Chapter 892: Threat

Chapter 892: Threat

The crowd surrounded Luo Xiaoxue and the others tightly, leaving no escape route—truly like being trapped with nowhere to fly.

Luo Xiaoxue had expected this; she came prepared, knowing it was a feast of danger—coming here meant it wouldn’t be easy to leave.

But she had to come; there was no other choice but to do so.

Facing the mockery from Dong Wei’s side, she didn’t say much. The advantage lay with them, and she was at a disadvantage. Moreover, she had voluntarily come here, so she couldn’t blame anyone.

“General Li, I’ve come as promised. How are my father and mother now?”

Luo Xiaoxue still held onto some hope and asked. However, Dong Wei continued to laugh heartily, further mocking her.

“Oh, how filial you are. Even in this situation, you still care about your parents. If you want to know how they are, come with us. But, you must not carry any weapons. If you resist, I can’t say what will happen. Besides, there’s no need to resist; the more you resist, the more suffering you’ll endure.”

“We don’t plan to resist.”

Luo Xiaoxue was the first to hand over her weapon. The other soldiers hesitated, exchanging glances, but seeing that Princess Luo Xiaoxue had surrendered her weapon, they felt they couldn’t keep theirs either.

They soon followed suit, surrendering their weapons as well, with no intention of resisting. Luo Xiaoxue’s actions seemed a bit puzzling, giving up their weapons as soon as they arrived. Yet they believed she must have some backup plan, after all, she was the last hope of the royal family, known for her courage and intelligence; surely, she must have some ideas.

Thus, they followed her lead and figured the princess must have a way.

“General Li, I am still a leader with many soldiers; outside the capital are my troops. We’ve surrendered our weapons, so I hope you’ll treat us with kindness. Otherwise, inciting a war won’t be good for you either.”

“Don’t worry, you are a member of the royal family. As long as you don’t attack us, we won’t harm you. You just need to come with us.”

General Li spoke up. He indeed didn’t dare to attack Luo Xiaoxue; she possessed a mysterious ability—a beam of spirit light that unleashed powerful force to fend off incoming attacks.

As a general, he had no means to counter that move. If he could, he wouldn’t be in his current position.

Let the higher-ups handle it, he was just responsible for bringing people.

“Fine, I’ll come with you.”

Now Luo Xiaoxue had no choice but to follow. The feast of danger, to be honest, if it were up to her, she wouldn’t be so compliant. But under Lin Daxia’s orders, she would go, believing Lin Daxia had a plan.

So, she followed the Dong Wei side. No shackles were used to restrain them; for now, there was no need. If they truly started fighting, it wouldn’t reach the point where shackles were necessary.

Moreover, it was an order from above, so they couldn’t act recklessly. Luo Xiaoxue would be needed to pacify her army afterward; a battle would cause plenty of trouble.

Luo Xiaoxue and her group walked along a long red carpet until they finally reached the royal palace hall, where the emperor traditionally held court with officials. Luo Xiaoxue had also stood by in the past to listen in on the affairs.

Now, she felt like a prisoner; on both sides were imposing guards, each wielding blades and spears, all elite soldiers of the court.

Faced with this scene, Luo Xiaoxue was completely unflustered, remarkably calm. After all, someone who had seen grand spectacles like this wouldn’t panic.

Except in front of Lin Nuo, she wouldn’t show her innocent maiden side. Gradually, she began to adopt a steely demeanor, becoming quite assertive. Though she was a woman, she wasn’t afraid of formidable foes.

Before long, she saw her parents being supported and brought out by their subordinates. Such a situation had never happened before.

“Father, Mother…”

Clearly, they were unable to move freely, forced to comply. If they attempted to resist, they could be in danger.

So, in essence, they were now a threat to her; her every move was controlled by their commands.

It was an openly shameless threat, infuriating her, yet she couldn’t strike back—she could only watch.

What to do next? If it were Lin Daxia, how would he handle this?

Luo Xiaoxue was perspective-taking, thinking about Lin Daxia’s mindset, yet no matter how she pondered, she couldn’t figure out the matter of Lin Daxia.

Perhaps this was a trial for her, a complete trial, facing such calamities alone.

Luo Xiaoxue adjusted her emotions and calmly said:

“Father, Mother, it’s truly great to see you safe. I’m sorry for returning late.”

“Xiaoxue, my daughter… you shouldn’t have come back…”

“If I had known you were in danger, I couldn’t have justified not returning. I still had to come back; I have no regrets.”

“My daughter… sigh…”

The emperor sighed deeply, feeling helpless; he also blamed himself for being powerless, having become a bargaining chip that threatened Luo Xiaoxue and causing her distress.

The emperor’s several sons were all titled kings but were firmly under Dong Wei’s control, with no strength to resist. At the time, they had seen Luo Xiaoxue as a woman with little influence, giving her little thought; they hadn’t anticipated she would become the biggest threat.

Now she was here; as long as she remained, victory belonged to Dong Wei.

“Minister pays his respects to Your Majesty.”

The head of Dong Wei, Guo Ran, stepped forward, wearing a broad smile and showing marked politeness, maintaining the facade of treating the two as emperor and empress, while inwardly harboring different thoughts.

Everyone knew the situation was firmly in Dong Wei’s hands.

“Oh? The princess has returned! It’s been so long; I wonder how the princess is faring?”

“I’m well, thank you, Minister Guo. Since I’m here, let’s not be polite; let’s speak frankly.”

“The princess is indeed a straightforward person. Very well, then I’ll speak plainly. Princess, now that you still control the Royal Guard, I think that might be too burdensome for you. With the realm in chaos, only Dong Wei can bring peace. So, I request you hand over the Royal Guard to the court; Dong Wei has its way to manage them.”

“Minister Guo, the Royal Guard only listens to my commands. It’s not that I’m unwilling; changing their leadership could easily disrupt their morale, which is not good for either side.”

“Oh? Is that so? Then I request you, Princess, to relay our orders. I believe you want the emperor and empress to live long as well, right?”

Guo Ran smiled, the insinuation being—if you don’t comply, they might not be around anymore, a hidden threat.

Luo Xiaoxue considered her options; she had no means to counterattack, so she could only agree for now:

“If the requests aren’t excessive, I will cooperate with you.”

“Mm, quite good, aware of the situation.”

Guo Ran stroked his beard and smiled. Just as everything seemed to be going smoothly, there was an explosion outside.

Boom!