Qingqian Palace was burned down, and Hailing moved to Liuyue Palace, which was originally the residence of the Empress.
In the main hall of Liuyue Palace, there were many people sitting. The noblewomen who were on good terms with Hailing had all come to the palace to pay their respects. Xi Liang also came to the palace with his mother. The hall was filled with comforting voices.
"Your Majesty, please take good care of yourself. The Ministry of War will definitely find the arsonist."
Lady Ningnan spoke gently, and Lady Dai Jing, the wife of the heir apparent, nodded with concern. They had been extremely anxious when they heard that Qingqian Palace had been burned down, but were relieved to hear that the Empress was alright.
"Yes, the Ministry of War will definitely investigate thoroughly, and the Emperor will be back soon. He will certainly not let the person behind this get away with it."
When the Princess Consort of Cang spoke, she mentioned the Emperor. Many people then remembered that the Emperor had been away from the capital for some time. They thought the Emperor should be back soon. If the Emperor returned, he would surely find out who set fire to Qingqian Palace. If he caught the person behind it, he would surely tear them to pieces to vent his anger. How dare they burn Qingqian Palace and try to burn the Empress to death!
Inside the main hall, although there were people who cared about Hai Ling, there were also women who were overjoyed to see Hai Ling being treated this way, though they didn't show it on their faces. The people from the West Mansion and the Marquis of Huguo Mansion were the happiest, as was Princess Feng Yao of Zhaoyang. Seeing the situation before her, she couldn't be happier, but she still had regrets. Why didn't that fire burn this woman to death? She was really lucky. First she was drugged, then she was set on fire, yet she still didn't die.
Princess Consort Feng Yao of Zhaoyang said with a forced smile, "Her Majesty the Empress has survived a great calamity; she is sure to be blessed with good fortune. Everyone should be happy for Her Majesty."
As soon as Feng Yao spoke, others could tell that her words were somewhat sarcastic. No one paid any attention to her, but they also didn't want to give Princess Zhaoyang any face directly, so they just remained silent.
Xi Liang was furious when she heard Feng Yao's words. She smiled and said, "I'm so angry."
"Princess Zhaoyang is quite the smooth talker. No wonder she was all smiles from beginning to end. Anyone who didn't know better would have thought she was gloating. It turns out she was just trying to make the Empress happy. But if Princess Zhaoyang wants to try, there's a chance. Maybe she's one of those people who survives a great calamity and is destined for good fortune?"
Princess Consort Feng Yao was annoyed that the young princess of the Cangwang Mansion would directly make trouble. She glared at Xi Liang, but Xi Liang was not afraid of her and still looked at Feng Yao with a smile.
"What's wrong, Princess? Is it because you think there's no chance? Don't worry, the heavens are always right. What you think about will come true. Perhaps Princess Zhaoyang will soon have her wish fulfilled."
"you?"
Feng Yao angrily pointed at Xi Liang. When the Princess Consort of Cang saw that her daughter had caused trouble, she quickly stepped in to stop her and apologized to Feng Yao.
"Princess Zhaoyang, please don't be angry. Liang'er is just a child, and she speaks without thinking."
Since the Princess Consort of Cang had spoken, Feng Yao naturally couldn't say anything. Besides, the other person was just a child, and if she were to take it too seriously, it would seem immature. In the end, she glared angrily at Xi Liang, but she did suppress her gloating, because she was aware that several people in the hall didn't like her.
"Never mind, I, the princess, will not argue with children."
Xi Liang gave her a cold look. This woman was obviously up to no good. Xi Liang narrowed his eyes. Could this woman be involved in the arson at Qingqian Palace? It seems he should send someone to investigate her thoroughly.
Voices rose again in the hall, and Hai Ling responded to each one with a smile. Now, in the court of Bei Lu, many people were standing beside her, which was quite different from before. This made her very gratified, and the hall was filled with soft, comforting whispers.
Princess Zhaoyang, Feng Yao, ignored everyone else and focused on observing Liuyue Palace. Soon, she noticed something: Princess Nalan Mingzhu of Nanling Kingdom, who was beside Hai Ling, looked somewhat familiar. Upon closer inspection, she was greatly surprised to find that Nalan Mingzhu looked exactly like Yan Zhi, the maidservant beside Ji Hai Ling. Could this woman be related to Yan Zhi?
Upon seeing this, Feng Yao's mind began to stir, and a barely perceptible cold smile appeared on her lips.
A eunuch from Liuyue Palace came to report that the banquet was ready and asked the Empress whether she should begin the meal.
