Chapter 82, Chapter 82: Donggong Molei

The jade pendant was nothing special. The red cord was worn and old, indicating it had been worn for some time. The material and workmanship were extremely rough, unlike what one would expect from a craftsman. It must have been made by someone else, and one could not deduce the woman's identity from it.

The only thing worth noting was that the jade pendant was shaped like a carp, and usually there should be a pair of such carp. After returning to the Prince Su's residence, Lin Chengye placed the jade pendant on the table and tapped it lightly with his knuckles.

"...The woman entered the imperial city through an extremely hidden secret door."

Suddenly, a noise came from a dark corner of the room. Chai Hu Nan, like a shadowy spirit that had materialized into a human, appeared behind Lin Cheng Ye without anyone noticing.

"It really is the imperial city."

Lin Chengye was not surprised by this answer.

"But that covers a much larger area..."

"To be more precise, it is the Eastern Palace."

Chai Hu Nan's voice remained cold, but Lin Cheng Ye sensed a hint of smugness in his words. She glanced at him helplessly.

"...You're too bold, daring to go in like that."

"It didn't make much difference to me. But I only saw the woman crawl into the East Palace through a hole about half a person's height, and I didn't linger there."

"The Eastern Palace... how could it be the Eastern Palace?"

Lin Chengye murmured the two words, propped his forehead with two fingers, and gradually frowned.

This result was not quite what she had expected.

Although the matter of the Mother Moth remained unclear, her suspicions always centered on the Eldest Princess. Only if the person was found to be connected to the Eldest Princess would it align with her plan, but the news brought back by Chai Hu Nan only plunged the matter into further mystery.

Wei Jingchen mentioned that it is well known that the Crown Prince stands on the Emperor's side, but if that letter came from the Eastern Palace, could the person behind the Mother Corruption incident be His Majesty?

No, that's not right, you can't think like that.

Lin Chengye picked up the jade pendant with the carp design and tapped it lightly on the table.

Thinking this way leads to a dead end, so at this point, it's necessary to turn something that seems certain into something pending. This is her preferred way of thinking.

Lin Chengye took a deep breath. The table in front of her seemed to transform into a chessboard, and the places where her gaze fell were the chess pieces. When she looked up, the person sitting opposite her, playing a game of chess, was another shadow of herself.

Why did the mother beetle incident happen?

The shadow slowly spoke.

"This speculation is reserved. Because the Eldest Princess and His Majesty seized the throne in the 49th year of Zhenping by using Qin Ruoliu's power, it is highly likely that they controlled her with the Mother Corruptor. Therefore, it was necessary to raise the Mother Corruptor for many years, which is why the tragedy of the Thousand Buddha Kingdom continued to unfold."

"Who is more likely to possess the mother beetle?"

“I believe it is the Eldest Princess. If she were in His Majesty's hands, the Eldest Princess's power grab over the years would not have been so smooth and rampant, to the point that she has been sidelined to this extent, becoming an open secret in the Lai Kingdom. Even Wei Jingchen calls the Eldest Princess the most powerful person.”

Yongfo Temple was where she had lived for many years, making her, by all accounts, more likely to be the eldest princess.

"So what is the most likely established fact to be overturned?"

"...The Crown Prince's stance on His Majesty's side is merely a facade. In reality, he is likely loyal to the Eldest Princess and has been betrayed by her. His Majesty may not be unaware of this, but he may be powerless to change the situation."

"In this way, another previous conjecture will be overturned. In fact, there is no 'power struggle' between His Majesty and the Eldest Princess in Lai Kingdom, because the outcome has already been decided, and the Eldest Princess has already won."

Why did no one notice?

"The key issue is that His Majesty is seriously ill, and the Crown Prince is overseeing the country. The court believes that the Crown Prince is the Emperor's man, so they tacitly accept that His Majesty still holds power, unaware that the situation in Lai Kingdom has already changed."

While the excessive power of the eldest princess has been criticized, it hasn't reached the point of being condemned by historians and officials, nor has it created excessively negative public opinion.

