Genius Doctor: Black Belly Miss

Chapter 921 - 940

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Chapter 921:- Curtains Up (5)

The Imperial Physicians rushed over and arrived very quickly. After the Emperor received the news, he couldn't host Xiong Ba and the others properly any longer and he came straight to the Empress' Palace with Xiong Ba and his people in tow. Together with them, was Jun Wu Xie disguised as Qu Ling Yue as well.

The moment they went in, they saw an entire troop of Imperial Physicians surrounding the bed while Lei Fan laid upon it, his face pale as a sheet.

The Emperor shot over like an arrow to take a look at Lei Fan who was lying on the bed, at the face who was so much alike to the woman he had loved, that was now completely drained of colour. His heart wrenched up instantly, the scene when his most beloved woman had left the world coming back to his mind, as the pain in his heart intensified.

"What is wrong with the Fourth Prince? Can't you bunch of quacks quickly cure the Fourth Prince of his condition? If all of you fail in curing the Fourth Prince, the entire bunch of you will be buried together with him!" The Emperor's face was dark as thunder as he roared, his voice filled with fear and terror.

The whole bunch of Imperial Physicians trembled under the Emperor's roar, all of them with their heads on the ground, pleading for mercy.

The Empress had lost her usual dignified composure, weeping hysterically by the bedside.

"Your Majesty! You must save Little Fan!"

The Emperor nodded sombrely.

"I will definitely not let anything happen to Little Fan."

Xiong Ba was secretly shocked when he saw Lei Fan, his gaze then subconsciously turned to look at Jun Xie. He saw Jun Xie standing there cold and indifferent, no one noticing his presence, but Xiong Ba was feeling highly distressed and perturbed.

The Emperor instructed the Imperial Physicians to check Lei Fan's condition carefully once more before he summoned the eunuchs who were with Lei Fan earlier, to question them on the events that had taken place at the Imperial Garden earlier.

The eunuchs were all by then so immensely terrified by the Emperor's fury that all they could do was only tremble in hapless fear as they knelt on the ground, helpless like newborn chicks, relating the sequence of events in the Imperial Garden earlier that day in a series of stutters. When the Emperor heard the story, his face immediately turned dark as thunder.

Lei Fan had been attacked just not long after they reached the Imperial Garden and it had even occurred right before the eyes of a whole group of guards, where Lei Chen had been force fed with any unidentified elixir. That was like a direct slap upon the Emperor's face.

"Immediately send men to seal the Imperial Palace. No matter what, the assassin must be captured!" The Emperor said through gritted teeth.

The eunuchs all complied, still shivering in fear.

From the eunuchs' statements, the Emperor was able to gather that "Qu Ling Yue" had nothing to do with the incident and he did not say anything to her, but just sat down on the side, looking anxiously at Lei Fan.

On the other hand, Xiong Ba's gaze was filled with endless questions as it fell on the figure of Jun Xie. Besides the few of them, no one knew that this Qu Ling Yue before their eyes was actually Jun Xie in disguise.

All that the eunuchs had said earlier, Xiong Ba had naturally heard it all clearly as well. This incident seemed like it had nothing to do with Jun Xie in the slightest. But for no reason, Xiong Ba could not help feeling that this incident where Lei Fan had been attacked was somehow linked to Jun Xie.

It was too much of a coincidence. Of all times for Lei Fan to come to such harm, it had to happen after Jun Xie left together with him and they were attacked shortly after.

Xiong Ba could not help himself but feel nervous. He had agreed to bring Jun Xie into the Imperial Palace only because of Qu Ling Yue's pleading and Lei Chen's request, but he really did not want to see the Emperor finding out that this incident could be linked to the Thousand Beast City in anyway.

Fortunately the Emperor had believed the eunuchs and he had not probed any further into it, and that had been a great relief to Xiong Ba.

Under the Emperor's anxious gaze and the Empress' teary eyes, the Imperial Physicians finally completed the initial diagnosis of Lei Fan's condition, and the results of the diagnosis greatly shocked the Emperor and Empress.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, the Fourth Prince had been fed Blood of Kin."

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Chapter 922:- Curtains Up (6)

"Blood of Kin?" The Emperor's brow went up as he stared at the Imperial Physician, not knowing what it was.

The Imperial Physician was still kneeling on the floor and he gulped secretly before he said: "It is a type of poison that will cause the victim to lose a great amount of blood. Although the toxicity of the poison is not strong, but it causes a situation where the victim's wounds would not be able to close. The poison's toxin goes into the blood of a person which makes the blood unable to clot, and it makes the blood surge in its flow, causing a heavier bleeding from the wound than it should from the injury."

"What does that actually mean?" The Empress was thinking the Imperial Physician's words were sounding a little strange, which made her ask immediately.

The Imperial Physician said: "The wound on the Fourth Prince's neck is not serious, but because of the effects of the Blood of Kin, the wound would not close, which will cause the current heavy bleeding to continue and result in the over excessive loss of blood....."

The Empress was so shocked her hands clutched her chest, and the Emperor's expression was turning darker by the minute.

"Isn't there anything that can neutralize this poison?" The Emperor was suddenly filled with hatred for the culprit. The wound he had inflicted was minor, but the lone elixir he used was enough to turn that minor wound into a mortal wound that would be fatal!

The Imperial Physician was covered in cold sweat. He wiped at his forehead which was heavily beaded with sweat as he said: "You lowly subject has already given some blood nourishing elixir to His Highness and that can temporarily alleviate the condition of excessive blood loss. But to completely neutralize the poison from the Blood of Kin, there is only one way! The name Blood of Kin, is derived from the method needed to neutralize it."

"Then, spit it out quick!" The Emperor really felt like giving one big mighty kick to this humming and hawing Imperial Physician.

"It needs..... the kin of the victim, to give out some of his blood, to dilute and thin out the toxin in the victim's blood, and the use of other medicine in support, before it will work." Upon finishing his words, the Imperial Physician hit his head three times on the ground in kowtow.

"Blood of his kin?" The Emperor was shocked a moment, and he asked immediately after: "Will the blood between brothers work?"

The Imperial Physician hastily replied. "If the blood of siblings is to be used, they will need to be born from the same biological parents on both sides, and the one supplying the blood must be male before it will work."

The words of the Imperial Physician caused the Emperor to fall silent, while on the other side, the colour had completely seeped out of the Empress' face instantly. Within her panicked filled eyes, besides the worry she held for Lei Fan, held a tinge of terror that could not be detected by any others there.

The Imperial Physician kneeling on the floor started to shiver more violently. Everyone knew that the Fourth Prince Lei Fan was born from a concubine who had already passed on. The Lady and the Emperor only had one child, Lei Fan, between them, and there were no other biological brothers to speak of.

Hence, the only person that was able to save Lei Fan, was only the Emperor himself!

Both the Emperor's fists were tightly clenched. Lei Fan was his most favoured son and although he cared a great deal about his own safety, he however,still did not wish to see Lei Yan lose his life for it.

The Emperor was silent for a while before he asked: "How much blood is needed?"

The Imperial Physician said: "Three bowls of blood is needed, and it must be poured down into the Fourth Prince throat into his body immediately upon extraction and if there is any delay in between, it will be ineffective."

Three bowl of blood, it was enough to cause a great effect on one's body and health. The Emperor's brows creased up deeply and he was just about to open his mouth to speak when the pale faced Empress suddenly knelt right before the Emperor!

"Your lady knows that the Emperor loves Little Fan, but with His Majesty is the Son of Heaven, how can we inflict harm and desecrate the dragon's body to extract blood out of it? And it is such a great amount as well. If it is really carried out, then His Majesty's body will suffer great harm! Your lady pleads with Your Majesty to not doing anything to harm yourself." The Empress pleaded, weeping pitifully

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Chapter 923:- Curtains Up (7)

The frown on the Emperor's face creased up even deeper. "Empress, you should know best how I feel towards Little Fan. Throughout the years, Little Fan had been raised right by your side, and I have seen that you cared deeply for Little Fan as well. But things have come to such a state, and you have heard the Imperial Physician's words clearly. If I do not extract my blood, Little Fan will definitely lose his life!"

The Empress' face was filled with tears, however, she still remained kneeling on the ground.

The fact that the Emperor was willing to save Lei Fan came as no surprise to the Empress, but she could not allow the Emperor to do that. If Lei Fan was really the Emperor's biological son, the Empress would naturally wish for nothing more than for the Emperor to save Lei Fan, but in truth, no one knew better than she did who Lei Fan's biological father really was!

If the Emperor was allowed to extract his blood and it was given to Lei Fan, and Lei Fan's poison was not neutralised, then the Emperor would definitely find it all very suspicious. WIth the Emperor's suspicious nature, the secrets behind Lei Fan's birth would then be found out by the Emperor very quickly.

If that happened, not only Lei Fan would not be saved, all of them would instead find themselves facing certain death instead!

Under these circumstances, even though the Empress was anxious to save Lei Fan, she knew she had to stop the Emperor, and not allow him to extract his blood!

"Your Majesty! You know Little Fan the best. He has been very filial from a very young age and if he knew that you harmed yourself in order to save him, he will surely hate himself for it! I plead for Your Majesty to reconsider! Your lady has heard of this poison called the Blood of Kin before and it is said that there is more than one way to neutralise it. Why don't we first let the Imperial Physicians stabilise Little Fan's condition and let your lady consult the doctors in the Imperial Capital for a cure and we might just be able to find a better way from it!" The Empress wailed, looking at the Emperor nervously, her heart hanging by a thread with those words.

The Emperor's face was creased in a deep frown. The amount of blood required was so much and it was a rather hard decision for him. The Empress' words had made him hesitate further and with that momentary hesitation, Lei Fan who was lying on the bed finally managed to regain consciousness and he began to mumble some words.

