HLnovel Chapter 214 Challenge (9)
Chapter 214 Challenge (9)
After confirming that Zeng Xu was dead, Gu Shijiu carried his body, rushed out of the courtyard, and headed straight for the imperial city.
She's been going out for walks every day lately and has found out that Zeng Xiaomei is in the palace.
Gu Shijiu gave herself a thumbs up for her cleverness.
She was incredibly fast and moved with such agility that she didn't disturb anyone along the way.
Meanwhile, at the post station, the sudden disappearance of Gu Shijiu and Zeng Xu caused an uproar.
Zeng Xu held a high official position, and his subordinates, fearing punishment, dared not speak out, but secretly sent more people to search the city.
Within the imperial city, Zeng Xiaomei's residence was not difficult to find.
She and Zeng Xu are siblings, and they share a similar scent.
The palace where they lived smelled a bit bad, similar to the one Gu Shijiu smelled from the evil spirit.
However, this is a spiritless world, and no ghosts or monsters are generated.
At this moment, Zeng Xiaomei learned that Zeng Xu had gone out on business and was devoutly chanting scriptures in the Buddhist hall to pray for her brother.
The Zeng siblings are ruthless to outsiders, but they are very affectionate to their own family.
Zeng Xiaomei knelt on the prayer mat, constantly fiddling with the prayer beads in her hands and chanting incantations.
Surrounded by the rising sandalwood incense, her features appeared exceptionally gentle, giving her a truly kind and benevolent look.
The palace servants standing quietly to the side knew very well that this seemingly gentle master was ruthless in secret.
In this palace, which woman doesn't have several faces?
But Zeng Xiaomei was indeed a shrewd woman. Although she was not the emperor's biological sister, she was able to enjoy honor and privilege in the palace.
It's just a pity——
If they enter the palace unharmed, the situation in the harem might change drastically.
The palace servants thought this to themselves, but their faces remained impassive.
After reciting the last passage of scripture, Zeng Xiaomei picked up the bell and tapped it once, then slowly walked towards the inner room of the Buddhist hall.
The room had a strange layout; apart from the small door that led in, there were no ventilation openings or even windows.
The room was filled with heat, making it difficult for Zeng Xiaomei to breathe.
After walking through a small corridor, you can see the source of the heatwave – nearly three hundred oil lamps on a dozen or so shelves of varying heights.
As Zeng Xiaomei added oil to the lamp, she muttered to herself, "I had no intention of harming you, but life is unpredictable."
The victors are kings, the losers are villains. After you die, only I, this wicked man, will still remember you.
Now I light the eternal lamp, chanting scriptures and adding oil daily, hoping you can rest in peace in the afterlife, and not blame me.”
Her appearance was somewhat similar to Zeng Xu's before, exuding a mysterious confidence.
As Zeng Xiaomei muttered the names of the people, she wiped the corresponding oil lamps. These were the people she had eliminated for the Empress in the palace.
She doesn't regret causing so many deaths; she just feels mentally exhausted and frustrated.
After adding the last oil lamp, she sighed and said, "I will come to see you again tomorrow. Perhaps I will come to join you soon."
Just as she was feeling down, she suddenly felt a chill on the top of her head and instinctively looked up.
A huge, dark shadow crashed down on her, accompanied by a strong stench.
Zeng Xiaomei was so frightened that she almost screamed, but after living in the palace for several years, following the rules had become second nature to her.
The moment the object came crashing down, her first thought was of the palace's rule against loud noise.
Unable to dodge in time, he was pinned down by that thing.
Having been pampered in the palace for so long, she hadn't smelled such an unpleasant odor in a long time, and instinctively held her breath and reached out to push it away.
Only after pushing did she realize that what was pressing down on her seemed to be a person, whose body was extremely cold and secreted an oily substance.
Zeng Xiaomei immediately sensed something was wrong and hurriedly crawled out, trying to use the candlelight to see if what was pressing down on her was a corpse.
