Chapter 10

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Chapter 10: Title

Gu Hengbo was somewhat surprised. Was Lian Chen a bit odd? Was he really that excited about toasting his own uncle?

"Are you okay?"

Lian Chen waved his hand, eyes beaming with mirth. "I’m fine. I just haven’t seen my uncle in a long time. I’m a bit excited."

"Do you really like your uncle?" she asked, unsure how to categorize his feelings.

Lian Chen shot her a sidelong glance. "What nonsense! He’s my uncle. I simply admire him a bit."

“Is there any difference?”

“Hey, considering you used to be a fool, I won’t hold it against you. Didn’t you say my family is rich?” Lian Chen scoffed.

“Uh-huh.”

“Ahem, if we’re talking about the richest in Dongyin, it would be my royal uncle. If he says he’s second, no one would dare claim to be first. Looking across the entire Nine Provinces Continent, how many can compare to my royal uncle?” Lian Chen said, a hint of pride in his voice, as if the wealthy tycoon was him.

How boastful.

A prince richer than the Emperor? Wouldn’t that lead to rebellion?

“What does your royal uncle do? Surely, he doesn’t just take a salary.” She couldn’t believe a prince could reach such wealth without any corruption; that would not be good for the Emperor or the entire court.

“Of course, he doesn’t just take a salary. You need to know, more than half of Dongyin’s wealth depends on my royal uncle. Any businessman in the Nine Provinces wouldn’t be moved by just the mention of him,” Lian Chen replied, suggesting that even the emperors of other nations respected him.

Gu Hengbo was surprised. “Your royal uncle is in business?” It was unbelievable for someone from the royal family to be involved in trade.

“Surprised, aren’t you? Half of Dongyin’s treasury belongs to my royal uncle.” He mentioned how they only accessed a portion of it. What a shame; otherwise, who would want to marry into the Prince Rong’s residence?

Gu Hengbo glanced again at the person feeding grapes to the little princess. He certainly didn’t look like a businessman.

Lian Chen sighed beside her.

Gu Hengbo rolled her eyes at him, then looked at Gu Ran, who had stood up diagonally opposite her. Surely, that beauty was going to perform? Suddenly thinking of something amusing, she leaned closer to Lian Chen. “What do you think of Gu Ran?”

Lian Chen was taken aback, then gave her a knowing look. “What do you mean?”

Seeing his defensive expression, Gu Hengbo guessed what he was thinking and already had the answer in mind. She waved her hand dismissively to signal that she was fine, so he could relax.

Watching Gu Ran position herself in front of the guzheng, Gu Hengbo shrugged. She quite liked the guzheng, although she couldn’t play it. She was too timid, fearful of getting her fingers caught in the strings.

Gu Ran straightened up, casting a casual glance in Lian Yue’s direction. Her delicate fingers gently touched the strings, and beautiful music began to flow from her hands. Gu Hengbo nodded inwardly. Surprisingly, this charming woman had some skills; the sound was many times more melodious than that of the previous pipa player. This was a fact.

Just as everyone immersed themselves in the enchanting melodies, a sudden ‘whoosh’ echoed nearby, bringing with it a chill. Gu Hengbo was startled. Before she could react, the hall was suddenly filled with black-clad men, accompanied by the sound of rain-like arrows, causing chaos to erupt.

She heard a eunuch shout, “Catch the assassins, protect the Emperor and Empress!”

The black-clad men scattered around. Gu Hengbo sat frozen in her seat, unable to move her feet. Suddenly, she felt a tightening at her waist as Lian Chen picked her up. She looked at the spot where she had just been sitting, now filled with arrows, and felt a chill run down her back.

Lian Chen set Gu Hengbo down in a slightly safer spot, whispering, “Stay here and don’t move.” He then pulled out a long sword and swiftly engaged two black-clad men.

Gu Hengbo stared at the chaotic hall and trembled as she attempted to move toward the entrance. Unfortunately, as she took two steps, a short sword struck the tall column in front of her. Cold sweat broke out on her back. What was happening? Was she caught in some cliché twist—attempting to assassinate the Emperor? She tried to stay calm, but the screams around her made that impossible. Suddenly, something flashed in her peripheral vision. Turning her head, she saw a long sword gleaming coldly rushing toward her, but her feet felt rooted to the ground, leaving her helpless as she watched the sword approach.

In a swift motion, Lian Chen appeared, fighting the black-clad man and shouting to her, “There are assassins outside; move inside!”

Gu Hengbo felt anxious. “Okay, be careful!” She darted toward the rear hall. No matter how much she disliked Lian Chen, she had to follow his instructions now.

Running, she cursed her bad luck. She should have checked the almanac before going out. Now it was too late for regrets.

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of a bright yellow figure, accompanied by red. Gu Hengbo froze. Wasn’t that the Emperor and Empress? Why hadn’t they been rescued yet? From a distance, she couldn’t see clearly, but now in this situation, she could see everything.

The black-clad men had already closed in on the Emperor and Empress. The Emperor wasn’t helpless; he swiftly kicked up a long sword from the ground, shielding the Empress with one hand while fighting off the black-clad men with the other. At first, it was just one, but then two more joined. Seeing more black figures pouring into the hall, Gu Hengbo was taken aback. It was almost theatrical. Aren’t assassins usually few in number? At most, there would be a dozen. But this felt like an assassin army.

The Emperor, unable to take care of himself while entangled with several black-clad men, slowly let go of the Empress. One of the black-clad men seized the opportunity and thrust his sword toward her. But rather than screaming like the other unarmed women in the hall, the Empress calmly glanced at the long table, where a guard lay slain by an arrow. She snatched the long sword from his hands and used it to block the black-clad man’s blade.

Gu Hengbo was surprised. She could tell that this woman didn’t know martial arts. Watching the sword struggle to defend against the attack, Gu Hengbo picked up a sword from the ground and stabbed it into the back of the black-clad man. The man groaned in pain, and his sword carved a long bloody line down the Empress’s arm before he fell, dead.

Gu Hengbo stared blankly at her hands. Had she just killed someone?

“What are you standing there for? Hurry and take the Empress away!” a loud voice boomed from behind her. Gu Hengbo jolted and grabbed the Empress, pulling her toward the rear hall.

Seeing the blood oozing from the Empress’s arm, Gu Hengbo quickened her pace. “Tell me where there’s medicine. If this blood doesn’t stop, you’ll lose that arm.”

The Empress gasped, turning her head to Gu Hengbo. “Just go straight out of the back hall, then turn left.”

Gu Hengbo nodded, but before she could speak, a black-clad man slowly descended before them.

Her scalp tingled, and she instinctively stepped in front of the Empress, “What do you want?”

“Get out of the way, or I’ll kill you too,” the black-clad man said coldly.

Gu Hengbo trembled as she replied, “Fine, if you’re brave enough, go ahead and kill me!” The Empress tugged at her sleeve from behind, looking expressionlessly at the black-clad man. “You’re very bold, storming into the palace and now attempting to assassinate me.”

The black-clad man sneered, “Empress? We dare to kill even the highest authorities. The Emperor has probably already met his end, and now you can join him.” With that, he thrust his long sword toward them.

The sword tip barely touched Gu Hengbo’s neck before stopping. She widened her eyes, watching as the black-clad man fell, lifeless. Since she couldn’t see his face, all she could tell was from the red liquid pooling beneath him; he was definitely dead.