Chapter 20 Revlon (2) Want to please me? You can do better...

Yan Huinan's expression remained calm, but he just stared at her until she felt uneasy. Then he said, "This isn't home. It's not mine, and certainly not yours. Don't be so sentimental."

He no longer had a home. In the past, he had a gentle and beautiful mother, a dignified but world-renowned father, a group of servants who hung out with him, and friends who often came to visit.

But what about now? He would never forget the last time he saw his mother, the way she looked.

He will never forget the bones of his father that he found in Poor Bone Gorge.

He didn't need this little bit of warmth, which was better than nothing. His whole body was already as cold as an iceberg.

Xie Yun looked at his darkening eyes and swallowed fearfully, "If you are a wandering ghost, then so am I. Since you haven't let me go, what's wrong with me tidying up my own place?" Yan Huinan didn't comment. He slowly withdrew his hand, raised it again, and brushed the lint from her temples, saying sarcastically, "Okay, since you want to please me, you can do it more obviously. But whether I appreciate it or not depends entirely on my mood."

Xie Yun: "..." She wished she had used that dagger that night to kill him on the spot. But fortunately, Yan Huinan didn't see her true purpose.

"There will be a palace banquet tomorrow, you come with me." Yan Huinan said.

No wonder he came back today. He had just left without saying a word and left Xie Yun in this mansion, forcing her to kneel every day.

Was he deliberately ignoring her? Or was he planning something?

A palace banquet? For Xie Yun, wouldn't that be a grand reunion of old acquaintances? And everyone hated her to the core, the kind that wanted to kill her...

She had just turned herself into a dish, ready to be executed by the people around the table. What on earth was Yan Huinan thinking?

"Is it not appropriate for me to go?" Xie Yun hesitated. "If you take me with you, wouldn't that be blatantly bringing hatred upon yourself?"

However, the moment Yan Huinan mentioned the palace banquet, an idea suddenly occurred to Xie Yun. If she wanted to rescue Fei Jing without Yan Huinan's help, perhaps meeting an old acquaintance would be a good opportunity.

Yan Huinan had offended many people in the past. They flattered him on the surface, but secretly hated him deeply. After all, the enemy of my enemy is my friend.

"You are quite self-aware, but this is not something you should worry about." Yan Huinan's tone was unquestionable.

He looked down on others as before. But this time, it stemmed from his own confidence. He no longer needed to rely on his mother's status as the eldest princess, nor did he need to rely on his own status as a young marquis. All his confidence now came from his battles on the battlefield. Whoever he was willing to grant his grace was honored. No one could shake his position.

-

This palace banquet was held to celebrate the first birthday of the Emperor's eldest son, the eldest legitimate son of the current Emperor and the most favored of the Emperor.

Today, Xie Yun wore a white silk shirt with a gold-thread cloud pattern, a green skirt with a grape and pomegranate pattern, a green gauze shawl, and sparkling gold ornaments on her black hair. Her soft and bright appearance also revealed her cold and aloof temperament.

On the way, Han Zhen kept talking about his excitement about entering the palace for the first time, and said that it was said that when the eldest prince was born, white cranes from Penglai Mountain flew together and circled the fairy mountains on the island for three days without setting.

Once this news reached the capital, the entire nation believed that this child would one day carry on the great cause and usher in a peaceful and prosperous era. The emperor was overjoyed and immediately issued a general amnesty. Today, the eldest son's first birthday celebration also features the "Zhuazhou" ceremony, and it is held with extraordinary grandeur.

Xie Yun turned his head, lifted the curtain of the carriage, and watched the people on the street kneeling in salute to the ceremonial guard of the Great General.

Shock, melancholy, sorrow, uneasiness, all kinds of complex emotions surged into my heart at once.

Upon entering the palace, Yan Huinan was summoned by the eunuchs of the Purple Palace to discuss matters. Xie Yun was left alone, as she had to pay her respects to the Empress first.

"Please lead the way, sir." Han Zhen said.

Han Zhen and Xie Yun had never been to the harem before. When they entered here, they were like headless flies, and they just followed the eunuchs' instructions.

