Chapter 1072 The Demons Are Afraid of Me
"But if Yun Zhen really knows witchcraft..."
Jiang Xiaoan suddenly shuddered and was interrupted by a strange noise coming from the roof before he could finish his words.
There was a faint rustling sound coming from the gaps between the wooden beams, and he subconsciously grabbed Fu Dong's sleeve and took a half step back.
Fu Dong quickly climbed through the window to check, and in a blink of an eye, she came back with a white ball of ruffled fur: "It's just a kitten that got wet by the rain." She looked at her colleague who instantly retreated to the corner with amusement: "Lord Jiang dared to challenge the Beidi spies alone, and he is afraid of this?"
"This is called everyone has their own fears!"
Jiang Xiaoan pretended to be calm and straightened his clothes. Suddenly, he approached with a burning gaze and said, "But I'm not afraid now that Fu Dong is here. After all, you said you never knew what fear was."
Before he finished speaking, he had already trapped people between the bookshelves.
Fu Dong's ears turned red as she pressed against his chest: "Let go! The book will be crumpled."
"Your heart is beating faster than mine."
A warm breath brushed across her neck, and Jiang Xiaoan greedily sniffed the faint soapberry scent in the girl's hair.
Suddenly, his arms felt empty. Fu Dong had already retreated to the door holding the catalog. The moonlight made the silver hairpin in her hair shine brightly.
"It's three quarters past midnight. If you don't leave now, the guards on duty will come to check on you."
She turned her back and adjusted her clothes, but her fingertips were trembling slightly. A low laugh came from behind her: "Fu Dong could have pushed me away just now."
Fu Dong was keenly aware of his companion's unusual movements, and before he could make any move, he warned him coldly: "Stop it."
Jiang Xiaoan was so shocked by the cold voice that he immediately calmed down and hurriedly took a step back to change the subject: "The most urgent thing is to present the evidence to His Highness."
When passing through the palace alley, they found that Jiang Xue and Xiao Zhan had left the palace, and they went straight back to the princess's mansion.
When they met in the corridor, the princess, dressed in plain brocade, unconsciously stroked the celadon teacup with her fingertips, her eyes cast towards the dead branches in the courtyard: "Are the orchids in the East Palace... still lush?"
Those plants that were once touched by the warmth of the brother and sister's palms have never been seen again since the brother's death.
"Reporting to Your Highness, the orchid garden is more lush and flourishing than ever before."
Fu Dong lowered his head in response, deliberately ignoring the desolate scene in the garden.
The candlelight on the table flickered, reflecting the ripples in Jiang Xue's eyes: "The Su Xin Orchid that my brother cherished has survived to this day... Tell me about your discovery."
"I found a book on Western witchcraft in the East Palace, but the chapter on the living dead happened to have been torn up."
Jiang Xiaoan placed the fragment on the table: "What's even more bizarre is that Yun Zhen showed up at this time, claiming to have inherited the body of the eldest son of the previous emperor."
Xiao Zhan picked up the torn book and pondered, "Such a coincidence seems like a careful plan."
He ran his slender fingers across the yellowed paper and suddenly stared at it: "The handwriting in this catalogue..."
"It is the authentic work of the late prince."
Fu Dong presented the old calligraphy he carried with him: "If anyone forges it, they must first imitate His Highness's calligraphy."
In the candlelight, two pieces of handwriting overlapped, and the elegance between the strokes made Jiang Xue suddenly clench her sleeves - the calligraphy copy of her brother when she was a child was still deep in her dressing box.
Doubts spread like ink stains on silk: Why are forbidden books hidden in the crown prince's study?
Why was the key chapter missing when Yun Zhen appeared in the world? What was even more horrifying was that the "accidental" fall from the horse fifteen years ago caused bloody ripples in Jiang Xue's heart.
She suddenly felt that the reality she believed in in the past was cracked like a glass cup, and she vaguely saw the strange shadow hidden behind the numerous palaces.
If my brother knew that his fate was coming to an end, is this fragment of witchcraft a warning he left for the world?
And could it be that the appearance of Yun Zhen is the poisonous mushroom that has grown over the years from the conspiracy that was not revealed back then?
The night wind blew through the corridor, rustling the remaining pages on the desk, like the whispers of a dead soul.
As dusk fell, Jiang Xue stared at her hands with intertwined palm lines.
