Hanxiang didn't believe it, or rather, she didn't want to believe it. She didn't want to believe that everything she had held onto was wrong. It would make her feel like her past was a joke, that she had been utterly worthless.
"Have you made up your mind? We're thinking of taking you out of the palace in a few days to see Meng Dan. You two can discuss it properly, and we also need to discuss it thoroughly," Xiao Yanzi said hurriedly.
After all, in Xiao Yanzi's eyes, Hanxiang was unwilling to marry the Emperor. Since that was the case, it would be better for them to help them and make the lovers a couple. Besides, there were already so many concubines in the palace. Even if the Emperor visited one concubine's palace every day, he might not be able to see all the concubines in the harem in a month.
Besides, Consort Ling and Consort Yu genuinely love the Emperor, while Hanxiang's heart belongs only to Mengdan, not the Emperor. Given this, why not cherish the person before her and let her go?
Ziwei remained silent, but she felt the same way. After all, seeing the Emperor's attitude towards her mother, Ziwei truly didn't want Hanxiang's youthful beauty to wither away in the palace.
Moreover, since they entered the palace, Consort Ling had taken good care of them, and Ziwei had long regarded Consort Ling as family. Last time, it was because of their affair that Consort Ling fell from her position as Imperial Concubine Ling.
Ziwei always felt guilty and wanted to do something for Consort Ling. If she could be restored to her original position, that would be even better, so that there would be someone in the harem to take care of them, and she could also speak well of Erkang in front of the Emperor.
Hanxiang clutched the letter tightly in her hand, her expression solemn, showing neither joy nor resentment. She was like a wooden figure, devoid of both sorrow and happiness.
"Have you thought it through? If you have, we'll find a way to take you out of the palace in a few days." Xiao Yanzi was an impatient person, and she was getting anxious seeing Hanxiang pondering without making a decision.
At the same time, she also felt that Hanxiang was not worthy of Mengdan's deep affection. Mengdan had been able to elope with her all this time and chase her from the Hui ethnic group to Beijing, which showed his deep affection for Hanxiang. Yet Hanxiang was hesitating here.
Hanxiang was startled by Xiaoyanzi's sudden outburst. After turning around and thinking for a moment, she decided to go see Mengdan. She felt that the princess's words had made her waver, but once she saw Mengdan, she would still stick to her original intentions.
"Alright, I still want to see Meng Dan." Hanxiang hesitated for a moment, then became resolute. "But is leaving the palace so easy? Won't you be implicated?"
Hanxiang now thinks Ziwei and Xiaoyanzi are good people, at least they are willing to take her out of the palace, and she is worried about their safety, feeling that they are sent down by the true god Allah to protect her and Mengdan.
"You don't need to worry about this. We have days to leave the palace every month." Ziwei held Hanxiang's hands tightly, her eyes full of determination.
Ziwei silently apologized to her father, the Emperor.
"That's right, you can just wear a eunuch's clothes and blend into our carriage. I have experience with this." Xiao Yanzi patted her chest and assured Hanxiang, after all, sneaking out of the palace was one of her specialties!
Back then, before she even reached the day she was supposed to leave the palace, she was able to disguise herself as a little eunuch and sneak out. Now, she can do the same to help Hanxiang leave the palace.
Qing'er thought Xiao Yanzi was just bragging and daydreaming. How could such a high-ranking concubine in the palace just disappear like that? Besides, was the guard at the gate an idiot? Didn't he recognize the palace eunuchs?
At the time, it was just that the Fifth Prince's status was holding him back, and it was also dark and windy at the time, making it difficult for people to see clearly. Moreover, who could have imagined that a princess would become a eunuch and sneak out of the palace?
But now that the Fifth Prince is no longer there to help them, they will surely face many difficulties. Moreover, given the example of Xiao Yanzi, the guards at the gate will be more vigilant and will not let them get away with it so easily.
Qing'er: Naive, so naive!
"Really? Thank you for bringing me this good news. You must be sent by Allah to protect me and Mengdan." Hanxiang excitedly spoke to them in Chinese. Then, she raised her hands and mumbled some words in response, praying to the heavens for their blessings.