However, the road became more remote and desolate the further they walked. Xie Yun had been worried since she entered the palace. She noticed something was wrong in time, "Wait, what road are you taking me to?"

How could the queen live in such a remote courtyard?

The eunuch said, "Madam Yan, this is your first time entering the palace and you are not familiar with this path. The other ladies have already arrived, and you are already late. Therefore, I will take you along this path so that we can reach the Queen's chambers faster."

Xie Yun was extremely vigilant, perhaps due to her years of cautious life and her subsequent escape, which made her overly wary and alert towards others.

But she really didn't know the way, and it would not be wise for her to walk around aimlessly.

Xie Yun turned the jade ring on her index finger nervously, praying silently that Yan Huinan was really so powerful that he had secret guards in the palace.

Sure enough, just as the eunuch said, after passing this desolate path and turning a few small roads, the view suddenly opened up and I could see the magnificent palace again. The towering ginkgo trees in the palace swayed in the wind like a green cloud.

"Ma'am, we're here."

Xie Yun looked up at the palace plaque. Yes, it was the plaque of the Queen's bedroom. Only then did she step in with confidence.

But as soon as she and Han Zhen entered the room, the eunuch quickly closed the door. There was a sound of bronze clashing, and then the door was locked with a "click".

Xie Yun's inner alarm bells rang loudly. Han Zhen also reacted and hurried over to knock on the door. "What are you doing?! Open the door quickly!"

The eunuch locked the door and left in a hurry. Now there was no one to turn to.

Xie Yun had thought that her entry into the palace wouldn't be smooth sailing, after all, so many eyes were staring at her, eager to kill her. But she couldn't help but feel a sense of panic at this moment.

The courtyard wall was so high that it reached the sky, and there was no place to step on. "Han Zhen, go to the house and see if there are any tables and chairs. If they can be moved out, we can climb over them."

She regretted not being able to make a signal flare these days. If she had one, she could just fire one in the palace and someone would come anyway.

While in Daliang, she had accompanied Lou Cheng to the Arsenal under his jurisdiction and learned how to make gunpowder from the craftsmen there. As a child, she had loved making fireworks, though her skill was still quite limited. However, after learning from the Daliang craftsmen, she was able to make gunpowder as long as she had the materials.

But in the past six months, she has not had the opportunity to come into contact with these materials and has been unable to make them.

"Okay." Han Zhen nodded vigorously.

But as soon as she pushed open the door, several bamboo baskets fell from above, and along with them came snakes crawling out of the baskets. Some of these snakes had red stripes on their bodies, and some were brightly colored. The moment they fell, two snakes fell directly onto Han Zhen.

“Ah!! Ah!!”

Han Zhen screamed in fear. She had no experience and instinctively brushed away the snakes that landed on her. Xie Yun was also terrified, but she didn't care about anything else. These snakes were extremely venomous, and if Han Zhen got bit, her life would be in danger.

"Han Zhen, calm down and don't move. Don't scare them."

There were two snakes hanging from Han Zhen's body, one on her neck and moving downwards, the other on her arm, the latter of which Han Zhen could also catch.

"Listen to me, when you hit a snake, hit it at its weakest point. I've seen snake catchers catch snakes with their bare hands. They catch the snake by surprise and then grab its weakest point, making it difficult for it to escape. I'll grab the one on your body later, and you can choose the right moment to grab the one on your arm."

Xie Yun was so frightened she nearly fainted. But she found the courage she needed, and seeing the perfect moment, she rushed to Han Zhen's side in two steps, raised her hand, and precisely grasped the snake's vital point, forcing it free from Han Zhen's arm.

At the same time, the snake on Han Zhen's arm stared at her warily. But what other options were there at this moment? She could only follow Xie Yun's instructions, aiming at the snake's weak spot and reaching out with a swift, ruthless, and precise grasp.

"I caught it! Miss..." Tears welled up in Han Zhen's eyes. She was scared to death. The snake was almost as thick as her wrist.

