Pei Qianhao interjected. “This Prince hopes that Your Majesty will not be impulsive for a dead woman. Tan Ge is already here, so you can do whatever you want with her.” He paused before continuing shortly after. “Your Majesty, you may have your reasons, but I believe you were already acquainted with Shi Mo back when you were still in the imperial palace of Beimin.”
“Prince Hao, you spared no effort in pursuing me when I left Beimin’s imperial palace, going as far as to order your men to kill on sight. I had to struggle and crawl my way to Dongling. How was I a threat to you at the time? Why did you have to send so many men after me?” Chu Xian asked, his voice devoid of emotion.
Du Ling wasn’t sure of what had transpired, but was able to surmise that Chu Xian had been biding his time in Beimin’s imperial palace before becoming Dongling’s Emperor.
“This Prince has my reasons, but I’m not going to do anything to you right now since you’re already Dongling’s emperor. However, if you harm Princess Consort Hao in any way, I’ll be sure to take my revenge. Soldiers from the Western Region alone might not be enough to destroy Dongling, but what if I send men from Beimin as well?” Pei Qianhao’s words carried a thinly-veiled threat.
Du Ling turned to look at him, understanding why his sister had chosen to marry someone like this. Women from the Western Region preferred men who were decisive in their decisions.
Everything fell silent as the three of them looked at one another.
Chu Xian was the one who eventually broke the silence. “My Empress had always liked to hang out with Princess Consort Hao, so she’s just keeping her company for a while. I won’t do anything to Princess Consort Hao, so you don’t have to worry.”
Tan Ge was the one he wanted to exact revenge on, and he could not be bothered about anyone or anything else. He did not care even if Shi Mo wanted to make a move on Pei Qianhao and start building up his power base in Dongling. It would benefit Dongling if Beimin were to fall into chaos.
A guard outside the hall knocked and sounded urgent as he spoke. “Your Majesty, the Empress’ repose palace is on fire!”
Chu Xian’s expression fell upon hearing the words ‘on fire’. He dashed out of the hall and leapt onto a horse carriage, speeding off in a frenzy.
Chao Mu, please don’t go. It’s fine even if you can’t talk or smile, I’ll do it all. Just let me keep your body company. We’ll be buried together when I die.
Pei Qianhao and Du Ling exited the hall and followed after Chu Xian on their horses. Pei Qianhao was worried this time. If Chao Mu is dead, Shu Xian would have to use certain methods to prevent her body from rotting. However, the place where she’s being kept is now on fire. Will Xi-er be okay?
At the thought, he cracked his whip on his horse and made it go faster.
Du Ling was an expert at horse-riding, but Pei Qianhao had already passed him. He could tell that Pei Qianhao was extremely anxious and worried about Su Xi-er, and thus, Du Ling also sped up.
I’ve only managed to meet her once. Nothing can happen to her.
When the three men arrived at the scene, the entire hall was already engulfed in flames. The maidservants and the eunuchs were pouring buckets of water as quickly as they could, but the dry weather had done nothing to alleviate the speed of the fire.
Chu Xian was mumbling Chao Mu’s name, and his eyes were red as he started towards the burning building.
The imperial army commander held him back. “Your Majesty, you can’t go in!”
“This Emperor will cut off your head!” Chu Xian then tried to dash into the flames again.
The imperial army commander held him back again, but Chu Xian refused to stay put.
At this moment, Pei Qianhao rushed in, with Du Ling following closely behind.
For the palace to be engulfed in flames so quickly… Could it have been planned, or was it merely an accident? Despite Tan Ge having sneaked out, she also received news of the burning palace through word of mouth.