The Empress immediately turned her head around and saw Lei Fan slowly opening his eyes. She pulled up the hem of her dress and ran over to go beside Lei Fan's bed to say in tears: "My poor Little Fan, how could there be anyone so wicked and cruel in this world to want to inflict this Blood of Kin poison on you that requires a blood transfusion from your father in order to save your life. Little Fan, your Imperial Father is agreeable to the blood transfusion and it will require three whole bowls! Oh my poor son....."

The Empress wailed out in an incessant chatter, hinting strongly to Lei Fan with her long string of words.

Due to the excessive loss of blood, Lei Fan's mind was still unclear and he was feeling highly groggy, but he had nevertheless clearly heard the Empress mentioned the words "Imperial Father".

At the moment in his mind, a flashback of the black robed man's words spoken just before he left came to his mind.

"Only the blood of your biological father can save you."

With a blast, it exploded in Lei Fan's mind with a loud bang. He immediately understood what the Empress was trying to hint at and struggling to push the pain that wrecked at his body, he was helped by the Imperial Physicians to sit up, with his face deathly white as he looked at the Emperor.

"Father! Father, you must not ever even consider doing something like that! If it was all because of your son that made you decide to harm yourself, then I will become too ashamed to remain living in this world! I plead that Father place your trust in the skills of the Imperial Physicians and let them try out some other methods to cure me!"

Seeing his son now weak and frail from the poison still being so considerate and protective of the Emperor's well being, and was willing to prolong the time that it would take to neutralize the poison, the Emperor was suddenly deeply moved, and his paternal love for the loving son surged, making him feel that Lei Fan was indeed the son he had with his beloved woman, that was as sensible and caring as his mother.

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Chapter 924:- Curtains Up (8)

"Forget it, since both you and your mother are so insistent, I will not force the issue. But, I will only allow you half a day's time. If within another half day's time, the Imperial Physicians are still unable to find an alternative cure, I will have to follow what the Imperial Physician has said."The Emperor said imperiously, but his eyes were still filled with deep care and concern for Lei Fan.

Lei Fan at that moment could not really afford to concern himself whether the Emperor's love for him has grown as his back was already drenched in cold sweat.

"Yes." The Empress said quickly, deeply fearful that the Emperor would renege on his word immediately.

The Emperor had after seeing Lei Fan regain consciousness, shown an improvement in his dark countenance. And to allow Lei Fan to rest a little more and for the Imperial Physicians to carry out their treatments, the Emperor left the Empress' Palace with Xiong Ba and the others.

After they came out, the Emperor said: "Before the assassin is captured, the Imperial Palace has been completely sealed. I will implore our esteemed guests to temporarily put up in the Imperial Palace for a while and only leave after the culprit has been arrested."

Xiong Ba nodded his head but did not say anything more. The Emperor wasn't really in the mood to say much to Xiong Ba and his group either and he ordered the eunuchs to make arrangements for them to have a place to rest.

Along the entire way, the little eunuch had been with them and although Xiong Ba had many burning questions in his heart to ask, he did not say speak his heart, but his eyes were fixed unwaveringly on Jun Xie. Until they were led to come into a mansion within the Imperial Palace and the little eunuch had retreated, Xiong Be finally could not hold the deep suspicions and anxiety in his heart back any longer and he ran to come right before Jun Xie.

"Young Master Jun! Although I promised the Young Miss to bring you into the Imperial Palace, but I did not agree to help you harm the prince. With you moving unilaterally on your own like this, if the Emperor finds out about this, it will drag the Thousand Beast City into it! Do you realise what you have done?"

Jun Wu Xie looked at Xiong Ba expressionlessly. Xiong Ba's outrage had been within her expectations. "Hall Chief Xiong thinks I am responsible for Lei Fan's current condition?"

Xiong Ba said: "Who else could it be besides you?"

Jun Xie had barely just stepped out together with Lei Fan and Lei Fan had suddenly been hurt. That had been too much of a coincidence in Xiong Ba's eyes.

Jun Wu Xie replied: "Does Hall Chief Xiong think that if I have the capabilities to bring someone into the Imperial Palace, and harm the Fourth Prince right in front of so many guards and was still able to fed him an elixir, I would need to trouble you to bring me into the Imperial Palace?"

Jun Wu Xie's words made Xiong Ba stunned a moment. The timing of the attack on Lei Fan had been too much of a coincidence and Xiong Ba had linked it to Jun Xie without a moment's hesitation. But according to the statements from the bunch of eunuchs, the man who had attacked Lei Fan had been extremely highly skilled. Besides having been able to avoid detection from the heavy patrols from the guards, the man had even held the prince hostage right before the faces of a large number of guards. A feat like that, even for Xiong Ba himself, was not possible to achieve.

"It's really not you?" Xiong Ba asked hesitatingly as he stared at Jun Xie.

Jun Wu Xie shrugged her shoulders. "Whether it is or not, Hall Chief Xiong can believe as he wishes."

The more open Jun Xie sounded about it, the more Xiong Ba felt that he was just being petty and overly suspicious and he suddenly felt a little embarrassed of himself. He hastened to apologise to Jun Xie but Jun Xie did not seem to have minded it much and did not hold it against Xiong Ba.

On the other hand, Xiong Ba who had been easily brushed off with just a few words from Jun Xie had not noticed that Jun Xie had not actually answered his question directly at all, but had replied him with questions, without having admitted to or to deny the allegations.

"I had not thought that we will encounter such a thing coming into the palace. Blood of Kin is not considered to be extremely rare, but few people are able to successfully cultivate it now. I had not thought that this old man would live long enough to witness Blood of Kin myself." Feng Yue Yang said with a heartfelt sigh.

Jun Wu Xie on the other hand, had taken a seat at the side, her lowered eyes glinting with an icy chill.

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Chapter 925:- Slap with Borrowed Hand - First Form (1)

Meanwhile, Jun Wu Xie on the other hand, had taken a seat at the side, her lowered eyes glinting with an icy chill.

The curtains to the show were just coming up.

In the Empress' Palace, the Emperor had just left not long ago when the expression of frantic panic faded from the Empress' face and she discreetly wiped the traces of the drying tear marks from her face, her face suddenly turned into a deep frown as she stared at the Imperial Physicians providing treatment for Lei Fan.

"Your services are not required here any longer, a whole bunch of charlatans, you can't even neutralize Blood of Kin! ? Your Ladyship here has her own ways, all of you get out of here this instant!"

Having been so harshly berated by the Empress, the Imperial Physicians immediately scrambled to leave the palace.

Once the palace doors were shut tight, the forced front of composure put up by the Empress then began to crack.

"Mother! Mother, save me! I don't want to die! I really don't want to die!" Sitting upon the bed, Lei Fan wailed pitifully. Others were not aware of the truth behind his birth, but he knew it clearly himself. He had said those things to the Emperor earlier because he had been afraid that truth would be exposed and now that there were no more outsiders around, he could only pin all his hopes onto the Empress.

The Empress sat forlorn by the bed and held Lei Fan by the shoulders. When she felt her son trembling with fear, her heart winced up with pain.

She had given birth to another son before but he had passed away in an accident. And because of her eldest son's passing, it had caused the Empress to love Lei Chen even deeper right into her bones. If not for the fact that the Emperor was not able to save Lei Fan at all, she wouldn't have pushed him away like that.

"Little Fan, do not be afraid. Mother is here for you. We just need your father's blood right? The Emperor cannot save you, but do not forget, your father can." The Empress told Lei Fan.

Lei Fan was stunned for a while.

His father, his biological father, is the current Prime Minister isn't it?

"But..... But how is father going to come here into the palace?" Lei Fan then asked.

The Empress gave a cold laugh and said: "As the Empress, I have my ways. Little Fan, you do not have to worry about it. The Imperial Physicians at Mother's side are knowledgeable in the neutralization of poisons as well and since he knows about your circumstances, having him treat your condition will also be the safest avenue. As for your father, I have already secretly sent men to summon him in here and I believe it will not be long before he will have heard the news about it. So, Little Fan, you really do not have to worry, Mother will not allow anything untoward to happen to you."

As the Empress spoke, she patted Lei Fan reassuringly on the shoulder, trying to calm him down as much as possible.

After hearing what the Empress said, Lei Fan finally heaved a sigh of relief. But when he suddenly recalled the black robed man's words just before he disappeared, his heart cringed up with unease all over again.

"Mother! The person who injured me had told me just before he disappeared that only my biological father would be able to save me. Don't tell me..... the secret behind my birth has been discovered by a third party?"

The Empress was shocked by those words. The matter between her and the Prime Minister had been a very tightly well kept secret and besides her closest aides, no one else knew anything about it. Moreover, the two of them had not met many times, especially after Lei Fan was born, the Prime Minister had almost never come to the Empress' Palace to see her. All these years, she had been highest cautious as she had been deeply afraid that the Emperor will find out and having been so careful, nobody should have discovered anything amiss at all.

"Don't think too much on it, if that person had known about the truth about your birth, he would only need to tell it to the Emperor to damn you into a state of hopeless reprieve, but he had instead taken so much trouble to infiltrate into the palace to come hurt you like this, so his real aim might be to inflict harm onto the Emperor's body of the dragon, and not on you." The Empress said after reassessing the relationship she had with the Prime Minister and was certain that the matter couldn't possibly have been discovered.

With the Empress' confident assurance, Lei Fan was finally able to relax and release the burden in his heart, finally being able to focus his attention fully on the poison in his body.

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Chapter 926:- Slap with Borrowed Hand - First Form (2)

"Mother, then you must quickly get father here or your son is going to be tormented to death from this."

The Empress turned to Lei Fan looking pained as she nodded.

