Heavenly Price Escaping Concubine's Two Treasures in the Coffin 66

  Petals of peach blossoms fell from the sky, filling the courtyard in an instant. A stunningly handsome man appeared as if jumping down from a bright moon, his red cloak fluttering open like a red eagle, and landed on the ground at a speed that left everyone blinking.

  All around, a massive gasp of air can be imagined as the world's panic, people are like seeing the end of the world in that kind of horror.

  The man in the red robe elegantly swung his sleeves, and his fox-like peach blossom eyes swept around the crowd before catching sight of Huā Xī Yán's shadow. He ran his fingers over the bridge of his handsome nose, curling up his perfect, alluring thin lips: "Big sister, it's been a long time since we last met."

  Huā Yùyán had nothing good to say about this charming man.

  I had long thought that someone who dared to climb the wall in her backyard would absolutely not be an ordinary person, only I never could have imagined that this person would suddenly appear in Dongling and cause a huge sensation.

  Seeing her cold face, Ling Hu Jingxu couldn't help but sigh and whispered in her ear: "Young lady, I've at least sent you a horse-drawn carriage, you sold the horse, and I can be considered to have contributed to your travel expenses."

  "That's all your own doing."

  Ling Hu Jingxu rushed towards her, narrowing his peach blossom eyes and exclaimed: "Ahh, it hurts! Alright, alright, I admit that I'm the one who's self-inflicted, and I've actually developed a liking for this kind of heartless woman like you."

  Is she black? Blacker than him? Just look at the attitude of people around him.

  Suddenly, a group of princess guards holding long spears rushed into the courtyard and in an instant surrounded Linghu Jingxu, as if facing a great enemy.

  "Is this how Princess Dongling welcomes her guests?" The demon's beautiful face seemed to sigh with great regret.

  The Empress's face turned gloomy. The Emperor's son-in-law slapped the table and stood up: "You evil king! You're not afraid of death, now you've come to East Mausoleum to send yourself to death!"

  Evil King?

  Liu Auntie's voice trembled with a cold quiver as she explained this person's origins to Hua Xiyuan.

  The master of the Yougui Pavilion, Ling Hu Jingxu, is known as the King of the Eight Trigrams. He specializes in extracting intelligence from all corners and selling it to others. Because the information provided by the Yougui Pavilion's master has never been wrong, people around the world have mixed feelings about this intelligence expert. Those who love him are those who want the information, while those who hate him are those whose information has been extracted. As a result, he is now wanted by every country as their number one fugitive. The information he sells often escalates conflicts between parties that already had disagreements, and even ignites war.

  Unfortunately, there were many people who wanted to kill him, but this man had a strange and mysterious martial art. Not only could no one catch him, but it was said that each country had sent their top experts to surround and capture him, yet not one of them was able to come back alive, all disappearing without a trace from the face of the earth.

  He walks alone, has a strange personality, an unpredictable style, and mysterious martial arts skills. Since ancient times, the world has always been divided into two factions: orthodox and unorthodox. This person naturally belongs to the unorthodox faction. Moreover, he does business with both the orthodox and unorthodox factions. The people of the orthodox faction hate him even more, calling him the "Evil King" of the unorthodox faction.

  It is said that this person claims to be the master of the Ghostly Pavilion, but no one knows how many subordinates he has. Like Huā Xīyàn, at most, people can only see him with a small book boy following him around.

  The tense atmosphere in the princess's mansion was like a bowstring pulled to its limit, waiting for someone to give the order and unleash a thousand arrows. However, facing the lone figure of Linghu Jingxu in the middle, surprisingly, no one dared to make the first move. It seemed that the rumors about this man had already instilled deep fear in people's hearts.

  Hua Yu Yan swept her eyes around and suddenly found that some men had actually sneaked behind the women.

  At the moment of life and death, husband and wife each flew their separate ways. What's more, these people were originally not very familiar with one another.

  After a long delay, someone who thought himself clever finally spoke up, thinking that not going along with the crowd would be a great opportunity to gain fame and become a hero. A young nobleman with a somewhat handsome face jumped out of the crowd, holding a sword he considered divine, its blade gleaming brightly as it was drawn. He pointed it at the evil man in the middle and shouted loudly: "Demon King, watch as I take you down today in front of the princess!"

  In one sentence, it says all the flattering words about Princess Chang Le, fearing that no one in the world knows.

