Rebirth: After Becoming the Villainess-Chapter 151: She Said She’d Help Him, and She Would
Looking at the pair, Emperor Cheng Xiao was seething. "Good! Truly worthy of being my dear younger brother!"
Events had already reached the point of no return. Even if it meant throwing Zhou Cangyan into the imperial prison for defiance, he absolutely could not let him marry Song Lianhe!
"Since your minds are made up, I shall grant your wish." Emperor Cheng Xiao’s face was grim, his eyes filled with cold indifference. "What are you waiting for? Carry out the punishment at once!"
"As you command."
Lu Shunfu acknowledged the order and turned to signal for the punishment to resume.
Without a word, Zhou Cangyan pulled Song Lianhe against his chest, one arm wrapping around her waist and the other shielding her head. "Don’t look."
Song Lianhe was, indeed, afraid.
But being afraid didn’t mean she was spineless!
The whip struck Zhou Cangyan again. She knew Emperor Cheng Xiao would show no regard for their brotherly bond; he was playing for keeps now.
Hearing his muffled grunt, Song Lianhe grew frantic. "This is all my fault! I should be the one taking this for you!"
"Don’t move. Just stay put."
The blows from the whip rained down, but he shielded her completely with his back, leaving no part of her exposed.
Song Lianhe lifted her head. Just as she was about to speak, her eyes met his gaze. It held no complex emotion; he was simply looking at her, as if protecting her was as natural as eating, sleeping, and breathing.
The words she wanted to say caught in her throat, and she couldn’t get a single one out.
"Holy Emperor!"
Chun De rushed before Emperor Cheng Xiao. "Holy Emperor," she pleaded, "Biwu left the Imperial Palace while still in swaddling clothes. He had no one to look after him and was poorly disciplined. It is not that he means to disregard the law! Biwu holds no disloyalty toward you, Holy Emperor. I pray you see this clearly!"
Emperor Cheng Xiao’s gaze fell upon the tall man being punished, and he spoke with profound meaning, "A willow transplanted in years past, once lush and vibrant; now I see it withered and fallen, a sorrowful sight. If even a tree can suffer such a fate, how can a man endure it? I, too, wish he were as the Empress says—loyal to Da Cheng, and loyal to me."
’But would he be?’
"Holy Emperor!"
Lady Cao also knelt nearby. "Princess Cheng Hong is delicate and frail. I implore the Holy Emperor to remember the great valor of her late mother, General Li Hua, and show her leniency."
Cao Ying also dropped to her knees. "I beg the Holy Emperor for mercy!"
Chun De added, "Cheng Hong is simply flustered with worry. Why must the Holy Emperor take issue with a young woman?"
Emperor Cheng Xiao looked at Song Lianhe, and his expression grew even darker.
’What an impressive Second Miss Song, to have both the Empress and a titled lady pleading her case. Truly remarkable!’
’But today, no one’s pleas will work!’
He flicked his sleeve and turned away.
"The Empress is unwell. Escort her back to her palace to rest."
Lu Shunfu stepped forward. "Yes." He turned to Chun De and said respectfully, "Your Majesty, this old servant will escort you back to your palace."
"Holy Emperor—"
"Lu Shunfu, did you not hear me? Do you want me to punish you for gross disrespect?"
Terrified, Lu Shunfu kowtowed. "This old servant knows his crime."
Chun De froze. How could she not understand that those words were meant for her?
Lu Shunfu hurried over, his face pleading. "Your Majesty, please, just return to your palace."
Chun De glanced at those still kneeling and refused to leave. "Holy Emperor..."
Lady Cao and her daughter also remained kneeling, begging Emperor Cheng Xiao for mercy.
No one noticed the palace attendants carrying out the punishment exchange a look. They discreetly swapped whips. The new one was slick and black, and embedded with barbs...
CRACK—
As this whip struck, Zhou Cangyan’s body suddenly pitched forward. His arms instinctively tightened around Song Lianhe, careful not to let his weight fall on her.
"My Prince! What’s wrong?"