Xiong Ba and the others obediently stayed within the mansion in the palace in rest and did not want to get themselves involved into any other incidents. After a while, Jun Wu Xie went to one of the rooms and shut the door tightly behind her. Xiong Ba was feeling that he had wronged the kid and he did not want to disturb him any further.

Unknown to him, Jun Wu Xie had immediately after entering the room, quietly opened a window at the back. And outside the window, Ye Sha dressed in his usual full black stood there having waited for a long while. In his hand, was gripped the sword that had nicked Lei Fan's neck as he soundlessly slipped into the room to kneel before Jun Wu Xie.

"Reporting to the Young Miss. A man from the Empress' Palace had already left for the Prime Minister's Mansion."

"Oh?" Jun Wu Xie asked, an eyebrow arching up.

"She is moving rather fast I must say."

Ye Sha continued: "The Emperor has only allowed them half a day and the Empress does not dare tally a single moment."

Jun Wu Xie walked leisurely to a chair on one side and sat down before she said: "We'll just watch and see the. The Fire Country's Imperial Palace is destined to have their tranquility broken today anyway."

"Yes!"

Jun Wu Xie then added: "You can go inform Lei Chen that he can make his move now."

"Yes!" Immediately upon answering, Ye Sha leapt out through the window, a black shadow that blurred and disappeared before Jun Wu Xie's eyes.

Jun Wu Xie rested her chin in her hand and tilted her head. She dipped a fingertip into the tea and gingerly wrote a few characters on the table.

Lei Chen came whirling into the Imperial Palace in a rush. The Emperor was puzzled at having suddenly receiving news of Lei Chen's arrival at the Palace. After ascertaining that he was alone, the Emperor finally allowed him in and asked for him to be brought to his study.

"Why have you come here?" The Emperor was still highly concerned with Lei Fan's condition and he was naturally not showing Lei Chen any cordiality.

Lei Chen knelt on one knee before the Emperor and he held up a brocade box to present to the Emperor.

"I heard the news that the Fourth Prince was hurt in an assassination attempt and I have been highly concerned. I was raised in the Empress' Palace together with Fourth Brother from young and we have naturally been closer than to other people. When I came to know that Fourth Brother lost a lot of blood, I wished that I could take his place instead. But that is not possible and I can only bring the precious Blood Ling Zhi I have in my residence into the Palace for him. The Blood Ling Zhi is highly beneficial for the nourishing of blood and is most suitable for Fourth Brother's current condition."

The Emperor was surprised a brief moment. He had been scheming to replace Lei Chen with Lei Fan as the Crown Prince all this time and hence, he had always seen Lei Chen as an enemy of Lei Fan. But he had forgotten that the two brothers had always shared a close relationship and although Lei Chen had been the prince biologically born from the Empress, the Empress had not shown the slightest favouritism towards Lei Chen but had instead shown more love and concern for Lei Fan. And anything that Lei Fan wanted, Lei Chen had never once competed with his younger brother for it.

When that realisation came into his mind, the Emperor quickly accepted Lei Chen's anxious rush into the Imperial Palace to deliver medicine as genuine and had no ulterior motives behind it, his heart greatly comforted by the strong show of their brotherly ties.

Seeing Lei Chen being so loving and concerned for Lei Fan, even if the position of Crown Prince was handed over to Lei Fan, it was thought Lei Chen wouldn't be jealous. With the strong bond between Lei Fan and Lei Chen, even when Lei Fan becomes the ruler of the Fire Country in the future, Lei Chen could very well still look out for his brother.

With the scene of the brothers being amicable and supportive of each other in the Emperor's mind, his demeanor towards Lei Chen improved a little.

"I am highly comforted that your heart is so concerned for your little brother. Your Fourth Brother is undergoing such torment now and you have shown he has a place in your heart. This Blood Ling Zhi, if I remember it correctly, should be the one you had tirelessly searched for, to give to the Empress Dowager before?" The Emperor asked with a benign smile on his face.

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Chapter 927:- Slap with Borrowed Hand - First Form (3)

Lei Chen nodded his head. "It was because the Empress Dowager did not want to see me exhaust so much energy and to spend such a great amount of money. Hence, she did not accept the gift."

The Emperor nodded then and said: "No matter, maybe this medicine that has been left in your residence for so long was meant to have you take it out to save Little Fan at this time of need. Seeing you brothers like that, I am really feeling very gratified."

Lei Chen was outwardly respectful but in his heart he was laughing coldly, but not an ounce of his true feelings showed on his face except for an expression of deep worry. "I wonder how Fourth Brother is now? Your son would like to deliver the Blood Ling Zhi over personally now as I really wish for Fourth Brother to recover as quickly as possible."

The Emperor nodded with a satisfied expression on his face and if truth was to be told, having sat in the Imperial Study to wait for so long had made him highly anxious as well. "Since you are so deeply concerned, I will go together with you myself to see whether your Mother has already come up with an alternative solution as well."

"Alternative solution?" Lei Chen pretended to be confused as he looked at the Emperor.

The Emperor then said: "That's right. To neutralize the poison within Lei Fan's body, the blood of his biological father is needed. A pity Little Fan does not have any biological brothers and he is still too young to have and offsprings, so only extracting my blood will work for him. But that child had said the same thing as your Mother, refusing for me to harm my body in anyway, it was really heart wrenching to hear them." The Emperor said, his voice thick with emotion.

Lei Chen's mouth curled up in a cold smile but managed to cover it up quickly.

"Fourth Brother has always been a very filial and sensible child from young. He would naturally not want Father to harm himself because of him."

The father and son pair chatted as they walked, making their way towards the Empress' Palace. From the time that Lei Fan had been poisoned, a good part of the day had passed and there wasn't much time left in the limit that the Emperor had set.

However, when the Emperor and Lei Chen reached the Empress' Palace, they discovered a whole bunch of Imperial Physicians who were supposed to be inside administering treatment on Lei Fan kneeling in a neat row outside the palace doors.

The Emperor's face immediately darkened and he roared: "You bunch of useless imbeciles! What are you all doing kneeling out here? Quickly go treat the Fourth Prince!"

The group of Imperial Physicians had been kneeling there for a good part of the day and their legs were already sore and weak. When they saw the Emperor suddenly approaching, they nearly all fell over with shock.

"Reporting to Your Majesty! The Empress has already found a way to unravel the Blood of Kin poison afflicting the Fourth Prince and is currently administering treatment for the Fourth Prince. That is why she had made us kneel out here to wait." One of the Imperial Physicians answered falteringly.

The Emperor's furious expression instantly changed to one of puzzlement and a sparkle of joy began to fill his eyes after that.

"Is what you are saying the truth? The Empress has really found a way to neutralize the Blood of Kin?"

"Your loyal servants do not dare to deceive Your Majesty!" The bunch of Imperial Physicians chorused, as they scrambled to kneel on the ground.

Lei Chen scanned his eyes around the inside of the Empress' Palace and saw that there were no eunuchs or palace maids around. A strong tinge of mirth suddenly showed in his eyes and he quickly turned to the Emperor who had an expression of joyous jubilation on his face to say: "Fourth Brother is indeed well blessed by the Heavens. The Heavens must be moved by Father's endearing love for Fourth Brother and has allowed Mother to find a cure so quickly."

The Emperor was beside himself with joy, realising that he no longer had to cut his arm to extract blood and his son would still be saved, hence the exhilaration was obvious even in his eyes.

"Quick! Follow me in to take a look and check if Little Fan is already feeling better." The Emperor was highly anxious at that moment and Lei Chen immediately followed behind him.

The Emperor was so excited to see his precious little son that he did not notice in the slightest his other son who was following just behind him, the frosty chill coming into his eyes.

The Emperor rushed impatiently unable to wait another moment as he came before the doors leading into the Empress' Chambers. He was just about to raise his hand to push the doors open when sounding out from within, was the Empress' voice.

"The reason Little Fan could be saved today was all because you made it here in time! If not, I would have really have been at a loss, not having the slightest idea what to do!"

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Chapter 928:- Slap with Borrowed Hand - First Form (4)

"The reason Little Fan could be saved today was all because you made it here in time! If not, I would have really have been at a loss, not having the slightest idea what to do!"

When the Emperor heard the Empress' voice, a smile came upon his face. No wonder the Empress had said she knew of an alternative cure. The person within her chambers must be a Divine Doctor she had brought in!

Just as the Emperor was going to push the door to enter once more, another voice floated out that froze the smile on his face.

"Your Ladyship sent the news over with such high urgency, how would I dare to tarry in the slightest?"

That voice, was clearly the voice of the man who had assisted the Emperor for more than a decade, the current Prime Minister of the Imperial Court!

Why would the Prime Minister appear here in the Empress' Chambers?

The Emperor's brows knitted together, but he was thinking that he could possibly have misunderstood something here.

"Is it really because this Empress here harried you endlessly? Or was it because the father was in a hurry to come see his son?" The Empress' voice reached them, a teasing tone in her voice.

"Little Hui's words are really killing your lowly servant. Little Fan is my son, but didn't you give birth to him with me? My heart pains to see what happened to my son, but aren't you feeling just as pained?"

The Emperor's face grew absolutely livid in that instant!

Little Hui was the Empress' maiden name before she was admitted into the Palace!

"What a curse! Your Ladyship had really been almost frightened out of my wits today, I really cannot fathom what the assassin is after. He really thought he could make use of Little Fan to harm the Emperor's body. But if not for the fact that Little Fan is not the Emperor's biological son and his blood wouldn't been able to save Little Fan, why would your Ladyship try all ways and means to hinder and dissuade him so much?"

"My Little Hui has been truly intelligent and quick witted which had prevented our son's real identity from being exposed. I pity the Emperor for his blind foolishness where he had even mistaken our son for the child that he had with that wrench and showed showered him with such tender and loving care. If he were to know that Little Fan is the flesh and blood between you and me, I wonder how he would feel."

