The first gleam of dawn slanted into the carving gallery, separating the two Commanders-in-chief who were especially acrimonious.

Ming Lan's long bluish eyebrows flew into the temples and he smiled evilly, "Leng Qingtang, you may learn that I get the Kunhuang Island map, so you have imperial edict. On the surface, you want to cooperate with the Western Depot. But you want to compete with me and save Tu Muxue, right?"

"Tu Muxue secretly investigates the mannequin case for me. She is a spy who was sent to the palace half a year ago. She is good at Kungfu and she is careful. She knows the art of dormancy best. The only shortcoming is that her early practice breakthroughs caused her body's true spirit to retrograde, and so she needs to use secret medicine to maintain it from time to time."

Leng Qingtang speaking candidly, Ming Lan flashed his eyes and turned around to pick up a rouge box in front of the bookcase.

"Is it? The cream inside has a unique smell. It's definitely not a rouge for applying makeup. Except for the Kunhuang Island map, this is the only thing that guards found out from her."

The look in Leng Qingtang's eyes was complicated, and then he held it tightly in the palm of his hand. His face darkened.

It turned out that the d*mned person used this thing to control Yunxi and dragged her into the chaotic quagmire.

"Master Ming, do you know that Tu Muxue entered the palace and has successfully contacted those people. With the treasure map tonight, we could find the culprit behind the scenes, but our plan was destroyed by your guards. My clue is broken."

Ming Lan was panting and arguing urgently and angrily, "What do you mean? The Western Depot destroyed your plan? I also received clues that there were traitors last night. Fortunately, I arrived there in time. Otherwise, Tu Muxue would have been killed by them..."

Leng Qingtang waved hands to interrupt him.

"The treasure map is very important and it is common for the rebels to fight for merit. Forget it! The most urgent thing is that you should lead people into Chuxiu Palace to search, pretending to make a show of power. I have explained to His Majesty the reason in advance, and soon there will be notices of beheading Tu Muxue in various places in the capital. And then you will personally oversee the execution. You arrange a meeting for me and Tu Muxue so that I will order her something. Let us join hands to deal with this case."

Ming Lan sneered and shook his head.

"Leng Qingtang, you are really a cunning fox. I go to search Chuxiu Palace and does the Western Depot do all the offending things?"

Leng Qingtang smiled like a spring breeze and patted Ming Lan's chest with smooth hands.

"Don't worry, those who make great achievements don't stick to the trivial. You are not a villain but a hero of society. As long as you secretly dedicate the Kunhuang Island map in your hand to His Majesty, are you afraid that there will be blame from Master Xu?"

Ming Lan shook Leng Qingtang's hand off with his palm and snorted.

"Am I really stupid? The map Tu Muxue got is simply fake. Someone wants to set a bait for fishing. Tu Muxue is too careless."

There were too many profound meanings alluded to in Ming Lan's words, which immediately verified the speculations in Leng Qingtang's heart. However, he didn't show his expression and looked at Ming Lan's enchanting face tightly with his deep phoenix eyes.

"Trust me. The map is authentic."

Ming Lan smiled but said nothing. Leng Qingtang saw this and said.

"Why don't we make a bet that the treasure map Tu Muxue found was true? If I am wrong, I will put two squads into the Western Depot. If you are wrong, you should give me your new mansion Meiwu in Xitang that you just bought."

…

It was quiet around the prison of the Western Depot. Gu Yunxi sat on the haystack indifferently, staring blankly at the chicken, duck, and fish on the opposite wooden table. She didn't have any appetite.

After waking up from a coma, she was here. The drug addiction passed and her body was sore as a broken muscle. The slight movement of her body was a sharp pain in the bone.

Ming Lan had been here before and asked his followers to send a lot of delicious meals. He was afraid of her skills and stayed outside the cell to observe her behavior.

She was a traitor, the rank-fifth chief maid of Chuxiu Palace, and Concubine Xu's favorite palace maid. The relationship was intertwined, and no one could guarantee what role Concubine Xu played in the entire case. Therefore, until the end, Ming Lan wouldn’t use severe punishment on her.

The familiar sound of footsteps made Gu Yunxi raise her head sharply. Her eyes burned across the prison fence.

Outside the prison door, the blue shirt was elegant and the handsome face was infinite and graceful. The cold light of the deep eyes collapsed, and he firmly fixed on Gu Yunxi's startled face, without a trace of affection.

Why did Master Leng go to the prison of the Western Depot? Gu Yunxi didn't know what happened during this time. She only rubbed her knees in front of the door with dirty fingers clinging to the fence. She called out bleakly, "Master..."

"It was you who betrayed me..." Leng Qingtang raised his eyelids high and blamed in a deep voice.

Gu Yunxi burst into tears with a numb face.

"Whether you believe it or not, I definitely want to betray you. Now I have ended up in such a way that I don't want to implicate Concubine Xu. I beg you to think of a safe and secure plan to protect Chuxiu Palace."

Leng Qingtang's eyes were wavy and a stream of light slipped quietly.