  Hua Yu Yan almost spat out the water in her mouth.

  What a fool, he's probably going to be easily strangled by the demon boy in no time.

  The result was as she had expected, yet not as she had expected. Only to see the young master who wanted to be a hero and save the princess holding his sword and rushing over, but for some reason, when he was two steps away from the demon boy, he suddenly threw his sword and knocked his head on the ground, saying: "Master spare my life. Drawing a sword against the evil king is not what this young master intended."

  Everyone's eyes widened in shock: Is this person here to perform a comedy routine?

  It wasn't until everyone saw the young master's face covered in red spots that they realized he had been poisoned by the demon boy's toxin without anyone noticing.

  In an instant, everyone surged backward like a receding tide, retreating several feet. Many people patted themselves down, afraid of accidentally being poisoned by the Evil King's toxin.

  Huā Yù Yán didn't follow others to retreat, and she didn't think the evil king would poison everyone, including her, because it was too much trouble. It wasn't that poisoning was troublesome, but being surrounded by all the desperate fugitives would be very troublesome. When people are on the verge of death, they will fight with their lives.

  Ling Hu Jingxu pinched his nose and waved his hand, saying: "What's with the stench? Is everyone retreating because of this smell?" As he spoke, he pretended to retreat with the others, but quickly chased after those who were fleeing. Meanwhile, Hua Xiyan saw Lin Muyang and her mother fall straight to the ground, having fainted from fright.

  The evil king was causing trouble in the mansion, just like the beautiful monkey king. He was mischievous and wicked, and had even caused chaos in the princess's palace, which was as majestic as the heavenly palace. As the host, the eldest princess had no choice but to come out and face him. She stood up and said: "Ghostly Pavilion Master, today this princess is holding a lantern festival, and uninvited guests are not allowed to enter. If you have business with me, please follow me into the house to discuss it. As for everyone in this mansion, they are all my noble guests, so I beg of you, evil king, do not harm anyone. This princess is eternally grateful."

  When the real master of the mansion spoke up, and his words were completely different from those of the crown prince, Linghu Jingxu walked back to the middle with his hands behind his back, wearing a red robe, and nodded slightly towards the princess: "The princess's words are still reasonable. This official admits that he has not harmed anyone, why must everyone be so afraid of this official? Princess, don't you hurry up and let everyone return to their seats, otherwise, this official will feel ashamed."

  A group of people glared at the demon boy as if they were going to eat him, but unfortunately no one had the ability to devour each other. In the end, they all retreated back with some coercion.

  Hua Yu Cai was puzzled at this moment. With so many famous people in the mansion, wasn't there a master who could resist this evil king?

  No, it's impossible. All that can be said is that none of those masters are willing to show off their heroism here. Probably they all think it's not necessary to waste their inner strength on this evil king and have chosen to retreat and hide their abilities.

  The Empress Dowager had a luxurious chair brought out especially to comfort the evil king and bestowed it upon him to sit.

  Linghu Jingxu sat down, sitting in the middle, took over the tea handed by the princess's maid, lifted the lid and smelled it, saying: "Tianshan water bubble bamboo leaf green, good tea, Dongling Princess Mansion is indeed all good things."

  Everyone held their breath and watched anxiously to see if he would drink it or not.

  As expected, the cunning evil king wouldn't drink it himself and instead gave it to his young book boy: "Little dove, if it's poisonous, it'll be just right for you to cultivate your body."

  Xiao Shu Tong took it with both hands, took a sip and said: "Master, it's not poisonous."

  The princess smiled and said: "How could I, the princess, poison and harm the prime minister?"

  The demon boy lazily cracked a few fingers that were as beautiful as jade carvings: "That's right, by reason, the princess and I have a deep relationship, and she has also bought several pieces of information from me."

  As soon as these words came out, everyone in the mansion had different expressions.

  The princess touched the armrest with her hand and slightly curled her fingers: "This princess, even if she buys information from you, Chamberlain, is also helpless."

  "Yes, normal. Among them, I've glanced through and there are too many people who have bought information from me, I can't even count." The beautiful eyes of the demon narrowed into a slit.

  Inside the palace, there was complete silence, without even a single crow calling out.

  Compared to being killed by a demon boy, the secrets hidden in the demon boy's mouth are more terrifying for some people.

