Ming Dynasty: I am truly not the Emperor of Longevity

At midnight, outside Renshou Palace.

Chen Furong stood outside the main gate of the front hall, glancing occasionally into the gloomy interior.

To avoid suspicion, half an hour earlier, Wang Ningpin had sent him and the eunuchs in the palace outside the palace by falsely claiming an imperial edict.

She had no idea what Consort Wang Ning and the palace maids led by Yang Jinying would do, or whether their operation would go smoothly.

The outcome is up to fate.

To save his life, he must never directly participate in the regicide.

Otherwise, even if you manage to find someone to save you, you'll still be facing certain death.

The emperor originally had no martial arts skills. He ascended the throne at a young age and lived a life of luxury, never having fought with anyone.

Although a man in his thirties was physically stronger than these palace maids, he was still no match for them.

With sixteen palace maids plus Consort Wang, there were a total of seventeen people. Apart from a few who were sent to keep watch, at least ten people were directly involved in the assassination. Since they took advantage of him being asleep, the chances of the assassination succeeding were quite high.

Chen Furong turned her head to look southeast, where the Southern Palace, where the Prince of Ying resided, was located.

I wonder if the Left Protector's operation went smoothly.

It would be best if things went smoothly, but if something goes wrong, I just hope that Wang Ziyan can keep his word and resolve the potential problems for me.

"Consort Zhang, where are you going so late at night?"

Just then, a eunuch's voice came from behind.

Looking back, I saw that it was the palace maid Zhang Jinlian who came out of the hall.

"Let me ask the questions."

Chen Furong walked up to Zhang Jinlian,

"But what does His Majesty need you to do?"

"Reporting to Aunt Chen, His Majesty has ordered me to go to Kunning Palace."

When Zhang Jinlian saw Chen Furong approaching, her previously tense expression relaxed considerably.

"I need something from Her Majesty the Empress."

Become!

Upon hearing Zhang Jinlian's words, Chen Furong instantly felt half relieved.

Zhang Jinlian was a spy sent by Empress Fang to Yikun Palace, and this was clearly to report to Empress Fang.

"It's quite a journey to Kunning Palace."

Chen Furong grabbed Zhang Jinlian.

"It's dark and the roads are slippery, let me accompany you on this journey, and while I'm at it, I'll pay my respects to Her Majesty the Empress."

. . .

At the same time, at the Marquis of Wuding's residence.

Someone's coming!

Lu Chen, who was sitting cross-legged on the roof beam with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them.

One, two, three... six in total!

After having Peng Rui wear double-layered soft armor to impersonate him while lying in bed, Lu Chen hid on the roof beam, waiting for the assassin to arrive.

It was initially thought that the mysterious time traveler's subordinates relied solely on weapons that were ahead of their time, such as modern composite crossbows, flintlock muskets, and even rifled guns.

These things don't require much specialized knowledge; most modern people know some of the principles, or at least one or two of them.

The craftsmen of the Ming Dynasty were fully capable of producing them using the blueprints provided by the time travelers.

If one had some knowledge of chemistry before time travel, it wouldn't be impossible to develop propellants, create percussion caps, or even fixed-load bullets.

Lu Chen even prepared for the possibility that the assassin would possess early-era revolvers or similar repeating firearms.

But what exactly happened to these six assassins who just passed by the roof?

He scanned them with his mental energy but found no firearms or crossbows.

The six men were all carrying cold weapons such as swords and knives.

What surprised Lu Chen even more was that when his mental power swept over the six people, it encountered an invisible barrier and could not enter their bodies!

This only happens to masters who possess internal energy.

At this point, the two sides had not yet engaged in combat. The assassin would not actively use his internal energy to counter the psychic power; what he would encounter was only the passive defensive barrier formed by his internal energy within his body.

Thanks to Peng Rui, a subordinate who developed internal strength from scratch, Lu Chen has gained a considerable understanding of the internal strength cultivated through internal martial arts techniques.

Peng Rui did not develop internal strength and immediately form a passive defense within his body.

That's something he only acquired when he had achieved a minor level of internal strength and was using his mental power to continue helping him cultivate. He would get injured and vomit blood if he made a mistake.

At this point, Peng Rui's internal energy was already sufficient for actual combat, allowing him to fight at least ten ordinary martial artists without internal energy.

Could it be that these six assassins were all masters who had cultivated internal energy?!

Are masters of internal energy so easy to find?

Even the Embroidered Uniform Guard only had seven or eight retainers. Including Xue Ting, who had died in Taiyuan, there were only three masters whose internal energy cultivation had reached a bottleneck. The internal energy cultivation of the other retainers was still lacking.

Four of them are currently lying in ambush outside the guest rooms.

In order not to alert the enemy, Lu Chen did not strengthen his mental power to test the strength of the opponent's internal energy. The extent of his skill was still unknown.

But in any case, these six people are all masters of internal strength, no less than Peng Rui!

That mysterious time traveler actually managed to gather six masters of internal energy and send them to assassinate him!

This is not something an ordinary person can do!

What exactly has this person been up to at "Black Cliff" in Pingding Prefecture all these years?

Could it be that this mysterious time traveler didn't take the path of technological advancement, manufacturing modern guns and cannons, and crushing the Ming Dynasty natives with advanced weaponry?

Or do they really want to create a "Sun Moon Cult" in this world?

Miscalculation!

My preparations today are all aimed at assassins who possess modern firearms.

In the cramped environment of the guest room in the Marquis of Wuding's mansion, even if a few martial arts masters without internal strength were armed with a revolver, they would not be a match for Peng Rui and the four Jinyiwei guards.

He could even leisurely watch the show from the roof beams, watching these assassins being captured alive.

But now, the situation has completely changed, turning into a chaotic battle between six internal energy masters on the other side and five internal energy masters on our side.

In a duel of such scale between experts, it would be difficult for the ordinary guards he brought, as well as the personal guards and bodyguards of the Marquis of Wuding's mansion, to get involved!

The battlefield is narrow, and if they engage in close combat, these ordinary people are no match for a master of internal strength. If they fire arrows from a distance, they are likely to accidentally injure their own side.

In this chaotic battle, our side is at a disadvantage, and the outcome is uncertain. If the assassin wants to leave, it will be extremely difficult to stop him.

never mind!

Lu Chen pulled out a uniquely shaped short-barreled musket from his waist.

This gun has three barrels arranged in a triangle, a handle and a trigger, but no ignition device.

Let them see my unique firearm!

. . .

Inside the Shenwu Gate of the Forbidden City.

After presenting the tokens bestowed by Empress Fang, Chen Furong and Zhang Jinlian successfully entered Shenwu Gate. Two hundred meters further south was Kunning Palace, where the Empress resided.

"what!"

Chen Furong seemed to trip over something and fell to the ground.

"Aunt Chen, are you alright?"

Zhang Jinlian immediately stopped and went forward to help him.

"I'm fine, I just twisted my ankle."

Chen Furong showed a hint of pain.

"Jinlian, don't worry about me, it's more important to go and report to the Empress first."

I'll sit and rest for a bit, then I'll go over myself.