Peach Blossoms in Chang'an

Chapter 204: Storm Rising, the Prime Minister's Remnants

The towering palace gate slowly closed behind them, as if isolating all the noise from the outside world. The lights inside the palace were brighter than those outside, but it also added a bit of solemnity. Wu Tao and Hu Bugui walked in silence all the way to the imperial study. Hu Bugui dismissed all the palace servants, leaving only a few trusted ministers and a few martial arts masters.

"Your Highness, Princess, you called us together so late at night. What big thing happened?" An old minister with white hair and beard broke the silence first.

Hu Bugui nodded solemnly and recounted the details of the attack on their village. He added, "The 'Shadow' acts in secret and comes and goes without a trace. This is probably just a warning. We must prepare early."

"'Shadow'?!" a lean knight exclaimed, "There is such an organization in the martial arts world. I have been traveling the martial arts world for decades, but I have never heard of it."

"'Shadow' is not a gang organization." Another minister said solemnly, "As far as I know, 'Shadow' is a secret force cultivated by the prime minister of the previous dynasty. When the prime minister's rebellion failed, 'Shadow' also disappeared. I didn't expect them to revive."

"Remnants of the Prime Minister?" Wu Tao's heart skipped a beat. Could this matter be related to the remnants of the previous dynasty?

"Why did they attack the prince and princess?" asked a knight in confusion.

"I think their real target should be..." Hu Bugui paused and glanced at everyone, "what we have in our hands."

Everyone was shocked. They all knew that Hu Bugui held some secrets that could subvert the government and the country. If they fell into the wrong hands, the consequences would be disastrous.

"Your Highness, what should we do now?" the old minister asked anxiously.

"The most urgent task is to find out the details and purpose of 'Shadow'." Hu Bugui analyzed calmly, "I have sent people to investigate their whereabouts. Please pay more attention and report any clues immediately."

"Yes!" Everyone responded in unison.

"Taotao," Hu Bugui turned to look at Wu Tao, "This matter is of great importance. You should stay in the palace for the time being and don't go anywhere."

Wu Tao understood Hu Bugui's worries, but she couldn't just sit back and do nothing.

"No, I..." Wu Tao was about to speak, but was stopped by Hu Bugui's eyes.

"This is an order!" Hu Bugui's tone left no room for doubt.

Wu Tao bit her lip and finally nodded. But she had already made up her mind that she must find out the secret of "Dark Shadow" and never let Hu Bugui face danger alone.

In the imperial study room late at night, the atmosphere was heavy, and everyone's face was filled with worry. A storm was quietly approaching, and they were already in the center of it.

Wu Tao returned to her bedroom, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep. Hu Bugui's words echoed in her ears, like shackles, imprisoning her in this deep palace. She understood that Hu Bugui was trying to protect her, but she was not the kind of dodder who could only seek shelter under a man's wings.

She decided to take action herself.

On the morning of the second day, Wu Tao declined Hu Bugui's company on the grounds of being unwell, but secretly assembled a group of elite soldiers, led by Hu Bugui's confidants, all of whom were highly skilled in martial arts and loyal, and were the last line of defense to protect the safety of the palace. Wu Tao briefly explained the plan to them. Although the soldiers were surprised, they had no objection to the princess's order and quickly assembled, waiting for Wu Tao's order.

In order not to alert the enemy, Wu Tao chose a secret path and led the soldiers out of the city quietly, heading towards the forest where the "shadow" might be hiding. The mountain road was rugged and difficult to travel, but Wu Tao and his group traveled lightly, but their steps were unhesitating.

"Princess, the Black Wind Ridge is ahead." A soldier pointed to a dark forest ahead and said, "According to the information we have gathered, the 'Shadow' is likely hiding there."

Wu Tao looked up and saw a thick layer of dark clouds covering the sky above Black Wind Ridge, as if it was isolated from the world, and exuding a strange atmosphere.

