Clouds and Moon Shadow

Chapter 369: Challenged King Li, and suffered a complete defeat.

Two men in gray landed lightly a short distance away like ghosts, but did not approach.

After observing for a while and confirming that everyone had been poisoned and collapsed, the two men in gray gestured towards the woods.

A moment later, a dozen or so men dressed in the same way appeared around the two of them. Each of them had a cloth covering their face with the same color, revealing only a pair of cold eyes.

"Quickly," the leader shouted.

A group of people quickly stepped forward, each grabbed one, and headed into the woods.

Fifteen minutes later, seven or eight men dressed as guards from the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion emerged from the woods, escorting a beautiful woman and followed by a maid.

The woman was wearing the same clothes that 'Qin Shi' had worn before.

The group tidied up the carriage and luggage that Gu Qingyue and the others had driven earlier. The woman boarded Qin's carriage, and the group continued towards Ci'en Temple.

They walked slowly and leisurely, without any rush.

In the woods just now, on a lush, green tree, Gu Qingyue sat quietly on a branch. She saw everything, but she didn't make a move; she was waiting.

Just now, everyone collapsed from 'poisoning,' and Gu Qingyue took the opportunity to leap onto a large tree, so she wasn't taken away by them.

She wanted to watch the show, so why would she let herself get into trouble?

In the dense forest in the distance, the gray-clad leader dragged the unconscious woman to a secluded ravine and threw her to the ground, saying, "The others are yours. Find a place to lock them up first."

"Chief Liu, what about these two maids?" a man in gray asked, carrying two maids in his hands.

The gray-clad leader turned his head, gave him a sinister look, picked up the woman from the ground, turned and flew away, disappearing into the woods.

Seeing this, the man in gray was overjoyed, "Brothers, these two girls are ours."

Upon hearing this, a malicious laugh came from behind.

As darkness fell in the mountains and forests, a dark figure swiftly disappeared into the woods.

"master".

“Speak,” Gu Qingyue said.

“They have already entered Ci’en Temple, and the woman, disguised as a lady, is already resting in a guest room,” Yu Mo said in a low voice.

"Hmm, which worshippers are at the temple today?" Gu Qingyue drew her longsword, a silver glint flashing through the darkness, chilling to the bone.

"There were some female relatives from nearby counties and towns. The only male guest was Cheng Anbo Lin Zizhan, who arrived at the temple early this morning. He said he came to ask Master Chen to consecrate a string of Bodhi beads as a birthday gift for his mother."

“Hmm, very good, keep an eye on him,” Gu Qingyue paused, “and also—that ‘madam’ in the temple.”

"Yes, according to the information obtained from the guest monk, Princess Mu Qingfeng and Princess Pei will come to the temple tomorrow for a three-day prayer ceremony to pray for the Great Chu."

"Heh------", Gu Qingyue sheathed her sword and said sarcastically, "Interesting."

Night fell over the capital city.

The streets were brightly lit, and people strolled around, shopping, chatting, and talking, creating a peaceful and harmonious atmosphere.

Amidst the peaceful atmosphere, the uproar caused by the two imperial edicts granting marriages was spreading rapidly to every corner of the capital.

When it comes to the arranged marriage between Prince Li and Gu Qingyue, most of the men feel heartbroken and even weep bitterly, regretting that they met before she was married.

The women were either envious and jealous, or overjoyed, because Gu Qingyue, this 'femme fatale,' had finally found her match!

After all, Gu Qingyue's reputation as the most beautiful woman in the capital made other women who were about to get engaged feel both love and hate!

Of course, those who were even more frustrated were the mansions in the capital that had been preparing to ask the emperor for a marriage decree. Many people were still trying to find out the attitude of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, but they did not expect that the imperial decree for the marriage decree had already been issued!

Punch the wall!

Meanwhile, Gu Qingyue, who was in the mountains, had no idea how much gossip in the capital that night was about her.

She was still calmly pondering the conspiracy of the Liu family and the Prince An's mansion.