  Time flies second by second. If this demon boy is allowed to stay here, what will happen to the lamp? The princess racked her brains and discussed with the prince in a tense manner, then said to the demon boy: "This princess remembers that you came here to be a witness for Yan Shangshu?"

  In a flash, the master who was trying to protect himself pushed Xian Wang out as cannon fodder.

  Huā Yù Yán sighed, this ex-fiancé was really unlucky from head to toe. It wasn't that she intentionally wanted to frame him, it's just that she didn't know that this evil king was so enthusiastic about helping her collect debts. He even took the initiative to help her collect debts for free, why wouldn't she be delighted?

  The wise king's face turned white as a sheet of paper, what kind of person is the evil king, how could he not have heard. At this moment, he may become the evil king's next meal at any time.

  Linghu Jing raised his leg and said, "The master of this house wants to help the young lady collect her debt. I wonder if Your Highness is willing or not?"

  The wise king was naturally unhappy, and since the other party gave him a chance to choose, he immediately stood up: "Your Excellency, don't bother to collect debts for her. How could I, as the wise king, not pay my debts?"

  "Well said!" The demon boy's beautiful finger pointed at Xian Wang, one finger raised.

  The wise king was just about to let out a sigh of relief.

  "Well, since it's come to this, let's settle the account today, Your Majesty. Otherwise, everyone will be thinking about the outcome and waiting for next time to make sense of it."

  The wise king's two legs immediately softened at the knees, and Chang Qing hurriedly propped him up from behind. The wise king took a deep breath: "I still hope that the master will give me some time, I need to return to my country to sort out my property, and then change it into silver to repay Yan Shangshu."

  "How long?"

  "A month."

  "One month later, if the wise king does not repay the debt, everyone here will testify that the lord of this pavilion will spread the reputation of the wise king's default throughout the world. Shouldn't there be no complaints?"

  The wise king bowed his head in defeat.

  Her eyes sparkled with delight, and she thought to herself that now the spirit of the eldest young lady of the Huahua family could finally rest in peace.

  The human evidence is complete, shouldn't the evil king leave now? Everyone's eyes are fixed on the red-robed demon sitting in the middle who shows no intention of standing up.

  "May I ask if there is anything else unresolved in the mansion?" asked the Grand Princess.

  Linghu Jingxu stood up after hearing this, pinched the two corners of his robe, looked left and right, as if he had lost something. He narrowed his peach blossom eyes: "Ah, noble people are forgetful. This pavilion master is here to remind everyone that each person should have lost something. Since the princess asked, this pavilion master remembered this matter and told everyone, it's time to leave." At the same time, the red robe fluttered back and forth, bringing a gust of wind with petals from the other shore, which suddenly blew in all directions, filling the sky with those enchanting red flowers. The crowd was dazed for a moment, only to realize that it was just a dream when they came back to their senses. They found that the chair in the middle was empty, and the man in the red robe who had stepped on the moon had vanished into thin air.

  The ladies of the mansion and the young masters all burst into cries of surprise one after another.

  "My wallet is lost!"

  "My jade pendant!"

  "Damn it, the deep-sea pearl earrings grandma sent me have been stolen!" Sun Ruyue cursed loudly after being reminded by her maid and finding her earlobes empty. She then asked her brother Sun Xuanxi if anything had been stolen from him.

  Sun Xuanye touched his waist and saw that the military token was still in his hand, saying: "No harm done, it's just a small item. That evil king must be fond of playing tricks, coming to join in the fun. If he really dared to steal something valuable, would these people let him off?"

  This statement is not false, a master thief will not be stolen from. Anyway, Huajiu Yan touched her own purse and IOU note, it seemed that nothing had been stolen. Listening to the crowd again, those who shouted about losing things were all some small trinkets, valuable but not as precious as life itself.

  The princess promised to compensate those who had lost things in order to calm everyone's emotions.

  "Your Ladyship, did that scoundrel take something from you?"

  "He dares to steal from me?" Jin Suqin was unfazed, her lips slightly curled up, "I think he's just trying to distract us, who knows what else he's done while stealing."

  "Is the master looking for me?"

  "How can I find? So many people."

  Hua Yuexuan turned her head back, just wanting to ask Liu Gugu if she had lost anything, but saw that Liu Gugu's expression was slightly unusual. Suddenly, it dawned on her that the two disguised servants were nowhere to be seen in the princess's mansion.

