Peach Blossoms in Chang'an

Chapter 197: A False Alarm

Wu Tao stepped into the secret door cautiously. A musty smell hit him. What he saw was not the secret room he had imagined, but a long, deep passage. There were dim oil lamps lit at intervals on the wall. The flames flickered, casting ghostly shadows. Both sides of the passage were covered with dust, and it was obvious that no one had stepped into it for a long time.

Wu Tao took a deep breath, held the jade pendant tightly in his hand, and walked forward cautiously. The passage was not straight, but winding, with forks every few steps. If he hadn't kept the map described by the mysterious man in mind, he would have lost his way long ago.

The deeper they went, the colder and damper the air became, and they could faintly hear the sound of water drops falling. Wu Tao's heartbeat also gradually accelerated with the sound of footsteps. She didn't know what was waiting for her ahead, but her intuition told her that this was not a good place.

At the end of the passage, a heavy stone door blocked the way. The stone door was carved with intricate and delicate patterns, resembling dragons and phoenixes, exuding an ancient and mysterious atmosphere. Wu Tao fumbled with the stone door, trying to find the mechanism to open it.

At this moment, the stone slab under her feet suddenly sank, accompanied by a sharp mechanical sound, and several sharp arrows shot out from the secret compartments in the wall, heading straight for Wu Tao's vital points. Wu Tao reacted quickly and dodged sideways immediately. The sharp arrows flew past her hair and nailed to the wall behind her.

Wu Tao was still in shock, but she didn't dare to stop. She knew she had triggered the trap and had to find a safe path as soon as possible. She looked around carefully and finally found a hidden groove next to the stone door.

Wu Tao put the jade pendant into the groove, and with a "click", the stone door slowly opened, revealing a dark room. Wu Tao raised the oil lamp in his hand and walked into the room, and a rotten smell hit his nose.

The room was not big, with only a stone table and a few stone benches, and some old boxes piled in the corner. Wu Tao walked to the stone table and found a sheepskin scroll on the table. She carefully unfolded the scroll, which was filled with densely written words in tiny calligraphy.

Wu Tao carefully read the words on it, his face gradually becoming solemn. This turned out to be a secret letter of collusion between the Prime Minister and foreign countries! Could this be the evidence mentioned by the mysterious person?

Just as Wu Tao was about to take a closer look, she suddenly felt the ground shaking slightly and a loud rumbling sound came from above her head. Oh no! Could it be that the Prime Minister discovered her whereabouts?

Wu Tao didn't have time to think about it, she immediately stuffed the scroll into her arms and rushed out of the room. However, when she returned to the passage, she found that the way she came was blocked by a huge rock, and behind her, there was a burst of hurried footsteps... Wu Tao's heartbeat was as deafening as a drum, cold sweat soaked her palms, and the parchment scroll seemed like a hot potato. This is clearly a trap! The prime minister is cunning, how could he easily leave such a fatal handle? He deliberately spread the news to lure her here, with the purpose of catching her in one fell swoop.

The thought flashed through his mind, and Wu Tao made a prompt decision, stuffed the scroll into his arms, turned around and ran towards the passage he came from. However, it was too late. The entrance to the passage had been blocked by a huge rock, which fit tightly against the wall and could not be moved at all.

"Haha, Miss Wu, do you think I am unprepared?" A cold laugh came from the depths of the passage. The figure of the prime minister slowly appeared in the dim light, followed by dozens of guards holding swords, who surrounded Wu Tao.

"Did you know I would come?" Wu Tao forced himself to calm down and looked around, looking for a chance to escape.

"I have laid a net of heaven and earth, waiting for Miss Wu to fall into it." A hint of viciousness flashed in the prime minister's eyes, "If you know what's good for you, surrender obediently, and I may be able to leave you with an intact body."

Wu Tao tightly grasped the jade pendant in her hand. It was her last hope and her only weapon. She took a deep breath and prepared to fight to the death.

At this moment, a sound of metal clashing suddenly came from the other end of the passage, accompanied by a few screams, and several guards fell in a pool of blood.

"Who is it?!" The prime minister's face changed drastically and he shouted sternly.

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, you are so anxious to kill people to silence them. It seems you are guilty." A cold voice came from the darkness, with a bit of teasing in the tone.

A figure dressed in black and wearing a bamboo hat appeared in front of everyone like a ghost. He was agile and swift, with a long sword in his hand flashing with cold light. Wherever he passed, the guards were easily killed like straw.

"Who are you? How dare you interfere in the affairs of the court!" The prime minister was shocked and angry, but he did not dare to act rashly. The man in front of him was a martial arts master and was definitely not an ordinary person.

The man in black sneered and ignored the prime minister. Instead, he turned to look at Wu Tao and said in a gentler tone, "Miss Wu, how are you?"

Wu Tao's heart was shocked. This voice... could it be him?

