CHAPTER 272: CHAPTER 270 I’LL GO ASK LU YING

Shen Zhaozhao and Luo Xibai...

Lu Ying gazed toward Zhaoyue Tower.

He knew Luo Xibai treated Shen Zhaozhao exceedingly well, but Luo Xibai’s crimes were numerous, every single one deserving of death.

As the Crown Prince, he could indulge her in other matters, but in this one, there was no room for negotiation.

Two days passed.

Shen Yinning held a small wolf pup, feeding it the last piece of dried meat.

She had hoped Lu Shiyan could muster troops to protect her and Luo Xibai, but there had been no movement from outside. It was clear now that Lu Shiyan had failed.

Placing the little puppy in a bamboo basket, she couldn’t fathom how Lu Shiyan, commanding an army of 200,000, could lose to Lu Ying, who had barely a hundred Imperial Guards escorting the bridal procession in Jiangnan—a battle he should have won with his eyes closed. How had he managed to fail?

"Little sister."

Luo Xibai, clad in armor and wielding weapons, appeared in the bedroom.

His face was grim. "The provisions in Zhaoyue Tower are running out. I plan to make a desperate attempt. If I can manage to get you out, it wouldn’t have been in vain for us to call each other siblings."

Shen Yinning rose to her feet.

The soft hem of her pomegranate-red silk skirt trailed across the floor as she walked up to Luo Xibai, reaching out to adjust his armor, just as she had once done long ago for Shen Xingye when he was about to head into battle.

The man’s large, sturdy frame, accentuated by the armor, made her appear especially delicate and petite.

She tilted her head up, her brows furrowing lightly. "I’ll go plead with Lu Ying."

Luo Xibai shook his head.

Though he harbored affection for Shen Yinning, knowing his own rough and unattractive appearance, he had only ever dared to address her as a sibling and had never laid a hand on her. Today, as he stood before her, gazing at the faint sorrow clouding her brow, he hesitantly extended his thick, strong fingers, gently touching the smooth, fair space between her brows.

Slowly, very slowly, he smoothed out the crease between her brows.

He curled his lips into a sincere smile and said, "Little sister’s beauty is unparalleled; you should smile more often. You look the best when you smile."

You look the best when you smile...

Shen Yinning was momentarily dazed.

In her memories, her elder brother had also said the same thing to her once.

Reality blurred with the past as she suddenly threw herself into Luo Xibai’s arms. "Elder brother... I don’t want you to die..."

She had no family left.

After returning from Gan State, Luo Xibai was the only one who had felt like family. She knew that no matter what she did, he would support her. He would give everything for her unconditionally, indulging all her whims and tantrums.

She was a despicable woman.

She had lost her own brother. She couldn’t stand Luo Wanxiang flaunting Luo Xibai before her, so she stole her brother, made him her elder brother instead, and stubbornly immersed herself in the charade of siblinghood. Greedy and malicious, she treated him as a substitute for her real brother, vainly trying to return to the days when she was loved, cherished, and spoiled by family.

"Elder brother..."

Shen Yinning’s voice seemed to call for Shen Xingye just as much as it called for Luo Xibai.

Luo Xibai, emboldened, cautiously stroked her back and lowered his head to take in the fragrance of her hair.

"I failed to protect you, failed to storm the Capital to avenge you. It’s my incompetence," he said, taking a deep breath. "I’ve found a maid’s dress. Change into it now. When the fighting breaks out, sneak out, pretend to be a maid from Liang Garden, and go as far as you can. If you can escape Liang Garden, even better."

By now, Lu Ying had also run out of patience.

The Imperial Guards began storming Zhaoyue Tower. The clashing of weapons filled the entire building with the sounds of battle.

Luo Xibai, once the leader of bandits, with unmatched strength to take on hundreds, picked up incoming Imperial Guards and flung them aside effortlessly.

"Go! Don’t look back!"

Bloodied, he roared furiously, his voice cracking teacups from the sheer volume.

