The villain, Xiao Nanliang, caused the female lead excruciating pain.

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Bai Luo led the three of them into the palace.

Some might wonder why Bai Luo would bring Su Qi into the palace if he already knew Su Qi was an assassin.

This brings us to Ying Muxue's next plan.

Ning Hongyu and Ye Feng escaped from the clutches of Luo Ai, the governor of Jingzhou, and successfully reached the capital.

The Empress Dowager and Luo Ai must have already received the news.

Anyone with a brain would realize they've been exposed.

But they would think that Ying Muxue hadn't dealt with them yet because she was seriously injured and couldn't take care of herself.

But once Ying Muxue recovers, she will definitely settle scores later.

So what would the Empress Dowager and Luo Ai do in order to survive and to obtain that supreme position?

They definitely won't let Ying Muxue recover, and they'll take advantage of her illness to kill her!

Therefore, bringing Ning Hongyu and Su Qi into the palace, which seemed like a foolish move, was actually Ying Muxue's way of forcing the Empress Dowager and Luo Ai to take action.

In Ying Muxue's words, if you don't make a move soon, I'll be fully recovered. Are you really going to let go of this opportunity to take advantage of my illness and kill me?

Although Ying Muxue had obtained evidence of the two men's treason, the Empress Dowager was still her mother, and neither of them had taken any action yet. Based on just a little evidence, she could at most place the Empress Dowager under house arrest.

But if the Empress Dowager really plots a rebellion and has already taken action, then things will be different.

Since she was heartless first, even if Ying Muxue eliminates her completely, no one will stand up to accuse her of being unfilial.

What she wanted was to eliminate the problem completely.

"Wow, is this the imperial palace of a human dynasty?"

As Su Qi entered the palace gate, he looked around like a country bumpkin, touching and looking at everything.

"Hehe, if Brother Feng likes it, I'll show you around after the treatment is finished."

"Really? Won't this trouble Lord Bai?"

"I do have that much time."

After chatting all the way, the group soon arrived at the emperor's bedroom, led by a eunuch.

A different palace maid led the way, and the group arrived at the sickbed. Through the semi-transparent screen, they could see a person lying on the bed behind it.

Her constant, weak coughs made it seem as if she was about to die.

However, Su Qi was certain that it wasn't Ying Muxue.

After all... she didn't even have a pillar of luck.

"See Your Majesty!"

Seeing Bai Luo bow, the others were about to follow suit when suddenly two people from the shadows attacked Su Qi's vitals.

Having anticipated this move, Su Qi feigned shock and instinctively retaliated with a palm strike.

Snapped……

Su Qi, who seemed to be caught off guard, was forced back two steps by the two of them, and blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.

"Xiaobao!"

It was only then that Ning Hongyu realized that she had been exposed, and her heart skipped a beat.

"Sister, be careful."

Su Qi reached out and pulled Ning Hongyu behind him. Seeing the two guards attacking again, he was about to step forward to fight them when his expression suddenly changed and he spat out a mouthful of blood.

Seeing such a good opportunity, the two guards naturally did not let it pass, and struck Su Qi heavily on his vital points. Su Qi spat out another mouthful of blood and flew backward to the ground.

"Xiao Bao?! Stop right now! The assassination was my decision alone and had nothing to do with him. He was just being used by me."

Ning Hongyu panicked completely and recklessly exposed herself.

Bai Luo's eyes darkened slightly, and he reached out to stop the two guards.

"Don't waste your energy. He's been poisoned by the Dragon's Mist. Even a Nascent Soul cultivator would find it hard to escape death."

"The legendary dragon-deer that can cause Nascent Soul cultivators to decay and die?!"

"Wasn't this kind of rare poison a lost art long ago?"

Upon hearing the name of the poison, both guards' expressions changed, and they instinctively took a step back, afraid of getting even a drop of it on them.

Ning Hongyu quickly went over to help the man up and let him sit in her lap.

