Internal strife
Chu Yuanyi was speechless, and A Qiu understood as well.
Among the various powerful clans, the Shangguan family has a long tradition of martial arts prowess. They understand that those who lack martial arts skills are like fish on a chopping board when faced with a master. The Emperor's placement of Chu Yuanyi near Empress Shangguan in Qiwu Palace, under constant surveillance, forced the Shangguan family to be wary. In a way, it could be argued that the Emperor and Chu Yuanyi had preemptively provoked the situation.
If Chu Yuanyi had not targeted Empress Shangguan and those around her during his lifetime, even if he had attacked others to protect his mistress, the medicine would not have taken effect.
Su Jinlan's gentle yet firm voice rang out: "Before coming here, I bathed my entire body in a fragrant bath made with 'Golden Sparrow Delight,' and my clothes were also scented with spices containing 'Golden Sparrow Delight.' I just wonder if you, Aunt, still want to insist and try the methods the Shangguan family uses to protect themselves in times of crisis?"
Whether it was due to the influence of her words or not, even A-Qiu felt that there was a faint, unusual herbal fragrance in the air.
A-Qiu's heart sank.
It's uncertain whether Chu Yuanyi, with her temperament, would be coerced, but at this moment, regardless of whether she takes action against Su Jinlan, she is destined to lose.
Of the Shangguan family members, A Qiu has only met one: Shangguan Yuqi and the Right Chancellor, Shangguan You. Although these two have different personalities, neither of them is a person who breaks their word. Shangguan Jin is renowned throughout the court and the country. Since he has now sent Su Jinlan, a weak woman, to break through the numerous blockades and rescue someone from Chu Yuanyi, one of the Four Constellations of Tianji, he must have made thorough preparations.
Will Chu Yuanyi really strike Su Jinlan to test whether what she said is true?
For a long time, Chu Yuan didn't reply; all that could be heard was her heavy breathing.
With her eyes closed, A Qiu could almost picture in her mind Su Jinlan walking towards Chu Yuanyi step by step with a resolute expression and an indomitable spirit.
Chu Yuanyi shouted in a hoarse voice, "Even if you are covered in Golden Sparrow's Joy, once I unleash my Wind and Thunder Palm, I will lose all my martial arts skills and become a cripple. Your life will surely end here as well."
Su Jinlan said calmly, "So that my aunt may know, I am not the only personal maid of the Empress. I am the only one who has come to die. Even if my slap kills me, someone outside will take this child away."
Chu Yuanyi suddenly burst into wild laughter: "Good, good. As the most powerful palace maid by the Empress's side, you are actually willing to make such a sacrifice. This makes me look at you in a new light."
A Qiu understood that Chu Yuanyi meant that since there were others present, the deadly task of forcing Chu Yuanyi to act with Jin Quehuan could have been delegated to subordinates. Su Jinlan, as the Shangguan family's most trusted confidante, originally didn't need to personally undertake this dangerous task of luring the enemy. Her coming in person indicated two things: first, she didn't trust others, and second, she was determined to sacrifice herself for righteousness.
Given her background as a favored maid in a high-ranking family, she must have been raised in a wealthy household since childhood, serving her mistress with nothing more than playing music, chess, calligraphy, painting, burning incense, and playing with cats. She was just a maid, yet she was able to disregard power and fear neither life nor death when it came to a critical moment. One can imagine the family tradition of the Shangguan family. Therefore, even Chu Yuanyi couldn't help but praise her.
Chu Yuanyi said in a deep voice, "If that's the case, I'm not stupid. Since I can't touch you, then you can go on your own. I won't interfere in this matter anymore."
As she spoke, she seemed to step aside to make way for the doorway at the sound of movement, making a gesture as if she were about to leave.
A Qiu inexplicably knew that Chu Yuan Yi would never easily give up on this child. The reason she adopted a conciliatory stance was probably because she knew she could no longer stop Su Jin Lan from rescuing the child, so she might as well leave this secret room immediately and seek help from the other three of the Four Constellations of Tianji. Not to mention others, the Grand Palace Eunuch Rong Yu alone had excellent intelligence and quick reflexes, and would surely be able to intercept Su Jin Lan's actions in time.
However, Su Jinlan has at least managed to get past Chu Yuanyi's guard. As for what happens next, that depends on the backup arranged by Shangguan Jin.
Just as A Qiu was wondering whether to be thankful for Su Jinlan's successful passage or for Chu Yuanyi's narrow escape from the poison, a sudden change occurred.
Su Jinlan's exclamation rang out, followed by a flurry of punches and kicks, and then Chu Yuanyi's angry shout.
Someone collapsed heavily in front of the door, followed by Chu Yuanyi's heavy breathing, clearly indicating that he was no match for them.
Su Jinlan seemed to have suffered a considerable shock and impact, but she managed to speak with difficulty, saying, "Thank you... thank you, young master. You and the young lady have been friends since childhood. You would never harm this child if you appeared here now?"
By the last sentence, her usually composed voice trembled slightly.
Chu Yuanyi leaned against the door, panting, but still sneered, "If he still remembered even a shred of old friendship, he wouldn't have been lying in the shadows eavesdropping on our conversation. When he saw me about to leave, he didn't hesitate to throw you at me, just waiting for us to both be injured so he could profit from it!"
She then sneered, "I've heard that the Shangguan family and the Xie family are both renowned families with a long history, and they have a very good relationship. It seems that the current generation of scions of noble families have no sense of loyalty or camaraderie."
After a long silence, "Young Master Xie" finally said, "I apologize. You both know who I came here on their orders, and there is no reason for me to return empty-handed."
