Chapter 77 All visitors will be refused entry.
Upon hearing the Empress Dowager's summons, Yunxi immediately understood that the Emperor had just summoned Gu Nanxiao to the palace, and the Empress Dowager was about to make trouble for her.
Yunxi was not surprised. From the moment she made a move against Shen Yujiao, she knew that this was bound to happen sooner or later.
Yunxi instructed Zisu, "Go and fetch the items from the first compartment of my dressing case. The eunuchs have come all this way late at night; they should at least buy a few cups of tea to warm themselves up."
Zisu obeyed the order and stuffed a stack of silver notes into the hands of the imperial eunuch. The eunuch pretended to refuse twice, but in reality, he was glancing at the amount on the silver notes. He saw that each note was worth one hundred taels, and there were about six or seven of them.
He immediately changed his previous cold attitude and said with a kind smile, "We servants are just following orders. The palace carriages have been waiting at the gate for a long time."
Please don't waste too much time on washing and dressing. Just wear a few warm clothes and then come with me to the palace.
Yunxi understood; the eunuch was reminding her that she might face some hardships after entering the palace, which was why he told her to wear more warm clothing.
Yunxi nodded gratefully, turned and went into the inner room, quickly put on three inner garments, and then chose a heavy outer robe.
He casually poured all three plates of pastries on the table into his sleeve, and then took out several specially made hairpins from the bottom of the jewelry box.
The gemstones on the hairpins are all hollow, containing pills with different effects. There are antidote pills, pills that can make people faint, and pills that can make people itch; all of these were specially prepared by Su Mingyan at her request.
Later, a craftsman was commissioned to inlay the beads onto a hairpin, which would come in handy when entering the palace. After all, everyone had to be searched before entering the palace gates.
As for daggers, hidden blades, and the like, they are absolutely forbidden. Not only are they practically useless, but if they are found during a search, you could be charged with assassination.
After everything was prepared, Yunxi grabbed a thicker night cloak before leaving. Then, she followed the palace attendants and boarded the carriage sent by the Empress Dowager.
When the palace servant delivered the message, Yunxi saw Qianyu disappear in a flash, presumably to inform Gu Nanxiao. However, given Gu Nanxiao's speed, it's unlikely he could catch up.
Yunxi guessed correctly. When Qianyu exerted all her strength and rode her horse to the palace gate, she saw a figure that had already walked deep into the palace walls.
He was also troubled by the prohibition against making loud noises in front of the palace gates, and could only watch helplessly as his master disappeared at the end of the palace road, unable to send out the message.
At this moment, he was extremely anxious. Miss Zhao was the kindest person to him besides Commander Moyu. She often gave him all kinds of delicious snacks and rewarded him with silver so that he could save it to get married.
She never complained about his dullness and would occasionally pat his head. That feeling was like that of his deceased mother, so he didn't want anything to happen to Miss Zhao.
But his master had already entered the palace, what should he do? At this moment, he inappropriately thought of the mysterious head manager, Qi Jinxiu.
But could he, a commoner, really help Miss Zhao? With these doubts in mind, he turned his horse around and headed towards Huimin Pharmacy.
Qianyu felt that, regardless of whether that person could help Miss Zhao or not, it was still better than him being anxious and helpless like this.
Yunxi rode in a carriage, swaying and wobbling, until she arrived at the palace gate. Led by a eunuch, she walked along a sparsely populated palace road and then came to a palace overgrown with weeds.
The difficulties she had anticipated, such as being forced to kneel or stand in the wrong places, did not materialize. She didn't even get to see the Empress Dowager before being locked in this remote palace.
Using the silvery moonlight, Yunxi looked around at her surroundings. The palace walls were exceptionally high; she wondered if they were built specifically to imprison people. In any case, with her skills, she probably couldn't climb over them.
The only way out was through a locked door, and two breathing sounds could be heard outside, likely from guards sent to watch over her.
Yunxi slowly walked through the courtyard and arrived at the main hall. With a creak, she pushed open the door and saw dilapidated, drafty window frames, mottled and peeling paint on the beams and pillars, and an eight-step bed covered with cobwebs.
Judging from the appearance, it was clear that no one had lived there for many years. Although the environment was extremely harsh, Yunxi breathed a long sigh of relief after seeing all this.
She deduced that if the Empress Dowager wanted to kill her, she should have done so when she brought her to this remote place, but the Empress Dowager clearly did not intend to do so.
Furthermore, the Empress Dowager shouldn't act so openly, especially since Yunxi had heard about her close relationship with Gu Nanxiao. The Empress Dowager wouldn't be foolish enough to create a rift between them over a mere maid.
As for tormenting her, it seems unlikely. If the Empress Dowager wanted to punish her, she wouldn't let her get a good night's sleep first and then take action after she had recovered her strength.
Therefore, she felt that the Empress Dowager's plan was simply to lock her up here for a few days, perhaps without food or water, as a small punishment to warn Gu Nanxiao.
All she had to do now was stay here a little longer and wait for Gu Nanxiao to come and pick her up.
Yunxi weighed the amount of pastries in her sleeve pocket. If she ate them sparingly, they should last for three days. However, getting water was a problem.
She scanned the plants in the yard, finally fixing her gaze on the tall weeds. She took off a garment, tore it into many small pieces, and wrapped each piece around the end of a leaf.
After putting on his outer robe again, he entered the inner hall and began cleaning.
People in ancient times probably didn't know that the curtains on these beds, as well as the bedding that hadn't been washed for years, contained mold. If you slept under these covers, your lungs would become infected with mold.
Yunxi covered her mouth and nose with a torn piece of cotton cloth. Then she began to tear at the bed curtains, found a stick, tied it into the shape of a broom, and began to sweep away the cobwebs and dust in the room.
He then rolled up the brocade quilt and threw it into a corner of the side room. Although the quilt could no longer be used as a cover, it could still be used to start a fire if needed.
Yunxi worked late into the night, finally making the dilapidated hall habitable. Exhausted, she collapsed onto the bed and fell asleep fully clothed.
The Emperor had already been informed of the Empress Dowager's movements, so after finishing his business with Gu Nanxiao, he deliberately made a joke:
"Your grandmother, of all her grandchildren, doted on you the most. She even had to personally inspect which concubine you liked."
Upon hearing the Emperor mention Yunxi, Gu Nanxiao immediately frowned, carefully considering the Emperor's words, and broke out in a cold sweat. He immediately took his leave and rushed to Cixi Palace as quickly as possible.
As a result, the palace, which he could usually enter and leave at will, was now tightly shut. Even when he went up to knock on the door, the palace servants only replied that the Empress Dowager was unwell today and would not see anyone who came.
Upon hearing this, Gu Nanxiao felt even more uneasy. As he paced back and forth in front of the palace gate, another palace guard came to inform him that the palace gate was about to be locked and that he had to leave the palace immediately.
As a man not of marriageable age, Gu Nanxiao was not allowed to stay overnight in the palace at will. However, he couldn't enter Cining Palace at the moment, so even though he was anxious, he could only leave the palace first. He would take his palace token and enter the palace to request an audience early the next morning.
As soon as he stepped out of the palace gate, he saw an inconspicuous carriage parked in the distance, but he recognized the driver as one of Qi Jinxiu's close attendants.
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