Chapter 159 From now on, you can do whatever you want.
Just after dawn, the drums from the Tower of Babel resounded in all directions, and a new day began.
Shang Yin opened his eyes in bed. This ordinary experience was an exceptionally rare one for him. Before, every time he closed his eyes, he didn't know when he would wake up next.
However, Zhao Yin hadn't had a proper night's sleep in a long time either.
Cultivators have short sleep durations. After Zhao Yin began cultivating, in order not to disappoint the Empress Dowager, he practiced martial arts during the day and used his sleep time at night for cultivation.
It is thanks to his diligence that he has achieved his current level of cultivation.
Shang Yin circulated his inner energy, turned his head to look at the door, and saw someone coming.
The loud banging on the door was impolite and suggested the visitor was in a great hurry.
He pulled on his outer robe, got up from the bed, and opened the door. He was not surprised to see the Dowager's maid standing outside.
In the past, the maid would have scolded him for being too slow, but today she didn't say a word of extras and simply said, "The Empress Dowager wants to see you."
Shang Yin followed the maid to the Empress Dowager's courtyard. As soon as he entered the room, he saw the Empress Dowager sitting in front of her dressing table with her hair still in a bun.
The Dowager Consort is extremely particular about her image. When she appears in public, she is always impeccably dressed and refined. Today, her behavior is quite out of line.
"Your Highness, what are your orders?" Shang Yin stepped forward and stopped a few steps away from her.
At such close range, he could easily strangle the person in front of him with just a little force after reaching out his hand.
But he won't do that.
People are always greedy. At first, he only wanted the Empress Dowager to die, but now he wants more.
The Empress Dowager waved her hand, signaling the maids around her to leave.
After they had all left, the Dowager Consort said, "Huang Lin went out last night and has not returned yet."
"Mr. Huang hasn't returned?" Shang Yin's face flashed with shock: "Could the noise last night be related to Mr. Huang?"
The Empress Dowager's face was ashen. She had heard the voice, but she had great confidence in Huang Lin's strength and thought that even if something unexpected happened along the way, he would be able to leave calmly. However, when she woke up this morning, she did not see Huang Lin appear.
Whether things succeed or fail, Huanglin will surely return to report, unless he is currently unable to extricate himself.
Once this thought arose, the Empress Dowager could no longer calm down.
Before the Empress Dowager could give any instructions, Shang Yin volunteered, "I hope the Empress Dowager will allow me to investigate. I believe that with Mr. Huang's abilities, he is probably just held up by something."
Hearing Shang Yin's words, the Dowager felt a little more at ease and nodded: "Go quickly and come back quickly."
"yes."
Shang Yin received the Empress Dowager's order and left the Zhao residence openly and legitimately, heading to Changpingfang.
At this time, the streets of Changpingfang were still quiet. Apart from the breakfast stalls which were a bit lively, most shops were not yet open, and Achan's incense shop was naturally also closed.
Even though the door was open, Shang Yin couldn't enter through the main entrance. He wandered around for a while, found a secluded spot, and jumped over the high wall.
Before he even landed, he saw a person standing in the spacious and tidy courtyard.
"Excuse me." Shang Yin calmly cupped his hands in greeting to Chen Hui.
Chen Hui nodded calmly to him and asked, "Achan is still asleep. Would you like a bowl of wontons?"
Unexpectedly, the other party offered him food, and Shang Yin nodded, flattered, "Then I'll trouble you."
"It's no trouble at all."
Before long, Chen Hui brought a large bowl full of wontons to the table. The plump wontons floated in the steaming chicken soup, emitting a wonderful aroma.
Seeing Shang Yin lower his head and start eating, Chen Hui went to knock on A Chan's door.
Ah Chan lingered in the room for a while before opening the door. As soon as the door opened, she squinted and sniffed hard: "Hui Niang, I think I can smell chicken soup wontons."
Chen Hui chuckled: "This morning's breakfast is wontons. Go wait in front, I'll get you a bowl."
"good."
Achan yawned and went to the front. As soon as she entered, she saw Shangyin sitting at the table eating wontons.
She moved to the other side and sat down, asking him, "Is it good?"
"Delicious." Shang Yin stuffed them into his mouth one after another, not even afraid of burning himself.
"That's right, our Hui Niang's cooking skills are not something that ordinary people can taste."
After chatting for a bit, the two got down to business.
"Did the Empress Dowager send you here?" Achan asked.
"Yes, Huang Lin hasn't gone back, and she's uneasy about it." After finishing the last wonton, Shang Yin put down his spoon and asked, "So, where is he now?"
"You could have guessed it," Achan said lazily. "He was caught red-handed while attempting murder, so naturally he's in prison."
Which prison?
"The prison."
Relieved to receive an affirmative answer, Shang Yin asked, "I've heard that once you enter Zhenyu Prison, you never get out. The Zhao family shouldn't be able to get in, right?"
Ah Chan said casually, "He can't get out. From now on, you can do whatever you want."
Her words were like a declaration. In an instant, Shang Yin felt his heart pounding like a drum. He could... do whatever he wanted?
"What are your plans next?"
Ah Chan's plan only goes this far. She is very curious about what kind of ending Shang Yin will arrange for the Dowager Consort.
“Huang Lin is stubborn; he won’t easily betray the Empress Dowager,” Shang Yin said, his voice trembling slightly with excitement.
"Hmm, and then what?"
"But the Dowager Consort will not place her hopes on his loyalty. She will try to contact the Prince of the Northern Wilderness or choose to leave the capital before the Mingjing Division has investigated the matter thoroughly."
