Chapter 71 The Dead Don't Speak
Before the solemn, red-lacquered palace gates, the uncle and nephew, who hadn't seen each other for over a decade, stared at each other. As Hengbo approached step by step, their mutual loathing was reaffirmed in their hearts.
"So similar," Ji Heng thought to himself. "That clear, gentle face, that indifferent attitude—it's so hypocritical it's nauseating."
However, when Yokobo actually stood in front of him and bowed, he hurriedly helped her up with trembling hands.
He had dreamt countless times of another face kneeling and bowing to him, and in those dreams he was so proud. But when this was about to actually happen in a different way, he was filled with dread.
A guilty conscience ripped at his heart, and his fear peeked out from some hidden corner, constantly reminding him of the despicable means he had used to climb to this position.
He forced a not-so-good smile, his carefully prepared speech crumbling, and could only say dryly, "It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back."
A welcoming banquet had been prepared in the palace, and the group moved into the hall. Hengbo had brought few people with him on this trip back to the capital, so he avoided many unnecessary social interactions at the banquet.
Having finally recovered from the shock, Ji Heng felt a rare sense of frustration. The usually shrewd and worldly concubines all kept their heads down, staring at the banquet table, ignoring all the subtle signals they gave each other.
He gritted his teeth inwardly but forced a smile on his face. At this banquet, he wanted to say all the things he would say at the dinner table all year round, but this hateful Princess Shenxiao was not appreciative at all. Taking advantage of the fact that he was mute, she didn't even nod perfunctorily.
In the end, after enduring countless glares from Ji Heng, Consort Hui had no choice but to take over the task of relaying the conversation. However, Hengbo, who had just been willing to go through the motions, was no longer pretending. No, Hengbo was pretending to be deaf.
Consort Hui, who had finally regained her rank as a concubine, was not as patient as Ji Heng. After hitting a wall countless times, she almost bit her teeth to pieces, and her face twitched involuntarily.
For some reason, seeing this scene, Ji Heng felt inexplicably gratified, and a secret pleasure dispelled some of his earlier displeasure.
Hengbo seemed unaffected by the legal battle at the dinner table, finding the noise around him extremely annoying. Fortunately, the banquet was unlikely to be a pleasant affair for all, and the meticulously prepared food by the imperial chefs came to an end with only minor scratches.
"I have personally selected a residence for the princess outside the palace and had it renovated. Shenxiao has been staying in the palace these days." Ji Heng smiled insincerely. "The empress is a devout Buddhist and does not like to be disturbed, so Consort Hui is in charge of the princess's daily life."
He looked at Consort Hui, his tone unusually sincere, "I entrust my niece to your care."
Consort Hui was momentarily stunned by the sudden warm welcome. Before she could react, Ji Heng had already left quickly, his back showing a hint of joy as if he had just gotten rid of a hot potato.
Hengbo rested at the Zuixia Hall of Yihua Palace at night. This place is located at the extreme east and west of Kunning Palace, where the Empress resides. Whether this was intentional or unintentional is unknown.
"The princess dislikes people getting close, so please stay here, sisters." The sisters Zhu Huan and Zhu Xi stopped the maid sent by Consort Hui.
The head maid did not insist, and said, "If the princess has any instructions, the two younger sisters can inform us, and we will stay in the outer hall."
Zhu Huan smiled and nodded, "Thank you for your trouble."
After everyone left, Zhu Xi wiped the smile off her face and scoffed, "Consort Hui is a coward too."
Zhu Huan's expression was indifferent: "Her son is crippled, and without his support, she naturally has to be more cautious. After all, the number of masters in this palace is fixed. Those without rank want to get one, and those of low status want to climb higher. The task of taking care of our princess has fallen on her shoulders, and there are quite a few people watching her in the shadows."
With that, the two turned and closed the inner hall door, quietly standing on either side of the inner hall to await orders.
Hengbo lay casually on the couch. Zhu Huan and Zhu Xi were given to her by Shen Guitang as maids. She was initially very uncomfortable, but it was indeed troublesome not having anyone who understood sign language by her side, so she kept the two of them with her.
I'm going to Kunning Palace tomorrow. Hengbo, tell the two of them to help me hold off the people.
Zhu Xi struggled: "Master, let me go with you. I'm worried about you going alone."
Hengbo waved her hand in refusal. She planned to sneak over early in the morning, and bringing another person would not only be troublesome but also easily give away clues. But she said tactfully: I still need the two of you to stay here and help me cover for me.
Zhu Huan had long been instructed by the young master to respect all the princess's decisions, and she accepted this readily: "Rest assured, my master, Zhu Xi and I will certainly live up to your expectations."
Hengbo sent the two girls to sleep in the side room. Zhuxi wanted to say something, but Zhuhuan pulled her away.
Hengbo closed his eyes for a short rest, then suddenly opened them after hearing no movement from the side room. Tonight wouldn't be a peaceful night either.
In the cold and secluded palace.
"Granny, are you still doing laundry? Take it to the laundry shop tomorrow morning so you can get some rest."
The elderly woman leaned against a tree and slowly straightened up. "It's no trouble at all. Besides, the laundry room washes clothes for nobles. I don't want to have to put up with other people's attitudes. I'll wash them myself while my old arms and legs can still move, so as not to annoy others."
The maid who spoke first covered her mouth and laughed: "Who just gave you a dirty look? You are, after all, a member of the Empress Dowager's family. Where did the Empress Dowager go without you when she was alive? If you were willing to go out and about now, there would be plenty of people eager to curry favor with you!"