It has been more than twelve years since Jiang Ke's death. Everything inside and outside the palace has changed, but the cloud of doubt lingering in my heart still lingers.
She gently stroked her slightly bulging belly, and the gilded armor reflected a cold light in the setting sun that came through the window.
"Prepare the sedan chair and go to the East Palace."
Before she finished her words, Xiao Zhan's warm jade ring had already gently clasped her slightly cool fingertips.
This iron-faced Prime Minister always had a gentle and caring attitude towards his wife, but at this moment, he stopped smiling and said, "Xiao An, bring me my black iron sword."
Jiang Xiaoan's knuckles turned white as he gripped the medicine box. The copper bells on the eaves were knocked empty by the night wind. "Your Highness! The East Palace has been abandoned for so many years that even the eaves have moss growing on them, not to mention..."
His voice stopped abruptly. He looked at the princess's suddenly pale profile and bit his tongue in annoyance.
On the carved table, the celadon cup with ice cracks reflected the watery look in Jiang Xue's eyes.
She remembered that when she came of age, her brother the Emperor held her in his arms and crossed the threshold of the Eastern Palace. The hem of her pomegranate red skirt brushed against the gilded Chinese characters "Changle" on the threshold.
But now, that scarlet color has long faded into mottled dark brown, like solidified bloodstains.
"I was able to take the enemy's head on the battlefield when I was ten years old."
Jiang Xue slowly stood up, holding onto the sandalwood chair, the beads on the Nine-Di Golden Crown swaying slightly: "If there are souls in the underworld, the demons should be afraid of me."
The night wind blew up her crimson cloak, revealing the darkly embroidered patterns on the soft armor underneath.
The sound of wheels rolling over bluestone slabs mixed with the sound of the night watch. Xiao Zhan broke the almond cake into small pieces, but saw his wife staring at the food box in shock.
In the candlelight, the jade lock around her neck trembled slightly - this was a coming-of-age gift from Jiang Ke before his death. The lock core had a hidden mechanism that could hold a half-inch secret letter.
"I checked all the pulse cases back then."
Xiao Zhan wrapped his cloak around his wife's thin shoulders: "But the crabapple tree in Zhaoyang Palace..."
His Adam's apple rolled as he swallowed the rest of the sentence. Ten years ago, there was a strange late spring cold snap, and all the flowers and trees in the palace withered, except for that crabapple tree, which was blooming extraordinarily beautifully.
Jiang Xue suddenly grabbed his wrist with astonishing force: "Do you think the spices brought by the Western Region merchants can really cause people's heart and veins to fail as if they had a cold?"
The sound of clappers floated from outside the carriage curtains, and the fog at midnight filled the carriage, condensing into a frosty color between her brows.
When the black iron sword split the bronze lock of the East Palace, the crows were startled and covered the moon.
Jiang Xue walked across the dusty steps and suddenly saw moonlight leaking through the broken caisson, shining on the "Spring Hunting Picture" on the wall - beside the prince holding a bow in the painting, there was a blurry figure.
The double eaves of the East Palace cast shadows in the night, and Jiang Xue stopped in front of the stone steps.
The lantern in Fu Dong's hand cast a flickering light on the copper nails of the palace gate. The moment she pushed open the vermilion door, the cold wind blew rotten leaves across the blue bricks. Xiao Zhan's black cloak had wrapped her in the scent of pine.
"This palace wall actually devours warmth."
Jiang Xue's fingertips touched the silver embroidery on Xiao Zhan's collar. In the past, her brother always loved to burn agarwood in the porch to warm the floor.
Now the chill that seeps out from the cracks in the blue bricks penetrates deep into my bones, and even the sound of the iron horses colliding on the eaves is filled with loneliness.
Jiang Xiaoan looked at Fu Dong's back as she held the lamp. The cold light reflected from her silver armor was just like the sword at her waist.
When the black cloak completely covered the scarlet palace dress, he suddenly remembered the stars in Fu Dong's eyes when he cut off his jade crown tassel on the training ground yesterday.
Perhaps I should find a snowy night and take her to see the only copy of "Weapons Atlas" that I treasure?
"Doctor Jiang!" Fu Dong's light scolding startled me out of my thoughts.
She raised the lantern half an inch, illuminating the tortoiseshell cat curled up in the crack of the stone steps.
As Jiang Xiaoan walked quickly forward, he caught a glimpse of the fleeting cunning curve at the corner of her lips.
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