"Has the news of my banquet been sent out?" Mu Qingya suddenly asked.
"We haven't had time yet, Her Majesty the Empress has arrived just in time," the eunuch said nervously.
"Perfect timing! Send the order down, the banquet is set for two days from now! Perfect timing, it'll be a welcome-back party for my mother. I'll give her two pieces of news as gifts, I guarantee she'll be 'surprised and delighted'!" Mu Qingya said, clutching the bed curtains scattered on the floor, her expression uncertain.
"What is Your Highness planning to do? Does she intend to deal with Luo Zhiheng at the banquet?"
"No, I'm just giving Luo Zhiheng a big surprise. The heart-wrenching pain I experienced back then, I naturally want someone else to experience it too. Don't you think Luo Zhiheng is the most suitable? Luo Zhiheng is Mu Yunhe's darling! Darling, only by piercing his heart can Mu Yunhe be broken by the pain!" Mu Qingya said with a sinister smile. Suddenly, she clutched her chest as if in sorrow and said, "Back then, no one treated me like their darling. I climbed to where I am today step by step, trampling on my own dignity and drinking my own blood. Anyone who becomes my stumbling block, I will kill her before she even gets her hands on me! If Luo Zhiheng is really capable of getting rid of this trouble herself, then let her get rid of it herself."
"Isn't Your Highness afraid that the young prince will resent you if he finds out?" The eunuch was neither human nor ghost, but looking at Mu Qingya's fierce aura, he felt a chill run down his spine.
Mu Qingya chuckled softly, gritting her teeth, "Resentment? He is the least qualified person in the entire world to resent me! The least qualified!!"
Mu Yunhe, your sister has waited fourteen years, and truly, she can no longer wait and suppress her feelings. The flames of hatred are spreading; they began burning fiercely against her reason the moment you stepped onto the land of the Southern Dynasty. The hatred she has painstakingly concealed for fourteen years has finally reached its breaking point. She can no longer wait to immerse you in icy water, to let her mother, who cherishes you like her own life, taste that agonizing pain!
Every one of you who hurt Rui'er must pay the price!
——
Murong Qianchen rushed into the emperor's bedroom, but the emperor was not there. She found out that the emperor was discussing important matters with the Grand Secretaries in the Inner Cabinet. So she rushed to the Inner Cabinet and smashed open the door with a bang, startling the eunuchs and palace maids who all knelt down.
"Empress?" The emperor, sitting high on the opposite side, narrowed his eyes and said in a calm voice, "How dare the dignified empress barge into the inner cabinet! What kind of behavior is this!"
"Get out!" Murong Qianchen ignored the emperor's words. Her red eyes held a stormy gloom. Seeing the group of elders looking at each other indifferently, the empress suddenly roared without any decorum, "Get out of here!!"
"Empress!" the Emperor called out. He saw the Empress standing against the light at the doorway, her head stubbornly tilted back. He couldn't see her expression in the backlight, but her anger was palpable. Slightly taken aback, the Emperor waved his hand at the dumbfounded Grand Secretaries and said, "We'll discuss today's matter tomorrow. You may all return now."
"We take our leave." The Grand Secretaries hurriedly bowed and took their leave. As they passed the Empress, they couldn't help but feel a sense of unease. The Empress's pale face and cold aura were truly astonishing. Was this still the dignified and proper Empress?
Murong Qianchen stepped into the inner chamber, slamming the two heavy doors shut. Her back, soaked with cold sweat, leaned against the door as she quietly watched the emperor.
The emperor rose from his throne and stepped down. The smooth, glazed floor reflected his image almost perfectly, yet it couldn't reveal the depths of his heart. Murong Qianchen watched the man approaching. Time hadn't left many marks on his face; he remained handsome and extraordinary, but now possessed a maturity and sophistication honed by years of experience. His former frivolity and extravagance had long since vanished into the past.
With her eyes stinging, Murong Qianchen closed them and finally spoke slowly: "I have a question for you, can you answer me truthfully?"
Without stopping, the emperor raised an eyebrow, his eyes filled with deep worry. He knew that something serious must have happened to make her so distraught. But on the surface, he remained calm and said, "Tell me about it."
