Legend of the Embroiderer

Li Zhao stared at Zhang Yi, who was pinned to the ground but still struggling and cursing. His heart felt like a pot of mixed feelings.

He took a deep breath, trying to calm his complicated emotions, and then gave orders to the guards who rushed over with an expressionless face, asking them to escort Zhang Yi to the prison and wait for further interrogation before taking any further action.

At this moment, the night was as dark as ink, and a bright moon hung high in the sky, emitting a cool light like a silver plate.

The watery moonlight gently fell, covering the entire courtyard, but even so, it could not dispel the heavy haze lingering in everyone's hearts.

Li Zhao slowly turned around and walked back to the study with heavy steps. Upon entering the room, he saw Su Mengyao and the Crown Princess already waiting there. The three of them sat silently around the desk. The atmosphere in the room was extremely solemn, as if even the air had solidified, making one feel almost suffocated.

After a moment's silence, Li Zhao took the lead in breaking the deadlock. He frowned tightly, his face full of worry, and said in a deep voice:

"According to Zhang Yi, the so-called 'final plan' is obviously imminent and can be launched at any time like an arrow from a bow. Therefore, the most urgent task right now is to quickly come up with a foolproof plan to deal with this crisis." As he spoke, his eyes swept over Su Mengyao and the Crown Princess, revealing deep anxiety and uneasiness.

The Crown Princess nodded slightly, indicating her agreement with Li Zhao's opinion. Her once beautiful face was now filled with sorrow, and she said with a slightly trembling voice:

"I was previously inadvertently used by them, passing on a lot of information for them. However, I knew nothing about this 'final plan'. This shows that they are extremely cautious in their actions. I believe this plan must be top secret."

After saying that, she couldn't help but let out a long sigh, and her expression became more and more worried.

Su Mengyao frowned slightly, her beautiful eyes staring at the scroll in her hand, and she fell into a brief contemplation.

After a moment, she slowly opened her red lips and said, "These scrolls do mention the neighboring country's ambitious plans and that mysterious organization, but crucial information seems to have been carefully concealed. If we want to understand their next move, we must find more clues."

After saying that, she turned her gaze to the two people beside her, her eyes firm and persistent.

The three of them once again buried themselves in the pile of scrolls, carefully reading them page by page and line by line, fearing to miss even the slightest detail.

Time passed by minute by minute, and the room was quiet, with only the sound of flipping pages heard from time to time.

At this moment, Su Mengyao, who had been concentrating all the time, suddenly trembled, as if she had noticed something unusual.

Her eyes were fixed on a dark pattern that she had never noticed before. The dark pattern was like a poisonous snake hidden in the darkness, lurking quietly.

She carefully stretched out her slender hand and gently stroked the dark pattern, feeling the uneven texture on its surface, trying to find a way to solve the mystery.

At first, everything was clueless, but Su Mengyao did not give up easily.

She patiently explored, over and over again, constantly trying various possible methods. Finally, her hard work paid off. With her unremitting efforts, the originally obscure and difficult-to-distinguish dark patterns began to slowly reveal some unclear handwriting.

"This... this looks like a place!"

Su Mengyao's face was filled with surprise, her voice trembling slightly with excitement. She quickly pointed at the gradually clearer handwriting, her eyes gleaming with excitement.

Hearing this, Li Zhao hurried forward and took a closer look.

Sure enough, although the handwriting was not very clear, it was vaguely discernible that what was written on it was "Abandoned Ancient Temple in the Western Suburbs".

Li Zhao's heart skipped a beat, and he thought to himself, "Could it be that this is where the key clues to the 'final plan' are hidden?"

Thinking of this, his heart beat faster and faster, and an indescribable tension and anticipation intertwined in his heart.

The Crown Princess frowned, her face showing worry as she said, "The abandoned ancient temple in the western suburbs is located in a remote area, with no one around and it's completely desolate.

Since they chose that place, they must have laid numerous traps. If we go there rashly, we're afraid we'll run into something unexpected!"

She looked at Li Zhao and Su Mengyao worriedly, feeling uneasy.

Upon hearing this, Li Zhao raised his sword-like eyebrows, his eyes as firm as a rock, and said in a deep voice: "But now we have no other choice.

If we don't find out the truth, we will just sit there and wait for death.

As a descendant of the royal family, how can I watch my country mired in war and allow the people to suffer?"

After saying that, he clenched his fists tightly, as if he wanted to smash all obstacles with one punch.

After careful consideration, the three finally reached a consensus - to set off for the abandoned ancient temple in the western suburbs at dawn the next day.

In order to avoid attracting attention and causing unnecessary trouble, they only selected a few trusted guards with special skills and outstanding martial arts to accompany them.

Everyone was dressed in ordinary people's clothes, and after clever disguise, they quietly left the heavily guarded palace under the cover of night.

Along the way, everyone was very nervous and did not dare to slack off in the slightest.

Every step he took was done with extreme caution, alertly observing any movement around him. When he finally reached the abandoned ancient temple, the scene before him was horrifying.

The entire temple is in ruins, with broken walls everywhere; wild grass grows wildly around the temple, almost covering the original path; gusts of cold wind whistle past, carrying with them a strange aura that makes people shudder.

Li Zhao raised his right hand with a serious expression, waved it slightly, and gave orders to the well-trained guards behind him.

The guards quickly dispersed and disappeared into every corner outside the temple like ghosts, forming a tight cordon.

Then, Li Zhao turned to look at Su Mengyao and the Crown Princess beside him.

The three of them exchanged glances and took a deep breath at the same time, as if to absorb all the tension into their stomachs.

They walked slowly and steadily, cautiously towards the ancient temple filled with a gloomy atmosphere.

The moment you step into the temple, a stale and decayed smell hits your nose, making you want to cover your mouth and nose.

It was so quiet that even the sound of a needle dropping could be heard clearly.

Only when the breeze blew past, the old windows made a creaking sound, as if a ghost was humming.

They held torches and carefully illuminated the road ahead, not missing any corner.

After a careful search, no useful clues or items were found except dust and cobwebs on the ground.

Just as Li Zhao was beginning to feel a little disappointed, Su Mengyao, who had been on high alert, suddenly had her eyes light up. She pointed at a huge Buddha statue not far away and shouted, "Look! There seems to be something over there!"

Everyone looked in the direction of her finger, and sure enough, they saw the outline of a secret door faintly visible behind the Buddha statue.

The secret door was tightly closed, and was engraved with densely packed, bizarre symbols, which made people feel chilly when they saw it.

Li Zhao hurried forward and looked closely at the symbols.

He frowned, thinking hard about the secrets it might contain, trying to find a way to open the secret door.

Time passed minute by minute, and just as Li Zhao was concentrating on studying the symbols, suddenly, a deafening sound of fighting came from outside the temple.

Li Zhao's heart suddenly tightened, and his face turned pale in an instant. He knew very well that their whereabouts must have been exposed and the enemy had come to their door.

The situation is extremely critical at this moment. If we can't quickly open the secret door and hide inside, or find the key clue to escape from here, the consequences will be disastrous...

"It looks like we've been ambushed." Li Zhao said solemnly, "Crown Princess, Su Mengyao, you two hide first. I'll go out and take a look."

Before he could walk out of the temple, a group of men in black rushed in like a tide and surrounded them.

The leading black-clad figure sneered, "Your Highness, you've truly taken the bait. The 'final plan' is about to begin, and you will all die here today!"

Li Zhao clenched his sword, groaning inwardly. He knew they were in a life-or-death crisis, and this crisis might just be the prelude to his "final plan"...