Chapter 887: The beloved cousin escaped from control (13)

The current emperor has been on the throne for just over three years. Although he has many concubines, the harem is relatively stable because the queen manages it well. Although there are some minor fights, nothing major has occurred. Naturally, there is no abandoned concubine who has been banished to the cold palace.

But the late emperor was different. As an emperor, his political achievements were mediocre, without any merits or faults. But as a man, he was much more lecherous. When he was alive, the phrase "3,000 concubines in the harem" was not just a saying. Even if there were not 3,000, there were at least several hundred. With so many women gathered together, wouldn't they fight to the death? Naturally, many abandoned concubines moved into the cold palace.

After the death of the late emperor, the current emperor ascended the throne. He also had concubines, and the harem could hardly accommodate so many people. In the end, the empress dowager issued an edict to let the concubines of the late emperor who had sons leave the palace and live with their sons, while those without children moved to the Qiyang Palace, a temporary palace in the suburbs.

However, it is not clear whether the deposed concubine in the cold palace dealt with Du Shichu.

She glanced at the peeling paint plaque of the palace in front of her. On the plaque was written Huiqiu Palace. This name was unlucky. No wonder it was called the cold palace.

Du Shichu walked in holding the little lion. This palace had not been repaired for a long time. Many tiles on the roof had fallen off a long time ago, and the ground was covered with fallen leaves. There were also many insects drilling in and out.

"Princess! Let's not go in, let's leave quickly..." Zhichun was so scared that he pulled Du Shichu's sleeve and begged.

"Meow..." The little lion called out and jumped out of Du Shichu's arms and went into the house. Du Shichu hurriedly followed it in.

The little lion sniffed here and there, as if it was occupying territory everywhere. Du Shichu followed it aimlessly. Although the Huiqiu Palace was dilapidated, it was still very spacious.

Zhichun was almost crying. She was so scared, but she didn't dare to disobey Du Shichu. She was as panicked as a frightened little rabbit.

"Otherwise, don't come in with me and wait outside." Du Shichu was not a cold-hearted person, so he said to Zhichun.

Zhichun shook her head like a rattle: "No, no, I want to follow the princess. I dare not stay alone..."

"Then just follow closely. Don't worry, I won't ignore you." Du Shichu comforted her.

"Princess! Did you hear any sound?" Zhichun suddenly jumped in fright and immediately grabbed Du Shichu's ears and sleeves tightly. He asked Du Shichu with a terrified look in his eyes and a trembling voice.

Du Shichu listened carefully and seemed to hear some sounds, so he said, "Yes, it sounds like a child crying..."

"The sound of a child crying?!" Zhichun was so scared that her whole body began to tremble. "Princess, I heard that many children died in the palace. Could it be those children?"

It was obvious that she had thought of some unnatural supernatural event and was so frightened that her face turned pale.

Du Shichu hushed her and said, "Don't make any noise. I want to listen again."

Zhichun immediately covered his mouth and looked at Du Shichu with fear in his eyes.

Du Shichu listened attentively to the sounds around her. She had sensitive ears and internal strength, so she could hear sounds from farther away.

"It is indeed the sound of a child crying." Du Shichu said with certainty, "Let's go and take a look."

"Don't... Princess, maybe it's those things?" Zhichun did not forget to persuade Du Shichu even though he was trembling.

Du Shichu is certainly not afraid of any supernatural events. After all, this is a normal world and there are no such unnatural existences. Of course, even if there are, she is not afraid at all. After all, she herself is more terrifying than ghosts.

Therefore, Du Shichu was not persuaded by her. He patted her on the back, picked up the little lion who was digging the soil in the corner, and walked towards the place where the crying sound came from.

Although Zhichun was terribly frightened, he still managed to catch up with them, dragging his legs as soft as noodles.

Du Shichu followed the sound of the baby's crying and walked around several side halls of Huiqiu Palace. When he arrived outside the innermost room which was relatively well preserved, he could clearly hear the weak cry of a baby.

Zhichun could no longer walk. Her legs were shaking like a sieve. She wanted to say something to Du Shichu, but no sound came out. She was so frightened that she couldn't even speak.

Du Shichu gently pressed an acupoint on the back of Zhichun's neck. Zhichun closed her eyes instantly and fainted. Du Shichu immediately caught her body and moved her to sit against the wall.

This maid is too timid. If she continues to be frightened like this, who knows what disease she will get. So it is better to let her faint.

After Du Shichu settled Zhichun, he stepped into the dark little hall without hesitation.

She had never thought that she would see such a scene. She thought that the crying of the child might be the cry of a wild cat or an owl, but it couldn't be a human child.

But she never expected that what she thought was not possible turned out to be the truth. It was not the meowing of a cat or a bird, but a real child crying.

Du Shichu looked at the two people, one big and one small, curled up in the corner, his eyes widened in astonishment. How could there be children in this cold palace? !

The curled up woman in tattered clothes and disheveled hair, who looked like a mad woman, raised her head and saw Du Shichu. She was so scared that she immediately shrank even smaller while holding the crying child in her arms, and looked at Du Shichu with horror.

Du Shichu opened his mouth, not knowing what to say. The woman holding the child was skinny and her face was so dirty that it was unrecognizable. The child she was holding was even more miserable, wrapped in only a piece of rag, which was not even a piece of clothing and could not cover the child's body at all.

The child didn't have any flesh on his body, his ribs were clearly visible, and his arms and legs were so thin that they looked like a bag of bones. He was literally skin and bones. If he hadn't been crying, Du Shichu might have thought that he had died a long time ago and was just a skeleton.

But he was not far from being a skeleton now, and his cries were weak and feeble. It was a pity that he could still cry.

Du Shichu couldn't tell how old he was, but with that little ball, it was possible that he was a child under a year old. But how could there be a child under a year old in the palace? The youngest of the current emperor's six princes was already three years old.

"Who... are you? And who is this child?" Du Shichu finally couldn't help but asked in a hoarse voice.

But no one answered her. The woman lowered her head, her long, messy hair covering her face. She seemed to be out of consciousness.

An insane woman with a child of unknown origin lived in the cold palace and was alive, but no one found her. Du Shichu couldn't help rubbing his forehead. He only knew that he had discovered something incredible this time. Curiosity really killed the cat.

(End of this chapter)