Murong Qianchen's voice trembled with grief as she asked, "Why...why did you insist on marrying both me and Mu Qingya back then? I told you, Mu Qingya and I are best friends, we can't share a husband, you can only marry one of us. She's the one who saved you, so marrying her is the right thing to do. I can disregard my reputation, I'm willing to bless you both, I'll bear all the consequences myself, and let Mu Qingya be the empress. Why didn't you agree back then? Don't tell me you wanted to preserve your dignity as the supreme ruler, Nan Xiaoqing, I beg you, tell me the real answer!"
The emperor's steps came to an abrupt halt, his body stiffening in that instant, and a storm raging in his usually calm eyes! Nan Xiaoqing? She actually called him by his name! In nearly twenty years, they weren't particularly close, and conflicts were frequent, but Murong Qianchen had only called him by his name once. That time, they argued fiercely over Mu Qingya, and Murong Qianchen spent almost a year rejecting and resisting him!
Then, today she called his name for the second time. Was she preparing for another fierce battle with him? And this time, for whom?
"Who told you what?" Her voice, choked with rage, was laced with tension, repression, and embarrassment. The Emperor's face was grim. How could the Empress have brought up this long-buried secret? The shame was so profound that even mentioning it aloud felt like a loss of face!
No! Everyone who knew about that incident back then is dead, except for Mu Qingya!
"I understand now. It was your dear sister who told you something again, wasn't it? Murong Qianchen, are you out of your mind? You trust Mu Qingya so much? You believe everything she says? What is your attitude towards your beloved me? Doubt? Disgust? Rejection? Or are you going to break off all ties with me again for Mu Qingya? What kind of spell has Mu Qingya cast on you? That makes you keep causing trouble for me like this?" The emperor roared, pointing fiercely at Murong Qianchen, his face pale.
"If you haven't done anything wrong, why are you so afraid of what Qingya says about you? I'm arguing with you because of Qingya, but Qingya is already pitiful enough. She lost a child, a child we all held and kissed. That lovely child was Qingya's only child in her life, and you and I both know that! For whom did Qingya almost lose her life while giving birth to a child? And for whom did she only have Rui'er as her child for the rest of her life? Rui'er is Qingya's life. Qingya was originally a high-ranking princess, and with her talent, beauty, and status, she could have been the mother of the nation! But she married you. To put it nicely, you're a concubine, but to put it bluntly, you're just a concubine! How can you be so heartless?" Murong Qianchen couldn't stand the emperor's attitude and couldn't help but feel indignant for Mu Qingya, so she roared out one angry sentence after another.
Her fiery temper had improved so much, for her husband, for Mu Qingya, for Yu'er. She suppressed her true nature, so why did she end up covered in wounds?
"Ha, ha ha ha! You, Murong Qianchen, are so noble. If you really care so much about your good sister, then give her your throne and position and become a Noble Consort! Otherwise, how much more noble are you than me?" The emperor said, his eyes red and his words reckless.
Murong Qianchen was stunned. She gasped for breath, then suddenly burst into laughter, tears streaming down her face, a laugh that made the emperor's expression turn pale. She said, "Fine, I'll give her the Empress's position. It was rightfully hers; in the end, I owe her. And you don't need to give me your so-called Noble Consort position either. I don't want it. I'm resigning. I want nothing. I don't ask for anything noble, just peace of mind. Nan Xiaoqing, before I leave the Southern Dynasty, give me a straight answer: why did you marry Mu Qingya back then?"
The emperor's face changed drastically, whether from anger or fear, he roared, "Murong Qianchen, are you insane! Do you know what you're saying? I'll pretend I didn't hear anything you said today. You're still the empress, stay obediently by my side. Mu Qingya doesn't need you to make way for her; she's destined to be a Noble Consort! Remember that, destined!"
"Nan Xiaoqing, how could you be so heartless? You hurt her, and now you've condemned her to such an unfair position? Are you even human?!" The Empress's piercing roar instantly ignited the flames of war. 16605915
"Hurturing her? You're condemning me like this? Murong Qianchen, do you even have a brain? When you hurt me time and time again for her sake, doesn't your heart ache? When you believed her words and condemned me, did you ever think that my heart also aches!" The emperor, enraged, strode forward, grabbed her wrist fiercely, and roared.
"Do you really feel pain? Then... when you ruthlessly took Mu Qingya back then, did you ever think that she would feel pain too?" Murong Qianchen looked up, letting tears stream down her face. Her words were like knives tearing open her heart, so painful. 17.
