Film and Television: The Collector Who Rampages Across the Heavens

Chapter 78 Transition

He echoed Prince Yu's words, saying, "Father, I believe that Jingyan and Jinglin are right."

"In that case, I hereby grant you the authority to mobilize a hundred men to assist the Ministry of Justice, the Court of Judicial Review, and the Patrol Battalion in bringing the murderer to justice as quickly as possible."

Emperor Liang glanced at the three men expressionlessly and said indifferently.

"Yes"

All the princes bowed and paid their respects.

After leaving the palace, Su Li returned to the Prince's residence and learned that Princess Nihuang had come to visit the injured Xia Dong.

As soon as I arrived near the residence, I heard two women talking inside.

"Greetings, Your Highness!"

When the maids on both sides saw him coming, they quickly bowed and greeted him.

Princess Nihuang, who was speaking, turned around and looked over, a complex expression flashing across her almond-shaped eyes: "Your Highness Prince Ling has returned from the palace?"

"Yes, the murderer hasn't been caught yet, and there's a lot of conflict in the court. Father Emperor summoned a few of us to discuss matters." Su Li said calmly, without revealing any emotion.

"I've heard about this too. Who has the audacity to attack the Imperial Guards and the Suspended Mirror Bureau one after another?"

Princess Nihuang's pretty face showed a serious curiosity. "But I still thank Your Highness for rescuing Sister Dong in time."

"No need to thank me, Lord Xia is just lucky."

Su Li glanced at Xia Dong. As a martial artist, Xia Dong's body recovered quite quickly, and his originally pale complexion had regained some color.

Lying on the bed, Xia Dong coughed lightly twice and said with a smile, "Yes, I've always been lucky; I always manage to escape death."

Nihuang rolled her eyes at her: "If you know it's dangerous, bring more guards next time you go out. You only have one life, and I don't want to lose you as my close friend."

"Don't scold me, I'll definitely bring more next time."

Xia Dong coughed twice more, speaking weakly.

Seeing her condition, Nihuang knew it wasn't appropriate to disturb her any longer, so she told Xia Dong to rest and then took her leave.

Su Li followed behind, politely seeing them off. As they passed through the corridor, Nihuang suddenly asked, "Does Your Highness still remember the Chiyan Army case from several years ago—"

Su Li's eyes flickered as she looked at that spirited and pretty face: "I don't know much about her. You know I went to the northern border to guard the frontier when I was very young. By the time I returned, the turmoil in the court had long since ended."

"Is there something you wish to know, Princess?"

Nihuang felt a slight unease in the other person's gaze and was startled. She shook her head repeatedly, "No, I just felt that the court disputes of the past two days are so similar to those before the Chiyan case. They both carry the air of factional strife."

"No matter how much factional strife there is, as long as the princess remains neutral and doesn't get involved, the Mu Royal Mansion will always be the Mu Royal Mansion," Su Li said, seemingly offering a well-intentioned reminder.

Nihuang forced a smile, took a deep breath, and her face blossomed into a smile.

"Your Highness is right, no need to see me off, we'll meet again next time."

She lifted her long leg to step out the door, but then she heard Su Li's words: "Princess, we haven't seen each other for so many days. Have you been holding a grudge against me all this time?"

Nihuang's delicate body trembled slightly, and without turning her head, she said, "Your Highness, what are you saying? Don't forget what we said last time: once this matter is over, it's over."

"Yeah?"

Seeing that Su Li did not speak again, Nihuang quickly walked out of the palace.

Watching her tall figure disappear, Su Li smiled.

According to the intelligence he obtained, Princess Nihuang has already recognized Mei Changsu as Lin Shu. She has also made up her mind to support him in helping Prince Jing ascend the throne, to put an end to the old case of the Chiyan Army in the court, and to let the world know that the Lin family is innocent.

Her words just now were clearly a test to see how he felt about the Crimson Flame Army.

If there is any indication of "discontent," then perhaps Su Li could be brought into Prince Jing's camp.

This woman may have sought him out to help Prince Jing, or perhaps she had complex feelings about losing her virginity for the first time and believed that Mei Changsu's camp was the bright and promising side.

But when Su Li indicated that she had no preference, she immediately claimed that she was just expressing her feelings, without revealing her true intentions at all.

It's a pity that he and they are not on the same path.

There is only one throne, and only one person can sit on it.

Over the next few days, Su Li and Prince Jing, along with Prince Yu and their entourage, began working day and night to plan and patrol the city, searching for the murderer.

Perhaps sensing the danger, Xie Yu stopped assigning assassins to work, and everything became calm again.

The arrival of the Southern Chu delegation in Jinling, a journey of thousands of miles, foreshadowed the start of Mei Changsu's scheme, marking the beginning of his actions against Marquis Xie Yu of Ningguo.

Gong Yu can no longer act as bait to tell Qin Banruo about the murder of her entire family, but Mei Changsu has arranged for others to ensure the plan can proceed smoothly.

