Chapter 315: The Truth (1/2)

Ji Bo glanced at Nan Xun. He knew why Nan Xun was worried, so he didn't take his words personally. He walked away shaking his head.

Seemingly provoked by Ji Bo's words, Nan Xun had become even more ferocious and unstoppable in the next few battles. He sent Eastern Wu fleeing like a man possessed.

The Eastern Wu palace was silent. The officials didn't dare utter a word lest they anger the emperor. They exchanged glances without a word.

“Cats got your tongue?!” The emperor swept everything on the table off and glared at the officials. “What do I pay you for?! Northern Qi is right at our doorstep. Do you think they're going to stop without breaking into the imperial city?”

“This son believes it'd be unwise to fight them headon,” the first prince said timidly. “Northern Qi is powerful. If we insist on fighting them, we'll end up losing the entire Eastern Wu. We might as well seek a peaceful resolution. They may be willing to work with us. Then we'll get some time to recuperate and make a comeback later.”

His words did make sense, but he'd been sweating profusely due to his nerves, which made him look pathetic.

The emperor had been thinking about doing exactly that, but as an emperor he couldn't possibly make such a proposal. He was relieved that his first son had done it for him, but he didn't immediately respond and instead told everything to consider the idea.

The courtiers weren't blind to the reality. It was shameful to submit to Northern Qi, but there was no place for pride in survival. They had to first think about keeping Eastern Wu from being destroyed.

The next day, they sent delegates to Northern Qi seeking peace.

Nan Xun heard about the delegates and concluded that Eastern Wu didn't have the power to fight back anymore. He intended to keep advancing, but he couldn't just keep the delegates from entering their territory. Before they could reach Northern Qi's imperial city, though, Nan Xun sent a letter to Qi Yun.

They both wanted to destroy Eastern Wu, but the Northern Qi officials believed peace was the better option and tried to pressure Qi Yun into summoning the army back. Qi Yun didn't want to oblige, but the courtiers were united in this decision. Qi Yun had no choice but to make the order, but he implied that generals enjoyed their autonomy at the border, urging Nan Xun to do what he wanted to do.

Nan Xun got his message loud and clear and advanced until they reached the gate to the imperial city. Qi Yun would have wanted them to keep going. However, Jun Huang was somewhere in the imperial city. Nan Xun didn't want her to get hurt, so he stopped and had the troops pull back twenty miles, which allowed Eastern Wu some room to breathe. He sent a group to report back to the imperial court, while he disguised himself and snuck into the city.

Yin Yun soon found out what the medicine was. He entered Jun Huang's room without getting detected and placed the residue on the table.

“Did you find anything?” Jun Huang asked with a grave expression.

Yin Yun nodded. “I sought out an old master and had him look at the medicine. It contains a hallucinogen, but all the other ingredients are good for the human body.”

Yin Yun tried to make his words less blunt. It was admirable that Jun Huang was able to stay so calm even when being deceived by everyone around her.

Jun Huang sighed in relief. She'd thought the medicine was only meant to harm her, but that turned out not to be true. However, it could still cause her great trouble. She didn't show any reactions on the surface, but she'd made a decision in her head.

She opened the door to check outside. The maid was asleep and didn't seem likely to wake up anytime soon. She closed the door and got right down to business.

“I've told you about the back of the manor being suspicious,” said Jun Huang. “Have you found anything?”

Yin Yun nodded. “From the sheer number of guards stationed at the back, this subordinate believes that must be where the prince is kept. I didn't want to alert the guards, so I haven't made a move. From what I could tell, though, those guards aren't the regular types.”

Jun Huang nodded in agreement. There must be something hidden in the back. Otherwise the heavy defense wouldn't be necessary. Even if it wasn't Jun Hao, it'd be a secret worthy of their attention.

She narrowed her eyes. “If so, we'll check in a few days.”

Yin Yun considered Jun Huang silently. Although her face was pale, her presence demanded respect. People like her shone too brightly to be overlooked. She hadn't lost the inherent air of n.o.bility to her as the princess of Western Que, and she'd become closer and closer to her former self the past couple days. People like her were bound for greatness. It was unfortunate she was born a woman in this time.