  "Don't be afraid, miss. The masters have gone back first and I've been told to stay here with you." Lü Jiejie whispered to her after noticing that she had sensed something.

  It's like that, although a bit worried, but does the emperor and the minister need to tell her where they go? Huajiu Yan took advantage of the chaos in the crowd and urinated discreetly.

  Seize a small servant in the mansion and ask about the way to Qin Yuxuan. When arriving at Qin Yuxuan, Sanqi was waiting at the door on tiptoes, seeing her arrive, immediately stepped forward to lead the way: "The princess is inside the house, suffocating, constantly asking why Yan Shangshu has not arrived, whether he was being bullied by someone?"

  The innocent and lovely young lady of the manor. Hua Yuexuan's lips curled up into a smile as she was led by Sanqi into the young lady's boudoir.

  "County Master, Yan Shangshu has arrived." Sanqi called out as she pushed open the door.

  In the boudoir, Lui Ji Yao was idly watching the falling leaves when she heard San Qi's voice. She quickly turned around and saw Hua Xi Yan, her eyes sparkling like stars. She ran over to grab Hua Xi Yan's hand: "Sit down, I'll pour you some tea."

  "County master, don't be in a hurry, I just drank a bellyful of tea outside." Hua Xiuyan pulled her back.

  Li Ji-yao then pulled her down to sit together, letting San Qi pour tea and asked: "Was the Tian Sheng Xue Lian I sent you last time useful?"

  "It's useful. The county lord's great kindness and virtue will be etched in the hearts of both Yexing and me for a lifetime." Huaxi Yan thanked him.

  The tea was finished, and I went with Liu Auntie to sit next door, closing the master's room door.

  Lively and restless Li Ji Yao couldn't sit still, immediately jumping up and winking at Hua Yu Cai: "The young master has something good to show you."

  Look at the county lord laughing with his teeth bared, just like his son. Hua Xiyuan smiled and looked over.

  Li Jiya entered the inner room and came out after a while, holding a painting scroll in both hands.

  "Is this a painting by the county master?" Huā Xīyán asked curiously.

  "Ha ha. The young mistress of the manor is not as talented as Yan Shangshu, she can't even paint." Li Jiuyao said, asking her to help unroll the painting.

  Slowly unfolding the painting paper, Huayexuan felt its thickness and knew it was high-quality paper, probably the kind that only aristocratic families could afford, similar to the famous Luoyang paper.

  The paper unfolds inch by inch, and a portrait floats before people's eyes. It is unknown whether there was Western-style painting in ancient China. However, the person who painted this picture did not use the freehand brushwork of traditional Chinese painting, but rather a delicate style similar to fine drawing, with an effect comparable to realistic Western portraiture.

  So the people in the painting should be almost identical to the real models.

  The moment Huayu's eyes met those of the person in the painting, her eyelids jumped heavily.

  Li Ji Yao said softly: "Beautiful, right? This is my imperial sister-in-law."

  "Empress Guo?"

  "Yes, she painted it herself. It's the most lifelike painting of her. The paintings done by the imperial court painters for her were not as vivid and didn't resemble her as much. That's why my sister-in-law would always complain when she was alive that although the palace painters' works were good, they beautified her too much, making her feel uncomfortable when looking at them. My sister-in-law was a very humble person like that. There wasn't anyone who wouldn't like her." Li Jiuyao opened up about the people she liked and talked non-stop like an open faucet, the little girl spoke excitedly without realizing what expression the listener had on their face.

  Huā Yù Yán was thoroughly shocked by this painting. As for the reason why she was shocked, I believe no one would believe it. That is, she seemed to have seen her own face.

  When it comes to the past, due to physical weakness after childbirth, she was sent to the countryside. When she came to her senses, she only felt that there were burn scars on her face. At first, she didn't pay much attention to it. Until later, she made some herbal medicine herself, thinking that she could cure the scar by herself. When the scar fell off, she discovered that a piece of human skin was grafted onto her face.

  All she could say was that when she first traveled back in time, she didn't understand anything, let alone the martial arts stuff, and yet it actually appeared right in front of her.

  She knew that when the Flower family sent her to the countryside, she had a small box with her, thinking it was a lifesaving gift from Old Lady Flower. The box was filled with some strange things, including several identical human skin masks. As soon as you put one on, your face would have a scar and change slightly.