The emperor's eyes shattered with humiliation and despair: "Forced possession?! She told you that I forced her possession?"
"Isn't that so?" Murong Qianchen laughed, her smile tearing at the bitterness beneath her sarcasm.
"Then why don't you ask her why I was drugged with aphrodisiacs for no reason back then? And why did I happen to run into her?" the emperor said with a mocking laugh.
Looking into Murong Qianchen's incredulous yet earnest eyes, the Emperor once again revealed his true feelings: "Qianchen, have I never told you that I fell in love with you the moment I saw you? It's just a pity that at that time, your eyes only held disgust for me. Forcing you to become my Empress was my own willful decision, but I have no regrets about it! If she insists that what happened back then was forced, then I can't deny it. Who told me to be so foolish as to make such a low-level mistake? I trusted anyone who gave me food, and forgot my vigilance and precautions in front of my savior. But Murong Qianchen, remember this: I acknowledge what I have done. But I don't acknowledge anything that distorts the truth! So even you cannot convict me!"
Emperor Ronghun loved her. "How could this be?!" Murong Qianchen was speechless with shock from one truth after another. The emperor loved her? Loved her for so many years? Aphrodisiacs? The food Mu Qingya gave him? But Mu Qingya said she was raped! And, did the emperor actually know that Mu Qingya was his savior the night Qingya had her accident? Who else but Mu Qingya would tell him?
With both sides sticking to their own versions of events, whose story is true?
237 Nighttime Infiltration of the Bai Family! A Shocking Secret!
Updated: 2013-08-07 12:19:55 Word Count: 7827
Luo Zhiheng tapped her slender fingers on the table, where a bright red invitation card with gold lettering sat. She squinted, her thoughts unreadable.
"This is already the Imperial Concubine's many invitations. If we refuse again this time, it would be inappropriate. What do you think?" Old Master Tong asked casually, but Luo Zhiheng could hear the displeasure in his voice.
Luo Zhiheng knew that Elder Tong's displeasure was only directed at the Imperial Concubine. Everyone here could sense that Mu Qingya's invitations were always urgent, and Luo Zhiheng found them very strange. After all, she had been to the palace once, but Mu Qingya's avoidance and repeated excuses for imprisonment had given Luo Zhiheng a deep understanding of the situation.
She wasn't stupid; she could even sense that this unfamiliar imperial concubine seemed somewhat dissatisfied with her. Otherwise, why would she summon her to the palace but then refuse to meet her? Especially since she was the wife of Mu Qingya's younger brother.
Looking at the invitation, Luo Zhiheng knew it was a very formal banquet, hosted by the Imperial Concubine herself, to be held in two days. She and Mu Yunhe were invited, but Elder Tong was not. It wouldn't matter if the other Pharaohs weren't invited, but Elder Tong was Mu Qingya's maternal great-grandfather; Luo Zhiheng didn't believe Mu Qingya was unaware of Elder Tong's presence.
"If we go, will you come with us?" Luo Zhiheng asked, looking up.
"No, I have no interest in going to such lengths, after all, they didn't invite me, did they?" Old Master Tong said with a smile.
Luo Zhiheng nodded. She could refuse once or twice, but she couldn't refuse five or six times. Anyway, she was going to see this Imperial Concubine sooner or later, so what if it was strange? She was with Mu Yunhe, so she didn't need to worry too much.
"I'll talk to Mu Yunhe; he's been wanting to meet his sister for a long time too." Luo Zhiheng picked up the invitation and turned to leave.
Old Master Tong watched her retreating figure. How much burden and pressure could such a slender body bear? Ever since she cried earlier, Luo Zhiheng had maintained this expression, frighteningly calm.
Luo Zhiheng returned to her room just as Mu Yunhe woke up. She smiled and said, "Are you hungry? We've already had dinner. We didn't want to disturb you since you were sleeping so soundly."
Mu Yunhe half-closed his eyes, his languid sleepiness making him look incredibly sexy. He reached out to her and said, "Come here."
Luo Zhiheng poured him a glass of water and went over to him. She had barely sat down when he wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her. Her throat felt a little dry, and her laughter was hoarse: "Stop it, how about some water?"
"Don't move, let me hold you tight." Mu Yunhe rubbed his face against Luo Zhiheng's lower back, his voice deep and resonant. "Aheng, don't you have anything you want to ask me? Like, my other identity?"
