FID – Chapter 1074

Chapter 1074 — That’s Lucky Nannan, Damn It!

Half an hour wasn’t long; it passed in a blink.

After Liu Yusheng was brought out from behind the screen by palace maids, she didn’t spare the old Emperor a glance. She stepped forward, ready to leave, but was stopped.

Her folded hands slowly tightened. She turned back and met the old Emperor’s deep, unfathomable gaze.

The procession set out again, continuing toward the royal temple.

The dragon palanquin was in the middle of the formation, its semi-transparent bright yellow curtains drawing every eye.

When the wind stirred, the curtains swayed, revealing fleeting silhouettes inside.

After reaching the royal temple, the Emperor led the royal family inside. Once the rites were completed, they turned toward the Xiliang River.

“The Xiliang River is the main sacred river of our country. Every year, during the ritual of worshiping the River God, a woman must be offered to him.” Among the tightly packed spectators along the riverbank, someone whispered an explanation to a companion.

“To do something so cruel… tsk-tsk. Your old Emperor really is a pervert. And you people, your brains are stuffed full of manure.”

The lazy voice sounded half like a sigh, half like a remark, yet carried not even a hint of sympathy.

The common folk were blindly obedient. They brought this upon themselves. What use was pity?

If you really went up to them and lectured them loudly, they might lift their hoes and beat you to death.

A classic case of failing to recognize good intentions.

“Fine, talk if you want, but how can you insult people like that?”

“Who did I insult? I’m stating facts. Honest words just sound unpleasant.”

The two men whisper-argued back and forth. Beside them stood a third person, silent from beginning to end, his deep, dark eyes fixed ahead—watching the bright yellow figure step onto the riverside altar to offer incense.

They were far away, unable to see the person on the platform clearly, but that attire was unmistakable.

“Hey.” An elbow bumped his arm. Xue Qinglian leaned close to Feng Qingbai. “See the guards around the altar? Do you think you’ve got a chance? Let me say this first, I’m not dying for you.”

Around the high platform, blade-wielding guards stood in strict formation, and hidden among them were numerous top-tier imperial experts.

They had barely managed to blend into the sacrificial procession to escape the palace, and he had absolutely no intention of getting caught again.

That place was truly unfit for humans. There wasn’t even anywhere proper to sleep!

He had spent days curled up on roof beams, contorting himself into all sorts of shapes. It was going to stunt his growth!

More importantly they were outnumbered. They couldn’t win!

He was seriously considering running for his life first, then figuring out how to rescue Nannan later.

“Afraid of dying?” The silent man finally spoke, his thin lips parting.

Xue Qinglian nodded. “Yes. Terrified!”

“You don’t want to go?”

“I don’t want to!”

“Should I kill you now?”

“…For a brother, I’d take a blade to the ribs. How could I fear death? Let’s go, right now!”

Qian Yi stood beside them, watching Xue Qinglian with starry eyes. His ability to change his expression so naturally was several levels above her.

She must learn that!

Fortunately, there were unusually many people today, noise everywhere, and the three of them kept their voices low, so no one overheard.

Otherwise, if even one person shouted ‘Assassins!’ from the crowd, the three of them would be finished.

Xue Qinglian quietly surveyed the surroundings, decided absolutely not to speak further for now, and slipped two small medicine pouches from his robe. He handed them to the other two. “When we’re in a crowd, use these. They’ll keep you alive.”

Qian Yi squeezed the swollen pouch; there was a lot of powder inside. “You were stuck in the palace. Where did you get ingredients to make these?”

“The Imperial Medical Bureau.”

“…” So he’d been raiding the Imperial Medical Bureau all along. How did no one catch him?

Catching sight of the girl’s worshipful gaze, Xue Qinglian swallowed the explanation he was about to give.

The medicinal ingredients had all been robbed by Feng Qingbai for him. With Xue Qinglian’s half-baked skills, how could he possibly sneak into the Imperial Medical Bureau on his own?