  Because she had seen a lot in her previous life, she always thought that this Miss Flower was intentionally hiding her beauty, so she would play along with the lady's intention and be on guard against bad people.

  In the end, he used up all his human skin and took a mysterious transformation pill that he couldn't solve until now.

  Was everything she had guessed wrong?

  Mumu, his son Mumu, looks just like him. Nowadays, the portrait of his queen and her unadorned face are exactly alike.

  There is no more certain fact than this one.

  Huā Yù Yán suddenly felt a chill wind sweep in. He said his queen was dead, and as a result, she had crossed into the body of his queen? What did this mean?

  The Gong Zhu Fu's corner gate, Li Shun De was lingering outside the carriage, carefully covering his face to avoid being discovered by the people of the Gong Zhu Fu, although he had also disguised himself. However, with a thief's guilty conscience, he didn't have his master's audacity.

  After a while, the master and Palace Lord, one in front of the other, took advantage of the guards' carelessness and quickly walked out, rushing straight to the horse carriage.

  "Master!" Li Shunde was just about to ask what's wrong.

  The master who was walking in front directly got on the carriage himself, and before Palace Lord got on the carriage, he said to him: "Madam Liu and Official Yan are still at the mansion, you can send someone to pick them up later."

  Li Shunde only felt the fierce gust of wind brought by his master as he brushed past him, making his heart tremble with fear. Hurriedly following Gong Xiangru to jump onto the carriage, he instructed the coachman to drive away quickly. Carefully lifting the curtain to take a peek, the master inside had a face as dark as a stormy sky.

  The dragon's face swiftly grasped his movement, and before he could withdraw his head, it shouted: "Li Shunde, drive the carriage to Yunling."

  Yunling?

  Although he had great doubts in his heart, Li Shunde did not dare to offend the emperor's dignity and turned back to follow orders.

  In the carriage, Gong Xiang was as cautious as if he were accompanying a tiger, and didn't dare make a sound for a long time. He could only wait for Master to bring it up himself.

  The sudden change in the situation, of course, occurred after the sudden arrival of that evil king. The unexpected appearance of the evil king did not surprise them much. Because dealing with this evil king was a common occurrence for them.

  Like last time, Qing Hu said that when following Hua Yu Yan, he had encountered the Evil King, who was also interested in Hua Yu Yan's origins. In a way, they were indulging the Evil King to investigate Hua Yu Yan. They had gold and silver, and Ling Hu Jing Xu bought information. But what they feared was that the Evil King was eccentric and wouldn't sell anything he found out.

  The evil king made a show in the princess's mansion, but they were very clear that the evil king was secretly preparing to make a deal with someone. Until, the evil king suddenly said "Everyone has lost something".

  Mingxiangru was standing beside the master at that time and could clearly see that the master suddenly clenched his left hand into a fist, with something wrapped inside. Now they were all on the carriage, the master's left fist still tightly clenched, without opening it.

  The dragon's face appeared, saying it was extremely urgent and had to go to Yunling.

  Yunling is a suburb of Kyoto and an imperial mausoleum, where members of the imperial family are buried.

  Yongshou Palace

  Empress Hu had a palace maid recite Buddhist scriptures for her, but she found herself getting drowsy.

  Sun Auntie handed a fan to Empress Hu and fanned the wind for her, saying in a low voice: "There is no movement in Yongning Hall, and I don't know if the Emperor has gone out."

  "Has Yan Shangshu arrived at the princess's residence?"

  "Yes, the people from the princess's residence said she left. She went alone. However, His Majesty sent Liu Aunt to accompany her."

  "The Emperor doted on her instead." Empress Hu narrowed her sleepy eyes, "A mere scholar of eight dou, the Minister was said to be a useless thing from the Hua family. Could it be that the people of the Hua family themselves were blind?"

  "She herself admitted to being a courtesan, as if the Emperor had already known about this matter."

  "Does he know she's a useless thing from the Huo family and still bring her back?" Empress Huo couldn't even convince herself, unless there was some special reason.

  Sun Auntie stopped fanning: "I've met with Zi Tan's daughter, and she said that they had already seen Miss Hua in Baichang country. She also mentioned that this young lady from the Hua family should have another son."

  "Son?" Empress Hu's eyelids twitched suddenly.

  Outside the door, a small eunuch suddenly rushed in, knelt down and said: "Your Majesty, the Emperor has gone to Yunling."

