Chapter 211 Shocking Secret

As dusk fell, the night grew as dark as ink.

A plain blue carriage, without any insignia, silently drove away from the heavily guarded imperial city.

It rolled through the quiet streets and finally stopped at the back gate of Prince Mu's mansion.

The carriage door opened, and a figure wearing a dark cloak with the hood pulled low, supported by two similarly dressed, reserved guards, quickly entered the mansion.

The heavy back door then closed silently, cutting off all outside prying eyes.

Inside the Prince's mansion, the lights were bright, yet a strange, decadent atmosphere permeated the space.

The faint sounds of string and wind instruments drifted in, mixed with flirtatious banter between men and women and the clinking of glasses, clashing with the stillness of the night.

Led by guards, the cloaked figure walked through winding corridors, and the further they went in, the more intense the atmosphere of extravagance and debauchery became.

Her brows were furrowed, and her face beneath the cloak was so gloomy it seemed to drip water.

Finally, the group stopped in front of a heavily guarded courtyard.

After the guard announced the news in a low voice, the heavy door was pushed open.

A decadent smell, a mixture of strong alcohol and perfume, wafted over, causing the cloaked figure to pause in his tracks.

The scene inside the hall was even more nauseating.

Huo Ting lay half-reclined on a large, soft couch covered with tiger skin, his right leg in a thick cast and propped up high.

His clothes were disheveled, his open shirt revealing his muscular chest, which still bore several ambiguous red marks.

Several heavily made-up, scantily clad dancers surrounded him, some feeding him wine, some massaging his shoulders, and one even smiling seductively as she stuffed grapes into his mouth.

The ground was littered with overturned wine jugs, fruit platters, and torn gauze garments, a scene of utter chaos.

Huo Ting's face was flushed with a sickly pallor, and his eyes were glazed over, clearly indicating that he had drunk quite a bit.

He saw the figure at the door and waved his hand slurredly with drunkenness.

"All...all of you, get out of here!"

Upon hearing this, the dancers immediately stood up and left, without even cleaning up the mess on the ground.

The guards silently retreated outside and closed the palace gates.

Only the cloaked man and Huo Ting remained in the hall.

The cloaked figure suddenly threw off her hood, revealing a well-maintained face now covered in frost, her eyes sharp as knives, piercing the drunken Huo Ting on the soft couch—it was none other than the Empress Dowager.

"Huo Ting!" The Empress Dowager's voice was filled with barely suppressed anger. "Look at the state you're in! I thought you were seriously injured and bedridden, and I was so worried about you that I specially left the palace late at night to see you. And what did I find? You're here indulging in debauchery and pleasure-seeking!"

Huo Ting was sobered up a bit by the Empress Dowager's stern shout, and he shook his head.

Upon recognizing the Empress Dowager, he showed no fear, but instead gave a mocking smile.

"Heh... Empress Dowager?" He struggled to sit up, but the movement aggravated his injured leg, causing him to grimace in pain. He simply collapsed back down.

"What brings you here to see this useless piece of trash?"

"waste?"

The Empress Dowager's chest heaved violently with anger. "I think you're not only useless, but also a fool who doesn't know his own mortality!"

"Your leg is broken, yet you still won't stop. You indulge in wine and women all day long, and your mansion is a complete mess. Do you have any dignity as a prince? Do you have any respect for the royal family?"

"Discipline? Respect?" Huo Ting seemed to have heard the biggest joke in the world. He took a big gulp of wine, the liquid dripping down his chin, but his eyes grew increasingly sinister.

"What dignity do I have left? My leg is crippled. The imperial physician said that even if it heals, I'll be a cripple, a crippled prince? Hahaha... Dignity? Respect? Who are you trying to impress!"

He became more and more agitated as he spoke, and suddenly slammed the wine glass in his hand onto the ground.

Snap—

Porcelain shards scattered everywhere.

"It's all Huo Lin's fault! It's all that bastard's fault!" Huo Ting's eyes were bloodshot, and his voice was hoarse from anger and alcohol.

"It was him, it must have been him who ruined me. At the birthday banquet, he embarrassed me in front of everyone because of Consort Zhuang and He Ling. The next day I fell off my horse and was seriously injured. What a coincidence!"

"Empress Dowager, you must do me justice! I want him dead! I want him to be knocked off the throne!"

He pointed in the direction of the palace, his eyes filled with a frenzied hatred and undisguised ambition.

The Empress Dowager was shocked by his address and his blatant words of regicide, and her face turned deathly pale. She took a step back abruptly, her finger pointing at Huo Ting trembling.

"Shut up! Are you crazy? Do you know what you're saying?"

"I'm not crazy!" Huo Ting roared. "I'm perfectly sober! That position never belonged to him! What is Huo Lin anyway? What right does he have to sit in that position?"

"You...you..." The Empress Dowager was so angry that she trembled all over, and her voice changed.

"What nonsense are you spouting? He is the crown prince appointed by the late emperor, the rightful emperor. You'd better know your place!"

"My location?"

Huo Ting seemed to be completely enraged by these words. He suddenly raised his head, stared intently at the Empress Dowager, and spoke with a mocking tone.

"My position? Empress Dowager, have you forgotten your place?"

He struggled, supporting himself with his uninjured leg, and sat up halfway, his eyes gloomy and his voice carrying a strange tone.

"You all sound so high and mighty, fine then I'll expose your relationship with my third cousin in court. We'll all die together, no matter what!"

It was as if a thunderbolt had struck the Empress Dowager's mind, and the color drained from her face instantly.

As if all her strength had been drained, the Empress Dowager staggered back a step, bumping into the table behind her. The candlesticks on it shook violently, and the light and shadow danced wildly on her pale face.

"You...you..." The Empress Dowager's lips trembled, incredulous. "What nonsense are you spouting? You...you're insane, you must be insane!"

Looking into Huo Ting's eyes, filled with hatred and madness, and at the twisted smile on his lips, she felt a chill run from her feet to the top of her head, and her vision went black.

An hour later, in the Imperial Study.

Huo Lin was sitting at his desk, a memorial lying open in front of him, the vermilion brush hovering between his fingers, yet he hesitated to put it down.

His gaze seemed to be fixed on the memorial, but in reality, it had already drifted far away, his mind filled with thoughts of Jiang Huan.

She looks so pretty with her face flushed today, like a ripe peach.

Hmm, I wonder what she's doing now? Is she thinking of me too? Or has she already gone to sleep?

Next time you kiss her, should you try a different angle? I think I bumped her nose last time.

Just as Huo Lin was immersed in his own pink inner drama, pondering how to improve the technique for his next kiss, the palace door was silently pushed open a crack.

A figure dressed in dark, close-fitting clothes, with a restrained aura, slipped in silently; it was a member of the Dark Guard.

The guard knelt on one knee, his voice low but clear enough to reach Huo Lin's ears.

"Your Majesty, there is unusual activity at the Prince Mu's residence."