Qin Yunuan violently leaned backward and crouched in the chair. She was holding the note with the word “welcome” on it in her fingertips. The people who they “welcome” could refer to no one else but Leng Changxi.
Seeing Qin Yunuan reacting like this, Maner figured it out more or less. Just then, there was a muffled bang coming from the door. It sounded like something heavy was hit against the door. Maner opened the door cautiously and found Leng Wu panting, leaning against the door frame. There were wounds on his arm and bloodstains on his sleeves.
“Man…Maner.” Leng Wu leaned against Maner. Maner held the injured Leng Wu in her arms and burst into tears, “How did this happen? Why were you injured so badly?”
Hearing that it was Leng Wu, Qin Yunuan immediately stood up and ran towards the door, “Where’s Changxi?”
Leng Wu took a deep breath as he spurted blood. He frowned, bearing his pain and said, “We were set up by the third prince. General’s missing, but he told me to run away before he found out that something’s wrong. He asked me to tell you that you must not enter the palace. You must not!”
After he said that, he immediately passed out. Qin Yunuan knew clearly about Leng Changxi’s capability and Leng Wu’s martial art skills. She well understood how dangerous it was when these two couldn’t ensure their own safety. As a woman, how could she dare to risk it?
“Maner,” Qin Yunuan frowned and said, “Carry Leng Wu back and take good care of him.”
“What about you, third young madam?” Maner was holding the slightly heavy Leng Wu while looking at Qin Yunuan with a worried look. She knew the deep affection of Qin Yunuan towards the third young master. She was afraid that Qin Yunuan would enter the palace despite third young master’s suggestion due to anxiety.
Qin Yunuan was extremely uneasy. She had no intention to answer Maner’s question, as she was unsure either. Finally, she only summoned Tingxue and said, “Do my makeup for me.” Qin Yunuan took a deep breath, “Let’s go to the Hexiang Court to find the old madam. Then, we’ll go into the palace together.”
How could she leave Leng Changxi alone? She would risk her life for him.
It was the first time Qin Yunuan found the four-horse carriage of Prince Ning’s Mansion driving so slow on flat road. It was an urgent situation, so for the first time, the old madam allowed someone else to sit with her in her personal carriage. It was delicately decorated, and some incense which smells nice was burnt, but Qin Yunuan had no attention in those.
Seeing Qin Yunuan’s uneasiness, the old madam merely leaned against a pillow, narrowed her eyes and said, “Why the rush? As soon as the palace was not in chaos, it means that Changxi’s fine. You’re underestimating him.”
Qin Yunuan sighed in her heart. Looking at old madam who was looking calm, Qin Yunuan was more settled somehow. She just said, “Third prince is vicious, and he acts fast. The seventh prince’s power is weak, so he’s the easiest one to deal with. I’m afraid that third prince would turn against Imperial Concubine Yun and the first prince after the seventh prince is eliminated.”
“Huh,” The old madam laughed in disdain, “It’s still a long way to go for him. As long as there are any loyal people in Qi, how far could Sima Ray go?”
As they talked, the carriage had arrived at the Rosefinch Gate. The weather was gloomy today as if it was shaded in mist. The guards at the Rosefinch Gate were not the usual ones. It seemed that some big changes had happened to the palace last night.
The old madam’s servant girl, Yuanyang, took out the pass familiarly.
“We have to check the carriage.” The guards said skillfully.
“Check the carriage?” Yuanyang’s attitude was firm. “Don’t you know about the old madam of Prince Ning’s mansion? She’s the first grade Gaoming Madam, biological sister of the queen mother, does she still need to be checked?”
“It’s protocol.”
“You sure can check it. However, our old madam is not feeling well today, and she can’t be exposed to wind, not even a little bit. If your checking makes her catch a cold, your heads will all be chopped off.” Yuanyang was stalling time deliberately. By the same time, under Qin Yunuan’s signal, a purple figure leaped across the palace wall and dived into the inner palace.
The old madam claimed to talk with the queen mother. They entered the palace and changed to a soft sedan. They naturally headed for the queen mother’s palace. Qin Yunuan got off the sedan when there was no one around.
“Be careful. If anything happens to you, I might not be able to help you anymore.” It was the truth. She couldn’t be everywhere. The power of Sima Ray in the palace is unpredictable now, and he’s cunning like an old fox.
Qin Yunuan nodded. She took out two palace girl outfits from Tingxue’s package and got changed with Ting Xue in a corner. Maner needed to take care of Leng Wu, while Xi’er and Nurse Liao had to protect Qin Baochuan. Tingxue was a good assistant, as she was really careful.
Seeing the old madam’s sedan leaving, Qin Yunuan took a deep breath and asked Tingxue, “Are you afraid?”
