Chapter 1116: On the Eve of Seizing the Princess of Pyongyang

In the inner hall of the Siping Taichangbo Mansion, a strong smell of alcohol hit the face.

Gao Baozang was leaning on the couch, with several empty wine jars on the low table in front of him. He was still tightly holding a celadon cup filled with wine in his hand. His eyes were cloudy and he was muttering incoherently.

"The Goguryeo kingdom was destroyed by me. How can I face my ancestors?"

His wife, Cui, brought a bowl of hangover soup and tiptoed over. She gently advised, "Husband, stop drinking. It's bad for your health. It's been three years since the fall of our country. You should look forward..."

"What are you looking at!" Gao Baozang slammed his wine glass onto the table, splashing wine all over Cui. He glared at her with red eyes, "The country is gone! I, the king, have become a prisoner! What are you asking me to look at? Are you going to live your life at the mercy of the Tang Dynasty?"

Cui shuddered at his yelling, her hand holding the soup bowl trembling slightly, but she still suppressed her grievance and whispered, "Although the country is destroyed, life is still there, and Yan'er is still doing well in the Tang Dynasty."

"Yan'er?" Gao Baozang sneered and waved his hand to knock over the soup bowl in Cui's hand. The porcelain bowl fell to the ground and shattered. "She has already become someone else's concubine! She is a pawn of the Tang Dynasty to win over me!"

"My daughter, Gao Baozang, has to survive by pleasing my enemies!" He became more and more excited as he spoke, and raised his hand to hit her.

Cui closed her eyes subconsciously, but the slap did not fall on her body after all, it just brought up a gust of wind.

She slowly opened her cataract-ridden eyes and saw that Gao Baozang had grabbed the wine jar and poured it into his mouth again. She could only squat down silently and pick up the porcelain pieces on the ground. Tears fell silently and dripped down her cheeks onto the cold floor tiles.

At this moment, the servant Jin Zhongzhao came from outside, crying out, "Your Majesty, the princess has returned!"

Jin Zhongzhao still calls the head of the kingdom "Great King", which is enough to show his loyalty to his homeland and the Gao family.

Gao Baozang's drinking suddenly stopped, his hand holding the wine jar froze in mid-air, the wine flowed down the mouth of the jar, wetting his clothes without him noticing.

He stared blankly at the door, his Adam's apple bobbing a few times: "What... did you say?"

"Her Royal Highness the Princess is back!" Jin Zhongzhao ran into the hall, panting and shouting, "Emperor Lin Lang of Shanghai has personally brought Her Royal Highness back to her parents' home to visit her relatives!"

"My daughter is back!" Gao Baozang looked surprised.

"Yan'er..." Cui suddenly raised her head, and her tears suddenly welled up even more violently, but not because of sadness, but ecstasy.

She staggered to her feet, ignoring the mess on the ground, her voice choked and trembling: "My precious Yan'er is really back? I thought... I thought I would never see her again in this life..."

As Cui spoke, she raised her hand to cover her mouth, and the suppressed sobs finally burst out.

Gao Baozang seemed to be burned by the three words "Emperor of Shanghai". He suddenly sat up straight on the couch and sobered up instantly.

He nervously stepped forward and grabbed Jin Zhongzhao's arm, his voice tense: "The Emperor of Shanghai, Lin Lang? He came in person? How many troops did he bring? Is there... is there any hostility?"

Jin Zhongzhao felt a sharp pain from being grabbed, but he still quickly replied, "I didn't see any soldiers or horses, but I saw a few carriages carrying gifts brought back by Her Royal Highness the Princess, as well as the Shanghai Emperor Lin Lang and an accompanying empress. They don't look... they don't look like they're here to cause trouble..."

Gao Baozang frowned and his palms were full of sweat.

Jin Zhongzhao watched Cui weeping until she could barely breathe, her eyes reddened. He choked and advised, "Your Majesty, please stop crying! You've been weeping every day for the past three years, and you can't even see clearly with your right eye. What will happen if you damage this eye again?"