Ah Qiu found the voice of "Young Master Xie" extremely familiar, but couldn't quite place where she had heard him speak before. The voice was so familiar, almost as if it were about to be heard, yet she couldn't quite place it in her mind, which made her quite anxious.
This person had been spying on the scene, witnessing Chu Yuanyi's arguments with Zhang Guiren's two palace maids and Su Jinlan, taking in the entire situation.
According to him, his purpose in coming was no different from that of Su Jinlan and the two palace maids—to take away "that child." Therefore, after hearing what the two said, he made a decisive move. Taking advantage of the moment when Chu Yuanyi was about to leave and both sides were most relaxed, he picked up Su Jinlan and threw her at Chu Yuanyi, while simultaneously launching a strong attack, forcing Chu Yuanyi to slap Su Jinlan.
The scream she had just heard from Su Jinlan, and the fierce wind that blew during their fight, were all because of this.
Su Jinlan didn't seem to be seriously injured and could still speak, which meant that Chu Yuanyi had held back. After Chu Yuanyi struck, Su Jinlan immediately sat down in front of the door, panting heavily. It was clear that the old poison that had accumulated in her meridians for many years was starting to take effect, making her too injured to move.
Su Jinlan was thrown into a panic, her voice trembling as she asked, "You are His Majesty's most trusted person in the palace. May I ask where His Majesty sent you, Young Master Xie, to take the child?"
Young Master Xie remained silent for a moment before saying, "You don't need to know that."
Before Su Jinlan could react, Chu Yuanyi sneered, "So you don't want this child to live. Otherwise, what's there to hide? The Xie family is a disgrace to its reputation. How could it produce a member like you who would take the life of a child for the sake of power and disregard the code of the martial world? I've truly seen something new today."
Young Master Xie was not so polite to Chu Yuanyi, and said coldly, "It is my dereliction of duty that I have failed to find a martial arts master like you who has been lurking in the palace for so many years. Now that you have been poisoned, please step aside and do not obstruct me from carrying out the imperial order."
Chu Yuan laughed in anger, saying, "When I raised the current emperor to adulthood, you were still nowhere to be found. How dare you be so disrespectful to me? Do you know that the child in the secret chamber is indeed the emperor's only bloodline? If you decide to take her away and destroy her now, and the emperor goes back on his word in the future, who do you think he will blame first, given his temperament?"
Young Master Xie fell silent again.
Su Jinlan was extremely anxious. With a thud, she must have knelt down before Young Master Xie. She said in a tearful voice, "I have heard from the eldest young lady that the Third Young Master Xie is the most reliable and trustworthy person among all her friends. Although men and women are separated after entering the palace and we have not seen each other since, I think the eldest young lady has not forgotten these close friends..."
As she spoke, she heard the young master Xie say in a low voice, "Oh? Is that so?"
The voice was devoid of emotion, yet it inexplicably sent chills down A Qiu's spine.
He asked again, "What else did she mention about me?"
Su Jinlan racked her brains but couldn't think of anything else to say, so she could only say, "After the eldest young lady gets married, she will probably no longer feel comfortable mentioning her childhood friends in casual conversation because of the difference between men and women. But the eldest young lady is a very sentimental person. Even if she doesn't mention it, I think she will definitely not forget Young Master Xie."
The "Young Master Xie" gave a short, low laugh, a laugh that seemed to contain boundless sorrow and desolation. He said coldly, "I'm afraid she doesn't have the time to think of me. I'm on duty in the central court, just a wall away. If she remembered me, she's the Empress, a mere junior officer, whom she can summon at any time. What's so difficult about seeing her?"
Su Jinlan was taken aback by his question and didn't know how to answer for a moment. After a while, she said, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty has many affairs in the palace, and sometimes she can't even see her own brothers, sisters, and nieces."
Young Master Xie calmly said, "But she not only has time to meet with a minor weaving official like Zhao Lingying, but also has time to meet with a musician like Shi Changqing!"
The air in the room froze at those words.
Chu Yuanyi broke the silence with a strange laugh, and said disdainfully, "No matter who she has time to see or what shameful things she has done, General Xie's current behavior of kicking someone when they're down and rushing to flatter her will not make him any more upright!"
She sneered, "Aren't there enough people in the palace watching this child? Hasn't His Majesty been suspicious of this matter for a long time? But at this moment, the only ones who dare to jump out and cause trouble are Consort Zhang and you, General Xie. Consort Zhang has long coveted the Empress's position, which makes sense, but what is your purpose, General Xie?"
When A Qiu reunited with Chu Yuanyi, she was already old and half-mad, in a daze. But only now did A Qiu realize that when Chu Yuanyi was still sane, although she was not as experienced and meticulous as the other three, she was still very clear-headed and insightful, after all, she was also a daughter of the Chu family.
Now, A Qiu roughly understands the style of these aristocratic families: even if not every member of their family has the talent and ability to become a pillar of the nation like Chu Yuanyi or Shangguan Jin, it is still a matter of high standards and cherishing one's reputation. For someone like this Young Master Xie to resort to any means to flatter those in power is already an anomaly in the Xie family, a family of upright officials for generations.
If it were any other scion of a powerful family, such as Pei Yu, whom A Qiu knew, or Xiao Chang'an, being so bluntly and mercilessly exposed would surely have caused them to lose face and retaliate. But this Young Master Xie merely snorted coldly and said fiercely, "My aspirations are beyond the comprehension of those idle talkers from noble families, so how could they possibly be judged by a short-sighted old palace servant like you?"
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