Return of the Pearl

The queen felt like she was being roasted on a fire, unable to sit still. She paced back and forth in the palace anxiously like a trapped beast. The rapid footsteps seemed to be a reflection of her inner panic. She was uneasy, her eyes full of anxiety and expectation. She looked straight at the door, thinking about the secret letter from Shandong, and nervously wondering whether the assassination of Xiao Yun had been successful.

She secretly thought that she must seize the opportunity of Qianlong's tour to completely eliminate Xiao Yun, the thorn in his side, to prevent future troubles. Her face seemed a little distorted because of the obsession in her heart. Her sinister expression made people shudder. The whole palace was filled with her tense and gloomy atmosphere, as if a storm was about to come.

So, the queen came up with a plan and secretly colluded with Altai, the governor of Shandong. You have to know that they were both from the Manchu Bordered Blue Banner and had a close connection with each other.

In order to successfully carry out this sinister conspiracy, the queen did not hesitate to reveal Qianlong's whereabouts to Altai. In order to thank the queen for providing important information, Altai also did his best to give the queen a lot of gold, silver and treasures as a tribute. These treasures sparkled with temptation in the queen's eyes, as if they were the reward for her successful conspiracy, but she didn't know how great the crisis hidden behind it was.

In fact, the queen learned about the drought in Shandong earlier than Qianlong. However, she did not care about the hardships suffered by the people at all. In her heart, the most critical thing was Xiao Yun's life and death.

Finally, the news that the queen had been longing for came. The queen could not contain her inner anxiety and could not wait to tear open the secret letter. However, when she saw the contents of the secret letter, her face changed drastically in an instant and she was stunned. Her eyes widened, her pupils contracted sharply, her lips trembled slightly, and her face was full of disbelief.

When the Queen saw the secret letter clearly stating that Qianlong had disregarded his own safety and stood up to protect Xiao Yun, and was even stabbed by them, she felt a strong surge of jealousy and anger surging in her heart like a tide.

She opened her eyes wide and stared at the secret letter. Her eyes seemed to be able to shoot out sharp swords and pierce the secret letter with countless holes. She clenched her teeth, and her teeth rubbed against each other, making a "clacking" sound. The muscles on her face were extremely twisted with anger, and she looked as hideous as a demon crawling out of hell.

Her heart was filled with resentment and resentment, and jealousy burned fiercely in her chest, almost devouring her completely. She could not understand why the emperor cared so much about Xiao Yun and would even disregard his own safety for her.

"This Xiao Yun, I will make sure you die without a burial place!" The queen roared angrily, her voice filled with endless hatred, as if she wanted to tear the whole world apart.

She snatched the secret letter and crumpled it into a ball with all her strength, as if to vent all the anger in her heart. Her hands were trembling, her nails dug deep into her palms, and traces of blood oozed out, as if she was using her pain to vent her anger.

Then, she lit the secret letter with trembling hands, watching the note slowly curl up in the flames and gradually turn into ashes. Her eyes were full of anger and disappointment, and her whole body seemed to be swallowed by anger, and she couldn't calm down for a long time.

She stood there, the jealousy and anger in her heart still burning, making her almost lose her mind. She was like a beast out of control, ready to attack everything around her at any time.

She picked up the pen again and wrote a secret letter quickly. Then, with a solemn and serious expression, she handed the secret letter solemnly to her confidant and ordered him to send it out overnight. At this moment, the queen had made up her mind. She understood deeply that things had developed to this point, like an arrow shot from a bow, there was no turning back. This matter must be carried out thoroughly. No matter what difficulties and obstacles she faced, she must ensure that Xiao Yun could not come back alive.

A firm and resolute light flashed in her eyes, and her resolute look was as if she was fighting a life-and-death battle with fate. In her heart, there was no way out, only the unyielding faith and courage to move forward. She must see all this through to the end and never give up until she achieved her goal.

Jinan Prefecture

Erkang and Yan Xishen once again resolutely embarked on the difficult journey of finding water. Under the scorching sun, they took firm and persistent steps, meticulously searching for every possible place where water might be hidden on the dry and hot land.

They did not miss any clues, even the slightest ones, and observed every subtle change on the ground with full concentration, using their keen senses to try their best to find traces of water.

They walked through the rugged mountain roads and crossed the dense and deep jungles. Their clothes were soaked with sweat like rain. Despite this, they still persisted in their search. During that long day, they almost explored every corner. However, in the end, they still failed to find any trace of underground water, which filled them with immense loss and frustration.

However, just when they were exhausted and ready to return, they unexpectedly encountered a wave of killers who appeared and disappeared like ghosts. These killers suddenly appeared in front of them, catching them off guard and completely unprepared.

The two sides instantly fell into an extremely tense confrontation. The air was filled with a murderous aura so strong that it was almost suffocating. The killers had fierce and violent eyes, and they held sharp blades in their hands, approaching them step by step.

Erkang and his guards showed no fear. They quickly took up their battle positions and, with steel-like determination, engaged in a thrilling, life-and-death battle with these killers.

In this thrilling and fierce battle, both sides pounced on each other like wild beasts, fighting back and forth without giving in. The battle was so fierce that it made it difficult to breathe, as if all the air was burned out.

The crisp sound of swords clashing and the shouts of killing rose and fell like a passionate war song, intertwined together, making people feel as if they were really on that tragic battlefield, and could truly feel the pervasive smoke and strong smell of blood.

Erkang and his guards fought desperately with the killers with their tenacious will and outstanding martial arts. Both sides suffered casualties. The scene was so tragic and heroic that people couldn't help but worry about them.

A group of guards resolutely stayed behind, buying precious time for Erkang and Yan Xishen. Erkang took Yan Xishen and finally returned to the government office in Jinan Prefecture after going through many hardships and dangers. At this moment, both of them were covered in blood, which was the mark of their heroic deeds left in the battle.

The guards left at the gate of the government office saw Erkang and Yan Xishen returning from afar, their eyes full of concern and anxiety. They quickly ran forward and helped the exhausted Erkang and Yan Xishen into the inner hall. Then, they hurriedly went to find the imperial physician to treat Erkang and Yan Xishen, fearing that they would have any accidents.