Knocking on the Palace Gate at Night
Xue Feng pushed the imperial court relationship map he had prepared in the morning in front of him and said, "Noble Concubine Xiao."
After saying that, Xue Feng turned around and roasted himself by the fire. There were crackling logs burning on the stove, and the blazing flames warmed people's palms.
"Thank you for your kindness today, I will definitely repay you in the future."
"I don't want your life anymore. Please go away."
When they emerged from Manxianglou, the sun had already set. Yuanli quickly boarded the carriage and unfolded the map she had hidden in her sleeve. The densely packed names now intertwined like a tangled spider web.
As expected, all sources point to Concubine Xiao's faction, including Xiao Tong's true identity.
Suddenly, Yuanli felt dizzy, her ears tinnitus incessant, and she was sweating with panic. She felt weak, her vision gradually darkened, and her head felt heavy. Yuanli supported her knees with her left hand, and with her right hand, she frantically grasped the car wall before collapsing and losing consciousness.
When she opened her eyes again, Yuanli was lying on the bed in Prince Wen's mansion. There was a bitter taste in her mouth. Seeing her awake, Ziyun said worriedly, "Princess, you scared me to death. I'll go get you some porridge right away. The doctor said you fainted because you were hungry and had an injury recently. You can't eat anything big. Just eat some light porridge first."
Yuanli was about to refuse, but her stomach started growling, so she had no choice but to let her bring her some porridge. This morning, she had just eaten a quick breakfast when Xiao Tong arrived. Later, she got busy with other things and forgot to eat.
Ziyun brought a bowl of porridge with rich ingredients, which was almost the same as Wen Yici's unique porridge and smelled delicious.
Seeing Yuanli staring intently at the bowl of porridge, Ziyun felt relieved and said, "The princess will definitely like the recipe left by the prince. Eat more to replenish your energy."
Taking the bowl of porridge, Yuanli used a spoon to stir the porridge bottom. Red beans, peanuts, longan, red dates, black beans, and coix seed came into view, exactly the same as the porridge he made last time.
Yuanli stirred the porridge with a spoon and blew away the hot steam. When it cooled down a bit, he scooped up a mouthful and put it in his mouth. The slightly sweet taste was just right. Although it was not as good as the one he made himself, it tasted good too.
Staring at the porridge, her longing grew wildly. Yuanli kept stuffing the porridge into her mouth. Tears gathered in her eyes and rolled down the corners of her eyes, finally hitting the quilt. She held back her tears and didn't let herself collapse.
Seeing his princess staring at the porridge with fluctuating emotions, Ziyun knew that she was missing the prince again. However, if she didn't finish the porridge, the princess would not be able to bear it after hearing the news delivered in the evening.
Ziyun helplessly accompanied her to eat porridge until she finished and stuffed the bowl into her hands. Only then did Ziyun show her the imperial edict.
"Father won't do that. He won't kill Aci. Aci can't possibly be plotting a rebellion. He knows this is wrong. Ziyun! Prepare the carriage and go to the palace."
After saying that, Yuanli hurriedly lifted the quilt and changed her clothes. She felt flustered, her steps were weak, and her hands were shaking violently as she put on her clothes.
"Princess, you can't do that! Knocking on the palace gate at night is tantamount to treason!"
"The prince and I share weal and woe. If he is guilty, I am guilty too. Why would I care about his crime being even more severe?"
Ziyun knelt before her, blocking her path. She clutched the hem of her skirt with both hands and pleaded bitterly, "Princess, you can't go. If you knock on the palace gate at night, the Emperor will blame you. At the very least, you'll be sentenced to three years in prison, at the worst, death by hanging! You won't be able to see the Emperor if you go now. Wait until the fourth watch. I beg you."
"You don't want to listen to me? Go!"
Ziyun was frightened by her anger and trembled. Since Yuanli entered the mansion seven years ago, she had always been kind to the servants and had never been like this. Ziyun could understand, but she did not want the princess to die, so she still held her tightly despite the great disapproval.
Seeing that Ziyun refused to let go, Yuanli raised her voice and shouted outside, "Someone, prepare the carriage!"
She just put on her dress casually, not even wanting to put on her hairpin and pearl hairpins, for fear of wasting any time. She used all her strength to run towards the gate of the mansion to face the snow. The snow driven by the wind hit her face, causing pain.
In front of the carriage, Yuanli suddenly opened the curtain, looked back at Ziyun who was following closely behind her, hesitated for a moment, pulled her into the carriage, and immediately asked the horse driver to rush to the palace gate. The wheels of the carriage turned rapidly, causing the white snow on the ground to splash.
Even though the carriage was very bumpy and the people sitting inside were swaying from side to side, Yuanli never asked the horse driver to slow down.
After arriving at the palace gate, Yuanli jumped off the carriage before the horse driver brought the horse stool, but the guards on duty stopped her.
"Princess, the Emperor has ordered that you are not allowed to enter the palace without being summoned."
"Get out of here! This princess demands to see my father!"
The guards remained unmoved, still holding her with crossed spears. "Princess, calm down. You are not allowed to enter the palace without a summons. It is past curfew now. Knocking on the palace gate at night is tantamount to treason. Princess, please think twice!"
At this moment, Yuanli wanted to cast a spell to break in and kidnap Wen Yici, but she couldn't. At this critical moment, she had to act strictly according to the rules of the human world.