"Such a twisted mind. If he got to know about it, would the three of us still have a chance to live? Your Empress had been left with no other choice that I summoned you here today and now that Little Fan's poison has been neutralized, you should leave quickly before that damned fool finds out that you came into the Palace and stir up unnecessary trouble."

"Little Hui can ready bear for me to leave just like this? I had not had the chance to get intimate with you for the longest time already. That old Emperor has got so many beauties just added into his harem I would think that Little Hui must be feeling mighty lonely spending days and nights alone in your chambers all this time."

"You tease!"

From within the chambers, sounds of heavy breathing was soon heard, and the decadent moans and groans made the people who heard them from outside flush red to the tips of their ears.

Lei Chen listened quietly to all of that, as a chilling smile widened up on his face, his eyes slowly turning to look at the face of the Emperor who heard everything just as clearly as he did.

The Emperor's face went from green to purple, the clenched up fist showing green veins almost about to burst, sure signs of the raging fury that surged within his person at that moment!

To think that the chosen sitting Empress of the Imperial Palace whom he had treated with respect for many years, would actually commit adultery with the most senior of his court officials, and they had even produced a bastard offspring!

And he had even taken that bastard child to be own, doting and loving him for so many years!

Lei Chen suppressed the urge to laugh that was threatening to spill out through his mouth from his heart.

Father, are you in good spirits today? Are you still joyous about Fourth Brother's recovery?

In an explosive rage, the Emperor suddenly kicked the doors open with a loud crash!

The tightly shut doors were blasted wide open!

Within the hall of the chambers, caught up in a tight embrace, their clothes in a state of undress, the two people were suddenly fully exposed with the sun's rays shining upon them!

With the chamber doors opened, the Empress let out a shrill scream in shock and panic. By the time she snapped back to her senses, and saw clearly who the intruder was, she turned immediately to stone, feeling like all the blood in her body had suddenly been frozen!

"Slut! You shameless slut!" The Emperor was trembling visibly with rage, his finger pointed at the Empress and Prime Minister entwined up together.

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Chapter 929:- Slap with Borrowed Hand - First Form (5)

Seeing the scene of the two people tangled up in carnal lust, something in his chest seemed to explode at that moment, his rage so great he could not even speak.

"Your Majesty..... Your Majesty....."

The Empress and the Prime Minister suddenly regained their senses and a wave of unspeakable fear washed over them entirely. They immediately separated themselves, not even giving any attention to their disheveled clothes in a messy disarray as they both fell to their knees before the Emperor, shivering in overwhelming terror.

"Your Majesty..... Your Majesty..... Your Lady..... Your Lady is innocent....." The Empress' face which had been flushed red from pleasure just a moment ago had now immediately faded, the deathly pale pallor now looked scarily terrifying.

And the Prime Minister kneeling at the side had his head plastered to the ground, shivering in terror and not daring to move at all.

Never in their wildest dreams that the Emperor would suddenly appear here at that moment, to coincidentally stumble right into the scene of the two of them engaged in their illicit affair.

"Shameless scoundrels! Two scoundrels so completely bereft of morals! I will kill both of you! Kill you!" The Emperor was so filled with rage that his face had turned visibly purple, his eyes red and bloodshot.

"Your Majesty, spare me! Spare me, Your Majesty!" The Prime Minister howled, his body a shivering mass.

The Empress had already turned into a sobbing wreck. She was sure she had made her most trusted aide stand guard outside the chambers and to come inform her if any situation comes up. But when the Emperor had arrived, she had not heard the slightest peep from those aides!

What the Empress did not know was that those aides of hers, had all been knocked out and tightly bound up in the backyard of the chambers, and were not able to provide the Empress with any form of warnings that the Emperor had arrived.

Lei Chen looked at the Emperor as he sputtered with rage, looking like he was almost going to vomit out blood. Lei Chen knew that the show had just barely begun and the Empress together with the Prime Minister were truly finished this time. Having been caught in the act and it was witnessed by the Emperor himself, there was no way those two would still live.

"Father! Father, do not get yourself too worked up!" Lei Chen put on a false facade of worried concern, trying to placate the Emperor.

The Emperor instead brushed him off in indignant rage!

Lei Chen fell with a thud to his knees before the Emperor, pleading pitifully: "Father, although Mother has committed a travesty, but Fourth Brother he has just....."

A loud clear smack resounded!

The Emperor's slap fueled by his indomitable rage swung straight across Lei Chen's face.

"Do not even bring up that bastard before me!"

Having just had the poison purged from his body, Lei Fan began to stir awake. He had been shocked awake by the loud curse from the Emperor and he got up groggy and confused. When he saw the Empress and the Prime Minister both kneeling on the ground, the realization suddenly hit him in the head like a lightning bolt!

"Fa..... Father....." Lei Fan began to tremble like a leaf as he turned to look at the seething Emperor, feeling a wave a dizziness suddenly hitting him.

"You bastard child! Who allowed you to address me as your Father! ?" The Emperor was bitter and overcome with hatred as he looked at Lei Fan, thinking back to the years of love and attention he had showered on this son, but it turned out that he was someone else's, which made him feel completely disgusted at that moment!

Shock ran through Lei Fan's entire body and he crashed to the ground on his knees, his heart filled with abject fear. He did not know what happened, but seeing the Empress' and the Prime Minister's clothes in their disheveled state of undress with the two of them kneeling on the ground, and together with the Emperor's expression of furious rage, he was able to surmise that the Empress and the Prime Minister must have engaged in illicit activities in the period while he had been unconscious, and got themselves discovered by the Emperor!

At that moment, Lei Fan felt like his entire body had been plunged into a icy pit. Caught with throes of extreme terror, he suddenly thought of something.

"Father! What is wrong, Father? Does Father not want your dear son anymore?" Lei Fan suddenly raised up his head to say sobbingly.

"A bastard child like you is no son of mine! You are not fit to call me Father!" The Emperor hollered. "You are just a bastard child born from the Empress and that adulterous lecher."

Lei Fan was startled but he forced himself to calm down as he put on a forlorn expression and said: "Father, how is it possible I am not your son? Doesn't Father recognize this face on your son anymore? Father! Have you really forgotten my mother's looks already!?"

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Chapter 930:- Slap with Borrowed Hand - First Form (6)

Lei Fan was startled but he forced himself to calm down as he put on a forlorn expression and said: "Father, how is it possible I am not your son? Doesn't Father recognize this face on your son anymore? Father! Have you really forgotten my mother's looks already! ?"

[He still has wiggle room to put up a final struggle!]

[He still has a chance to turn this around!]

[His face might just be able to save his life!]

When the Emperor saw the face that looked so much like the woman he had loved so much on Lei Fan, he hesitated a moment. It was a fact that Lei Fan's countenance looked very similar to the woman he loved and did not look the slightest bit alike to the Empress or the Prime Minister at all.

The Empress knew she had no way of getting herself out of this anymore but Lei Fan's words had given her another glimmer of hope. She would not be able to save herself, but her son, might still have a chance to be able to live!

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! Your Lady had in a moment of folly, committed such a shameless deed. But Little Fan..... Little Fan is really the son you had with Lady Cheng! No matter how much you detest and abhor your Lady now, but don't you still remember elder sister Lady Cheng's looks anymore? In what way does Little Fan even looks like me, your Lady at all?" The Empress said as she continued to weep.

The Emperor's brows knitted up in a knot, as he stared fixedly at Lei Fan's face.

"Whatever you said to the Prime Minister earlier, I heard them very clearly." The Emperor glared at the Empress coldly.

The Empress was taken aback but she refused to give up. She hurried to kowtow, hitting her head on the cold hard floor as she said: "It was all your Lady's greed! Your Lady wanted the Prime Minister to assist Little Fan to ascend into the throne and tried to pull wool over his eyes. Little Fan is not his or my child at all. He is Your Majesty's son that Lady Cheng gave birth to! If Your Majesty doesn't believe me, you can just look carefully at Lei Fan's face!"

She knew she and the Prime Minister were sure to lose their lives here, but if the Emperor could be convinced that she had said all those words just to deceive the Prime Minister, Lei Fan might still stand a chance to escape.

As expected, the Emperor's face showed a trace of hesitation as he stared at the face that looked so much like his most beloved woman. He had been reluctant to believe that Lei Fan was not his biological son as well. Afteralll, he had loved him so so many years, and doted on him for so long!

"Father! Father! I am really your child, just look at my face!"

The Emperor drew in a deep breath. "Since you are not the Prime Minister's son, then tell me how was the Prime Minister able to save your life?"

Lei Chen was stumped for words. Blood of Kin had become a major flaw in his plan.

The Empress saw that things had taken a bad turn and she immediately said: "The Prime Minister did not give Little Fan any blood. Your Lady had used an alternative method to neutralize the poison in Little Fan's body, and I have asked the Prime Minister to come here as I wished to use this opportunity to make him believe that Little Fan was his son, to convince him to assist Little Fan more strongly."

The Emperor's frown creased up deeper and he looked at Lei Fan's tear streaked face, the hatred within his heart slowly being eroded!

"Guards! Immediately imprison those two people! I will slowly interrogate them!"

With the Emperor's orders given, the guards outside instantly moved to arrest the Empress and the Prime Minister, but they did not bring Lei Fan away. It was obvious that he had believed the Empress' version of events in his heart.

Lei Chen observed everything that was happening, and he spied Lei Fan's expression secretly secretly showing signs of relief and Lei Chen laughed coldly in his heart.

