The night grew deeper and deeper.
Outside, the rain was getting heavier.
Danqing glanced at the tightly locked door and said to Yuanyao, "Princess, I don't think they'll be here anytime soon. I'll stay here with you, why don't you get some sleep?"
Yuan Yao was indeed sleepy.
This little body is so weak now, it gets hungry easily and gets sleepy even more easily...
Once you relax, your eyelids just won't stay open.
Yuan Yao glanced at the bed, which looked small and hard.
I really miss the carved bed at Qianhua Palace. It was so fragrant and soft. Lying on it made me feel incredibly happy.
Tonight, I guess I'll just have to make do...
Yuan Yao walked to the bedside, lifted her short legs, and climbed up: "Sister Danqing, I'll take a nap first."
Danqing walked to the bedside, took off her shoes and cloak, tucked her in, and said gently, "Princess, don't worry, I'll call you if you need anything."
Yuan Yao nodded: "After the guards return, you should also rest and recuperate so that you will have the strength to wait for Father to return."
"Go to sleep." Danqing sat on the edge of the bed and gently patted her through the blanket.
As soon as her head hit the pillow, Yuan Yao fell asleep.
Perhaps because of the change of bed and environment, she didn't sleep well and had frequent dreams.
She dreamt that white paper money was falling from the sky, and faintly, someone was crying.
At first, the crying was very soft, but later the sound seemed to be amplified infinitely.
"Gah..."
The sound of the door opening woke Yuan Yao from her dream.
She sat up abruptly, her heart pounding, her ears ringing, her gaze unfocused, and she was breathing heavily.
Inside the room, the candles had gone out sometime ago, and dim light seeped in through the sealed doors and windows and the cracks in the open door.
The sky was just beginning to brighten.
It was still raining outside.
A mournful cry, piercing through the rain, drifted in and out.
Dream and reality overlap at this moment.
Yuan Yao opened her mouth and asked with difficulty, "Is the little prince... gone?"
Danqing stood by the door.
Danqing closed the door, her voice a little hoarse: "Princess, the Ninth Prince has not returned yet. The secret guards left last night and have not returned since."
"How could this be?" Yuan Yao exclaimed in shock as she scrambled to her feet.
Danqing quickly walked over, took the cloak from the shelf beside the bed and tied it on Yuan Yao, then said in a deep voice, "Just now, the little prince died."
The people from Fangfei Palace have already gone to invite the Emperor and Empress, so right now, no one should notice us.
"This servant has served Your Highness for many years. Although my skills are not excellent, I am still quite capable in combat. In a moment, this servant will forcibly take the Princess away from here."
"Sister Danqing." Yuan Yao put on her little shoes and stood in front of the bed, her expression somewhat serious: "Listen to me, we can't run away."
“Princess…” Danqing’s tone was slightly heavy: “Last night, I made a mistake by agreeing to bring you to Fangfei Palace. Today, I absolutely cannot leave you here!”
"Danqing!" Yuan Yao called out his name directly, her childish voice carrying an unprecedented authority: "I have to find a way to see the little prince's remains."
"With Father gone, I absolutely cannot allow Qianhua Palace to be smeared."
The dessert yesterday was prepared for Lan Yue by someone she asked.
Not just Lan Yue!
Huairou, Huaiyao, and Xie Zhi each took one, and she picked it out randomly.
If there's something wrong with Lan Yue's desserts, then there must be something wrong with Huai Rou, Huai Yao, and Xie Zhi's desserts too!
Before she arrived at Fangfei Palace, she had her secret guards send someone to find Huairou and the others.
Presumably, she will have an answer when dawn breaks.
Soon, the gate to the courtyard where Yuan Yao was located was opened, and a group of people entered.
The leader was a fair-skinned, short and stout middle-aged eunuch who held a whisk in his hand and looked respectful: "Princess, this servant is Li Deshan, an attendant of the Emperor. I have come to invite you by imperial decree."
The Emperor has arrived?
Yuan Yao roused himself and said, "Thank you, Eunuch Li."
Treading on the dew, Yuan Yao brought Danqing to the main hall of Fangfei Palace.
A mournful cry, sometimes loud and sometimes soft, came from the side hall.
Yuan Yao looked up and glanced at the side hall where the candlelight flickered.
Li Deshan, in a high-pitched voice, said in a low voice, "Princess, His Majesty is waiting for you in the main hall."
Yuan Yao nodded: "I'll go in now."
Before dawn, sparse candlelight flickered inside the main hall.
The emperor, dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe, sat in the seat of honor, holding a cup of tea in his hand. He looked as if he hadn't slept enough, with his eyes downcast and his expression listless.
As far as Yuan Yao knew, Emperor Jiang Xian of the Great Qi Dynasty had just turned thirty.
At thirty, one is in the prime of life. As the emperor of a country, one should be full of vigor and high spirits.
But the emperor before me was obese, with loose skin and large eye bags that even shadows couldn't conceal; he exuded an aura of decadence from the inside out...
Yuan Yao only glanced at it a few times before obediently walking up to the emperor as Danqing had instructed, and performing a standard courtly salute: "Yao'er greets Your Majesty, long live the Emperor."
Upon hearing the voice, the emperor's teacup moved slightly, and his voice, low and hoarse like sandpaper, asked, "You've come?"
Yuan Yao didn't know how to answer.
She opened her mouth, but could only say, "Your Majesty, please accept my condolences."
"Please accept my condolences?" The emperor put down his teacup and slowly raised his head.
Yuan Yao looked up and met his gaze.
The emperor had large eyes with large, swollen eye bags. His double eyelids even had three layers of creases, and his eyelids drooped down, making him look very gloomy.
Fortunately, Yuan Yao isn't really a three-year-old child.
She managed to keep her composure even when she met the emperor's gaze.
The emperor stared at Yuan Yao for a while, and seeing that she wasn't afraid of him, he asked, "Yuan Yao, I heard that Lan Yue went to Qianhua Palace yesterday, and when she left, she took some tea and snacks with her?"
Yuan Yao nodded obediently and said, "Yes. Princess Lan Yue really liked those tea snacks and asked if she could take some back for her younger brother. So Yao'er asked the kitchen to prepare more and packed some for the princesses and Young Master Xie to take with them."
The emperor frowned and said coldly, "Then why is it that only Lan Yue's poisonous items were not, while the others' were?"
What does that mean?
Could it be that she deliberately poisoned Lan Yue?
If their identities were reversed, Yuan Yao would definitely argue with him.
However, the person before him was the emperor, the ruler of a country.
Moreover, her current identity is that of a three-year-old child...
That would be very difficult.
Yuan Yao's face remained expressionless, but her mind was racing.
A moment later, she nervously clutched her skirt, pursed her lips, and tears welled up in her eyes. In a stubborn, childlike voice, she said, "Yao'er doesn't know what happened either. If only Daddy were here..."
Upon hearing this, the emperor's eyelids drooped even lower in the candlelight: "A-Yuan is ruthless to others, but he's extremely protective of you..."
A Yuan?
Having held power for many years, a normal emperor would probably have wanted to tear him to pieces and grind his bones to dust long ago.
But the emperor before them actually called the Ninth Prince "A Yuan"...
The name carries a sense of intimacy yet also an inexplicable ambiguity.
Yuan Yao's heart skipped a beat, and she curtsied, asking, "Your Majesty, Yao'er wishes to see the young prince, may I?"
"Go." The emperor raised his hand and waved it weakly.
At that moment, footsteps sounded outside the palace gate.
Consort Li shrieked, "Stop! You're not allowed to go anywhere!"
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