From Cold Palace Princess to Heavenly Empress

Hearing this, Wang Jin respectfully said:

"Yes!"

67. Torture Awaits, Great Love Knows No Bounds

To General Li, these two short words sounded like a death knell.

He knew that the eunuch had countless ways to torture people, such as the terrifying punishments of "Can't Breathe," "Sudden Roar," and "Dead Pig's Sorrow." Once subjected to them, it would be far worse than death to be alive.

Thinking of this.

General Li's heart filled with dread, and his face turned pale.

Seeing the change in his expression, Xiao Minghuang continued:

"Even if you don't say it, I know who sent you."

"The Second Prince sent your accomplice, the assassin from the Divine Sea Realm earlier today, to kill me, but failed."

"The moment your accomplice made their move, you witnessed it all, and a killing intent arose in your heart. I happened to sense it, and that's why I set this trap for you tonight!"

"Am I correct?"

Hearing these words, General Li was shocked. Although there were some discrepancies in her analysis, the general facts were not wrong.

Initially, someone from the capital had approached him, presented a token, and claimed to be a confidant of King Wu'an. Their mission was to assassinate the Ninth Princess Xiao Minghuang.

He, in reality, was a spy who had been lurking in Beiyang City for a long time, and his true identity was that of the Second Prince's subordinate.

The two hit it off immediately. He helped the assassin obtain a Beast Taming Token from the Beast Taming Sect and assisted in triggering a Beast Tide, aiming to assassinate Xiao Minghuang amidst the chaos.

This plan killed two birds with one stone: it would eliminate Xiao Minghuang and frame the Beast Taming Sect, thus clearing their own names.

However, they never expected the assassination, which should have been successful, to fail.

General Li glared hatefully at Xiao Minghuang before closing his eyes and remaining silent.

Seeing that he refused to speak, Xiao Minghuang's patience finally ran out. She said indifferently:

"Eunuch Wang, this person is yours. Before dawn, I want to know the entire truth from his mouth."

Hearing this, a hint of cruelty flashed in Wang Jin's eyes. Since he had advanced to the Divine Sea Realm, it had been a long time since he had personally handled such dirty work. He had almost forgotten the taste of inflicting severe torture on others. Today, he would use the person in front of him to reminisce about his youth!

"Kid, come with me!"

As he spoke, Wang Jin flicked his sleeve, sweeping General Li away.

With the villain apprehended, Lin Zhengquan led the guards to apologize and withdraw.

The pavilion returned to peace.

Lin Wanqiu stepped forward, sighed, and said helplessly:

"Your Highness, your move truly frightened me."

Xiao Minghuang leaned back against a cushion, stroking Ye Ruoshui's head, and chuckled softly:

"Why panic? Everything was within my expectations."

Ye Ruoshui wriggled and raised her small face, asking playfully:

"Your Highness, what were you and Sister Lin secretly doing?"

Before Xiao Minghuang could reply, Lin Wanqiu interjected:

"Ruoshui, you should talk to Her Highness. She was so badly injured, yet she used her own safety as bait to lure the assassin to attack. It's fortunate nothing happened, but what if Her Highness had been seriously injured or worse?"

Hearing Lin Wanqiu's words, Ye Ruoshui's small eyebrows furrowed, and a hint of reproach appeared in her beautiful big eyes.

However, facing Xiao Minghuang's innocent and gentle expression, she couldn't bring herself to say anything accusatory. She simply said dryly:

"Your Highness, please don't do this again in the future."

Xiao Minghuang immediately responded obediently:

"Sister knows she was wrong."

Hearing this, Ye Ruoshui's face lit up with joy. She spread her arms and nestled into Xiao Minghuang's embrace, burying her small face in her chest and nuzzling.

"Ruoshui likes Your Highness the most!"

Xiao Minghuang didn't know why Ye Ruoshui suddenly confessed. Perhaps it was because her sudden injury during the day had frightened the young girl.

She gently stroked the little girl's back and softly comforted her:

"Sister likes Ruoshui the most too. I won't leave Ruoshui, don't worry."

Seeing this scene, Lin Wanqiu, standing nearby, surprisingly felt no jealousy.

In the past, if she had seen Xiao Minghuang and Ye Ruoshui so close, she would have been filled with bitterness and jealousy.

But in this scene, she only felt a sense of warmth.

It was as if...

A mischievous younger sister was playfully acting spoiled towards a gentle elder sister.

Lin Wanqiu couldn't bear to ruin the harmonious scene and remained silent, sitting quietly to the side.

After this period of getting along, she had come to understand Xiao Minghuang more deeply.

She knew that Your Highness treated her and Ye Ruoshui equally, with genuine affection.

This was a great love, unconcerned with order or any other factor.

Anyone recognized by Your Highness would receive her most sincere tenderness.

At this moment.

On the bed.

Xiao Minghuang suddenly opened her arms, smiled charmingly at Lin Wanqiu, and said softly:

"Wanqiu?"

