At this moment, at the foot of the imperial city, the execution platform had been set up. It was said that a rebel from a foreign court would be beheaded there at high noon today.
This was Helian Qi's plan. He intended to use this to lure Ye, the second prince of the Southern Neighboring Country, out and exchange him for Dongfang Yi.
Although Ye had just seemed nonchalant, his body was quite honest as he rushed to the scene. He hid among the crowd below the platform, looking up at it.
On the platform, Shun, with a disheveled appearance, was forced to kneel on the ground by two soldiers, completely losing his usual noble bearing.
Helian Qi was sitting at the highest position, his eyes fixed on Shun without a blink. Ru Yi was standing beside him.
"Your Majesty, we still haven't received any news so far," Ru Yi whispered into his ear.
Helian Qi's eyebrows furrowed almost imperceptibly, and his eyes shifted to the crowd of commoners below.
His speculation should be correct. Even if Ye didn't have any brotherly affection for his elder brother, the current emperor of the Southern Neighboring Country, their father, would definitely not allow him to ignore the future heir to the throne of the Southern Neighboring Country.
So today, he would surely be unable to contain himself.
Below the platform, Ye, in disguise, was also staring intently at the man on the platform. Seeing his embarrassed state, an indescribable feeling welled up in his heart.
How stupid, he cursed silently in his heart, but there was a hint of worry in his eyes.
Since childhood, that man had taken on the role of protecting him. From the day his mother concubine passed away, he had become the loneliest person in the entire harem.
Their father never looked at any of the princes directly, except for the crown prince, Shun, the eldest prince, born of his beloved queen.
Ye had been left all alone since then. Later, he was adopted by the queen and became Shun's brother in the same palace. He had always seen Shun's clumsiness.
They grew up together, and gradually the two had become the most important brothers in each other's hearts.
In the struggle among brothers for power, Shun had the strength while Ye had the strategy. Almost everyone thought that he would be the most capable assistant to the future emperor.
But his ambition was far from that. How could he be willing to live under someone else's roof and be that man's subordinate for a lifetime!
Thinking of this, his eyebrows furrowed even tighter, and his gaze towards the man in the distance became more complicated.
Just as he was deep in thought, a strong man suddenly rushed into the crowd. He took two steps and rushed to Ye's side. Lowering his head, he whispered into Ye's ear in a voice that only the two of them could hear, "The woman has escaped!"
Hearing this, Ye's eyes widened suddenly, and his heart rate accelerated.
What? She escaped? How could this be possible? Clearly, the whole house had been sealed tightly, there were guards outside the door, and the secret passage was so dark and hard to escape from. How did that woman manage to do it?
Thinking of this, his eyes narrowed dangerously. "Where's A Yu?!"
A Yu he mentioned was the strong guard who was guarding Dongfang Yi.
"He... was knocked unconscious!" the man replied.
"Idiot!" Ye growled in a somewhat out - of - control voice.
How stupid that man must be to be knocked unconscious by a weak woman. But then he thought that the woman would never just sit there waiting to be dealt with.
After thinking for a while, he said to the man in front of him, "Send more people and quickly chase her back!"
If the woman ran back by herself at this moment, he would have no bargaining chips in his hand. Not only would he not be able to save Shun, but he himself would also have to think carefully about how to escape from the Dongsheng Country. So the most important thing now was to chase that woman back.
Thinking of this, he took a deep look at the man forced to kneel on the platform, then turned around and ran outside.
On the other side, Helian Qi, who was sitting at the highest position, had been staring at the crowd below without a blink. Now he saw the two suspicious people, especially the man wearing a bamboo hat. But they seemed to have encountered some urgent matter and left.
He immediately waved his hand, signaling Ru Yi beside him to follow them and find out what was going on. Now he couldn't miss any clue.
Ru Yi received the order and quickly followed the two people.
As Ye was walking, he suddenly stopped in his tracks. His head tilted slightly to one side. He had already realized that someone was following him.
"What's wrong, Your Highness?" the man beside him asked.
"Someone's following. You go first," he ordered.
Then he turned around, his eyes narrowing dangerously. He then said sharply, "Stop hiding and show yourself!"
Ru Yi stepped out from a nearby corner. His ability to hide his aura was rarely detectable by others, but the man in front of him had discovered his presence so quickly.
"Who are you?!" he asked sharply.
Ye snorted coldly and said mockingly to the man in front of him, "Who am I? I should be asking you this question! What are you following me for?!"
His clumsy Dongsheng language told Ru Yi at once that he must be from the Southern Neighboring Country. There was a hint of excitement in his heart. It seemed that the emperor's guess was correct.
"Bring out the empress and I'll spare your life!" Ru Yi said.
He drew out the sword from his waist and made a gesture to fight.
The man opposite him reached up and tore off his bamboo hat. Then he chuckled a few times and said, "It depends on your ability."
Then the two of them got entangled with each other.
Ru Yi was the leader of the imperial bodyguards in the palace. He had grown up with the emperor as his sparring partner since childhood, so his martial arts skills were naturally not to be underestimated.
Ye still disdained him. This was why he dared to take off his bamboo hat instantly, because the only fate for those who saw his face at this time was death.
But the fact proved that he had clearly underestimated the man in front of him. The two of them were in a fierce fight for a while.
Since Donghua had reminded him that this man was proficient in using hidden weapons, with half of his power and the addition of hidden weapons, he needed to be even more careful.
Because of the prior warning, Ru Yi managed to narrowly escape the hidden weapons Ye had released many times, which made Ye a bit irritable.
"Where is the empress being held?!" Ru Yi shouted again. He waved his dagger and cut the clothes on the man's shoulder opposite him.
Ye's eyes turned cold instantly. It had been a long time since anyone could fight him to such an extent. Then he no longer needed to hold back.
After thinking about it, he jumped back a few steps to keep some distance from Ru Yi. Then he waved his hand, and an arrow with a faint blue light appeared between his fingers. It was obvious that the arrowhead had been poisoned...