He seized the spears thrust at him from all directions. A dozen of them snapped like twigs in his hands.

Clutching the puppy, Shen Yinning obediently slipped out through the rear door of Zhaoyue Tower.

Behind it was a delicate little garden, a place where spring flowers bloomed in vibrant abundance. She pushed through the flowers and crawled along the bamboo fence.

She remembered a dog hole here, where the puppy Luo Xibai had given her used to escape to play.

Her only option now was to flee Lin’an and find a way back to the Capital.

In Jiangnan, she had adopted the alias "Lv Zhu." Even if Lu Ying wanted to hold her accountable, as long as she staunchly denied it and with the Empress Dowager backing her, it was unlikely he could do much to her.

With these thoughts in mind, she climbed through the dog hole and ran forward.

After running for a long while, she couldn’t help but glance back.

The battle raged on inside Zhaoyue Tower.

Luo Xibai was being forced back step by step, nearing the top floor.

His silver armor was smeared with blood, but his fighting spirit only grew fiercer. With a savage grin, he slayed several Imperial Guards with his blade. Yet, he was gravely injured, his face slashed multiple times, feathered arrows embedded in his right shoulder and thigh.

Luo Xibai...

Shen Yinning whispered his name soundlessly.

Since her family’s downfall, no one had ever treated her as well as Luo Xibai had, disregarding everything else.

When she urged him to imprison the Crown Prince, he did so.

When she incited him to rebel, he dared to rise in rebellion.

Knowing full well that she mostly used him, he never once resented her.

She knew he deserved to die, but in these past two months, she had undeniably owed him. She couldn’t just abandon him and walk away.

Shen Yinning suddenly turned back and resolutely set off to find Lu Ying.

In recent days, Lu Ying had been residing in an annex not far from Zhaoyue Tower.

As Shen Yinning approached, a breeze rose over Liang Garden. A soft spring rain drizzled on glazed tiles, creating a clear, melodious sound.

The black-and-white soul-bound guards stationed at the entrance didn’t stop her as she approached.

She stormed into the annex.

Inside, the furnishings were entirely made of golden sandalwood. Ornate vases adorned with carved flowers stood by windows that were wide open, revealing lush banana leaves swaying gently outside. Raindrops collected on the leaves, rolling off in beads before dripping softly to the floor.

In the dim light, two glass lamps burned on the desk where Lu Ying reclined in a round-backed chair, his gaze cast downward as he flipped through account books.

For reasons unknown, his lips curled in disdain, and his eyes were filled with a coldness that seemed ready to pour out.

Shen Yinning dropped to her knees.

Looking up at Lu Ying, she said, "I know Luo Xibai is unforgivable, but I beg the Crown Prince to spare his life. Exile him, or send him to the army—let him atone for his sins with the rest of his life."

Lu Ying seemed to have expected her arrival.

He turned a page in the account book and said, "In our youth, our teacher taught us to ’abhor evil as one abhors an enemy.’ And now, for your selfish desires, you wish to plead for a criminal who has committed countless atrocities? Just for colluding with officials to raid merchant caravans, Luo Xibai deserves to die."

"He has wronged the nation but not me."

Shen Yinning’s eyes welled with tears. Because she had rushed here through the rain, a few strands of damp hair clung to her pale cheeks, giving her a fragile, delicate appearance, like a shattered pear blossom on a branch.

She stared at Lu Ying and said, "I know he deserves to die. If I were an official, I too would sentence him to death. But I am not. ’A father conceals for his son, a son for his father—within lies righteousness.’ He shielded me, preventing me from being relegated to Lu Shiyan’s concubine. He allowed me to live with dignity these past two months. To cast aside all affection and watch him die—I can’t get past this hurdle in my heart."

She crawled on her knees to Lu Ying’s feet, clutching the hem of his robe. "You are the Crown Prince. You’ve spared countless corrupt Jiangnan officials. How can you not spare just this one man? Turning his death sentence into exile or conscription should be such a simple thing for you!"