“Greetings, Your Majesty.”
The Emperor seemed furious. He raised a foot and kicked Lianyān straight out. The kick was delivered with full force, making Lianyān feel an unbearable tightness in her chest, and she fainted.
Seeing the Emperor like this, Ximen Xinyue cried out in fear, “Lianyān, Lianyān.”
As she prepared to rush out, Shangguan Hao gave her no such opportunity. With a sweep of his hand, he lifted her and brought her into the sleeping quarters. After bypassing the screen, he threw her onto the ground with a bang. His face was ashen as he turned and sat on the couch, his voice cold as he spoke.
“Do you intend to speak yourself, or shall I have someone else do it?”
Ximen Xinyue had a general idea of what Shangguan Hao had discovered. Her pupils were a dull grey, and her lips were tinged with white. However, facing such a ferocious man, she lacked the courage to admit it and only wished to timidly evade him.
“What are you saying, Your Majesty? Concubine does not understand?”
“Don’t understand? It seems you won’t shed tears until you see the coffin.”
“Your Majesty?”
Ximen Xinyue grunted, resolutely refusing to speak. She didn’t know how the news had leaked. She had dealt with those two old women, so how could Shangguan Hao find out?
Or perhaps what he thought was different from what she thought, and if she spoke rashly, she would be digging her own grave. Thus, she put on a look of grievance, as if she had no idea what Shangguan Hao meant.
Seeing her unrepentant demeanor, Shangguan Hao’s expression darkened further. He called out to the outside, “Bring the person in.”
“Yes.” A eunuch immediately entered, with two young eunuchs holding up an elderly woman. Upon seeing Ximen Xinyue, the woman cried out.
“Your Highness, how can you be so heartless? What did we servants do wrong? You wanted to sink us to the bottom of the lake?”
As soon as Ximen Xinyue saw the old woman, she was unable to speak. Her body swayed, and she collapsed weakly to the side. Fine beads of cold sweat trickled from her hair, her face ashen. Her mind raced, wondering how she could save herself and escape this ordeal.
“Your Majesty, spare this concubine’s life. This concubine knows she was wrong. Your Majesty, spare me.”
“And that person?”
Shangguan Hao gritted his teeth. As long as that person was alive, his dream could not come true. For as long as he lived, Shangguan Hao would not be at peace.
This throne was not his to begin with; he was merely impersonating. If that man returned to the palace, his position would likely be gone forever.
The thought that all of this could be ruined by Ximen Xinyue made his teeth grind together.
“He’s gone. Concubine doesn’t know who abducted him.”
“Abducted?”
Shangguan Hao suddenly laughed, his face flickering. He stood up abruptly and walked towards her. His eyes were a bloodthirsty crimson, and he was on the verge of madness.
Seeing him like this, Ximen Xinyue knew that he was filled with murderous intent and that even the child in her womb could not save her. She kowtowed repeatedly.
“Your Majesty, please spare me. That person is already foolish and knows nothing. Your Majesty, spare me!”
As Ximen Xinyue pleaded, the old woman who had been watching her suddenly raised her head. Upon seeing Shangguan Hao approaching, she was startled and, pointing at Shangguan Hao, stammered, “That person looks like Your Majesty!”
Before her words could even finish, Shangguan Hao’s large hand shot out. With a crisp snap, her neck broke. The old woman’s head and body separated, connected only by a thin layer of skin. Her eyes were wide open, unblinking in death, fixed on Ximen Xinyue.
Witnessing such a bloody and ruthless act, Ximen Xinyue was already stunned and screamed.
“Your Majesty, I am carrying your child! Your Majesty, please spare me.”
“There are plenty of women to bear children for me. One more or one less makes no difference.”
Shangguan Hao spoke coldly. As he finished, his hand reached out. Although Ximen Xinyue possessed martial arts skills, she knew that her abilities were mere child’s play compared to the man before her. If he made a move, she would surely die.
Ximen Xinyue’s face turned pale. She shifted to the side, speaking pitifully.
“Your Majesty, if that person leaves, he might return. Don’t you need the Ximen family’s influence? More people mean more power. If something happens to me, my father might not help you, and might even help that person instead!”
Her words had a slight effect. Shangguan Hao’s hand stopped two inches from her neck. His hand clenched tightly, veins bulging, and his chilling voice rang out.
“Everything that happened today was caused by you. If anything happens to me, I will make sure your Ximen family pays with their lives.”
With that, Shangguan Hao flicked his hand, delivering a resounding slap. Ximen Xinyue was struck heavily on the face, her cheek swelling, her head ringing. Her ears buzzed, and her body weakly slumped to the side.
The constant fear and anxiety of the past few days, coupled with her pregnancy, had already left her body extremely weak. Now, being brutally beaten by this man, she felt increasingly distressed and regretful, tears streaming down her face.
But there was no medicine for regret in this world, and she could only take things one step at a time.
“Speak. What exactly happened that day?”
As Shangguan Hao spoke, the young eunuch dragged the dead old woman out of the sleeping quarters. It was best to know as little as possible about these palace secrets, to avoid losing one’s life.
Blood trickled from the corner of Ximen Xinyue’s lips, her mouth filled with a腥 red taste. She struggled to straighten her back and kneel properly, slowly looking at Shangguan Hao. She dared not deceive him further and spoke word by word.
“That day, you killed that person and ordered several young eunuchs from Jianyáng Palace to sink his body into the artificial lake. Afterwards, you killed those young eunuchs. Who knew that person was so resilient and still had a breath left.
It happened that Ajiu passed by and discovered something amiss. He killed those young eunuchs and prepared to take the person away. At that time, I wanted to see if he was truly dead, so I followed. I witnessed what Ajiu did, and thus I snatched that person away.
Ajiu, fearing you would find out, had no choice but to let go and hand the person over to me.”
After speaking, Ximen Xinyue didn’t dare to raise her head. Even so, she could feel Shangguan Hao’s overwhelming killing intent.
“You did this?”
Shangguan Hao slammed his fist onto the high table beside him, causing a loud crash. He spoke with chilling ruthlessness, “Then why did he disappear so inexplicably? Didn’t you have dedicated people watching him?”
“Yes, I had people watching him and had even restrained his hands and feet. Because his mind was broken, he would often go into a frenzy, so I was afraid. I restrained his hands and feet when he began to lose consciousness, but he disappeared. Someone must have rescued him?
The thought of someone having rescued him made Shangguan Hao’s expression exceptionally grim. Could it be the Empress who rescued him?
That woman had been very quiet since entering the palace this time, not at all like the woman who divorced the Emperor previously. It was rumored that she couldn’t even stand it when Emperor Xian took a concubine, yet now he had taken many concubines into the palace, and she remained indifferent.
Could it be that she had seen through his flaws long ago and knew he was a fake?
The thought of this made Shangguan Hao restless. He had finally obtained the throne and absolutely would not allow anyone to disrupt it, so that woman had to die.
If it wasn’t for her having abducted the true Emperor, who else could have taken him away without anyone noticing?