The male supporting character was actually myself.

"Thump!" His head rolled to the ground, his eyes wide open in death;

A fountain of blood gushed from the neck of the still-standing body!

The little white cat was so frightened that it meowed and its paws went limp as it jumped to the side, trembling.

"There are assassins!"

"His Majesty!"

"Quickly, summon the imperial physician!"

"Something's happened! His Majesty the Emperor has been assassinated!"

"Ah! How terrifying! So much blood..."

…………

Chaos and screams erupted on the sacrificial altar in Fushan. The people of the capital who happened to witness this scene from afar were terrified and cried out in alarm. The news of the emperor's murder during the spring sacrifice spread throughout the land in an instant!

Having forcibly killed a Grandmaster from such a distance, Jiang Chen felt a sharp pain in his head, his face turned pale, and he groaned as he leaned against the stone table, panting heavily.

"What's wrong, Minister Shen?" The emperor, who was racking his brains to assemble the Lego set and praising how fun it was, suddenly noticed that he seemed to be feeling unwell. He hurriedly asked with concern, "Where do you feel unwell? I'll summon the imperial physician for you!"

Jiang Chen reached out to stop him, saying, "It's nothing serious, Your Majesty. There's no need to panic. I just have a sudden headache. I'll be fine after a rest."

"It must be because you've been too busy lately and are exhausted. My dear minister, you must take care of your health and not overthink things. Speaking of which, there are a lot of important national affairs that require your attention, and there's also Shangguan Xuanyu who's causing you trouble. How about I approve the memorials for you these next two days?"

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for sharing my burdens!" Jiang Chen seized the opportunity to express his gratitude.

Emperor: (。oˇ?ˇo。)

Never mind, if it weren't for the fact that you didn't look too good, I wouldn't have bothered with all that.

"We agreed on just two days. If you rest for these two days, I won't care about you anymore!" He was slightly unhappy, and pointed at the half-assembled Lego, raising his voice a notch. "Don't just sit idle at home. Hurry up and make some more little gadgets for me."

The Empress also played with it for most of the night yesterday, and she really liked it!

"Didn't you just pester me until you took my jigsaw puzzle? Before you came, Consort Shu also begged for a jigsaw puzzle when she came to see me. Shen Qing, please work hard and make some more interesting ones, at least help me settle things in the harem first."

Jiang Chen suppressed a laugh and bowed, saying, "Your subject obeys the decree!"

Chapter Seventeen: A Personal Visit

While the emperor and his ministers enjoyed a harmonious relationship, tensions were high in Yong'an Kingdom, thousands of miles away.

Almost at the same moment His Majesty the Emperor's head rolled off the ground, the Crown Prince suddenly screamed and fell to the ground, a horrific wound piercing his chest, blood soaking through his yellow sacrificial robes.

"Protect the Crown Prince! Protect the other princes as they evacuate! The rest of you, remain in place and thoroughly investigate the assassin!"

At the critical moment, Huang Xiuqi, the head of the Imperial City Guard, quickly took control of the situation, preventing major chaos on Mount Fu.

With the Emperor murdered and the Crown Prince assassinated in full view of everyone, the Commander of the Imperial Guards responsible for security and the various grandmasters present could not escape blame!

In the capital city of Yong'an, everyone was on edge, seeing danger everywhere.

"Strange, there really is an assassin who has infiltrated?" The little white cat scratched its ear with its hind paw, a little puzzled.

Who exactly is this person? Why can they appear and disappear without a trace, just like me?

Most importantly, the grandmasters searched every conceivable place, yet still couldn't find a weapon suspected to be the murder weapon. What on earth had so severely injured His Highness the Crown Prince? And how could the other assassin, at the same time as His Majesty the Emperor's death, remain calm and decisive in attempting to assassinate the Crown Prince?

The fluffy dumpling was completely baffled, so it decided to keep it to itself and ask its host when it got back.

The little white cat, tasked with hopping around observing people's reactions, had no idea that what killed Emperor An even faster than the props was actually Jiang Chen's soul weapon. It was too nervous when it threw the prop and it went slightly off course. Coupled with Emperor An already sensing the killing intent and his body trembling, a series of coincidences led to the D-grade prop in its paw going astray, hurtling towards the crowd below and accidentally injuring the Crown Prince.

Unexpectedly, this accidental move turned out to be a boon, further disrupting the entire Yong'an Kingdom's court!

Huang Xiuqi stood with a furrowed brow and a somber face in the main hall outside the Crown Prince's bedroom, where the imperial physicians were busy treating the Crown Prince. Although no vital organs were injured, the wound was extremely deep, and he had lost a lot of blood from being rushed down from Mount Fu. No one could say for sure what his condition was.

His Majesty was attacked and killed. Logically speaking, besides finding the murderer, the most important thing should be to assist the Crown Prince in ascending the throne.

A country cannot be without a ruler for even a day; if this continues, the people's hearts will be uneasy and the country will descend into turmoil! But the Crown Prince is currently in this situation...