"I come here with my plans. Little girl, if you want to save Master Xu, you cannot betray me."

Leng Qingtang pulled out the short blade and the rouge box from his sleeves and passed them into the cell. His sharp gaze fixed on Gu Yunxi's hesitating little face,

"Take the medicine. This is your last chance. Tell me everything you know. We are waiting for you to go home..."

…

On a moonlit night, a black figure speeded through the dense forest and then stopped at the stone tablet to buckle the mechanism. Suddenly, he entered a secret path.

The tiny footsteps made the man with a black iron mask open his lazy eyes and the questioning voice was cold, "How?"

After removing the face cloth, the man in black showed the delicate face of a young woman and replied in a simple way, "News from the palace is that His Majesty made a secret edict for the Eastern and Western Depots to join forces. Three days later, Tu Muxue will be beheaded at Yangfangkou. I am afraid it is a trick to lure the enemy. I hope Your Highness will think twice."

The masked man turned his back on the woman. With a moment of contemplation, he commanded, "Stick to the original plan!"

The woman immediately looked anxious and said, "Why do you have to go your own way? The news from the man in the palace never goes wrong. Tu Muxue..."

The masked man shouted angrily, "Only she knows the whereabouts of the Kunhuang Island map. I will definitely get that map!"

The woman refused to give in and argued, "For the map or for her?"

The masked man turned around suddenly and quickly stretched out his iron hand to strangle the woman's throat. His scarlet eyes glared at her at close range and his voice trembled with anger, "I remind you again that her family saved the Huanan family back then and even my ninth brother. Even if there is not a treasure map, I will not allow her to get hurt!"

Shaking the girl down like tearing a piece of paper, the masked man walked out of the stone house.

In the early morning three days later, after a simple meal, Gu Yunxi was taken out of the prison by the guards of the Western Depot. She was dragged by the hand chains and shackles, and she slowly got into the wagon to the Yangfangkou execution ground.

Sitting cross-legged in the prison wagon, she was very calm, not crying or making trouble.

On both sides of the official road were people, all of whom had read the notices in the downtown and got the news. They wanted to see how this beaten-out rebel was dragged to the execution ground and beheaded in plain clothes.

The secret guards of the Eastern Depot lay in ambush among the crowd, with weapons hiding on their bodies, silently paying attention to the surrounding movement.

Leng Qingtang leaned on the third floor of a tea shop in disguise and glanced coldly at the street. His hands and palms condensed part of internal strength.

He believed that among the onlookers there were people from the Eastern and Western Depots, as well as rebels pretending to be ordinary people.

The wooden platform of the execution ground in the Yangfangkou Central Execution Ground was built high. Ming Lan, the officer in charge of the execution, was sitting on the seat with bright makeup, watching the prisoner wagon approaching and stop at the destination.

The woman got out of the wagon and dragged her heavy shackles to the guillotine pile. She bowed her head and fell to her knees.

It was midday. Ming Lan raised his eyebrows and threw the token, which was penetrated by a cold arrow. The sharp and flashing quasi-head brushed Ming Lan's hat, and then it was deeply nailed behind him.

At the moment when the hat fell, the official bun on Ming Lan's head was shattered, and the black hair covered his face.

Ming Lan yelled, thinking that his head had fallen. He was so scared that he turned over from the position, shrank under the long case, and listened to the fierce fighting rising around him.

The executioner had been shot in the eye by the second arrow coming immediately, dripping with blood. The man screamed, threw down the machete, and fell silent on the ground.

These two arrows were orders. Most people pulled off their caps, tore their coats, revealed the black suit inside, and picked up the weapons.

People ran hurriedly, and the scene immediately fell into chaos.

In an instant, Yangfangkou was reduced to a killing field, and both the traitors and the secret guards of the two depots who were fighting against each other were ruthless. They reached the deadly point of the opponents.

The situation became uncontrollable, and the sound of shouting shocked the sky.

In midair, a masked man with a garment made of bird feathers flew down to the high platform, dropped his fingers lightly, and cut the hemp rope and fetters that bound Gu Yunxi in one fell swoop.

At this moment, Gu Yunxi's eyes were stunned, and her heart trembled as she met the deep pity eyes behind the hard iron mask. Her voice was like sand-filling, "Your Highness, you come here."

The masked man spoke with a rare gentle voice, "Don't be afraid. I'm here."

Holding Gu Yunxi, he stepped out of the high platform lightly with his toes.

Leng Qingtang saw it in the attic and slammed down in a blink. Using levitation and crossing many houses, he pursued them with all his strength.

Gu Yunxi lay in the warm chest of the masked man, squinting to see the scene in front of her quickly turning back as if she had been riding in the clouds.

With inexplicable pain in the bottom of her heart, she flicked. Her fingers trembled slightly towards the front of her clothes, and she pulled out a palm-sized short blade of fish intestines. Suddenly, she pierced the masked person's weakness, turning her wrists violently.

When the masked man was fully absorbed, he felt his body was broken open by something cold and hard. The pain became unbearable. With a groan, his body suddenly became unbalanced, and he rolled down with Gu Yunxi.