Perhaps to prevent him from hindering the downfall of Marquis Ningguo Xie Yu, Mei Changsu deliberately arranged for someone to bump into him on the street.

"Su Zhe greets His Highness Prince Ling."

Mei Changsu bowed slightly, displaying an elegant demeanor and refined manners.

"Mr. Su, is there something you need?"

Su Li dismounted from his tall horse and glanced at Zhen Ping and Fei Liu, who were looking on guard behind him.

"I have arranged a private room in this restaurant, and I would like to have a chat with Your Highness."

Su Li smiled and said, "It is my honor to be invited by the talented Qilin Scholar. Please!"

"Your Highness, please go first—"

Mei Changsu followed behind and entered the private room of the restaurant. Zhen Ping closed the door and waited outside with a group of guards from the Prince's Mansion.

Mei Changsu placed a cup of tea in front of Su Li with both hands and said, "This is the finest Willow Leaf Green tea, Your Highness, please enjoy it."

Su Li slowly took a sip and turned her gaze over.

"Your Highness harbors ambitions to seize the throne. I believe that your greatest rival, like Prince Yu, is the Crown Prince. And the Crown Prince's most trusted minister is Xie Yu, the Marquis of Ningguo, who enjoys His Majesty's deep favor."

Mei Changsu looked at Prince Ling opposite him and, seeing that he had no expression, continued, "Ten days from now is Xiao Jingrui's birthday. I have arranged a good show at the Ningguo Marquis's residence and would like to invite Your Highness to watch it."

Su Li did not answer directly, but instead asked, "Is Prince Jing going or not?"

Mei Changsu paused for a moment, then said, "I haven't invited Prince Jing yet, but I'm sure he will go."

"If Prince Jing goes, then I will go. I'm sure the play you've arranged will be very exciting."

"I will never let Your Highness down."

Su Li nodded, stood up, went to the window, pointed to the magnificent imperial city and the distant mountains, and said, "Mr. Su, who do you think will ultimately own this beautiful land?"

Mei Changsu's eyes flickered, and he said in a deep voice, "I don't know, but throughout history, it has always been the virtuous who hold power."

"Yeah?"

Su Li smiled, placed the teacup on the table, and strode out of the private room.

Zhen Ping hurried in and, seeing Mei Changsu sitting motionless, quickly said, "Sect Master?"

Mei Changsu said leisurely, "The chess pieces have been placed; now we'll see the outcome."

Ten days passed in the blink of an eye; the night was clear and bright, dotted with stars.

The street where the Ningguo Marquis's residence was located was bustling with activity, filled with officials of all ranks who came to visit. The sheer number of people stretched from one end of the street to the other, which gave an idea of ​​Xie Yu's immense power.

"Lord Xia Chun of the Suspended Mirror Division has arrived!"

Even though Xia Dong recovered quickly from his injury, Xia Chun still attended the birthday celebration on his behalf.

"Commander Meng of the Imperial Guards has arrived—"

"Mr. Su Zhe has arrived!"

Whenever someone arrived, his retainers would call out their names. If someone was someone worthy of his acquaintance, Xie Yu would personally greet them.

He exchanged pleasantries with everyone, but when he heard who the next person was, he paused for a moment.

"His Highness Prince Jing has arrived!"

Why is Prince Jing here? Xie Yu greeted him with a smile on his face, but inwardly he was puzzled.

Apart from being familiar with the Crown Prince, he had no connection with any of the other princes, so the appearance of Prince Jing was quite unexpected for him.

Seeing the expression on Xie Yu's face, Prince Jing laughed and said, "What, does the Marquis not welcome my arrival?"

"How dare I? Your Highness's presence at my son's birthday celebration is an absolute honor for me."

Xie Yu's face immediately lit up with a smile, and he invited him to sit inside.

Prince Jing waved his hand, saying meaningfully, "Let's wait a little longer; Eighth Brother should be coming soon."

"Prince Ling?"

Xie Yu was truly taken aback; his small birthday banquet had unexpectedly attracted two princes.

Could it be that Jingrui has such a wide network of connections? He doesn't seem to care much about this son who isn't his biological son.

A commotion arose outside, and sure enough, a group of people entered the mansion; it was Prince Ling and four guards from the royal palace.

"Greetings, Your Highness Prince Ling."

Even though Xie Yu was a first-rank military marquis, he still had to be extremely respectful when facing these princes.

"Lord Xie, there's no need for such formalities. I've come uninvited today, please forgive me."

Su Li greeted Prince Jing and glanced at the people who had come to the room.

"Your Highness, please—"

The appearance of the two princes also surprised the Tianquan Manor family, Princess Liyang, and others.

Xiao Jingrui was completely bewildered. When did he become so familiar with Prince Ling and Prince Jing?

Yu Jin and the second young master Xie Bi kept pestering him with questions, and Xiao Jingrui, annoyed, could only mumble and give vague answers.