Qing'er didn't know how to look at the group of people in front of her; she felt they were a bit silly.
Xiao Yanzi and Ziwei did not linger at Baoyue Tower. They were afraid of running into the Emperor if they turned around, and besides, there was Granny Fang guarding outside. They were also afraid of revealing what was to come, so they had no choice but to leave early.
After leading them away, Anke pulled Qing'er out of the inner room. However, Anke's expression showed no remorse. Although they had been eavesdropping, she never expected them to say such things.
Anke: Yes, that's right. It wasn't us who wanted to eavesdrop; you guys said it yourselves.
"First of all, thank you," Hanxiang said to Anke first. Anke was a little confused by her thanks, as she didn't seem to have helped her much.
“But now that I have the help of those two young ladies, I can leave the palace, so I don’t need you to help me leave anymore.” Although Hanxiang expressed regret, her eyes didn’t show any such intention.
In Hanxiang's eyes, it was probably true that as long as she was a princess in the palace, she could be secretly taken out of the palace.
An Ke, wanting to watch the show unfold, could only say to her again, "Do you think the guards at the gate are blind? Which eunuch on duty in the palace don't they recognize? How could they not notice someone as fair-skinned and delicate as you among a group of eunuchs?"
At this point, Hanxiang realized something was amiss, and her expression faltered, revealing a hint of worry. However, she stubbornly insisted, "I'll just keep my head down, then they won't be able to tell."
Anke simply didn't know whether to call her naive or stupid. A blockhead, utterly foolish.
“If that’s the case, go ahead and try. Guess what will happen if the Emperor finds out about this. Will he take his anger out on your entire Hui ethnic group?” An Ke rolled her eyes and said coldly.
As expected, Hanxiang immediately became anxious when her interests were involved. "It was my decision to leave the palace; it has nothing to do with my father or the entire Hui community."
“It doesn’t matter, but you lost it right under the Emperor’s nose, and what’s more, it was with your former lover. Do you think the Emperor will be angry?” An Ke said calmly.
Hanxiang's lips trembled, and she looked like a withered leaf in autumn, devoid of life. "In the end, you don't want to help me leave the palace."
Anke really wanted to pry open the person's brain to see how it was structured, since everything she had said before was just nonsense.
"But I told you I would make you give up, and I will definitely let you see Meng Dan. But you have to do as I say, and you have to go back to Meng Dan as I taught you." An Ke had already made up her mind that she would just have the guards at the gate let them out as if she hadn't seen anything.
"Alright, I will do as you say." Hanxiang had no other choice but to do as the princess said, at least to let her see Mengdan first.
“Alright, it’s a deal then.” After An Ke finished speaking, she clapped her hands and called everyone outside in. “I just told you, this is your tutor. You need to learn the palace rules from her.”
Hanxiang, being quite perceptive, responded, indicating that the mission was complete. Anke and Qing'er did not linger and returned directly to Cining Palace.
On the way, Qing'er couldn't help but ask, "Are you so sure that Meng Dan would ask her that question?"
An Ke sneered inwardly. Wasn't that the same question asked in the drama? But An Ke couldn't say that to Qing'er, so she could only laugh it off and say, "I'm just guessing. Think about it, he chased Hanxiang all the way from the Hui region to Beijing, which shows that he has a very strong desire to control their relationship. Would he be willing to accept that Hanxiang has already served the Emperor?"
Qing'er felt that An'an's words made some sense, so she nodded and said nothing more.
That day, fearing that things might change and he might forget later due to other matters, An went directly to Xuanwu Gate and instructed them that if they saw Princess Ziwei's carriage, they should let it pass, regardless of whether they recognized the eunuchs on board.
The guards quickly responded; since the princess had given such instructions, how could they not comply?
*
Several days later
Anke finally got Xingxing's information, saying that Ziwei and the others had taken Hanxiang, who was dressed as a little eunuch, out of the palace.
How could she be the only one watching such a good show? She hurried to Qing'er's room and called Qing'er over. Just as she was leaving, she bumped into Ertai and Jichu.
After learning where they were going, Ertai was a little worried, so he clasped his hands and told Anke that he would accompany them to protect the princess's safety.
