TSFLIP Chapter 544

While everyone was busy dealing with the first assassin, a second one suddenly appeared—it was the envoy from the Liubi Kingdom. His lightness skills were far superior, and in just moments, he had closed in on Xia Chao. But instead of aiming at the emperor, his blade was directed squarely at Wang Ci.

“Mother!” Fengguang didn’t have time to think. She instinctively tried to shield Wang Ci with her own body—but what happened next caught everyone by surprise.

Xia Chao’s expression turned cold. With lightning speed, he grabbed Wang Ci’s hand and pulled her behind him. With his other hand, he caught the blade barehanded. Blood instantly streamed down his palm and splattered on the floor, but he didn’t even flinch. As if pain meant nothing to him, he snapped the blade in two under the pressure of his grip and, with a powerful kick, sent the envoy flying.

The envoy hit the ground hard and coughed up a mouthful of blood. Fengguang had just let out a breath of relief when she realized—she was standing in the wrong place.

Because she had rushed forward so suddenly, she had ended up directly in front of Meng Xi, who was still engaged in a fierce fight with the first assassin. Her unexpected appearance forced Meng Xi to pull back his attack to avoid injuring her, but the assassin wasn’t about to show the same restraint.

As the blade came slashing toward her, Fengguang reacted with an almost unnatural speed. She stepped to the side just in time, and the knife only grazed her arm, leaving a shallow cut that quickly bled.

The assassin didn’t get another chance—Meng Xi struck him down with a powerful palm strike. The next moment, Fengguang found herself pulled into a man’s arms.

Meng Xi’s expression was stern, his voice laced with concern and an undercurrent of reprimand. “Fengguang, how could you be so reckless? Why would you run out like that to take a blade for me?”

“…Huh?” Fengguang blinked, her brain lagging a second behind. Wait—was she seriously being held like this in front of the entire court by Meng Xi? That couldn’t be right. She quickly pushed him away with one hand and staggered a step back, but before she could say anything, someone else had already pulled her into a new embrace—this time, it was her mother.

Wang Ci looked at her with deep worry. “Fengguang, you’re hurt!”

“It’s nothing, just a scratch…”

“No, we have to call the imperial physicians,” Wang Ci insisted. The hall was already in chaos, and she immediately ordered her maid to summon every physician from the medical bureau.

Fengguang was speechless. It was just a scratch—one of those put-a-Band-Aid-on-it kind of injuries. But then she looked at her father, still standing silently in place, blood dripping steadily from his hand. That’s when it hit her.

Ah. So the physicians weren’t being summoned for her after all.

When Xia Chao’s wound was finally bandaged and he resumed his seat on the dragon throne, all the delegates from Liubi Kingdom dropped to their knees with a rustle. Even the proud and aloof Fengmiyin and the cold, immortal-like Si Jia were no exceptions.

“Your Majesty, please understand,” the Liubi general pleaded. “We did not know about any assassination attempt! The envoy Liu and his guard acted on their own—we had no idea of their intent!”

If this wasn’t handled properly, it could mean war between the two kingdoms—no wonder the Liubi delegates were practically trembling.

Xia Chao’s mood was hard to read—neither good nor visibly furious. He stated the facts. “This envoy. He was one of your people from Liubi, was he not?”

“…Yes.” The general had no choice but to admit it.

But then Fengmiyin suddenly said, “They weren’t from our kingdom.”

“Oh?” Meng Xi’s voice was frosty and imposing. “Is the Princess of Wuyou trying to deny all responsibility now?”

Fengmiyin showed no fear. Instead, she remained composed and said calmly, “If they were citizens of Liubi, I would of course acknowledge it. But they are not—so how could I possibly take responsibility for them?”