Chapter 706: Unexpected Disaster (Part )

"stop!"

When Ding Qinghong was escorting Liu Xunyi out of Tianji Pavilion, Qin Wei, who had heard the news, came with dozens of golden sword captains and angrily surrounded them, blocking the way of Ding Qinghong and others.

"Where did this bastard come from? How dare he come to Tianji Pavilion to arrest someone?"

The two sides met head-on, Qin Wei shouted loudly, and dozens of golden sword captains drew their swords one after another, with fierce brows and murderous eyes.

Seeing this, the palace guards were not willing to be outdone. They immediately drew their weapons and confronted Qin Wei and others.

For a moment, the two sides were on the verge of a fight.

"stop!"

When Qin Wei slowly raised his dagger and was about to order an attack, Zhao Yuan's deep voice suddenly sounded from behind Ding Qinghong.

Upon seeing Zhao Yuan, Qin Wei was stunned: "My Lord, they want to take Brother Liu away..."

"I know!" Zhao Yuan interrupted in a deep voice, "Make way and let Eunuch Ding and the others go."

"What?" Qin Wei was shocked. "But..."

"Step aside!"

Zhao Yuan shouted, frightening Qin Wei and the other lieutenants who didn't know the truth. Qin Wei glanced at Ding Qinghong, who looked smug, and then at Liu Xunyi, who looked bewildered. He frowned and hesitated again and again, but he didn't dare to disobey Zhao Yuan's order. He reluctantly led his men to retreat to the side.

"The Marquis of Tianji is indeed a man of great justice. Farewell!"

Ding Qinghong left a sarcastic compliment, then led his men away, taking Liu Xunyi with him.

Zhao Yuan watched Ding Qinghong go away, his face changing color and his eyes were very complicated.

"My Lord, are you going to let them take Brother Liu away? Just say the word and I will lead my men to kill him halfway..."

"What do you want to do?" Zhao Yuanhu glared and said angrily, "Do you know who they are? They are guards of the imperial palace, led by the deputy governor of the right squad, Ding Qinghong."

"So what?" Qin Wei said indignantly, "How dare a mere eunuch break into the Tianji Pavilion and arrest people? After all, this is the territory of the East Palace, and the Marquis is a royal relative, so what they do is..."

"Stupid!" Zhao Yuan scolded, "How dare an eunuch enter the house? They are following the emperor's orders."

"The Emperor's order?" Qin Wei's face changed, and he asked in surprise, "My Lord, what you mean is... arresting Brother Liu is the Emperor's order?"

"That's right! If you had argued with them just now, you would have been disobeying an order. As for the consequences... you decide for yourself!"

"hiss!"

Qin Wei, who was completely confused, realized the seriousness of the situation at this moment. He turned to look at the empty streets and murmured with lingering fear: "Fortunately, the Marquis reminded me in time, otherwise I would have caused a huge disaster."

"I'm glad you know. You were too reckless just now!" Zhao Yuan taught, "Although you and Liu Xunyi are as close as brothers, you still have to prioritize."

"My Lord, what crime did Brother Liu commit?" Qin Wei asked in confusion, "Princess Xinde's matter has been resolved, and Brother Liu managed to save his life. Why did the Emperor suddenly attack him?"

"I don't know." Zhao Yuan looked embarrassed and shook his head slowly. "Ding Qinghong came to me with the gold medal and didn't explain much."

At this point, Zhao Yuan frowned and asked Qin Wei, "What has Liu Xunyi done these days? Has he gotten into trouble again?"

"Impossible!" Qin Wei said firmly, "Since meeting Princess Xinde, Brother Liu has not left the house. He is even more honest than an unmarried girl. What trouble could he cause? Moreover, the Prime Minister has ordered Brother Liu not to step out of Tianji Pavilion. The Marquis knows about this."

"Yes!" Zhao Yuan was also puzzled and pondered, "Princess Xinde's matter has come to an end, and Xunyi has never left Tianji Pavilion. What happened to displease the emperor?"

