Chapter 285: Backstab (2)

"Yes, I brought it for Sister to appraise. If you think it's good, I'll send someone to the Silk Weaving House in a while." Qingfeng withdrew her gaze and entered the courtyard with her.

Two maids pulled open the painting scroll, which was over a zhang long. When the scroll was fully unfolded in front of Zhen Zhen, she, who had seen countless masterpieces, couldn't help but praise it—what a magnificent and majestic painting of mountain peaks. Looking from afar, between the misty clouds, the continuous mountain ridges were like a wild dragon traveling through the sea of clouds. Looking closely, each mountain peak was wonderful, with steep and sudden postures. The most amazing thing was the misty clouds between the mountains, which seemed to drift out of the painting paper at any time. Zhen Zhen sighed inwardly, Qingfeng was indeed worthy of her reputation. Relying only on the depth of ink and simple, casual brushwork, she could paint such an exquisite and magnificent work.

Zhen Zhen was truly convinced and sighed in a low voice, "Sister, no need to send it."

Qingfeng raised her eyebrows slightly and asked, "Why?"

"Such a work, they won't be able to embroider it. Sister, you should just have it mounted. The Emperor will like it very much." The Emperor had always liked magnificent things. Such a rare masterpiece would definitely please the Emperor. No one could resist a woman as talented, beautiful, and clever as Qingfeng. Her chest suddenly felt stuffy, and Zhen Zhen staggered. Qingfeng reached out to support her, only to find that Zhen Zhen's hands were very soft but very cold. Qingfeng asked, "Are you alright?" On a midsummer afternoon, how could her hands be so cold?

Zhen Zhen hurriedly withdrew her hand, and Wu'er hurriedly stepped forward to support her. "I'm tired, Sister, you may go." Regardless of Qingfeng still being in the courtyard, Zhen Zhen walked straight back into the room, and Wu'er even covered the door.

Looking at the tightly closed door, Qingfeng laughed. This was the first time she had been "driven away" like this. Zhen Zhen, what illness did she have? This illness seemed a bit suspicious?

Ministry of Justice Discussion Hall

"Prime Minister Lou." Liu Hong, the Ministry of Justice official in charge of investigating the Imperial Garden incident, bowed respectfully. Although Lou Xiyan still had a gentle smile on his face, Liu Hong still swallowed nervously. Only after accepting this case did he know that the person who fell into the water was Prime Minister Lou's fiancée, and the spearhead of the case pointed directly at the harem, and the Emperor had ordered a strict investigation. If he didn't handle this case well, losing his official position was a small matter; he was afraid of offending people he shouldn't offend, and his little life wouldn't be saved.

Holding clear tea in his hand, Lou Xiyan asked unhurriedly, "How is the investigation going?"

Liu Hong hurriedly replied, "One of the four eunuchs committed suicide by biting his tongue, and the other three refused to admit to harming Miss Qing to the death. All four originally worked in the Imperial Household Department and were inconspicuous little eunuchs under Lu Zhihai. They were usually cautious and didn't seem like people who would cause trouble."

Committed suicide by biting his tongue...? A cold light flashed in Lou Xiyan's eyes. Tapping his finger on the teacup, he asked in a deep voice, "What family members do they have? Where are they now?"

"Two of them were bought into the palace by human traffickers. There is no family registration in the Imperial Household Department. As for the other two, their family members have disappeared."

"Find them! I don't want to hear about the other three dying 'for no reason' again. Interrogate and screen everyone who entered or left the Imperial Garden before the incident. Report any suspicious circumstances immediately." Those without family members committed suicide, and those whose family members disappeared refused to admit it? It seemed she cleaned up the aftermath really quickly; she was worthy of being a master who had floated and sunk in the palace for many years.

"Yes." Lou Xiyan's voice was not high, but Liu Hong had already felt his displeasure. That kind of pressure made him almost dare not look up.

Gently putting down the teacup in his hand, Lou Xiyan walked out of the discussion hall slowly, still as gentle and elegant as ever, but Liu Hong was covered in sweat.

Inside the Zhengyang Palace, Yan Hongtian was playing with the deep-sea red coral contributed by Northern Qi and smiled, "How is the case going?"

Lou Xiyan lowered his head to flip through the list of gifts contributed by various countries and replied without looking up, "Does the Emperor hope that I find out, or not find out?"

