The princess regretted it.

Chapter 286 The Fire is Too Big

As soon as these words were spoken, the banquet hall fell silent, as if someone had pressed the mute button. Everyone looked at each other, their smiles instantly frozen, and a variety of complex expressions flashed in their eyes.

"What!" Two exclamations rang out at the same time! The emperor and Jin'an both exclaimed at the same time after hearing the report from the imperial guards. The emperor's face turned pale, and the wine glass in his hand suddenly fell onto the table. With a "clang", the wine in the glass spilled all over the table, spreading wetly, like a messy ink painting. He stood up with a "swish", his movements were swift and urgent, and the hem of his dragon robe shook violently because of this sudden stand, bringing up a breeze. At this moment, the emperor had completely lost his calm and majestic appearance, and his eyes were full of shock and anxiety.

Jin An's face was also filled with solemnity and unease. She abruptly stood up, her posture erect, yet her inner panic was barely concealed. Her brows furrowed, her eyes etched with deep worry, and she bit her lower lip, as if pondering some emergency plan. Her gaze briefly met with the Emperor's, and they both saw in each other's eyes the anxiety over this sudden incident, the worry over Concubine Chun and her unborn child.

Lin Qian, sitting beside her, saw the Emperor and Princess Jin'an's reactions and immediately became puzzled. She wondered what could be in that courtyard that could have caused such panic in both the Emperor and Princess Jin'an. However, she wisely chose not to ask, instead looking at the Emperor with a worried look on her face.

Sharing her suspicions was the Third Prince, who sensed something was amiss with his father's reaction. He expected his father to be shocked and furious, but his panic was incomprehensible. Jin An's reaction was also unusual. A voice in his heart hinted at a secret within the courtyard. He considered going in to investigate.

The emperor was extremely anxious at this time and wanted to leave, but he couldn't leave because of the occasion. He looked at the second prince, the third prince and Jin An with scrutiny, and finally decided that Jin An would go in his place.

So, he said to Jin'an, "Jin'an, Concubine Cen is not in good health and may not be able to take care of her. Please go to the harem on my behalf to see what is going on!"

Jin An naturally understood what her father meant. She quickly bowed and said, "Yes, father, I'll go right away." After that, she took Han Shuang and Zi Yun and quickly left the banquet hall.

When the Third Prince saw Jin An leave, he also wanted to stand up. The Emperor saw his movements and said directly: "Second Prince, Third Prince, please respect our meritorious officials on my behalf."

After hearing the emperor's words, the second prince stood up and saluted the emperor: "Your Highness, I will obey your command!"

After hearing this, the Third Prince had no choice but to put aside his plan, slowly stood up, and saluted the Emperor, saying, "Your son obeys your command."

The Emperor thought that since the situation was still unclear, it would be best not to let too many people know. Furthermore, the Third Prince was too scheming. If he were to see Concubine Chun, who was pregnant, he might be in danger. It would be best to keep him under his own watch.

The emperor pretended to be calm and led the banquet to continue, concealing his inner worries and maintaining superficial harmony.

Meanwhile, Jin An was hurrying towards Concubine Chun's courtyard. As she walked, she pondered. This fire had happened so suddenly. Concubine Chun's place was clearly guarded by secret guards, so why hadn't they discovered and put out the fire before it started? The more she thought about it, the more she felt something was wrong. She immediately stopped and shouted into the darkness, "Ye Yi!"

As her shout fell, Ye Yi flew out from the darkness like a ghost, landed in front of Jin An, saluted, and asked, "What are your orders, Your Highness?"

"You should go to Concubine Chun as fast as possible. I have Han Shuang here, so she will be able to help you." Jin An hurriedly arranged for Ye Yi.

After hearing Jin'an's words, Ye Yi glanced at Han Shuang hesitantly. Han Shuang gave him a reassuring look. Ye Yi retracted his gaze, lowered his head, and replied, "Yes!" Then he immediately activated his Qing Gong and sprinted towards the northwest corner of the Imperial Garden. Like a flash of black lightning across the night sky, he arrived in an instant.

Jin An watched Ye Yi walk away, and ordered Han Shuang and Zi Yun, "Let's go!" The three of them walked quickly towards the harem again.

Concubine Chun was in a real predicament. The fire had started outside the courtyard, so when they discovered it and tried to escape, they discovered it was encircling the entire courtyard, like a ferocious fiery snake tightly wrapped around it. They couldn't leave, and the secret guards, fearing an ambush outside, didn't dare rush out to put out the fire. They could only wait in the courtyard, watching the fire grow more fierce, like a trapped animal.

Amidst the billowing smoke, Concubine Chun was choked and coughed repeatedly, tears welling up in her eyes. She covered her stomach with one hand and her mouth and nose with a handkerchief with the other. She was terrified and secretly prayed that the disaster would pass quickly, like a devout believer praying to God for salvation.

Nanny Su beside her ordered the palace maids to find a way to fetch water to put out the fire, but they were few in number and their strength was weak. These efforts seemed so insignificant in the face of the raging fire, like ants fighting against an elephant.

The secret guard who was originally hiding in the dark now appeared and guarded Concubine Chun to protect her safety, just in case an assassin suddenly appeared.

Later, the Royal Guards discovered the fire and rushed to put it out, but the fire was too fierce and could not be put out for a while.

At that moment, Ye Yi displayed his supreme lightness skills, streaking across the night sky like a flash of black lightning, arriving in an instant. He immediately saw the small courtyard engulfed in flames. Imperial guards and some palace eunuchs were flitting back and forth with buckets of water, trying to put out the blaze, but with little success. The situation looked dire. He circled the courtyard, preparing to find a weak spot to rush into the fire and see if anyone inside was safe.

Suddenly, he keenly sensed movement in the nearby bushes, and he darted towards it. Even though it was night and the area was remote, it was usually very dark, making it difficult to see clearly. But today, the fire in the courtyard was as bright as day. Ye Yi quickly realized that the movement was a person. Seeing him approaching, the person turned and ran away.

Ye Yi wanted to give chase, but then he heard shouts from the courtyard. With a sudden thought, he flung a hidden weapon out of his hand, aiming at the fleeing figure. He heard a muffled groan, and the figure stumbled. After a pause, he ran away again, but the way he ran made it clear he had been struck by a hidden weapon.

Ye Yi did not chase him anymore, but turned around and walked outside the courtyard. He snatched the bucket from a eunuch and poured the water directly at the fire. The fire in the place where the water was poured weakened instantly. He flew and stepped on a tree beside the courtyard. Using the branches for leverage, he somersaulted towards the weak point and entered the courtyard.