Imperial city, outside Guanghan Palace.

Zhao Rong was stopped.

There were dozens of Li Nu standing in front of the door in a solemn manner. The one leading the group, the one with the highest status, Xian Yue Li Nu, frowned and stepped forward.

"Stop! You...Crescent Silver Medal!"

The next second, she stopped talking abruptly. She didn't even have time to subside her stern frown. Her knees had already hit the ground and she knelt down.

Dozens of Crescent Moon Ladies in front of the door also suddenly knelt down and saluted.

In Yuefangsi, seeing the silver crescent moon is like seeing the Empress Dowager.

The crowd of beauties kneeling on the ground all bowed their heads respectfully, but Zhao Rong did not look at it for long. He muttered "Hmm, it works well" and stuffed the ancient silver plate in his hand back into his sleeve.

The leading lady was stunned and asked, "Wait, are you Mr. Zhao? Mr. Zhao, the queen seems..."

However, before she could finish her words, the young Confucian scholar who had put away the silver medal had already walked forward with his sleeves rolled up, looking straight ahead, walking around the crowd and entering Guanghan Palace.

He seemed to be thinking about something and didn't pay much attention to them.

The leading lady turned her head and stared at Zhao Rong's back, still subconsciously saying, "...it seems...I don't want to see outsiders."

But someone who is far away can't hear it.

"no."

The leading string musician hesitated for a moment, her face turned serious, and she was about to turn around and go inside.

"The Queen has ordered that no outsiders are allowed to enter. All of us have been driven away. No one is allowed to stay in the palace... Mr. Zhao... cannot enter."

Among the crowd outside the door, a girl who was in an inconspicuous position suddenly whispered:

"What if...what if it's not a stranger...but the person the queen is waiting for..."

The air suddenly fell into deathly silence.

The leading lady and everyone else had wonderful expressions...

After a moment.

Dozens of women outside the palace gate returned to their original positions, as if nothing had happened.

However, if you look closely, you can see that they have solemn expressions, sharp eyes, and are guarding the palace gates closely.

Never leave.

And judging from the atmosphere and momentum, it seems that the guarding is even more strict and meticulous than before Zhao Rong came.

…

Zhao Rong didn't pay much attention to the divorced women who were blocking his way. He put his hands behind his back and walked straight into the palace gate.

He put his right hand into his left sleeve, grabbing the history book of Dali in his sleeve, frowning slightly, as if thinking about something.

Zhao Rong walked a hundred steps along the road paved with glazed bricks and paused slightly.

He stopped where he was, looked around at the interconnected halls and corridors, and remained silent for a moment.

He turned around and looked back at the way he had come.

Zhao Rong hesitated for a moment, but did not go back to the door to ask for directions, and continued walking forward.

"Go to the front and ask a palace maid..."

He muttered and nodded.

Not long after, Zhao Rong followed his memory and returned to the hall where Dugu had held a banquet not long ago.

I looked inside, but there was no one there.

He continued walking forward.

After half an incense stick.

Zhao Rong stopped at an unfamiliar fork in the corridor, next to which was an elegant orchid bonsai.

He stood next to the bonsai, his brows furrowed.

He turned around to look at the road he came from, and then looked at the new corridor in front of him which was still empty.

"Something's wrong. How come we haven't seen a single palace maid in such a big palace and have been walking for so long? Uh, maybe this is the cold palace..."

The young scholar couldn't help but murmur and shook his head, "No, there shouldn't be no one in the cold palace. Where did this person go?"

He looked puzzled and hesitated where he was.

Cautiously, I didn't go any further.

After all, he didn't even know where he was in Guanghan Palace and was a little lost.

As Zhao Rong walked along, he discovered that the Guanghan Palace covered a very large area. Some of the buildings and palaces were ancient and old, while some were brand new and magnificent, as if they had been rebuilt.

This palace must have a long history and may have been used by many dynasties in the history of the earth. It was passed down from generation to generation, and later generations either repaired or rebuilt it on its basis.

This is also the norm in some imperial palaces of the Shanxia Dynasty, which has a long history.

The Guanghan Palace where Zhao Rong is lost now is obviously the same. It is the bedroom where the empress dowagers of some dynasties lived. It is located in the center of the west side of the imperial city and has a prominent position.

Now it is ruled by the Dugu family.

In a sense, it is the most noble place in Dali at the moment.

But Zhao Rong didn't care about these. What made him speechless now was, how can I find someone if you build such a big palace? And it's empty in the broad daylight. It's really a bit weird...

"How about I go a little further inside?"

Zhao Rong thought to himself.

But after thinking about it, he still didn't take a step.

At this moment, he was still very far away from the hall where the lunch had been held. If he went deeper inside, he would probably reach Dugu's residence.

