When Hai Ling woke up, she saw that the two or three people in the palace were still discussing who had harmed her. She felt warm and her previous unease dissipated. She moved slightly, and her two maids, Shi Mei and Shi Lan, came to their senses and quickly stood up to serve their mistress.
Outside the palace gate, Nalan Mingzhu rushed in with two maids, her face beaming with joy.
"Your Majesty, is there any progress?"
"What progress?"
Everyone became interested. Hailing and Xiliang looked at Mingzhu together, only to see her holding a slip of paper. She rushed to Hailing's side and excitedly said, "Someone has made a move, Your Highness! This might be an opportunity!"
"Someone has made a move,"
Hai Ling and Xi Liang were also delighted. As long as the person in the shadows made a move, they would find out who they were, and once they found out, they would definitely not let him off the hook.
It turned out that when Mingzhu was resting in the side hall of Liuyue Palace, someone threw a small piece of paper into her bedroom. When she opened it, she found that someone wanted to see her and said that they knew the whereabouts of her relatives. Mingzhu knew without asking who these relatives were; it must be her former self. The person hiding in the shadows did not know that she was Yanzhi and only thought that she was a relative of her former self. That was why they sent her the note, with the purpose of instigating the inner room to carry out the act of harming people.
"Good, great, Mingzhu, go see her tonight. Remember, no matter who this person is, don't alert her. Do whatever she says. If she gives you poison or anything like that, take it."
"So what do we need to do?"
Xi Liang also became nervous. This time, he was determined to find the person behind it and get rid of him. If he didn't get rid of this person, Ling'er would not be safe, because this person was likely a member of the Yunjiang tribe.
“We don’t need to do anything. As long as someone shows up tonight, I have a way to make the person behind this show up.”
Hai Ling's eyes were filled with a sinister, cold light. Since that person dared to provoke her, then he should have the courage to bear the consequences. Not only did he harm her, but now he's even harming her child.
"Okay, let's wait together."
Xi Liang and Nalan Mingzhu reached out and held Hai Ling's hands. No matter what, they would always be with her.
In the dark of night, the palace was filled with desolation. Because the Qingqian Palace had been set on fire, the eunuchs and palace maids dared not come out casually. Moreover, there were even rumors that the spirits of the palace maids who had been killed were restless and often cried in the palace in the middle of the night, making the palace even more miserable.
In a side hall of Liuyue Palace, Nalan Mingzhu received another small note. The person who had given her the note earlier appeared and invited her to meet him in front of the Cold Palace.
The Cold Palace remains the most eerie place in the palace. The late emperor once deposed several concubines, and those concubines, unwilling to endure loneliness, eventually died in the Cold Palace, some by hanging, some by cutting their wrists, and some by swallowing gold. In short, they all died tragically.
Unexpectedly, the visitor invited them to meet in front of the Cold Palace.
Mingzhu was somewhat frightened, but in order to find out who had harmed her young lady, she gritted her teeth and decided to go. To avoid alerting the enemy, she only took a little maid carrying a lantern and followed the green path, drifting towards the most remote Cold Palace in the palace, carefully avoiding the patrolling guards along the way.
By the time she reached the gates of the Cold Palace, it was already very late at night. She was covered in cold sweat, her body completely soaked, and the wind blew it all over her body. But she was still clear-headed. Although the person behind this was very powerful and ruthless, they were using her now, so they wouldn't hurt her. Moreover, she couldn't show any fear, because that would prevent her from catching the real arsonist.
Before the gates of the Cold Palace, a single lamp flickered and swayed weakly.
In the pitch-black night, a ghostly, eerie light shone on Nalan Mingzhu's face, making it appear even more ferocious.
She was startled when a sigh was heard and looked up.
A pure white shadow drifted by. The person was wearing a white cloak and a white hat, making it impossible to see their face clearly. Long hair cascaded down their cheeks, making them look like a wandering ghost floating in the night, which was frightening.
Even though Nalan Mingzhu was calm, she was still startled and took several steps back with a cry of surprise. She asked in a steady voice, "Are you... are you a human or a ghost?"
The man remained silent for a moment, then slowly spoke: "Princess Nalan is quite timid, isn't she?"
Nalan Mingzhu could hear the sarcasm in those words, but that wasn't what she cared about: "Who exactly are you? And why do you want to see me?"
"I have come to see you with a question. I wonder if the Nalan family has any relatives who look exactly like the princess?"
“Of course I do, otherwise I wouldn’t be here. I have a twin sister named Nalan Mingtang. I wonder if the person you’re talking about is my sister Nalan Mingtang?”
Nalan Mingzhu spoke calmly, but in fact, no one knew which of the two sisters was who.
"So they're twins. No wonder they look exactly alike?"
The woman in white sighed, then asked sympathetically, "Does the princess know where your sister is now?"
"I don't know. I've been searching for her."
Nalan Mingzhu shook his head, then exclaimed, "Does Your Excellency know the whereabouts of my sister?"
"yes."
"Where is she?" In order to make her act more convincing, Nalan Mingzhu followed the expected emotions and could not arouse the suspicion of the woman in front of her. This woman was definitely not the real person in charge. The person behind her was so powerful that they would not risk coming here personally. So tonight, no one followed her. Only she and a little maid were around.
"Your sister's name is Yan Zhi. She was Empress Ji Hailing's maid. On the eve of the Empress's wedding, your sister was executed by the Empress for making a mistake."
After the woman in white finished speaking, she suddenly looked up at Nalan Mingzhu. Her eyes were icy cold, devoid of any warmth, and instilled fear in people instinctively. Nalan Mingzhu couldn't help but cry out, not because she knew her sister had been killed, but because she was terrified by the person in front of her. She had never seen anyone's eyes so empty and cold, without a trace of emotion, like a living dead person. In those eyes, you could feel nothing but fear.
Nalan Mingzhu subconsciously took a step back, then shook her head: "No, this can't be true."
"If you don't believe me, you can ask around; this isn't a secret."
After the woman in white finished speaking, she lowered her head again, her body devoid of any breath. Nalan Mingzhu swallowed hard, feeling her legs weaken and almost unable to support her. This woman really resembled a ghost, a ghost without breath. Who exactly was she? It was truly terrifying.
Although Nalan Mingzhu was frightened, she did not forget her proper reaction: "No, I don't believe this. The Empress is so kind, how could she possibly kill my sister Nalan Mingtang?"
After she finished speaking, she squatted down, hugged herself, and trembled. In fact, she was frightened by the white-clad man in front of her. However, the white-clad man thought that Nalan Mingzhu was acting out of hatred. He was very satisfied with her attitude and slowly said, "This matter is easy to investigate. I believe Princess Nalan will find out the truth."
"No. This can't be true."
After the man in white finished speaking, he stepped back. Suddenly, a white light flashed, and a packet of white powder was thrown over, floating right in front of Nalan Mingzhu. A cold voice rang out.
"This is Indian silk; perhaps the princess will need it."
As soon as she finished speaking, she drifted away and disappeared like a ghost in the blink of an eye. Once the white-clad figure was gone, Nalan Mingzhu collapsed to the ground, unable to get up. The maidservant carrying the lantern beside her trembled and spoke in a shaky voice.
"Princess, that person has disappeared! Is she a human or a ghost? It's so scary!"
Nalan Mingzhu was certain that this person was human, but why did he lack any human aura, as if he had been living with ghosts year after year?