Chapter 446: Digging for Treasures Deep in the Palace (1)

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

The autumn wind blew gently, and a merchant ship with a swollen sail was sailing down the Clear River.

A few hoarse coughs came from a cabin on the second floor of the ship. “Cough cough cough…”

The deck was full of travelers, but there were not many guests on the second floor. A young man in blue with a three-foot saber in a brocade scabbard hanging from his waist pushed open a door with a tray in his hand.

Squeak!

Sitting beside the tea table by the window of the room was a tall old man. He was wearing a brocade robe, a jade belt, and a loose cloak. His eyes were reserved, like a lonely eagle that had experienced countless things in the world.

“Master, the medicine is getting cold. Take a sip. Even if it can’t cure your illness, it can help with the pain.” The blue-robed young master put down the tray, picked up the medicine bowl on it, and placed it beside the old man’s hand. There was deep worry between his brows.

But the old man’s reaction was rather calm. He pushed the medicine bowl away with his fingers. “This medicine can relieve pain, but it can mess with your mind. Once you’re addicted to it, you won’t be able to extricate yourself. You can’t touch it. Originally, your martial uncle received some news about the Snow Lake Flower. It might have had some effect. I never thought that I would have a smooth life, but in my old age, my brother ended up dying in the wilderness because of me…”

The blue-clothed young master sat down beside his master and advised, “The death of a person is like the extinguishing of a lamp. Master, my condolences. When I went to the tribes of the Western Sea this time, I thought that 1 would be able to find some Snow Lake Flowers. Who would have thought that the four major tribes combined wouldn’t even have one tael? Counting the time, the Snow Lake Flower will bloom in two years…”

“To treat illnesses, we must start from the source. If we don’t get rid of the source, no matter how many Snow Lake Flowers there are, they can only play a soothing role. If I want my body to recover to its original state, I still have to look at the capital.”

“Sigh…” When the blue-clothed young master heard this, he stood up, went to the window, and looked at the increasingly prosperous riverbank. “Xue Baijin is unwilling to cooperate with us, and we don’t know how strong the empress is. In addition, there are Daoist Xuanji and Ye Jingtang, two Martial Chiefs. Master, relying on you alone to hold the line, I’m really uneasy about this trip… Although I’ve obtained ‘Dragon Imprisoning Miasma’ from the tribes of the Western Sea, this thing has been lost for a hundred years. Who knows if what the Western Sea tribes have now is as domineering as the rumors say…”

The old man shook his head. “The difficulty of this matter doesn’t lie in one or two martial artists, but in the general situation. The empress has worked hard for ten years and accumulated a lot of prestige. Even if we succeed, the Prince of Yan will forcibly wear the yellow robe and be infamous for regicide. He might not be able to sit firmly in the world, and the Prince of Liang might sit back and reap the benefits. If not for the situation, I would have waited a few more years…”

While they were talking, a large group of soldiers and horses appeared in the distance on the river bank, and horns sounded.

“Woo—”

“Woo—”

The old man stood up and walked to the window to look. He could see hundreds of imperial guards holding the dragon flag high to clear the way. The constables were standing on both sides of the road every five steps. The carriages, horses, and people retreated to the grass by the roadside. They lowered their heads and bowed, not daring to look up casually.

There were more than ten carriages in the middle of the formation. The large carriage at the front was especially eye-catching. In front were six pure white horses. The width of the carriage almost occupied the entire official road. On both sides were knights wearing masks, carefully scanning the surrounding grass and trees.

Behind them were infantry with sabers and shields and a crowded team with officials, carriages, servants, and so on. The entire team was lined up on the official road and stretched for nearly a kilometer.

When the blue-clothed young master saw this scene, he subconsciously took half a step back into the dark and sighed. “No matter how ostentatious the people of Jianghu are, they pale in comparison to the emperor’s honor guard. No wonder everyone wants to be the emperor.”

“People think about being superior to others, not about the title of emperor. If there are immortals in this world, would the people who can achieve this look up to the emperors in the secular world?”

“Master, you’re right…”

“Woo—”

“Woo—”

From time to time, loud horns sounded among the mighty team.

The six-horse imperial carriage was in the middle of the team, and around it were 30 guards wearing qilin armor on horsebase. Although they were dressed the same as the imperial guards clearing the way in front, they were all wearing black face armor.

This move was not used to differentiate the soldiers. But the people walking around the imperial carriage were composed of experts from the Black Office, the secret guards, and the imperial guards. There were men, women, old, and young. If they wore their respective uniforms, it would be a mess and not look very elegant.

In the imperial carriage, the empress was wearing a red and black dragon robe. The twelve tassels made of jade beads hanging from the crown on her head covered her stunning face. Although she was dressed very formally, her sitting posture was as lazy as ever. Her left leg was on her right leg, and her arms were leaning on the armrest. She looked at the two sides of the river through the gauze windows.

In the morning, she had played with fire in the small bathroom and had been seen by a man. If it were an ordinary woman, she would definitely be distracted and let her imagination run wild. Her face would even blush from time to time.

However, the empress was obviously not an ordinary woman. This wasn’t the first time Ye Jingtang had looked at her. Because of this, she was quite calm in her heart. She only looked at the various people and things on the roadside and occasionally glanced back.

As the second-in-command of the Black Office, it was obviously impossible for Ye Jingtang to flirt with the lady in the carriage behind the empress when he was on guard duty. At this moment, he had also changed into a black qilin armor. He was holding the Roaring Dragon Spear on his side and walking on the grass outside the official road, watching the situation on both sides of the official road.

Beside Ye Jingtang was a black-armored knight of similar height. Although this person’s shoulders and back were obviously thinner than Ye Jingtang’s, the chest was bulging and even a little tight. The Black Qilin Spear was hanging on the side of the horse. Coupled with the tassels on the helmet, this person looked majestic and imposing, not inferior to Ye Jingtang beside her at all.

From the corner of his eye, Ye Jingtang looked at the two heart-protecting mirrors on Dumdum’s chest. His heart ached a little. He couldn’t figure out how she had managed to squeeze the majestic fat-headed dragon into the breastplate. After walking for a while, he asked, “If Your Highness feels uncomfortable, go back to the carriage and rest. It’s not far.. Why are you wearing this?”