124. The Magnitude of the War King's Power

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Chapter 124

Yet Hua Tao was still somewhat frightened. Le Qianxue was already betrothed, and now a scandal like this had spread involving her and Prince of War Zhan Lianjing. The Emperor must have been furious. He might even punish Le Qianxue.

But there was nothing Hua Tao could do, no matter how anxious she became. Le Qianxue herself did not seem particularly concerned.

“Miss, aren’t you afraid the Emperor will punish you?” Hua Tao asked.

“What is there to fear?” Le Qianxue replied. “What has happened has happened. All we can do is wait and see what happens. We’ll discuss it once we know what is going on in the palace.”

Hua Tao nodded. It seemed that this truly was the only thing they could do.

The day before, Le Qianxue had forcefully broken through her sealed acupoints. Although Zhan Lianjing’s internal energy had protected her, she still needed to absorb and harmonize it.

She intended to meditate, so she sent Hua Tao outside to avoid being disturbed.

During this period, although Le Qianxue had not spent much time practicing martial arts, this body was surprisingly gifted. Her internal energy had progressed rapidly.

Still, she practiced only for self-preservation. Her true profession was that of a physician.

After an hour, she finally assimilated the internal energy, and her breathing settled back into its normal rhythm.

The moment she opened her eyes, someone kicked the door open and barged inside.

Who could be so audacious as to cause trouble on her own territory?

“Le Qianxue, come out here!” It was Yu Guhan. Hearing the fury in his voice, Le Qianxue immediately understood what had happened.

Hua Tao was still calling out, “Crown Prince, Miss is resting. Please don’t behave like this!”

Yu Guhan was consumed by anger and could not hear anyone’s words.

He strode forward, searching for Le Qianxue.

Only then did Le Qianxue rise and walk over. She lifted the curtain and saw Yu Guhan’s face livid with rage, the veins bulging on his forehead.

She frowned slightly. “Crown Prince, you barged into my room. What do you want?”

Yu Guhan looked at her and realized that Le Qianxue had become more and more radiant. He had never noticed before how beautiful she was.

But he had no time to admire her now. He glared at her and said, “Do you not know what you have done? And yet you still put on that pitiful expression, as though you can clear yourself of all responsibility and make me spare you?”

Le Qianxue was stunned. When had she ever acted pitiful? That was merely his own imagination.

She gave a faint hum. “I truly have no idea. Please enlighten me, Crown Prince.”

“You…” Yu Guhan was so angry that he could barely speak. “Yesterday, you spent the night with Prince of War Zhan at the Thousand Gold Tower. This morning, you even left wearing the formal robes of a princess consort. What exactly does that mean? Do not forget that you are the future Crown Princess. You are challenging imperial authority. If Father becomes displeased, he could have you executed.”

Le Qianxue remained calm. Although Zhan Lianjing had used her, she still found it irritating that Yu Guhan had come to demand an explanation.

She let out a soft laugh. “Then why did the Crown Prince come to see me? Why not simply tell the Emperor to execute me? That would spare you the trouble.”

Yu Guhan clenched his fists. His fury was plain to see. She actually had the nerve to make such sarcastic remarks.

Did she truly believe that because Zhan Lianjing protected her, she could do whatever she pleased?

He pointed at her. “You think it will be so easy to live happily ever after with Prince of War? I insist on marrying you. Just wait until you become the Crown Princess.”

Le Qianxue’s expression darkened. “Do you love me, then?”

Yu Guhan froze, unable to answer for a moment.

Le Qianxue narrowed her eyes and said coldly, “There is the answer. You do not love me. Yet even after my reputation has been ruined, you still insist on marrying me. What exactly are your intentions, Crown Prince?”

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Yu Guhan said, “I… I love you.”

He hesitated for so long before saying it that Le Qianxue burst out laughing. She did not believe him in the slightest.

She had captured Yuan Feng, and Old Yuan and the others had all lost their lives. It was already generous of Yu Guhan not to hate her. How could he possibly love her?

Le Qianxue said, “The Crown Prince lies without even blinking. You want to marry me because of my identity, don’t you? Why not simply admit it? At least then we could have an honest discussion.”

Yu Guhan was taken aback. “You know?”

So she had known all along that he harbored ulterior motives, and her guess had been correct.

Now that Yu Guhan had come to confront her, she held the advantage. She could lead him wherever she pleased.

Le Qianxue appeared relaxed, as though she had everything under control.

She cast him a sidelong glance. “The Crown Prince has people from the Yuan family at his side. Now you are trying to bring the Yan family under your control as well. You want to obtain the empire and secure your rule. In that case, you will probably have to follow the example of the previous dynasty. After all, that dynasty stood for hundreds of years, and its magnificent realm was maintained through the support of the Four Great Clans. Am I right, Crown Prince?”

Yu Guhan stared at her, never imagining that she truly knew.

He had tested Le Qianxue before. At the time, she had been dull-witted and foolish, and he had wanted to obtain what he needed from her.

Later, he had been surprised to discover that she had recovered. He had tested her again and found that she still seemed to know nothing.