"Could it be that the eunuchs in the Ministry of Internal Affairs... are doing something bad?" Qin Wei rolled his eyes and reminded in a low voice, "This group of dirty villains always likes to change their attitude according to the situation and make trouble out of nothing. When the East Palace was in power in the past, they surrounded the emperor all day long to speak well of the prime minister and speak ill of the Privy Council everywhere. Now that the West Palace is in power, will they try to curry favor with the Privy Council and sow discord in front of the emperor and frame Brother Liu? As you know, the prime minister and the marquis just tried their best to protect Brother Liu's life in front of the emperor not long ago. If Brother Liu gets into trouble now, it means..."

"That makes sense!" Zhao Yuan seemed to sense a hint of conspiracy after Qin Wei's reminder, so he waved his hand and interrupted, "This matter is too strange, we have to be on guard."

"What the Marquis means is..."

"Qin Wei, take some banknotes to the prison and make arrangements to save Xunyi's life." Zhao Yuan thought, "We must not let them plot in prison. If Xunyi dies in prison without any clear reason, they will definitely label him as 'suicide out of fear of punishment'. There will be no evidence, and Dongfu will not be able to clear his name even if he jumps into the Yellow River."

"Understood!" Qin Wei nodded repeatedly, "I will go to the Heavenly Prison to make arrangements right away. I wonder what the Marquis has planned?"

"I will go to visit the Prime Minister tonight to see if he knows about this matter." Zhao Yuan ordered in an orderly manner, "You keep an eye on it in the prison. I will meet the Prime Minister and rush to the prison to meet you immediately. As for other matters... we will discuss it later."

"As ordered!"

Without further ado, Zhao Yuan and Qin Wei ended their discussion and hurriedly left Tianji Pavilion, heading towards the Heavenly Prison and the Prime Minister's Mansion respectively.

……

As the saying goes, "Money makes the world go round."

As expected, Qin Wei's several hundred taels of silver saved Liu Xunyi from a beating.

Just now, Liu Xunyi was taken to the Sky Prison, and Ding Qinghong led his men back to the palace to report. As soon as they left, the jailers immediately hung Liu Xunyi up and prepared iron chains, whips, branding irons and other items, intending to torture the new prisoner according to the "rules" of the Sky Prison.

Fortunately, Qin Wei arrived in time and bribed the leader of the jailers, so Liu Xunyi was able to return to the cell unharmed.

Due to the rules of the Heavenly Prison, Qin Wei could not meet Liu Xunyi without permission, so he could only wait for Zhao Yuan's arrival outside the Heavenly Prison.

At midnight, the wind was chilly and biting, the stars and the moon were dim, and the world was bleak.

Qin Wei stood alone outside the prison, anxiously looking towards the end of the darkness, but he could not see Zhao Yuan, so he could only pace back and forth to ease his anxiety. He waited for two hours.

It was almost dawn when Zhao Yuan's carriage slowly approached from afar.

Qin Wei rushed forward, and before the carriage stopped, he could not wait to lift the curtain and welcome Zhao Yuan to get off.

"My Lord, you are finally here!" Qin Wei helped Zhao Yuan get out of the car while asking, "How is it? What did the Prime Minister say? When will Brother Liu be able to come out?"

However, facing Qin Wei's barrage of words, Zhao Yuan's face was as gloomy as water. He said nothing and walked straight towards the sky prison.

Gradually realizing Zhao Yuan's abnormality, Qin Wei became more suspicious and said, "My Lord..."

"Let's talk after we get in!"

Before Qin Wei could speak, Zhao Yuan shut him up with a cold answer.

Qin Wei was stunned. Although he was puzzled, he didn't dare to say anything more. He could only bow and accept the order, then followed Zhao Yuan with his head down.

"Stop! This is a forbidden area of ​​the Heavenly Prison. No outsiders are allowed to enter..."

"Go away!"

Seeing Zhao Yuan rushing into the prison with great momentum, the two jailers hurried forward to stop him, but before they could finish their words, Zhao Yuan suddenly shouted loudly, which frightened the two men so much that they trembled and their voices stopped abruptly.

On the other hand, Zhao Yuan ignored the surprised look of the jailer and walked towards the depths of the prison with big strides without stopping.

"Wait! You guys..."

"shut up!"

Just as the two jailers were about to chase after him to stop him, the jailer leader suddenly blocked them and scolded them, "You are blind, and you dare to stop Marquis Tianji?"