Cui was startled when she heard this, as if she had just remembered this. She hurriedly raised her hand to rub her eyes. Her fingertips touched the dry corners of her eyes, and she hurriedly wiped her tears with a handkerchief. Her voice trembled even more.

"Yes, yes, yes! Yan'er's return is a happy event, you can't cry..." She took a few deep breaths, trying to calm her surging emotions. Her eyes were red but she forced herself not to let the tears fall.

"My baby Yan'er is back. I have to take a good look at her to see how tall she has grown and whether she has lost weight..."

Cui's hand, clutching the handkerchief, was still trembling slightly. Suddenly remembering something, she hurriedly said to Jin Zhongzhao, "Quick! Go to the front yard and tell Yan'er's brother and sister-in-law that Yan'er is back. Tell them to come quickly so that our family can welcome her!"

After hearing this, Jin Zhongzhao wiped away his tears, smiled and agreed, and hurriedly did as he was told.

Cui lowered her head and straightened her clothes. Although her hair was a little messy and her face was covered with tears, her eyebrows were curved and the corners of her mouth were raised, which showed the longing for her daughter that she had suppressed for three years.

Gao Baozang drank too much and was staggering a little, so Cui quickly stepped forward to support him.

He grabbed his wife Cui's hand and said urgently, "Quick! Help me to wash up! We can't let the emperor laugh at us!"

As Gao Baozang spoke, he walked quickly towards the inner room. Although his steps were unsteady, his eyes were filled with complex emotions - fear, uneasiness, and a hint of anticipation for his daughter to return home for a visit.

Jin Zhongzhao didn't dare delay and trotted all the way to the front yard. He saw Gao Nanfu sitting in the porch polishing a sharp sword, while his wife Li was mending old clothes beside him. He hurriedly bowed and said, "Your Highness, Your Majesty, the Princess has returned!"

Li quickly put down her needlework and asked excitedly, "What? Is Yan'er back?"

Jin Zhongzhao replied truthfully, "It was the Emperor of Shanghai, Lin Lang, who personally escorted the princess back to her parents' home to visit her relatives. He brought several carriages full of gifts, and a strange lady accompanied him."

Mrs. Li's eyes welled up after hearing this. "Great! Has Yan'er grown taller than she did three years ago? Has she gained weight or lost weight?"

Jin Zhongzhao replied tearfully, "Your Highness has grown a lot taller than when she got married, though a little thin. However, she is dressed elegantly, has fair skin, and delicate fingers. She must not have suffered much in the Tang Dynasty."

When Li heard that her sister-in-law, whom she had seen grow up, did not suffer in the Tang Dynasty, a relieved smile immediately appeared on her face.

Gao Nanfu's hand that was wiping the sword suddenly stopped, and he looked up at Jin Zhongzhao. A hint of disbelief flashed in his eyes, and then the surprise was replaced by a strong sense of hostility.

He slammed his sword on the table with a clang, then stood up suddenly, his fists clenched so tightly that they made a crackling sound, veins popping out on his face. "How many soldiers did Emperor Lin Lang of Shanghai bring with him?"

Jin Zhongzhao replied, "My son-in-law has no followers or soldiers with him, so he probably has no hostile intent."

Gao Nanfu was furious after hearing this: "What kind of son-in-law is he? He is the enemy who destroyed our Goguryeo nation. How dare he come here alone?"

"Uh..." Jin Zhongzhao was so frightened that he hunched over and dared not speak anymore.

Gao Nanfu took a deep breath and suddenly laughed softly, his laughter filled with chills: "Well, damn Lin Lang came just in time! God has given me this opportunity to avenge my grievances!"

After hearing this, Li hurriedly stood up and grabbed Gao Nanfu's sleeve. Her face was as pale as paper and her voice was trembling: "Husband, what are you going to do?"

"Yan'er hasn't been home for many years. She finally came back. How can you, as her brother, cause trouble at this time?"

