Chapter 13
The next morning, the sky was overcast, with low-hanging gray clouds, and a cool breeze swirled through the empty courtyard.
Xi Xiao forced her eyelids open, holding the ancient book she had just acquired the night before, which was even more obscure and difficult to understand. The words seemed to writhe like twisted worms before her eyes.
Yesterday, she had memorized two books and was reading them aloud at Madam Lan's bedside when Madam Lan silently raised her hand to stop her halfway through. Her clear eyes looked unusually tired in the dim light, yet they held an undeniable determination. Madam Lan then handed her an even thicker book.
The two remained locked in a stalemate, one stubbornly refusing to close her eyes, the other bracing herself against the Gu script, refusing to yield. The air was thick with tension. Finally, Xi Xiao noticed the pallor that couldn't be concealed on Madam Lan's sallow face. Feeling a pang of pity, she mustered her courage, put down her book, and asked tentatively, her voice trembling slightly, "Madam, could you allow me to leave the palace?"
There was a moment of silence behind the curtain, followed by a faint, slightly sarcastic laugh. "If you have the guts to come in..." Madam Lan seemed to have lost her temper. "Of course, you can find your own way out."
Xi Xiao's body stiffened instantly, a surge of grievance welling up inside her. Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she stammered, "I...I was tricked into coming here!"
The voice from behind the curtain seemed to have a hint of laughter, but it was quickly replaced by mockery: "You can only blame yourself for being stupid."
The word "stupid" pierced Xi Xiao's ears like an ice pick. She looked up in disbelief, trying to see Madam Lan's expression.
The dim light cast swaying shadows on the curtains, and the deep lines on that face seemed to mix with some strange relief, or perhaps a sigh, or even... a sense of relief, as if the dust had settled.
However, beneath that ease, there was clearly an intense loneliness and desolation, which appeared ethereal and complex under the interplay of light and shadow, like an unsolvable mystery.
Xi Xiao snapped out of her daze, shook her head vigorously as if trying to shake the chaotic emotions out of her mind, and stubbornly picked up the ancient book that looked like a celestial scripture again, forcing herself to concentrate and read it carefully.
Suddenly—
A deafening thunderclap ripped through the sky!
Immediately afterwards, the long-accumulated torrential rain poured down like a celestial river. Large raindrops pounded on the roof tiles and bluestone ground, making deafening crackling sounds, and the courtyard was instantly enveloped in a white mist.
Startled by the sudden and violent celestial phenomenon, Xi Xiao's heart skipped a beat. She instinctively got up, rushed to the window, and pushed open a crack to look outside.
In the misty rain, two servants wearing simple raincoats could be seen carrying a tattered straw mat, hurrying past the path in front of the main house. At one end of the mat, a pale, stiff ankle hung limply out.
Without thinking, Xi Xiao grabbed a straw hat from the side and haphazardly put it on before rushing into the torrential rain!
The two servants went straight to the empty room on the south side that had been closed all year round. One of them pushed open the door, and then the two of them worked together to throw the "corpse" into the dark room as if it were trash. Their movements were swift and decisive, with a chilling numbness to them.
The door was slammed shut with a loud bang!
Immediately, the two servants, having completed all this, sprang back a few steps. Their faces were ashen, their lips trembled, and their eyes were filled with undisguised fear and disgust, as if they had just witnessed a scene from hell.
Right at that moment!
A chilling hissing sound pierced through the thick rain and the door, clearly reaching Xi Xiao's ears. At the same time, a strong, nauseating, and cloyingly sweet smell mixed with the stench of entrails stubbornly spread out, dominating the entire damp air!
Xi Xiao covered her mouth tightly, her whole body trembling uncontrollably. This was no ordinary Gu poison. This was clearly... a forbidden technique from the Southern Frontier that fed evil Gu with the blood essence of living people. Her mind flashed back to the terrifying records in ancient books—once such evil creatures were cultivated, they would surely wreak havoc on the world and bring about a cataclysmic disaster that was beyond human control!
Her heart was pounding in her chest, and her limbs were frozen solid. Just as she was about to turn around, she saw the two terrified servants shrink into a corner of the eaves not far away and whisper to each other.
The rain gradually subsided, just as abruptly as it had arrived, and the servants' hushed voices became unusually clear.
"Hey, did you hear what was going on inside at noon?" The long-faced servant's eyes darted around, his voice barely audible. "The Princess Consort actually slapped the young master!" He clicked his tongue and continued, "And the young master, knowing full well that the Princess Consort hates it when people bring up that old story, still insisted on shouting it out loud. The maids in the room were really unlucky; they were all dragged out and given a beating! Tsk... Luckily, we were just waiting in the outer room and escaped unscathed..."
The tall, thin servant next to him nodded repeatedly, clutching his chest with lingering fear, his face still grim: "That's right. If the young master comes again, we'll stay as far away as possible. When the masters fight, we're always the ones who suffer."
