Chapter 51

“I believe in you.” Tang Xia said.

Chu Tiankuo stroke his chin wearing a strange smile on his mouth, “You can still be saved. Now go out!”

Before he finished his sentence, Chu Tiankuo pushed Tang Xia’s emaciated back with his generous palm forcibly out the door.

Tang Xia staggered to her feet, lingering to look back at Chu Tiankuo while Chu Tiankuo winked at her, hinting that she should go.

“Your Grace, are you asleep?” A rough voice shouted unceasingly, making Tang Xia crumple her mouth with displeasure, “I’m here, I’m here. Why are you bothering me at midnight?”

Outside the door stood crowds of muscular men wearing brown bronze armors. Tang Xia pretended to yawn drowsily, “Are you expecting to die so that you broke into my Jiaofang hall at midnight?”

The man in front bowed to Tang Xia, “Please understand us. We are just following orders. Please come with us.” Then he paused, looking directly at Tang Xia’s suspicious appearance and waved his hand, “Go ahead.”

Unexpectedly, two men controlled Tang Xia’s arms so that Tang Xia lost her interest in acting anymore in front of them, “Where are you taking me?”

“Back to Hecheng hall, Your Grace.”

“Damn… it…”

Tang Xia thought for the first time that Hecheng hall might bring bad luck to her.

While the candlelight quivered in front of her in Hecheng hall, a familiar feeling arose spontaneously from Tang Xia’s heart as she had not been here for several days. Tang Xia raised her head then saw several stars hiding behind the clouds.

“Why do bad things happen every time I come here?”

As Helian Jue stood on the high platform, Tang Xia felt immediately that he looked older.

“I pay my respects to you, Your Majesty.” Tang Xia bowed to him gracefully, looking around and did not find King Nanchen as she had expected. But several old men with long beards together with Lengmei, whose face became more coquettish in the light, stood in the hall.

Helian Jue did not permit her to rise for a long time, then Tang Xia moved her body and rose by herself.

“How have you been, my beloved imperial concubine?” Helian Jue’s cold voice came from above as he hid his charismatic eyes in the darkness which hid his feelings.

“Pretty good. Anran is good at cooking and serves me well with the surplus provisions in Jiaofang hall.” Tang Xia squinted her eyes slightly, making Helian Jue fix his eyes on her.

“How shameless you are to smile in this situation! You’ve been wined and dined while His Majesty has been so worried about you that he is quite haggard now.” Lengmei said calmly, making the air around her freeze for a moment, so Tang Xia fixed her eyes on Lengmei then found an indistinct smile on her mouth.

“Is that so?” Tang Xia squinted her peach blossom eyes like the crescent moon with no smile in the bottom of her eyes, “As I haven’t seen you for a few days, you’ve become more florid and only His Majesty has become haggard.”

“What do you mean?” Lengmei wore coldness in her eyes suddenly as if she would poke several holes in Tang Xia’s body with her eyes.

“What do I mean?” Tang Xia snorted, “As I was locked in the Jiaofang hall, I did not know what was happening outside. It is quite reasonable that I couldn’t share His Majesty’s burdens. But you were not grounded. His Majesty is busy with national affairs all day long while you’ve become florid, how shameless you are to condemn me?”

Lengmei wore a cold appearance immediately with her eyes as sharp as two swords, “You are so firm in speech, even in your last hours.”

Tang Xia bowed to her then said fearlessly, “It is unknown if I will die. What I only know is that the one who makes sarcastic comments dies first.”

“Yue Ji, how dare you curse me to die?” Lengmei’s expression changed.

“I dare not, I’m cursing the one who replies to me.” Tang Xia wore a bigger smile on her mouth, “How can you assure that it is a curse instead of a prediction?”

“That’s enough.” Helian Jue wore a gloomy appearance on the high platform, “Yue Ji, do you know why I took you out?”

Tang Xia pondered carefully for a moment, “I do not know.”

“How dare you not admit to your flagrant crime? You are so disorderly!” Lengmei rose, pounding the table with a slight smile in her delicate face as if she was quite satisfied with Tang Xia’s defiant behavior in full view of the public.

Tang Xia rolled her eyes secretly, “I’ve been grounded in Jiaofang hall every day, how could I know why His Majesty took me out as I know nothing about what happened outside?”

“Hm, how could you stay in Jiaofang hall obediently? People would not buy that claim.” Lengmei wore a cold smile.

“Do you mean that I should violate His Majesty’s decree to ask around for his personal affairs?”

Tang Xia’s words made Lengmei speechless, “I’m so impressed how your filthy mind is regarding His Majesty!”

As Lengmei’s expression changed, she bowed to Helian Jue, kneeling on the ground immediately, “Don’t listen to her, Your Majesty. My love for you is verifiable.”