Gao Nanfu said fiercely, "What do you, a woman, know? This is a God-given opportunity for revenge."

Li's eyes were red and she was almost crying. "Goguryeo is long gone. There is no hope of restoring the country!"

"Husband, we are lucky to be able to live a peaceful life now. If you lay a hand on the Shanghai Emperor Lin Lang, not only our family, but even Yan'er will be implicated! You can't be foolish!"

"Confused?" Gao Nanfu suddenly shook off Li's hand, his forehead veins throbbing, and he gritted his teeth, "My Gao family's empire was destroyed by this Lin Lang and his Tang soldiers!"

"Our ancestors died on the battlefield to win this country, but now our family has become someone else's territory. How can we not avenge this blood debt? His only son has come to me today, and he is walking into a trap!" Gao Nanfu turned around and was about to touch the sword on the table.

Li hugged his arm tightly and cried, "You killed the Shanghai Emperor Lin Lang, and our whole family will be buried with him! What about our son? Do you have the heart to let him die with you?"

These words were like a bucket of cold water poured on Gao Nanfu's head. He froze, the murderous look on his face faded a little, and a struggle flashed in his eyes.

Jin Zhongzhao also said anxiously, "Your Highness, the Queen is right! The Princess's return is a happy occasion, we can't turn it into a funeral!"

Gao Nanfu's chest heaved violently, his knuckles turning white from the exertion. Finally, he fiercely kicked the porch pillar and growled, "I can't swallow this!"

Li was crying so hard that her whole body was shaking. She grabbed Gao Nanfu's sleeve tightly and refused to let go.

"Husband! Wake up! Now is not the time to act rashly! Have you forgotten that those former subordinates who tried to restore the country two years ago ended up with their entire families executed?"

"If you kill the Shanghai Emperor Lin Lang, none of the dozens of people in our Gao family will survive!" Li was also clear-headed.

Gao Nanfu suddenly closed his eyes, his back teeth clattered, and a line of turbid tears rolled down his cheeks.

Doesn't he know this truth?

But the hatred surging in his chest was like oil boiling over a raging fire, burning his internal organs so much that they ached.

Gao Nanfu was once the crown prince of Goguryeo, but now he has become a stray dog ​​living under someone else's roof. Isn't the root of all this Lin Lang's fault?

"The country changes, but the hatred of destroying the country is irreconcilable!"

Gao Nanfu muttered these two sentences and suddenly opened his eyes. The last trace of hesitation in his eyes was replaced by ruthlessness. The light was like an ice spike that was tempered with poison, revealing a madness of burning everything down.

He shook off Li's hand and waved to an attendant guard waiting in the corridor.

Upon seeing this, the guard immediately stepped forward with his head lowered.

Gao Nanfu walked behind the corridor pillar, turned his back to Li, and whispered a few words to the guard in a low voice, his voice as soft as a snake spitting out its tongue.

After hearing this, the guard's face turned pale. He mustered up his courage and whispered in a trembling voice, "Your Highness, this... this is probably inappropriate, isn't it?"

"At the dinner later, Her Royal Highness the Princess will definitely drink with the Shanghai Emperor, Lin Lang. If...if the wine is poisoned, what if it harms the Princess..."

"Stop talking nonsense. Just do as I tell you! I'll take responsibility if anything goes wrong!" Gao Nanfu turned around suddenly, his eyes were as fierce as a wolf, and his voice was cold. It seemed that he only wanted revenge and didn't care about his sister Gao Shuyan's life or death.

The guard was frightened by the cruelty in Gao Nanfu's eyes and trembled. He dared not persuade him anymore and quickly bowed and replied, "Yes... I will do it right away."

After saying that, a murderous look flashed across the guard's face. He turned around hastily and walked quickly towards the kitchen in the backyard. His figure quickly disappeared around the corner.

Li stood there, her hands and feet cold with fear. She vaguely guessed something, her lips trembling, but she couldn't say a word. She could only watch Gao Nanfu turn around, a cruel smile slowly appearing on his face.