Chapter 509: Chapter 504: You Never Gave Me a Way Out

The old woman heard it too. She warily covered her grandson’s mouth, pulled him back into the house, and locked the door tightly.

Amidst the occasional calls of night crows, the entire alley burst into sudden light. Someone, driven by excessive curiosity, ran out to see but was innocently caught under the hoofs of horses, having their intestines trampled out. Their terrified screams mingled with a heavy scent of blood, marking the beginning of the night.

Imperial Palace.

Emperor Ying once again woke up from midnight, his heart in his chest pounding against his ribs as if mad.

——Thump thump

——Thump thump

Each thud accompanied by a throbbing temple. Cold sweat drenched him, and his sleeping garment clung to his body, sticky and ice-cold.

Emperor Ying unconsciously clenched the bedding into a ball in his palm.

"Someone come."

Inside the hall, only a dim night lamp was lit.

The view through the veil was unclear.

Yet one could vaguely see a silhouette not far away.

There were Black Shadows patrolling outside the hall, and there were people left inside too.

"Pour me some water."

His words fell, but there was no response.

Emperor Ying scratched his arm. The force wasn’t heavy, but it created a bleeding mark on the itchy wound, where a white liquid festered.

Even he thought the smell was rotten.

Emperor Ying’s face darkened.

"Summon Elder Ge immediately!"

He said coldly, "I’m consuming his elixir, so why is there no sign of improvement?"

However, that group of shadows still did not respond.

Emperor Ying frowned, already displeased.

He knew that among the Black Shadows, who followed the legacy of Emperor Kai Zu, some were displeased with him, thinking he, his father, and grandfather... were not forthright.

But what were the Black Shadows?

They were clearly the dogs beside the Ying Family!

He was just about to get angry.

That shadow moved, went to the table, poured a glass of water, and approached him.

For some reason, Emperor Ying’s eyelids twitched incessantly.

Who knows how things were at the border.

If Da Jin lost even an inch of land under his rule, how could he live up to the title of a wise emperor?

Other than that, how could floods be man-made?

Could it truly be as said outside, that he was deeply sinful, provoking Heaven’s wrath?

Or was it that after Ying Fuyan’s death, King Yan turned into a vengeful ghost underground, resenting him for seizing the throne and eradicating everything?

Emperor Ying: "Summon Bao Pu."

After speaking, his brow didn’t relax a bit.

"No, first summon Zhu Wei."

A glass of water was brought in.

Emperor Ying, unsuspectingly, took it and drank it in one gulp.

A ghostly laugh was heard.

Emperor Ying suddenly raised his eyes.

He saw the veil completely lifted.

A streak of violet lightning split the sky, and ghostly white light like a sharp blade pierced the sleeping hall, instantly illuminating the entire room.

When thunder roared, Emperor Ying finally saw the face steeped in eerie whiteness by the lightning.

Was it Ying Zhi?

Wasn’t he bloodied and imprisoned?

Ying Zhi continued to laugh.

"Did my water taste good, father?"

Was there something added to the water?

Emperor Ying couldn’t care for anything else and was about to vomit. The cup in his hand fell to the ground, shattering into two pieces.

Ying Zhi laughed uncontrollably, "Truly pathetic. I was just teasing you."

"Bastard!"

Emperor Ying’s eyes were cold and he stared at him intently.

Since Ying Zhi could stand here, how could he not guess that there was already a traitor within the Black Shadows?

His brows narrowed, eyes like a cold pool with a surface frozen, yet turbulent with undercurrents below. His lips drawn into a straight line, his breath slow and heavy.

"You are bolder than I imagined."

"Isn’t it father who forced me?"

Emperor Ying: "If you retreat, I will spare your life."

Ying Zhi was overjoyed.

He came today with the determination of breaking the cauldrons and sinking the boats.

His eyes couldn’t hide the distortion: "I am a discarded pawn, even if you are furious at Ying Yin, but that useless Ying Cheng, when father is gone, who else would the throne go to other than him?"