Seeing that her attempt to break in failed, Yuanli immediately switched to the Huayang Gate, which was closest to her father's bedroom. However, precisely because of this, knocking on the Huayang Gate at night was a much more serious crime than knocking on the Jingyang Gate just now.
The guards at Huayang Gate continued to urge her to return. Looking at the tightly closed palace gates, Yuanli felt powerless and ridiculous. Her Ah Ci had stabilized the government, quelled wars, and brought peace to the country, but now there was no one to even plead for him.
Yuanli sat on the ground holding the spear. The cold air from the snow made him sober. The guards groaned and put the spears back to their sides, but the palace gates remained closed.
"Princess, please get up. You can't stand sitting on the snow. You will be sick when you get old."
Yuanli looked up at the door knockers on the palace gate, and with the help of Ziyun, she stood up. She grabbed the huge door knocker and knocked on the palace gate.
"Father, I request an audience. I suspect Wen Yici of treason, but how can you hastily execute him without evidence? He wasn't recalled to the capital because he was murdered by traitors! Both my parents sacrificed their lives for the court, and I, too, fought on the battlefield, quelling bandits. The people all regard me as a hero. During my time as regent, he had countless opportunities to rebel, but he never harbored the slightest traitorous heart. How could such a loyal man rebel?"
"Father, Wen Yici would not rebel, no, no... You clearly know that someone falsely conveyed the secret order. Father... I cannot live without him, I cannot... live without him."
The guards looked at each other in embarrassment. Yuanli kept defending him. The cries echoed again and again in the night, but the palace gate did not move at all.
Cha Suxun stood behind her and watched all this. He used his spiritual power to wrap her up. The heavy snow fell and disappeared before it landed on her. The snow on her knees stopped melting and her clothes that were soaked by the snow dried up.
He hid behind her to protect her from the cold.
Heqi and Tianshu, who had rushed over, stood there in shock, watching all this. Heqi said to Tianshu, "See, now you know why you lost so completely? Coward."
Xiao Tong rushed over with the imperial edict in hand. His clenched fingers and the bulging veins on his neck hinted at his anger, but all of it relaxed the moment he approached her.
"Do you want to die before him? If you have to torture yourself like this, I'll get what you want."
Xiao Tong handed the imperial edict to her, moved the oil-paper umbrella in his hand to her head, and tilted it towards her, just like the fair scale in his heart that kept increasing the weight in her favor.
After receiving the imperial edict, Yuanli quickly opened it to confirm. It was the jade seal signed by her father, and Wen Yici was acquitted.
"If you still want him to live, then listen to me and follow me." Xiao Tong handed Ziyun a brand new cloak and said, "It's new. I haven't touched the inside yet, so why don't you put it on your master?"
After she put on her outer cloak, Xiao Tong took her to his carriage. The carriage of Prince Wen's mansion followed closely behind. Ziyun sat in the carriage and stared at the carriage of the Xiao mansion in front.
In the huge carriage, she sat in the main seat, holding a cup of hot tea to keep warm, while Xiao Tong sat in the side seat, keeping a distance that made her feel comfortable.
"This imperial edict must be read out personally by me for it to count. When you want him to be released from prison, come back with me to the villa. The one you want is in the box at your feet. After you sign the divorce agreement, Prince Wen will leave."
When the box was opened, there was a marriage agreement, a list of betrothal gifts for a ten-mile trip, an imperial decree to confer the title of Queen of Western Xinjiang, a marriage certificate, and a divorce letter that had been written long ago with only the name on it remaining. The handwriting was extremely similar.
Without hesitation, she signed the divorce papers and handed them to him, saying, "Now."
Xiao Tong looked at the divorce letter with great satisfaction, carefully tucked it into his chest, and said to the carriage outside through the felt curtain, "Change the route to the Heavenly Prison."
"Why does it have to be me?"
"The throne of Queen Xijiang can only belong to you. Do you remember when you were eight years old and the Western Xinjiang envoys came to pay tribute? In the Imperial Garden, you gave a Cuju to the twelve-year-old Western Xinjiang prince."
As he spoke, Xiao Tong opened the secret compartment under the main seat, and inside lay an old Cuju.
"The monarchs of the two countries wanted to make a marriage agreement. It was clearly agreed that the Fifth Princess would marry into the Western Frontier in ten years. I studied the art of emperorship day and night, just to make you the Queen of the Western Frontier. But what about Liangzhu? She married you to Shen Xuhuai. After finally waiting for you to divorce her, you married Wen Yici. So that you can remember me, my token still retains the python used by the prince. Now I am already over thirty years old, and I have never married or had children."
"You haven't married or had children yet. What about the concubines in your harem? Emperor Xijiang?"
"Princess, I am the king. My harem cannot be empty. All the officials in the court are forcing me to have children and forcing concubines upon me. Countless eyes are staring at me. I have not left any heirs. My eldest son, the crown prince of Western Xinjiang, must be born in your next life. When I die, you will be the empress dowager. This is the promise I can make to you right now."
"Xiao Yan'an, how can you guarantee that no concubine in the harem will give birth to a child before me?"
"Every time I take a concubine, I give her a bell-shaped jade bracelet. Inside, it's not silver beads, but concentrated musk contraceptive pills. I change them regularly, and every time the bell rings, I feel at ease. They can't have my children. Even if they try to avoid it by being clever, the things added to their food will kill them off."
Xiao Tong smiled tenderly at her, and every word he spoke was so gentle, as if the person who attacked the person next to him was not him.
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