She was a widow who had just lost her husband, and she was the Empress Dowager of Dali.

The people are bound by etiquette and morality, and reputation is taken very seriously.

Zhao Rong is a strong man with a lot of vigor and vitality. What if he runs into something he shouldn't?

He shook his head, gave up the idea, and waited there.

Zhao Rong looked around, but after a while he still didn't see the palace maid.

Just as he was considering returning the same way to ask the gatekeepers outside the palace, he suddenly saw a moving colorful object flash in his peripheral vision.

When Zhao Rong turned his head sharply, the moving shadow had disappeared from his sight, as if it had disappeared into the archway entrance of a garden in front of him.

The young scholar breathed a sigh of relief and walked quickly towards there.

"Finally I bumped into a human figure... It's broad daylight, so it shouldn't be a ghost."

He glanced at the clear sky, where the afternoon sun was lazily shining.

Zhao Rong smiled, and soon he arrived at the circular arch entrance of the garden.

Looking inside, there is a winding cobblestone path leading deep into the garden.

There are lush trees and beautiful flowers on both sides.

However, the figure from before was not seen in the field of vision, so he should have walked inside.

Zhao Rong didn't hesitate and followed him. There was only this one road here, and if he walked faster he would probably bump into him.

He nodded and strode forward.

Soon, Zhao Rong heard some light footsteps not far ahead. He took a big step forward and after turning a bend that blocked his view, there was no one in front of him.

The footsteps also disappeared without a trace.

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

He called out softly.

You could hear a pin drop in the air.

There was only the rustling of leaves in the wind.

Auditory hallucination?

Zhao Rong frowned, stood there for a while, and looked at the empty path.

After a while, he shook his head slightly and continued on his way.

On the way there, Zhao Rong looked around.

Some plants have extremely long roots.

Occasionally, among the flowers and leaves, you can vaguely see some abandoned stone benches or wooden objects.

This garden seems to be quite old and has a classical style...

This time, he hadn't walked for long when he suddenly realized something was wrong.

Zhao Rong first smelled a strange fragrance that was captivating to the heart and lungs.

Soon I saw a faint mist spreading outward from my heels on the winding cobblestone path ahead...

Zhao Rong frowned. Sure enough, after walking a few dozen steps, he faintly heard the sound of a spring. Some small streams also appeared on the side of the road, in the opposite direction of his direction.

After a while, at a corner of the cobblestone path, the young scholar stopped quietly.

His expression was slightly cautious, and he turned the corner and looked inside.

Not far away, there is a spring filled with hot mist, which has been ingeniously surrounded and built into a... luxurious and classical bathing pool.

It covers a huge area, with mist lingering around and covering your feet.

It's like a paradise on earth.

Zhao Rong's eyelids twitched and the corners of his mouth twitched violently.

Could it be that he came to the place where some lonely woman was bathing?

My god, who the hell could have seen from the outside that there was something else going on inside this garden? Uh, couldn't they just hang a bathhouse sign outside...

Zhao Rong was speechless and glanced around subconsciously.

A magnificent pavilion appeared in the field of vision, located not far from the bathing pool. It had nine high steps and was of classical and exquisite design. The hazy mist could only spread to the level of the last step.

However, the next second, Zhao Rong's pupils shrank slightly.

In the pavilion at this moment, in addition to the small stone table in the center with snacks and fruits placed on it, there was also a rosewood beauty couch, which was luxurious and simple. What attracted Zhao Rong's attention even more was a graceful and charming figure lying on her side on the beauty couch.

The woman was only wearing a snow-white, light gauze dress. Her beautiful, slender back was facing Zhao Rong. Her beautiful, waist-length black hair was wet and gathered in front of her left shoulder.

She was tilting her head to the left, holding an exquisitely embroidered towel in her slender hand, rubbing her long black hair.

On the beauty couch, there was a seductive sight of a peerless beauty lazily wiping her black hair after taking a bath.

Zhao Rong knew who the woman was at a glance.

He had seen the woman's pretty back that day in the mourning hall of the late Emperor Dali, and it had left a deep impression on him.

Now, she was no longer wearing mourning clothes, but a slightly see-through snow-white gauze dress...

Zhao Rong secretly thought that something was wrong.

Although he is here to find her, but... why the hell are you taking a bath in the middle of the day? Isn't this making me feel uncomfortable? And there is no one ghost in your entire bedroom. Could it be... a special fetish, or are you doing something secretly?

Although Zhao Rong was a little panicked and couldn't help complaining wildly, he quickly retracted his gaze and silently took a step back as soon as he saw the situation clearly.

Do not look at anything indecent.