"Everyone, be careful and alert, and don't alert the enemy." Wu Tao said in a low voice and was the first to step into Black Wind Ridge.

The light in the woods was dim, the trees were lush and leafy, blocking out the sun, and the occasional cries of crows added to the eerie feeling. Wu Tao and the others moved forward cautiously, taking every step with extreme caution, fearing that they would trigger some trap.

"Ah!" A soldier walking in front of the team suddenly let out a scream, and his body was hung by a rope hanging from a tree.

"There's an ambush!" Wu Tao reacted quickly, pulled out the dagger from his waist, cut the rope, and rescued the soldier.

"Princess, be careful!" The soldiers quickly formed a circle, protecting Wu Tao in the middle, and looked around vigilantly.

"Come out, why hide?" Wu Tao said loudly, his eyes like torches, scanning the surrounding woods.

As soon as he finished speaking, several dark shadows flashed out from the depths of the woods and surrounded Wu Tao and others.

"Who are you? How dare you trespass into my 'Shadow' territory?" one of them said in a hoarse voice.

"Who did I think it was? It turns out to be the rat from Shadow!" Wu Tao sneered, "I advise you to surrender obediently, maybe I can spare your life!"

"Hmph, you small fry dare to speak such nonsense!" The man in black sneered and attacked Wu Tao and others, waving his weapons.

A fierce battle is about to break out.

On the Black Wind Ridge, Wu Tao and the palace soldiers she brought were fighting with the "Shadow" people. Wu Tao was agile, the dagger in her hand was flying, and every move was fierce, going straight to the enemy's vital points, and she was not at a disadvantage. The palace soldiers were well-trained, advancing and retreating in moderation, and cooperating tacitly. For a while, the "Shadow" people could not gain any advantage.

At this time, the palace was filled with a solemn and murderous atmosphere. When Hu Bugui learned that Wu Tao had ignored all dissuasion and secretly led people out of the city, he was extremely anxious, but he could not show it. He could only pretend to be calm. On the one hand, he ordered the guards to strengthen the defense of the palace, and on the other hand, he used all the secret lines to investigate the origin and purpose of "Dark Shadow". He had a strong premonition that this matter was not simple at all. The target of "Dark Shadow" might not only be Wu Tao, but might even endanger the safety of the entire Tang Dynasty.

The battle at Black Wind Ridge was still going on. Wu Tao fought and retreated, gradually moving away from the center of the battle circle. She kept her eyes and ears open, looking for an opportunity to break out. Suddenly, she found that one of the "shadow" people was wearing different clothes from the others and seemed to have a higher status. So she came up with a plan, found the right opportunity, and quickly got behind the man and put a dagger to his throat.

"Stop it!" Wu Tao shouted, "If you don't want him to die, get out of here!"

When the "Shadow" people saw their leader being captured, they stopped and looked at each other, not knowing what to do.

Wu Tao held the man hostage and retreated all the way to a cave deep in the Black Wind Ridge. She pushed open the cave door, pushed the man in, and then she followed in and quickly sealed the cave entrance.

The light in the cave was dim, but it was vaguely visible that there was a large space inside, with many tables, chairs and weapons placed on it. It was obviously a base of "Shadow". Wu Tao ignored the shivering hostages and searched the cave carefully in the weak light, hoping to find some clues about "Shadow".

Wu Tao found a locked wooden box in the corner. She used a dagger to pry it open and found that it was filled with various documents and drawings. Wu Tao flipped through them and found that these documents recorded the activities of "Shadow" over the years, some evidence of collusion with officials in the court, and even some confidential information about the border defense deployment of the Tang Dynasty.

Wu Tao was shocked and realized that she had accidentally discovered a shocking secret. It seemed that the purpose of "Shadow" was much more complicated than she had imagined. She put away all the documents and drawings, prepared to leave the cave, and went back to report the matter to Hu Bugui.

