CHAPTER 35: CHAPTER 14: DANCING PRINCESS (14)

The Emperor pondered for a moment and said, "If someone disguises themselves during the court assembly, I’m afraid those courtiers will notice something’s wrong. In such a large Imperial Palace, assassins have actually infiltrated. How did these assassins enter the city? How do they know about the secret passage? Perhaps they even have ears within the court. Once something seems off, those assassins might not be fooled."

The Emperor suddenly called out, "Xiao Lin, Yun Tian, come in."

Xiao Lin and the Guard Commander entered.

"Pass on the order, inform those courtiers that there will be no court assembly today. Ministers of rank three and above should proceed to the Imperial Study Room to discuss important matters."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"Yun Tian, how were those assassins’ martial arts skills last night? If you were to go one-on-one, could you take them down?"

"Your Majesty, I can."

"Good, in a while, you wear Xiao Lin’s clothes and stay by my side. When someone rushes out, you directly capture them, no matter who it is."

Li Shuning was somewhat speechless. This Guard Commander was tall and large, how could he disguise as Xiao Lin?

"Your Majesty, this is not appropriate. Xiao Lin previously faced those assassins, and Xiao Lin is relatively slim and small. This Lord Commander might be recognized as soon as he goes out."

The Emperor also felt a bit embarrassed.

Li Shuning thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, isn’t there Eunuch Wang by the Empress Dowager’s side whose build is somewhat similar to the Lord Commander’s? With a bit of disguise and keeping his head down, no one should be able to recognize him."

The Emperor’s eyes lit up, "Imperial Sister, how to disguise?"

Li Shuning quickly asked a Palace Maid to prepare rouge and powder. After the Guard Commander changed clothes and donned a hat, Li Shuning applied powder and makeup on the Guard Commander. Throughout the process, the Guard Commander kept his body rigid, feeling quite embarrassed.

Once dressed up, the Guard Commander lowered his head, holding a duster, and indeed resembled Eunuch Wang in some ways. Generally, people would not be able to recognize him as the Guard Commander.

When the Emperor left with his people, the Empress Dowager instructed, "Emperor, be extremely careful."

"Rest assured, Mother. I have practiced martial arts since childhood. Knowing there is danger, I will not be negligent. Please rest assured."

Li Shuning was sent back to Sining Hall, accompanied by the Empress Dowager.

They waited together for news from the Emperor.

But this wait lasted over an hour, until dawn approached.

There were guards protecting the Emperor; guards surrounded the outside of Sining Hall as well, with the Deputy Guard Commander staying close to the Empress Dowager, always on alert.

A Palace Maid brought breakfast, but neither the Empress Dowager nor Li Shuning had an appetite. It was at this moment that Xiao Lin stumbled in.

"Empress Dowager... Princess... Princess, the assassin has been captured."

Seeing Xiao Lin running out of breath, Li Shuning’s personal Palace Maid immediately offered a cup of tea, which Xiao Lin drank in one go.

The Empress Dowager didn’t find it inappropriate. "Xiao Lin, quickly speak, what happened? Is the Emperor alright?"

"Empress Dowager, His Majesty is fine. At that time, the servant and Lord Commander were serving by His Majesty’s side. After those ministers entered the Imperial Study Room and began discussions, a Palace Maid brought tea. The assassin had actually disguised as the tea-serving Palace Maid. If it weren’t for the Lord Commander’s constant vigilance, the assassin might have succeeded. When the assassin found something amiss, he attempted to retreat but was captured by the Lord Commander."

Li Shuning sighed in relief. Now that the secret passage had been discovered, the Imperial Palace should be safe.

After handling the assassin affair, the Emperor sent people to investigate the large stone, indeed discovering a secret passage.

Yun Tian led people into that secret passage and reached outside the city.

No one knew when this secret passage had appeared, not even the Empress Dowager was sure.

However, the Emperor immediately ordered the passage be filled with earth and sealed, no matter what. The Imperial City being accessed as if no one was guarding was unsettling. If not for Li Shuning, he and the Empress Dowager might have been successfully assassinated that night.

Thinking of this, the Emperor was extremely hateful.

King Qin on his side was also terribly nervous upon receiving the news. If the Emperor had been assassinated, there would be no need to fight.

In the Commander’s Tent outside the city, Prince Duan smashed a cup: "A bunch of fools, still unsuccessful. Now, I fear there won’t be another such chance."

"Big Brother, calm down. At least those in the Imperial Palace didn’t notice anything amiss, which is quite fortunate, or they wouldn’t have reached the inner palace."

"Younger brother, how can I not be angry? If successful, we could have captured the Capital City and seized the throne effortlessly. Now, it’s likely there will be a tough battle."

"Big Brother, there’s no way around it. Jing Yi got lucky. But Lord Luo and they aren’t clear how Jing Yi and they avoided the assassination attempts. It seems some unknown situation has occurred on the palace’s side. We don’t have much time left, better to attack the city soon. Otherwise, when General Kong and General Lu arrive, capturing the Capital City will be even harder."

"Someone, pass the order to prepare for the siege."

Two days have passed since the assassination incident, and the situation hasn’t been good.

After Prince Duan and Prince Rui ordered the siege, Prince Duan personally led the attack with high morale. Plus, everyone knew that if they didn’t capture the Capital City, they had no retreat. The longer they dragged on, the worse it would be for them. Prince Duan even promised significant rewards, leading many soldiers to fight desperately.

The city quickly had many wounded soldiers.

The Emperor has been quite anxious these days, even requesting to leave the palace to personally go to the city wall and command.

The Empress Dowager stopped the Emperor, saying it was too dangerous.

King Qin also disagreed with the Emperor doing so. A precious life shouldn’t be jeopardized in the hall of danger. The Emperor and Prince Duan were different; on the battlefield, swords have no eyes, and if something happened to the Emperor, it would be over.

On Prince Duan’s side, it’s different. Prince Duan is at the front, while Prince Rui controls the rear. Even if something happens to Prince Duan, Prince Rui can still manage major affairs, and Prince Duan hasn’t charged upfront directly, so it is relatively safe.

The city’s wounded soldiers are increasing, and the Imperial Physicians have all been dispatched. Even the city’s doctors are all involved in the rescue efforts. However, in this era, some wounds are fatal.

Li Shuning had long taken the chance when no one was around to enter the hovercar and soak in the nutrient liquid, with her hand already healed.

In these two days, she has been watching the war situation via the hovercar, naturally knowing that the south of the city has become a wounded soldier camp.

The Emperor’s anxiety, Li Shuning was aware of. There were many wounded in the city and the same outside. Prince Duan’s side had worse conditions, as they only had a few military doctors. At least the city had Imperial Physicians and many civilian doctors.

Li Shuning remembered the many medications she had bought in her world, knowing the medical level of this world was relatively low. Perhaps the most ordinary medicine from her world could save lives here.

Li Shuning went to find the Emperor, expressing her desire to help in the wounded soldier camp.