The young scholar muttered silently, moved lightly, turned around slowly, and wanted to leave quietly.

"You're here?"

A sweet voice as clear as a silver bell rang out in the silent garden.

It was Dugu's voice, but compared with her previous voice in formal occasions, the ending tone was soft and long.

Less dignified and serious, more soft and charming.

Zhao Rong opened his eyes and stopped.

He slowly turned around and looked around.

In the entire Linyuan bathing pool, there were only Dugu and him, and there was no sign of a third person.

"Why are you still hiding? Come out quickly." Dugu said in a clear voice.

Zhao Rong frowned and turned the corner without moving at all.

He deliberately held his breath and waited quietly.

However, after a while, the garden was still quiet, and no stranger came out except Zhao Rong.

"Um?"

It seemed that the man was disobedient, which made Dugu snort with some dissatisfaction.

The young Confucian scholar had no choice but to walk around the corner hesitantly and reveal himself.

He looked around, looking a little embarrassed.

Speaking of which, he accidentally entered a place like this and was caught. What should he say? It feels awkward to say anything...

Dugu, who was lying on the beauty couch with her back to Zhao Rong, snorted softly while wiping her long hair, "Hmph, you are really brave now, sir."

“…”

Zhao Rong was speechless, and at the same time he was confused:

Did she know he was coming? Did someone inform her? Um, was it that figure just now...

"Come and help me." said the woman who was drying her hair in the pavilion.

The young scholar took a few steps forward, but couldn't help but retreat a little, but still walked slowly towards the pavilion.

"Okay, come here quickly, finish it soon and go back soon. You took a lot of risks by coming here to meet me this time, so don't let anyone find out."

Hearing his hesitation, Dugu stopped brushing her hair and shook her head.

Zhao Rong nodded when he heard this and touched the history book in his sleeve.

The two of them are now alone together, and they really can't let anyone find out, so it's better for them to make their conversation short and leave without delay.

He walked quickly up the steps and came to the beauty bed.

In an instant, a unique cool body fragrance of a woman mixed with the fragrance of rare and expensive spices in the bath water came to my face.

Why do I feel like doing this, it feels a bit like a **? And her tone... Did she just say that she wanted me to help her? Um, help her with what...

Looking at the beauty on the bed nearby, Zhao Rong frowned slightly.

He tried hard to look straight ahead, put his fist over his mouth, prepared to cough, and said a few words.

However, Dugu, who was standing with his back turned, suddenly said, "Help me wipe it first."

Before he finished speaking, a fragrant towel was thrown over with a colorful ribbon inside.

Zhao Rong subconsciously reached out to take it, but failed, and the end of the towel and ribbon brushed against his face.

The tip of my nose was filled with the warm fragrance of a woman, among which there seemed to be a familiar smell.

But at this moment, he subconsciously said:

"Isn't this... not good?"

The air in the pavilion was silent for a moment.

"!!!"

The next second, the beautiful woman's delicate body trembled violently and she fell off the couch.

The movement was so sudden and large that it even caused the luxurious and ancient beauty couch to tip over.

Zhao Rong raised an eyebrow when he saw this, "Uh, why are you so excited?"

He took a step forward, ready to help.

Dugu Chanyi raised her head abruptly, her beautiful face as beautiful as a painting, her eyes widened, "You...you...why is it you!"

The woman's tone was shocked, and she even forgot for a moment that she was not wearing a mask and was facing the man without makeup.

Zhao Rong frowned immediately.

However, at this moment, I saw him moving forward and reaching out his big hand.

Dugu Chanyi, who was sitting on the ground with her hands leaning back to support herself, trembled slightly, kicked her legs in fear, and stepped back in a hurry.

"Don't, don't...don't come over here!"

At this moment, a hollow crackling sound and the sound of wood breaking were heard at the same time.

It turned out to be a rosewood beauty couch that was overturned on the ground. The side facing Dugu was the bottom of the bed. But in her panic, she kicked the rosewood board in the middle of the bottom directly.

A palm-sized hole appeared.

Immediately, in an instant, something leaked out from the hole in the floor of the bed.

Ding Dong——!

Ding Dong——!

Several crisp sounds were heard in the pavilion.

It seemed as if a jade object had collided with the floor.

Zhao Rong and Dugu, who were staring at each other with different expressions on the field, were immediately attracted by something on the ground.

The two, a man and a woman, looked down almost at the same time.

What fell out was a jade product and three small ball-like objects, the material of which was unknown, and also several candles of different lengths.

This jade product is thick, long, and has a strange shape... It is very eye-catching, and it lies quietly beside the legs of Dugu, whose hair is disheveled...

Dugu: "..."

Zhao Rong: “…”

The air suddenly became quiet.