"You are..." Wu Tao was about to ask, but the man in black winked at her, signaling her not to say anything.

The man in black fought fiercely with the prime minister's guards, with swords flashing and sabers glittering. Wu Tao was so stunned by this sudden change that he forgot to escape for a moment.

"Girl, hurry up!" The man in black seized an opportunity and threw a smoke bomb on the ground. Suddenly, thick smoke billowed, blocking everyone's vision.

Wu Tao took the opportunity to retreat, but was tripped by the gravel on the ground and was about to be caught by the guards who were chasing her. At the critical moment, a hand pulled her up and rushed into the thick smoke.

"Follow me!" The man in black took Wu Tao through the maze-like passage. The roars of the Prime Minister's men came from behind, but they were still unable to catch up with them.

After an unknown amount of time, the two finally escaped from the eerie and terrifying underground secret room.

"Thank you very much for saving my life. May I ask your name?" Wu Tao said gratefully.

"Miss, you don't have to be polite. It's just a small favor." The man in black smiled faintly, "I have something important to attend to. So I'll take my leave now."

After saying that, the man in black turned and left, disappearing into the night.

Wu Tao looked at the direction he left, full of doubts. Who was he? Why did he help? And where was the real evidence that the mysterious man was talking about?

Wu Tao looked around and found herself in a remote courtyard. It was quiet except for the chirping of insects. She realized that she had accidentally come to a more secret place...

The thick night enveloped Chang'an City. Wu Tao's heart was beating wildly. The tension of escaping made her almost breathless. In the unfamiliar courtyard, the ancient trees swayed in the night wind, making rustling sounds, which added a bit of weirdness. She didn't know where she was, and could only rely on her intuition to grope forward in the maze-like courtyard.

"Is this God's will?" Wu Tao said to himself with a wry smile. He originally just wanted to find evidence that Hu Bugui was framed, but he accidentally fell into another trap. Now he is lost in this strange place.

Just when she was feeling discouraged, a side hall not far away caught her attention. Unlike the dilapidated surroundings, this side hall, although covered in dust, still showed its former exquisiteness. As if possessed by some mysterious force, Wu Tao pushed open the heavy wooden door.

The light in the side hall was dim, and the air was filled with a damp smell. With the weak moonlight, Wu Tao found a broken desk in the middle of the room, with some scrolls and books scattered on it.

Wu Tao picked up a scroll, dusted it off, and carefully read the words on it in the moonlight.

"This is..." Wu Tao's pupils suddenly contracted, and a chill rushed from the soles of his feet to the top of his head. The scroll recorded the correspondence between the prime minister and the foreign enemy! The date was just before Hu Bugui's expedition, and the words revealed a conspiracy that was shocking.

It turns out that all this was a conspiracy by the prime minister! He deliberately framed Hu Bugui in order to seize military power, collude with foreign enemies, and usurp the throne!

Wu Tao's heart tightened as she realized that she had accidentally discovered a shocking secret. This scroll was the key evidence to prove Hu Bugui's innocence and reveal the prime minister's true identity!

She carefully hid the scroll in her arms, and without hesitation, she turned and ran in the direction she came from. She had to rush back to the capital as soon as possible, hand over this evidence to the emperor, and rescue Hu Bugui!

However, what Wu Tao didn't know was that the Prime Minister had already set up a trap in secret, waiting for her to fall into it. Just as she was about to escape from the courtyard, a group of men in black descended from the sky and surrounded her.

"Hand over the things!" The leading man in black spoke in a cold tone with a fierce light flashing in his eyes.

"Don't even think about it!" Wu Tao tightly protected the scroll in her arms, her heart filled with despair, but she did not give up resistance. Instead, she struggled hard with the man in black, trying to find a chance to escape.

A thrilling chase unfolded under the cover of night. Wu Tao relied on her extraordinary wit and courage to dodge attack after attack, but she was outnumbered and her strength gradually declined.

Finally, Wu Tao seized an opportunity, jumped onto the wall, and disappeared into the night without looking back. The men in black chased after her, but they could never catch up with her agile figure.

Wu Tao ran all the way and finally returned to the capital at dawn. Without taking a rest, she immediately took the scroll and rushed to the palace to request an audience with the emperor.

However, when Wu Tao presented the evidence to the emperor with hope, he found that the emperor's face did not show the expected shock and anger, but instead a hint of hesitation and indecision.

"Your Majesty, this is absolutely true! The Prime Minister has evil intentions, you must believe me!" Wu Tao explained anxiously.

The emperor was silent for a moment, then slowly said, "This matter is of great importance. I still need time to verify it. You can go back first."

Wu Tao's heart suddenly sank to the bottom. She didn't understand why the emperor would trust the prime minister so easily. Was he really senile?

Just when Wu Tao was feeling discouraged, she didn't know that the real crisis had just begun...