But now it was clear that Le Qianxue had merely been pretending to be ignorant. She had even deceived him.

Yu Guhan’s expression turned cold. “Le Qianxue, since you know all this, you should understand even more clearly that you cannot escape my grasp.”

Le Qianxue smiled brightly. “Crown Prince, you certainly leave yourself no room to retreat.”

She sat down, and Hua Tao served her tea, sensing that the atmosphere had become extremely strange.

Le Qianxue took a sip. Seeing that Yu Guhan had still not calmed down, she continued, “The Crown Prince should return. Whether our marriage will take place is still unknown until the very last day.”

Yu Guhan fixed his eyes on her. The two of them had already cast aside all pretense, and he no longer bothered to conceal his intentions.

“Just wait, Le Qianxue,” he said. “Whatever I want, I will obtain.”

With that, Yu Guhan turned and walked away.

He intended to keep Le Qianxue by his side. He did not care whether she was still a maiden. If she ended up assisting Zhan Lianjing, however, it would become troublesome.

After Yu Guhan left, Le Qianxue’s expression also darkened.

This brief exchange had confirmed that her suspicions were correct.

The matter that Tong Xianxian had never even told Le Yongcheng was already known to the old Emperor, Yu Guhan, and the others.

Tong Xianxian had also been the one to give her the name Qianxue. Now she finally understood the significance of that middle character.

Her emotions suddenly became complicated. Because of her identity, some people wanted her dead, while others wanted to possess her.

And what about Zhan Lianjing? What were his intentions?

Seeing Le Qianxue lost in thought, Hua Tao asked, “Miss, are you all right?”

Le Qianxue came back to herself and shook her head. “I’m fine.”

Hua Tao nodded. Recalling how furious Yu Guhan had been, she could only silently pray for divine protection and hope that nothing would happen to Le Qianxue.

Yu Guhan stormed into the palace. Le Qianxue had clearly done this without giving him the slightest consideration.

Le Qianxue was a descendant of the Four Great Clans. No matter how one looked at it, she could not be allowed to fall into Zhan Lianjing’s hands.

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Even killing Le Qianxue would not be acceptable.

Yu Guhan had entered the palace to discuss the matter with the old Emperor. But when he reached the Imperial Study, Eunuch Chen stopped him.

“Crown Prince, please wait. His Majesty is discussing state affairs with Prince of War.”

When Yu Guhan heard that Zhan Lianjing was inside, his anger flared instantly. That detestable Zhan Lianjing was actually in there. This time, Yu Guhan had no intention of letting him off.

Just then, the Emperor’s furious voice came from within.

“Outrageous! You actually want me to annul the betrothal!”

Yu Guhan frowned. Only now did he realize what they were discussing.

His heart tightened. What did Zhan Lianjing mean by this? Was he actually trying to steal his woman?

It seemed that Zhan Lianjing also knew Le Qianxue’s true identity.

How laughable. Le Qianxue, look at this. Men were fighting over you, but none of them did so for love. They wanted you only because of your identity.

Yu Guhan listened carefully, but he could no longer make out what Zhan Lianjing was saying.

Eunuch Chen, however, was deeply alarmed. He muttered, “This is troublesome. Very troublesome…”

Who could have imagined that because of a single Le Qianxue, Zhan Lianjing would negotiate with the Emperor and provoke him into such fury?

Zhan Lianjing might even be punished.

But after waiting for a while, Yu Guhan grew impatient.

Just then, he saw a eunuch from the Crown Prince’s residence approaching.

The eunuch was one of his personal attendants, though he usually remained at the residence to handle all its affairs, great and small.

“Your Highness.” The eunuch led Yu Guhan to one side.

Impatiently, Yu Guhan asked, “What is it? Why have you come to the palace? I am very busy today.”

The eunuch’s voice trembled. He managed to say only, “The… the hideout has been discovered. Someone sent a letter.”

Yu Guhan was startled. He hissed, “What? Who?”

The eunuch handed him the letter. Yu Guhan hurriedly opened it and glanced at its contents. His pupils contracted, and his hands began to tremble.

He immediately turned toward the Imperial Study, where he could still see Zhan Lianjing’s distant silhouette.

Yu Guhan was horrified, and his panic had yet to subside. Zhan Lianjing was inside. If he exposed Yu Guhan now, his position as Crown Prince would be lost.

The eunuch asked, “Your Highness, what shall we do? Should we send people there?”

Yu Guhan raised a hand, signaling him to be silent.

After thinking it over from every angle, he said, “Do nothing for now. That man is not easy to deal with. If we make a large move, Father will certainly learn about the hideout.”

The eunuch nodded and did not dare say anything more.

Yu Guhan gritted his teeth. He had never expected Zhan Lianjing to act so decisively. It seemed Le Qianxue possessed enough value to make Zhan Lianjing go this far.

But he had always underestimated Zhan Lianjing. He had thought him merely a cripple, and that even with military power, he would pose no real threat.

He had never imagined that Zhan Lianjing possessed so much information.

…

Tianjin

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