"We have to get through this no matter what!" Huang Xiuqi stared anxiously at the dormitory where people were hurrying around.

It all started three years ago at a banquet in the palace.

Before that, as the head of the Imperial City Guard, Huang Xiuqi had always been upright and selfless, loyal only to His Majesty the Emperor. However, no one is without feelings, and with family and friends, all sorts of entanglements arise. His Majesty held a grand banquet, which Huang Xiuqi attended with his wife and daughter. It was at that banquet that his daughter, Huang Qianqian, fell in love with the Crown Prince at first sight.

Once selfishness takes hold, even the head of the Imperial City Guard loses all sense of impartiality.

Moreover, His Highness the Crown Prince personally promised that as long as she lends him a hand, he will fight valiantly to become the Crown Princess chosen by his father, and even if he deposes the Empress after ascending the throne, he will ensure that Huang Qianqian becomes the Empress and that they will live happily ever after.

For the sake of his daughter's unwavering devotion and the future glory of his family, Huang Xiuqi had no choice but to agree.

However, His Majesty's dispatch of Shangguan Xuanyu to an enemy country to take over the intelligence network caused him anxiety. Among the younger generation, Shangguan Xuanyu was the most outstanding, and many in the department secretly discussed that he might be the next head of the department. This dispatch was probably just a test.

Huang Xiuqi became anxious, worried that power would fall into the wrong hands and fearing that his daughter's future position as empress would be unstable.

He originally intended to find an opportunity to betray Shangguan Xuanyu and cause him to die in the enemy country, but before he could come up with a plan, His Majesty was suddenly assassinated and the Crown Prince was seriously injured and his life was uncertain.

At this critical moment, I must stabilize the court and do everything in my power to protect the interests of the Crown Prince! Otherwise, if the other princes succeed, the Crown Prince will surely die, and my daughter's dream of becoming Empress will be completely shattered!

Emperor An had many concubines and numerous offspring. Apart from the tenth and eleventh princes, the other princes were all close in age.

The eldest son died young, and the crown prince, who was neither the eldest nor the legitimate son, was too rigid and mediocre and was usually quite controversial. At this time, a sudden change occurred: the emperor died on the spot, and the crown prince was seriously injured and his life was uncertain. The other eight princes suddenly became active.

"Oh ho ho, what a mess! Now that's good, all you ever think about is invading and attacking other countries, now you can have your internal strife to your heart's content!" The fluffy dumpling stood on the palace wall, watching no fewer than three large-scale conflicts from the time it started until midnight, and licked its paws with a smug smile, preparing to watch the show and return to report to its host.

Two days later, Jiang Chen had just finished his temporary leave when he received an urgent report from his informant early in the morning.

"Someone, go and summon Miss to my study." After reading the message, he smiled slightly and sent someone to call Shen Qingluan over.

She had just finished dressing up when she was suddenly called to the study by her brother, and she was a little confused.

Shouldn't my brother be attending the morning court session at this time?

"Qingluan, I just received a secret report from an informant. Emperor An of Yong'an Kingdom is dead! He was beheaded and died on the spot during the spring sacrifice two days ago!" Jiang Chen told her the news immediately, and Shen Qingluan was so shocked that she stared at him with her mouth agape for a long time. "Is it true? Brother, this is such wonderful news!"

"That's right. There's a lot of turmoil and undercurrents in Yong'an right now. It's likely that Shangguan Xuanyu isn't well-informed, and there might even be someone deliberately keeping things from him."

He patted his sister's delicate shoulder and said softly, "Now, it's your turn to tell Young Master Yu the good news. See how he reacts. Remember to tell him that you learned the news from a secret report you saw in my study, not that I told you directly."

Shen Qingluan could obviously distinguish between the two, and readily agreed. Then she asked curiously, "Brother, with the current turmoil in Yong'an Kingdom, will the Imperial City Guard summon Young Master Yu back?"

"Of course not. Not only will they not summon him, they probably won't even want him to know the news. Otherwise, with the situation in such chaos, who would be willing to transfer their capable subordinates from Kyoto to take over the intelligence network? They are all focused on vying for power and profit. Shangguan Xuanyu, who has no power or position and leaves Kyoto, will soon become a pawn."

"My dear sister, as long as you do as your brother says, he will never leave the capital of Southern Qi. He might even make peace with us. At that time, you will gain a good marriage, and your brother will gain a capable general!"

Her eyes lit up with joy, and she clapped her hands, laughing, "That's wonderful! Don't worry, brother, I will carefully choose my words to convey this good news to Young Master Yu."

After the siblings finished their conversation, Jiang Chen went to the palace to present His Majesty with the latest Lego sets, puzzles, the good news he had just received, and a business plan for establishing a trading company.

The younger sister, Qingluan, couldn't wait to have an invitation delivered to Lanyuan to find Young Master Yu.

"What? Miss Shen has come to visit in person?" Shangguan Xuanyu, who had not yet received any information, was completely bewildered.

