The Melon-eating Swordsman In The Ancient Dragon World Chapter 368: Princess Gongsun's Suspicions - Novel Cool

Chapter 368: Princess Gongsun's Suspicions

Chapter 368: Princess Gongsun's Suspicions

September 15th, early morning.

Lu Xiaofeng bid farewell once more, as he had four more ribbons to deliver. According to him, one had to go to Mudadao, after all, he was a renowned master of Wudang, and it would be rude not to include him since he had made the effort to come.

Ma Xiuzhen stayed at Hefangzhai, while Su Shaoying and Zhang Yingfeng left together.

Zhang Yingfeng, without a ribbon and unable to enter the palace, also left by himself after telling Su Shaoying that he was heading home. Thus, Su Shaoying found himself alone again at the entrance of the old alley in the south of the city.

"What now? Am I supposed to go and watch Lu Xiaofeng and Sikong Zhaixing's love-hate drama?" After some thought, Su Shaoying made his way to a famous alley in the west of the city and entered a small building.

Yi Qing Yuan!

"Why didn't you come by yesterday?" Ouyang Qing asked as she served Su Shaoying an assortment of four-colored side dishes, snacks, and a cup of hot tea.

"I was busy yesterday," Su Shaoying replied after taking a sip of his tea and sighing. "I witnessed a duel between experts in the morning, was surrounded by imperial guards in the morning, missed lunch, and then escaped assassination attempts by a group of lamas and swordsmen in the afternoon. Thankfully, dinner was sumptuous, or I might not have slept well."

Ouyang Qing was astonished. "What happened?"

Su Shaoying gave a brief account to Ouyang Qing before looking around and asking, "Where's the Princess? Didn't she come back with you?"

"She went to keep an appointment. She said someone wanted to meet her regarding something important," Ouyang Qing replied.

Su Shaoying clicked his tongue. "I hope she didn't walk into another ambush."

Ouyang Qing twisted her body and snuggled into Su Shaoying's embrace, unable to hold back her laughter. "The Princess only slipped up once, and you happened to be there. Don't mock her. I think she gets a headache every time she sees you now."

"Is that a headache?" Su Shaoying asked with a smile.

"What else could it be?" Ouyang Qing questioned.

"It's because she's getting old, and when things don't go her way, it affects her qi and blood, leading to..."

"Su Shaoying!'' A figure flipped into the room, and Princess Gongsun's angry voice rang out, "Do you believe I'll strangle you with that ribbon?"

Ouyang Qing giggled and shot Su Shaoying a glance. "I told you to watch your mouth. Now you're talking behind her back, and she caught you red-handed."

Confused, Su Shaoying asked, "Didn't you go to keep an appointment? Why are you back so soon?"

Princess Gongsun huffed, "I went to meet them last night. Isn't it normal for me to be back this morning?"

Su Shaoying turned to Ouyang Qing, "I thought she left this morning?"

Ouyang Qing smiled charmingly, "I never said she left this morning."

Su Shaoying blinked and suddenly asked, "When did you two leave Li Yanbei's mansion?"

"I stayed at the mansion with Guan Huihui the day before yesterday, and we left sometime close to noon yesterday morning," Ouyang Qing replied.

Su Shaoying nodded, "That makes sense."

"What makes sense?" Ouyang Qing asked.

"Those four assassins yesterday weren't there to kill Li Yanbei. They were after you," Su Shaoying explained. "But since they found you weren't there and Li Yanbei was already dead, they killed Guan Huihui instead."

"What? They were trying to kill me?" Ouyang Qing asked in shock. "Why?"

"Of course, it's because you know something you shouldn't," Su Shaoying said.

"But I don't know anything!" Ouyang Qing exclaimed.

The assassination attempt from the previous day was not part of the original story, but Su Shaoying had known that the four assassins were after Ouyang Qing. However, knowing that Gongsun was by Ouyang Qing's side, he hadn't worried.

With Gongsun's martial arts skills, no one except Ye Gucheng himself stood a chance.

"Lamas from Daxueshan Temple? Swordsmen from the Hainan faction?" Gongsun inquired, her eyes narrowing further. "Aren't they associated with the Prince of Pingnan? Why would they want to kill the Fourth Princess?"

The last time someone had targeted Ouyang Qing, it was Du Tongxuan's black-clad bodyguards, who, according to Lu Xiaofeng's speculation, were not working with Ye Gucheng.

But now, the assassins who had gone to Li Yanbei's residence to kill Ouyang Qing were from Daxueshan Temple and the Hainan Sword faction—while the lamas' allegiance was uncertain, the Hainan Sword faction and Ye Gucheng were both collaborators with the Prince of Pingnan.

Gongsun's eyes narrowed further, and she said, "Could they be trying to force me to show myself?"

Su Shaoying thought for a moment before turning to Ouyang Qing and saying, "You should stick with me today."

Ouyang Qing's eyes lit up, but she huffed, "Are you looking down on me? I can protect myself!"

Gongsun, with a casual tone, added, "You're planning to go to the palace tonight, but with only one ribbon, how will you bring the Fourth Princess with you?"

Su Shaoying smiled and suggested, "What if I carry her in?"

"In your dreams!" Ouyang Qing's face reddened, and she playfully spat at Su Shaoying, but her expression was one of delight.

Gongsun let out a cold snort and withdrew a ribbon from her sleeve, handing it to Ouyang Qing while shooting Su Shaoying a look, "In your dreams!"

Ouyang Qing's eyes widened slightly as she took the ribbon from Gongsun. "How did you get a ribbon? Did Lu Xiaofeng give it to you?"

Gongsun shook her head. "I have my ways."

Su Shaoying's eyes fixed on the ribbon in Ouyang Qing's hand, and he knew exactly what was going on.

In the original story, Wang Zongbing, the chief eunuch, had taken many ribbons from the royal treasury and distributed them. Some were given to people the Prince of Pingnan was sending into the palace, while others were handed to Sikong Zhaixing, who then released them into the jianghu.

However, with Gongsun still alive, some of the ribbons had found their way to her through alternative channels, unconnected to the Prince of Pingnan. Otherwise, Gongsun would have been more cautious.

Even so, unlike Sikong Zhaixing, who had remained uninvolved in the original story, Gongsun, now entangled in the events, sensed that something was amiss.

"Ye Gucheng and Ximen Chuixue are going to have their final battle atop the Forbidden City. Wei Ziyun and the others want to watch the duel without any mishaps, so they're using Lu Xiaofeng as a pawn and gave him six ribbons," Gongsun explained.

"The ribbon you gave me is, of course, not one of those four," Ouyang Qing added.

Gongsun nodded and pulled out another ribbon from her sleeve. "I received not one but two ribbons."

"That means there will be eight people entering the palace," Ouyang Qing remarked.

"More than eight," Gongsun corrected. "Aside from me, there are others who have obtained ribbons."

Ouyang Qing couldn't help but ask, "Why are they doing all this?"

"I don't know," Gongsun replied, her eyes clouded with suspicion. "All I know is that this conspiracy somehow involves the imperial palace!"

(End of Chapter)

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