Zhou Cangyan didn’t speak, but he shot a dark glare at the attendant behind him.
CRACK! CRACK!—
The lashes came faster. The whip had been soaked in saltwater. Each strike tore open his skin as the barbs hooked into his flesh. Saltwater seeped into the wounds, the pain so excruciating that his entire body trembled uncontrollably.
This kind of whip could kill a man!
"Ngh..."
Zhou Cangyan let out a muffled groan, half his weight slumping against Song Lianhe.
"My Prince... Zhou... Zhou Cangyan! Zhou Cangyan!"
In her panic, she cast aside all etiquette and shouted his name directly.
The man slumped on her shoulder, his thick lashes trembling. A corner of his mouth quirked up. "Getting bold, are we? You dare call me by my given name?"
"Who has time for that now..." She reached out to support him, then froze.
She pulled her hand back. Her fair palm was stained red with blood.
It hit Song Lianhe like a bolt of lightning!
She snapped her head up to look at the attendants behind him. "It’s them... It’s them, isn’t it?"
"Don’t..."
Zhou Cangyan reached out to grab her.
He didn’t know if these two had been deliberately arranged by the Holy Emperor, or if someone else was using this as an opportunity to harm him.
But to rise and fight back would be to openly defy an imperial command.
That was why he tried to stop Song Lianhe. At the very least, he could bet that Emperor Cheng Xiao wouldn’t dare to take his life here and now.
But Song Lianhe couldn’t care about any of that. She shot to her feet and, without a second thought, snatched the swinging whip out of the air. "Stop!"
Everyone gasped. Emperor Cheng Xiao was also taken aback. As he looked at her, for a fleeting moment, he thought he saw the silhouette of another person...
Zhou Cangyan lifted his head. The lovely young woman was silhouetted by the moonlight, her slight frame shielding him. Her slender, porcelain-white hands were clenched tightly around the whip.
"County Princess..."
Lady Cao was stunned.
Cao Ying was also dumbstruck. She never would have imagined Song Lianhe would go to such lengths to protect Prince Qing!
After her initial shock, Chun De looked nervously at Emperor Cheng Xiao. The Emperor’s expression flickered between surprise and anger before settling into a thunderous rage. "What does she think she is doing?! Is this a rebellion?! Seize her!"
"As you command!"
Lu Shunfu quickly called out, "Hurry and pull the County Princess away!"
"Forgive me, County Princess!" The whip-wielding attendant tried to yank the whip free, but a sharp pain suddenly shot through his arm, and the weapon clattered to the ground.
A pair of Emei Needles had appeared in Song Lianhe’s hands. One was now buried deep in the attendant’s arm.
A flash of astonishment crossed Zhou Cangyan’s eyes. Only when he saw the Emei Needles clearly did he recognize them as Ningzhan, the weapon the previous Emperor had bestowed upon Lin Shuniang to honor her great achievements.
What outsiders did not know was that Ningzhan was forged from Snow Mountain Sky Iron.
Heavenly Iron was, in fact, a Mystic Stone that fell from the sky. Once refined, it became Mystic Tie, a metal that never rusted and could cut through iron as if it were mud. It was far beyond any ordinary weapon.
At the time, there was only one piece of this Mystic Tie, and it was forged into two weapons. One of them was this very pair of Emei Needles, Ningzhan.
Since the founding of the Da Cheng Dynasty, Lin Shuniang was the only one among the Military Generals to have ever received a weapon personally bestowed by an Emperor, a testament to the former Emperor’s immense trust and high regard for her.
To see this weapon was to see the Emperor himself; it granted its wielder the authority to act with impunity. Against a mere palace attendant, never mind just injuring him—even killing him would be of no consequence.
Upon seeing Ningzhan, Emperor Cheng Xiao’s brow furrowed.
Song Lianhe had seen the attendant’s malicious intent, which was why she had steeled herself and struck him without hesitation.
Though she was trembling with fear, she tightened her grip on the cold, hard steel in her hands and refused to yield a single step. "Don’t any of you touch him! Get back!"
She had said she would help him, and she absolutely would.
