The road from Tianyuan to Yunjiang is not short; it will take at least a month to get back.
The masked man certainly didn't give her the ten taels of gold he promised, so Wanxin didn't have much money on her.
It's easy to imagine the hardships such a person would endure on their return to Yunjiang.
Wanxin understood this as well.
"Princess, how can I possibly return to Yunjiang alone? Please spare me!"
Gu Jiangli showed no mercy. "I've already shown you great mercy by sparing your life. Aren't you satisfied with such a small punishment? If you don't want to leave on your own, I'll have someone tie you up and throw you out of the capital."
Wanxin's body went limp, and she collapsed to the ground, powerless.
Gu Jiangli's expression left no room for doubt. She knew there was no turning back, so she kowtowed and confessed her guilt.
The next day, Lotus watched as Wanxin packed her bags and left Ronghui Pavilion.
The other servants were quite surprised, but none of them knew exactly what had happened.
A few days later, the sedan chair that was to welcome Gu Jiangli to the palace arrived at Ronghui Pavilion.
Amidst the clamor of gongs and drums, Gu Jiangli was led into the inner palace.
Yongning Palace was kept very clean. According to the eunuch from that day, no one had lived in Yongning Palace for a long time, and it had been temporarily cleaned up in the last few days.
Gu Jiangli looked around the house from all angles. She didn't have high requirements for her residence; she just wanted it to be clean and elegant.
Therefore, Yongning Palace suited her taste perfectly.
As soon as I sat down, Lotus came in with anxious steps.
Before Gu Jiangli could ask her any questions, she whispered in Gu Jiangli's ear, "Your Majesty, Wanxin is dead."
"Dead? What happened?"
"Early this morning, in a small alley near the city gate, when we found her, her face was covered in blood. Upon closer inspection, we saw a wound between her eyebrows, as if she had been hit by a stone. There were no signs of her struggling, so she must have died on the spot. Some loose silver was still in the package. The perpetrators did not kill her for money. The soldiers guessed that it was a revenge killing."
Gu Jiangli shook his head, "After Wanxin left Yunjiang, she stayed by my side and hardly came into contact with anyone else. How could she have made enemies? The fact that she was killed in one blow shows that the villain's skills were quite high..."
As they talked, Gu Jiangli thought of a possibility.
At the banquet that day, the emperor said that he wanted to kill one more person.
If they didn't act that day, could it be that they waited until Wanxin left Ronghui Pavilion before sending someone to harm her?
Gu Jiangli thought about it more and more and it seemed very possible.
"Lotus, don't make this public yet. If the officials find out Wanxin's identity, they'll need your cooperation. Just tell them everything you know, but..."
"But what?" Lotus asked.
Gu Jiangli didn't rush to answer.
If this was indeed done by the emperor, then it will eventually be left unresolved.
"It's alright, Lotus. If anyone asks you questions, just say what you need to say. If no one asks you, just pretend you don't know anything about it and don't mention it again."
Lotus nodded, "Your Majesty, this servant understands." She felt no regret for Wanxin's death; on the contrary, she felt a sense of satisfaction.
They could do such cruel things; it would be better if they were dead.
————
They stayed in Yongning Palace for several days. Just as Gu Jiangli had expected, Wanxin's death passed by without anyone coming to question Hehua.
This further confirms Gu Jiangli's guess.
It was the emperor who did it.
But why would the emperor do this?
Is it simply about helping him eliminate dissidents?
Gu Jiangli really couldn't understand this.
That night, the emperor summoned her to his bedchamber, finally giving her the opportunity to meet him.
When Gu Jiangli arrived at Jing'an Palace, she was almost startled again.
The emperor, dressed in a black outer robe with his hair loosely draped behind him, had just pulled his long sword from a man's neck, blood splattering everywhere.
The man immediately clutched his throat and fell to the ground, his eyes wide open, looking directly in Gu Jiangli's direction.
Gu Jiangli was startled by the stare and immediately turned her head to look at the emperor.
The emperor's expression wasn't much better. When he killed, his eyes were bloodshot, as if he didn't recognize his own family. His crazed appearance was completely different from when he spoke politely.
She stood there, swallowed hard, and dared not move. She cursed her bad luck, thinking to herself that she should have walked slower on the way here. If she had come later, she might not have witnessed this murder.
The emperor glanced at her sideways, then raised his long sword and pointed it at her.
"You, come here."
Gu Jiangli blinked and noticed some very subtle problems.
When the emperor kills someone, his hands tremble.
Even at this moment, his right hand, which was holding the sword and pointing it at himself, was trembling slightly.
With doubts in her heart, she obediently walked towards him.
She had only recently been made a concubine and hadn't done anything yet; surely she shouldn't be beheaded by the emperor?
Thinking this way, my steps became much lighter.
"Come closer!" The emperor's voice became much more impatient, with heavy breathing.
Gu Jiangli jogged over to the emperor, stopping beside him to avoid being pointed at by the sword. Once she was standing next to him, she forced a smile and said, "Your Majesty, I have arrived."
Unexpectedly, the emperor turned around, and the sword was still hanging over her neck.
Gu Jiangli shuddered and raised her hands to grasp the emperor's sword-wielding hand. "Your Majesty, we can talk this over. I've been behaving myself lately, so I shouldn't have angered you. Why are you so angry with me?"
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