"Didn't you tell me before? You're a fortune teller." Luo Zhiheng chuckled as she stroked his slender fingers, her voice showing no surprise or panic at his special identity.
This is Luo Zhiheng. She would never look up to him because of how remarkable he is, nor would she look down on him because of how humble and dark his life is. Her feelings for him are always the same.
A bright smile played on his lips as he nestled his head against Luo Zhiheng's lap, burying his face in her stomach. He said apologetically, "I'm sorry, Zhiheng, I hid it from you before. What I told you was just the basics. I hid my true identity from you, but as for fortune telling, I really don't know much about it. Because of my poor health, I only learned to read some simple celestial phenomena. My teacher taught me to read the heavens because he wanted me to go out and see the sky more often."
“My teacher comes from a distant and mysterious divination palace. I don’t know what his status or position is there, but I know he knows a lot. He taught me to see people’s lifespans, but he didn’t teach me to calculate people’s fortunes. So I can only calculate the fortunes that are about to happen around me. I can’t always do this kind of calculation, because every time I have to do it, it makes me very tired.”
Luo Zhiheng looked down at him calmly: "Then can you see your own lifespan? If you can, please tell me so I can be mentally prepared."
Mu Yunhe looked up at her, his slender eyes becoming unpredictable: "I can't figure it out! Diviners can never predict their own fate. Besides being able to sense the good and bad fortune around us, we can only help others, but we can't see our own destiny. Perhaps this is also a kind of fate."
"Yes, it's better if we can't see it, that way we can have more fantasies and expectations." Luo Zhiheng gently touched his face and smiled.
"Aheng, won't you be very disappointed? Because I might not have a tomorrow. Maybe if I close my eyes today, I'll never open them again tomorrow." Mu Yunhe's handsome face was slightly furrowed, like an innocent child, his eyes filled with longing.
Seeing his childlike appearance, Luo Zhiheng chuckled: "Are you trying to be cute with me? Saying such sad things like that, Xiao Hehe, you've become naughty."
"Really? I think this expression is good; at least it makes you smile." Mu Yunhe smiled slightly, his eyes and brows revealing a subtle joy.
Luo Zhiheng bent down and kissed his forehead, her voice soft and gentle: "Why did you tell me this secret? Although I don't know what your identity is, judging from the elders' attitude towards you, I know that your identity must be very important."
“Because I don’t want any secrets between me and Aheng.” Mu Yunhe reached out and pulled her head down, gently kissing her lips. His voice was like crushed flower petals, carrying an intoxicating fragrance: “To me, no identity is more important than Aheng’s life. If an identity can prevent a large family from harming you, then it’s worth it.”
Luo Zhiheng's eyes were dry and sore. She remained silent as they faced each other, but a warm feeling filled her heart. She pulled the invitation from her sleeve and handed it to Mu Yunhe, asking, "Do you want to go?"
Mu Yunhe was taken aback. He opened it, glanced at it, and put it down. He stared at her and said, "Although I don't know what exactly happened to you in the palace those two days, I'm willing to believe what you and my sister, whom I haven't seen for many years, have to say. But I can't deny that I want to see her. Saying I miss her would be pretentious. After all, my memories of her are just some vague fragments from my childhood. It's hard to say I miss a relative I'm not familiar with. But she is, after all, my blood relative, whose bones are connected to mine."
Luo Zhiheng pouted and said, "You make it sound so nice, but you just want to see her, don't you? Don't worry, I'll go with you. We'll have to meet her sooner or later. I'm also very curious about what kind of sister you are. But you have to promise me one thing: if you feel even slightly uncomfortable at the banquet, we have to leave immediately. Also, I won't stay in the palace, and you're not allowed to stay there either."
Luo Zhiheng ultimately dared not reveal that Mu Qingya had a strange eunuch by her side, and what was most terrifying was that the eunuch even ate the carcasses of dead birds.
"Okay," Mu Yunhe said with a slight smile.
After Mu Yunhe fell asleep again, Luo Zhiheng changed into black clothes and went to Qi Wan's room.
"Miss! What are you doing?" Qi Wan looked at Luo Zhiheng's dark clothes in surprise. She didn't even know she had bumped into someone in the dark.