After finally climbing out, she kicked the thing away with her foot and picked up an oil lamp from the shelf;
Taking a look in the light, he instantly forgot all the rules and etiquette of the palace and let out a sharp, piercing scream.
The palace servants waiting outside were startled by the shout and looked at each other, unsure whether they should go in to check.
Fortunately, the room became quiet again after that scream.
Zeng Xiaomei stared wide-eyed at her brother Zeng Xu's corpse on the ground, breathing heavily.
What exactly happened? Shouldn't my elder brother be out on business? How could he have died in the palace?
Tears streamed down my cheeks; I didn't know if it was from sadness or fear.
She reached out to check Zeng Xu's breathing, and after confirming that he was no longer breathing, she bit her lip and tried hard to hold back her tears.
Having spent many years in the palace, Zeng Xiaomei quickly calmed down after her initial heartbreak.
She knew she couldn't leave Zeng Xu's body in the palace now; she had to hide it quickly and make further plans.
However, a voice devoid of emotion came from behind: "Finally found you."
Zeng Xiaomei stared wide-eyed in astonishment; these were the last words she heard in this world.
The guards of the imperial city heard the scream and came to the gate of Zeng Xiaomei's palace to inquire about the situation.
The palace servants, unaware of what had happened inside, went out to deal with it, but the person in charge of the night watch was from the Imperial Noble Consort's faction.
The Empress and the Imperial Noble Consort have always been at odds, and the two factions fight fiercely on a daily basis.
When the guards saw that the palace servants were speaking incoherently, they insisted on asking the princess to come out and answer questions, as required by palace rules, or they would search the palace.
The palace servants were anxious. Zeng Xiaomei was still in the secret room and unaware of the situation. How could they allow the palace to be searched? The two sides were deadlocked at the door.
Just as the palace servants were trying to come up with a solution, a shrill voice came from afar: "Who is making such a racket here?"
Upon seeing the bright yellow imperial carriage, the palace servants and guards were stunned, and an ominous premonition arose in their hearts at the same time.
This was the first and last time the emperor stepped into Zeng Xiaomei's palace.
The emperor's face turned extremely grim as he looked at the bodies of Zeng Xiaomei and Zeng Xu, the two siblings, being carried out of the secret chamber.
Zeng Xu's body was in a gruesome state, while Zeng Xiaomei's neck had clearly been broken.
The emperor has seen all sorts of storms and waves; he can tolerate many infightings in the harem, but he absolutely cannot allow an outsider to appear in the harem.
Zeng Xiaomei is dead, and no one can explain why Zeng Xu is here. The more the Emperor thought about it, the angrier he became. He slammed his hand on the table and stood up.
“Drag these two filthy things away and tear them to pieces. From this day forward, no one in the palace shall ever mention this matter again.”
After saying that, he flicked his sleeves and left with the chief steward, intending to thoroughly investigate how many concubines in the harem were involved with Zeng Xu.
The next morning, the emperor issued an imperial edict stating that the evidence of the Zeng siblings' treason was conclusive, Zeng Xu had fled to the Western Regions, and Zeng Xiaomei was to be executed.
The imperial edict caused an uproar both inside and outside the court.
Who could have imagined that the once-glorious Zeng family would vanish so quickly, like a fleeting moment of glory?
The rest of the Zeng family had enjoyed ten years of wealth and luxury, but now they were back to square one.
Zeng Xu's attendant originally planned to submit a memorial stating that Zeng Xu and Gu Shijiu had disappeared together, hoping that the higher-ups would focus their investigation on Gu Shijiu.
Unexpectedly, what they received were documents that put them in jail and placed them under investigation.
The group was stunned and cried out that they were innocent, having completely forgotten about Gu Shijiu.
And so, the Zeng family once again became the target of everyone's condemnation in the imperial court.
As for Zeng Xu's whereabouts, apart from the emperor and a few of his confidants, no one else knew.