  "What did you say? What is he doing in Yunling?" Empress Hu asked as she stood up from the couch.

  The little eunuch couldn't answer her question, and could only knock his head and say: "Yes, the commander of the city gate told Li Gonggong, and Li Gonggong had me hurry back to the palace to report to the Empress Dowager. He said that His Majesty had gone out in disguise, and the direction he was heading was Yunling."

  Sun Auntie was also shocked. What is the emperor doing running to the imperial mausoleum at midnight?

  "I can't stay here any longer. I have to go see what the Emperor wants to do." Empress Hu said, walking out as she spoke.

  Sun Aunt immediately ran out to shout for people to prepare the carriage.

  Lizimo's carriage was like a gust of wind, with thunder and lightning flashing by, and before long, it arrived at Yunling.

  In the mausoleum, the previous emperor rests in peace, along with the ancestors of the Eastern Mausoleum imperial family and his empress, whom he had buried personally.

  Gong Xiangru followed closely behind him and saw that he was heading in the direction of his sister's grave, a certain part of her heart suddenly tightened.

  "Your Majesty!" Minister Gongsun reluctantly spoke up.

  Li Zimo walked forward with his head down, as if he couldn't hear anything. Only the word that Ling Hu Jingxu had passed to him in his palm was burning on his chest like a fire.

  That is the character "Phoenix".

  Phoenix, what does it mean?

  The first thought that flashed through his mind because of this word was - Yunling. Perhaps, he had already had this idea in the bottom of his heart, and Linghu Jingxu's word just ignited it.

  He quickly walked towards his wife's tomb, and once he got there, all the mysteries would be solved. He was so sure of it.

  Jing Xiangru was unable to stop him and he and Li Shunde had to use all their strength to keep up with his flying footsteps.

  Disguising himself as a family servant's usual attire cannot conceal the true nature of the dragon's face. The rustling sound of his clothes, the drummed windbreaker, and the floating like an immortal, arrived at the mausoleum he had built exclusively for the empress.

  The soldiers guarding the mausoleum, seeing the holy face suddenly appearing in this place at night, were all shocked and knelt down to worship: "Long live Your Majesty!"

  A simple glance around, the trees surrounding the mausoleum were lush and green, the night wind was gentle, without a hint of anything out of the ordinary.

  The commander of the Imperial Guard, who was in charge of guarding the imperial mausoleum, heard that the emperor had arrived and hastily came to kneel down and ask: "Your Majesty, have you come to visit the empress dowager?"

  The dragon's face was cold and expressionless, as usual. The palace's appearance was like a tightly furrowed brow. Only Li Shun-de dared to speak on behalf of his master: "Has anyone come to pay their respects at the tomb recently?"

  "The commander replied: 'Report back to Your Majesty. By order of Your Majesty, no one is allowed to come and worship the princess. No one dares to come.'"

  "Hmm." A deep, heavy tone, still unable to discern his emotions.

  The crowd parted at the entrance of the tunnel leading to the tomb of Empress Dowager Cixi.

  A thousand-pound jade door sealed the entrance to the tomb. This door, only his own palm and the key corresponded, could be opened. In theory, he himself designed her mausoleum, heavily guarded, excluding anyone who wanted to disturb her peace. Except for him, no one could enter inside to visit her. Since sending her into the underground palace, this was his first time back to visit her.

  Don't want to see, just because of sadness and despair. This time I came to see, it's because of a strong idea ignited by someone else.

  The dragon's palm pressed on the jade gate's key, golden light veins flickered on the jade gate, accompanied by a dull rumbling sound, the underground palace that had been sealed for six or seven years was opened.

  He ordered everyone to wait outside and only brought Gong Xiangru with him, walking into the passageway leading to her underground resting place. This passageway was over a hundred feet long, with jade stone steps. Inside the passageway stood thousand-year-old night pearls that lit up for her day and night.

  Jing Xiangru followed silently behind him, not making a sound. He could imagine that Jing Xiangru didn't want to follow him in the first place. Because compared to him, Jing Xiangru was trapped on the front lines that year and couldn't return, not even able to see her one last time before she died. By the time Jing Xiangru returned, her funeral had already passed, with the coffin lid closed.

  Looking at it this way, in Gong Xiangyu's remaining memories, they were all her pre-death appearance and smile. What she was like after death, Gong Xiangyu had no impression of. The fear in Gong Xiangyu's heart at this moment should be greater than anyone else's.

