The two were stunned, only to see Huangfu Mi already leading Meng Wan away, leaving the two of them alone, filled with confusion.
--
In the days that followed, the Emperor seemed to have tacitly approved of Huangfu Yu and Chu Ningyan's relationship. He did not mention the incident of Huangfu Yu and Huangfu Ming fighting that day, but pretended not to know anything about it.
Huangfu Yu and the others were naturally happy with this, and continued their lives as before, without any changes. Huangfu Ming, on the other hand, had suffered a loss in silence and was not about to let it go, but dared not make any moves for fear of angering the emperor again. He could only endure it for the time being and wait and see.
Life became increasingly uneventful. Meng Wan and Huangfu Mi, as well as Huangfu Yu and Ningyan, continued their lives as before without any further discussion. Because of the Emperor's tacit approval, Huangfu Yu continued to enter and leave Changyin Pavilion, and remained as polite as ever, without any transgressions.
Meng Wan and Huangfu Mi watched from the sidelines, delighted and happy that things had come to this. They were just waiting for the Emperor to forget about Huangfu Yu and Huangfu Mi's fight, so that the two of them could go to him and try to reunite them.
The sky is clear and the air is crisp; the spring air is already tinged with warmth, and summer seems to be just around the corner.
During the day, the weather was unusually cool, because a group of wild deer had been released into the hunting grounds south of the city a couple of days ago, so the two brothers agreed to go hunting together.
The Lanling Dynasty was a nation that had been conquered on horseback. From the first generation of ancestors, they were skilled horsemen and archers, and this skill was naturally passed down to the emperor, so that the princes would not be inferior to them.
Huangfu Yu's horsemanship and archery skills were undoubtedly excellent, as he was taught by the palace instructors. As for Huangfu Mi, he learned on his own through trial and error outside the palace and had not received any formal instruction, so Huangfu Yu inevitably teased him about it.
"How about I give you a three-point advantage, so you won't lose too badly later?"
"Haha--" Huangfu Mi laughed loudly at those words, cupped his hands towards Huangfu Yu, and said, "You should keep these words to yourself, Fifth Brother. Don't cry like a woman if you lose later."
With that, the two horses galloped off as if released from their reins, heading towards the patch of green grass. The whooshing sound of the wind, the clatter of the horses' hooves, and the crack of the whips echoed through the sky.
"Master--" The two were enjoying their run when they suddenly saw another horse galloping towards them from afar. It was so fast that they couldn't see the person on the horse at all. It wasn't until the horse stopped and Puyang jumped off that the two of them grabbed the reins.
"Puyang?" He was clearly instructed to protect Meng Wan, who was visiting Ningyan, so why did he end up at the horse farm?
Puyang jumped off his horse: "Master, something has happened."
One sentence startled both brothers.
Puyang didn't beat around the bush and continued, "Just now, when I escorted the Princess to Changyin Pavilion, I heard that Miss Ningyan was not there. After inquiring, I learned that she was taken away by the Empress's people early this morning. The Princess was worried that something might have happened, so she went to the palace first to check and instructed me to report."
Huangfu Yu was shocked: "Taken away by the Empress Dowager's people? Where were they taken?"
"This humble servant is unaware." The group was stunned. They had no time to think further and whipped their horses, galloping away from the horse farm.
In the palace.
"Wan'er--" Huangfu Mi and Huangfu Yu rode into the inner courtyard without regard for anything else. When they saw Meng Wan hesitating there, they immediately jumped off their horses.
"How is the situation?"
"I don't know. I went to Chonghua Palace just now to find out what was going on, but the Empress refused to see me. I had no choice but to ask the Emperor for help, but he is currently discussing matters with his court officials and I can't get in. So I have to wait for you here."
"So, the person was taken to Chonghua Palace by the Empress?"
That's roughly it.
Before he could finish speaking, Huangfu Yu had already pushed the two people aside and rushed out without a care, heading straight for Chonghua Palace. Seeing this, Meng Wan and Huangfu Mi dared not delay any longer. Meng Wan continued to seek an audience with the Emperor, while Huangfu Mi followed Huangfu Yu out.
In the side hall of Chonghua Palace, there was a deathly silence. A bitter smell permeated the room, mixed with the faint scent of blood, making one's heart tremble.
Suddenly, the door to the house was pushed open, and with the sudden light and a creaking sound, two figures rushed in one after the other, their footsteps and heavy breathing echoing each other, before abruptly stopping at the doorway.
The room was very dark; it was a place in Chonghua Palace specifically used to deal with palace maids and eunuchs who had made mistakes. So, for a moment, I was not used to the light and could hardly see inside the room. Only the smell of decay filled my nostrils, and the faint groans coming from inside the room made it even more terrifying.
Huangfu Yu took a step forward: "Ningyan?"
As his eyes gradually adjusted to the darkness, he saw a person lying there, with long hair covering their face. He could vaguely make out that the white clothes looked somewhat familiar, so he called out softly, tentatively.
The person seemed to move slightly, but it also seemed to be just an illusion. Only the painful groans still lingered in his ears, causing Huangfu Yu's steps to tremble involuntarily. At this moment, he was somewhat afraid to go forward to look.
They just stood there, frozen, motionless.
Just then, a series of sparse footsteps sounded behind them, accompanied by several palace maids and eunuchs who lined up on both sides. The Empress walked in from outside the door. When she saw Huangfu Yu, her brows furrowed noticeably, but she didn't pay much attention to him. She went straight up to him and slapped him across the face.
"You worthless brat, what are you doing here? Don't you know your place? Is this a place for you?"
Huangfu Yu was somewhat dazed from the beating, but his mind was unusually clear. His gaze was fixed blankly on the sound coming from inside the room, and he finally managed to find his voice: "Who...who is that?"
The Empress was clearly taken aback: "It's none of your business who it is. Get out of here right now. Your father is in the main hall discussing matters. If you're free, go and listen. It will only do you good..."
"I'm asking you, who is that?" Before the words were finished, Huangfu Yu suddenly raised his voice, startling everyone in the room, even the Empress. She was taken aback, then raised her hand and slapped him hard across the face: "You scoundrel, have you gone mad? Who are you talking to?"
Huangfu Yu turned his head away after being hit, but the Empress was still not satisfied and raised her hand to slap him again. At this moment, Huangfu Mi could not hold back and disregarded etiquette. He stepped forward, grabbed the Empress's wrist, and pushed her aside with a little force.
"Mother, that's enough!"
Although she was the Empress, Huangfu Mi was not afraid of her. This was not only because he had the Emperor's support, but more importantly, because he simply could not stand the way the Empress treated Huangfu Yu!
"Seventh Brother, what are you doing?"
The Empress had never been treated like this before, especially by a junior. However, when she saw Huangfu Mi's face, her majesty faltered slightly.
However, in the darkness, Huangfu Mi did not notice some of her subtle expressions. Moreover, she was too angry to care.
He turned around and nudged Huangfu Yu, who was standing there in a daze. Huangfu Yu then came to his senses, quickly stepped forward, and picked up the person who had fallen there.
It was undoubtedly Ningyan, but for some reason, there were several dried bloodstains on the corners of her lips. Huangfu Yu panicked at the sight: "Yan'er--"
He called out, but the only response he received was Ningyan's increasingly pained expression.
"Mother, what did you do to her?" Huangfu Mi roared upon seeing this. When the Empress remained silent, he grabbed Ningyan's wrist. Her pulse was weak and erratic. Huangfu Mi immediately panicked: "Fifth Brother, she's been poisoned—"
Upon hearing this, Huangfu Yu staggered and looked up at the Empress, his dark eyes blazing with fury!