A Game Within a Game
After several rounds of drinks, the poets and talented men who had been gathered together earlier, having received their rewards, were now losing interest.
Today's winner is an octogenarian minister who has served two dynasties. His poems outshone those of Liao Qian, Dou Zhen, and others. He is deeply moved and is holding the calligraphy and painting personally inscribed by Emperor Su, tears streaming down his face. The scene is quite chaotic.
Beneath the green willows, in a secluded corner, sat two beautiful figures leaning against each other: Wei Tingya and Miao Yiyun, both dressed in elegant attire and possessing exquisite features.
A slender maid quietly stepped forward, leaned down and whispered a few words in Wei Tingya's ear. Upon hearing this, Wei Tingya raised his head and looked eagerly at Miao Yiyun sitting beside him, his eyes shining brightly.
"Your Highness, Lin Xu has indeed fallen for the trap! She is currently in the side hall that His Highness the Crown Prince doesn't visit often. I have already locked the door from the outside, so she won't be able to get away for a while!"
Upon hearing this, Miao Yiyun's face showed a fleeting hint of satisfaction.
"Is this matter reliable? Is my maid honest? We absolutely cannot afford any mistakes at this crucial moment..."
Seeing that Miao Yiyun hesitated verbally but couldn't hide the excitement in her eyes, Wei Tingya understood perfectly. He quickly placed his hands on Miao Yiyun's cold fingers and whispered softly:
"Your Majesty, I know the Crown Princess is meticulous. Rest assured, these two maids have served me for many years; they are thorough and ruthless. They are absolutely capable of handling anything without incident. Just now, when I was sitting with Lin Xu, I slipped the key to the Crown Prince's bedchamber into her sleeve. When caught red-handed, she, a divorced woman, will be utterly disgraced for possessing the key to His Highness's bedchamber and being discovered hiding there... Moreover, Her Majesty the Empress is also present today. Once we lead Her Majesty there, we need not worry about anything. After all, you know she always values His Highness's reputation above all else..."
Miao Yiyun nodded in satisfaction upon hearing this.
In recent years, people from the palace have rarely visited the temporary palace. Even though they each have their own sleeping quarters there, they are only used for short rests during meals, and naturally cannot compare to the strict security of the imperial palace.
Moreover, this matter involves the Crown Prince's reputation. Once the Empress discovers it, it is unlikely that anyone can protect Lin Xu, let alone Princess Kunrou, who was on good terms with her but is now in dire straits herself.
With this in mind, Miao Yiyun glanced around warily before quietly instructing her personal maid to step forward.
"...Send a message to Cao Yuan: if Princess Kunrou is not completely defeated today, her father can forget about his official title and rank."
Today is the perfect opportunity to make Lin Xu and Princess Kunrou lose completely. She can no longer tolerate it!
.
Meanwhile, in a side hall almost entirely shaded by trees, Yao Su'an stared at the woman opposite her, her teeth clenched, a surge of hatred welling up within her, wishing she could pounce on her and tear her to pieces.
"...You knew these people were plotting against you, yet you dragged me into it instead, and you told me a string of lies, forcing me to tell the truth... Lin Xu, how could there be such a treacherous and cunning person as you in this world! No wonder Su Ran hated you so much in the past!"
Lin Xu knew that after this ordeal, Yao Su'an hated her even more, but she had already made many enemies and didn't care much about these things anymore.
She had fallen for Wei Tingya's schemes in her past life, and knew all too well that this renowned fourth young lady would never let her off easily. Wei Tingya was never a rash person; his sudden approach must have been the result of a meticulously planned ambush.
That's why she had been watching coldly and quietly keeping an eye on things. She watched as Wei Tingya drank the same cup of tea with her. Since the tea was fine, Wei Tingya must have used some other trick when he sat next to her.
Therefore, after Wei Tingya left, she looked down and carefully examined her surroundings. Unexpectedly, she found a cloud-shaped key in her suddenly heavy sleeve!
This item is exquisite and small. Today, she has come to the banquet, and the sleeves of her clothes are wider than those of her usual casual clothes. Once she falls into it, not only will it be difficult to notice, but it will also be difficult for her to fall out easily.
If she hadn't been extra careful, she probably wouldn't have even known when the key had been slipped in. In her past life, she had been just as trusting, which led to her being unable to defend herself and losing all face.
key……
However, upon further reflection, Lin Xu guessed that Wei Tingya's methods this time might be no different from those in her previous life, where he lured her to that elegant room for a rest and then falsely accused her of hiding something on her person.
However, with Miao Yiyun's involvement in this life, they might resort to even more ruthless methods.
He wanted to deliver her to utter ruin in one fell swoop.
She had come to the banquet today with a meticulously planned scheme to keep Yao Su'an by her side. However, since she had never been to the imperial palace before, she was genuinely worried about where to conduct her business. Unexpectedly, Wei Tingya's actions had delivered a golden opportunity right to her doorstep.
The Crown Prince is of unparalleled nobility, and ordinary people would never easily visit this place. This further delayed Yao Su'an's escape.
However, the only thing not in her plans today was to find out the truth about what happened back then.
At that time, she only threatened Yao Su'an on a whim, but she didn't expect it to kill two birds with one stone. Yao Su'an actually couldn't withstand the intimidation and revealed all her past secrets! It was an unexpected gain for her on this trip.
However… Lin Xu looked up and glanced out the window.
Suddenly, a dark cloud loomed overhead, pressing low over the rooftops. The once bright and beautiful weather had turned into an impending downpour.
She needs to speed things up.
