jdhmnovel Chapter 110 The cuckoo cries, but the person does not return.
Chapter 110 The cuckoo cries, but the person does not return.
"Young Prince, Miss Fei, please follow me." Aunt Qiuyue walked ahead, holding a torch, and looked back affectionately at the young man and woman following behind her.
The Empress is past the age of knowing one's destiny, and has no other worries in her heart but to hope that the young prince can live in peace and safety.
"Aunt Qiuyue, what exactly does Grandmother want me to do? Who is the person who dared to poison Grandmother? Do I need to kill the person myself? Grandmother, please rest assured, I promise to do it without anyone knowing!"
Hearing Gu Shizi's foolish words, Fei Xi came to her senses, her lips twitched, and she stared speechlessly at the hand holding hers in front of her.
Today is the Emperor's birthday, and also his sixtieth birthday. The celebration is unlike any other, filling the entire palace with joy, with gold and jade everywhere, and brocade and silk intertwined, creating a breathtakingly beautiful scene.
Logically speaking, Fei Xi should not be qualified to appear in the main hall of the Five Sacred Mountains Palace.
Yesterday, Aunt Qiuyue, following Empress Wang's orders, sent two young palace maids to serve her. Little did she know that these two maids had secretly hidden harmful sleeping potions and poisons under her bed and in her cabinet.
Just then, Aunt Qiuyue happened to pass by and saw them slacking off. She had just scolded them a couple of times when one of the maids, for some reason, seemed to have had enough and started talking back.
Seeing that the situation had changed, Fei Xi took the opportunity to expose the actions of the two palace maids to Aunt Qiu Yue.
Unexpectedly, the maid who had defied Aunt Qiuyue, upon realizing her scheme had been exposed, reacted by wanting to kill her. Fei Xi was unable to dodge in time and was injured by this person, but fortunately, Prince Gu arrived in time to save her.
When asked about the relationship between the two, the Crown Prince Gu replied as he had in front of Princess Yongle, saying that Fei Xi was his savior and a friend he had made while traveling the martial arts world.
Upon hearing this, Empress Wang smiled kindly and asked Fei Xi what reward she desired.
Looking at the Empress's indulgent gaze, Fei Xi had a sudden thought and said she wanted to see the scene of the Emperor's birthday celebration.
"What's so interesting about that? It's tiring and troublesome, with too many rules, and the food isn't even good. Since you're injured, just stay here with your grandmother and recover. If you want to see something exciting, I'll take you to the Star-Picking Tower during the Mid-Autumn Festival. At night, the area below the tower is ablaze with lights, a dazzling display of silver flowers and fiery trees, it's so beautiful!"
"Feng'er, don't be silly. If your maternal grandfather hears you making up stories about his birthday, he might slap you. Besides, I've already spoken, there's no going back on my word. The girl comes from the common people and wants to see the imperial celebrations, I understand..." Empress Wang chuckled and scolded Gu Mingfeng, then turned to look at Fei Xi, her gaze shimmering with a deep, unsettling light.
"It's just that I'm getting old and my energy is waning. I've left the arrangements for this celebration to others. It's not appropriate for me to explain to everyone who suddenly enters the palace. I can only ask you, my little maid, to be a maid and let Feng'er take you in. You can also keep an eye on this mischievous monkey for me, and make sure he doesn't run wild and act recklessly in the palace."
How could Fei Xi not obey the Empress's words?
On the day of Emperor Hua's birthday, Master would definitely be there to celebrate. Fei Xi knew that something was bound to happen at this celebration.
She was worried about her master's safety. Although she didn't know why the Empress wanted her to stay by Gu Mingfeng's side, she was willing to be a maid as long as she could enter the palace.
No! That would be extremely dangerous!
Just as Fei Xi was about to smash the wine jug in her hand over the head of the despicable man beside her again, she unexpectedly saw Aunt Qiu Yue give them a wink.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Fei Xi smashed the wine pot in her hand at Gu Mingfeng without hesitation.
As soon as the two entered the side hall, Gu Mingfeng dismissed the palace maids and eunuchs serving inside.
