"Stay here and behave yourself. I'm going to save him," Yan Yu instructed Lu Li Luo with a solemn expression.
"Sister Yan Yu, you're not joking, are you? As far as I know, you don't know martial arts either."
Upon hearing Yan Yu's words, Lu Li Luo's large, round eyes widened in disbelief as she looked at Yan Yu.
"I don't know martial arts, but my archery is not bad. Let's give it a try."
With that, Yan Yu rolled to another hidden corner, casually grabbed five arrows, and shot them in rapid succession, hitting five black-clothed figures with perfect accuracy. Then, she quickly relocated, grabbed another five arrows, and hit another five black-clothed figures with precision. She then quickly moved her position again, and Yan Yu took a deep, shaky breath.
However, Yan Yu's surprise attack immediately drew the attention of the masked figures in the hall. The group immediately became more vigilant.
"Whoever is shooting sneak arrows from the shadows, show yourself!" the leader of the masked men roared in anger.
His shout silenced the hall.
From a corner nearby, Lu Li Luo, witnessing Yan Yu's superb archery skills, was already stunned speechless. Her breathing became erratic, and she almost cried out in shock.
The leader of the masked men scanned the entire hall, then opened his palm and gathered a surge of internal energy, directing it towards every corner of the room. Yan Yu and Lu Li Luo's hearts leaped into their throats, and their bodies trembled uncontrollably.
Soon, the sharp-eyed leader of the masked men spotted a corner of Lu Li Luo's clothing peeking out, revealing her hiding place.
As the dangerous aura drew closer to Lu Li Luo, she also sensed something was wrong and quickly retracted the exposed corner of her clothing.
But her action was too late. The leader of the masked men slowly walked towards the corner where Lu Li Luo was hiding.
Meanwhile, Yan Yu, in her corner, suddenly panicked. Forcing herself to stay calm, she drew two arrows and shot them at the black-clothed leader.
The leader of the black-clothed men was startled by Yan Yu's surprise attack. After reacting, a group of them immediately shouted, "Boss, be careful!"
But their warning was too late. One of the two arrows shot by Yan Yu pierced the neck of the masked leader, and the other hit him in the back. The leader of the masked men died on the spot.
At the same time, Prince An could no longer hold on and collapsed to the ground, severely wounded.
Having exposed their hiding places, Yan Yu and Lu Li Luo could only grab their weapons and resist the remaining masked attackers.
Yan Yu, skilled only in archery, shot five arrows at the black-clothed men in rapid succession. Lu Li Luo, having only learned a few rudimentary moves from her grandfather, picked up a random knife from the ground and wildly slashed and hacked at the masked men. Since she couldn't defeat the bad guys, she could only dodge while fighting.
Meanwhile, Prince Ji, who was fleeing towards the capital, had been riding his horse for a short while after leaving the inn when his eyelids began to twitch incessantly, and an inexplicable pain emanated from his chest. He had already guessed that this was a sign that his fifth brother was in trouble.
At that moment, tears streamed down his face again. "No, I can't abandon my fifth brother!"
Thus, Prince Ji turned his horse back towards the inn.
When he re-entered the inn, his eyes immediately fell upon his fifth brother, lying in a pool of blood. In the hall, two women were desperately fighting against the black-clothed men, and all the guards they had brought with them had already sacrificed themselves.
Seeing this scene, Prince Ji became enraged. His bloodshot eyes turned a ghastly scarlet, and he swiftly drew his sword, gritting his teeth, and madly charged at the few remaining masked men in the hall.
It took him the time it takes to drink a cup of tea to eliminate all the masked attackers.
Immediately, Prince Ji rushed to Prince An's side, took out two Jade Dew Pills from his sleeve, and administered them to Prince An, silently praying that these pills would sustain Prince An's life.
These two Jade Dew Pills were given to them secretly by their mother, Consort Ping, before they set out. However, Prince An had refused one and instead given the pill Consort Ping had given him to Prince Ji. After much persuasion, Prince Ji reluctantly put both pills in his possession.
"My two ladies, I beg of you, please help me find a carriage to take my fifth brother back to the capital for medical treatment," Prince Ji pleaded in a low voice.
"Alright, Li Luo, do you know how to drive a carriage?" Yan Yu asked anxiously.
As soon as she spoke, Lu Li Luo quickly nodded.
"Then hurry and bring our inn's carriage here. I'll help the young lord carry him out," Yan Yu quickly instructed.
Lu Li Luo glanced at Prince An on the ground and then ran to the stables to fetch the carriage.
A moment later, Prince An drove the carriage, while Yan Yu and Lu Li Luo escorted Prince An, heading straight for the capital.
...
Cold King's Residence, Han Che Courtyard.
Jun Mo Han had just finished some affectionate moments with his consort in bed when urgent knocking came from outside the room.
"Your Highness, Consort, Eunuch Li has personally come to invite you to the palace," Ye Ying anxiously pounded on the door of the Cold King and his consort's room.
"What has happened?" Jun Mo Han's purple eyes flickered as he asked.
"Prince An was ambushed on his way back to the capital and was severely wounded. His life is in danger. The Emperor and Empress Dowager have both ordered the Consort to enter the palace to treat him," Ye Ying said with a heavy tone.
"Alright, go out and tell Eunuch Li that we'll be out shortly," Jun Mo Han replied with a look of grave concern.
"Your subordinate obeys!" Ye Ying responded and then left Han Che Courtyard.
"Li'er, Fifth Brother is seriously injured. Let's get up quickly and go to the palace to check on Fifth Brother," Jun Mo Han urged.
"Okay, I'll put on my outer robe and go."
Leng Ruo Li knew the seriousness of the matter. Without any hesitation, she put on her clothes and rushed to the imperial palace with Jun Mo Han.
...
Inside the imperial palace, in Consort Ping's Yi Ran Hall, a group of imperial physicians were bustling about. The maids in the hall were carrying basins of bloody water in and out.
At this moment, the Emperor, the Empress Dowager, the Empress, Consort Ping, and the consorts and princes from various palaces and courtyards were all waiting anxiously in Yi Ran Hall.
"Imperial Physician Zhang, how is my imperial son now?" Consort Ping asked, weeping.
"Alas, Your Majesty, Your Highness the Empress Dowager, Your Highness the Empress, Consort Ping, Prince An has lost too much blood. This subordinate is truly powerless," Physician Zhang shook his head helplessly and said, "I can only sustain his life with ginseng slices. We will wait for the Cold King's Consort to enter the palace to examine Prince An."
"Nanny Gong, hurry and go to the door to see if Li'er's maid has arrived."
The Empress Dowager said with great anxiety. Prince An was her most beloved grandson besides the Cold King. Like that brat of the Cold King, he had suffered a lot when he was young.
Now that she, an old woman, saw him in trouble, her heart ached.