Gu Chengyin gave a sound of acknowledgment, slid the dagger back into its hidden compartment, pushed open the carriage door, and stepped out.
The palace gates were brightly lit and heavily guarded.
The towering main gates were tightly shut; only a side door meant for emergency passage was open.
The Golden Royal Guards stood before the door holding halberds, their gazes as sharp as eagles.
Beside the side door, a pale, beardless eunuch was already waiting.
He had been craning his neck in anticipation, but when Gu Chengyin's figure emerged from the carriage's shadow and was fully exposed to the light, the eunuch's eyes instantly widened. His mouth fell slightly open, and the calm expression on his face shattered, replaced by absolute horror.
Gu Chengyin was covered in blood and grime, his clothes in tatters, with multiple tears revealing bloody, mangled wounds beneath.
His face was as pale as paper, his lips cracked and bloodless. His footsteps were unsteady as he walked, his body swaying slightly as if a gust of wind could blow him over.
Looking like this, how did he resemble a triumphant new noble of the imperial court?
He clearly looked like a refugee who had just crawled out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood!
Oh, my heavens!
The eunuch subconsciously cried out and hurriedly trotted forward to meet him. However, he stopped a few steps away from Gu Chengyin, terrified of accidentally hurting this critically injured man.
He steadied his nerves, suppressing the shock in his heart, and forced out a respectful but extremely cautious smile as he bowed.
Your servant Huang Jing, under the orders of Eunuch Lu, is here to welcome the Marquis of Bingjian and guide you into the palace for your audience.
Marquis Gu, you... what happened to you?
Huang Jing's gaze swept over Gu Chengyin, his voice trembling.
Gu Chengyin twitched the corners of his mouth, wanting to form a dismissive smile, but he drew in a sharp breath of cold air as if pulling on his wounds. Then, he spoke in a tone laced with weakness and helplessness:
Can't Eunuch Huang tell? I was assassinated.
Sigh, I didn't want this either. Looking like this is truly an eyesore and a breach of decorum.
But the oral decree was to enter the palace immediately to see His Majesty, without delay.
His Majesty's will is heaven itself. Delaying even for a moment would be defying the decree.
I could only force myself to come as I am.
These words explained his current appearance, pointing out that he was ordered to enter the palace immediately.
He shifted the blame away from himself and took the opportunity to play the victim.
Huang Jing had indeed harbored some thoughts of reminding Gu Chengyin to clean up and change his clothes first.
At the very least, he shouldn't go see His Majesty covered in blood; that would be too disrespectful.
But upon hearing Gu Chengyin bring up words like enter immediately and defying the decree, he instantly swallowed the words that had just reached his lips. A layer of fine sweat even broke out on his forehead.
That was right! Grand Secretary Yuan had personally delivered the oral decree, and it explicitly said immediately! Who would dare ask Marquis Gu to delay?
If His Majesty was kept waiting because he went to change clothes and clean up, that crime would be far more severe than lacking decorum before the emperor!
Marquis Gu is right! You are right! It was your servant who was inconsiderate!
Huang Jing hastily bowed to apologize, his attitude even more respectful and cautious. Marquis Gu, please follow your servant.
He stepped aside to clear the path, made an inviting gesture, and then walked half a step ahead, quickly lowering his voice:
Her Highness has already arrived, but His Majesty has not summoned her yet. The imperial physicians are waiting in the side hall.
This single sentence contained a massive amount of information.
Not only did it reveal Luo Zhao's location and status, but it also disclosed that imperial physicians had been summoned.
This meant that the Luo Emperor intended to see Gu Chengyin first before summoning Luo Zhao for an audience.
Gu Chengyin understood clearly in his heart and replied in an equally low voice, Thank you for the heads-up, Eunuch Huang. I will remember this favor.
Huang Jing quickly waved his hands, acting with a bit of caution and flattery, Marquis Gu is too serious. Your servant is acting under Eunuch Lu's orders. If Marquis Gu wants to remember a favor, remember Eunuch Lu's.
Gu Chengyin revealed a sincere smile on his face and said earnestly:
Whether it is Eunuch Lu or Eunuch Huang, I will remember both.
Hearing this, a trace of irrepressible joy appeared on Huang Jing's face. He bent his waist even lower and repeatedly said:
I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare.
The intention having been conveyed, Gu Chengyin said no more. This was where the importance of having connections inside the palace became apparent.
Sometimes, knowing or not knowing a single sentence could lead to vastly different outcomes.
After walking in silence for a while, Gu Chengyin suddenly asked:
Eunuch Huang, when did Grand Secretary Yuan enter the palace?
Huang Jing did not stop his steps, but he was clearly rapidly weighing the significance of this information.
A moment later, he replied in the same hushed tone:
To answer the Marquis, Grand Secretary Yuan entered the palace when you were heading to the Shangguan Estate.