After everyone left, he helped Fei Xi sit down in a chair.
On Fei Xi's arm, which was injured yesterday, there were traces of blood seeping through the silk bandage. Even though it was her wound that had reopened, Gu Mingfeng looked at her with a sour face as if he were the one who was injured.
The wound on her right arm, which she usually used to bandage, reopened. Fei Xi couldn't reach it herself, so she naturally didn't refuse when someone applied the medicine for her.
With her peach blossom eyes raised and lowered, her eyelashes fluttered with each glance, making her both alluring and captivating.
Remembering what the man in the main hall said about the group of flower fairies not being as pretty as him, Fei Xi had to admit that there was nothing wrong with that statement when she saw Gu Shizi's serious expression.
Practice makes perfect, and the wound was quickly bandaged again.
Fei Xi was about to say a few words of thanks when everything went dark, and a purple robe reeking of wine sprouted from her head.
When Fei Xi gritted her teeth and removed the purple robe from her head, a half-naked body swayed back and forth in front of her.
Noticing Fei Xi's gaze, the naked man raised an eyebrow and glared at her provocatively.
Fei Xi glared back without hesitation; it wasn't the first time she'd seen it.
This time, the person opposite turned around with gritted teeth and red ears to get spare clothes from the chair.
Not long after Prince Gu changed his clothes, Aunt Qiuyue followed him in.
Before Fei Xi could ask Aunt Qiu Yue why she had been summoned, a commotion suddenly broke out outside the door, followed by the sound of weapons clashing.
Gu Mingfeng's expression changed upon hearing the sound. He was about to go out to see what was going on when Aunt Qiuyue pulled him behind the statue of the water god Feng Yi.
The statue was over ten feet tall. Standing beneath it, Fei Xi felt like a tiny person in a land of giants.
No one knew what Aunt Qiuyue had encountered, but with a rumbling sound of wheels rolling, the statue in front of her moved away on its own, revealing a secret passage with a diameter of half a meter at its bottom.
The sounds of fighting outside grew louder as they approached. Urged on by Aunt Qiuyue, Feixi jumped down into the secret passage without hesitation.
Once inside the secret passage, she heard the clicking and turning of the mechanism's wheels, and the entrance was instantly sealed off completely.
In the pitch black, Fei Xi was filled with unease as she recalled the "familiar face" she had just seen in the hall.
Suddenly, a hand grabbed her, and the owner of the hand whispered to her, "Don't be afraid!"
Fei Xi, who wasn't afraid, smiled and squeezed the hand that was holding hers, without saying a word.
"Aunt Qiuyue, why did you bring me in? How come there's a secret passage in the Five Mountains Palace? Where does it lead?"
"Your Highness, please rest assured, this is all Her Majesty's arrangement."
As Aunt Qiuyue replied, she took out a tinderbox from her waist and lit the torch beside the secret passage.
Fei Xi and the other girl followed Aunt Qiu Yue as they groped their way forward, though they didn't know why Aunt Qiu Yue had led them to hide in the secret passage.
But it's obvious they didn't want Gu Mingfeng to do something "dirty" to bring him in.
"The young prince's filial piety has always been remembered by the princess. Come with me and you will see for yourselves in a moment."
After walking for a while, they came to a fork in the road, and Aunt Qiuyue led them to the left.
The passage on the left leads to a small room. Aunt Qiuyue fixed the torch to the wall, and Feixi then saw that there was an iron ladder on the south side of the room leading up to it.
As you approach the top of the iron ladder, you can faintly hear people talking from above.
Fei Xi turned around and saw Gu Mingfeng flying upwards with a gloomy face. Clearly, his martial arts skills were not bad and he had heard what was happening up there.
……
"Guier, are you trying to rebel?"
Empress Wang stood up, her solemn and kind face now showing a sharp and stern expression as she sternly questioned the Second Prince, who was swaggering in the center of the stage.
A figure dressed in black robes, whose features were obscured, stood before the Second Prince. Consort De was protected behind him by several trusted guards. The guards exuded a chilling aura, and blood flowed down their gleaming white armor onto the painted stage floor, creating a terrifying and gruesome scene.