Yao Su'an was usually frail, and even though she had almost fully recovered, the emotional turmoil she had experienced today had left her exhausted. She watched helplessly as the light outside the window gradually dimmed, her mind racing with thoughts. Was it going to rain…? She wondered if the King of Zhenshan had won the competition… Had he not yet noticed she was missing? When would he send someone to find her?
In the silence, Lin Xu heard a faint rustling sound coming from the roof ridge, knowing that the people who had been arranged to meet her had finally arrived. She looked up and threw a small stone with all her might into the vent.
She had trained in archery with Liang Zhengyuan for quite some time, and despite her slender figure, her arms were stronger than those of an ordinary woman. Sure enough, the small pebble struck the transom window precisely, and the sound from the roof ridge ceased.
Yao Su'an glanced at him listlessly, no longer even having the strength to scold Lin Xu. She simply muttered sarcastically, "What? Didn't you already have people lying in ambush? Are your men so stupid they can't even open the door from the outside? Do they have to climb the roof beams?"
Lin Xu ignored it. As long as she could get the message out, even though it was a risky move, she had to do it if she wanted it to succeed. As for whether it would turn out well or badly, she could only wait and see what the people outside would do.
She silently prayed that the two bodyguards Liao Yan had assigned to her today were more skilled than the men Dou Yanxun had easily taken down that rainy night. Since things had come to this, she would leave everything to fate.
.
After an unknown amount of time, the stars had already fallen low. The two had been trapped in this bedchamber for most of the day.
Yao Su'an was exhausted from crying and cursing Lin Xu. She had no strength left and had fallen into a deep sleep, her head resting on her arm. Lin Xu, on the other hand, sat at the table, quietly looking out the window.
Until a series of footsteps sounded.
Someone was approaching. It sounded like a group of people walking together. As the footsteps drew closer, the outside world became as bright as day. Those were lanterns that people had brought.
"...His Highness has had a long day, so please clean this hall so that he can rest when he returns later."
That was Miao Yiyun's voice. Immediately afterwards, the sound of servants responding rang out from outside the door.
Lin Xu sat up. Yao Su'an had already woken up from her brief dream. Knowing that someone had come, a brief look of joy appeared in her eyes, but it was quickly suppressed by Lin Xu's very low voice.
"Just listen to my instructions, and I'll guarantee your safe arrival at the Mountain-Suppressing King, and I won't reveal those old stories. Otherwise..."
otherwise……
Even though Yao Su'an hated Lin Xu to the extreme, she knew she had made a foolish mistake today. Once people knew that she was the murderer who killed Su Ran and had a past entanglement with Zhou Weikan, she would never have anything to do with the status she had finally regained. In an instant, her heart was filled with turmoil, but she could only nod resentfully.
Right now, getting out of this damn place is the most important thing!
A moment later, a noise was heard outside the door, followed by a questioning voice that sounded like that of a female official: "This hall was cleaned this morning, and incense should have been lit long ago. Why is the door locked now?"
Another maid answered in a low voice, her tone full of doubt: "Your Highness the Crown Princess and the Head Monk, I swept and cleaned the place this morning, changed the bedding, and prepared a pot of tea. The palace was not locked at that time. But did the patrolling guards kindly lock the palace door when they saw no one was there?"
Then another woman laughed loudly:
"This is His Highness the Crown Prince's favorite residence in the palace. How could you be so careless on duty? Look at this lock, it's just an ordinary lock. Few people usually come to the palace's sleeping quarters, so it's not surprising that they're locked. I think you've been on duty for many years and have become increasingly lax! Now that Her Majesty the Empress and the Crown Princess are here, why don't you open it quickly!"
Even Yao Su'an frowned upon hearing this, for the person speaking outside the door was now Wei Tingya. But the Empress... how could the Empress have come here unharmed?
A sudden panic gripped her heart. The Empress was a woman of many words, seemingly kind and gentle, but she knew all too well that the Empress harbored deep fear of the Fifth Prince and the Huo family behind him. Although there was no evidence, the Fifth Prince had always suspected that the Huo family's decline was inextricably linked to this Empress, his stepmother. However, due to her status, he had never dared to openly expose her suspicions.
If the Empress were to see her in the Crown Prince's bedchamber today, would she still be able to leave unscathed?
Before I could think about it, I heard a rustling sound at the door, followed by a soft click. The lock on the outside of the door had finally been opened.
Yao Su'an quickly retreated behind Lin Xu.
Having spent so long in the dimly lit bedchamber, Lin Xu felt a little out of place facing the open door and bright lights. She blinked slightly before looking at the stunned crowd at the doorway and gracefully bowed in greeting.
"Your Majesty, may you be well. I was unaware of Your Majesty's presence and was momentarily rude. Please forgive me."
Miao Yiyun and Wei Tingya exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with excitement and pride. Before they could even speak, they were astonished to see a frail figure behind Lin Xu pause, then quickly bow and perform a deep salute with barely any composure.
Yao Su'an, who was graceful and dignified during the day, was now disheveled and looked miserable. Her eyes were even slightly red and swollen, as if she had just been crying.
Isn't this the Princess Consort of Zhenshan? What's she doing here? Didn't that maid keep saying that the matter was settled and only Lin Xu was locked up here?!
Wei Tingya stood there dumbfounded, and immediately panicked.
Amidst the chaos, the Empress narrowed her eyes, looking down at the two kneeling figures on the ground, a rare hint of anger creeping into her voice:
"Oh? Isn't this the Crown Prince's sleeping quarters in his temporary palace? I truly don't know how you two ended up hiding here."
Yao Su'an's kneeling body trembled slightly uncontrollably.
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