Chapter 267 Entering the Palace at Midnight
After Mu Qing left, although Hu Xiner was worried, she was very sleepy because she had not slept all night and her emotions had been up and down during the day. She lay down on the bed and fell asleep in a daze.
I was sleeping when someone suddenly woke me up. When I opened my eyes, it was Lu's mother!
Mother Lu sat in front of the bed and said in a deep voice, "Xin'er, the emperor summoned you to the palace. Hurry up and get dressed!"
Hu Xin'er asked dazedly, "Mom, am I dreaming?"
Before she could react, the anxious Mother Lu and the servants pulled her out of the quilt.
A handful of cold water splashed on her face, and Hu Xin'er finally woke up. She realized what had happened and was immediately filled with questions: "Mother, is my husband back? Why did His Majesty summon me to the palace so late at night?"
Mu Qing and Hu Xin'er went out last night and happened to meet the eunuch who came to convey the emperor's oral instructions. Therefore, when they went to the palace, they did not disturb Lu's mother.
Mother Lu was shocked when she heard this: "Mu'er also went to the palace?"
Hu Xiner's heart sank!
Mu Qing hasn't come back yet, but His Majesty summoned her over again. What important thing happened?
These doubts were destined to remain unanswered. Amid the busy footsteps, she was pulled into formal clothes with three layers of clothes inside and three layers of clothes outside.
Her hair was held in a bun by Yun Qiu's skillful hands, with a few pearl hairpins inserted in it. Although it was not gorgeous and complicated, it was decent and generous.
When she hurried out of the mansion, she saw a sky-blue sedan waiting. The eunuch in front of the sedan was the same one who had just called Xuan Muqing. When he saw her come out, he didn't even raise an eyebrow: "Please ask Madam Lu to get in the sedan. I am waiting to report!"
My goodness, this scene made Hu Xiner a little scared.
After the crown prince rescued him last time, the emperor trusted him more and more. Could it be that this time he listened to the crown prince and wanted to get rid of the couple in one fell swoop?
Arriving dazed and dazed at the palace gates, Hu Xin'er couldn't sit still any longer. She lifted the curtain of the sedan chair and asked softly, "Eunuch, aren't the palace gates locked now? What important matter has His Majesty summoned us to?"
The eunuch just looked at her meaningfully and said nothing.
The sedan chair moved forward in the long and lonely palace road. Hu Xiner was frightened at one moment and worried about Mu Qing's safety at another, and she was eager to see him as soon as possible.
Finally, the sedan chair stopped in front of the Yangxin Palace. Hu Xiner took a deep breath, straightened her clothes, and entered the main hall.
Inside the hall, the emperor sat high up. He still looked like a kind-hearted old grandfather, but Hu Xiner, who had seen his changing expressions before, did not dare to let down her guard.
Mu Qing sat aside, not looking nervous, but with a slight frown on his face.
Hu Xiner bowed and then remembered that she should perform a formal ceremony.
The emperor waved his hand and said, "There's no need for those empty formalities."
Hu Xiner's heart suddenly relaxed. She was a modern person and didn't like these rules of kneeling. It was just right that she didn't have to kneel.
Moreover, the fact that the emperor could say this shows that the situation is not very serious.
After she thanked the emperor, a trace of worry appeared between his brows. He asked directly, "Do you know someone named Yin Li?"
Why is it related to Yin Li again?
Hu Xin'er glanced at Mu Qing secretly and found that his expression was very gentle, so she nodded cautiously: "I have a friend named Yin Li."
The emperor asked again, "Last night, a fire broke out in the palace. Nearly ten thousand rare ancient books in the library were destroyed. The loss is incalculable. Are you aware of this?"
Only then did Hu Xiner realize that what was seen in the sky last night was not the sunset, but a sudden fire in the palace's library. The flames that shot up into the sky illuminated the night sky.
But what does this have to do with her? It wasn't her who burned it.
Wait, could it be that Yin Li sneaked into the palace to read last night and accidentally burned down the library?
Although it sounds outrageous, with Yin Li's frivolous personality, he is really capable of doing such a thing!
Thinking of this, Hu Xin'er quickly shook her head: "I don't know about this!"
"If you know Yin Li, the head of the Wanjuan Pavilion," the emperor sighed, "I have something I need your help with."
Hu Xin'er said hurriedly, "Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven. If you have anything to say, just give it to me. Why would you need to ask for something?"
She was secretly conflicted. If the emperor asked her to set a trap to capture Yin Li, should she agree?
If you don’t agree, how should you politely refuse?
No, if I refuse, wouldn't that mean I'm Yin Li's accomplice? Wouldn't the Crown Prince then take advantage of the situation and sink the entire Lu family?
On the surface, she just stood there quietly with her eyes lowered. The bright candlelight in the hall was swaying gently. No one knew that there were so many messy thoughts in her heart.
The emperor pondered for a moment, then spoke, "The books destroyed in the library are extremely valuable. Most importantly, they were painstakingly collected by successive emperors. If I allow them to be burned, I will be ashamed to face the emperors in my grave!"
Hu Xin'er became even more nervous when she heard this. How many books had Yin Li burned? He even made the emperor bring up his ancestors!
Wouldn't this be a crime like exterminating nine generations of the family?
She asked cautiously, "No, I wonder who could have committed such a terrible disaster?"
The emperor was stunned. "The library's gatekeeper accidentally fell asleep, and the candle was knocked over. It burned for a long time before it was discovered."
Hu Xin'er was also stunned when she heard this: "Ah? It wasn't Yin Li who did it?"
The two looked at each other in bewilderment. Mu Qing finally couldn't stand it anymore and spoke up to help: "Your Majesty, your wife is straightforward. If you have anything to say, just tell me directly."
The emperor looked at Hu Xin'er, who was completely bewildered, and said helplessly, "What I meant is that these ancient books must be repaired. I heard that there was a talented person among the people who could do it, so I sent someone to find him overnight, but that person specifically asked you to come and ask him to do it."
Even without saying the name, Hu Xiner knew who that arrogant, proud and ungrateful genius was!
She smiled awkwardly: "So I misunderstood... The genius that Your Majesty was talking about must be Yin Li, right?"
The emperor shook his head and said, "These scholars always have their own little tempers. If you can persuade him to restore my collection of books this time, I will definitely reward you handsomely!"
Hu Xin'er said with some embarrassment, "But Your Majesty, his temper is indeed strange. If I hadn't persuaded him to come..."
This time the emperor did not answer her, but just smiled meaningfully.
Then, he looked at Mu Qing and said, "Lu Yunjue, you are now employed at the Hanlin Academy. The fire in the library happened to fall within your responsibilities. You are likely to bear the responsibility for failing to oversee it properly!"
Without waiting for their reaction, he said sternly, "I order you two to take charge of this matter. Make amends and restore the collection as soon as possible!"
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