Hai Ling gave the order, and the ladies of the court rose and moved to a side hall of Liuyue Palace to dine. After the meal, the ladies of the court took their leave and left the palace.
The young master Xi Liang from the Cang Prince's mansion was kept in the palace by the Empress to keep her company. The Cang Prince's wife knew that her daughter was close to the Empress, which was why she had spoken ill of the Zhao Yang Princess earlier. On the one hand, she was happy, but on the other hand, she was afraid that Liang would say something she shouldn't and offend the Empress, so she gave her a few words of advice before letting Xi Liang stay.
The Liuyue Palace was much quieter at this moment.
Hai Ling and Xi Liang sat together. Xi Liang looked at Hai Ling with concern, feeling extremely worried about her being alone in the deep palace.
"Ling'er, you must be very careful right now. The Emperor is not in the palace. I wonder who is plotting against you. Do you think it could be Princess Consort Feng Yao of Zhaoyang?"
Xi Liang directly pointed the finger at Princess Zhaoyang, Feng Yao, saying that the woman clearly had ill intentions.
Hailin narrowed her eyes, remained silent, and her eyes were filled with a cold light.
Regardless of whether it was Feng Yao or not, she currently has no evidence to prove that Feng Yao was behind it. If she finds out that it was Feng Yao who did it, she will definitely not let her off the hook. Not only did she burn down Qingqian Palace, but she also almost harmed her child.
"How could Feng Yao have Yunjiang's Dieluo Incense? Besides, she is a princess of the Great Zhou Dynasty, how could she have come into contact with people from Yunjiang?"
The problem now is with Die Luoxiang. If such a person really exists, then he is far more terrifying than Feng Yao.
Yunjiang is not like other places. The people who come from there are full of insidious schemes and are far more terrifying than the burning of Qingqian Palace last night. Now that Ye Lingfeng is not in Bianliang City, she is uneasy.
Xi Liang fell silent; this was indeed a problem.
She had heard a little about the Die Luo Xiang (a type of fragrant herb), which was quite rare, because the Die Luo tree was a specialty of Yunjiang and could not be found elsewhere, which was why it was so seldom seen.
"I'll stay in the palace with you."
Xi Liang spoke firmly, knowing that she was not safe in the palace, she could not feel at ease living in the Prince Cang's mansion.
"Okay, I'd be happy if you stayed with me."
The palace was too deserted. Apart from Mingzhu, there was no one to keep her company. Now that Xi Liang was willing to stay, she was naturally happy.
Hai Ling and Xi Liang talked for a while, and then Shi Mei and Shi Lan helped Hai Ling into her bedroom to rest.
After Hailing fell asleep, Xi Liang summoned Shi Mei to inquire about the burning of Qingqian Palace.
"Is there not a single clue in the palace?"
Shi Mei shook her head. The person who orchestrated this was truly cunning. They used the incense to knock them all unconscious first, and then sprinkled gunpowder inside the Qingqian Palace. So the fire that night started from the inside out. By the time the fifty Feathered Guards and Ji Shaocheng and the others discovered it, the palace was already ablaze, and the fire was quite intense.
"It seems the person behind this is a formidable figure. Do you know who the Empress has grudges against?"
Xi Liang planned to conduct a thorough investigation to see who was a suspect and who wasn't.
As Hailing's personal maid, Shimei naturally knew this, and upon hearing Xiliang's words, she immediately reported it.
"Speaking of Her Majesty's enemies, there are a few. The people of the West Mansion are the first. Because of the Emperor's recent major reshuffle, the people of the West Mansion did not gain any real power, so they blamed it on Her Majesty. Another one is the Marquis of Huguo Mansion, which also has a grudge against Her Majesty. The Marquis of Huguo's wife was ordered by the Emperor to have her mouth sewn shut because she spoke ill of Her Majesty. Naturally, they also hate Her Majesty. Then there is Princess Feng Yao of Zhaoyang. Actually, her marriage to Beilu had nothing to do with Her Majesty, but she blamed Her Majesty for letting Princess Feng Qian go, so she has always hated Her Majesty. And there is Princess Jingyue of Nanling Kingdom, who was rescued from the Ministry of Justice. She probably hates Her Majesty very much."
Xi Liang wrote down the names of these people, then pulled Shi Mei to sit down together and discuss who was most likely to have set the fire in Qingqian Palace.
However, after investigating, it turned out to be difficult because everyone seemed to have a reason, but none of them had the actual ability to do so.