lcionline Chapter 192 Curiosity killed the cat
Chapter 192 Curiosity killed the cat
Seeing them rushing towards her, Zheng Luoqi quickly drew her sword to defend herself. The men in black who came this time were clearly all experts.
Zheng Luoqi dared not be careless, fending off the attacks of the men in black while looking for an opportunity to escape.
During the fight, Zheng Luoqi seized an opportunity and chopped off the arm of one of the men in black with her sword.
The man in black screamed, and Zheng Luoqi seized the opportunity to escape.
Seeing Zheng Luoqi trying to escape, the men quickly gave chase, shouting, "He's running away! Chase him! Don't let him leave alive!"
Zheng Luoqi rode his horse at full speed, quickly leaving the man in black behind. But Zheng Luoqi did not slow down; instead, he ran faster and faster, gradually heading deeper into the jungle.
The men in black followed closely behind, only to find that Zheng Luoqi was running further and further away, gradually disappearing from their sight.
They were puzzled, wondering why Zheng Luoqi would choose to escape into the depths of the jungle. Gradually, they began to realize that something was wrong.
It wasn't until they followed Zheng Luoqi's escape route and saw her stop in the distance that someone finally realized, "Oh no, there's an ambush."
Just then, the men in black tried to turn around and run back, but it was too late.
Suddenly, countless arrows shot out from the surrounding woods, raining down on them.
The men in black hurriedly brandished their swords to defend themselves, but many of them were still hit by arrows and fell to the ground.
At this moment, Zheng Luoqi's lips curled into a triumphant smile.
After a round of archery ended, many guards rushed out of the woods and fought with the men in black who had tried to assassinate Zheng Luoqi.
"what......"
“噗呲......”
"laugh......"
"Bang bang bang..."
Amidst the clash of swords and splatter of blood, the men in black were quickly subdued due to their numerical superiority.
"Sir, should we spare one of them?" a guard asked as he stepped forward.
"No need, just kill them all," Zheng Luoqi said coldly.
He already knew who sent these people, so there was no need to leave them alive.
Soon, the men in black were all killed, their corpses lying scattered all over the ground.
At this moment, Boyu came up and reported, "Sir, everything has been taken care of. As you predicted, they will make their move at this moment."
“Yes, we’ve leaked quite a bit of information during this period. I estimate that Ye Churan will have other plans. We just need the right opportunity to send him on his way.” Zheng Luoqi said, a hint of murderous intent flashing in her eyes.
“Your Excellency is wise. What should we do next?” Boyu asked.
"Let's go back to the hunting grounds and see what's going on," Zheng Luoqi said, then rode her horse back to the hunting grounds without glancing at the corpse on the ground again.
Along the way, Zheng Luoqi secretly plotted her next move.
When Lin Zifeng and Ye Churan saw Zheng Luoqi return unharmed, they were initially taken aback, but quickly regained their composure. Zheng Luoqi keenly noticed the fleeting look of surprise on their faces.
Meanwhile, Xue Huaiyu, seeing Zheng Luoqi return safely, couldn't help but turn his gaze to Ye Churan. Xue Huaiyu's eyes revealed an undisguised doubt, as if he was quite surprised by Zheng Luoqi's return.
Zheng Luoqi took in everyone's reactions, especially the subtle eye contact between Lin Zifeng, Ye Churan, and Xue Huaiyu. He sneered inwardly, a hint of murderous intent flashing in his eyes.
Just then, the eunuch announced the results of the hunting competition in a loud voice: "Congratulations to Lord Zheng Luoqi for winning first place!" As the eunuch's voice fell, everyone's eyes were focused on Zheng Luoqi.
Everyone was not surprised by the result, but they were still amazed by Zheng Luoqi's strength, because the number of prey hunted by Zheng Luoqi was significantly greater than that of the other contestants.
However, faced with this outcome, Xue Huaiyu couldn't laugh. He had originally thought that even if he couldn't kill Zheng Luoqi, he could at least seriously injure him.
Unexpectedly, Zheng Luoqi returned unharmed, and Xue Huaiyu had said at the beginning that whoever won would be able to marry Tuoba Yanran.
Now that Zheng Luoqi has won first place, Xue Huaiyu's joy vanished instantly. For Xue Huaiyu, it doesn't matter who marries Tuoba Yanran, except for Zheng Luoqi.
However, as the ruler of a country, Xue Huaiyu's word was law. Once he had spoken, there was no possibility of him going back on his word, for a ruler's word is law.
Left with no other choice, Xue Huaiyu had to issue an imperial decree to bestow a marriage upon Zheng Luoqi and Tuoba Yanran.
The news that Tuoba Yanran and Zheng Luoqi were getting married immediately shocked the entire capital, and many people came to congratulate the Prime Minister.
...........
That day, Zheng Luoqi invited Tuoba Yanran out for a stroll as usual, but this time it was done openly and honestly.
The two sat facing each other on the boat, leisurely sipping tea. Tuoba Yanran spoke first: "Lord Zheng, when do you plan to make your move?"
"No rush, we've missed one step. I think your maid is quite nice, may I borrow her for a while?" Zheng Luoqi said with a slight smile.
not long after
After Zheng Luoqi and Tuoba Yanran were betrothed, rumors circulated that Zheng Luoqi had an affair with one of Tuoba Yanran's maids.
Some people saw that the maid snuggling in Zheng Luoqi's arms and often arrogantly ordering the servants of the Prime Minister's mansion to do things for her.
Upon receiving this news, Ye Churan instinctively felt that something was amiss. She then sent people to investigate the maid, and discovered that the maid was merely a smokescreen used by Zheng Luoqi and Tuoba Yanran.
As expected, Ye Churan discovered that the maid was executed not long afterward, and her body was secretly sent out of the city.
Ye Churan had a gut feeling that the maid was not dead, but had only faked her death. They must be sending something outside the city. Could it be that they have other strongholds outside the city, or that those strongholds can exchange messages with other Northern Rong people?
However, this could also be a conspiracy set up by Zheng Luoqi, so Ye Churan chose to continue to observe.
Not long after, another maid was rumored to be having an affair with Zheng Luoqi. Then, that maid was sentenced to death, and her body was secretly sent out of the city. One thing after another happened, and Ye Churan's curiosity was piqued to its peak.
With many questions lingering in her mind, Ye Churan still decided to send someone to investigate. As a result, she actually discovered that there was a secluded courtyard in the suburbs some distance from the capital, but it was heavily guarded.
At this moment, Ye Churan became even more curious about what was inside.
Finally, Ye Churan sent people to keep an eye on that courtyard for several days and discovered that Zheng Luoqi was secretly making private iron transactions with the Beirong people under the guise of transporting corpses.