Seeing that most of the guests had arrived, Xie Yu began to order the doors to be closed, but unexpectedly, a voice came from outside: "What are you closing? I haven't arrived yet, how can the banquet begin?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than a slender, sword-wielding, middle-aged man with graying hair and beard, dressed as a man from Chu, leaped in.

This person is none other than Yue Xiuzhe, who ranks fifth on the Langya List of Masters and serves as the Commander of the Palace Guard in the Great Chu. His Cloud-Suppressing Sword Technique is renowned throughout the world.

Behind him followed Prince Ling of the Great Chu, Yuwen Xuan, and a woman with a veil over her face, a slender figure, and a captivating beauty.

Her exposed skin was delicate and fair, her hair was bound with a gold hairpin, and her dark hair cascaded down her back like waves. One glance was enough to tell that she was a beauty.

"Your Highness, I don't recall inviting you, did I?"

Even if Xie Yu was foolish, he sensed something was wrong and angrily retorted, "This is the kind of person you people from Great Chu are, coming uninvited and disrupting my son's birthday celebration!"

"What do you mean by disturbing? I'm here to celebrate for Young Master Xiao. Look, I even brought a gift."

Yuwen Xuan opened the brocade box in his hand with a strange cry, revealing a priceless luminous pearl.

"You—" Xie Yu was furious.

"My lord, guests are guests. Since the people of Great Chu are all here, please don't make a fuss. I think it's getting late, let's begin the birthday banquet."

Su Li sat upright in her seat and offered a reminder.

Xie Yu took a deep breath and said coldly, "Since His Highness Prince Ling has given the order, then Prince Ling, Lord Yue, and this young lady, please take your seats."

After everyone was seated, the songstresses came out one by one and began their performances, creating a peaceful and lively atmosphere.

After the song ended, Xia Chun broke the atmosphere: "Thank you, Lord Marquis. The song was wonderful, but we are all skilled martial artists. We have heard that Master Zhuo's martial arts are superb, and his 'Flying Birds to the Forest' is truly a world-class skill. We would like to ask for your guidance."

His junior sister's betrayal had long fueled his anger, which he vented after searching extensively.

Tianquan Manor was his clue, and Xia Chun would naturally not let go of such a good opportunity to test him today.

Before Xie Yu could speak, the chopsticks in his hand flew out like a sharp sword.

Zhuo Dingfeng dodged to the side, and Xia Chun, chopsticks in hand, charged forward.

A small chopstick, like a gleaming dagger, easily tore Zhuo Dingfeng's sleeve with a gentle cut.

Xia Chun sneered and tossed the chopsticks to the other man: "Master Zhuo, swords have no eyes, you'd better be serious."

No sooner had he finished speaking than he charged forward again. Seeing this, Zhuo Dingfeng knew he could no longer avoid the fight, so he used chopsticks as thin as his little finger to engage him in combat.

With a flash of lightning, the two exchanged five or six moves. Although Xia Chun was strong, he was still no match for Zhuo Dingfeng. In the end, he was defeated when his throat was touched by chopsticks.

"You're too kind!"

Zhuo Dingfeng said something indifferently and returned to his seat.

"Wonderful, absolutely wonderful! As expected of the world-renowned Tianquan Sword Technique, it truly lives up to its reputation after seeing it today," Meng Zhi exclaimed first.

Yuwen Xuan also laughed and said, "Yes, it's worth it for me to come to Daliang today to witness Master Zhuo's swordsmanship in person."

Su Li clapped her hands, showing her appreciation through her actions.

Prince Jing: "Truly exquisite!"

Zhuo Dingfeng took a sip of tea, glanced at Xie Yu out of the corner of his eye, and said, "Thank you for your praise, Your Highness—"

Yuwen Xuan's eyes darted around: "In that case, let Master Yue's Cloud-Suppressing Sword Technique and the Heavenly Spring Sword Technique have a contest and see which one is stronger, shall we?"

Upon hearing this, Xie Yu could no longer hold back and spoke directly: "Your Highness, I respect you as a person of Chu, so why do you repeatedly cause trouble at my son's banquet?"

Do you really think I wouldn't dare do anything to you?

Yuwen Xuan smiled and said, "My lord, please don't misunderstand. I was just speaking out what Master Yue was thinking. He came to the Marquis's residence this time to challenge Master Zhuo."

"That's right!" Yue Xiuzhe stood up from his seat, gripped his sword, and looked at Zhuo Dingfeng with a gleam in his eyes: "Brother Zhuo, please."

Zhuo Dingfeng has always accepted challenges without hesitation, but in this situation, he glanced at Xie Yu.

The latter angrily retorted, "Yuwen Xuan, don't go too far!"

"Hey, Lord Xie, don't try to pin everything on me. Yue Xiuzhe resigned from his position as Commander of the Palace Guard several months ago. He's now a member of the martial arts world, and the challenges of the martial arts world are his own business."

Meng Zhi chimed in from the side, "That's right. People of the martial world shouldn't be bound by the laws of our court. Besides, the clash between the Tianquan and Eyun sword techniques is something to behold!"

"Lord Xie, please don't obstruct me any further."

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