After the fire, the soldiers found a tunnel at the location of Xueju, through which Zhao Bi and Jiecao Jushi escaped.
Zhao Shu brushed away the burning smell lingering in her nose and watched the soldiers crawl out of the tunnel. "General, Princess, the tunnel has collapsed. It will take half a day to dig it back open."
“Dig it through. I want to see where this tunnel leads,” Wei Tingsi said, then looked down at Zhao Shu. “Let’s go check on Jize.”
Zhao Shu nodded, turned around and walked out with him. The broken wood and scorched earth had already been cleared to make a path. Some soldiers were left to clear the collapsed tunnel, while the rest left with the two of them.
Su Qiu peeked out from afar, and when she saw the two of them come out, she hurriedly ran over and knelt down in front of Zhao Shu with a thud. "Princess, please allow this servant to bury Heng'er."
When the explosion occurred, most of the soldiers had evacuated the courtyard in front of the Snow Residence, so Heng'er's body was easy to find. However, only some of her limbs remained; the rest of her body was blown to an unknown location.
The explosives used in Dayong are still very primitive and not particularly powerful. However, Zhao Bi was determined and released a lot of them. If they had been discovered any later, Zhao Shu and Wei Tingsi would have been killed.
Zhao Shu was somewhat curious about Heng'er, and upon hearing this, she asked, "I saw that she was cold to you, so why did you still bury her?"
Su Qiu's face was filled with sorrow, her eyes red-rimmed. She had just finished crying, and when Zhao Shu asked, she sniffled again and said, "Your Highness, Heng'er was actually doing this for my own good. Qi Chong is the madam's adopted son; he's skilled in poetry, songs, and looks—he's perfect in every way. I was bewitched by him..." At this point, she blushed and felt embarrassed, "And Qi Chong... and... is that kind of person. Heng'er warned him many times, but I couldn't control myself. Heng'er is also unlucky; she and Qi Chong are engaged, but Qi Chong..."
She expressed her meaning haltingly, and although she didn't say it very clearly, everyone understood.
No wonder Heng'er looked relaxed when she died. She was plain-looking, but her fiancé was exceptionally outstanding, and most importantly, he was gay.
She has no parents, only an adoptive mother, who may not even be on her side. How can she not be tired of living like this?
Zhao Shu stroked her chin and thought for a moment, then couldn't help but chuckle. Zhao Bi thought she would definitely be threatened and that he would definitely be able to kill them, so he didn't hide his disgust for Heng'er and his concern for Zhen Qizhong.
She had always thought that Zhao Bi and Consort Hao were truly in love, but she never expected that their true love was in Jiangnan, and that it was a man.
This is going to be interesting.
Seeing that she was smiling, Wei Tingsi asked curiously, "What are you laughing at?"
"It's nothing." How could she say such a thing? Avoiding his gaze, she said to Su Qiu, "Go."
Su Qiu kowtowed again, tears streaming down her face. Zhao Shu ignored her and simply gestured for Xiao Guozi to follow.
After the group had traveled some distance from Wangbei Residence, Xiao Guozi took the initiative to report, "Princess, Su Qiu just confessed to a lot of things."
"Hmm." Zhao Shu couldn't believe that a maid she had casually placed here could run into her again; it was too much of a coincidence.
Xiao Guozi knew that the princess was angry, so he took pity on her and released the man, even giving him travel expenses. But what if it turned out that the man was a spy? How terrible would that be?
"She said that Wangbeiju is always closed and no one comes to visit. Occasionally, a very good-looking woman will appear. Although she is well-maintained, she still looks to be about forty years old."
Xiao Guozi carefully observed Zhao Shu's expression, and after finding her expressionless, he said again, "She said the woman's name is A Qing."
Zhao Shu stopped walking briskly, slowly turned around, and stared into Xiao Guozi's eyes. "What did you say?"
“Su Qiu said that a woman who is about forty years old occasionally comes to Wangbei Residence. Her name is A Qing.” Xiao Guozi said each word carefully to make sure he didn’t make a mistake.
Zhao Shu and Wei Tingsi exchanged a glance, their expressions shocked. Could it be Empress Yide?
If she is really not dead, then why would she fake her death?
"You said last time that there were several murders in the palace related to hydrangeas, is that right?" Zhao Shu asked, feeling a chill run down her spine despite it being the hot summer.
Wei Tingsi nodded, clearly he and Zhao Shu had the same idea.
"Have you ever heard the saying?" Zhao Shu asked again.
Wei Tingsi listened attentively to her, and upon hearing this, he asked cooperatively, "What?"
"Mutual affection and longing make us even closer; a lifetime, a generation, a pair of lovers." The phrase came to mind, and I said it, but then I regretted it. In fact, the connection between the situation and the phrase was somewhat far-fetched.
Upon hearing this, Wei Tingsi gave her a doting smile, his eyes overflowing with affection. Zhao Shu quickly turned her head away, "Don't be silly, I'm serious. Think about it, my royal uncle is actually quite a womanizer, isn't he?"
“Mm.” Wei Tingsi nodded. He wanted to say that he would never be like him, that they would be together for life, but seeing how serious Zhao Shu was, he swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue.
"If Empress Yide hadn't died, do you think the Emperor would have made her Empress?" From these details, it can be inferred that the Empress Dowager disliked Empress Yide, so she certainly wouldn't have agreed to make her Empress.
Once a man has been won over and slept with, and you've showered him with gold, silver, jewels, silks, and satins, if he continues to act unreasonably and embarrasses you in front of his mother, even the most loving man will harbor resentment.
Emperor Mingde values his reputation and would certainly not go against the Empress Dowager on the matter of establishing an empress. Therefore, if Yide were to cause trouble, she would be the one to suffer.
She may not become empress, but as time goes by, she will inevitably grow old and ugly. Every few years, the palace holds a talent show, and young people constantly enter, each of them becoming as beautiful as a flower.
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