Tingxue shook her head, “My life is yours, third young madam. I’m not afraid.”
Even though the seventh prince Sima Qiu was in prison, he was a prince after all, so he was just temporarily locked up in the Imperial Clan Court and waited to be judged. Sima Qiu’s clothes were dirty, leaning against the bars covered in mold. The guards had been changing around the clock, all new faces. It seemed that Sima Ray was actually taking over control of Qi’s palace.
Suddenly, his ears moved. His perfect hearing enabled him to notice the approaching of two strangers. The sounded like women, and they sounded familiar.
In front of the gate of the Imperial Clan Court, a seemingly more dominant palace girl was scolding a timid one nonstop, “Why are you crying? You can’t even be trusted with delivering food. You deserve to lose your earring. No more crying and shut up.”
The guard by the door couldn’t take it anymore, as he yelled, “What are you doing here? Don’t you know what this place is, yet you’re still yelling. Have you lived enough already?”
The more dominant palace girl immediately smiled like a slave, “Sure we want to live longer. Mr. soldier, we’re just two little palace girls in the royal kitchen. How could we compare with you? It was just that this young palace girl had just come to the palace, and she knew nothing about the rules. She dropped one of her earrings when she delivered lunch. Then she cried and said she wanted to find it, given that her mother gave it to her before she entered the palace. I scolded her for a long time, yet she was still crying. So without any other way, I could only take her here to the Imperial Clan Court. Tell her that someone like us can’t get in so that she would lose hope.”
The little palace girl was weeping even louder, “Mr. soldier, please just do us a favor and let me in.”
“You sent lunch here?” The leading guard frowned, “Why haven’t I seen you before?”
The little palace girl was burying her head even lower. “It was another shift at noon. Besides, your soldiers are up to bigger businesses than us.”
In the palace, guards always have higher status than eunuchs and palace girls. The leading guard was more satisfied after the flattering.
Moreover, the more dominant palace girl suddenly turned to a flattering smile, as she actively leaned against the leading guard. She was rubbing him with her breast, and her leg under the skirt was touching his groin. Seeing the beauty of the palace girl, and the seductive look of hers, the guard had the urge to sleep with her right there if he hadn’t been surrounded by people.
“Please, Mr. soldier. I couldn’t listen to the little palace girl’s weeping anymore.”
“Fine, fine. She’s quite filial. I’ll give you fifteen minutes, be fast.” The leading guard couldn’t resist the beauty after all.
“Thank you.” The two thanked the guard.
“Be careful, third young madam.” Tingxue, the dominant palace girl, whispered to Qin Yunuan. Qin Yunuan nodded, and carefully touched the so-called missing earing she hid in her sleeve and followed another guard into the Imperial Clan Court.
When they reached a creepy staircase, the guard who led the way suddenly stopped and said, “The prisoners were in there. Just look around the door, don’t get in there.” He was not as easy as the guard outside.
Qin Yunuan acted obediently, but she quickly threw her earring into the prison. Then, she pointed down the staircase and said, “Oh, there it is. My earring is just there.” Then, she quickly ran down the staircase.
It was easy for her to find where Sima Qiu was locked up. She remembered that Sima Qiu liked to use civet perfume. She quickly found Sima Qiu’s cell following the faint scent of civet.
“Seventh prince.” Qin Yunuan lowered her voice and called.
Sima Qiu knew that Qin Yunuan was here as soon as he heard the conversation of Tingxue and the leading guard. He didn’t show much surprise, and exclaimed pitifully, “Third young miss of Prince Ning’s mansion. You’re really capable.”
“I only have three questions for you.” Qin Yunuan had no time for small talks. “First, is Princess Zhaojing working with third prince? Second, where’s Changxi? And third, is the Emperor controlled by Sima Ray?”
Sima Qiu suddenly smiled weirdly, “My answers to your questions are I don’t know, I don’t know, and I don’t know.”
Bang, Qin Yunuan punched against the bars angrily. She shouldn’t have come to this useless and weak seventh prince in the first place. Then, the footsteps of the guard were coming closer and closer. Sima Qiu suddenly held the bars and stood up, as he said mysteriously to Qin Yunuan, “However, I could tell you what I’ve heard. I heard Sima Ray said that he didn’t plan to get rid of Leng Changxi so soon. Everything he did was because of you.”
Before Sima Qiu was done, the guard had come in angrily and yelled towards Qin Yunuan, “Why did you run? What do you think this place is? Do you think it’s somewhere you can just come and go?”
Qin Yunuan was about to bow and apologize when an incomparably vicious voice sounded by the entrance of the prison, “It really is a place that she could come and go, for who she is.”
