Chapter 302 The Former Emperor? Which Former Emperor?
“We are afraid that they may have escaped through a secret passage and activated a self-destruct mechanism from inside, making it extremely difficult for us to track them down.”
"So we asked Physician Li and the old apothecary for some potent sleeping pills in advance."
"Moreover, the sleeping potion doesn't need to be blown into the bamboo tube. We just need to open the potion outside the window, and the colorless and odorless smoke will seep into the room through the gaps in the window frame, covering an area of about one hundred meters around."
"After we heard Huo Yunting's voice inside, we immediately used the sleeping potion."
"Sure enough, they fell for it not long after."
"Their reaction was quick, and Huo Yunting immediately realized something was wrong. But the sleeping potion made by the old apothecary and Physician Li was too potent. Huo Yunting had barely realized it and before he could react, he collapsed to the ground."
"We broke in through the window immediately!"
"The three people inside have all been successfully captured! We have checked carefully, and it is indeed Huo Yunting himself; he has not disguised himself!"
Shen Qingci felt a great weight lifted from her heart and hurriedly turned around to go inside to get her clothes: "Where is he? Where is he? Wait for me a moment, I'll change my clothes and then we'll go see him."
As she walked, she kept asking, "Who is that other person in the room, the one Huo Yunting calls Your Majesty?"
Shen Qingci had just returned to the room when the guard's deliberately raised voice came from outside, trembling with disbelief:
"It is the late emperor!"
"Emperor Yongming?" Shen Qingci stopped in her tracks and turned around abruptly.
"No, it's not Emperor Yongming!" The guard took a deep breath, as if about to reveal a shocking secret. "It's Emperor Yongming's father, our Emperor's elder brother, that... the late emperor who died three years ago!"
Shen Qingci's eyes widened, and she almost dropped the clothes she was holding. Her heart was filled with turmoil.
It was him!
But isn't he already dead?
And he's been dead for three years!
He didn't die? And he actually reappeared alive and well three years later?
What's going on?
As Shen Qingci quickly put on her clothes, her mind was racing.
No wonder.
She said that judging from Huo Yunting's previous attitude towards Emperor Yongming, it seemed that he did not recognize Emperor Yongming as emperor at all.
Moreover, she didn't think Huo Yunting would support Liu Wenyuan as emperor.
If the person behind him is the late emperor, then everything can be explained!
Shen Qingci quickly put on her clothes, casually gathered her hair behind her head and tied it with a hairband, her eyes becoming incredibly sharp.
"Send a message to the palace immediately and report this to His Majesty! It must be done quickly!"
After giving her instructions, she wanted the guards to take her to see Huo Yunting and the late emperor who had been brought back from the dead.
But when she reached the door, she suddenly stopped.
Although the guards had carefully checked, the people they had captured were indeed Huo Yunting and the late emperor.
But she still needs to be careful and shouldn't act rashly.
After all, she is different now than before; she is carrying Chu Jichen's child.
Everything should prioritize the child; we should not easily put ourselves in unknown dangers.
Huo Yunting and the former emperor were captured rather easily, so easily that it was hard to believe.
Thinking of this, Shen Qingci stopped and ordered the guards, "Find the disguised guards and have someone disguise themselves as me to go with you to investigate the situation."
"Make sure you confirm everything is correct before reporting back!"
The guards agreed and quickly made arrangements, disguising the people before immediately leading them over.
Shen Qingci didn't move, only staying in the courtyard to wait for news, but her heart was in turmoil.
It wasn't until the sky was completely bright, and the faint sounds of the morning market and conversations could be heard from the alley outside, that Shen Qingci finally dressed herself up again, her pregnant belly protruding, and slowly went out with her bodyguards.
As soon as she stepped outside, she ran into the old lady next door again. The old lady, carrying a basket, was about to leave when she saw Shen Qingci and smiled broadly: "Oh, young lady, going out so early? Going out for a stroll?"
"Oh." Shen Qingci smiled gently and said in a Mandarin accent with a Northern Shuo accent, "Yes, I've never been to the capital before. I've finally come this time, and I've been cooped up at home for the past few days. I just wanted to take advantage of the good weather to go out and have some fun."
The old woman nodded: "Then you're quite lucky. Not long ago, there was quite a commotion in the capital, with rebels besieging the city, a palace coup, the emperor's death, and a new emperor's ascension to the throne. It was very chaotic."
"Things are a little better now, much more peaceful."
"But we're still in a period of national mourning, so most of the places we go to do are off-limits. We can only wander around."
Shen Qingci tidied her hair, her expression unchanged: "I heard about it, I'm just taking a stroll, it's fine."
"Yes." The old woman was carrying a basket of tofu, seemingly preparing to go out to sell it. "Actually, who becomes emperor has nothing to do with us ordinary people, as long as we can make a living. However, the new emperor is alright. He was a good regency. Once the national mourning is over, we can live in peace and prosperity."
Shen Qingci nodded with a smile: "That's right, that's right. We live far apart, so it doesn't matter much. As long as business is good, that's all that matters."
After she finished speaking, she bid farewell to the old woman, and, supporting her back, swayed unsteadily toward the Huo residence.
Her steps were slow, but a subtle sharpness was hidden deep in her eyes.
When Shen Qingci arrived at the main gate of the Huo residence, the entire residence was already surrounded by the Imperial Guards.
The vermilion gate was wide open, but the inside was empty, and no one knew what had happened.
Shen Qingci stood in the crowd, protected by disguised guards and secret agents.
All that could be heard was people talking amongst themselves:
"What's wrong? What's going on? What happened?"
"I don't know. Suddenly a large army came and surrounded the Yongning Marquis's residence. And I heard that the ones besieging the Yongning Marquis's residence are the Imperial Guards."
"The Imperial Guard? Aren't those the palace's troops?"
"Yes, and the new emperor and empress have both gone inside. I arrived early and saw it with my own eyes."
"Ah... Empress? Was the Empress previously the daughter-in-law of the Huo family?"
"I know what happened! I heard they caught a traitor!"
"Caught a traitor? Who is it? In this mansion, isn't there only that old lady Huo? Oh, and the concubines and their children that old lady Huo was forced to acknowledge back."
"But they're all orphans and widows, so how come there are traitors among them?"
Some people chuckled and speculated, "Could it be because the Empress suffered so much bullying at the Huo residence before, so His Majesty found this pretext, ostensibly to discover a traitorous minister, but in reality, to stand up for the Empress?"
"That's hard to say."
Shen Qingci stood in the crowd, listening to the discussions around her, a slight smile playing on her lips, without uttering a word.
Before long, a man dressed as a commander of the Imperial Guards suddenly rushed out of the Huo residence, looking hurried, and shouted towards the door: "Someone, summon the imperial physician!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com