Chapter 24: The Secret Hidden in the Sleeve
The man in black who was captured and taken to the dungeon would rather be tortured to death than reveal the master behind him. The clues have been cut off.
The only thing that is certain is that the man in black and the spy who spread false information in the court are in the same group.
Could it be that the Queen Mother has something to do with them?
Xin Hongying was full of doubts.
The Queen Mother's eyes changed slightly, and she smiled, her aura softening a bit. "Of course, I'm not here to cause trouble to the Imperial Master. I heard of your name, and originally wanted to communicate with you and exchange ideas."
She said sternly, "It was my own fault for being shortsighted. I misunderstood the Imperial Master as a fraud and nearly disturbed his retreat. It was all a misunderstanding."
It was all a misunderstanding. Xin Hongying heard it clearly. He didn't know how long the fairy's magic power could last. It was time for him to make an appearance. If he didn't take his mother away, the fairy would be angry.
He walked out from the darkness and strode through the main gate of the courtyard. His cold eyes were filled with a hint of surprise. "Mother."
The Queen Mother laughed awkwardly to cover up her embarrassment: "Emperor, why are you here too?"
Xin Hongying said slowly, "The Imperial Master saw through the secrets and identified the spies, which is why he waited for the true secret letter from the border. This is a great achievement. The Imperial Master is currently in seclusion."
"Wait until the Imperial Master comes out of seclusion, then come and see the Queen Mother."
The Empress Dowager, with the step Xin Hongying handed her, took advantage of the situation and nodded slightly, "The Emperor is right."
"You live in seclusion in the Weiyang Palace. Your son hasn't seen you for some time and misses you terribly. How about we move to the pavilion in the middle of the lake and have a meal together?"
Xin Hongying walked side by side with the Queen Mother. He walked very slowly, as if he was taking a leisurely stroll in the garden.
Suddenly, one side of the sleeve became heavier, and a satisfied smile appeared at the corner of his lips.
The Queen Mother sensed Xin Hongying's sudden improvement in mood, and her nail-stained index finger stirred the handkerchief in a circle.
The pavilion in the center of the lake overlooks the Imperial Garden, where you can admire the flowers in full bloom in spring. There is a slight breeze in the pavilion, ripples in the water, and you feel quite relaxed and at ease with your loved ones by your side.
Xin Hongying sat lazily, and the anger lingering in his heart disappeared. He had not felt so relaxed for a long time.
The palace maids brought lunch one after another.
Shen Tingyu hid in his sleeves, looking up with melancholy at the plates of delicious food: peach blossom rice, milk-stuffed fish, phoenix tail pastry, steamed chicken with wine, lotus root starch and osmanthus cake...
She was almost drooling with envy, but she didn't care. As soon as the cooling period of the transformation pill was over, she would restore her human body and eat the delicious food on the table with big mouthfuls.
Shen Tingyu stared at the food without blinking, swallowed the non-existent saliva, and really wanted to eat...
For the first time, I'm filled with resentment towards Xin Hongying. Please don't be so difficult. She's already worked so hard on her mission, why did you end up on the tyrant's path to death and never come back?
No matter how hard she pulled, she couldn't move it!
The Queen Mother picked up a piece of fish with wooden chopsticks, removed the fish bones, and put the clean white fish meat into Xin Hongying's plate and bowl.
Smiling lovingly, she recalled, "This is your favorite fish dish, Your Majesty. I remember when you were a child, you got a fish bone stuck in your throat because you were greedy."
"After that, you never ate this fish again. Try it again this time and see if it still tastes the same as you remember."
Xin Hongying's eyes flickered slightly. She picked up the fish and savored it carefully. A warm feeling seemed to flow in her heart. "Mother, do you still remember what your son loved to eat when he was a child?"
He had always thought that his mother favored his eleventh brother, but now it seems that is not necessarily the case. His mother also cares about him a lot.
"Of course I remember everything." The Queen Mother smiled gently, "Emperor, please try this cake again."