"Heaven...Hou Tianji?"

"That's right! He doesn't even take the laws of the Song Dynasty seriously, let alone the small Tianlao? Our rules can control others, but not the royal family."

"Where is Liu Xunyi imprisoned? Someone lead the way!"

Suddenly, Zhao Yuan’s unquestionable order came from the prison.

"I am the humble one leading the way for Marquis Tianji!"

The chief jailer, who was always serious in front of his subordinates, suddenly changed his attitude. He trotted after Zhao Yuan and followed him, nodding and bowing, smiling fawningly.

In the dark, damp, narrow and potholed sky prison filled with the smell of mold and mildew, the chief jailer led Zhao Yuan and Qin Wei through twists and turns, and after several detours, they finally met Liu Xunyi in a dark and dirty iron prison.

"You step back first, no one is allowed to come in and disturb us!"

Zhao Yuan ignored Liu Xunyi who was bowing and went straight to give orders to the chief jailer.

Hearing this, Qin Wei took out another banknote and stuffed it into the arms of the jailer leader. The jailer leader's eyes sparkled, and he bowed repeatedly to express his gratitude, then quickly left the cell and closed the cell door tightly.

In the blink of an eye, only Liu Xunyi, Zhao Yuan and Qin Wei were left in the cell.

Seeing Zhao Yuan's indifferent expression and reluctance to speak, Liu Xunyi could no longer suppress her inner curiosity and was the first to break the silence: "My Lord, why did they put me in the prison for no reason? What crime have I committed?"

Qin Wei echoed, "My Lord, are those eunuchs from the Ministry of Internal Affairs doing something bad? Will the Prime Minister be furious when he finds out about this? How can we rescue Brother Liu?"

However, in the face of Liu Xunyi and Qin Wei's singing the same tune, Zhao Yuan still said nothing, but just stared at Liu Xunyi with a bad look, making him feel uncomfortable.

"Master Hou..."

"Snapped!"

Liu Xunyi was about to ask more questions, but unexpectedly Zhao Yuan's face turned grim, and he suddenly slapped him in the face with his hand, making him dizzy and his head buzzing.

This scene not only made Liu Xunyi unbelievable, but also made Qin Wei terrified, and he subconsciously let out a cry of surprise.

Liu Xunyi shook his head, trying to keep himself awake, and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with his sleeves. Then he looked at the furious Zhao Yuan in astonishment and said aggrievedly: "Why did the Marquis hit me?"

"You know clearly what 'good things' you have done!"

Zhao Yuan became more and more angry as he spoke, and kicked him hard in the chest, knocking Liu Xunyi to the ground. Then, regardless of Qin Wei's dissuasion, he rushed forward and punched and kicked him all over the head, as if he was angry and wanted to vent it all on Liu Xunyi.

Liu Xunyi didn't dare to resist. She curled up on the ground with her head in her hands, allowing Zhao Yuan to beat and scold her.

"My Lord!" The sudden change made Qin Wei panic. He hurriedly hugged Zhao Yuan around the waist and tried to persuade him, "Brother Liu, if you have done anything wrong, you can tell me clearly. It's not too late to fight after you have done it! Are you the eunuchs from the Ministry of Internal Affairs..."

"Get out of here!" Zhao Yuan waved his hand, pushing Qin Wei out and causing him to stagger. He cursed angrily, "Don't accuse others here. It's clearly Liu Xunyi's own fault. He has fallen into depravity! I am so blind. How could I support a bunch of ungrateful bastards like you!"

"My Lord, I..."

"Shut up!" Zhao Yuan pointed at the bruised and battered Liu Xunyi and shouted angrily, "The elders of the East Palace sacrificed their own lives to save your life, but in the blink of an eye, you took their kindness for granted and not only did you commit suicide, but you also ruined the reputation of the entire East Palace! Instead of waiting for the emperor to decide, I'd rather let you beat me to death and clean up the mess for the East Palace, so that you don't embarrass yourself and implicate innocent people!"

After saying that, Zhao Yuan, who was shaking with anger, looked around, then picked up the whip hanging on the wall, and regardless of Liu Xunyi's explanation and Qin Wei's pleading, he mercilessly whipped Liu Xunyi!
……

(End of this chapter)