On the night of the broken engagement, the paranoid prince came to me crying and asking for my statu

At this moment, chaos broke out among the crowd.

The crowd that was originally busy watching suddenly started to make a commotion at some point.

Soon, a sharp dagger flew out from the crowd and pierced into the executioner's palm.

The big knife in the executioner's hand fell to the ground instantly.

Chaos arose.

Some of the onlookers had no time to escape and were slashed in the neck by masked men in black who emerged from the crowd.

Someone is planning to kidnap the prisoner!!

The executioner looked at the prisoners on the execution platform in panic and was surprised to find that the main criminals were kneeling safely on the platform.

Look at the crowd in the distance.

Several masked men swung their knives fiercely, swinging the white knives out and retracting the red knives.

There was absolutely no intention of approaching the execution platform.

The executioner immediately understood what was happening - these people appeared to be trying to rescue the prisoners, but in reality, they were killing innocent people indiscriminately.

His eyes darkened and his face regained its anxious look.

The prisoner kidnapping incident soon alarmed the capital's government office and the Ministry of Justice.

Those people actually came to rescue prisoners from under the feet of the emperor. What's the difference between this and throwing the face of the current emperor on the ground and trampling on it?

Taking advantage of the fact that the soldiers who followed were sufficient in number, the executioner angrily said, "Continue the execution."

Just now, those assassins seemed to want to rescue the prisoners, but in fact they did not get close to the execution platform.

Therefore, the executioners did not suffer any harm but instead ran to the outside of the scaffold, ready to resist the assassins at any time.

Upon hearing the executioner's order, the executioners immediately returned to their positions and, with their well-trained swords, cut off the remaining heads.

Poor Su Qishun, he only had time to take a quick glance at the person who came to "save" him before his head fell to the ground.

This time, the "prisoner rescue" ended in failure.

Perhaps it was because all the people they wanted to save had already been brought to justice, and those who had been fighting with the government officials in the capital and the imperial guards were now all caught as if all their strength had been drained away.

Soon, the people from the Ministry of Justice discovered the true identities of the men in black.

"This is the assassin raised by Prince Yun's Mansion. Go and report to the Emperor."

...

Emperor Ming Qing had just rested for the afternoon.

I was woken up again.

These days, his body has been losing weight at a rate visible to the naked eye.

The eye sockets are sunken and the dark circles are very heavy.

After hearing the guard's report, he became so angry that he spat out a mouthful of blood and fell to the ground.

Before he passed out, Emperor Ming Qing did not forget to make arrangements for the people around him, "Prince Yun, grant me the white silk."

"emperor!!"

The palace was instantly thrown into chaos.

The news from the palace soon reached the Dingbei Palace.

After seeing the news, Dingbei King Fu Huai tied the message to another white pigeon.

The white dove flapped its wings a few times, flew out of the Dingbei Palace, and finally landed in a dilapidated temple on the outskirts of the city.

In the ruined temple.

A muddy hand quickly grabbed the carrier pigeon, took out the letter, and then replaced it with another folded piece of paper into the small bamboo tube.

He turned and walked quickly to the other end of the ruined temple.

As he walked, he called out, "Elder, I found a carrier pigeon."

...

Su Mansion.

Su Sui'an's nerves were tense all day.

It was originally thought that when the prisoner kidnappers appeared, they would at least kidnap Zhao Qingwan. Unexpectedly, not only did those people fail to rescue her, they were all arrested.

This was a death trap specially set up for Prince Yun out of fear that he would have a chance to turn things around.

I thought this was another frame-up.

Unexpectedly...

Those secret guards were actually from Prince Yun's side.

I was able to use the people from Prince Yun's side to set a trap for Prince Yun...

The person behind this must also be in Prince Yun's mansion...

who can that be?

Just as Su Sui'an was thinking.

Liu'er came with a reluctant look on her face.

"Miss, the old lady of Duke Gu's Mansion sent someone to ask you to see Young Master Gu for the last time."

...

The news that the people from the Marquis of Changping's mansion encountered a prisoner robbery during the execution and eventually died under the executioner's knife soon spread throughout Luojing.

It was well known that Prince Yun was sentenced to death by the Emperor.

Duke Gu’s Mansion.

Even though Gu Xiuyan is seriously ill in bed, the Duke Gu's Mansion still has the foundation of previous generations of Duke Gu.