As expected, the Emperor did not have the heart to part with that face on Lei Fan. Lei Fan had managed to avert disaster based purely on that countenance he was showing. But alas, that was not all that Jun Wu Xie's plan was and there was more to come. Lei Chen told himself to patiently await the moment that Lei Fan's facade would be smashed, and he would like to see if Lei Fan could still be so relaxed then!

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Chapter 931:- Slap with Borrowed Hand - Second Form (1)

The Emperor walked out in a huff, not saying much more but just ordered for people to clean Lei Fan up and instructed Lei Fan and Lei Chen to go to the Imperial Palace's main hall where he would carry out the interrogation.

Lei Fan had just suffered from a huge loss of blood and adding the shock he had just been put under, his legs were now very weak, needing help from a group of eunuchs before he could even struggle to stand.

Ye Sha had observed everything that occurred within the Empress' Chambers from a hidden location and he quickly rushed to where Jun Wu Xie was to tell her everything that he had seen.

"The Emperor had only ordered for the Empress and the Prime Minister to be arrested but did not do anything against Lei Fan." Ye Sha said, kneeling before Jun Wu Xie.

"As predicted." Jun Wu Xie did not show the tiniest bit of surprise but was just calmly sitting in her chair, stroking the little black cat's soft fur.

"Young Miss had expected this to happen?" Ye Sha was the one surprised instead.

Jun Wu Xie replied: "What's not to know? Lei Fan was afterall his most favoured son for so many years whom he had doted on for so long. As long as the slightest possibility remained, the Emperor would not have wanted to see that Lei Fan was truly the Empress' and the Prime Minister's child. The Empress is a smart woman. She knows that she has totally lost this time and she could not be saved. Hence, she had pinned all her hopes on the face that Lei Fan carries, hoping against hope that the Emperor would soften and be a little more lenient when seeing that face."

"Would our Young Miss require me to go reveal Lei Fan's disguise?" Ye Sha asked.

Jun Wu Xie however, shook her head. Her eyes lifted as she stared at the scenery outside as she said slowly: "You know who the Fire Country's Third Prince is?"

Ye Sha was startled by the question.

The Fire Country's Third Prince had shown great intelligence when he was very young, but because his mother's position in the Imperial Palace had been shaky, the Third Prince had not been greatly favoured. But due to the high intelligence he had exhibited when he was young, he had also been shown favour for a time by the Emperor. A pity though, the year when he was seven, his mother suddenly passed away and the young Third Prince lost the protection of his mother. His time in the Palace after that was hard and it was incredibly difficult for him to progress, causing him to gradually lose his spirit, finally turning into the current scared and timid weak prince, who doesn't step out of his chambers.

"That your subordinate knows."

Jun Wu Xie gingerly stroked the little black cat's smooth luxuriant fur.

"The year the Third Prince's mother died, it was also the same year that Lei Fan was born. When the Third Prince' mother died, the real Lei Fan had just been sent to the Empress' Palace and not long after that, the real Lei Fan's mother then died, while the real Lei Fan was switched out with the Empress' and the Prime Minister's child. Do you still not see the link within all this?"

It suddenly dawned on Ye Sha what Jun Wu Xie was implying at. "Don't tell me the Third Prince's mother found out about what the Empress did and hence she was silenced by the Empress?"

Jun Wu Xie nodded slightly. "Fei Yan had investigated into the circumstances surrounding the Third Prince. Although he is timid as a mouse in front of people, but he is a truly intelligent person. I am thinking he must have either personally witnessed something, or he had discovered some important fact. In the past, the Empress had ruled oppressively within the Imperial Palace harem and he had not been able to make a move. Now that the Empress has fallen from grace, he will definitely not miss this rare opportunity to avenge his mother."

After saying that, Jun Wu Xie set the little black cat upon the table and picked up the teacup to take a small sip from it.

"Before Lei Chen came here, he had secretly gone to meet the Third Prince and by now, the Third Prince himself should have shown up within the Imperial Palace."

[To take out the enemy, and to throw them over into the deep abyss, doesn't always require her to do everything herself.]

[Sometimes, when the chess pieces in hand are well played, the same desired result can be achieved just as well.]

"Nevermind. How can such a great show be missed? Ye Sha." Jun Wu Xie suddenly stood up.

"Your subordinate awaits your orders."

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Chapter 932:- Slap with Borrowed Hand - Second Form (2)

[When the enemy has fallen into utter despair, when the enemy has been totally defeated, letting them know whose hand they have been defeated by, savouring their expressions of complete despair, was quite an enjoyable form of amusement.]

Jun Wu Xie changed out of Qu Ling Yue's clothes, and donned the Zephyr Academy's uniform. She wiped away the disguise on her face, and assumed the appearance of the delicate featured youth, Jun Xie.

Ye Sha brought Jun Wu Xie out from the place.

The show was about to come to an end, she would naturally want to savour the fruits of her labour!

The Emperor was sitting within the Imperial Palace's main hall as he stared at the Empress and the Prime Minister who were brought in by the guards and were kneeling down.

These two people, one was the person who shared the same bed with him for many years, while the other was his most trusted court official. But they had both secretly betrayed him behind his back for many years and from what he had heard and witnessed personally earlier, this was not the first time they had engaged in such secret illicit affair!

When he thought back to how the always gentle and compliant Empress had actually committed adultery with another man, the Emperor was suddenly feeling utterly disgusted!

"Reporting to Your Majesty! As per Your Majesty's orders, your subject has searched through the Empress' Palace and I discovered all the eunuchs and palace maids from the Empress' Place knocked unconscious and tightly bound up in the backyard." Yuan Biao walked into the main hall and knelt down to make his report. He had been out searching for traces of Jun Xie but had been urgently summoned back by the Emperor only to discover that such a scandal had broken out in the Imperial Palace!

When the Empress heard that, her heart went cold. This meant that someone had obviously set all this up, knowing about the illicit affair between her and the Prime Minister, had been able to predict that the Emperor would show up at her chambers, and set all these up to coincide flawlessly.

[Just who was this person? How did he know this well kept secret?]

The Empress suddenly recalled that Lei Fan had told her that the black robed assassin had possibly known the truth behind his birth. She had thought that Lei Fan was just being over suspicious but from the way things were now, everything might very well have been part of that person's plan, that was slowly and irrevocably pushing them over into this bottomless ravine!

What made the Empress even more fearful was, even when she had fallen to such a sorry state, she did not have the slightest idea just who was the person responsible for all of this!

"Lock all of them up and you send some men to interrogate them thoroughly!" The Emperor ordered.

"Yes!" Yuan Biao answered.

At that moment, Lei Fan was slowly walking into the main hall assisted by a group of eunuchs, Lei Chen accompanying him by the side.

Lei Fan's body had not recovered and his face was a sheet of white. Seeing the Empress and the Prime Minister kneeling on the ground, his eyes showed him startled a moment, but he did not dare exhibit any other sign of his shock.

"Fourth Brother, be careful." Lei Chen saw Lei Fan body sway slightly, and he pretended to give him a concerned reminder.

Lei Fan had found Lei Chen an eyesore for a long time but he was now being doubted by the Emperor and he had no choice but to depend on Lei Chen's help. So, he smiled weakly and said: "Big Brother, you've got to help me."

Lei Chen nodded his head gravely and replied: "My Fourth Brother, rest assured. You are my brother, I will not let you be bullied."

Hearing that, Lei Fan sighed in relief inwardly.

The Emperor saw Lei Fan and Lei Chen entering the hall and the rage with him was still boiling. He scrutinised Lei Fan's face repeatedly as if trying to ascertain that he had not made the wrong judgement.

"Towards the incident today, do the two of you have anything to say about it?" The Emperor turned his gaze back to the front, glaring angrily at the kneeling Empress and Prime Minister before him.

"Your Lady realizes her crime!"

"Your subject realizes his crime!"

The Empress and the Prime Minister both kowtowed and acknowledge their crime readily. They were caught by the Emperor himself engaged in their illicit affair and no amount of denial would get them off the hook. They were both thinking the same and having realized that they would not be able to save themselves, they wanted to at least protect Lei Fan!

The Emperor snorted with derisively and he was just about to issue his Imperial Decree to execute the Empress and the Prime Minister when he suddenly heard the eunuch making an announcement!

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Chapter 933:- Slap with Borrowed Hand - Second Form (3)

"Reporting to Your Majesty! The Third Prince seek for an audience in the main hall! Saying there is an important matter to report to Your Majesty!"

The Emperor's face frowned up as he said: "At a time like this, why is he here? Allow him to come in."

Soon, a rather harried looking Third Prince, Lei Xi walked into the main hall. Lei Xi's age was seven years older than Lei Fan, but due to him always being holed up and never taking a step out from his residence, he was not much taller than Lei Fan. His skin was fairer than most people and looked very pale.

Lei Xi's looks was not too bad but compared to Lei Chen and Lei Fan, he looked less outstanding. Added to that, his timid nature made him the one prince most easily overlooked among the four princes of the Fire Country.

Even the Emperor himself did not feel like he know this son of his well at all.

But Lei Xi on this day, was different from the past. There was an absence of his usual timid cowardice in his eyes and they were filled with sharp determination instead.

When he walked into the main hall, he immediately knelt down before the Emperor.

"Your son greets my Father! Long live my Father, a hundred million years!"

"Stand up. For what reason have you come here today?" The Emperor asked, rubbing at his temples.

Lei Xi stood up, and turned his head to look over to the Empress kneeling on the floor, and his eyes flashed with intense hatred.

"Reporting to Father! Your son has come here today, to seek redress for injustice!"

"Seek redress? For whom?" The Emperor asked.

"For my mother, your Lady! For my youngest brother, who had been heartlessly murdered immediately upon birth!" Lei Xi exclaimed, his head raised and his chest puffed up.

"What?" The Emperor was surprised.

