We have fought to the Arctic Circle, and you want me to inherit the throne?

The culprit who almost caused him and Lao Liu to die on the street that day was not the King of Qin or the King of Jin, but the King of Shu?

God have mercy on me, how old is the King of Shu? He seems to be less than sixteen years old this year?

He's just a half-grown child, but he has such a vicious heart?!

Zhu Chun didn't answer directly. He put down the teacup and refocused his gaze on Li Lin's face.

"The New Year's case was fraught with doubts. It was originally taken over by the Imperial Guard, but the investigation was quickly halted by His Majesty."

"It was only because I was involved in this matter that I learned some inside information. However, without solid evidence, I dare not speak out."

Zhu Chun's voice was still low, but every word was like an ice spike, piercing Li Lin's heart:

"But think carefully, what was the King of Shu's motive? At the time, the Crown Prince was still alive, and the heir apparent was secure. The risk of assassinating two princes who held military power and enjoyed the Emperor's favor was simply disproportionate to the benefits gained."

"Unless... someone wants to eliminate a potential, powerful competitor in advance, paving the way for possible changes in the future!"

Zhu Chun's gaze was like a deep pool, locked tightly on Li Lin's pale face:

"The King of Shu is so young, yet his mind is so vicious."

"But he didn't expect the situation at court to be so severe after the Crown Prince's sudden death. His Majesty acted decisively and ruthlessly in eliminating the Crown Prince's followers. The court officials who had previously expressed their loyalty to the Crown Prince now felt insecure."

"Even the courtiers who supported His Royal Highness Prince Feng were silent, afraid to take this opportunity to suppress the Crown Prince's remaining faction. Only the few courtiers with a low profile and who had not chosen a side could rest easy."

"But one thing is certain. After this incident, His Majesty will consolidate power even more tightly, and the entire court will be under his control."

Li Lin sighed deeply: "Father...your sword is still sharp."

Hearing Li Lin say this, Zhu Chun shook his head silently.

Emperor Qing’s sword is still sharp?

As Emperor Qing's close comrade-in-arms, loyal minister, and the person who knows Emperor Qing best, Zhu Chun does not think so.

On the contrary, Emperor Qing's abnormal control of power is precisely a sign of his old age...

In Zhu Chun's mind, the young, wise and arrogant Emperor Qing would absolutely disdain to use such means to gain power.

boom!

Outside the closed carved wooden window of the study, there was a sudden sound of something heavy falling to the ground, followed by a few suppressed and deliberately quiet footsteps that hurriedly faded away.

The two people in the room instantly felt their hair stand on end!

"Who?!" Zhu Chun shouted harshly, murderous intent in his eyes.

He suddenly stood up and rushed to the weapon rack beside him, drew the sword from the scabbard, and pushed open the window.

Li Lin subconsciously reached for his chest and took out not the familiar throwing knife, but a pepper bottle pistol!

The Feng State Gunpowder Bureau was already able to mass-produce pepper pot pistols, but the night watchmen on this trip were not equipped with them in bulk. Only Li Lin brought one for self-defense.

One reason is that the pepper bottle pistol is too conspicuous, and the other is that as Fengguo’s most advanced weapon, Li Che does not want it to flow into Daqing for the time being.

Outside the window is the deep back garden of the Duke's Mansion, with rugged rockery and lush flowers and trees.

The sky was as dark as ink, and the cold wind blew through the dead branches, making a whimpering sound.

Apart from a faint, flickering halo of light cast by the lantern in the servant's hand in the distance, there was no other figure in sight, as if the noise just now was just an illusion.

Zhu Chun's face turned ashen, and his sharp eyes scanned every corner in the darkness like an eagle.

Li Lin also walked quickly to the window, raised his pistol and aimed outside. His heart was beating wildly and a cold fear was climbing up his spine.

Every word in their secret conversation just now was enough to bring about a terrible disaster!

"Father-in-law..." Li Lin's voice was a little tense.

Right now!

Boom——Crack!

Above my head, the thick and solid glazed tile roof of the study suddenly exploded like an eggshell smashed by a sledgehammer.

Broken tiles, broken wood, and mud poured down like a rainstorm, instantly filling the entire study. The pungent smell of dust made it impossible to open one's eyes.

Li Lin reacted as fast as lightning. The moment the roof shattered, his body instinctively retreated quickly, while crossing his arms to protect his head and face.

Although Zhu Chun was old, he was quite skilled. He ducked and rolled over, instantly hiding under the heavy rosewood desk.

Amidst the smoke and flying debris, several heavy black shadows were accompanied by rubble and broken wood, like sacks thrown down by a huge force.

With a few thuds, it landed dully on the floor in the middle of the study.

With the help of the dim and swaying light on the table, Li Lin could see clearly that what fell down were several corpses in black night clothes!

The throats or hearts of these corpses were pierced with strangely shaped short crossbow arrows that glowed with a cold light. Blood was gushing out of the wounds, quickly spreading dark red bloodstains on the carpet.

Li Lin's pupils suddenly shrank and his heart beat like a drum!

Without hesitation, he raised the pepper bottle pistol in his right hand, raised the muzzle in the smoke and dust, and pointed it directly at the hole in the roof!

Just as his finger was about to pull the trigger—

Several dark shadows slid down silently from the edge of the huge hole in the roof like ghosts.

These people landed lightly in the study, silently, and so quickly that only a few blurry afterimages were left.

