Han Yunxi had been waiting for the perfect moment to strike, but never expected the assassin to dodge her needles so easily!
To be able to dodge her hidden needles in this situation, one had to be very familiar with her hidden needles or a very powerful expert.
Han Yunxi realized in hindsight that she'd underestimated these assassins.
Zhao mama was an old woman who didn't have the strength to truss a chicken. Han Yunxi's needles hadn't hurt her at all, so the blade was about to stab her.
Zhao mama was so scared that she didn't even dare to move. Han Yunxi abruptly grabbed hold of her and threw her backwards onto the bed. Zhao mama fell backwards as well, just enough for the sword to brush past her body.
Speaking of which, it was strange that such an expert hadn't actually hurt Zhao mama even though his sword had brushed past her body. Moreover, Han Yunxi was even safer behind her back.
In the blink of an eye, Han Yunxi kicked viciously at the assassin. As he dodged, she pushed Zhao mama aside and prepared to flee as well.
But at this moment, another assassin stabbed at Gu Beiyue with his sword!
"Chu Xifeng, save me!"
Han Yunxi screamed as she shot out her needles. Unfortunately, Chu Xifeng couldn't split himself in two. There were too many strong black-robed assassins, filling the room with the clanging of weapons and the sounds of battle.
Two of the guards rushed over to save Zhao Mama, but one of them quickly slit their throats. The other guard was no match for the black-robed assassin's pincer attack.
"Esteemed wangfei, hurry and run! Don't worry about me!" Gu Beiyue cried in alarm.
He was lying on the bed, unable to move, but he had been observing the movements of the assassins the entire time. These assassins seemed to have come for esteemed wangfei, but they were also coming for him. What were their origins?
A complicated look flickered past his eyes. Just what kind of person could cultivate such a large group of experts? They actually dared to barge into the Duke of Qin's estate in broad daylight.
"What's with all the nonsense?"
Han Yunxi looked unhappy as she spoke. She shoved Gu Beiyue into the bed and shielded him with her own body.
Gu Beiyue's lips quirked up into a helpless smile, but it quickly disappeared.
"Aiya, esteemed wangfei, you …"
Zhao mama was furious. Although she was afraid, she couldn't let esteemed wangfei get hurt no matter what! She crawled to her feet and abruptly pulled Han Yunxi over.
As soon as Han Yunxi moved aside, two swords shot towards Gu Beiyue. Their target was obvious: they were aiming for Gu Beiyue!
Gu Beiyue furrowed his brows as he faced the two blades. Like anyone who didn't know martial arts, his face was filled with fear and nervousness. Still, he didn't lose his composure and simply clenched his fists.
It was like he was facing the fear of death, but also like he was hesitating about something.
However, in the end, the hesitation in his eyes disappeared without a trace. He watched helplessly as the blade approached, getting closer and closer …
"Imperial Physician Gu!"
Han Yunxi shouted. She threw out several hidden needles and hit one of the assassins. But another assassin quickly took his place. Soon, another assassin was coming for her. Han Yunxi defended herself while calling for help, "Someone come, protect Imperial Physician Gu! Quickly! "
It was a chaotic battle!
Suddenly, Gu Beiyue gave a grunt. Han Yunxi quickly turned around and saw an assassin's sword piercing Gu Beiyue's arm. The other assassin's sword was aimed at his abdomen!
So ruthless!
Han Yunxi sucked in a cold breath. She didn't care about the trouble on her side. All the hidden needles in her arm flew towards the assassin.
This time, the assassin was hit by five hidden needles. Three of the needles hit his vital points and he instantly fell to the ground.
But everything didn't end with that assassin falling down. Han Yunxi didn't even have time to catch her breath as another assassin attacked from the side. At the same time, on Gu Beiyue's side, the assassin who had pierced his arm fiercely pulled out his sword and aimed at his vital points!
A cold glint flashed past Gu Beiyue's eyes. The hand which was hidden under the blanket finally grabbed onto a small flying dagger. But at this moment, the little thing which was sleeping in a small box suddenly jumped up and pounced towards that assassin with its fangs and claws bared. It directly pounced onto his face and scratched wildly!
Damn it, he actually dared to hurt its young master. Did they really think that it was a rat if it didn't fly into a rage?
The assassin's mask was torn to pieces and his entire face was instantly ruined. No matter how he scratched, the little thing just clung onto his face.
"Ah ….. Ah ….." The assassin cried out in pain.
But this sudden change of events didn't affect the other assassins. They were all well-trained and emotionless death warriors. None of them cared about their companion's cries as they continued to attack.
Very soon, another assassin broke through the guards' defenses and headed straight for Gu Beiyue's side.
But as soon as Lil Thing sensed the killing intent, it leapt into the air and landed on the head of the assassin closest to Gu Beiyue. It scratched wildly, causing large amounts of blood to flow from the black-robed assassin's head. The assassin stood in place for a moment before collapsing to the ground, dead …
Only then did the other assassins stop, realizing that this squirrel wasn't someone to be trifled with.
Lil Thing crawled on the edge of the bed, its eyes narrowed as it looked aggressive. Although it was very tired, it still jumped up as soon as it sensed killing intent.
It wanted to protect Mama Yunxi.
But as soon as it jumped up, it discovered that the gentleman was in danger as well. More accurately, the gentleman was in even more danger than Mama Yunxi.
Although the black-robed assassins were attacking Mama Yunxi as well, they didn't have any killing intent at all. Instead, it was the gentleman who was filled with killing intent.