Lei Xi immediately went on to say: "That year, Lady Concubine Cheng had just given birth to the Fourth Prince Lei Fan, but she had passed on due to a difficult birth. Few days after, the Empress had then taken in my Fourth Brother to raise him. At that time, my mother's chambers was nearest to the Empress' and hence, she would often go over to the Empress' chambers to receive the Empress' instruction."

"Shut up! Lei Xi! What kind of intentions are you harbouring! ? What are you trying to say here! ? Your Majesty! Your Majesty! You must not listen to the lies Lei Xi is spouting! Everything that happened today must have been orchestrated by Lei Xi! He was the one who abducted all the servants in your Lady's palace! He obviously holds treacherous intents!" The Empress had immediately upon hearing Lei Xi's words, suddenly felt an ominous sense of impending doom over her head. She had a very strong feeling that she must stop Lei Xi from continuing on, or she would be in bigger trouble!

The Emperor completely ignored the Empress' cries and just turned to Yuan Biao and said: "Stuff up that howling slut's mouth! I do not wish to hear the slut's voice again!"

Yuan Biao immediately stepped up and used a handkerchief to fully stuff up the Empress' mouth!

The Empress could only make muffled grunts as her eyes glared fixedly at Lei Xi, looking like she wished for nothing more than to shred him into a thousand pieces!

Lei Xi laughed out coldly and said: "The Empress had really overestimated my abilities. If I had been capable of such to drag you down your high horse, I wouldn't have waited till this day to tell Father everything."

"Lei Xi! Tell me more!" The Emperor had a feeling that what Lei Xi was about to say next was going to be highly important.

Lei Xi continued: "That day, my mother heard that the Fourth Prince would be brought into the Empress' Palace and she dragged me along to go see my youngest brother. But I was mischievous and wilful then and I ran off once we came to the Empress' Palace, never for a moment thinking that that's day's parting, would turned out to be an eternal one!"

"Your son I, was very young then, and I was hiding in the Empress' Palace's backyard in play when I saw a scene which I would never ever be able to forget my entire life!" Lei Xi suddenly turned to stare in rage at the Empress when he got to this point in his narration of events, looking like he wanted to tear the Empress apart.

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Chapter 934:- Slap with Borrowed Hand - Second Form (4)

Lei Xi had at that time been very young, and hidden behind the rocks that were alike to miniature mountains in the garden, had suddenly witnessed his own mother tied up and held down by several eunuchs in the backyard, with the Empress and her lady in waiting following behind.

Within the lady in waiting's arms, was a blood covered little infant.

That infant was the Fourth Prince who had just been brought into the Empress Palace, Lei Fan. Lei Xi had been overcome with terror then, seeing his mother being bound up, he had wanted to rush out. But he realized then that as a tiny little prince like himself, even if he had run out to confront them, he would not have been able to achieve anything and so he had endured the consuming fear eating at him as he stayed hidden.

And right before his eyes, his mother had then been strangled to death by a eunuch with a rope put around her neck. Finally, his mother's lifeless body had been tied to rocks together with the Fourth Prince and thrown over into the lily pond in the backyard.

"Your son, I have known that I do not possess the ability to avenge my mother, but I have been not been willing to continue to keep this secret forever buried, and just waited patiently! I waited for the day that the Heavens opens His eyes, to allow him to avenge his mother and his Fourth Brother! This is the day! Your son, I, have finally waited till this day!" Lei Xi's face was filled with the outpouring of grief that he had held in for such a long time. He has always been more intelligent than many, but he had had no choice but to turn himself into a timid and cowardly prince, all of it to avoid raising any suspicions onto himself from the Empress.

From the most intelligent of the princes to become the most useless prince, Lei Xi had endured the fear and torment without a saying a word of it to anyone, but merely to wait, and he had finally waited till this day came!

"Ungh! !" The Empress' eyes were wide as she struggled, wanting to stand. But Yuan Biao stood over her holding her down in a tight grip.

Lei Fan stared in disbelief at his Third Brother that he had despised the most all this time, unable to believe what he was hearing from Lei Xi's mouth.

"Lies! You're lying!" Lei Fa was in a panic. He immediately knelt before the Emperor, sobbing tearfully as he said: "Father! Father! Third Brother is just purely slandering me! If what he says is true, how did your son, I live till today? Third Brother must be jumping at the opportunity when he saw Mother fallen from grace and wants to use this chance to slander me!"

The Emperor's brows knitted up deeply. Lei Xi's words had indeed astounded him greatly.

The year when Lei Xi's mother had died, her body had been discovered in the Imperial Garden's shallow fish pond. But as they had discovered it rather late, Lei Xi's mother's body had been soaked in the water for a long time and had completely deformed, making it impossible for them to identify the body at all. They had just based it on the clothes and things the body was wearing then.

Lei Xi cast a cold stare at the sobbing Lei Fan.

"Bastard child! You still persist in fooling Father with your trickery?"

Lei Fan immediately said: "That is just pure venomous slander!"

Lei Xi suddenly stood up and looked directly at the Emperor to say: "Father! Your son, I know what is holding Father back. But I know of a way that can prove what I am saying here is the absolute truth!" Upon saying that, Lei Xi secretly gripped the porcelain bottle hidden within his sleeve, his gaze discreetly swinging over Lei Chen.

The bottle had been given to him by Lei Chen. He did not know what it was, but Lei Chen had told him, with this bottle, they would be able to ensure that Lei Fan would be irrecoverably doomed!

Having witnessed his own mother brutally murdered, Lei Xi had kept that secret to himself in torment for many years, how could he give up on this one and only opportunity for revenge presented right before him?

Even if he did not know what the bottle contained, he was willing to gamble it all on this one chance!

Lei Xi suddenly charged at Lei Fan kneeling upon the ground. Lei Fan screamed out in terror and stretched out his hand to push Lei Xi away from him. But Lei Xi completely ignored the wildly waving arms and just opened the stopper on the porcelain bottle and ferociously leapt onto Lei Fan, pouring the liquid within the bottle entirely onto Lei Fan's face!

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Chapter 935:- Slap with Borrowed Hand - Second Form (5)

"I will not let a bastard child like you to continue to bring harm to the Imperial Palace!" Lei Xi said, staring viciously at Lei Fan.

In the instant the cool fluid splashed onto Lei Fan's face, the bone structure and flesh on Lei Fan's face began to shift severely!

In shock, the Emperor suddenly stood up from his throne as he stared in surprise at Lei Fan who was writhing and howling on the floor, his gaze staring unwaveringly in disbelief, locked on Lei Fan's face!

He saw the handsome features on Lei Fan's face, twisting up and changing at an incredible pace!

The countenance was silently changing, gradually changing into a face that the Emperor found both foreign and highly familiar at the same time!

That face, was very much alike to the Empress currently within the main hall, and in the region in between the eyes, traces of the Prime Minister's features could be seen.

Completely stunned, the Emperor fell back onto his throne greatly flustered. He looked in utter disbelief at Lei Fan whose face had completely changed, his mind whirling in chaos.

The face from his face caused Lei Fan to continue to writhe on the ground howling incessantly, while Lei Xi stood smiling indifferently beside him, admiring the scene at his feet that brought him great joy!

"Father! This spawn of evil used extraordinary methods to change his looks and once this medicinal fluid is splashed on his face, it will neutralise it! Your son, I had been disrespectful before Father today, I plead for Father to punish me to redeem myself! I beg that Father look carefully at that face! He could not possibly by my Fourth Brother, and even less likely that he is your child! It is obvious he is a bastard child born from the Empress' and Prime Minister's insidious illicit scandal!" Lei Xi suddenly knelt down onto the ground, pleading with the Emperor in a loud voice.

The Emperor began to tremble with rage, as the last glimmer of hope in his heart was completely extinguished.

Lei Fan's face on its own, had become the most irrefutable proof, and no further explanations or evidence was required to ascertain without any doubt, his real identity!

"Bravo..... Bravo..... Ah, Empress. My Empress. I have not treated you badly! And even at such a juncture, you persist in lying to me! You really think I am that gullible?" However strongly hopeful the Emperor had felt towards Lei Fan before, the hatred spilling out from his heart now was at least tenfold!

The son he had favoured upon the most, was not his child, and definitely not from his once most beloved woman!

He had spoilt him for so many years, doted on him for so many years, even devising up all ways and means to push Lei Fan up to assume the position of Crown Prince, to inherit everything the Fire Country held.

But in the end, what had he really done?

He had nearly gifted the entire country and his fortune to a bastard child!

"Guards! Arrest this venomous woman, the bastard child, and the guilty official and throw them into the dungeons! I do not want them to die so easily! I want them to die under a thousand cuts!" The Emperor's jaws were tightly clenched up, his face had turned a little pale. It could be seen from here just how intense the hatred and rage he was feeling at the moment.

Due to the agonising pain, Lei Fan was curled up in a ball as his body twitched in spasms. He wanted to plead with the Emperor to spare his life at least, but he could not even summon up the strength to speak.

Yuan Biao immediately summoned several Imperial Guards, ready to drag the Empress and the others and thrown them into the dungeons.

But the Empress had at that moment, suddenly seemed like she had lost her mind as she broke free of Yuan Biao's grasp. She tore the handkerchief out from her mouth, suddenly breaking out into an almost maniacal bout of laughter as she said: "Hahaha! Hahaha! Your Majesty, Your Majesty. You say I am venomous? Your Lady's venomous ways were caused by your own hand! Your Lady was the revered Empress, but when have you given this Empress the dignity an Empress deserved? You favoured Lady Cheng, cherishing her so preciously in the palm of your hand. When a conflict arose between Lady Cheng and me, your Empress, you did not bother to find out the truth and indiscriminately berated me before everyone in the Imperial Palace over her!"

