"I never expected you to be such a romantic, willing to get yourself hurt just to save Chen Yuanyuan." Though Huang Shang sounded admiring, his hands did not stop as he continued pressing his advantage.
"No!" Seeing her mother sent flying by Huang Shang's punch and coughing up blood, A'ke felt a chill run from the top of her head to the soles of her feet. Only then did she finally react. Overwhelming fury replaced her fear, and she somehow found the courage to spread her arms and stand before Huang Shang. "You're not allowed to hurt my mother!"
"Imperial Consort!"
Seeing Huang Shang's attack about to land on A'ke, the nearby guards cried out in alarm.
Huang Shang frowned. This woman was, after all, the emperor's favored consort. If he injured her... Hesitating inwardly, his hand slowed by a fraction.
Seizing the chance, Song Qingshu held Chen Yuanyuan and crashed through the window, swiftly vanishing from everyone's sight.
"After them!" A group of guards drew their longsabers and charged out after him. Yet Huang Shang did not move. He had fought Song Qingshu several times and knew that, with the latter's qinggong, once he had gained the initiative, there was no catching him now. On an open plain, Huang Shang might have tried to chase him down while he was injured, but the imperial palace's terrain was complex. Song Qingshu had a hundred ways to shake him off.
Shaking his head, Huang Shang turned toward the shadows in the corner. Just as his entire body was about to fade into the darkness, A'ke suddenly ran over and blocked his path. Though she trembled with fear, she stubbornly glared at him. "Why are you trying to kill my mother?"
Huang Shang replied coldly, "I was not trying to kill your