They were all dressed in black robes and wide dark cloaks with hoods hanging low, covering most of their faces and revealing only their cold and hard jaws.

The man in the lead stood among several corpses, raised his head slightly, and the dim light barely illuminated the small half of his face under the hood.

Li Lin's gun was fixed on the man, and his fingers were trembling slightly due to the extreme force.

However, when the familiar half-face profile came into view, Li Lin's movements suddenly froze.

"Qiu Bai? Why is it you?" Li Lin asked in surprise.

The leading man in black slowly raised his hand and lifted his hood, revealing a familiar face.

Qiu Bai nodded slightly, his voice low and steady: "Your Highness Prince of Yan, Duke of Wei, I'm sorry to have been frightened. I've come specially to protect you."

Li Lin looked at the men in black around him: "Are they also night watchmen?"

"Exactly."

Li Lin frowned and asked, "Why are the clothes different?"

Qiu Bai was stunned for a moment, looked at Li Lin with sympathetic eyes, and said helplessly: "Maybe... because we changed clothes."

Li Lin: . . .

The Night's Watch has multiple sets of combat uniforms, and they wear white suits when fighting in the snow.

In a big city like the imperial capital, especially when doing business at night, one would naturally change into a black suit.

Although the colors are different, the styles are similar, all of which are tight-fitting clothes, as well as capes and hoods.

"Qiu Bai?!" Zhu Chun, who had just stood up from the desk, was covered in dust, but his eyes were still as sharp as a knife.

Obviously, he also knew Qiu Bai, the commander-in-chief of the Night Watch in the imperial capital.

Qiu Bai ignored the two men's shock and glanced at the black-clad corpses on the ground: "These assassins are not your Majesty's men."

"Who is that?"

"They are the Shu King's assassins."

"King of Shu?" Li Lin and Zhu Chun lost their voices almost at the same time.

We were just discussing the King of Shu's possible plot, and his assassins have already reached the Duke's Mansion?!

"That's right," Qiu Bai replied. "The King of Shu knows that Your Majesty's hasty summons are likely to lead to disaster. He's desperate and determined to fight to the death."

"The Night Watch has discovered that he has sent assassins to all the princes' residences in Beijing. However, since you are not at the Prince of Yan's residence, not many people come to the Duke's residence."

Li Lin felt a chill running from his tailbone straight to the top of his head.

Is the King of Shu crazy? Is he going to drag everyone down with him?!

"What about Your Majesty?" Zhu Chun obviously found the highlight.

Qiu Bai shook his head. "Don't worry, Duke. The cowardly Prince of Shu wouldn't dare attack Your Majesty. His goal isn't to seize the throne, but to eliminate obstacles. As long as we kill His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan, the Prince of Qin, and the Prince of Jin, there will be no more adult princes in the capital."

Li Lin angrily said, "Is he crazy? How can the emperor allow him to do this?!"

Zhu Chun also agreed: "What's more, His Royal Highness Prince Feng is still outside the Great Wall! Everyone with a discerning eye in the court knows that His Majesty is doing these things in order to concentrate power and check Prince Feng."

"But as long as Prince Feng stays outside the Great Wall and doesn't harbor any other ambitions while Your Majesty is still alive, the throne will be handed over to him after Your Majesty passes away!"

"The King of Shu is nothing. He will never be the emperor!"

Qiu Bai nodded in agreement: "Indeed, my prince has no second thoughts, but His Majesty is still wary of him."

"As for the King of Shu... Do you think that after seeing what happened to the Crown Prince, he would still be willing to sit in that position and be a puppet?"

"Rather than living a life worse than death as a puppet prince, rotting away in the East Palace like a walking corpse, it would be better to fight to the death and drag everyone down with me."

The corners of Li Lin's mouth twitched.

Since returning to Beijing, he felt that his brothers seemed to have changed.

I used to think that the King of Qin was just like me, a brainless and reckless type, but I didn't expect that this guy would use strategies when he was forced into a corner.

The King of Shu was even more surprised.

Before, I thought he was just a little sinister, but I never thought he could do such a cruel thing.

"It's not just that." Zhu Chun shook his head. "The King of Shu should also know that His Majesty has already investigated and confirmed that he was involved in last year's incident. He knows that His Majesty will not let him off easily, so he is so crazy."

"It's just a trapped beast fighting." Qiu Bai's eyes flashed with cold contempt, "But this action has completely pushed himself into an irretrievable situation. Your Majesty will never tolerate him again!"

"If he hadn't made such a fuss, he could still be a puppet prince with no worries about food and clothing. Now that he's made such a fuss, maybe he can still become the crown prince, but I'm afraid he'll never be able to leave the Eastern Palace in his lifetime."

Before he finished speaking, several sharp and piercing whistles of arrows pierced the sky in the distance!

Zhu Chun was very familiar with it. It was the highest level of attack alert among the Jinyiwei!

He looked up in the direction of the voice, his face solemn: "It's the direction of the Qin Palace."

Li Lin's face turned pale, his eyes filled with shock and anger: "Beast! The King of Qin is his biological brother!"

Qiu Bai listened attentively for a moment, his face expressionless. He turned to Li Lin and Zhu Chun, clasped his fists, and said solemnly:

"This place is no longer safe! Although the Shu King's assassins have been eliminated, there are still some who have slipped through the net, or who are taking advantage of the situation. Your Highness the Prince of Yan and the Duke of Wei, please move with me immediately and avoid the fierce attack for a while!"