"I have already handed it over to you to handle. If you have the ability to find out, then continue to investigate." He was happy to watch his mother fight with his most proud minister. Xiyan was clearly just unable to swallow this breath, and by the way, he wanted to tell everyone how important Qing Ling was in his heart. As for his mother... she indeed needed someone to let her know that many things were not what she could do just because she wanted to.

Lou Xiyan smiled and didn't continue this topic. He took a bright red invitation from his sleeve and handed it directly to Yan Hongtian.

What was this? Yan Hongtian took it, opened it, and his face sank first, then suddenly smiled helplessly: "Are you really that impatient?" Originally, they said they would get married immediately after the celebration; now it was good, he had to get married before the celebration.

Throwing the red invitation onto the table, Yan Hongtian leaned back against the dragon chair, looking quite gloating, and smiled, "Do Old General Lou and the Empress Dowager have no opinion?"

Phoenix eyes narrowed slightly to meet Yan Hongtian's interested eyes. Lou Xiyan smiled and replied, "I told them this is a date granted by the Emperor."

The smile on Yan Hongtian's lips stiffened, "Lou Xiyan!" He actually used him as a shield! No wonder Lou Muhai didn't dare to have an opinion, and the Eastern Empress Dowager hadn't given him a good look for a long time, and wouldn't see him when he went to pay his respects. It turned out that Xiyan was playing tricks behind his back!

Light gauze curtains, incense burning. On the altar, a golden Buddha had a compassionate smile, standing quietly there. The sound of the wooden fish, one after another, was calm and clear. Beside the golden Buddha, sandalwood prayer beads emitted a faint fragrance, which could make people calm and peaceful.

In front of the Buddha statue, Yang Zhilan closed her eyes, her expression calm and peaceful.

The old nanny stood outside the light gauze, waiting. The sound of the wooden fish stopped, and Yang Zhilan's indifferent voice came from the inner room: "How is the matter going?"

"Empress Dowager, please rest assured, the matter has been handled properly. They absolutely dare not talk nonsense." The old nanny suddenly knelt on the ground, pleading guilty in a low voice, "This time it was all this servant's negligence that caused the matter to be exposed. Please punish the Empress Dowager."

The light gauze curtain was gently lifted. Yang Zhilan walked out slowly. The old nanny hurriedly got up to support her. Her face didn't show much anger, but instead carried a faint smile, sighing, "Forget it. Qing Ling didn't die; count it as her having a big life. This 'accident' was not without gains. At least I finally discovered that Lou Xiyan, who has always been perfect and flawless, also has a weakness."

Lou Xiyan, oh Lou Xiyan, you shouldn't have failed Xuan'er, you shouldn't be Lou Suxin's good nephew, and you shouldn't be fighting against me!

Supporting Yang Zhilan to sit on the wooden chair, the old nanny said in a low voice, "Empress Dowager, Yu Xiang has arrived."

"Summon him."

A man in his early thirties followed the old nanny into the room, knelt and saluted neatly: "Greetings, Empress Dowager." Simple cloth clothes and a medium build made him look inconspicuous, only the essence hidden in his lowered eyes showed his difference.

"Get up." Yang Zhilan took out a gold-stamped secret letter and said coldly, "Take this and ride fast to the Northwest Territory. Give it to the leader, Mu Cang. You must hand it to him personally."

"Yes." Taking the secret letter, the man tucked it into his bosom, saluted again, and retreated.

Yang Zhilan picked up the Buddhist scripture at hand and flipped through it casually. Her benevolent expression was completely different from her cold and sharp words just now. The old nanny stood behind Yang Zhilan for a long time, several times wanting to speak but stopping, and finally said worriedly, "Empress Dowager, recently the Emperor has favored Qingfeng extremely, and other concubines in the harem are dissatisfied. Qingfeng's arrogance is also growing. If this continues, I'm afraid she won't even put you in her eyes."

Yang Zhilan smiled lightly and replied calmly, "Who the Emperor favors, leave these things for the Empress to worry about."

Yan Hongtian favored Qingfeng just to balance the harem because the Xin family's power was too strong. As long as Lou Xiyan fell, Qingfeng would naturally not be able to make waves.