Lil Thing didn't know the origins of these assassins, nor did it know why they didn't want to kill Mama Yunxi. It only knew that no matter what the reason was, no one could hurt the gentleman!
To Lil Thing, the gentleman was just as important as Mama Yunxi.
As soon as Lil Thing took charge, the black-robed assassins restrained themselves. It wasn't clear who gave the word 'retreat,' but all of them began to retreat.
"Capture them alive, the archers will be here soon!"
Chu Xifeng ordered. Another round of killing broke out, killing many of the guards and black-robed assassins alike. Unfortunately, there were no survivors in the end.
By the time the archers arrived, all of the black-robed assassins had fled, leaving behind a mess in the room.
Lil Thing was so tired that it wanted nothing more. It plopped down next to Gu Beiyue, using all of its remaining strength to open its eyes and stare at Mama Yunxi.
Zhao mama was sitting on the ground, too scared to stand up. Han Yunxi rushed to the bed and asked, "Gu Beiyue, are you alright?"
Gu Beiyue's expression was still panicked, but he was still very polite. "Many thanks to esteemed wangfei, this official is fine."
"Esteemed wangfei, are you alright?" Chu Xifeng asked urgently.
Han Yunxi looked at Lil Thing's helpless state and felt her heart ache.
"What's the archers doing? They came so late. If it wasn't for Lil Thing, none of us would be alive! "she raged.
The assassins really were strong, so Chu Xifeng and the guards couldn't be blamed. But the archers were a little late as well!
Chu Xifeng ordered, "Someone come, call Li Defu in!"
Li Defu was the commander of the archers at the Duke of Qin's estate. As soon as he entered, he fell to his knees. "This humble one has failed in his duties. May esteemed wangfei mete out punishment!"
"Why did you come so late?" Han Yunxi was filled with anger. Leaving aside the severity of today's events, how were they supposed to ensure the safety of the Duke of Qin's estate at this speed?
How could anyone who dared to break into the estate and kill people be simple? They might have escaped this time, but there'd be a next time.
If she didn't know that Long Fei Ye's subordinates were strictly disciplined, she would have suspected that they were late on purpose.
"To reply esteemed wangfei, assassins broke into the northwest corner of the ancestral hall to kidnap esteemed imperial concubine. This humble one and the archers were busy dealing with them and had no time to attend to this side. This humble one has failed in his duties, may esteemed wangfei mete out punishment! "
Before Han Yunxi could speak, Chu Xifeng grew alarmed. "What's going on? Why didn't they report it? "
"This humble one was leading the archers over when we received news of reinforcements. We didn't even have time to report it!" Li Defu replied.
"Then did they catch the culprits?" Han Yunxi was alarmed as well. Were these two groups of assassins from the same group? Had they split up to scatter the Duke of Qin's forces?
Were they aiming for her and Gu Beiyue, or Grand Concubine Yi? Or perhaps both?
"To reply esteemed wangfei, this humble one was incompetent. The three assassins we captured all committed suicide, while the rest escaped," Li Defu replied honestly.
Han Yunxi knitted her brows as she looked towards Chu Xifeng, who walked over with a grave expression. He whispered in Han Yunxi's ear, "Esteemed wangfei, could they be aiming for Grand Concubine Yi?"
Han Yunxi had long guessed as much. These assassins' true goal was to kidnap Grand Concubine Yi. Killing her and Gu Beiyue was just a way to scatter their forces and delay Chu Xifeng.
Han Yunxi came to a prompt decision. "Li Defu, immediately dispatch men from the Solitary Enclosure to strengthen the defenses. Chu Xifeng, report this to His Highness Duke of Qin as soon as possible! "
This was the first time Han Yunxi had given direct orders to the Duke of Qin's subordinates. She really did have the air of a mistress of the house.
Li Defu didn't dare delay and left immediately. Chu Xifeng's eyes flashed with admiration. "This subordinate understands!"
Gu Beiyue watched the entire scene in silence, his brows furrowed in thought.
The attendants quickly cleaned up the assassins' corpses and cleaned up the entire room.
Currently, Lil Thing was nestled against Gu Beiyue's side. It looked like it was asleep, but it was completely unconscious. Gu Beiyue's fingers gently stroked its pure white fur, but it didn't know a thing.
"It's all thanks to Lil Thing," Han Yunxi remarked mildly.
"Esteemed wangfei, these assassins …" Gu Beiyue trailed off.
"They came for me. There's nothing to be done, I've offended too many people!" Han Yunxi's expression was helpless.
If these assassins were really after Grand Concubine Yi as she and Chu Xifeng guessed, then the true culprits behind the scenes were none other than those two in the palace.
Although the empress dowager had stopped caring about Long Fei Ye's origins after Mama Su's death, that didn't mean she'd forgotten. Emperor Tianhui had as well. To the imperial clan, Long Fei Ye's origins were more important than anything else!
Mama Su was dead, so the only servants who knew the truth were dead as well. But there was still Grand Concubine Yi! Who else knew better than Grand Concubine Yi about what happened that year?
After all, whether Long Fei Ye was a descendant of Tianning's imperial clan was the most direct way to question Grand Concubine Yi.
Han Yunxi shouldered all the blame on herself so that Gu Beiyue wouldn't suspect anything.
"Esteemed wangfei, you have to take care of yourself."
Gu Beiyue said sincerely. At this moment, there was the sound of something breaking through the air. Soon enough, a sharp arrow flew through the air towards Gu Beiyue.
The arrow caught everyone by surprise, threatening to topple mountains and overturn seas. By the time everyone reacted, Gu Beiyue had already been shot in the stomach and spat out a mouthful of blood!
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