When she heard that Su Qi had been poisoned by the crippled dragon deer, her face turned pale.

"This poison was banned by the seven nations long ago because it was too cruel, and even the formula was destroyed. How dare you..."

"Hahaha, you yourself said it was banned by the seven kingdoms, and now the other six kingdoms have long been destroyed. As for the Great Ling Dynasty..."

Ye Feng smiled and cupped his hands behind the screen.

"Please forgive me, Your Majesty. I had no choice but to concoct this forbidden poison."

"Ahem... Minister Ye was only trying to protect me, so I forgive you."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Ye Feng bowed again, then looked at the two of them triumphantly.

"It's you!" Ning Hongyu stared at Ye Feng with a murderous glare.

Ye Feng remained calm and composed, with an expression of complete confidence.

"Didn't you hear? His Majesty has pardoned me."

Seeing the couple who had played him for a fool now in such a miserable state, Ye Feng felt an unprecedented sense of relief.

Bai Luo smiled and looked at Ning Hongyu.

"I never imagined you were an assassin too. I thought you were just being deceived by him."

"No, I was the mastermind behind this assassination attempt; he was the one who was deceived by me."

At this point, Ning Hongyu looked down.

"Sister...I...I can protect you..."

Su Qi struggled to get up.

"Do not……"

Ning Hongyu trembled inwardly, closed her eyes in pain, and tears streamed down her cheeks.

Taking a deep breath, she suddenly opened her eyes and looked at Bai Luo.

"His sister is actually Feng Yingying, the former top courtesan of Tianxiang Pavilion. I only impersonated his sister to deceive him because I thought he was stupid and powerful, and I wanted to use him to assassinate Ying Muxue. If you want to kill someone, kill me instead. This has nothing to do with him."

Su Qi, who was struggling to get up, was stunned and looked at Ning Hongyu with disbelief in his eyes.

"Sister...you're lying to me, aren't you?"

His voice trembled involuntarily.

Ning Hongyu clenched her fists, not daring to meet Su Qi's gaze, and painfully closed her eyes, turning her head away.

“I am not your sister. My original name is Chu Bijun. I was once a princess of the Chu Kingdom and am now one of the leaders of the Old Kings Organization.”

Ning Hongyu did not reveal that she was the one who harmed Feng Yingying.

Although she knew she was going to die, she still had a little selfish wish: she didn't want Su Qi to hate her.

"So it was you, a remnant of the Chu Kingdom!" Bai Luo's eyes showed surprise, clearly not expecting such a pleasant surprise.

However, he did not completely believe Ning Hongyu's words, only thinking that she was just sacrificing a pawn to save the king.

Although Ning Hongyu is one of the leaders of the old kings, for an organization with multiple leaders, a Golden Core Realm expert as a foundation is obviously more valuable than a leader with low cultivation who needs protection.

“I am willing to surrender, do with me as you please. But I advise Lord Bai not to harm Xiao Bao, his master is a Nascent Soul cultivator and values ​​him highly.”

Upon hearing this, Bai Luo frowned slightly, and looked at Su Qi with a mixture of surprise and uncertainty.

If his master is truly a Nascent Soul cultivator, then this Feng Baobao cannot be killed...

Seeing that Bai Luo was wavering, Ning Hongyu was overjoyed and felt hopeful. Just as he was about to add fuel to the fire, someone spoke up first.

“Brother Bai, it’s too late to regret it now. When I was refining the Remnant Dragon Deer, I didn’t refine an antidote. Now it’s too late to refine it. He will soon be poisoned and die from his body rotting.”

Ye Feng looked troubled, but he was actually overjoyed.

He actually had the antidote for the Remnant Dragon Deer; he simply didn't want Su Qi to live.

As for that Nascent Soul master...

If the other party wants to settle scores, they should first go to the Great Ling Dynasty. Ye Feng doesn't believe that the Great Ling Dynasty, which can unify the Southern Region, would be unable to deal with a Nascent Soul cultivator.