Therefore, although the Duke Gu's Mansion was shrouded in a layer of gloom and sadness at this time, it still did not show any signs of desolation.

It was already evening when Su Sui'an arrived.

Unlike previous times when he climbed over the wall or sneaked through the small door or the back door, this time Su Sui'an came in directly through the main door.

When the servants in the mansion saw Su Sui'an, they dared not ignore her and bowed to her respectfully.

"Miss Su."

"Miss Su."

Liu Er followed behind Su Sui'an, with a vigilant look on her face, "Miss, if someone is being too attentive for no reason, he is either a traitor or a thief. We must not take it lightly."

"Don't worry. Prince Yun is doomed now. The entire Changping Marquisate was executed. Now only the Dingbei Palace is the dominant one. The Guguogong Palace and the Dingbei Palace have always been at odds. Even if the Guguogong Palace wants to come up with something at this critical juncture, I'm afraid it won't be able to do anything."

Su Sui'an felt confident.

Originally, she thought that after going through so many things, when she heard the news about Gu Xiuyan and agreed to come to the Duke Gu's Mansion, she would have some strange emotions.

But when she actually stepped into Duke Gu's Mansion, her heart was calmer than she had imagined.

just like...

She was now just a bystander, watching the prosperity of Duke Gu's Mansion and its gradual decline.

When she came, she learned about Gu Xiuyan's current condition from the two maids who had invited her before - he was terminally ill and there was no hope of recovery. Even Old Madam Gu had to choose another candidate from another branch as the future heir to the Guguo Mansion.

The late Duke Gu could be considered a founding father who had laid claim to the throne together with the late emperor. The title of Duke Gu should have been hereditary.

However, by the time of Gu Xiuyan's father's generation, the seas were peaceful and the rivers were calm. In order to better consolidate the status of the Guguo Mansion, Gu Xiuyan's grandfather resolutely gave up military service and turned to literature. The original hereditary succession was changed to only be retained for three generations. If no military generals emerged within three generations, the title would be taken back.

Gu Xiuyan’s generation is exactly the second generation.

Gu Xiuyan had no children and refused to marry, so Madam Gu could only think of a branch of the family.

Led by his servants, Su Sui'an quickly went to see Old Madam Gu.

This was the first time Su Sui'an saw Old Madam Gu after breaking off her engagement with Gu Xiuyan.

In her impression, although Mrs. Gu is old, she is in good spirits.

Madam Gu today is very different from the past.

Although she was dressed smartly, it couldn't hide her tired look. Even every wrinkle on her face was stained with fatigue.

Seeing Su Sui'an, she just raised her eyelids lightly and said in a gentle tone, "Are you here?"

Su Sui'an stepped forward respectfully and said, "Sui'an greets Madam Gu."

Madam Gu frowned slightly, "You little girl, it's only been a short while since we last met, and you've become so estranged from an old woman like me? You don't even call me ancestor?"

"Old Ancestor" was the name that Old Madam Gu asked her to call her after she and Gu Xiuyan got engaged.

At that time, Su Sui'an's heart and eyes were filled with Gu Xiuyan. He loved Gu Xiuyan as well as her, so naturally he would do whatever Madam Gu said.

Because of this word "ancestor", Su Sui'an has been looked down upon so many times over the years, but people in Duke Gu's Mansion never mention it at all.

Now, she doesn’t even want Gu Xiuyan, let alone ask her to listen to Madam Gu?

"Such an intimate name is only appropriate for the head of the family. When Sui'an and Lord Gu were engaged before, calling him that name was already an overstep. Now that Sui'an and Lord Gu have broken off their engagement, it is inappropriate to overstep such a rule again."

As soon as she said this, not only did Madam Gu's expression change, but even the expressions of the maids and nannies who followed Madam Gu changed as well.

"You girl, Xiu Yan is ignorant, but are you also ignorant?" Old Madam Gu smiled kindly, like an elder who is very tolerant of the younger generation.

Su Sui’an sneered in his heart - to hell with tolerance.

She was said to come and see Gu Xiuyan, but in fact she asked the servants to "invite" her to the front hall. With a little thought, Su Sui'an guessed what Madam Gu was thinking.

Sure enough, before Su Sui'an could give any response, Madam Gu began to speak slowly again.