On one side of the Southern Garden in the Imperial Palace, there was an abandoned courtyard, hidden behind the solemn red walls of the main entrance of the Imperial Palace and barely noticeable. Only a side gate connected to the Imperial Palace, with guards standing watch day and night. The entire periter of the courtyard was the fortress-like wall of the palace, and the guards stood their posts for twelve Shichen Chinese Hours without rest.
San He, limping, was busily making a fire and cooking, but their food supply was running low again. San He was sowhat anxious. His master had returned early yesterday, locked his room upon arriving, and had not erged since. Had he been injured again?
Worried, San He, although the barely closed door could no longer be called a wooden door, could vaguely see Nann Yu lying on the bed through the broken holes in the door. San He didn’t sll blood; could that be considered a good thing?
"Master, please have so food," San He said after checking three tis, seeing that Nann Yu, lying on the bed, still had not moved, unable to hold back from speaking out.
The young man didn’t respond, staring blankly at a patch of the old wall beside the bed, without getting up. The mottled and peeling mud wall slowly morphed into a blurry figure.
A sudden impulse surged through the young man’s heart, wishing to release sothing, but the next mont, he abruptly pulled the blanket over his head, burying his head in the crook of his arm, clinging to the remaining warmth.
Nann Yu restrained himself from thinking, but the images kept reappearing in his mind, one after another, making him not even want to move, preferring to just lie there continuously.
"Master—" San He persisted from outside the door.
Nann Yu, with his head buried in his arms, didn’t want to listen, didn’t want to respond. Yet, he also wanted to burst out and run with all his might until he was utterly exhausted, to keep his mind from thinking.
Nann Yu suddenly sat up, and San He outside the door finally breathed a sigh of relief. The young man quickly pulled on his clothes.
"Master, I just made so porridge this morning, and there’s so..." San He didn’t finish his sentence when Nann Yu had already entered the kitchen. Calling it a kitchen was an overstatent; it was really just a shack with walls that let the wind through and a roof that barely provided shelter. The aroma of rice porridge wafted from the earthen stove. Nann Yu drank one bowl of porridge, then another, and by the ti he looked again, only a thin layer was left at the bottom of the iron pot.
"Did you get enough?" Nann Yu regretted a bit. Their food supply was limited, and if he ate more, San He would go hungry.
"Enough, enough, enough—" San He quickly replied, taking his own bowl to serve himself, slurping loudly as he drank.
San He was a eunuch. At the age of eight or nine, a severe illness nearly took his life. The palace thought he was dying, and threw him into a mass grave before he was even dead. It was Nann Yu who carried him back, and since then, he had beco Nann Yu’s closest attendant, taking care of him.
"Master, let co with you to find food," San He said sowhat reluctantly. Though it appeared his master had not been injured, so injuries might not be visible, perhaps internal, otherwise, he wouldn’t have slept for such a long ti.
"No need. You rest well and heal. One day, we will leave this place," Nann Yu said earnestly. Yes, he not only wanted to leave, but he also wanted to take her out openly.
...
Noble Consort Wen smashed everything that could be smashed in her sleeping quarters. Eunuch Kang Ning, not daring to breathe loudly, had fresh blood flowing from a temple hit by a vase, and he didn’t dare to wipe it away.
"Your Highness, calm your rage, please. It’s all this servant’s fault." Eunuch Kang Ning knelt and crawled over, prostrating at Noble Consort Wen’s feet.
"It’s this servant’s stupidity for not checking in advance. It was this servant who made Your Highness lose face. Even if this servant died now, it would not be a pity. Please, Your Highness, take care of your health. This servant will go now... will go..."
"Co back—" Noble Consort Wen sighed. She was not an unreasonably harsh person. After venting her anger, she bore no grudges. Besides, initially, Kang Ning had wanted to scout ahead, but she did not want to waste ti. It was a spell from a Disciple of Chang Zhen; how could she not trust it? Later, they carefully examined the dry well and dug up so small, fragnted bones. This ant that soone had moved the corpse before they arrived.
Clearly, soone was setting a trap for them.
However, even so, she couldn’t let this issue reach the Empress Dowager again. Missing the first opportunity was what infuriated her the most.
"Kang Ning, who do you think it was?" Noble Consort Wen asked Kang Ning. They had both witnessed the skills of Qiandao Temple firsthand.
"This servant is foolish." Your Highness, we underestimated that person in Qishun Building. This matter must involve other issues; otherwise, why would the people in Qishun Building target Yu Lihuai?
"We must not act rashly now. Check if soone has been watching Bushou Palace these past few days."
"Your Grace, it’s this servant’s fault for being so foolish and troubling you. This servant will make sure to handle it well," Eunuch Kang Ning said emotionally.
Noble Consort Wen glanced at Kang Ning.
"You may leave. Apply so dicine on your wound before you go."
"This servant will take his leave first."
"Kang Ning, did you ntion that the Fourth Prince saved a ’hostage’ from Nann State?" Noble Consort Wen suddenly rembered this and Eunuch Kang Ning imdiately stopped, stepping forward.
"This servant dare not deceive Your Grace—the Fourth Prince did indeed et the hostage from Nann State, and they almost ca to blows. But being of similar age, it turned into a ’fight and beco friends’ situation. The Prince has taken a liking to visiting Qishun Building, so it is very likely he t him there," Eunuch Kang Ning thought for a long ti and could only co up with this explanation since Eunuch Ho Sheng personally confird that the Fourth Prince knew Nann Yu. There could be no other reason.
Upon ntioning Qishun Building, Noble Consort Wen’s gaze darkened. How could she let such a lowly person corrupt the Fourth Prince?
"Where is the Fourth Prince?" Noble Consort Wen imdiately asked, agitation rising again.
"Your Grace, please calm your anger. The Prince is at the rebellious age and shouldn’t be forced. Plus, a child’s nature is to seek novelty; once the novelty wears off, maybe he won’t even return there without us having to say anything," Eunuch Kang Ning imdiately added, noticing the Empress’s temperant and her sowhat excessive severity toward the Fourth Prince.
Noble Consort Wen took several deep breaths, nodded her head in agreent, and waved her hand, signaling Eunuch Kang Ning to leave cautiously.
...
Zheng Haoyuan carefully brought his treasure, allowing only his trusted aide and manipulable Eunuch Shun Zi to stealthily head towards Qishun Building.
"Fourth Prince, what is so secretive about this?" Xing Yu curiously looked at the big wooden box that Eunuch Shun Zi was holding, covered with a dark cloth that obscured its contents.
Xing Yu sneakily attempted to lift the cloth and peek, but was stopped by Zheng Haoyuan, who personally carried the box through the dilapidated front of Qishun Building to a side door. Stepping inside, the dilapidation outside contrasted starkly with the cleanliness and elegance of the sleeping chamber, like opening Pandora’s box, changing everything colors.
"Cousin, I’ve brought you so great stuff," Zheng Haoyuan said mysteriously, presenting the large wooden box to Zheng Nianru like a treasure.
Zheng Nianru showed little interest; in her years as the Empress Dowager, she had seen so many oddities that nothing could surprise her anymore, but still, she gave face and slightly lifted her eyelids.
"What great stuff is it? A spider? A wolf cub? A tiger cub? Or so big turtle?"
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