Chapter 458: Sending Him on His Final Journey
Sang Luo tore open the envelope and, after seeing the letter's contents, a hint of surprise flashed across her face.
Fei Yuan also leaned over for a glance, then smiled knowingly,
“See? Opportunity has arrived.”
… …
The Crown Prince had not yet reached his coming-of-age ceremony, so the beauties of the Eastern Palace did not need to attend to his bed.
In recent days, Yunhua would sometimes come to Sang Luo's room at night to sleep together, simply covering themselves with a blanket for a night's rest, with a long rectangular pillow separating them like a 38th parallel.
However, in the past few days, Crown Prince Yunhua was clearly busy with other matters, perhaps preparing for his coming-of-age ceremony two months later. Sang Luo hadn't seen him much, which made it easier for her to enter and leave the palace.
The night after receiving the secret letter, Sang Luo found an opportunity to leave the palace and arrived at the woods outside the city, where a group of men in black had been waiting for a long time.
Leading them was a tall and sturdy middle-aged man, the lower half of his face covered with a triangular black cloth, revealing only a pair of sharp, eagle-like eyes.
The man smiled triumphantly when he saw Sang Luo, “I knew you would come!”
“Where are they?” Sang Luo asked him, her voice devoid of emotion.
To others, it sounded like a cold and angry question.
The burly man waved his hand, and two tall, thin men dragged three people and threw them on the ground.
Two old, one young, all bound with ropes and their mouths crudely stuffed with cloths.
The three began to cry as soon as they saw Sang Luo, shouting excitedly.
Someone pulled the cloth out of the old woman's mouth.
The old woman cried with tears streaming down her face, “Pengpeng, save your parents and your brother! We don't want to die! Whatever these people want! Just give it to them!”
Yaoqin's real name was Kuang Pengpeng.
Sang Luo hadn't changed her appearance, but used illusion magic. In the eyes of outsiders, she still had Yaoqin the dancer's face.
She also confirmed the identities of the three kidnapped people. The crying old woman was Kuang Pengpeng's biological mother, and the other two men, one old and one young, were her stepfather and younger brother respectively.
Kuang Pengpeng came from a poor family and, for the sake of her family's livelihood, she relied on her relatively good looks and her perseverance to endure hardship and learn, embarking on the fast-money path of a courtesan dancer by chance. She not only supported her family's food and drink, but also saved enough money for her brother to embark on an official career.
She worked herself to death, enduring humiliation, only hoping that her brother would bring glory to their ancestors and pass the imperial examinations, so she could be free.
But she didn't know that the children from poor families in this prosperous imperial city had long been blinded by the colorful world, indulging in eating, drinking, whoring, and gambling, incurring a mountain of debt, which dragged her deeper and deeper into the mire.
Of course, this was not something Sang Luo should worry about. In Yaoqin's heart, her family was the most important thing, which was why these people dared to use these three to threaten her.
“What do you say? As long as you agree to work for us, I will release your parents and your brother. After it's done, your brother's debts will be written off, and our master will give you a large sum of money, enough to leave the capital and never worry about food and drink for the rest of your lives!” The burly man at the head stated his conditions.
Sang Luo's eyes instantly turned red, and she said with suppressed emotion, “Don't touch my family. As long as my family is safe, I'm willing to do anything!”
Seeing her crying appearance, the group felt even more relieved.
The burly man stepped forward and handed her a packet of powder.
“Who told you to be the Crown Prince's favorite concubine? The one he trusts the most in the harem is you. But you also have to thank our master for giving you this opportunity. You wouldn't earn this much money even if you sold yourself in a brothel for a lifetime!”
As he spoke, the burly man's lewd gaze swept over Sang Luo's face, marveling, “I have to say, the Crown Prince has good taste. No wonder she's the top dancer of Zuihuan Tower, such a face! Such a figure! It's a pity that we have a mission, otherwise this lord would definitely find you for a good night of fun…”
“To play with the Crown Prince's woman, just thinking about it is exciting!”
The surrounding men burst into laughter, and more malicious and evil gazes fell on her.
A hint of coldness flashed in Sang Luo's eyes.
The burly man was about to reach out and touch her waist and buttocks, but in the next second, a scream rang out, and the man collapsed to the ground, his arm bent at an unnatural angle.
“* * This bitch dares to attack!”
“Tie her up! Teach this * * a good lesson! She needs to learn who to listen to!”
The crowd was about to rush up, but then their eyes lost focus, and they froze like puppets on strings.
Sang Luo said, “Go tell your master that I agree to his deal.”
“… … Yes.”
The thugs seemed to have lost their souls and obediently left.
Kuang's father, Kuang's mother, and her brother, who had witnessed this scene, revealed expressions of incomparable shock. In the next second, they also fainted to the ground. Sang Luo used her mental power to modify their memories of that night.
After dealing with the matters there, Sang Luo returned to the palace, where Fei Yuan had been waiting for her in the room.
“How did it go?”
“The emperor has thirteen children, and the most outstanding ones are Crown Prince Yunhua and the Third Prince. The Third Prince has formed factions and pursued his own interests in the court, and his power is extremely strong, while Crown Prince Yunhua has been practicing diligently in the temple before adulthood. Apart from the power of his mother's family and some old court officials, he doesn't have much support, not to mention that Crown Prince Yunhua's biological mother, Empress Xiaozhuang, has passed away for many years, and the Third Prince's mother, Consort Rou, controls the power of the harem.”
“The emperor's health is deteriorating day by day. Although Yunhua is still called the Crown Prince, the Third Prince is the one everyone hopes for.” Sang Luo took out the packet of powder and continued, “If the Third Prince wants to ascend to that position, he must first eliminate Crown Prince Yunhua, so he set a trap and wants me to jump into it.”
Fei Yuan also looked at the packet of powder. Having been a Phoenix Emperor for so many years, he was no stranger to these underhanded tactics. “He wants to use your hand to poison Crown Prince Yunhua?”
“Yes, everyone knows that I am now Crown Prince Yunhua's most favored beauty, and I have the opportunity to act. The Third Prince didn't really expect me to accomplish a major task, but just added a layer of insurance to his plan.” Sang Luo sighed, “But I don't want to be the one to do it.”
Fei Yuan stared at her deeply, “Luo'er, you know very well that if you want Yan to come back, Crown Prince Yunhua must die.”
“… … I know.”
Although Crown Prince Yunhua was the reincarnation of Yan's soul fragment, she couldn't completely regard the two as the same person. To end the life of another young man for Yan's sake, she felt somewhat sorry.
“Just as you said, even without you, there will be others. You are just replacing another murderer.” Fei Yuan said, “Rather than letting him die at the hands of others, you might as well personally send him on his final journey.”
Sang Luo sighed deeply with regret.
In this life, Crown Prince Yunhua still couldn't escape the fate of dying before the age of twenty.
“These past few hundred years, every reincarnation ends badly…”
Fei Yuan smiled meaningfully, “These old fellows are all quite ruthless to themselves.”
Sang Luo understood the implication of his words and was somewhat surprised, “Besides Yan, are there others?”
Fei Yuan nodded, “The more these [Beings] who have lived for tens of thousands of years, the more they fear the arrival of life and death tribulations. Some seek higher breakthroughs, some want to resolve the tribulations of death, or for other unavoidable reasons, these [Beings] will choose to enter the world…”
So sleepy, can't write anymore, let's continue tomorrow.
Still owe two chapters.