Xie Yun's blood rushed to her head. It was late spring, the sun was blazing, but she felt cold all over. Gathering all her strength, she raised her hand, swirled the snake, along with her arm, in a circular motion, gathering momentum. Then, using the force of the swirling motion, she flung the snake away. Han Zhen followed her example, hurling the snake away with all his might. Even after she'd swung it free, the nauseating feel of the snake's slippery, scaly flesh remained etched in Xie Yun's mind.

But as Xie Yun was about to throw it out, the snake suddenly turned its head and bit the back of her hand. The bite was not deep, just a scratch of the snake's fangs on the back of her hand.

"Madam, you were bitten by a snake!" Han Zhen's face was full of worry.

Xie Yun didn't even have time to treat the wounds, because they had only shaken the two snakes unconscious. There were still many snakes on the ground, slithering towards them. "It's okay, we can go to the Imperial Hospital for treatment later."

"Madam, what should we do now?" Han Zhen's voice trembled. She had never seen such a terrifying scene before: a group of snakes raised their heads on the ground, hissing and glaring fiercely at their "enemy" and "prey."

Snakes are afraid of people, but this group of snakes was extremely aggressive. If they moved at all, these snakes would bite them.

Xie Yun swallowed, her back already drenched in sweat. She could only slowly raise her hands and gently gather her shawl into her hands. Then she untied a small, exquisite iron bottle from her waist. The bottle was carved with exotic patterns and inlaid with agate and lake blue gemstones.

This is actually a tinderbox, a useful tool for starting a fire outdoors, so Xie Yun always carries it with him.

She lit the shawl in her hand and threw it on the group of snakes.

"Hanzhen, hurry up! Give me your shawl and handkerchief." Xie Yun said hurriedly.

She quickly threw another burning shawl at the snakes. One of the snakes suddenly jumped over and bit Xie Yun on the ankle, but she was wearing dark green boots today, which were very thick. Before the snake could bite through the boots, Han Zhen grabbed it by the seven inches and threw it out.

Xie Yun looked at Han Zhen in surprise, unable to believe it.

Han Zhen realized belatedly that she had just caught another snake. Her face was pale, and her lips were bloodless as she chuckled dryly twice.

The shawl was not heavy, but when the fire fell on the snake, it quickly burned. Immediately, they smelled the smell of burnt snake skin, which was terrible!

Xie Yun asked Han Zhen to go with her and find some dead leaves from the nearby yard, adding them to the burning snake. The soft, boneless snake immediately struggled in agony, twisting its body like a strange old branch.

Soon the snakes scattered and hid in the small drainage ditch in the yard.

Only then did the two of them breathe a sigh of relief.

"There should be no snakes now." Han Zhen said with lingering fear.

Xie Yun: "Yeah. Probably."

She kept wondering, who would do this? If these snakes bit her, she would be trapped in here. If she didn't get timely treatment, she would most likely die. Even if she didn't die, she would suffer a lot.

Han Zhen and Xie Yun worked together to move the tables and chairs, stacked them together, and climbed out from the wall.

"Madam, please send someone to inform the general about this. We should not stay in this palace. It is too dangerous!" Han Zhen was very worried.

Xie Yun shook her head and frowned, saying, "If we leave now, I'm afraid it will cause even greater trouble."

At the Emperor's eldest son's first birthday banquet, she had already followed Yan Huinan into the palace in full view of the public, yet she hadn't offered congratulations. This was extremely disrespectful. When the time came, the Emperor would be furious and settle all old and new scores. Even if Xie Yun had ten lives, they wouldn't be enough for the Emperor to kill.

The author has something to say:

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1. In the Yuan and Ming dynasties, the "Zhuazhou" ceremony was known as "Qiyang." It wasn't until the Qing Dynasty that it gained the names "Zhuazhou" and "Shizhou." However, legend has it that the custom of "Zhuazhou" dates back to the Three Kingdoms period, during the reign of Sun Quan. I won't elaborate on this here. This chapter uses the term "Zhuazhou" for ease of reading and story development.

2. The snake-catching scene is dramatic but not too far-fetched. My most vivid memory is from the movie "Never Gone," where Wang Leehom's character, while studying in Yunnan and Guizhou, follows his friends in catching snakes with his bare hands. He grabs the snake and quickly tosses it into a snake bag.