"Okay, no problem."

Lin Chengye didn't know if she had actually said those words, but the moment she realized it, the shadow that looked exactly like her shattered quietly, and everything in front of her returned to normal.

Such speculation was too terrifying. Lin Chengye realized that his back was already soaked with cold sweat, and he let out a hoarse, cold laugh.

For the first time, she felt that the only word to describe a person was "terrifying."

If that's the case, then all the reality is nothing but a mirage constructed by that person, completely unnoticed by those within it, who might even submit a memorial expressing dissatisfaction with the princess's excessive power while claiming to be clear-headed.

Little did she know how ridiculous and foolish all of this seemed in that person's eyes; she even relished watching everyone indulge in it.

"But where is that newly found demigod? Who is she? And how did she learn about such a secret as the blood sacrifice? Who are the members of the Wuma family hiding in the palace? What is the connection between all of this and the Qingluan Medicine Valley incident? Is His Majesty truly innocent? You…"

Suddenly, she heard her own voice rise in her ears and echo in her chest.

Lin Chengye knew it was another version of herself acting up again. She tapped her head impatiently, trying to drive away the sound. This wasn't the first time she had felt so disgusted with herself at times like this.

"Okay, okay, stop. I remember everything."

Perhaps these doubts had been building up in her heart for too long, and as she got closer to the truth, they began to boil over, seeping into every crevice and filling her entire being. When the voice became so unrestrained that it was almost deafening, Lin Chengye couldn't help but curse himself a couple of times.

"Shut up, this is so annoying."

...

A drop of water suddenly dripped from an icicle that had formed in a cold, damp corner of the ground, gently tapping Dongtang's face.

Whether she was unconscious or asleep, Dong Tang vaguely felt the cold water flowing down her neck, making her teeth chatter and stealing away the little warmth left in her body.

It's so cold, and I'm so hungry.

Dongtang wanted to curl up and gather some warmth in this ice-cold underground to avoid freezing to death, but she gave up because she didn't have the strength to move her fingers.

Tick-tock, tick-tock.

As the year draws to a close, spring returns to the earth. The icicles melt faster and faster, becoming increasingly noisy, dripping and echoing endlessly in the empty underground.

Dongtang hated this sound; it kept her awake and was like the relentless footsteps of a ghost, as if it were about to take her away.

Tap, tap, tap.

No, that's not right. Someone's coming.

Because it was so cold, Dongtang's reactions were a little slow. Only then did she realize that the sound of the water droplets falling was mixed with even more annoying noises: people deliberately lowering their footsteps and rustling voices, buzzing like flies.

"That old mute...tsk tsk, what do you think she's after?"

"Shh, are you crazy? Do you want to die? Is this something we two can discuss?"

"Sigh, we've come to this godforsaken place, it's really scary if we don't say something... Did you see that? His Highness the Crown Prince's eyes are red with anger, and that old mute... tsk tsk, I don't even dare to look."

"But she's incredibly audacious... how dare she..."

The voices grew closer and closer, but then suddenly stopped. Dongtang knew that the two people were standing in front of the prison where she was imprisoned.

But she kept her eyes closed, refusing to acknowledge them.

First, she found the two people noisy; second, she was too hungry to stand and had to crawl over, but she didn't want to look so pathetic in front of two strangers.

"Hey, Dongtang, dinner's ready."

One of them shouted, and the man kicked the rice bowl with his toe.

"Come over here and eat! Don't starve to death here or cause us any more trouble."

Seeing that Dongtang did not react, the other person raised his voice and impatiently patted the iron door of the cage.

Dongtang sensed that the two people were particularly difficult to deal with, as if they wouldn't leave until they watched her finish her meal. So she slowly opened her eyes and crawled toward the cold rice that the two people had placed at her feet.

The two men's mocking laughter came from above. Dongtang knew that her current movements were ridiculous, like a wriggling maggot, constantly crawling on the ground until her hands touched the bowl of rice and dragged it into her arms.