If he said that out loud, it would ruin his image. So he didn’t.

Ignoring the banter beside him, Feng Qingbai kept his gaze fixed on the black-clad figure standing beside the bright yellow silhouette on the high platform.

When she left the palace, he had been right behind her, watching her step into the dragon palanquin.

But there were too many experts around the old Emperor; he couldn’t get close. He could only blend into the guard squad and follow.

When they were discovered earlier and had to escape, it was only after using the masks Xue Qinglian had made beforehand that they managed to reinsert themselves into the procession leaving the palace—by the Mao hour (5-7) this morning.

The entire time, they had no way to get near Changshou Palace, no way to contact the woman.

If she couldn’t receive any message from them, she would remain in the Emperor’s grasp. A dark fire flickered in Feng Qingbai’s eyes. When he looked at the bright yellow figure, a flash of killing intent crossed his gaze.

On the high platform, the old Emperor was already reciting the sacrificial incantation loudly toward the Xiliang River. The surrounding crowd erupted even more fiercely, excitement and shrill screams rising among them.

“They’re about to offer the sacrifice to the River God.” Qian Yi stopped joking with Xue Qinglian and pressed her lips together, looking in that direction.

Xue Qinglian’s chest tightened as he looked too. The Bastards, they really are using a living person as a sacrifice!

And Feng Qingbai—when he saw the blade-wielding guards walk toward the black-clad figure on the high platform, tying her with ropes and pulling her toward the edge—his eyes instantly turned blood-red.

“Holy shit, you sons of—!” Xue Qinglian exploded in anger, cursing as he shoved through the crowd and charged toward the platform.

That was their Lucky Nannan!

That decrepit, undead bastard of an emperor was trying to sacrifice their Lucky Nannan to the River God!

But the moment he took a step, a powerful force yanked him backward.

“Feng Qingbai, what the hell is wrong with you?! You’re the one who insisted on saving her. Now that it’s happening for real, you’re scared?!” Realizing he was being dragged back by Feng Qingbai himself, Xue Qinglian grew furious, his words turning reckless.

Immediately, people on the high platform noticed the disturbance; countless guards charged toward their direction.

The common folk didn’t understand what was happening, but the imperial guards were cold and murderous. Who would dare stand in their way? People surged back, parting to avoid disaster.

Using the brief chaos caused by the crowd’s movement, Feng Qingbai dragged Xue Qinglian and Qian Yi, quickly blending into the masses.

By the time the guards reached the spot, the cleared area where the crowd had pulled back contained only a few garments identical to the palace guards’—but the people themselves were nowhere to be seen.

“Search! Dig up the earth if you have to! I want them found!” The voice of the man in the dragon robe on the high platform was ice-cold.

The commoners, realizing that something serious had occurred, hurriedly avoided the area, terrified of getting caught up in it.

The scene descended into even greater chaos.

At that moment, three people dressed like ordinary citizens pressed themselves into the crowd, moving with the flow toward the outskirts.

“Let go of me! If you’re scared of dying, get out of the way! I’ll go alone!”

That was the Xiliang River! The water was surging!

If Nannan was tied up and thrown in, could she even survive?

By now, the blood-red fury in Feng Qingbai’s eyes had faded, but he continued dragging the others forward. “She’s not Shengsheng.”

“What the hell—what did you say?”

“She’s not Shengsheng. It’s a trap. Are you going to go?”

Xue Qinglian faltered, his struggle slowing. “How do you know it’s not Lucky Nannan? We’re so far away, and she’s wearing a veil. Can you see through it?”

“Telepathy,” Feng Qingbai said calmly.

At first, when he realized what the guards were doing, he had nearly gone mad. Then he sensed something was off.

In that situation, Shengsheng wouldn’t tremble in fear, nor would she frantically look around for him.

Just as he would never drag Shengsheng into danger even if it meant dying, she was the same.