  Then, as he walked to the center of the underground palace and stepped down the last step, he turned around and said to Gong Xiangyu: "If you don't want to see it, wait here."

  Gong Xiangru hesitated slightly, as it was clear that he had followed him because of trust, and to prove himself, replied: "Your Majesty, I actually wanted to see Empress Gong one last time. Your Majesty is fulfilling my wish of many years."

  "Good." His heavy gaze fell on Gong Xiangyu's face, "I have always told the Empress that she has the best brother in the world."

  Gong Xiangru's lips trembled slightly: "I, Gong family, am ashamed to say this to Your Majesty."

  He turned back and said in a deep voice with profound meaning: "I believe that Gong Qing and Gong Taishi are completely different father and son."

  "I am willing to devote myself to Your Majesty."

  When the other party wanted to kneel down, he brushed his sleeve: "No need for courtesy. In the place where the Queen rests, I don't want to be called monarch and subject, but just a family member."

  Gong Xiangru stood up and walked with him step by step towards the jade coffin in the middle. Inside, his sister lay sleeping.

  Eight crystal palace lanterns stand in front of and behind the jade coffin, shining day and night for her soul. I wonder if she has crossed the river by now, staying on the other side.

  Seven years have passed since I returned to this place, looking at the temple, and I can quickly recall that scene seven years ago. Was it heartbreaking? No. People say he was heartbroken and couldn't eat for days. But they were all wrong. To this day, he still feels like he's dreaming, and doesn't feel like she's gone to the other side. Especially seeing his son growing up every day, not only looking like him but also like her.

  The words on the palm were burning, took two quick steps forward, stretched out his hand and touched the coffin lid. Yun Mei's eyebrows suddenly rose: Is this the relationship that has been closed for years? The jade stone was cool to the touch, completely unlike the icy chill he had imagined.

  "Your Majesty!"

  Suddenly, a hurried footsteps echoed inside the corridor, accompanied by Empress Hu's shrill and hoarse voice.

  Gong Xiangru turned back to look, and saw Li Shunde arriving at the underground palace with a big sweat on his head, following behind Empress Hu and Sun Auntie, his face already prepared for beheading.

  Li Shunde had no choice. Empress Hu was only one rank lower than the Emperor, and if she wanted to enter the imperial palace, who could stop her? Only the Emperor himself.

  "Your Majesty, I, your humble servant, failed to carry out the imperial edict properly. Please punish me." Li Shunde knelt on the ground and slapped himself twice in the face.

  Empress Hu was supported by her sister-in-law, Sun, and when she saw the jade coffin placed in the middle, her eyes narrowed, and she wailed again: "Your Majesty, what are you doing? Are you going to disturb the eternal rest of the deceased? How outrageous!"

  The hand on the jade coffin did not move.

  "Your Majesty, if the Empress Dowager's spirit in the underworld knew of your actions, wouldn't she be heartbroken to the point of being unable to return to the afterlife and reincarnate? Your Majesty, you are not helping the Empress Dowager, but harming her!"

  The sound of the coffin lid creaking open was heard. Empress Hu's eyes suddenly turned black, and her entire body leaned against Sun Auntie, as if she would faint at any moment. It seemed that every muscle on her face was trembling, so much so that the fierce momentum she had just used to scold Li Zimo disappeared in an instant, as if all her energy had been drained away.

  In the quiet mausoleum, originally there was only the voice of Empress Hu, no other sounds. Now that Empress Hu has stopped making a sound, all that's left is the coffin being slowly opened inch by inch.

  Gong Xiangru was as if forced, yet unable to help himself, followed Longyan and looked into a coffin that had been slightly opened. This glance made him extremely shocked. Although he knew his sister married into the imperial family, which meant she became a member of the divine clan, possessing an indestructible corpse for thousands of years, but seeing it with his own eyes was still breathtaking.

  The woman lying in the jade coffin wore the most noble imperial dress, with light makeup and a gemstone hairpin, as if it were the most beautiful moment of her life. Only, she closed her eyes, and a layer of frost seemed to have formed on her body, keeping people at bay from thousands of miles away, also symbolizing her separation from the world.

  Only a long, drawn-out sigh from Empress Hu echoed and lingered in the underground palace.

  At the same time, the coffin lid creaked and closed over the gap.