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Chapter 936:- Slap with Borrowed Hand - Second Form (6)

"You have single mindedly shielded that hussy! How can I let that hussy have her way! ? Your Majesty! Lady Cheng's death! The Fourth Prince's death, were all caused by your own hand! If you had not specifically only just favoured Lady Cheng alone, had not thrashed the dignity of an Empress under your foot, would I have turned into such a state?"

"Shameless slut! You still dare to spout such nonsense!" The Emperor was so furious he stood there pointing his trembling finger at the Empress, shouting at the top of his voice.

The Empress instead seemed to have lost her mind and she suddenly laughed out hysterically!

"Spouting nonsense? Your Majesty! Since things have come to this juncture, your lady does not need to hide it from you anymore! Do you know why none of the concubines in the Imperial Harem had not been able to conceive in the past ten years? Why the Second Prince although married for so many years, had not been able to share any news of bliss? Let your Lady tell you now! Not only you, but all your sons! Have already lost the ability to reproduce! Your Lady was the one who poisoned you all! Besides my own son, no one would be able to inherit the Fire Country's throne!" The Empress laughed maniacally, spilling out all the venom she had kept hidden within her heart all this time.

The Emperor stared wide eyed, in utter disbelief at the Empress.

"You! You wicked woman! Till this moment, you are still thinking of protecting your own son! But, even if Lei Chen is born from you, so what does it matter! In his body, my blood still flows within! I believe, Lei Chen having clearly witnessed your vicious and venomous nature today, would be deeply ashamed to have a mother like you!" The Emperor had in his frantic fluster, turned to look at Lei Chen. The Empress' words had greatly terrified him. Judging from the Empress' venomous and insidious mind, it was highly possible that she had really done all that she claimed, or why had all the concubines in the Imperial Harem, not a single one of them had been able conceive and give birth to a single prince or princess?

And if the Empress had truly committed that deed, the only one she would have spared would only be her own son, Lei Chen.

Lei Chen lowered his head, and did not say a single word.

But the Empress was still laughing hysterically. "Lei Chen? Hahaha! Your Majesty! Your Lady firstborn had passed away long ago! Lei Chen is merely an illegitimate bastard, born from the illicit affair between one of my palace maids and a guard! Hahaha! Your Majesty, Your Majesty! You and all your sons will be childless and your bloodline dies in this generation!"

The Emperor sucked in a cold gasp, his eyes slowly shifting from Lei Chen to the Empress.

"You are lying! You must be lying!"

The Empress replied: "At this point, does your Lady still need to lie? If Lei Chen is truly your Lady's son, would I have stood by and done nothing while Your Majesty slowly pushed him nearer into the abyss, trying to force him to give up his position as the Crown Prince?"

The Emperor's shoulders suddenly slumped, everything before his eyes now was just one great calamity. The country's current Crown Prince, and the Crown Prince he had wanted to install, were actually both not his biological offsprings!

And the only two sons he had, had been poisoned by the Empress and no longer able to produce offsprings, and throughout their entire lives, they would not be able to produce an heir!

"Your venomous slut! I am going to kill you! I must surely kill you!" The Emperor roared as he stood up, almost wanting to swallow the Empress alive.

The Empress was still laughing, her laughter sounding mournful.

"Throw all of them down there! Imprison the two bastard children as well! I want to tear them apart!" The Emperor's chest was heaving heavily. The successive blows suffered was making the Emperor gasp for air.

Lei Xi had avenged his mother, but he had not expected things to take such a drastic turn. All the actions he had taken, had been arranged by Lei Chen. He had thought that Lei Chen wanted to uphold justice over family ties, but he had not thought that Lei Chen himself would be dragged right into the turmoil as well.

In fact, if Lei Fan's identity had not been revealed, the Empress would not have fought and struggled to drag everyone down with her. To protect Lei Fan, she would not have revealed a word about the secret behind Lei Fan's birth.

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Chapter 937:- Tenth Slap (1)

But the bottle of medicinal fluid that Lei Chen gave to Lei Xi had completely crushed the Empress' last ray of hope.

Lei Xi found that he could not understand why Lei Chen would do this.

Lei Chen raised his head looking highly forlorn as he stared at the Imperial Guards rushing into the main hall, quickly surrounding him and Lei Fan heavily.

In his heart, he was laughing bitterly at himself.

The Emperor had clearly overheard the truth about the secret behind Lei Fan's birth from the Empress herself previously, but he had still chosen to believe Lei Fan based just on the face he carried. But when the Empress had just revealed the circumstances about his own birth, the Emperor had not doubted it at all, and had not even hesitated in the slightest or suspected otherwise before he had adamantly judged him guilty.

No questions, not a single attempt at verification, before he believed everything!

As expected, in the Emperor's heart, he was nothing at all.

The little sliver of yearning in his heart for that slightest bond between father and son to exist, had just been heartlessly severed.

The Imperial Guards had already come to stand right beside Lei Chen, and it was seen that Lei Chen would be grabbed the very next moment.

But right at that moment, a clear voice tinged with a cold tone suddenly rang out within the main hall.

"Your Majesty is really resolute and merciless in ordering executions."

"Who is that?" The physically and mentally exhausted Emperor suddenly turned to look towards the voice, and saw the person who had gone missing for a long time, Jun Xie, suddenly standing in a corner of the main hall. No one had noticed when he had come into the main hall at all!

In the instant that he saw Jun Xie, the Emperor gasped loudly and his eyes suddenly filled with alarmed.

"Jun Xie! How did you come in here! ?" The Emperor stared at Jun Xie, his voice growing shrill.

Jun Wu Xie walked slowly to the centre of the main hall and swept her gaze over the chaotic turmoil within the place, then she slowly said, seemingly in no big hurry: "I heard that Your Majesty was looking for me, so I came here to see Your Majesty."

"Yuan Biao! Yuan Biao! Capture him!" The Emperor screamed, suddenly leaping to his feet. Jun Xie would forever be a thorn in his heart! Only when Jun Xie is eradicated, and the Ring of Imperial Fire taken from him, would he be able to feel secure.

Yuan Biao immediately charged towards Jun Xie!

But before Yuan Biao could even get close to Jun Xie, a white figure was suddenly standing before Jun Xie to block his way, and with Yuan Biao's charging in, the figure in white suddenly threw out a single palm strike that flung Yuan Biao upwards, sending him flying through the air!

Yuan Biao fell heavily as he landed on the floor, and he vomited out a whole mouthful of blood!

The Emperor stared wide eyed in utter disbelief at what he was seeing. He saw a highly handsome looking youth dressed in all white standing before Jun Xie, and he could see that the youth's cheeks were faintly tinged with a pinkish flush.

"I have been idle for so long, it's finally time to stretch myself a little." Drunk Lotus gestured with his hand at Yuan Biao, his chin lifted up in arrogance, as he stared down at Yuan Biao who was vomiting blood out of his mouth.

"An insignificant pest like you and you think yourself fit to lay your hands on my Master?" **

Although Yuan Biao wasn't the most powerful fighter in the Fire Country, but he was nevertheless considered to be extremely strong. So, no one would have ever thought that the revered Commander of the Imperial Guards would be struck down by a slenderly built and weak looking handsome young youth with just one move, and had even vomited out blood from the strike! That was just too incredulous to believe!

The Emperor was suddenly at a loss on what to do. At that moment, he suddenly noticed that Lei Chen was walking on his own accord to stand beside Jun Xie.

"Lei Chen!"

Lei Chen stood silently beside Jun Xie.

Jun Wu Xie lifted an eyebrow as she looked at the startled Emperor, before turning her gaze over to see the Prime Minister still kneeling upon the ground, the shivering Lei Fan sprawled in a writhing heap and the highly malevolent expression on the Empress' face. She then slowly opened her mouth to speak: "Is Your Majesty satisfied with the great performance I have arranged for you today?"

"What are you saying....." A cold sensation of unease began to grow within the Emperor's heart. The foreboding dread was so strong that it suddenly caused his temples to throb painfully.

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Chapter 938:- Tenth Slap (2)

Jun Wu Xie's cold eyes swept over the Emperor's face and she asked him softly: "What do you think?"

The Emperor's body stiffened up, his eyes flashed as he stared at the messy chaos in the main hall. His Empress and his most trusted Court Official had betrayed him, and two of his sons there were not biologically his.....

Suddenly, the Emperor's eyes went wide in shock and he slowly turned to look at Jun Wu Xie, when he suddenly sprung up from his throne!

"It's you! You arranged all of this! Is that right! ?"

Jun Wu Xie did not refute him but nodded her head, completely unabashed.

The Emperor felt an icy chill shoot up his spine, his entire body suddenly went cold.

"What a venomous mind you have! Absolutely noxious! ! !"

Jun Wu Xie was however indifferent as she said: "Your Majesty, do not be mistaken. All of this is real. All I did was to merely dig out the truth that was hidden and show them to you. I exposed all these hidden plots and secret conspiracies in your harem for you, aren't you intending to thank me at all?"

The Emperor's rage suddenly got stuck in the middle of his chest and he had no answer to that as his hands started shivering while he stood frozen in his spot.

[Thank him?]

[How can he expect him, the Emperor to thank him?]

The truth was horrendously ugly, suddenly upending and tearing apart his once stable life in an instant. His spouse, his children, his most trusted subordinate, had all betrayed him in one single day. And then, he had found out that he and his two sons would no longer be able to father any children. Every single revelation was a hard blow to him and any single one on its own would be too much for a man to take, and Jun Xie had exposed them all on the same day!

The Emperor was not given any warning or time to prepare himself, and just had just shoved the blood dripping truth into his face!

"Guards! Kill him now! Kill him!" At that very moment, the person the Emperor wanted to get rid of the most was not the Empress, not the Prime Minister, not Lei Fan as well, but Jun Xie!