At this moment, there was a sudden noise from the cave entrance, followed by a cold voice: "Princess, since you are here, why don't you stay and chat?"

 Peach blossoms shine brightly in Chang'an

 Chapter 204 Storm

Wu Tao's heart trembled. Hearing this voice, she knew that the person outside the cave had unfathomable power. She quietly hid the wooden box in her arms, tightly grasped the dagger in her hand, and looked at the cave entrance vigilantly.

"Who are you? Why are you making things difficult for me?" Wu Tao asked in a deep voice, trying to delay time.

"Haha, the princess is busy, so naturally she doesn't remember a nobody like me." A figure flashed at the entrance of the cave, and an old man in a green shirt with white hair and beard walked in slowly, with a bit of sarcasm in his tone, "However, I have admired the princess for a long time."

Wu Tao secretly thought that this was not good. This old man's appearance was too strange, and he was obviously well prepared. On his side, except for a hostage, there was almost no chance of winning.

"What do you want?" Wu Tao asked calmly, but his eyes kept scanning the cave, looking for a possible escape route.

"I don't want to make things difficult for the princess. As long as you hand over what I just got, I promise that I will never hurt you in the slightest." The old man said with a smile, but his tone was unquestionable.

"What if I say no?" Wu Tao snorted coldly. She knew that today's incident would probably not end well.

"Then don't blame me for being rude!" The old man's face darkened and he pounced towards Wu Tao like a ghost.

Wu Tao was prepared, he dodged the old man's attack and stabbed him in the chest with his backhand. The old man smiled contemptuously, without dodging or evading, he stretched out two fingers to clamp Wu Tao's dagger.

Wu Tao only felt a powerful internal force coming along the dagger, which made her palm numb and she almost couldn't hold the weapon in her hand.

At this moment, there was a sudden shouting and killing sound outside the cave, and several men in black fell from the sky and surrounded the old man.

"Who is it?!" The old man was horrified, obviously not expecting someone to come and disrupt the situation.

"Your grandpa!" A rough roar sounded, and a burly man holding a huge axe walked in from outside the cave, followed by a dozen men holding swords. They were the chivalrous men who had fought side by side with Wu Tao on Black Wind Ridge before.

"So it's you, a bunch of rabble!" The old man recognized the people who came, snorted coldly, and a trace of disdain flashed in his eyes.

"Don't be so arrogant, old man! Today I will let you see how powerful my grandfather is!" The big man roared and swung his huge axe at the old man.

The cave suddenly fell into chaos, with the flashing of swords and the shouting of killing deafening.

While everyone was fighting, Wu Tao took advantage of the chaos and escaped from the cave on the other side with the hostages.

……

It was late at night and the palace was brightly lit.

Wu Tao handed the documents and drawings brought back from the "Shadow" stronghold to Hu Bugui, and recounted in detail what happened on Black Wind Ridge.

Hu Bugui flipped through the documents in his hand with a serious expression and a frown on his face.

"It seems that we have all underestimated the strength of 'Dark Shadow' and the ambitions behind them." Hu Bugui said solemnly, "Over the years, I have always thought that they were just a group of gangsters, but I didn't expect that they have infiltrated the court and even obtained such important intelligence."

"Your Highness, what should we do now?" Wu Tao asked, his heart filled with worry.

"This matter is of great importance. I must immediately go to the palace to see the emperor and report this to my father." Hu Bugui stood up, a cold light flashed in his eyes, "As long as the 'Dark Shadow' is not eliminated, the Tang Dynasty will never have peace!"

"I'll go with you!" Wu Tao also stood up and said firmly.

Hu Bugui looked at Wu Tao with worry in his eyes, but he finally nodded. He knew that no one could change Wu Tao's decision.

"Okay, let's go together!"

In the darkness of the night, two figures walked side by side into the palace and disappeared behind the many palace gates. What they didn't know was that a bigger storm was about to sweep over...