Legend of the Embroiderer

The night in the palace grew darker. Li Zhao and Su Mengyao stood outside the cell, their hearts filled with anxiety.

The escape of the envoy and his men undoubtedly brought a huge crisis to their reforms.

Li Zhao knew very well that the other party's escape was no accident and there must be a bigger conspiracy behind it.

"My dear, the situation is urgent right now. We must race against time to find them, otherwise the reforms we have worked so hard to promote will suffer a severe blow!"

Li Zhao's face was solemn and he spoke in a low voice. A chilling cold light flashed in his deep eyes for a moment.

Su Mengyao, who was standing beside her, nodded slightly in agreement. However, a trace of doubt and thought appeared on her beautiful face. She said softly:

"Your Highness, in my opinion, this series of events is far too coincidental. First, someone deliberately left the embroidery supplies at the scene, and then, after we discovered them, they hurriedly fled. There must be a huge conspiracy hidden in this."

Li Zhao couldn't help but frown when he heard this, and an indescribable feeling of unease surged in his heart. He nodded slowly in response.

"Yes, Yao'er is absolutely right. It seems that this incident is not as simple as it seems. If we can't find out the truth as soon as possible, I'm afraid we will be trapped in an even more dangerous and difficult predicament."

As the two were talking, a eunuch suddenly stumbled and ran towards them with a panicked look on his face, shouting loudly, "Your Highness, Miss Su, something terrible has happened! There's another problem at the academy!"

Hearing this, Li Zhao and Su Mengyao couldn't help but look at each other, and there was surprise and worry in each other's eyes.

Li Zhao acted decisively and quickly ordered the eunuch, "Quickly lead the way and take me down to see what's going on!"

After saying that, he and Su Mengyao followed closely behind the eunuch and hurried towards the school.

In the spacious and bright school, a group of palace maids dressed in gorgeous palace costumes were gathered in a circle, each of them with a look of fear and panic on their face.

One of the maids pointed tremblingly at a tattered box lying on the ground. Her voice trembled with fear: "Miss Su, please take a quick look! The things in this box... none of us know where they came from!"

Hearing this, Su Mengyao hurriedly quickened her pace and walked forward. She bent down and carefully opened the box slowly.

In an instant, everyone's attention was drawn to the contents of the box - some slightly old and damaged embroidery items neatly arranged inside.

Upon closer inspection, these embroidery items were surprisingly similar to those previously stolen!

Seeing this scene, Su Mengyao's heart suddenly shook, and a strange feeling instantly surged into her heart.

Without hesitation, she asked, "So, when did you discover these embroidery supplies?"

The maid standing nearby quickly replied, "To answer Miss Su's question, not long ago, when we were cleaning the school as usual, we accidentally discovered this box hidden in a corner."

After hearing the palace maid's answer, Su Mengyao couldn't help but frown slightly, and her beautiful eyes were filled with doubts and confusion at this moment.

After thinking for a moment, she turned around, facing Li Zhao beside her, and said softly in a low voice:

"Brother Zhao, in my opinion, the sudden appearance of these embroidery supplies is no accident. It means that the conspiracy behind the scenes is still continuing to ferment, and it can be concluded that they must have further plans of action."

Li Zhao nodded slightly, and a look of determination flashed across his deep eyes:

"There is no doubt that we must immediately and thoroughly investigate the truth of this matter. Otherwise, the fruitful results achieved in this reform that concerns life and death will be destroyed and all our previous efforts will be wasted!"

At this moment, a palace maid suddenly let out a terrified scream and pointed out the window with trembling hands.

Li Zhao and Su Mengyao turned around quickly upon hearing the sound, but saw several dark shadows stealthily approaching them under the bright moonlight outside the window.

Li Zhao's heart trembled suddenly, and he immediately gave an order: "Quick, quick, quickly notify those eunuchs and tell them to prepare for battle as soon as possible!"

The palace maids were frightened and panicked by this sudden change, and they stepped back involuntarily.

But Su Mengyao was not afraid at all. She rushed to the window and said to Li Zhao in a low voice:

"Brother Zhao, in my opinion, these guys are definitely trying to take advantage of our disarray to stir up trouble again and cause more trouble."

Li Zhao nodded in agreement, a piercing cold light flashing across his eyes:

"Yes, that's right. No matter what, we must not let these treacherous villains succeed in their schemes. Yao'er, listen to me. Quickly lead the other palace maids to retreat to a relatively safe place and hide there. Leave this to me."

Su Mengyao shook her head resolutely, her beautiful eyes also flashing with unwavering determination:

"No, Brother Zhao, I will never leave you alone. No matter how great the danger or difficulty, I will fight side by side with you and face it together. We must never be separated!"

Li Zhao smiled slightly and held her hand: "Okay, let's go together."

Several figures lurked quietly in the woods outside the palace walls. The leader was the envoy from the neighboring country. With a sly look in his eyes, he whispered,

"Our plan is already halfway successful. Now we just need to wait for the right moment to defeat their reforms in one fell swoop."

His men nodded, a hint of excitement flashing in their eyes: "Sir Envoy, can our plan really succeed?"

The messenger smiled slightly, a cold glint in his eyes. "Of course, our real goal isn't embroidery supplies, but their reform. As long as we can make their school unable to operate normally, our goal will be achieved."

Conflict and reversal

Just as Li Zhao and Su Mengyao were preparing to meet the enemy, a eunuch hurried over, looking panicked: "Your Highness, Miss Su, this is bad! The guards outside the palace wall have spotted several suspicious figures and are engaging them!"

Li Zhao was startled and immediately ordered: "Quick, let's go to support!"

Su Mengyao followed closely behind, her heart filled with worry. They hurried to the outside of the palace wall and saw the guards fighting fiercely with several figures.

Li Zhao and Su Mengyao joined the fight and quickly subdued the other party. However, when they saw the other party's face clearly, they couldn't help but be shocked.

"How could it be you?" There was a hint of disbelief in Li Zhao's voice, and he stared at the woman in front of him with a sharp gaze.

The woman raised her head, a sly look in her eyes: "Your Highness, Miss Su, I didn't expect to meet you again so soon."

Su Mengyao frowned slightly, her heart full of doubts: "Who are you? Why are you doing this?"

The woman smiled faintly, a cold glint in her eyes. "It doesn't matter who I am. What matters is that your reform is doomed to fail. The embroidery supplies are just a cover. Our real target is your school. As long as we can prevent the school from operating normally, our goal will be achieved."

Li Zhao's heart sank, but he quickly regained his composure. "Don't even think about it. We won't let you sabotage the reforms."

The woman smiled slightly, a sly glint in her eyes. "Really? Then how are you going to stop me?"