Gu Chengyin's eyes narrowed slightly. This meant...
He had just set out, and the Luo Emperor already knew what he was going to do.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have so accurately chosen Yuan Zhengqing to deliver the message.
Gu Chengyin asked again, And what about Grand Secretary Xiao?
As if knowing what Gu Chengyin was worried about, a knowing smile flashed in Huang Jing's eyes.
This time he didn't hesitate and immediately replied:
Rest assured, Marquis Gu, Grand Secretary Xiao has not entered the palace.
Gu Chengyin nodded and asked no more, silently following Huang Jing through the palace corridors.
At this moment, his mind began to calculate rapidly.
The current situation was: the Crown Princess's Palace wanted to flip the table on Xiao Song and the entire Xiao clan.
But Xiao Song neither wanted the Xiao clan's table to be flipped, nor did he want to be taken down himself.
Meanwhile, the Luo Emperor and Cui Shifan only allowed the Crown Princess's Palace to take down Xiao Song the individual, but forbade them from flipping the Xiao clan's table.
The three parties each had their own schemes and interests, weaving together to form this complex and dangerous situation.
Causing this scene with Shangguan Yuan was meant to guide the death of Xiao Bichang toward taking the fall for Xiao Song, and then drag the entire Xiao clan down with them.
Ultimately, Luo Zhao would present the chain of evidence compiled by the Crown Princess's Palace, and coupled with catching them red-handed, deliver the final killing blow.
Only, it was suddenly interrupted by the Luo Emperor stepping in. However, this also indicated...
The Luo Emperor had already sensed the intentions of the Crown Princess's Palace, and even guessed that it was his scheme.
Summoning him to the palace immediately seemed like a show of concern on the surface, but was it actually a warning? Was it a redrawing of boundaries?
A cold light flickered in Gu Chengyin's eyes. From the looks of it now, the Luo Emperor was an unfathomable man.
To temper Luo Zhao, he hadn't hesitated to personally lay out a plan and throw her into the desperate situation in Luoshui Commandery, surrounded by hundreds of thousands of rebels.
However, one could tell he had held back and hadn't forced her into absolute death.
But after returning to the Divine Capital, layer upon layer of oppression and trials continued endlessly.
And although Luo Zhao was beautiful, had an outstanding temperament, held an exalted status, had large breasts and long legs, and possessed fair skin and gorgeous looks...
Her only true praiseworthy virtue was her forbearance.
He could see this, and the Luo Emperor could see it just as well.
Yet even so, he still went to such great lengths to cultivate her.
There was only one reason.
Luo Zhao was the legitimate heir.
The only Crown Princess destined to inherit the empire of Great Luo.
Under Great Luo's system of imperial power, the word legitimacy was greater than everything else.
After all, that so-called Second Prince was nothing but...
Wait.
A flash of inspiration suddenly struck Gu Chengyin's mind.
He abruptly grasped a certain key point that had always been overlooked.
He seemed to know why the Luo Emperor had summoned him.
lan, the Luo family, tracked him down - along with the babies in their arms. Mo Xuan stared pensively at the paternity test results from over a dozen top institutions, both domestic and international, showing a 99.99% match between himself and the two baby girls. At 23, Mo Xuan, a doctoral student, had become the father of two three-year-old children. The kicker? The mothers weren't even the same person! He gradually realized he was being lured step by step into an elaborate trap designed by these two yandere sisters. "Be good, little Xuan. Sister's life belongs to you entirely." "Brother, if you try to run away, I'll have no choice but to tie you up." Mo Xuan: "Do whatever you want, ladies. I give up."
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
y came from. The chests contained supplies, currency, class-change scrolls, skills, talents… and even godhood! The laws of the world were completely rewritten. This became a world where everyone gambled with their fate! Some people, despite having nothing, opened a divine artifact and rose to the top, eventually ruling the world. Others went bankrupt, opened nothing but worthless junk, and leaped from skyscrapers in despair. Lin Ye arrived in this world from another reality, utterly bewildered. “What is going on? Why is everyone a gambling addict?!” “Opening chests? No way. I refuse to gamble. I’ll start with myself!” Until— On his first chest, he obtained a Mythic Talent: Void Incarnation! He could become completely intangible, pass through all things, and reduce everything to nothingness! … On his fiftieth chest, he obtained a Mythic Weapon: Blade of Karma! With a single slash, karma shattered, twisting the universe and overturning the myriad phenomena of creation! … On his ninety-ninth chest, he obtained a Mythic Divine Treasure: Primordial Purple Energy! It could split open the heavens and earth, create all things, and evolve countless worlds with a single thought! Lin Ye: “Now that I think about it… shouldn’t someone have told me that every chest is guaranteed to contain something Mythic?!”