Not far from them, a group of soldiers surrounded the ministers and foreign envoys, led by Prime Minister Yao. Below Empress Wang, a disheveled woman in palace attire knelt, her face filled with sorrow, clutching a lifeless corpse and muttering something unintelligible.
Upon closer inspection, the corpse turned out to be that of the Fourth Prince, who had targeted Gu Mingfeng not long ago.
The black-robed elder before him killed his most hated fourth brother with a single move. Witnessing the terrifying strength of his opponent, the Second Prince relaxed, a hypocritical smile spreading across his confident face.
"Mother, a wise man knows when to yield. Father is old and senile, and he favors a sorcerer of dubious origin, paving the way for my fourth brother. That vile woman, Xu Ying, has always taken advantage of Father's favor and disregarded you. If my fourth brother truly ascends the throne one day, your life will be difficult. Why don't we cooperate today? When I ascend the throne, I will respect you as I respected my mother."
"How do you want to cooperate? Kill your father, pin all the blame on your deceased brother, and then have me write an imperial edict to help you ascend the throne? And your respect for me is just to seduce the maids in my palace, make them devoted to you, and then poison me with a cup of poison after you've used me?"
Empress Wang's words reminded the Second Prince of those two good-for-nothings who were more trouble than they were worth. He had only been playing around with them, but they had almost caused him a lot of trouble before the matter was even settled.
Empress Wang wasn't supposed to be here today, but it seems more effective to capture her all at once:
"Mother, you misunderstand. How could I possibly be so cruel to you and Father? It's just that you're both old, and I wanted you to rest. Everyone looks out for themselves. If I hadn't fought for my own life, it wouldn't be my fourth brother lying on the ground today, but me. I did all this to protect myself. Mother, you must understand my predicament."
"Gui'er, you are someone I've watched grow up. Listen to your mother's advice, and don't make the same mistake again!"
Empress Wang's words had no effect whatsoever. The Second Prince remained unmoved; he was already planning to bring all twelve flower fairies to his bedchamber that night to play with them.
For the first time, the Second Prince's gaze towards Emperor Hua no longer held awe and fear; he let out a mocking sigh.
"Alas, Father, it seems that Mother does not agree. I did not mean to disturb your birthday celebration. If you wish for Mother and my sisters to be safe and sound, could you please write an imperial edict of abdication for me?"
Hua Di stared sharply at the woman behind the Second Prince, ignoring the Second Prince's request.
"He didn't come?"
"Your Majesty?" Stared at by a wolf-like, fierce gaze, Consort De couldn't help but take a step back.
Just as the two were playing the riddle game, a loud, laughing voice came in from outside the door.
Upon hearing the voice, the second prince's face darkened for a moment, but when he turned around, he exclaimed with delight:
"Father, is everything settled outside the palace?"
"Second Prince, rest assured, the Imperial Guards have been brought under control by my troops."
The newcomer was a robust, middle-aged man, full of vigor. His tall figure, standing before the Second Prince, resembled a mother hen standing before her chicks.
Behind Prime Minister Yao, a burly old man showing early signs of aging took a few steps forward in disbelief upon seeing the newcomer.
"Shi Wen! Did you instigate the Second Prince?!"
"General Lin, what's this talk about encouraging or discouraging? The supreme ruler of the world belongs to the capable. If you hadn't been so rigid in your adherence to the etiquette between ruler and subject, Wenjuan would still only be a Consort De."
Lin Xiangdong sensed the intimacy in the man's words towards his daughter, and an absurd guess popped into his mind:
"You are so rebellious! You will surely be punished by heaven!"
"What divine retribution? It's nothing but the self-consolation of the incompetent before they die. Gu Yanting got to be made a king because of his status as a member of the royal family. What did you get for following Lu Wenhe through thick and thin, General Lin? As the maternal grandfather of the Second Prince, you will be the father-in-law of the emperor after the Second Prince ascends the throne. Wouldn't it be better to let Gui'er make you a king than to be this damn loyal and brave general now?"