Hearing the gentle voice, Lin Wanqiu's expression faltered, and she immediately looked over.

She saw Xiao Minghuang half-reclining, her face full of tender smiles, as if welcoming her back to a safe harbor.

Seeing this, Lin Wanqiu's eyes instantly welled up, and her nose tingled.

"Your Highness... is just too gentle... I'm going to cry my eyes out!"

Lin Wanqiu couldn't hold back any longer and half-heartedly snuggled into Xiao Minghuang's embrace.

Ye Ruoshui sensed her arrival and even proactively shifted, making space for her.

"Ruoshui truly accepts me now..."

Lin Wanqiu sighed inwardly, feeling the soft and sweet embrace of Xiao Minghuang, her sense of satisfaction utterly indescribable.

She had truly put in so much effort to build a good relationship with Ye Ruoshui.

Holding the two beauties, Xiao Minghuang naturally lay back on the bed. She controlled her spiritual energy to remove their outer clothes, leaving them in thin, translucent inner garments. She then pulled the quilt over them, and the three nestled together.

Deep in the night, all was silent.

The three could only hear each other's heartbeats.

Thump!

Thump!

Thump!

But at this moment, their hearts were filled with peace, not a hint of lust.

After the assassination attempt during the day, they were all mentally exhausted.

Especially Ye Ruoshui and Lin Wanqiu.

When Xiao Minghuang was attacked during the day, they had felt a sense of dizziness.

Lin Wanqiu, being the young lady of Beiyang City and having experienced hardships since childhood, possessed a resolute character and could still maintain some rationality.

If Xiao Minghuang had met with an accident, she might have, after grieving, found the strength to cultivate diligently and seek revenge for Xiao Minghuang once she became stronger.

But Ye Ruoshui was different. She had lost her parents at a young age, and Xiao Minghuang had adopted her. To her, Xiao Minghuang was everything.

If Xiao Minghuang died, she couldn't imagine living on alone.

Now that the hidden assassins had finally been exposed, Ye Ruoshui could finally relax completely.

Unknowingly.

They drifted off to sleep with the sound of the wind.

68. Who is the Mastermind?

The next morning.

Sunlight broke through, and all things began to awaken.

Xiao Minghuang slowly opened her eyes, her thoughts clear.

Beside her, the two women, Ye and Lin, were nestled against her shoulders, their small faces adorned with peaceful smiles, as if they were having sweet dreams.

Xiao Minghuang gently withdrew from their embrace, softly pulled the quilt up for them, and quietly got out of bed.

She walked out of the room, closing the door behind her. She saw Eunuch Wang standing outside the courtyard gate, in a guard-like posture, with his eyes closed.

Xiao Minghuang walked forward.

Before she could get close, Wang Jin sensed her presence, opened his eyes, and cupped his hands in greeting.

"Your Highness!"

Xiao Minghuang nodded. Last night, she had ordered Wang Jin to interrogate General Li. A night had passed, and with the Grand Eunuch's methods, she assumed he had extracted all possible information.

"Regarding the interrogation of General Li, did you learn any-"

Wang Jin bowed slightly and respectfully replied:

"Your Highness is divinely intelligent and a brilliant strategist. That General Li was indeed a subordinate of the Second Prince. He had been lurking in Beiyang City for many years and worked his way up to the position of captain of the City Lord's Guard Team, deceiving everyone."

"Good. Lead the way. I want to question him myself."

"Your Highness, this way please."

Wang Jin waved his hand, pointing in a direction.

Xiao Minghuang took a step, leading the way.

Not long after.

The two arrived inside a secret chamber.

In the hidden small room, General Li was securely bound to an iron pillar, his entire body covered in bloodstains and plastered with talismans that sealed his spiritual energy. He was also tightly bound by an iron chain as thick as an arm, unable to move even slightly.

As if hearing their footsteps, General Li suddenly opened his eyes, his pupils filled with pain and despair. He shouted:

"Please! Kill me! Kill me!"

Seeing this, Xiao Minghuang's delicate brows furrowed slightly, and she glanced at Wang Jin. The latter immediately bowed and said respectfully:

"This scoundrel's mouth is quite stubborn. This old servant had no choice but to use some methods he doesn't usually employ."

"But please rest assured, Your Highness, he has not lost his mind. He will not forget anything he is supposed to know."

Yesterday, during the Beast Tide, Wang Jin failed to protect Xiao Minghuang and then accidentally killed the assassin with a palm strike, marking two consecutive failures.

Now, interrogating General Li was his chance to atone for his mistakes, so how could he not put his all into it?

Xiao Minghuang knew this and didn't dwell on it. She relaxed her brows and said softly:

"I naturally trust Eunuch Wang's work."

Hearing this, Wang Jin secretly let out a sigh of relief, his anxious heart slightly easing. He said even more respectfully:

"Thank you for your praise, Your Highness. It is this old servant's honor to serve you!"