The old woman smiled, shook her head, and said no more, but her eyes were full of bitterness.
As the old woman hobbled back to her courtyard, carrying a wooden bucket in one hand and leaning on a wooden cane in the other, Hengbo emerged from the shadows.
Most of the maids and servants who entered the palace with Empress Dowager Zhengde disappeared after Ji Heng ascended the throne, likely having met with misfortune. Only this one person survived because she was Ji Heng's wet nurse, but at an age when she should have left the palace to reunite with her family and enjoy her retirement, she was confined to the palace and lived a secluded life.
If it weren't for learning from that old monster in the imperial tomb that Ji Heng's bloodline was different, who would have thought of this breakthrough?
Hengbo turned and was about to leave when she suddenly heard a whooshing sound as it flew past her ear. Startled, she turned her head to look.
The old woman, who had been alive just moments before, was now limp and collapsed to the ground. A small dagger, gleaming coldly in the darkness, pierced straight into her throat from behind, drawing out a spray of snowflakes.
Hengbo's hands, clasped tightly at his sides, clenched tightly. Was this a provocation, a warning, or a threat?
Her heart pounded like a drum in her chest. She dug her nails into her blood-red fingernails to force herself to calm down. This person could kill someone right under her nose, so his martial arts skills must be no less than hers.
Hengbo lowered his head and tugged at the corner of his mouth. He was using a human life to warn her. Should she be glad that this person didn't intend to kill her for the time being?
We are truly grateful!
The necessary tests have yielded results. Why hasn't this old monster hidden in the imperial city died of old age yet?
Hengbo's heart gradually calmed down. Before leaving, he took one last look back at the menacing darkness behind him. The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. It is said that the dead cannot speak, but some sordid things only surface after someone dies.
The following day, Kunning Palace.
"You may all leave. I wish to be alone today," Empress Lin said, fiddling with her prayer beads without looking up.
Upon hearing this, her trusted nanny immediately led the maids who were standing guard to file out. The maids were not surprised; their empress was kind but aloof, and especially disliked being disturbed when she was worshipping Buddha.
The palace maid closed the door with light movements, leaving only a frail, devout figure before the ancient Buddha and the dim lamp.
The majestic Buddha sat regally on a lotus throne, the burning incense and candles filling the air with the calming scent of sandalwood, yet the hearts of those kneeling within the hall were far from at peace.
As her cat-like, light footsteps touched the ground, her back suddenly arched. Without turning around, tears streamed down her face before she could even speak: "It was I who harmed my cousin, and the entire Lin family!"
Hengbo stopped in her tracks, her voice trembling with sobs, her words broken and fragmented: "Back then, when the late emperor was critically ill, the empress dowager's rebellious intentions grew stronger, and my cousin was imprisoned in the Eastern Palace. I also heard that the empress dowager wanted to alter the imperial edict, and fearing that it would be too late, I secretly asked Eunuch Li to obtain an imperial edict from the late emperor when the empress dowager was not paying attention, but unexpectedly..."
Her remorse was too much to bear, and even decades of repentance before the Buddha could not bring her to face the world.
Hengbo sighed softly, silently filling in the gaps in her thoughts. Little did she know that this was all a trap set by the Empress Dowager. This imperial edict not only became a guillotine hanging over Ji Jin's neck, but also a tool for Ji Heng to later purge the Ye and Lin families.
She gently placed her hands on the woman she should call her cousin, feeling her body tremble.
Empress Lin finally calmed down. She took the handkerchief in front of her to wipe her tears, but dared not look up at the child even once. "Yujing is not a place for you. Go away, go anywhere. Your parents do not want to see you like this."
The horizontal wave remained still, thus indicating its refusal.
Empress Lin's taut back collapsed, her voice helpless and terrified: "You can't kill him. In this palace, no one can kill him. Before that person tries to back out, Yu'er," she finally looked up, grasping Hengbo's hand, her eyes full of sorrowful pleading: "Go, don't come back."
Hengbo paused for a moment, then gently but firmly brushed her hand away, shook his head, and walked away.
Empress Lin watched her retreating figure until tears welled up in her eyes again, and finally, unable to support herself, she collapsed to the ground. Looking up at the phoenix-carved beams, she seemed to see the tragic lives of two poor women trapped in this palace.
She hated the late Empress Dowager, hated Ji Heng, but hated herself even more. She had been in love with her cousin since childhood, but after he went to Jiangnan, he brought back a woman from the Jianghu, and even defied the late emperor for the first time for her.
The late emperor had no choice but to grant their marriage, but she was resentful; more accurately, she was insanely jealous.
To prove that she was no less than that woman, she defied her father's orders and insisted on marrying Ji Heng, the son of the empress.
At that time, she thought, if she couldn't marry her cousin, what difference would it make who she married? If that's the case, why couldn't she marry the one with the highest status? Jiang Yingxue, a country girl, could marry a prince, so why couldn't she, whose family background and appearance were no less than others?
Looking back now, Empress Lin's closed-eye, maniacal laughter—marrying Ji Heng—was truly the biggest mistake she had ever made. In her dazed state, a plain white note floated onto her, and she opened her eyes.
"The choice made by the father is not the son's fault."
She was stunned. The candlelight under the compassionate Buddha statue reflected on the paper and also shone in the corners of her eyes.
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