"Is it too late to contact the King of the Northern Wilderness now?"
"With the Earth Spirit Register, it's not too late." As long as the news reaches the Northern Wilderness, even if the King of the Northern Wilderness has a falling out with the Dowager Consort, he will not let his biological mother be trapped in the capital.
He will definitely send the Four Realms to bring the Empress Dowager back to the Northern Wilderness. As long as she returns to the Northern Wilderness, no matter what the Wild Forest says or what is involved behind the scenes, it will not implicate the Empress Dowager.
Unless the emperor is determined to completely break ties with the King of the Northern Wilderness.
"The Book of Earth Spirits has such uses?" Achan exclaimed in admiration. "It's truly a wonderful thing."
"Yes, but it's not easy to communicate with the owner of the Earth Spirit Book in reverse; a ritual is required." Shang Yin didn't go into details, but it was obvious that a blood sacrifice was involved.
After all, this thing originally belonged to the demon race, and some of its uses could be considered cruel to humans.
After listening to him finish speaking, Achan suddenly smiled and reminded him, "There is a formation in the capital. Presiding over such a ceremony in the capital is very likely to be discovered."
"real?"
"Of course." How could she know what the formation in the capital was for? This was a royal secret, and probably very few people knew it, but she needed the formation to have this function.
Shang Yin nodded thoughtfully: "It's indeed not safe enough in the capital; it would be better to go outside the city. But I wonder if you have a suitable place to stay in the suburbs?"
“There happens to be one.” Achan told Shangyin the location of the manor, adding, “I have nothing to do today, and I was just planning to go and visit the manor. I might stay for a day.”
Shang Yin replied, "Then you should be careful during the day."
When Chen Hui served the wontons, Shang Yin had already left, leaving only an empty soup bowl.
Achan took a few sips of soup to moisten her throat and said to Chen Hui, "Hui Niang, we're not opening the shop today. Let's stay at the estate for the night."
"Okay." Chen Hui didn't ask why. After A Chan finished her breakfast, she had already put all their luggage on the carriage.
As the carriage drove out of the city gate, Achan lifted the curtain and looked up at the sky. The weather was not good today; the clouds overhead were thick, and the sun had not yet been seen.
But it was definitely a good day.
Shang Yin entered the Zhao residence silently and returned to the Dowager Consort's courtyard.
At this time, the Empress Dowager had finished dressing. When Shang Yin entered, he saw her sitting at the table with bowls and plates on it, and the food inside showed no signs of being touched.
"What did you find out?" the Dowager asked impatiently.
Shang Yin's expression was grave: "I discovered that the owner of the incense shop is safe and sound."
The Dowager clenched her fist so tightly that her meticulously manicured nails dug into her palm: "Anything else?"
"Also, the Mingjing Guards went to Changping Ward last night."
"The Mingjing Division..." The Empress Dowager gritted her teeth, feeling stifled.
Back in the Northern Wilderness, she had never felt so frustrated. She never expected that after coming to the capital, she would suffer such a huge setback because of the mere Mingjing Division.
"Where is the incense burner? Is it still in the incense shop?"
Shang Yin forgot to ask about this, but whether the incense burner is there or not won't affect the plan.
He shook his head: "I did not dare to approach the incense shop and cannot confirm whether the incense burner is still there."
The Dowager Consort fell silent, pondering her next move, when Shang Yin said, "Dowager Consort, Mr. Huang may have fallen into the hands of the Mingjing Division. The best course of action now is to inform the Prince of this matter first."
"You're right, it's time to inform the Prince."
As she spoke, the Dowager got up and went to the inner room. A short while later, she came out with a book in her hand.
It was just an ordinary travelogue of the northern wilderness, but when it was opened, a gold page was found tucked inside.
This is one of the pages of the Earth Spirit Book. You can communicate with the Earth Spirit Book through this page, but activating this golden page requires a large amount of blood.
The Dowager looked at the gold page and narrowed her eyes slightly: "Go and find two people."
Seeing that Shang Yin did not move, the Empress Dowager's eyes flashed with a fierce light: "What, without the desolate forest, you can't be ordered to move by me?"
"Your Highness, please forgive me, but there is a powerful array protecting the capital. If we rashly use the Golden Page, it might be detected."
The Empress Dowager was unaware that the formations in the capital had such an effect, but after his reminder, she became wary.
The Golden Page cannot be lost, and she has no time to investigate the effect of the formation on the Golden Page. The safest course of action now is to take the Golden Page out of the city.
The Dowager Consort hesitated. Without Huang Lin by her side, she always felt that nowhere was safe enough.
Shang Yin seemed to sense her unease and volunteered, "Your Highness, I am willing to take the gold leaf out of the city to contact the Prince."
One, two...
Before he could even count to three, the Dowager Princess refused, saying, "No need, I'll go myself."
It was a matter of great importance concerning her safety, and she couldn't afford to make any mistakes; she absolutely had to be present.
"Should we inform the old master about this?"
"Let's not talk about it now. We can discuss it after we get in touch with the prince."
This answer was exactly what Shang Yin had predicted. In a situation like this, even if it were her own father, the Dowager Consort wouldn't believe him completely.
"I understand, but if only the Dowager Consort leaves the city, the people in the manor might start to speculate. Should we find a suitable excuse?"
The Dowager Consort pondered for a moment, then said, "Then let's invite Xun'er along. Tell him I'm bored staying in the city and want to go out for a stroll. Have him bring a few useful servants with him."
Shang Yin lowered his head: "Yes."
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