"Impossible, the Prince isn't a pawn, something couldn't have happened to him so quickly..."
Only then did Lu Qingwan realize that the two young women must be the consorts of Si Fengchi and Si Fengqi.
As they spoke, the two women got up and crawled on their knees to Lu Qingwan, crying sorrowfully, "Qin Wangfei, we know you are capable, take us out of the palace! We will all die here, please, take us to find our respective Princes! Don't you want to see the Qin Prince? That guard just said that several Princes have met with misfortune, and the Qin Prince is likely in dire straits. Help us..."
With the consorts of Si Fengchi and Si Fengqi crying out, the other women also began to pressure Lu Qingwan. After all, the palace was no longer safe. If they could get out, perhaps they would be safer. A group of people clamored for Lu Qingwan to help them. Lu Qingwan was enraged, "The master of Yangquan Palace is the Empress Dowager. The most noble person in this harem is also the Empress Dowager. If you want to leave the palace, you only need the Empress Dowager's approval. What are you bothering me for? There are dozens of martial artists in this hall. Why are you all pressuring me alone? Do I owe you anything!" Lu Qingwan seemed to be pushed to her limit and cursed at everyone in the hall.
The Empress Dowager was also furious, "What kind of behavior is this, so flustered? Look at yourselves. If you truly left Yangquan Palace, who could leave the imperial palace alive?"
"Are we just going to wait here to die?" Bai Lianhua was truly frightened now. "Lu Qingwan, you come from a military family and have received the true teachings of the Qin Prince. What's wrong with protecting everyone? I know you come from the Southern Barbarians and have never considered Daqin your home, but the Qin Prince is a Prince of Daqin. Even if not for yourself, for the Qin Prince's sake, you should save us!"
With a loud crash, there was another sound of something heavy hitting the door. This time, no one spoke. Only an Imperial Guard soldier, covered in blood, rushed in. Immediately after, another followed. Just as Bai Lianhua was babbling about Lu Qingwan protecting them, four or five Imperial Guards had already fallen into Yangquan Palace. And each one fell in a different position, the only similarity being that they fell closer and closer to the Empress Dowager's throne.
Bai Lianhua was still rambling on, "You are the Qin Wangfei, you should bear the responsibilities of a Wangfei for the Qin Prince..."
With a "plop," the sound of flesh being pierced was heard. "Kill!" Lu Qingwan gave the order, and the end of the steel whip in her hand had already pierced the chest of an unconscious Imperial Guard on the ground. Behind her, Ying Shi also drew her sword and charged out. The Imperial Guards who had collapsed unconscious suddenly came back to life, grabbing their weapons and rushing towards the Empress Dowager on the high platform. Lu Qingwan swept her steel whip across, blocking one of them, and then the Myriad Phoenix King flew out, strangling the one who had almost reached the Empress Dowager in front of her.
The people outside realized that the people in Yangquan Palace had not fallen for their ruse and broke open the door, charging in directly. Yan Ruozhao, for reasons unknown, mustered her courage and rushed forward, holding her golden hairpin to Madam Lan's neck. "Stop! If anyone dares to come closer, I will kill her!" She was holding Madam Lan, the birth mother of Lan Huajing. Those soldiers of the Tiger and Leopard Battalion were stunned.
This sudden turn of events caught many off guard. When Lu Qingwan and Ying Shi were killing their way through, the women had not even had time to get up from their seats. Suddenly seeing Lu Qingwan powerfully cut down an assassin and Yan Ruozhao holding Madam Lan hostage, everyone finally realized that those so-called Imperial Guards were actually impostors trying to take advantage of the chaos to assassinate the Empress Dowager. A group of women were so frightened they collapsed to the ground. Bai Lianhua murmured in horror, "What is going on? Have the Imperial Guards also rebelled?" This sentence was like adding fuel to the fire, and the entire Yangquan Palace erupted. The weeping and wailing of the noble ladies were headache-inducing. Lu Qingwan angrily shouted, "Bai Lianhua, shut up! These people's armor doesn't fit well. It's obvious they are people from the Tiger and Leopard Battalion impersonating them. Are you blind?" As she spoke, she strode forward and said to Yan Ruozhao, "Give this person to me. You take Madam Yan and hide behind me, don't run around."
Yan Ruozhao also knew that with her skills, she could not hold Madam Lan for long. She immediately handed Madam Lan over to Lu Qingwan and hid behind her with her mother. Madam Lan, worthy of being the wife of the Grand Commandant of the present dynasty, showed no fear even with a knife to her neck. Instead, she said arrogantly, "Qin Wangfei, do you think you can escape safely by holding this madam hostage? My son Huajing is the Commander of the Tiger and Leopard Battalion. If you kill me, do you think you can leave the palace alive?"
Lu Qingwan smiled faintly, but her tone made one's hair stand on end, "Madam Lan, please do not underestimate yourself. Look, with you here, these Tiger and Leopard Battalion soldiers are hesitant, aren't they?" She used the cold back of the knife to force Madam Lan to look directly at the main entrance of Yangquan Palace, and said coldly to the restless Tiger and Leopard Battalion soldiers, "I give you a quarter of an hour for Lan Huajing to come to this concubine. After a quarter of an hour, if Lan Huajing does not come, I will stab his mother once for every tea's worth of time that passes."
"No need for a quarter of an hour, this young master has already arrived!" A voice of extreme arrogance echoed. Everyone looked to see a young man, clad in silver armor and standing eight feet tall, striding forward. Lan Huajing, true to his name, even in armor, could not hide his noble demeanor of a pampered young master. At this moment, his pair of narrow, peach-blossom eyes looked at Lu Qingwan as if filled with affection. There was no trace of displeasure from being threatened on his face, and he said calmly, "I wonder what terms Qin Wangfei wishes to discuss with this young master. Why don't you state them?" His tone was so naturally calm that it was as if he hadn't seen his mother being held hostage by Lu Qingwan.
Lu Qingwan's lips curved slightly, "Young Master Lan, your words are rather amusing. I want you to release all the family members in this hall. Do you agree?"
"Qin Wangfei, it would be better for you to think clearly before speaking. This young master is in a rather bad mood and has no time to joke with you." Lan Huajing maintained his calm expression, which was so cold it made one suspect he might be expressionless, but his tone had become more than a degree colder.
Lu Qingwan, however, smiled even more wantonly, "A joke? Young Master Lan, you are mistaken. This concubine never jokes with strangers. I am a Wangfei of Daqin, and they are the family members of Daqin's officials. I naturally have the duty to protect them with all my might. Of course, if Young Master Lan feels that his mother, the two consorts, and the young ladies are not worth the lives of so many family members, plus the three young masters in the secret room of the Grand Commandant's manor, does Young Master Lan think this transaction is still worthwhile?"
As soon as Lu Qingwan said this, before Lan Huajing could react, Madam Lan, who was being held hostage by Lu Qingwan, became agitated. "Poisonous woman, what have you done to my grandson?" Saying this, she even disregarded Lu Qingwan's knife and began to struggle. However, no matter how she struggled, Lu Qingwan's hand holding the knife remained unmoved. Instead, with a "crack," she twisted Madam Lan's wrist.