“That’s enough.” Helian Jue waved his sleeves disgustedly, “You can talk so much after I asked only one question. Are you thinking poorly of me?”

Lengmei froze for a moment then bowed to him slightly and went back to her seat obediently.

“Yue Ji.” Helian Jue’s words made everyone look back to Tang Xia, “Then do you know who caused Yi Jiazi’s death?”

Tang Xia felt her heart tighten. Although she knew why Helian Jue took her here, his question was too difficult.

“I do not know.”

“Good, you do not know.” Helian Jue wore coldness on his mouth, tapping the table with his slender fingers gently.

“You are still impenitent even after you’ve been grounded for several days.”

Knowing what Helian Jue meant, Tang Xia bowed to him, lowering her head, “I’ve known that we should correct our mistakes since I was a little girl. But I will not admit it as it is not my fault. I did not push Yi Jiazi, so I will not acknowledge this crime.”

“You’ve become more eloquent.” Helian Jue squinted his long eyes, wearing coldness on his mouth.

“Well, let me tell you what your crime is.” Helian Jue said in a cold tone, making Tang Xia tremble for it. “As an imperial concubine, you framed your sisters several times. Although you always stressed the importance of virtue and morality by your mouth, you are a wicked person such that you pushed the imperial concubine from Southland into the water leading to her death.”

“Do you know how many troubles you’ve caused for me?” Helian Jue said his last few words grinding his teeth.

Tang Xia froze her eyes.

[Fans] Love Quietly: How could Helian Jue say such thing? I’m his anti-fan now. He can he wrong Tang Xia and push his imperial concubine into the fire pit only for his status.

[Fans] In Support Of the Love: I’m impressed.

[Fans] A Few Miles Around: I feel sorry for you, anchor. How are you going to deal with it？

Tang Xia frowned her eyebrows and looked at Helian Jue directly with her delicate eyes full of pride, “So how are you going to punish me, Your Majesty?”

Helian Jue became angrier, “You are still so stubborn in this situation?”

“What do you want me to do, Your Majesty?” Tang Xia wore an indistinct smile on her mouth while her red dress appeared more coquettish in the candlelight, attracting everyone’s eyes, “Do you want me to kneel on the ground begging for your forgiveness or to admit to the crime, Your Majesty?”

Tang Xia straightened her back haughtily, “I told you that I would not admit a crime which was not committed by me. If you want me to admit the mistake, just save your breath, Your Majesty.”

Helian Jue’s shoulder heaved sharply as the veins on his forehead stood out, “You truly are… impenitent!”

“Good! Good!” A rough voice came suddenly, making Tang Xia frown and turn her soft body around to look behind her.

King Nanchen came from outside the hall with a scar across his straight nose and a strange smile on his face, which was somewhat ferocious.

“What are you doing here?” Helian Jue frowned his eyebrows, then looked back to King Nanchen with unkindness.

“Helian Jue, do not say such things. You already knew I was here, right? You took Yue Ji here in order to act out a play for me.” King Nanchen wore a scornful smile, rubbing his fingers against his palm.

“You want Yue Ji to admit the mistake so that you can spare her from death because of her good attitude?” King Nanchen wore a colder smile, “We spent some time together when we were kids, and how can I not know what you are thinking?”

Helian Jue’s appearance darkened as King Nanchen spoke.

Lengmei froze her look for a while, looking at Helian Jue questioningly. As the sentence ‘Is what he says true?’ choked on her throat, Lengmei fixed her eyes on Tang Xia who was sitting on her heels bitterly.

“What? Is it like what I said? Helian Jue, think it over how you should apologize to me.”

“Do not be so rampant. Are you not afraid that I will cut off your other arm?” Helian Jue said angrily wearing one trace of dark color between his delicate eyebrows.

“Why should I be afraid?” King Nanchen snorted, “Helian Jue, can you hurt me now? Or do you dare to hurt me?”

Helian Jue slapped the table with his broad palm, “How dare you!”

“Hm, Helian Jue, I was in the wrong to ask you for Yue Ji. But it is different now – you forced Yi Jiazi to die and hid the chief culprit which was enough to stir a public outrage. Southland is morally right now, who you think will help you in this situation?”

What King Nanchen said was like a fist punching Helian Jue’s face, which made him silent for a long time with his face turning liver-colored.

Knowing it was time, King Nanchen’s hand at the back beckoned to the man outside the hall, then a hidden weapon was shot out immediately directly towards Tang Xia who was sitting on her heels.

Dang…

A slight noise made everyone freeze for a moment. Chu Tiankuo appeared in his silver armor with his long hair tied up at the back of his head and his deep eyes above his straight nose which showed neither anger nor happiness.

“Please forgive me for being late, Your Majesty.”

Chu Tiankuo said. There was a dart covered with black liquid which spread about on the ground in an instant, creating a squeaking sound.

The ground was eroded.