What's happening here?

Given Shen Qingluan's previous cautious behavior, she would never visit without a reason. If it were just a return invitation, she would at most send someone to deliver an invitation. Why did she come to visit in person so early in the morning?

Without a second thought, Shangguan Xuanyu hurriedly tidied his clothes and went out to greet the guests.

“Young Master Yu, it would be very inappropriate for me to visit you so abruptly. However, I have learned some wonderful news by chance, and I am so happy that I want to share it with you first.”

Upon seeing him, Shen Qingluan's face flushed slightly, her eyes filled with affection, and her tone brimming with excitement. After taking her seat, she went straight to the point: "The enemy emperor is dead! He was attacked and killed by assassins at the altar during the spring sacrifice. We no longer have to worry about war and turmoil!"

Chapter Eighteen: Shangguan Xuanyu's Worries

"What...what did you say?" Shangguan Xuanyu was so shocked by the bombshell news she had just heard that he was momentarily speechless.

He then forced down his wildly beating heart, took a deep breath, and forced a smile onto his slightly pale face. "Miss Shen is joking, isn't she? How could Emperor An have died so suddenly?"

As far as I know, a Grandmaster will be in charge of the spring festival in Yong'an Kingdom. What kind of assassin is so powerful that they don't even put a Grandmaster in their eyes?

Shen Qingluan blinked innocently, "How could you be joking?"

This morning, my brother rushed off to court, and I went to his study to look through his books. I found that the secret report from my informant, which had just been delivered, said exactly that. My brother personally planted these informants; surely they wouldn't even bother to verify such an important matter before spouting nonsense?

The secret report said that Emperor An's head was separated from his body, a fact witnessed even by the people of the capital who were watching from afar!

The news has already spread throughout Yong'an Kingdom, but the distance is too far, so it will probably take some time before merchant caravans bring the news to our capital.

Young Master Yu? Young Master Yu! Young Master Yu!

She raised her voice and called out several times before the other person snapped out of their daze.

"Young Master Yu, what's wrong? Weren't you worried about national affairs and the borders being threatened when you went for a spring outing outside the city?" Shen Qingluan asked, feigning surprise. "Why are you unhappy now that Emperor An has been assassinated and Yong'an is in turmoil?"

Shangguan Xuanyu forced a smile and replied, "I... I'm just too shocked. This news is really... What did you just say, Miss? Internal strife in Yong'an? That shouldn't be the case. Even if Emperor An is dead, the Imperial City Guard will still be investigating the assassin. A country cannot be without a ruler for a day. The Crown Prince will definitely choose a day to ascend the throne and rule in his own right. How could there be internal strife?"

"It was my fault. I was so focused on telling you the good news and following your lead that I forgot to tell you about the aftermath of Emperor An's assassination." She covered her mouth with a handkerchief and laughed. "The secret report said that after Emperor An was decapitated and died on the spot, the Crown Prince was also seriously injured by the assassin."

The Imperial Guards carried him down from Fukuyama themselves, so it seemed like things were probably not going well.

The other princes are getting restless, and now that two or three days have passed since the incident, things have probably descended into complete chaos.

Once I receive the message from my brother, I will read it and then inform you, young master!

"That's great! Young Master, you don't need to worry about the war anymore. Yong'an is already embroiled in internal strife; they don't have time to start a war with us. Oh, by the way, I brought you some novelties today..."

Shangguan Xuanyu couldn't quite remember what Shen Qingluan said afterward, how she responded, or how she accepted her gift.

Only after seeing the guests off did he ask, his face pale and his voice trembling, "Ah San! Ah San! Is there any urgent secret report?"

"Young master, there is no secret guarantee. What's wrong with you?"

"Send men back immediately to gather information, mainly about the master's situation! Go quickly!"

Ah San obeyed the order and went to carry it out. He turned back and asked curiously, "Young Master, what's wrong? What did Miss Shen say to you?"

"Miss Shen discovered the latest secret report in the Regent's study: His Majesty... His Majesty has been assassinated and died; the Crown Prince is seriously injured and his fate is unknown..."

"What?!" The subordinate, Ah San, was clearly startled, then asked with a serious and wary expression, "Young Master, could it be that the Regent has discovered something amiss and deliberately sent Miss Shen to test us?"

That was a spring festival!

With several Grandmasters guarding the area, plus the Imperial Guard Commander, Deputy Commander, and Master Si in attendance, how could an assassin possibly sneak in and succeed?

Not only could he assassinate His Majesty, but he also seriously injured the Crown Prince. How is that possible?

Besides, if such a bizarre and terrifying event had truly occurred, the master would surely have sent an urgent secret report to the young master, summoning him back to the capital. How could there have been no response at all?

Shangguan Xuanyu's fingers turned white as he gripped the folding fan tightly in his hand. He said, his mind unsettled, "I have a gut feeling that Miss Shen is not lying. I've been restless these past two days, and I even woke up from a nightmare the night before last..."