AUBTN -Chapter 297 I Will Save Him

Yu Qing was terrified out of her wits. She desperately tried to pull him up, but his heavy body dragged her down with him, and they both fell hard to the ground.

Cold sweat instantly soaked through the clothes of both men.

The poison’s effects were now raging wildly inside their bodies. Coupled with the intense emotional turmoil from earlier, it had finally triggered its most violent backlash.

Shen Jue’s face was now deathly pale.

He clenched his teeth, refusing to let out even the slightest groan of pain in front of Su Hewan.

Lu Yan’s condition was just as dire.

“Don’t… don’t look…”

Lu Yan struggled to force out a few broken words, trying to raise his hand to cover Yu Qing’s tear-filled eyes, but it fell helplessly halfway through the motion.

Both men were already extremely weak after days of planning and the accumulated toxins in their bodies. Now, with emotional distress added on top, they quickly slipped into a semi-conscious state.

“Quick! Help them inside!”

Su Hewan forced herself to stay calm through overwhelming panic.

Yu Qing hastily wiped away the tears on her face, gritted her teeth, and used all her strength to support Lu Yan’s arm.

The two frail women, barely holding on, staggered as they dragged the men into the inner room and placed them on the bed.

They never would have imagined that one day they would be lying on the same bed as their sworn enemies.

Su Hewan fetched warm water and carefully wiped away the black blood at the corner of Shen Jue’s lips.

Seeing the man lying there without a trace of life, her heart ached so much she could barely breathe.

【Shen Jue, you madman… you gave up your life for me. How am I supposed to repay you…】

Shen Jue, who was half-conscious, trembled slightly at his eyelashes.

It seemed as if he had heard her thoughts. The pain between his brows eased a little.

On the other side, Yu Qing tightly held Lu Yan’s cold hand, burying her face in his palm as silent tears streamed down.

But after only a moment, she suddenly lifted her head again.

All softness and tears had vanished from her eyes.

“Wanwan.”

Yu Qing’s voice was unexpectedly calm.

“I’m going to save them.”

She stood by the bed, looking straight at Su Hewan, and said each word clearly.

“I will make sure Lu Yan lives!”

Su Hewan met her resolute gaze, and at that moment, the two reached a silent understanding.

Slowly, Su Hewan stood up, her eyes sharp as a blade.

“Alright. We’re going to the palace!”

She took a deep breath, forcing down all the surging emotions in her chest.

“What the Empress Dowager wants right now is evidence to eliminate the Zhou family.”

Yu Qing’s eyes lit up. “You mean…”

“The Zhou family’s crimes!”

Su Hewan turned and took out a stack of neatly transcribed documents from the cabinet.

Each and every page contained ironclad evidence of Zhou Wenhai’s crimes—selling official positions, embezzling military funds, and colluding with foreign enemies.

This was originally prepared by Shen Jue and Lu Yan to present to the young emperor.

But now, she could no longer care about the emperor.

Su Hewan gripped the documents tightly.

“If the Empress Dowager wants to use a blade to kill someone, then we’ll use that blade to exchange for their antidote!”

Yu Qing nodded heavily. “Alright! Let’s go meet that old witch together!”

“But we absolutely cannot let them know about this.”

Su Hewan’s gaze fell back on the two unconscious men on the bed, her tone grave.

“With their personalities, they would rather die than let us take this risk. If they find out our plan, they will definitely stop us.”

Yu Qing gritted her teeth. “You’re right. We have to keep this from them at all costs.”

Without hesitation, the two immediately called for the most trusted physician in Shen Jue’s residence.

“Uncle Li, the toxins in their bodies can no longer be suppressed.” Su Hewan instructed calmly.

Uncle Li knew about the fact that the two men had been poisoned, and had been helping them keep it a secret all along.

Now that the two madams already knew, he no longer tried to hide it.

“Madams, I am aware of the gentlemen’s condition. Right now, the most urgent thing is for them to take the antidote!” Uncle Li sighed repeatedly.

Su Hewan did not bother pursuing the fact that they had concealed it from her.

“Prepare a bowl of the strongest calming decoction,” she ordered, her voice leaving no room for refusal.

Uncle Li froze. “Madam Shen, their bodies are already very weak. If we use such strong medicine, it may damage their foundation!”

“If we don’t let them sleep properly and endure this wave of agonizing poison, they will die right now,” Su Hewan’s gaze turned sharp.

“…Yes, I’ll do it at once!” Uncle Li hurriedly replied.

Soon, two bowls of thick, pitch-black calming medicine were prepared.

Su Hewan and Yu Qing personally forced themselves to feed the medicine, drop by drop, into the two men’s mouths.

The effect of the calming decoction took hold quickly.

Before long, Shen Jue’s tightly furrowed brows finally relaxed, and his breathing became long and even.

Lu Yan also fell into a deep, heavy sleep.

“Sleep,” Su Hewan bent down and gently pressed a soft kiss on Shen Jue’s cold lips, her eyes tender and lingering.

“When you wake up, everything will be alright.”

Yu Qing also leaned in and bit Lu Yan hard on the chin, leaving a faint tooth mark.

“You’d better lie there obediently. If you dare die so casually, I’ll remarry immediately!”

After saying this, the two of them turned and left the inner chamber without the slightest hesitation.

When they appeared again in the courtyard, they had already changed into elaborate, solemn crimson court robes.

This was the rank of a titled noble lady, the rightful status of the wife of the Eastern Depot’s chief eunuch.

Yu Qing, on the other hand, wore a flowing multicolored brocade dress. Her usually playful face was now cold as frost—beautiful, but sharply intimidating.

This was also the dignity she was entitled to as the wife of the Jinyiwei commander.

These heavy court garments were not merely clothing—they were armor.

Su Hewan carefully tucked the evidence capable of shaking the entire court into her wide sleeve.

“Are you afraid?” Su Hewan tilted her head slightly to look at Yu Qing beside her.

“Afraid my ass!” Yu Qing sneered, lifting her chin high.

“Isn’t it just acting? I’m going to be an Oscar-winning actress someday!”

A faint curve finally appeared at the corner of Su Hewan’s lips.

“Good. Then today, we’ll go and put on a grand performance for that high and mighty Empress Dowager.”

The heavy doors slowly opened with a dull creak.

Two slender yet upright figures stepped over the threshold side by side.

Inside the Ci’ning Palace.

The Empress Dowager reclined lazily on her throne, her fingertips brushing over the documents stamped with red handprints.

Su Hewan stood straight below, her face cold as ice, while her clenched hands hidden in her wide sleeves had turned white.

Yu Qing stood beside her. Though she had restrained her usual liveliness, her eyes fixed on the Empress Dowager were burning with fury.

【You old hag, have you seen enough yet? Hand over the antidote already!】

Yu Qing was screaming internally, wishing she could rush forward and tear apart that cruel face.

Finally, the Empress Dowager set down the last confession document.

She slowly lifted her eyelids.

“Good. Very good.”