Xin Hongying tasted it and found the sweet osmanthus fragrance too strong. When she took a bite of the cake, the thick sweetness lingered on her tongue.
This lotus root powder and osmanthus cake was too sweet, not at all sweet. He only took one bite and never tasted it again.
The Queen Mother took a small bite of the cake, twisting it between her fingers. Seeing that he didn't think of Concubine Yu after tasting it, she put the cake down and pretended to recall something. "This cake is too sweet, not as refreshing and delicious as the cake made by Concubine Yu."
"Your Majesty, although I dislike witchcraft, I have watched Concubine Yu grow up under my care. She simply made a mistake. Please allow her to return to the palace."
After lunch, the only unhappy person was Shen Tingyu, but now there is also Xin Hongying.
He frowned slightly, and now he had no appetite at all. His father-in-law was putting pressure on the court, and even his mother was pleading for Concubine Yu. He couldn't help but feel a little disgusted.
The Empress Dowager was very familiar with Xin Hongying and was keenly aware that the Emperor had other concerns and hidden secrets behind the incident with Concubine Yu, and her heart skipped a beat.
Then Xin Hongying said coldly and aloofly, "From now on, I don't want to see Concubine Yu again, and my mother doesn't need to miss her anymore."
"Then let's not talk about her." The Queen Mother's kindly smiling face was a little stiff, her slender fingers clenched the handkerchief, and her heart sank.
The thumb gently scraped across the nails painted with bright red nail polish, and something seemed to be scraped off and floated away in the wind.
In the pavilion in the middle of the lake, there were only the two of them, a gentle breeze, and a table full of delicious food.
The delicious food can only be seen but not eaten, and she doesn't know how long she will stay in the sleeve, eavesdropping on the conversation that has nothing to do with her, Shen Tingyu's eyes are extremely resentful.
Shen Tingyu sighed slightly. If the task progress had not been always negative and she had not felt confident at all, she would have ridden away on Da Que'er long ago. She just wanted to save those few points.
If she had known this, she would not have slipped back into the tyrant's sleeve and hitched a ride.
Shen Tingyu was chatting with the system in her mind, and she accidentally caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of her eye, which scared her so much that she ejected and climbed up by pulling her sleeve.
"Fuck!"
"What the hell is that!"
Shen Tingyu looked closely and saw a tiny, almost transparent insect slowly crawling into his sleeve.
The worm was segmented like an earthworm, about as long as her arm, and it was barely visible as it crawled forward under the refraction of light and shadow.
Shen Tingyu was so frightened that he didn’t know how to react, and the corners of his mouth twitched fiercely: “What the hell is this? It’s so disgusting!”
She wasn't afraid of bugs, but simply found the way these things moved a bit disgusting.
It moved forward slowly, not as if it had fallen in accidentally, but rather as if it had a purpose.
Shen Tingyu observed it for a moment, then instantly covered his open mouth with a horrified expression. This disgusting little bug was trying to get into the tyrant's body.
At this moment, the bug was very close to the tyrant's hand.
Of course Shen Tingyu couldn't let it get in. She endured the nausea and forcibly caught the bug, but she was still a step too late.
Half of the insect's body had already drilled into the tyrant's hand, and she only grabbed the remaining half, and the situation was deadlocked like tug-of-war.
His hands were full of its slippery mucus, Shen Tingyu's palms were numb, and he felt nauseous and wanted to vomit, but he didn't let go, but pulled the insect out with more force.
The sleeves fluttered in the wind, and Xin Hongying was startled. In the past, the fairy was always quiet in his sleeves, why was she so noisy today?
Thinking that she was bored and couldn't stay any longer, Xin Hongying put down the chopsticks in her hand.
The little finger curled up slightly. The insect-attracting Gu liked it very much this time. The Queen Mother felt the joy that the son Gu passed on to the mother Gu.
She curled her red lips, and with the elegant movement of tasting fish, she used her sleeves to hide the meaningful smile at the corner of her mouth.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