The long-faced servant couldn't contain himself and leaned closer, speaking mysteriously, "Hey, I say... have you ever really looked closely at the young master's features? Years ago, when the late king was still alive, some people said..." He paused, his voice almost inaudible, "that the young master... might not be the late king's child! His appearance..." he winked, "...is seven or eight parts similar to that madman who broke into the palace the night the queen was giving birth!"
"Hiss—!" The tall, thin servant gasped, his eyes widening in horror. He grabbed his companion's arm and said, "Are you crazy? How dare you say such nonsense? Her Highness the Princess has given a death order. Anyone who dares to bring this up again will be beaten to death."
The long-faced servant was startled by his own boldness, shrinking back slightly. But he quickly curled his lip, with a hint of resentment and despair: "What's there to be afraid of? Who else would come to this godforsaken, gloomy, and disgusting place except for the two of us who were unlucky enough to be assigned to do this filthy work? It's bad luck!"
“Indeed.” The tall, thin servant looked around at the deathly still rain and the fishy-smelling door, slowly exhaling a breath of stale air, tacitly agreeing with his companion’s statement. He relaxed, his thoughts seemingly drifting away: “Do you remember Zheng, the old nanny who used to serve the Princess Consort? She mentioned in private that the late King also had doubts about this, and even had a huge argument with the Princess Consort behind closed doors, it was quite a big fight… But the strange thing is, within two days, the two of them made up, and the matter was just swept under the rug.”
"How could I not remember!" The long-faced servant sneered, as if recalling some sordid affair. "Back then, those elders who relied on their seniority finally got their chance, one by one jumping out and clamoring for a 'blood test to prove kinship,' causing chaos throughout the entire palace, but..."
He changed his tone and continued, "I don't know what methods the late king used to suppress this matter, but not long after, the late king passed away. Those elders immediately jumped out again, claiming that the Queen Consort was confusing the royal bloodline and that she should be executed to set things right! And guess what happened?" He sneered, "Those old guys, overnight they all became like gourds with their mouths sawed off. It was all bark and no bite, just a passing gust of wind, completely inexplicable!"
The tall, thin servant listened silently, a complex expression on his face, a mixture of nostalgia and regret. He sighed, his voice lowering, "Actually, Her Highness used to treat her servants extremely well, but ever since those elders caused her so much trouble a few times..." He shook his head, his voice barely audible, "she's completely changed."
The last few words drifted away into the damp air, carrying a heavy chill.
*
Only after the two servants had completely disappeared at the end of the path did Xi Xiao stagger out from behind the pillar where she had been hiding. She rubbed her numb and tingling knees and calves, her expression dazed, and moved forward in a daze.
Just as she reached the eaves of a low, outcropping house, an overwhelming force suddenly attacked from her side. Before Xi Xiao could even cry out, a hot, branding hand gripped her wrist tightly, and she was violently dragged into the low house by an irresistible brute force!
The door slammed shut behind her, leaving only suffocating darkness.
Xi Xiao suddenly looked up, and in the dim light, Pei Yun's face, which had disappeared for two whole days, suddenly came into view!
His face was as pale as a vengeful ghost, with two dark circles under his eyes like ink stains, his lips were cracked, and stubble grew on his chin. He looked exhausted and haggard from not having slept all night. However, the palm that held her wrist was still incredibly hot, with a strong and almost tyrannical force that held her firmly in place.
The fear surging in Xi Xiao's heart instantly turned into icy lava the moment she saw it was him. She jerked her hand away, raised her face, and looked directly at Pei Yun with an almost indifferent gaze. A cruel and sarcastic smile curled at the corner of her lips. "Young Master Pei, haven't you found the White Flower Snake Tongue Grass in two days? So weak, if you don't take your medicine in time, it's not impossible that you'll suddenly fall ill and die..."
Every word was piercing to the heart, and his expression clearly showed that he wished the person in front of him would immediately return to the underworld!
Despite the venomous words, Pei Yun remained completely unmoved. He stared intently at Xi Xiao, his once gentle and refined eyes now unfathomable and somewhat terrifying. His Adam's apple bobbed, and his voice was low and hoarse, "I believe..." He spoke slowly and deliberately, as if trying to dissect Xi Xiao's feigned indifference, "After these two days, having witnessed firsthand the filth and danger of the Southern Border Royal Court, you should have learned something."
Xi Xiao's face instantly turned even more unsightly, and the suppressed anger exploded. She straightened her back, her eyes burning with raging flames and hatred. "Progress?" Her voice suddenly rose, sharp and shrill. "Pei Yun, don't you have any ulterior motives at all?!"
She pressed closer, her gaze locked on the depths of his pupils. "If it were merely to help you infiltrate this Southern Border Royal Court, things could have been much simpler. But you, you insisted on dragging me into this quagmire! Besides letting me know the 'truth'..." Her voice trembled slightly with agitation, yet it carried a penetrating question, "What else do you intend to use me for? What else can I do for you?!"
Inside the cramped, low-ceilinged room, the air seemed to freeze, leaving only the heavy, suppressed breathing of the two people.
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