The Emperor's Phoenix

Chapter 18 | Her Threat

刘  映 月

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Liu Ying Yue

She tightened her grip on the front of his robes until her knuckles turned white, watching spitefully as his blocked airways slowly caused his face to pale. "Your sorry mouth only wants to spew out more crap, does it?"

Especially through standing by and leaving Li Qiang to his death...

Emperor Tang gave her a dark grin, growling out his next words. "The truth is the truth. In the end, your dear older brother chose the preservation of his ego over his life. It was impossible to save that arrogant bastard from the start."

With one hand now holding his robes, Ying Yue quickly slid out the sharp hairpin in her hair and held the point over the throbbing pulse on his throat with a calculating gaze. "Then...Will you do the same?"

Grabbing her wrist with the hairpin, he looked down at her with an expression of warning and sighed. "Things certainly become less fun when reality comes into play...It would be best to release me, dear--or who knows what else I'll do..."

Ah...It's about time he stops playing around.

Ying Yue's lips simply curled up into a smirk at his words, and he didn't hesitate to release a small flame that licked up the length of her sleeve as it grazed the bare skin of her wrist. She hissed in pain as her hand holding the front of his robes trembled, but she quickly maintained her choking grip and made a small cut on his throat with the poisoned tip of the hairpin.

So he also built up immunity to poison...

"And yet I wonder..." she withdrew her hairpin to pull him down in a questioning manner. "...What is there between you and Consort Sui for you both to be involved behind Li Qiang's death?..."

She released her grip as her affirmative smirk grew wider at the silent clench of his jaw. He suddenly narrowed his eyes in a fox-like smile and chuckled lowly. "You certainly think too much, dear--and that may lead to a great fall...It is only natural for Consort Sui and I to collaborate in our alliance."

Despite his smooth words, that quick slip of his emotions gave her all the confirmation she needed.

After the consort sent my brother away, Emperor Tang was the one to end him...And considering their agreement for the marriage, it only makes sense that they are working together somehow...

"Ying Yue." Her husband's smooth voice sounded from around the corner as she quickly backed away.

Quickly strolling over, her husband firmly grabbed her arm and pulled her towards his chest as he placed a hand on her upper back. Ying Yue gave him a dark glance to release her, yet he only looked down at her with a raised eyebrow.

"You were taking quite a while." Zhang Wei said quietly before shooting daggers at the emperor of the Fire Realm, Ying Yue doing the same over her shoulder.

"Zhang Wei, you seem quite worried..." Emperor Tang readjusted his robes with another mysterious smile in her direction despite his earlier show of slight anger. "Afraid that your dear wife will leave you for me?"

He scoffed in disbelief. "I have full trust that she isn't that type of woman." He turned to Ying Yue with narrowed eyes for a moment as she glanced up at him in surprise at his words. "...We should be heading back to our chambers for the night."