The Imperial Guards in the main hall suddenly managed to regain their senses when they heard the Emperor's roar and the all charged uniformly at Jun Xie standing behind Drunk Lotus.

Jun Wu Xie looked on calm and composed at all that was happening. Suddenly, she pulled out a white ball and threw it at the charging Imperial Army Guards!

The white spherical ball suddenly exploded into a blinding flare of light. The light expanded and grew, gradually reaching epic proportions!

The flare of blinding light then faded away.

A gigantic and unbelievably humongous pure white Spirit Beast suddenly manifested within the main hall! Its height was astounding tall as its body forcibly broke through the Imperial Palace's main hall's roof!

A rain of rubble and loose stones fell from high above, falling onto the Imperial Guards around it. Its colossal sized body had suddenly formed an impassable barrier, between the Imperial Guards and Jun Xie!

The Imperial Guards were startled to see such a huge Spirit Beast before their eyes, as the hands gripped around their blades began to tremble.

They had never seen such an incredibly huge Spirit Beast before!

Lord Meh Meh appeared in its original form and it shifted its humongous body slightly. In a blink, Lord Meh Meh's highly nimble and amazingly fast tails had quickly plucked out all the Imperial Guards from the main hall!

Howls tore through the air! Lord Meh Meh then quickly went out of the main hall and stood guard outside in front of the doors, keeping all the Imperial Guards from entering the main hall a single step!

The Emperor stared with his mouth agape at the gigantic Spirit Beast, unable to believe what his eyes were seeing. More than a hundred Imperial Spirit Guards and they were all forced out of the main hall in a blink. Within the main hall at that moment, besides Yuan Biao whom Drunk Lotus had injured and was still sprawled upon the ground, there wasn't another single Imperial Guard inside.

"Jun Xie! What do you actually want to do? Don't tell me you intend to assassinate me, the Emperor of the Fire Country?" Seeing that all the people he had relied on for protection now all disappeared, the Emperor's face had turned highly pale!

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Chapter 939:- Tenth Slap (3)

Jun Wu Xie instead replied: "Why is it that Your Majesty seems so frightened now? If my memory serves me correctly, it would seem to me that it was Your Majesty who had always schemed to go against me."

Jun Wu Xie walked slowly to come to the middle of the main hall, and she stared at the wretched looking Empress and the Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister looked up in terror as he looked at the delicately attractive looking youth before him. He had only seen Jun Xie from the portrait drawn of him and had not seen him in the flesh. And seeing the youth today, and when his eyes met that pair of clear cold eyes, he finally understood why the group of assassins he had sent to have Jun Xie taken out had all disappeared without a trace.

This was a youth who was able to toy with the Fire Country's Emperor and Empress within the palm of his hand. It wouldn't be that easy to eradicate someone like this that easily!

The Empress glared at Jun Xie. "It's you..... It's all you! Why are you doing this! ? Why would you even do all of this! ?"

Jun Wu Xie's exchange of words with the Emperor earlier had made the Empress realise that everything that happened today had all been the work of one person, Jun Xie, who was responsible for it all. Even all the servants in her palace who were abducted must have been carried out by people under his instructions!

The Empress had never once dreamed that she, who had always reigned supreme in the palace's Imperial Harem for so many years, would be tripped up by a mere youth as young as Jun Xie, to the point that if Jun Xie had not come forth to admit all of this was his doing, she would still be completely in the dark. It is feared that even right up to the point of death, she would still not know had been the one responsible for putting her into such a sorry state, and the mastermind behind it all!

The Empress lunged straight at Jun Xie, to strangle the youth that had completely crushed the plot she had carried on flawlessly for so many years.

But before the Empress could even touch a single corner of Jun Xie's clothes, Drunk Lotus suddenly appeared in front of her and his foot lashed out like a whip onto her abdomen where she was sent flying a great distance before crashing hard onto the hard floor with blood gushing out of her mouth, reduced to a state highly similar to Yuan Biao!

"Why would I do that? Don't you think I did all this because you, the Empress forced my hand?" Jun Wu Xie found it laughable. She couldn't understand, up till now on this day, how the Empress could possibly have the cheek to question her motives.

The Empress was feeling as though her entire body had come apart. She lay on the ground as agonising pain wrecked at her body, her eyes fixed on Jun Xie. Jun Xie's words had hit her like a bolt of lightning, right onto her head!

Previously, as Jun Xie had "accidentally" seen Lei Fan's original countenance, the Empress had relayed her instructions to the Prime Minister asking the Prime Minister to have the youth silenced!

She had tried to have Jun Xie killed first, hence, Jun Xie had only retaliated back!

When that thought came into her mind, the Empress suddenly froze as she lay on the ground. The eyes staring at Jun Xie had turned from one of hatred to become fear.

She had never once thought that she would be so soundly defeated by a mere youth, where she lost everything, with absolutely no chance of recovery!

Lei Fan was still writhing in agony on the floor, the process of his face reverting back as its effects was gradually neutralized putting him under tormenting pain. He could not even speak and could only lie sprawled on the ground, cold sweat pouring out of his body. But his eyes had been fixed on Jun Xie all these while, the fear growing more intense as the events unfolded!

Even he had not expected that the youth he had initially wanted to win over to his side and then subsequently wanted to be finished off, would turn out to be the very one person responsible for destroying his once bright future!

He had only needed to wait for another two years where the Emperor would have pulled Lei Chen off his Crown Prince's seat and he would have become the new heir to the Fire Country, finally inheriting the great might, prosperity and vast lands of the biggest country across the lands. But with the appearance of Jun Xie, all this had been torn apart, where he had been dragged down from being in the high clouds, down into the depths of the bottomless abyss!

If he could, Lei Fan really wished that Jun Xie had never appeared before him!

But alas, that was just wishful thinking!

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Chapter 940:- Tenth Slap (4)

Jun Wu Xie then completely ignored the Empress and the others, turning her head to look at the pale faced Emperor.

The Emperor was suddenly shocked into a harried fluster when those eyes turned to him, almost falling off the throne. He fought to keep himself upright where he barely managed to compose himself as he scanned his eyes across the scene in the entire main hall before his gaze suddenly fell onto the figure of Lei Xi, and his eyes lit up with a glimmer of hope!

"Little Xi! My good son! Jun Xie is plotting to kill your father! Save me! You must save your father from him!" The Emperor suddenly pleaded loudly when he saw the stunned Lei Xi standing motionless on one side.

Lei Xi had been petrified by all that had happened in the main hall and he turned his head to look at the wide doors of the main hall, where he saw the gigantic Spirit Beast had blocked up the exit. Next, his eyes turned to look at the Emperor who had lost all his royal decorum from fright and his heart twisted up in fear, as he subconsciously shifted his feet, his mind blank as he turned to walk in a direction towards the Emperor.

But he had just lifted his foot in the air to take the first step when Lei Chen's hand suddenly held his shoulder.

"Big Brother?" Lei Xi asked as he looked at Lei Chen, his eyes filled with struggle within.

He had been able to exact blood vengeance against the perpetrators today all because of Lei Chen. And from what Jun Xie had said earlier, he had understood that the real mastermind who designed the entire scheme from behind, completely dragging the Empress off her high horse, was in actuality Jun Xie!

From his perspective where he had been able to avenge his mother's death, Lei Xi did not feel the slightest hatred for Jun Xie, but was filled with gratitude towards the youth instead.

"After having to act dumb for so many years, have you really turned into an idiot?" Lei Chen's gaze was firm and unwavering as he looked at Lei Xi.

Lei Xi was greatly startled.

"At the time when your mother died under such strange circumstances, did the Emperor even order anyone to investigate into the truth? After your mother was killed and you were bullied and ill treated so many times, did he ever think you were his son then? Did he ever shield you in the slightest? When you moved out of the Imperial Palace, did he show you the slightest concern?" Every single word that came out of Lei Chen's mouth struck deep in Lei Xi's heart.

Every single word struck Lei Xi like a bolt of thunder!

When his mother died then, the Emperor had still been grieving for his beloved Lady Cheng who had passed away from a difficult childbirth, and had not concerned himself with anyone else. Towards the death of a mere concubine, even the funeral rites were carelessly handled and done in a rush, needless to mention that he would bother to order an investigation to look into the truth.

After that, the Emperor had seemed to forget that Lei Xi even existed, never having once summoned him to see him alone. If not for his surname as Lei, Lei Xi had at many a time doubted that he even belonged within the Imperial Palace.

Lei Chen's words had awoken Lei Xi to these undeniable facts. He then retracted his foot and retreated further behind.

It had been entirely due to the Emperor's inaction and his full attention having been given to the Empress and Lei Fan, which caused him to hide and cower in fear for so many years, to await the day he would finally be able to avenge his mother's death.

If only the Emperor had just spared a tiny bit of concern at that time, the murder committed in cold blood would have already been uncovered.

The ray of hope that had just risen in the Emperor's heart was extinguished by Lei Chen immediately, as he saw Lei Xi retreating further back stand behind Lei Chen, his head lowered, unwilling to even look at him.

All of a sudden, the Emperor roared: "You bunch of venomous and vicious people! You dare to treat the Emperor in this manner! I am the Emperor of the Fire Country! If you dare kill the Emperor, none of you can dream of leaving the Imperial Palace alive!"

The Emperor was in fear. Under the extreme terror, he had no choice but to shout out with all his might the empty threat, to try to bolster his courage.

But Jun Wu Xie shook her head lightly as she stared at the panicking and flustered Emperor.

"Your Majesty seems to have forgotten the reason why you want to have me killed."

The Emperor fell into another state of shock, suddenly seeing Jun Xie slowly raising up her hand, fully displaying the Ring of Imperial Fire within his line of sight, that was worn around a finger on his hand!

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