  Everyone was like being awakened and came back to their senses. Empress Hu reached out and grabbed the sleeve of her son: "Your Majesty, you've seen enough, let's go back now. Don't make the empress worry about you even in death."

  Li Zimo slowly turned back, narrowed his eyes at her: "How did the Empress Dowager know that I was going to come here to visit the Empress?"

  The Empress Dowager grasped his sleeve and pulled it back, clearing her throat: "I also suddenly heard that the Emperor's behavior has been somewhat strange lately, making me worry about the Emperor's safety. Besides, I'm not worried about the Emperor, but the Empress!"

  "Worried about the Queen?"

  "Isn't that so?" Empress Hu touched her heart, as if in pain, "In the past when the empress was alive, I treated her like my own daughter. The emperor knows that I dare to say a word to him, but I couldn't bear to say a word against the empress. When the empress passed away, I was even more heartbroken than the emperor. The emperor lost his wife, the young prince lost his mother, and I lost a daughter-like daughter-in-law. If it weren't for the empress's request on her deathbed that I help the emperor find happiness again, would I be willing to beg the emperor to establish another empress?"

  After finishing speaking, Empress Hu was overcome with emotion and tears streamed down her face. Sun Gu Gu stood beside her, wiping away her own tears with her sleeve.

  Jingxiang Ruhid behind, lowering his face, and remained silent.

  The dragon's face glanced at Empress Hu's tear-swollen eyes and said in a very light tone: "Return to the palace."

  Empress Hu raised an eyebrow with a hint of joy, but at the same time, her sorrow still lingered. With the support of Granny Sun, she took step by step back onto solid ground.

  The underground palace was sealed once again. That night, in the eyes of many, was just a fleeting moment of the emperor's favorite concubine passing away, and no one should remember it.

  Hua Yu Nian sat in the boudoir of County Lord Li Ji Yao, her eyes fixed on the portrait placed on the table. The chirping sounds from County Lord Li's mouth never stopped for a moment. From County Lord Li's words, it could be inferred that Palace Empress was such a person, someone who everyone liked, to the point of being infatuated with:

  "The Empress Dowager said that I was mischievous, and mentioned Ruyi's name saying she was stubborn, also said that Lin Mu Yong loved vanity. But towards my imperial sister-in-law, from head to toe, not a single word of criticism has ever been spoken, loving her to the extreme. Who made my imperial sister-in-law someone who is liked by everyone? Not just the Emperor alone likes her, but everyone does too. The Emperor once said that I am competing with many people for favor."

  "Does the Empress Dowager like the Queen?"

  It's rare for a mother-in-law to pamper her daughter-in-law, especially in the imperial palace where they fight each other to death.

  "Don't you believe me?" The naive Ji Yaojun was definitely unable to hear the implication behind her words. "Let me give you an example. Once, a minister submitted a memorial, saying that he wanted to ask His Majesty to depose the Empress Dowager. When she heard this, she was furious and said it was the most heinous slander, wanting my imperial brother to immediately throw him in prison and behead him. Later on, if not for Sun Sheng's persuasion, saying that beheading this person would make the common people misunderstand the Empress, which wouldn't be good for her either... The Empress Dowager listened and thought it made sense, saying 'I cannot be a bad person who ruins the Empress' reputation.'"

  Hua Yu Yan only felt that a gust of cold wind suddenly blew in from the gap in the door, wrapping around her head and ears. Besides the sound of Ji Yao's chatter, there was an eerie "creaking" sound, like something was about to open. Ji Yao was talking about the minister's memorial to abolish the emperor after Li Zhi's death, which she had heard Lee Ping Shu talk about in the tea house. Now, it was as if the two people and her description of the event had suddenly conjured up this image in her mind.

  A middle-aged man wearing official robes, being escorted away by two guards, suddenly turned back to look at her and said: "Your Majesty should not think that you are the kindest person in the world. In my eyes, Your Majesty is actually the worst person in the world. If you don't believe me, Your Majesty can ask around someday to verify whether I am right or not."

  Years later, apart from the social circle of the Marquise of Seasonal Jade, in the alleys and streets, what was left to the common people was only the palace empress mentioned by Li Ping Shu, a laughing stock for the masses, an empress who could only gain the Emperor's favor but had no talent whatsoever.

  Originally, letting a person die, the highest state is not poison wine and white cloth, but with fresh flowers and applause, it can completely bury him.