"You’ve been living for so long; Ying Yin can wait, but can I?"

"Thanks to father’s grace over the years, I and he have been fighting like this, and if he ascends the throne, I would be the next King Yan."

"Father."

He grabbed Emperor Ying’s collar coldly, "It was you who left me with no way out." 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Emperor Ying quietly tucked a dagger from beneath his pillow into his sleeve: "Dun is still young. If something happens to you, he would end up like Ying Fuyan."

This did not threaten Ying Zhi.

He even felt these words coming out of Emperor Ying’s mouth were hypocritical and absurd.

"Dun is my own son. I love him too."

But this love is nothing more than being above him as his only legitimate bloodline.

He reached this point for himself, not for the child.

"If I lose, there’s no need to wait for outsiders to act. Those left in the Second Prince Mansion would personally deal with him."

He loved Dun so much, this child should accompany him in death.

Better than being ravaged by Ying Yin, turning neither human nor ghost.

He wouldn’t be alone on the path to the underworld.

There’s also Yao Ru.

Isn’t she sickened by the sight of him? Ying Zhi must drag her to hell with him.

Little did Ying Zhi know, before the upheaval in the Capital, Yao Ru had safely left through a tunnel.

Emperor Ying shouted, "Colluding with Liang Yue, if Da Jin suffers heavy losses because of you, you will be a sinner forever!"

"Father should worry about himself."

The Black Cavalry charged aggressively, breaking through the palace gates, flooding through the Vermilion Bird Gate like a tide.

The screams of the night guards in the palace came one after another, like frightened sparrows flying in all directions.

The sound of arrows tearing through the air arose abruptly, falling as densely as rain.

The Imperial Army clashed swords with the Black Cavalry, one corpse after another hitting the ground.

The Imperial Palace had become a purgatory.

The patrolling Black Shadows sensed something amiss, rushing towards the emperor’s sleeping chambers, only to confront the Black Shadows coming from inside.

Internal strife.

They were so focused on the fighting that no one noticed a few others had also mingled in.

————

Meanwhile, Ying Yin, who was dwelling outside the city, also received the news.

"With your command, our men can storm the city at any time."

It was Elder Cao who spoke.

Ying Yin stood with his hands behind his back, exuding a powerful aura: "No rush."

"I didn’t expect the second elder brother to secretly raise so many private soldiers."

This indeed exceeded his expectations.

"If I were to face him directly, it would be hard to say who would win."

But now it’s different.

Ying Zhi is a rebel, a usurper!

After fighting with father’s men, no matter how strong, how could he have the strength to fight me again?

"Is there any movement from Duke Zhongyong and Wei Zhao?"

That’s what he cared about most.

Elder Cao said respectfully, "People have been sent to watch, there has been no unusual activity."

"Duke Zhongyong seems to have sensed something too, and has found our people, wanting to pass a message."

He repeated the original words.

"I am in ill health, and Huaian is useless. Even if the Xiao Family has military power, it is nothing more than a common thing to preserve life."

"I am old, cannot protect him for long. I ask you to look after us in the future, and should you grant a position, I pledge my eternal loyalty."

Ying Yin wasn’t surprised.

Duke Zhongyong was always a man of courage but no strategy, while Xiao Huaian was a playboy.

The Xiao Family really couldn’t make it.

He asked, "What about Wei Zhao?"

"Gave up trying, still under our people’s watch."

"Even worried they got tired and hungry from the surveillance, sending over meals this morning. I suppose he figured out there would be a change soon, trying to curry favor with you."

"Rest assured, I have checked both inside and outside the city, and there are no camps or large gatherings of the Wei Family Army."

"I suppose they really disbanded. Even if they wanted to gather, it would be too late."

Ying Yin sneered.

"Curry favor, not likely."

"With something happening to father, why would he intervene? He’s just more eager than me for father’s demise."