Entered the palace as a concubine
"The Xu family was once a prominent family in the capital, and our ancestors served as officials for generations. When our great-grandfather was transferred to Jiangnan as governor, he moved his family there."
"Later, the Yu family produced three generals, who were stationed at the frontier and spent little time together. Only two daughters were raised in the wealthy land of Jiangnan. Because of their impeccable looks, talents, and family backgrounds, they were called the Jiangnan Beauties."
"The elder sister's name is Yu Xin, and the younger sister's name is Yu Lan. The two sisters are only three or four years apart in age, and both are incredibly beautiful."
Bai Miaoke looked down at the painting in her hands. There was a pair of sisters painted on the yellowed paper. They were the Yu Xin and Yu Lan mentioned by Zhu Yu, one sitting and the other standing, one still and the other moving.
The face of the girl lingering among the flowers with a sweet smile gradually overlapped with the mother's face in her memory, except that the sadness between her brows was missing, which made Bai Miaoke's eyes red.
Zhu Yu was silent for a moment, took a deep breath, and continued talking about the old days.
"Although the Yu family has already left the capital, the generals who fought on the battlefields have repeatedly made great achievements and still attracted the attention of the late emperor."
"The late emperor came to Jiangnan under the pretext of a secret visit, but in fact he was testing the emperor's loyalty, and he left his confidants to keep an eye on the Yu family under the pretext of repairing water conservancy projects."
"However, the emperor's mind is unpredictable. The following year, an imperial decree was issued, saying that the daughter of the Yu family was both talented and beautiful, and was granted the right to enter the palace as a concubine. At that time, the position of the Empress was still stable, and the three concubines and four concubines were all noble ladies. The Yu family was unwilling to send their daughter to the palace for rubbing, so they were reluctant to accept the decree."
"Until another imperial edict was delivered to the border, ordering the son of the Yu family to lead the troops to the battle. With insufficient food and fodder, it was undoubtedly a suicide mission. Anyone with a discerning eye could see that this was a warning from the late emperor to the Xu family."
"In the end, it was the eldest daughter Yu Xin who took the initiative to accept the imperial decree and enter the palace. It was rumored that the late emperor loved her very much. Not long after entering the palace, she was promoted to Imperial Concubine and became the most favored among the six concubines. Two years later, she gave birth to a prince."
"The good times didn't last long. After the birth of the prince with Yu's blood, rumors began to spread in the court, suggesting that the Yu family held military power and might be plotting to usurp the throne. The Xu family repeatedly gave up power and even took the initiative to return military power in order to clear their name."
At this point, Zhu Yu's voice trembled a little. He closed his eyes and waited for a cup of tea before continuing to speak.
"That winter, the Kingdom of Yan invaded. My father was ordered to lead the army to fight. The troops arrived first, and the food and fodder came later. However, the food and fodder never arrived until the ammunition ran out. He was forced to lead the army to fight to the death, but in the end, almost the entire army was wiped out."
"My father also died in the wilderness, his body was torn into pieces. My mother hadn't given birth to me yet. The Xu family realized something was wrong and sent my mother away overnight in order to preserve my father's bloodline and return to her roots after the storm was over."
"It's a pity that I can't wait for that day anymore."
After hearing this, Bai Miaoke realized Zhu Yu's true identity—the posthumous son of the Xu family's eldest son who died in the battlefield and was accused of treason.
"The late emperor convicted the Yu family of treason based on a few letters and executed the entire family. During the execution, the brothers who had fought together on the battlefield created chaos."
"The second son of the Yu family managed to escape by chance. After hiding his identity for many years, he was found by his close friend Xu Ge Lao, who then found me. My uncle is very old, and his only wish is to find my little sister who was stranded outside."
Hearing this, Bai Miaoke burst into tears.
She suddenly understood why there was always sadness in her mother's eyes and brows: she understood why her mother did not allow her brother to serve as an official in the court because she was extremely disappointed with the court; she understood the longing her mother never mentioned for her family.
Zhu Yu's eyes also turned red, but he still patted Bai Miaoke on the shoulder without saying a word, trying to calm her down as she nearly collapsed.
When she gradually stopped sobbing, she choked and said, "My mother had long ago..."
Before she finished her words, tears began to flow uncontrollably again, blurring her vision so that she did not immediately notice the old man walking into the courtyard.
Until an old hand holding a snow-white handkerchief wiped away her tears. Bai Miaoke looked up suddenly. As if there was a blood connection between her and him, she felt that the person in front of her was very kind.
"Call me uncle." Looking at the girl's features that were 70% similar to his younger sister, the old man smiled kindly.
"Uncle." Seeing her elder, Bai Miaoke finally stopped crying and smiled.
"You haven't called me cousin yet!" Zhu Yu at the side couldn't help but speak.
"Cousin." Bai Miaoke called out cooperatively.
Bai Miaoke, who finally found her relatives, chatted with them for the whole afternoon.
It turned out that Zhuyu's mother died of heavy hemorrhage during childbirth. After losing both his parents, he was picked up by a traveling doctor who passed by and raised him up. The doctor took him in as his apprentice, and that's how he acquired excellent medical skills.
Bai Miaoke also heard many stories about her mother's youth from her uncle, and the three of them chatted until dusk without realizing it.
When a servant came to ask about dinner, Bai Miaoke realized that it was already getting late, and she had forgotten about her original plan to look for Xiao Heng.
Bai Miaoke followed him to the front for dinner and found that Lord Xu, who had been so busy that he could not be seen when she requested an audience during the day, was sitting in the main seat, writing on the table with his hand dipped in tea.
Seeing Mr. Yu coming, he smiled and greeted him: "Why are you so slow? I've been waiting for you for a long time. If you don't come soon, I will have to go and invite you with my old arms and legs!"