Night

The moon on the 15th was exceptionally bright. Qingfeng lay on the bed and could see the moonlight through the window paper, sprinkling fluorescent light all over the floor. Yan Hongtian hadn't come for several nights, and she was happy to be free. It was just that from the afternoon, she felt a dull pain in her abdomen. Thinking it was just discomfort because her period was late, she didn't care. Now it seemed to be getting more and more painful.

Really unable to sleep, Qingfeng pressed her abdomen lightly, wanting to call Fuling in the side room to help her take a look. Before she could get up, a figure flashed past the window, leaving only a black shadow on the window paper before disappearing again. Qingfeng was startled, stiffened her body, and didn't dare to move. Just as she was thinking about whether to call for help, the black shadow had already nimbly pushed open the window and flipped into the room from outside.

The man in black moved lightly, flipping into the room without making a sound. He squatted under the window to observe the situation in the room. Qingfeng lay on her side on the bed, opening her eyes slightly to stare at every move of the man in black. Although there was a curtain separating them, when his gaze swept over the bed, Qingfeng's heart still pounded like a drum. Her hands tightly gripped the sheets under the thin quilt, and her breathing almost stopped. Qingfeng bit her lower lip tightly. At this time, the pain could keep her calm. Calling for help was useless now; before the guards arrived, she would be dead.

After the man in black looked around, he got up and walked toward the small cabinet beside the screen. In the dark, Qingfeng only saw that the man in black was about seven feet tall, with a sturdy build, dressed in black, with his face and hair wrapped tightly. He opened the cabinet drawer and didn't know what he was looking for. Soon he gently closed the drawer and then quickly flipped out of the window he came from, without staying for a moment. The whole process took less than half a cup of tea.

Qingfeng stiffened on the bed, not daring to move for a long time, only looking toward the window on her side. The moonlight was still bright, and through the white window paper, she didn't see any black shadow. Had he left? Waiting for a while, the outside was still silent. Qingfeng got out of bed lightly, walked to the door, pushed open a crack in the door to look out. The courtyard door was locked, there was no one in the courtyard, and a lantern hung on the railing of the stone steps. The little eunuch on night duty was half-lying on the steps asleep. Everything looked very calm. Determining there was no abnormality, Qingfeng dared to push open the door.

Stepping outside, the night wind blew, and Qingfeng shivered immediately. Only then did she realize that she had broken into a cold sweat just now, and her clothes were soaked.

Qingfeng called out in a low voice, "Xiao Chuzi."

Xiao Chuzi lay on the steps without moving. Qingfeng reached out and tapped his shoulder lightly, but he had no reaction. Qingfeng pushed him again, but Xiao Chuzi still didn't move.

He... wouldn't be dead, right? The heart that Qingfeng had just let go of immediately lifted again.

"Xiao Chuzi!" While calling, Qingfeng pushed his head hard. The person lying on the ground suddenly moved. Qingfeng was startled and stepped back. After a while, Xiao Chuzi slowly sat up, rubbing his dizzy head while looking up. Meeting Qingfeng's iron-blue face, Xiao Chuzi was shocked, his chaotic brain suddenly cleared up. He thumped to his knees at Qingfeng's feet, repeatedly begging for mercy: "This servant deserves to die! This servant deserves to die! I beg the Concubine for forgiveness!" He would never be lazy and sleep while on night duty. He didn't know what happened today; he was suddenly very, very sleepy, and he didn't remember when he fell asleep!

He was still alive! Qingfeng breathed a sigh of relief inwardly. The series of shocks made her feel a bit exhausted. The abdomen that had been dull and painful suddenly hurt severely. Supporting herself on the door frame, Qingfeng said in a low voice, "Get up, go call Fuling to my room quickly."

"Yes, yes, yes." Qingfeng didn't punish him, and Xiao Chuzi secretly rejoiced. At the same time, his movements didn't dare to have a trace of delay, and he ran to call someone.

Fuling was startled by the "pat-pat" knocking on the door and asked in a low voice, "Who is it?"

"It's me, Xiao Chuzi! The Concubine is looking for you, let Sister come over quickly." Just as Fuling finished asking, Xiao Chuzi's anxious voice came from outside the door.

Fuling looked toward the window. The night was heavy, and the surroundings were so quiet that she could only hear Xiao Chuzi pacing anxiously outside the door. Was it still the middle of the night? Without thinking too much, Fuling threw on a piece of clothing and went to open the door.

(End of Chapter) ===== CHAPTER 286 =====