Luo Zhiheng handed a letter to Qi Wan and said solemnly, "Here you go, take good care of it. I have to go out for a while now. Take this with you. If I haven't returned by noon tomorrow, then take this to find Elder Tong and the others. Remember, this letter must not be lost and must not be seen by Mu Yunhe. It contains your young lady's life."
Qi Wan turned pale with fright and tightly gripped Luo Zhiheng's hand, saying, "Where are you going, Miss? Take Qi Wan with you, I will protect you."
"No, if the wet nurse leaves, and you leave too, who will protect Mu Yunhe? Remember, don't panic. If anyone discovers I'm missing, you must keep them calm, but you absolutely cannot take out this letter before noon tomorrow. Remember that!" Luo Zhiheng repeatedly instructed.
With tears streaming down her face, Qi Wan carefully put away the letter, watching Luo Zhiheng disappear into the night. She spent the entire night restless and sleepless.
Luo Zhiheng galloped on horseback under the night sky. During her two weeks of recuperation, she had already figured out all the routes from the Prince Shi's Palace to the Bai family.
The Bai family, a family Luo Zhiheng could not possibly let go. There's no such thing as a murder without a reason. The Bai family so openly and ostentatiously declared that they were there to assassinate Mu Yunhe and Luo Zhiheng. So what was their purpose? Neither Mu Yunhe nor Luo Zhiheng had any prior dealings with the Bai family, so why were they being targeted directly?
She had been seriously injured before, so she could only hold back. But now that she was almost fully recovered, she couldn't wait to investigate the Bai family's strengths and weaknesses, hoping to find some clues so that she could better understand why the Bai family wanted to assassinate them.
Stopping a hundred meters from the Bai family mansion, she tethered her horse in a secluded alley and, like a ghost in the night, slipped into the back wall of the Bai family mansion.
The Bai family has a long history in the Southern Dynasties. They operate in both the legitimate and underworld circles, openly engaging in business and officialdom while secretly maintaining close ties with various local gangs and secret societies. The Bai family even possesses its own assassin's guild, ostensibly called the White Tiger Hall, but in reality, it's a place that raises assassins. These are all open secrets; everyone knows them.
Looking at the three- or four-meter-high wall in front of her, Luo Zhiheng curled her lips in disdain, stepped back, took a running start, and jumped!
Her feet seemed to be climbing a ladder, her footsteps leaving a blur on the vertical wall before she nimbly ascended, grabbing the top edge of the wall with her hands. With a powerful leap, she jumped onto the wall, but instead of immediately jumping into the yard, she lay prone on the wall like a night owl, warily watching her surroundings, every cell in her body tense, sensing the sounds and scents around her.
Standing on the wall, she could see that the backyard was very large. Besides looking for people, she looked more for escape routes and hiding places.
Noticing six people patrolling in the distance, each carrying a lantern, Luo Zhiheng squinted and held her breath, clinging to the wall like an octopus, completely still. Once the group had passed by unnoticed, she spotted the ground and jumped down.
"Ugh!" Her left arm had been throbbing slightly as she jumped down; she must have strained it while climbing. Ignoring that now, she crouched down and stood up, hiding behind the bushes. Her eyes shone brightly in the darkness as she peered into the quiet, luxurious backyard.
After confirming it was safe, she quickly left the spot, staying close to trees, flowers, and buildings so she could easily hide in case of an emergency. She passed several groups of people and eventually arrived at what appeared to be a backyard. Just as she was feeling completely bewildered, she heard unusual noises coming from behind a rockery not far ahead.
"Hmm, slow down..." came the woman's soft moan.
"So soft, huh? What's this? Did you steal it from the young lady's room?" the man lewdly laughed.
"Shh, keep your voice down! If someone hears this and it gets back to the young lady, we're both dead! The young lady has been in a bad mood these past few days and has already killed many servants. I don't want to be next," the woman said in a panic.
"Hmph, she's just a sore loser. You didn't get to see it for yourself at the competition, so you don't know what Luo Zhiheng is like. She's like a goddess descended from heaven. Her dance captivated every man. It's perfectly normal for Luo Zhiheng to win against the young lady. What's there for the young lady to be unhappy about? If she could dance like Luo Zhiheng, the championship would be hers too," the man said disdainfully.
"So you mean Luo Zhiheng is beautiful? Then what are you still doing inside my body?" the woman said angrily.