Ji Chu stood to the side, smiling slightly, like a wooden stake, but his meaning was self-evident: he wanted to go along too.
Anke was helpless; she couldn't possibly miss such a good show, especially since she was the one who set the stage. She was forced to bring along two "assistants."
Ji Chu moved closer to Ertai, nudged his arm, and whispered, "Thanks, brother."
Ertai rolled his eyes. Of course, he was going to bring this person with him, but as soon as he heard that he was going to the palace to find the princess, he insisted on following him.
How could I have always thought he was a cold and aloof person? Ertai exclaimed that he had been deceived by his appearance. This guy was truly cunning when he wanted to be.
Besides, if anyone were to help him, he couldn't afford to lose the princess's favor. The princess hadn't even given any indication that she could help them arrange their marriage, so how could he possibly agree to such a request? It was just something Ji Chu was imagining in his head.
Moreover, he's a very cunning person, and he probably wants to drag me down with him so that he can speak well of me to the princess and get her to say good things about me to Princess Qing.
Dark, so dark! No wonder the people of Junggar said he was a dark-hearted person.
With Anke's prior instructions, the guards at the gate naturally let them through immediately.
Hanxiang, who had been sitting tensely in the carriage, suddenly relaxed. Her heart had been in her throat when the guard lifted the curtain to check her, fearing that he would discover her.
Ziwei was also tense, while Xiaoyanzi and Fuerkang were calm and composed, not nervous at all.
Seeing that they had successfully passed the test, Xiao Yanzi couldn't help but cheer on the carriage, "See, I told you we could leave the palace! I've used this trick countless times!" Xiao Yanzi couldn't help but boast proudly.
Ziwei quickly stopped Xiaoyanzi from jumping around on the carriage and covered Xiaoyanzi's mouth with her hand, afraid that Xiaoyanzi's loud shouts would attract the guards. "Xiaoyanzi, keep your voice down. We just left the palace gate. If they hear us, it will be a big loss for us."
Little Swallow nodded quickly, then covered her mouth with her hand, not daring to utter another sound.
Fu Erkang, however, spoke in his greasy, bubbly voice, "They probably already figured it out, but they're probably not pursuing it out of respect for you and me. After all, when I was a royal bodyguard, they always greeted me with utmost respect."
Fu Erkang, on the other hand, remained as confident as ever.
But apart from Ziwei praising him, Xiaoyanzi couldn't quite understand what was going on in the carriage, while Hanxiang was lost in her own thoughts.
Fu Erkang suddenly felt that Hanxiang was being ungrateful. He had already told her about her previous status, but she was still unmoved and didn't even say thank you. After all, they had risked their lives to bring her out of the palace.
However, Fu Erkang didn't seem to care much, because he greatly appreciated Ziwei's adoration for him. He didn't even look at other women.
The carriage sped along, accelerating towards the vast grasslands.
They had already agreed yesterday to go to Fu Erkang and Ziwei's secret base—Xin Kuang Grassland.
After all, the grassland is so vast that even if a few people accidentally wander by, they would probably be mistaken for young ladies and gentlemen on vacation.
They could discuss anything without worrying about voices or people. More importantly, Fu Erkang felt that his and Ziwei's secret hideout shouldn't be known by too many people. He felt that if too many people went to their secret hideout, it would taint it.
After all, he had painstakingly found these secret bases one by one, and only he and Ziwei could access them. With so many people coming, could it still be considered a secret?
Fu Erkang stood aside with a displeased expression. As soon as Hanxiang got off the carriage, she met Meng Dan's bloodshot eyes.
Hanxiang, like a butterfly fluttering its wings, rushed swiftly toward Mengdan. Mengdan, however, seemed to be rooted to the ground, remaining motionless and simply opening his arms in place.
When Hanxiang flew into Mengdan's arms, Mengdan hugged her tightly.
Xiao Jian said he couldn't bear to watch either, so he suggested that he walk with them.
Yes, Fu Erkang and Xiao Jian have become good friends these days, and most importantly, Xiao Jian understands his inner turmoil.
Xiao Jian would join him in saying that the emperor was blind; how could someone as talented as him not be reinstated? Even his once good-for-nothing younger brother could become a general.
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