Lin Xiangdong was so enraged by Shi Wen's outrageous words that his eyes were bloodshot. The Lin family had been loyal and virtuous for generations, and the reputation that his father had earned with his life could not be ruined by his daughter!
"Juan'er, if you still consider me your father, quickly commit suicide to atone for your sins!"
Upon hearing her father's heartless words, Consort De's previously anxious and guilty heart instantly hardened:
“Father, I have always listened to you, for half my life, and what have I gotten in return? Do you know how bitter and unbearable life is in this deep palace? You may disown your daughter, but you cannot stand in the way of Gui’er’s path to becoming a king.”
"Why waste words on that stubborn, unyielding idiot, Second Prince? How is things on your end? Has Empress Wang agreed to your demands?"
Seeing the Second Prince shake his head, Shi Wen's expression changed. If he weren't afraid of Gu Yanting, he would have already removed Empress Wang, this stumbling block, for Consort De.
Of all the troops in the country, one-third are in the hands of Prince Rui, one-third are in the hands of Wenjuan's father, Lin Xiangdong, and the remaining one-third are in the hands of Emperor Hua.
Through his connection with the Second Prince, he successfully gained the support of some of Lin Xiangdong's men. If the Second Prince could successfully ascend the throne, he would naturally have no trouble getting his hands on Emperor Hua's military forces.
The only variable is Prince Rui, but if Empress Wang and Prince Rui's son Gu Mingfeng are used as bargaining chips, there's no need to worry about Prince Rui not giving in.
However, his men had just searched the side hall but couldn't find Prince Gu, so Empress Wang's support became crucial.
"Your Majesty, Emperor Hua is heartless and ungrateful. Why should you care about your marital bond? The Second Prince is also your child. It would be better to help him ascend the throne as Empress Dowager than to be a miserable empress."
"How dare you! Who do you think you are? My husband is a peerless hero, a towering figure in this world, whose achievements will be praised for eternity. How could a rat hiding in the gutter possibly understand the brilliance of the sun? Your squeaks and filth are utterly laughable!"
"You! Stupid woman, slut!" Empress Wang's words struck a nerve with Shi Wen. He was proud of his noble birth and hated nothing more than his beloved marrying a middle-aged man who was only lucky and was inferior to him in every way.
Enraged, he disregarded whether it was Prince Rui or not, and raised the blood-stained knife in his hand to slash at Empress Wang.
Because his wife protected Hawkeye, who had just softened, he instantly became sharp again. Emperor Hua clapped his hands, and the imperial guards who had not appeared until now instantly blocked in front of the emperor and empress, protecting them completely.
Shi Wen's martial arts skills were average, but he was a killing god who had come from the battlefield. He had killed too many people, and his whole body exuded a terrifying aura of murderous intent.
The palace guards, whose martial arts skills were relatively weak, were terrified by this murderous aura and couldn't help but retreat to avoid the deadly blade.
In a life-or-death battle, it's either you or me; it's often not simply a matter of who has the better martial arts skills. Once you start to have thoughts of retreating, you can easily fall into a disadvantageous position and end up completely defeated.
Therefore, each of these imperial guards was more skilled in martial arts than Shi Wen when taken out individually, but he managed to break through the encirclement and slash and hack away, displaying unparalleled ferocity and bravery.
However, there were still some truly skilled guards in the imperial palace. The five guards surrounding the emperor and empress exerted their strength together, instantly blocking Shi Wen's blood-stained blade. With just one strike, Shi Wen's hand holding the blade was shattered by the person in the middle, and he flew away like a kite with a broken string.
The Second Prince, who was hiding behind the old man in black and watching the battle, did not go forward to check whether his father-in-law was dead or alive after seeing him being knocked away.
Looking at Hua Di with eyes that seemed to see a dead man, he cried out in fear:
"Old man, you're about to die! Save me!!!"
After dealing with Shi Wen, the imperial guards, without Emperor Hua's orders, prepared to deal with the rebelling soldiers and capture Consort De and the Second Prince.
No one saw what happened. The hand that was about to grab the Second Prince flew into the air above the hall. As the hand fell, all the imperial guards fell to the ground.