Second floor of He Tai Fung.

"Brother Yuanchen, you...you've been incredibly kind to me, your brother...I have nothing to say, nothing to say, you're a true brother..."

In a private room on the second floor, Liu Zichan, dressed in a dark blue outfit, patted Gu Yuanchen on the shoulder, his eyes glazed over and his cheeks flushed.

With beads of sweat or tears on his face, he stammered, "You...my sister is my sister! Yes, she's really beautiful, I want to marry her...Moon, she..."

Gu Yuanchen pushed away the big head that was pressing on his shoulder, grabbed him by the back of the neck, and threw him onto the chair next to him.

Liu Zichan patted his chest defiantly, "I'm asking for your hand in marriage...brother..." Gu Yuanchen really wanted to roll his eyes.

Looking at his face, which was covered in bruises and disfigurements, he had completely lost his former bold and handsome appearance.

Gu Yuanchen felt a little sorry for this guy.

Today's martial arts competition at the training ground was originally intended as a selection contest between centurions, but Liu Zichan, relying on what he thought were his superior skills, utterly defeated several centurions who had already advanced.

What's even more outrageous is that King Li happened to be passing by the arena and was also singled out by him to challenge him to a match.

Prince Li naturally didn't hold back. After a series of back-and-forth blows, the tall and burly Liu Zichan was knocked down countless times. If Gu Yuanchen hadn't seen how miserable he was and carried him down halfway, he would probably be lying in the clinic right now.

King Li showed mercy.

According to his understanding, King Li was incredibly skilled and unfathomable. He was said to have studied under Master Jingyun of Wumi Mountain in Jiangnan. How could someone like Liu Zichan, a nobody, possibly challenge him?

However, he felt that the Prince of Li's expression was strange today. He probably knew that Liu Zichan wanted to marry his younger sister. Alas! Poor Liu Zichan!

"Alright, Second Brother, you should take him back first. Don't let his nonsense ruin my reputation," Gu Yuanming said, unable to bear it any longer. He waved his hand, signaling Gu Yuanchen to get the man away quickly.

"Alright".

I heard that as soon as the imperial decree for marriage was issued the day before yesterday, this guy locked himself in his room and refused to eat or drink.

In the end, it was only after his grandfather dragged him out of the room and gave him a severe beating that things returned to normal.

But today, unwilling to accept defeat, he challenged King Li again, only to be utterly crushed...

Thinking of this, Gu Yuanchen inexplicably felt a little sympathy for this drunken guy.

He tilted his head back and drank the wine in his glass in one gulp, then clapped his hands.

He lifted the man who was completely drunk and unconscious, and after a slight struggle, said, "Come on, keep drinking! Yue'er..."

"Liu Zichan!" Gu Yuanchen couldn't help but slap him, knocking him unconscious with a 'bang,' then carried him away.

The study of Prince Jing's residence.

Every now and then, the sound of porcelain shattering could be heard coming from the study.

The servants in the courtyard were so frightened that they seemed to have instantly mastered advanced light-body skills, and all of them walked silently.

They were afraid of angering King Jing and suffering a terrible fate.

"Damn it! Guards!" came the King Jing's cold voice from the study.

Such a voice would never have come from King Jing's mouth before, but now King Jing is on the verge of exploding in rage.

"Master," a guard said as he pushed open the door and entered.

"Send Qingxue away to a brothel, where she will never be able to redeem herself."

The guard trembled upon hearing this.

Remembering how Qingxue offended Miss Gu and ruined the Prince's plans last time, she was punished with thirty lashes upon her return, and she had only just recovered a few days ago...

All he could do was light a candle for Qingxue in his heart.

However, she deserved it. Otherwise, the prince might have already won Miss Gu's heart and successfully obtained a marriage decree. Miss Gu would be the future Princess Jing now.

But King Le beat him to it!

"Yes," the guard replied, turning and disappearing into the night.

Before they had gone far, the sound of porcelain shattering echoed from the study again.