"Mingcheng, look at my niece!" Old Yu stepped aside to let Bai Miaoke come forward, and reminded her:
"Xiao Ke, call me uncle."
Bai Miaoke didn't expect that he said he was coming to dine with Lord Xu, but she immediately reacted and called him uncle sweetly.
Elder Xu looked puzzled, and Elder Yu explained, "These are my younger sister's children. There is also a boy, and they both passed the imperial examination and became the top scorer."
"It's a pity for my little sister. Well, let's not talk about it anymore. Let's sit down and eat first."
"Come, Xiaoke, sit here."
Bai Miaoke sat obediently beside him, quietly observing the complicated expression on Xu Ge Lao's face, hesitating whether to ask him about his search for someone.
As if wanting to liven up the atmosphere, Zhu Yu picked up some food for Lord Xu while telling him about the interesting things they had talked about in the afternoon. Lord Xu also took the initiative to ask Bai Miaoke about some family matters.
Seeing that the meal was coming to an end, Bai Miaoke finally couldn't help but ask, "Uncle, is there any news about the matter I told you before?"
Elder Xu paused while picking up the food, put down his chopsticks and waved his hands: "Don't worry, go back and rest first. The weather is getting cold, so keep the doors and windows closed at night."
Although they were clearly words of concern, Bai Miaoke could hear the hidden meaning in his words. He probably already knew that she had sneaked out last night.
She reluctantly took her leave and followed Zhu Yu out of Chengxin Hall.
Seeing that she looked unhappy on the way back, Zhu Yu advised her: "Cousin, Lord Xu has done a favor to our Yu family. His temper may be a little strange, don't take it to heart."
"I know. I'll go back first." Just as they reached the fork in the road, Bai Miaoke forced a smile and turned into her own yard.
I walked into the room, without turning on the lights, and just sat quietly in the darkness.
After listening to the old stories of the Yu family in the afternoon, Bai Miaoke felt like a fire was burning in her chest, making it hard for her to breathe.
She felt angry and unwilling, for her mother, for Concubine Yu who wasted her life in the palace, for the soldiers who died on the battlefield, and for all the innocent people who lost their lives.
That's why she couldn't help but want to rescue Rong Qing and the others at night. She wanted to find out the truth as soon as possible and clear the Yu family's name.
Now that Lord Xu's attitude is unclear, she should stick to the original plan and rescue Xiao Heng first.
Bai Miaoke did what she said. She calmed down and sneaked out. Remembering the hint from Lord Xu just now, she was more cautious this time and climbed over the wall directly from the backyard to avoid being discovered again.
But where Xiao Heng was imprisoned was also a question.
She couldn't help but look towards the tallest three-story attic in Xu's mansion. She had observed that it was right in the center of Xu's mansion. Standing upstairs, she should be able to see every part of the mansion.
So she avoided the guards in groups of three or four and moved towards that direction.
I hid behind the pillar and observed the surroundings. There was no movement in the attic, which might be a place used for banquets or storage.
So she leaped up and landed lightly on the corridor on the second floor.
As soon as I landed, I bumped into a servant who was walking around the corner. He was holding a tray in his hand and seemed to be delivering some food.
Before he could shout, Bai Miaoke knocked the man unconscious with a quick knife and caught the tray in his hand, but the man still fell to the ground with a thud.
"who?"
Bai Miaoke didn't expect that there was someone in the house in the middle of the night, and subconsciously prepared to slip away. The next second, a familiar voice came from the house: "Mingcheng, I have really let it go."
"His Majesty has already sent people to investigate. How can you give up?" Bai Miaoke heard that the person who spoke was Lord Xu.
"I don't want anyone else to die because of this. The Yu family has already owed too many lives. I don't want the next generation to live in hatred, nor do I want to embarrass Your Majesty."
Her uncle's voice sounded heavy as if it weighed a thousand pounds, and Bai Miaoke clenched her fists.
Yes, how would His Majesty react if he knew about this? The person who issued the decree was the late emperor, who has passed away, but the people involved must still be alive, and the truth must be found out.
At this moment, the door was suddenly pushed open, and Bai Miaoke and the person who came out looked at each other in surprise.
Yu Lao asked curiously: "Xiao Ke? Why are you here?"
"Ah, uncle, let me..." She lowered her head to look at the tray in her hand that she hadn't put down yet, and continued, "I'm here to bring you some food."
As a result, a hand reached out and took away a bowl covered on the tray and drank it all in one gulp.
"Girl, this is the medicine I want to drink." Elder Xu turned to his old friend with an expression of enjoying a good show and said, "I told you long ago that your niece is not an honest person."
"Xiao Ke, you should have heard what I said. Let the grudges of the previous generation go. Just live your own lives and don't worry about anything else."
Bai Miaoke has always been respectful and well-behaved in front of her elders. Today was the first time she refuted an elder. She said firmly, "Uncle, so many people in the Yu family cannot die in vain. They must be cleared of all charges!"
"Xiao Ke, be obedient!" Old Yu was a little anxious.
Bai Miaoke refused to back down and said, "Don't worry, uncle. I won't act rashly. When Lu Yu comes, I will investigate with him."
Seeing that the two were about to quarrel, Xu Ge Lao quietly tugged at Yu Lao's clothes. The two exchanged glances. Xu Ge Lao smiled and said to Bai Miaoke: "You go back first, girl, and rest early."
Bai Miaoke had just met her uncle and didn’t want to make him unhappy, so she obediently returned to her residence.
In the attic, Lord Xu looked at her leaving figure and the knocked-out servant, stroked his beard and said to Lord Yu: "You can't stop her. If you really want to, you can only use special methods."
Mr. Yu: “What’s the solution?”
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