Cold Blooded Wife

80 The Scroll (7)

Outside the Imperial Palace.

General Tang's men were at the entrance of the gates, waiting to be let in. Due to the assassins possibly roaming the palace, they were held back to avoid confusion.

The issue had spread quickly, and all those involved in food preparation were taken to the torture room to be investigated.

As for other servants, they were warned to keep their mouths shut about the incident. Anyone who leaks what happened would be executed on spot.

"Who would be so daring to try and assassinate the government officials?" One of guards asked his colleague as they patrolled the place, searching for assassins.

Almost every building and room had been searched in just a few hours, and still there was no sight of assassins.

"Look!" A guard pointed to the dead bodies of their fellow guards, following the blood.

It lead to a building that had no occupants,
but as they entered, the guards felt relieved.

On the ground were four men in all black, each showing no signs of life.

From their experience, they immediately knew someone had killed them almost a few hours ago. The door to the chambers was destroyed, so it meant whoever it was must have kicked it from the inside.

To make sure there was no one else, they checked the chamber but found no one.

While looking around, one of the guard noticed something on the bed.

It looked like a piece of muslin, but there were dark blood stains on it. The guard picked it up and called his peers to come take a look.

"This...." He held it up for them to have a better view.

"It's a veil." Another guard noted as be recognized it from earlier. He was on post in the front gates, so when guests entered, he had a clear view of them.

Many guests passed by, but there was only one person who had this muslin.

"It belongs to the daughter of General Wu." He described and the guards looked at one another, wondering what they should do.

If her veil was here, then where was the girl? Who was the one that killed the assassins?

The guards divided into two groups.
One group were to clean up the dead bodies and report back to the emperor.

The remaining would search the surrounding areas for Wu Xingxie.

***
After a few minutes of silence, Wu Xingxie finally decided what to say.

"In the near future, I was set up in an arranged marriage. On my way to the groom's house, a trio of assassins attacked me. They nearly killed me, but I used a spell to transport my soul back to this time. Before stabbing me, they revealed that it was my family who sent them. I suspect that it was Wu Dingxiang as he no longer had a use for me."
Wu Xingxie narrated but she didn't go into exact details because she didn't want Yuyan to find out that she died with intentions to save her.

Some things were better left unsaid, so Wu Xingxie only told the main parts.

While speaking, she felt something wet fall on her hands. Wu Xingxie glanced down to see Yuyan crying, and felt her arms wrapped around her waist.

"Eldest Miss, you've been through so much. If only I had the power to protect you." Yuyan cried, feeling powerless but in Wu Xingxie's eyes, she was more than worthy.

Wu Xingxie gently stroked her hair, telling her not to worry about those things.

"I will protect you so don't blame yourself. What happened was out of my control."

She let Yuyan cry on her shoulders, but when she felt a group of people nearing, Wu Xingxie tensed up. With her guard up, she shushed Yuyan, letting her know that people were near.

Yuyan wanted to stop crying, but after finding
out what happened, she was overwhelmed with grief. She quieted down, and after a few moments, someone was trying to open the door.

Whoever it was outside didn't even ask who was inside as they forced open the door, each storming into the old building.

Only when one of them called out,
"Wu Eldest Miss?" did Wu Xingxie slowly
helped Yuyan stand up.

"H-Help us...." She quickly formed tears and acted as uf she had been frightened.

"Miss, don't worry. The assassins have been killed. We found your veil inside the room they were outside of, so we thought something had happened. What a relief you're alright." The guard felt pity for the two young girls. They were barely seventeen and yet had to go through this. It was going to traumatize them for sure.

"Come, we will protect you." The guard stated and told the others to finish checking the surroundings before they headed back.

The guards escorted the two girls back to the banquet hall where the other group of guards had already reported their discovery.
It was a relief the assassins were killed, but no one knew who killed the intruders.

Wu Xingxie and Yuyan were behind the guards who were all much more taller and bigger so their figures were covered by the men.

Those in the front, didn't even notice them until the guards moved out of the way. When Wu Xingxie's face appeared, multiple gasps and whispers filled the hall.

Even Princess Shuchun who had seen many of his father's concubines was taken aback by Wu Xingxie's winsome looks.

Before, only her eyes were visible but now that her whole face was revealed, it seemed like a fairy descended into the mortal realm.

There were no blemishes on her face. It was flawless, along with her plump and soft lips. Her perfect nose that wasn't too big or too small. It wasn't too pointy or too round either, just the right size. Her eyes which looked normal before seemed alluring now that her facial features were shown.

"This....." The emperor didn't know if this was still girl General Tang carried out earlier. He glanced at General Wu, expecting him to say something. Wu Dingxiang was lost in his thoughts, trying to make sense of the entire incident so he didn't notice the emperor.

Only when Wu Yunxia nudged him did he snap out of it and saw Wu Xingxie standing before the emperor.

A few of the consorts had a look of envy on their face as they looked at the goddess like beauty. Why are the gods so unfair? How come this lass is blessed with such looks?!

*****
I tried so hard not to cringe when describing WX's appearance cuz I suck at physical traits.