Like a dog, she grabbed it and wolfed it down her throat, then rinsed it with cold water. Feeling her stomach swell and something inside, she regained some strength and slowly opened her mouth.

"Why...it's you guys? Where's Dong Li...the one who used to bring me food...Dong Li..."

"Didn't you hear what we just said?"

One of them was tall and thin, like a chopstick. The other was short and stout, like a meatball.

The man resembling chopsticks, looking at Dong Tang, suddenly felt smug. Both were lowly servants, yet his fate seemed slightly better than Dong Tang's. Moreover, Dong Tang showed no fear towards him, but rather extreme indifference, which made him uncomfortable.

So the man deliberately raised his voice.

"Dead!"

"...Dead?"

So, the old mute they were talking about was Dong Li? Dong Tang repeated it blankly, then suddenly stopped eating. She didn't understand, so she looked up at the two people and asked again.

"How did he die?"

Her eyes were empty and lifeless, like two dark holes. The man, stared at by her, suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. Unwilling to admit that she was actually frightened by a dying man, she angrily kicked the prison door and snarled viciously.

"You...you dare to talk to me like that?"

"Sigh, stop talking... The food's been delivered..."

Another person, who looked like a meatball, tugged at the chopsticks and advised, "This underground place is cold and damp, filled with the smell of blood. It's unlucky everywhere. I don't want to stay any longer."

"Ha, fine, don't tell me then, just get lost."

We're all just servants, we're all just lowly beings, yet we're still divided into different classes of lowliness.

Dongtang shook his head and grinned, letting out a "hoho" laugh.

"Didn't you notice? You weren't given any blood today."

The man, who looked like a chopstick, trembled with anger, and he curled his lips into a sinister smile.

Yes, usually Dongli would bring her food, and after she finished eating, he would cut a wound on her wrist and release a bowl of blood for His Highness the Crown Prince.

"That Dongli is not only mute, but also not very bright. He somehow got hold of a chicken and put a bowl of chicken blood in His Highness's mouth. His Highness drank it and immediately vomited..."

Suddenly, the chopsticks seemed to think of something funny and burst into laughter.

"Hahahaha... His Highness got angry immediately and said, 'Say it, draw your sword and say it, you lowly servant, how dare you make fun of me!' Didn't you see? That old mute could only make incoherent gestures, kneeling on the ground and kowtowing repeatedly... The scene was hilarious."

Kuaizi became more and more excited as she spoke, her face flushed, and she looked at Dongtang with even more pride, hoping to see a different expression on her face.

"So His Highness killed her and drank her blood. You're really lucky; because of that fool, you'll live a few more days!"

However, none of the expressions of sorrow, fear, or apprehension that he had anticipated appeared on Dongtang's face.

Dong Tang simply nodded slowly, giving a faint reply, her eyes devoid of joy or sorrow, like a dead person.

"oh."

He choked on his chopsticks, mumbled something like "This is boring," and called her a madwoman before leaving with the meatball, cursing all the while.

What were they expecting? What did they want to see on her face? Pain, despair? Dongtang didn't understand.

But actually, she and Dong Li weren't very close, so she wasn't sad.

Dongtang blinked and tasted a hint of saltiness on her lips. She gently wiped it away with the back of her hand, but couldn't tell whether it was water from melting icicles or something else.

Dongtang suddenly felt like she couldn't breathe. She grabbed her neck with her hand and kept gagging, tasting more and more salty flavors that accumulated on the tip of her tongue and tasted bitter.

Suddenly, a warm, large hand reached out from nowhere and grasped her wrist, holding her hand tightly. Dong Tang's pupils contracted sharply, and her body trembled violently.

Warm breath fell on her earlobe. Dongtang leaned against a warm embrace and heard a gentle and soothing voice slowly fall.

Shh, don't be afraid.

Author's Note: Cheng Ye gets really cool once he starts reviewing the events... [gold ingot]