Embers of Sword

Chapter 734 Freedom
"..."

A barely perceptible glint flashed deep within the white parrot's eyes.

She vaguely caught the hidden meaning in the young emperor's words.

Chu Guo trusted himself.

Chen Jingxuan...can he really trust himself?
"Okay, let's stop beating around the bush."

Chu Guo smiled, took out a stack of case files from his sleeve, and handed them forward, gesturing for the woman to come forward and take them.

"This is?"

The white parrot frowned.

"I know that the Empress has cultivated four special envoys."

Chu Guo slowly said, "These four special envoys hold extremely high positions. Over the past ten years, they have been almost on par with Yuan Jimo..."

Over the past decade, who has enjoyed the Empress Dowager's greatest trust?

That must be Yuan Jimo.

It was precisely because of this "favor" that most of the dirty and tiring work at Renshou Palace would be handled by this head of the Imperial City Guard.

But Yuan Jimu was only one person.

Therefore... the existence of the Four Special Envoys came about.

Blue falcon, white parrot, grey deer, and stag.

Qing Falcon died in the Northern Hunting Demon Tide. "Cang Mi," who took over his mission in the Southern Frontier, was captured during the rebellion of the three major sects and disappeared without a trace along with the Paper Doll Path.

"This is your case file."

Chu Guo calmly said, "The reason why you trusted me to come to Zhenhaitai is because you know about your 'life story'."

The white parrot is not very old.

She was born in Beijun and lost her mother at a young age. Her father died a heroic death during the Battle of Drinking Poison, leaving her an orphan. At that time, Yan Xin, who was in charge of the library, took a liking to this pitiful girl with excellent cultivation talent among the orphans. He brought her to the capital and sent people to teach and guide her carefully.

After the chaos in the Moon Concealment Realm, the Holy Empress also took a liking to her.

Yuan Jimu needs to be stationed in the capital.

At that time, all the garrison commanders had been dismissed, but the "Zhenhaitai" in the northern prefecture needed a trustworthy and strong person to guard it. So the young Bai Ying led the "Tanyiwei Special Envoy Order" northward. The Empress concealed her identity. In the past, Bai Ying had completed all the missions entrusted to her by Renshou Palace with just this special envoy order.

"If I remember correctly... this case file should have been stored in the deepest part of the Imperial City by Renshou Palace."

The white parrot silently took the case file and slowly flipped through it.

The case file was very old, and her life story was only briefly mentioned in a few sentences, almost as if it were just a passing mention.

The case file did not mention the name of her father, who died in battle.

For the Empress Dowager, the name of the "heroic warrior" who died in the battle of drinking poison was not important.

"Renshou Palace no longer exists."

Chu Guo smiled and said, "Getting a case file is not a difficult task."

The vast majority of this case file.

It is the Imperial City Guard's intelligence record of Zhenhaitai, as well as its surveillance of the "White Parrot Envoy".

"..."

The white parrot flipped through the pages, then fell silent once more.

After a long time.

She raised her head, looked at the young emperor before her, and asked with a puzzled expression, "What are you trying to do? Win people's hearts?"

"Winning people's hearts? There's no need for that."

Chu Guo shook his head and said seriously, "Lan Lu has already been executed."

The liquidation of Renshou Palace has come to an end.

The Empress's henchmen and cronies must naturally be completely eliminated.

"Lanlu...was executed?"

Bai Ying's pupils contracted slightly. After being transferred to Zhenhaitai, the only special envoy she had ever contacted was one person. "You should have seen it, right? The vast majority of this file is about your surveillance records."

Chu Guo said calmly, "You are the one responsible for guarding the 'Zhenhai Terrace,' and she is the one responsible for monitoring it... This is the most important 'link' between Da Chu and the Demon Kingdom. Besides monitoring the Zhenhai Terrace, Lan Lu has another task, which is to act as the Holy Empress's 'spy' and maintain private contact with the Demon Kingdom's high-ranking officials."

As Chu Guo spoke, Bai Ying had already vaguely sensed this possibility.

But when I actually heard it, my heart couldn't help but tremble.

"Lanlu...is a traitor?"

The white parrot's expression was complicated; it didn't want to believe it, but it had no choice but to.

She recalled the past years, their encounters, and the strangeness of Zhenhaitai. All the long-standing questions in her heart were answered at this moment... The four special envoys had great power and were deeply trusted by Renshou Palace, so they rarely met. What kind of missions were they carrying out that would make them frequently come to the Northern Territory and pass through Zhenhaitai?

There is only one explanation.

"This is a minor matter. After all, the biggest 'traitor' of the Great Chu is the one who holds power."

Chu Guo shrugged, speaking in a mocking tone about the biggest scandal in the history of the Great Chu Dynasty.

Even the Holy Empress chose to betray.

What does the betrayal of the Lanlu envoy matter?
"Lanlu and I are old friends."

The white parrot lowered its eyes, its voice trembling slightly: "Since she colluded with the demon kingdom... then I cannot escape involvement. Shouldn't you take me with you?"

"Tsk..."

The young emperor crossed his arms and said with a smile, "What are you thinking? This is the method of the former head of the Imperial City Guard, using torture to extract confessions. It's better to kill a thousand innocent people than to let one guilty person go free. You are worlds apart from that kind of person."

The white parrot looked up, its face blank.

“You are different from Envoy Lanlu. You are more pure and simpler than him.”

Chu Guofeng said calmly, "Since you are willing to let me meet with you, it means you trust me. Don't worry, after tonight's conversation, you will not be taken away or detained, nor will you be punished."

The white parrot was the child that Yan Xin brought back.

Although she never knew her relationship with Shulou, she was taken away by Renshou Palace when she was just a little older.

But her upbringing was very pure.

The Empress nurtured this pawn precisely to guard the "Zhenhai Terrace"!
"I don't know……"

The white parrot murmured, "What does His Majesty want to say to me tonight?"

"I hereby remove you from your position as 'Special Envoy'."

Chu Guo spoke slowly, and this was the first time he had used the word "朕" (zhen, meaning "I" or "the emperor") during their conversation.

This is an order that cannot be ignored.

The white parrot trembled slightly, its expression turning somewhat pale.

"You never had a choice before. From this day forward, you will have a choice."

Chu Guo paused for a moment, then said, "If you are tired of Zhenhaitai, you may leave. As long as you do not betray Da Chu and flee to the Demon Kingdom or Da Li, I will allow you to go to various places in Chu territory... You are free."

The conversation turned.

Chu Guo said meaningfully, "But if you are willing to stay at Zhenhai Terrace, I will grant you the title of 'Lord of Zhenhai City' and concurrently fill the vacancy of the Northern Commandery Garrison Commander."

Heavy snow fell on the city wall.

The white parrot silently clutched the stack of case files, squeezing them tightly.

“This stack of case files records your past when you were manipulated by Renshou Palace.”

Chu Guo smiled and said, "The master told me that the special envoy from Renshou Palace is like a shadow that cannot see the light of day..."

"congratulations."

"From this day forward, you are no longer an envoy, nor a shadow."

……

……

(This is the only update tonight; the next update will be tomorrow at noon.)
(End of this chapter)