0p0 Chapter 347 News from the Court: Undercurrents Surge
Chapter 347 News from the Court: Undercurrents Surge
Just as Daya and the others were about to chase after them, they were stopped by the Empress, who had just arrived from the pavilion.
"Stop chasing!"
Everyone stopped and turned to look at the Empress, calling out in unison, "Empress!"
Upon seeing the Empress appear, the surviving maids in the square all knelt down and bowed, their voices rising and falling in unison: "Your subordinates pay their respects to the Empress!"
The Empress's gaze swept over the eight spiritual stars and Da Ya and the others, and she said in a deep voice, "Listen to my command!"
The eight spirit stars and all the maids responded in unison, "Your subordinates obey!"
"From this day forward, none of you shall participate in any affairs of the Ling Kingdom's court." The Empress's voice was calm, yet carried an undeniable authority.
Upon hearing this, the eight spirit stars and their maids were all stunned and momentarily forgot to respond.
The Empress frowned slightly and gave a soft "hmm": "Aren't you going to obey the decree?"
Everyone then came to their senses and hurriedly kowtowed, saying, "Your subordinates obey the order!"
Seeing that they had received the decree, the Empress said, "Go back now and do your jobs well."
"Yes, sir!"
Everyone stood up in response and withdrew in an orderly fashion.
Only the Empress, Da Ya, and a few others remained in the square. The Empress gazed in the direction Liu Lingzhen had left.
She slowly said, "My brother has already lost the chance to get what he wants. I'm afraid the Ling Kingdom will not be at peace from now on."
"And I... I am no longer the king of the Spirit Kingdom, you should all leave now."
Xiaoman couldn't help but ask, "May I ask, Your Majesty, is it true that Liu Lingzhen...?"
The Empress raised her hand to stop him, shook her head and said, "Whether it is or not, whether you can or cannot, it is no longer important at this moment."
Some things, even if you don't fight for them, the other party will force you to take action.
It's simply a matter of being earlier or later; it's not something one person can control.
As soon as she finished speaking, she clutched her chest and a mouthful of blood gushed out, staining the front of her clothes red.
Qin Lingxing and Hua Lingxing rushed forward to support her.
The two looked worried and anxious.
Upon seeing this, Daya quickly took out a small porcelain bottle from her waist and poured out a smooth, lustrous pill.
This is her last Qi Treasure Pill.
She hesitated for a moment while looking at the pill, but in the end she still fed it to the empress and made her eat it.
Since escaping from Sujia Village years ago.
The elixirs they carried had long been exhausted during their more than six years of wandering.
The remaining pills included Marrow Cleansing Pills, Ice-Breaking Pills, and similar elixirs.
These items are all for assisting in cultivation or tempering the meridians; they are not very useful for healing injuries.
It could be said that they had completely run out of any medicine they had to treat their injuries.
Song Jiuxian stepped forward and looked at the pale-faced empress.
He said, "If the Spirit King doesn't mind, how about this old beggar helps you heal your wounds?"
The empress weakly raised her eyes to look at him.
"Are you the former leader of the Beggars' Sect in the Qin Kingdom?"
Song Jiuxian laughed and waved his hand: "That's all from more than 20 years ago, let's not talk about it."
"The King's injuries are serious; let this old beggar help you heal first."
The Empress said softly, "Thank you!"
Song Jiuxian immediately helped the Empress sit down cross-legged and used his inner strength to heal her injuries.
The Eight Great Spirit Stars and Daya and others surrounded them, remaining vigilant and protecting the two.
Song Jiuxian then realized that Liu Lingzhen's sword had deeply wounded the Empress.
If it weren't for the Empress's profound inner strength, she would probably have lost her life long ago.
He was secretly alarmed: if this sword had shifted even a fraction to the left, the Empress's life would have truly been lost in that pavilion.
It took the Empress a full eight hours to heal her wounds.
Song Jiuxian had finished his practice two hours earlier and was meditating alone to regulate his breathing and replenish his internal energy.
As dawn broke, the Empress's aura gradually stabilized, and her complexion finally regained some color.
The Empress slowly finished her practice, and when she opened her eyes, some of her former clarity had returned.
Everyone rushed forward, and Da Ya stepped forward and placed her fingertips on her wrist pulse.
After a moment, he frowned slightly, hesitating to speak: "Empress, you..."
The Empress raised her hand to interrupt her, her voice still weak, but with an undeniable composure.
"Rest assured, I am unharmed."
She stood up and said to everyone, "Let's go back first and talk about it later."
The group followed the Empress to the hall of the Illusionary Spirit Garden.
Just as they were about to sit down, a maid rushed in.
Despite her severe injuries, the Empress remained calm and composed, asking indifferently, "What's the matter that you're in such a panic?"
The maid knelt on one knee and presented a yellowed scroll of paper with both hands.
"Your Majesty, Emperor Liu Xinhao of the Sichao Kingdom... passed away in the palace a little over a month ago!"
"what?"
Shanzi and Daya exclaimed in unison, their faces filled with disbelief.
They had accompanied King Ling to the Si Dynasty to attend an auction and had met Liu Xinhao a few times.
Although they weren't particularly close, they both knew that he was in excellent health.
Moreover, they were the ones who ultimately won the bid for that thousand-year-old Tianshan snow lotus at the auction back then.
According to reports, Medicine King Valley has refined that Tianshan Snow Lotus into a medicinal pill.
How could he have suddenly passed away?
Only the Empress's pupils contracted sharply upon hearing this.
There was also a hint of barely perceptible excitement in her tone.
"What did you say?"
The maid was intimidated by her imposing manner, and her voice trembled slightly: "Reporting to Your Majesty, Emperor Liu Xinhao of the Si Dynasty passed away in the palace more than a month ago."
Now his eldest son, Liu Yao, is in charge, and... and..."
"And what? Speak quickly!" The Empress's voice suddenly turned stern.
"Yes!" the maidservant hurriedly replied, "The letter states that Princess Qiulan of the Sichao Kingdom poisoned Liu Xinhao to death!"
The Empress's voice was as cold as ice: "Bring it here!"
Qin Lingxing took the scroll of paper from the maid and handed it to the Empress.
The empress unfolded the scroll and scanned the writing on it.
As she read further down the scroll, her expression darkened, her fingers gripping the paper roll turned white from the force, and her knuckles trembled slightly.
After reading the last word, she looked up at the maid below and asked, "Where did you get this information?"
The maid bowed her head and replied, "Your Majesty, a young girl stopped me and asked me to give you this note."
"Little girl?"
The Empress frowned slightly, frantically searching her memory for relevant information, but to no avail.
It seems she has never met any young girls.
Why would she send her such a message?
The Empress demanded, "Why didn't you bring her here?"
"Your Majesty, that young girl's martial arts skills are extremely high,"
The maid's voice lowered even further: "After she handed the note to me, before I could even react, she had vanished without a trace."
The Empress was silent for a moment, then waved her hand: "You may leave now."
The maid felt as if she had been granted a pardon and quickly got up and left.
After the maid left, Daya could no longer contain herself.