finally arrived!
……
Seeing that Fan Xian was about to die by the sword, the two assassins were secretly delighted.
However, just as the longsword was about to pierce Fan Xian's chest, a long spear flew out from the street corner with incredible speed, deflecting the masked man's sword.
"Clang!"
The sword blade, which was supposed to pierce Fan Xian's body, grazed his neck, leaving a bloody mark.
The spear, still powerful, plunged into the cracks in the broken bricks with a fierce momentum, its tip almost completely embedded in the ground, demonstrating the force with which it was thrown.
The two assassins were startled by this sudden turn of events and quickly turned to look, only to see the end of the street covered in a fiery red.
A troop of knights clad in fiery red armor, riding their warhorses, galloped in formation.
Their red armor burned like flames, reflecting the sunlight and shimmering with dazzling light.
The thunderous sound of hooves, steady and resolute, pounded on the bluestone slabs, stirring up layers of fine dust and raising a magnificent battle spirit.
The knight at the very front of the group held the reins empty in both hands; it was clearly him who had thrown the spear and saved Fan Xian's life.
"Red-armored Knight!"
When Fan Xian saw the red-armored knights suddenly appear before him, the tension in his heart suddenly eased, and a sense of relief at surviving a disaster welled up within him.
The last time the Red-Armored Knight appeared was when he was brought to Kyoto from Danzhou.
Although this was only the second time he had seen them, and they were not close friends, their reunion at this critical moment gave him a strange sense of peace.
Fan Xian breathed a slight sigh of relief, secretly guessing that the red-armored knight must have been sent by his father to rescue him.
"elder brother!"
Fan Ruoruo's voice was urgent. She had been hiding in a corner, worried that she would become a burden to Fan Xian.
Seeing the red-armored knights arrive in time, knowing that their reinforcements had arrived, he rushed towards Fan Xian without hesitation, trying to help his injured brother to a safe place.
Unexpectedly, just as the two of them staggered to their feet, Teng Zijing, who had already fallen to the ground, was suddenly kicked away by Cheng Jushu.
Teng Zijing, who had been kicked away, crashed into Fan Xian and Fan Ruoruo, who had just stood up, and the three of them fell to the ground again.
Fan Xian felt pain all over his body, but he ignored his injuries and instead focused his attention on Teng Zijing.
"puff--"
With a dull thud, Teng Zijing crashed heavily to the ground, his body rolling uncontrollably twice.
He then suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, which was mixed with small pieces of flesh, a horrifying sight.
"How are you? Can you still hold on?" Fan Xian asked anxiously, his eyes slightly red.
Teng Zijing tried to turn his head to look at Fan Xian, attempting to say something, but before he could open his mouth, he spat out another mouthful of blood.
Fan Xian felt as if his heart was being clenched tightly. He struggled to his feet, his hands trembling as he helped Teng Zijing up, his voice filled with pain and anger: "Teng Zijing!"
At this moment, Fan Ruoruo also ran over, tears welling up in her eyes, her voice trembling: "Brother, what should we do?"
Fan Ruoruo was just a pampered young lady who had always been surrounded by refined and elegant people. Her darkest experience was when she first returned to the capital and was isolated by the young ladies of the capital.
She never imagined that she would witness such a bloody scene.
Seeing her brother and Teng Zijing's miserable state, she felt a deep sense of helplessness.
“Brother…” Fan Ruoruo’s voice choked, and tears finally welled up in her eyes.
Just then, Cheng Jushu grinned, his eyes filled with madness and ruthlessness. Ignoring the red-armored knights rushing towards him from behind, his massive figure charged straight at the three of them.
In the distance, the hoofbeats of the red-armored knights drew closer. The two assassins exchanged a glance, clearly realizing that this might be their last chance.
With a heavy heart, the two, like Cheng Jushu, charged at Fan Xian again, clearly intending to kill him as well.
Fan Xian felt a chill run down his spine. He pushed himself up with his hands and managed to shield Teng Zijing and Fan Ruoruo behind him.
As Cheng Jushu and the two assassins were about to pounce on him, Fan Xian gripped the short knife tightly in his hand. Time seemed to freeze at that moment, and every second felt incredibly long.
Just at this critical moment, a gray figure descended from the sky. His slightly rounded figure did not affect his agility in the slightest.
The man moved like a fish swimming freely in water, swiftly weaving through the gap between the giant tree and the two assassins, calling out as he approached Fan Xian and Fan Ruoruo.
"Master Xiao Fan——"
Fan Xian was slightly surprised when he saw the person who had arrived: "Wang Qinian?"
Wang Qinian looked at Fan Xian with a smile that was almost obsequious, but his hands were quick. He lifted Fan Xian and Fan Ruoruo to the wall with one hand each, his movements were so agile that they were astonishing.
Seeing that their first attack had failed, Cheng Jushu and his two companions roared and charged forward again.
"Oh dear! This...this..."
Wang Qinian quickly scrambled forward with the two men, fleeing swiftly towards the end of the street.
At the same time, a large group of people dressed in black suddenly appeared at the end of the street, looking like a dark cloud looming over from a distance.
Fan Xian was somewhat surprised: "It's from the Overwatch Council..."
However, before he could finish speaking, a deafening explosion came from behind him.
boom--
The enormous explosion, like a thunderclap, resounded over Kyoto, instantly reaching every corner and causing widespread panic and unease.
Deep within the palace, Emperor Qing sat languidly at his table, carefully reading Fan Xian's poem "Ascending the Heights".
He thought to himself: Fan Xian is indeed quite talented; it's no wonder I value him so much.
However, the sudden explosion made his heart skip a beat, and a familiar yet strange feeling welled up in his heart.
Emperor Qing abruptly put down the copy of "Ascending the Heights" he was holding, a hint of solemnity flashing in his eyes.
Is it gunpowder?
Realizing this, Emperor Qing immediately perked up.
Since Ye Qingmei's passing, he has developed a deep interest in gunpowder. He wants to create a weapon even more powerful than the gun Ye Qingmei used, but unfortunately, he has not succeeded yet.
His repeated failures had almost made him realize that this path was no longer viable.
However, the sound of the explosion at that moment stirred up a huge wave in Emperor Qing's heart like a thunderclap.
My heart clenched suddenly, as if struck by a heavy object, and instantly lost its rhythm.
He realized almost immediately that a remarkable person had appeared in Kyoto, and that the person possessed extraordinary weapons.
The power unleashed by this weapon was something he had only ever seen in Ye Qingmei's hands before, and it was something he had always dreamed of.
The thought filled Emperor Qing with an overwhelming sense of excitement.
He couldn't wait to see the weapon in person, understand its structure and principles, and then possess it for himself.
Emperor Qing's eyes gleamed with a burning light. Almost without thinking, he leaped up and appeared at the window in an instant, his figure as swift as a ghost.
However, just as he was about to break out of the window and go to the source of the sound to find out for himself, the guards on duty outside pulled him back to reality.
No! Don't act impulsively!
A strong sense of vigilance welled up in Emperor Qing's heart.
Now is not the time to reveal his Grandmaster strength. Moreover, there was only one explosion outside, and it is uncertain whether there will be more. He cannot take any rash risks.
Emperor Qing's eyes churned with emotion, and finally he shouted loudly towards the outside: "Palace Ceremony..."