Chapter 184

Life in this world has its time for birth and death; do not be startled by glory or disgrace.

To Xu Qing, the corpses before his eyes are like unfurling scrolls, whether they be high-ranking officials and nobles, wandering blades of the jianghu, humble peddlers and porters, or prisoners and convicts.

Once they reach him, they are all protagonists on a stage; after singing the final act of their lives, they will step down, turning into dust and dissolving into the mundane world.

In the cold room, Xu Qing took out the miniature garden, and just as he was about to clear the corpse before him, he suddenly caught sight of a coffin with an open lid that had appeared inside the garden.

Lying inside that coffin was a female corpse wearing a five-colored dragon and phoenix robe embroidered with five bats.

Since when did a corpse appear in his garden?

Xu Qing, being a man of high status who easily forgets his corpses, was stunned for a moment before he remembered that when he broke into the imperial mausoleum and was in a rush to enter seclusion, he had casually tossed the tomb owner along with her coffin into the garden.

And that tomb happened to be an Empress's tomb.

Recalling the origin of the corpse, Xu Qing couldn't help but feel a sense of amusement.

What is called a pleasant surprise?

It's like finding loose silver you forgot in your pocket months ago, suddenly falling out while washing your clothes.

It's like when your family is struggling to put food on the table and is about to go hungry, and you are forced to take the only egg-laying hen in the coop to the market to trade for rice and flour, only for someone to walk up to you and tell you that you passed the imperial examination a month ago, and now everyone is gathered at your door waiting for you, the new Provincial Graduate, to return and celebrate!

This kind of unexpected good news or wealth is what's called a pleasant surprise!

Right now, Xu Qing, who had long since forgotten about the corpse from the imperial mausoleum, was suddenly pleasantly surprised to find an extra female corpse in his garden.

Glancing past the pearl and jade burial objects in the coffin, Xu Qing looked directly at the lifelike female corpse.

This corpse had some peculiarities; despite having been dead for many years and possessing no aura, her complexion remained uncorrupted, and there was an exotic fragrance lingering around the body that would not dissipate.

Xu Qing marveled at this; he reached out to carefully examine the source of the fragrance on the female corpse, but aside from some gloomy, obscure energy, there were no traces of anything like a medicine-corpse or any preservative treatments.

"Strange, the stench of corpses is common, so why is there a corpse-scent here?"

Even for Xu Qing, who had seen countless corpses, he couldn't help but feel amazed.

Intuition told Xu Qing that there was definitely something going on with this corpse; it might even be hiding some secret.

Placing his hand on the Empress's wrist, Xu Qing couldn't help but squeeze it; it was still quite soft.

This corpse is interesting.

The Scripture of Saving People flipped through its pages, and the Empress before him also stepped onto the stage to begin her final dance.

And at this moment, Xu Qing was the only spectator sitting under the stands.

The Empress before him, posthumously titled Duanrong, was originally a young lady selected to enter the palace; her background wasn't particularly wealthy, but she possessed an ambition to compete for fame and beauty.

To what extent must a woman go to be considered famous? The young lady pondered and set her sights on the high walls of the deep palace before her.

Just imagine, a young girl eager to climb the social ladder, sent to the inner palace to be raised from a young age—could that possibly be simple?

A minor attendant, a concubine, a lady-in-waiting, a beauty...

The young lady started as a minor attendant serving her masters, stepping up the ranks of the concubines one by one.

But unfortunately, there were over a dozen ranks of concubines in the inner palace; even after climbing to the front, she still hadn't waited for the Emperor's favor.

One day, the Emperor went on a spring hunt, and the young lady, now promoted to a beauty, accompanied several concubines to attend to the monarch.

At that time, Beauty Xue, who had not yet received the monarch's grace, already possessed eight parts of beauty; although green and inexperienced, she was like a flower bud about to bloom on a branch, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call her a natural beauty.

Accompanying the monarch on a spring hunt was an excellent opportunity to get close to him.

Beauty Xue had intended to take the opportunity to display her charm and attract the monarch's attention, but unexpectedly, the accompanying Zhaoyi was jealous of her beauty; while everyone was accompanying the monarch to view the scenery, she was the only one left behind to guard the rabbit the Zhaoyi had just adopted and was responsible for its feeding.

That Zhaoyi didn't want to raise a rabbit at all; she clearly just wanted to find an excuse to keep her away so she wouldn't meet the monarch!

Beauty Xue stayed alone in the tent, feeling sorrowful and thinking she would never have a chance to get ahead, but unexpectedly, at noon, a lame fox with an arrow in its hindquarters suddenly broke into the tent.

After entering the tent, the fox spoke in human language: "Good sister, save my life, and I will surely repay you in the future!"

Beauty Xue was terrified, but the next moment she heard the shouts of the crowd outside the tent: "Quickly find that green-furred fox! Whoever finds it will be heavily rewarded!"

"That fox seems to have gone toward Concubine Yi's tent; that would be Concubine Yi's merit."

We don't know what happened, but Beauty Xue, who was initially terrified, suddenly didn't feel afraid anymore upon hearing this.

Outside the tent, soldiers were asking questions. Beauty Xue lifted the tent flap; inside, it was empty, with only a small table and a curtain that could hide someone.

Beauty Xue said: "There is no movement in the tent; perhaps the beast escaped behind the tent."

An attendant poked their head into the tent, and seeing that there was indeed nothing unusual, they took the soldiers and noisily searched behind the tent.

Beauty Xue saved the fox and let it hide under the carriage she was traveling in. After the spring hunt ended, the fox followed her all the way into the imperial city.

In the months that followed, Beauty Xue never saw the fox again until the humid summer, when she was taking a nap, and the fox suddenly darted into the room.

The fox spoke in human language, its voice sharp and thin like a woman's: "Good sister, don't be afraid. You helped me pass a human tribulation months ago, and this time I have come specifically to repay you."

Beauty Xue was suspicious and uncertain, only to hear the fox continue: "Sister, living in this deep palace, you must feel lonely and unfree. If you are willing, I can help you escape this cage and become a free person."

Leave the palace? Upon hearing this, Beauty Xue was like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. She had worked so hard for so long just to get ahead in the palace; if she left, wouldn't all her efforts go to waste, and she might even be reduced to a lowly commoner?

"I don't want you to help me leave the palace. If you really want to repay me, you might as well help me win the monarch's favor and become a noble consort or Empress."

The green fox looked at the woman before it strangely, and finally nodded: "Very well. But if I help you fulfill your wish, your kindness to me will be settled, and I won't come looking for you again in the future."

Since then, Beauty Xue in the palace suddenly had a charming body fragrance. One day, the Son of Heaven passed by the Yikun Palace and happened to smell a peculiar fragrance, which seemed like flowers but was more profound than any floral scent.

The Son of Heaven followed the scent and finally found Beauty Xue surrounded by butterflies in the back garden.

The Son of Heaven asked Beauty Xue why she had such a fragrance that could attract bees and butterflies. The latter smiled sweetly and said: "Your concubine has had this body fragrance since childhood; I don't need perfume, and butterflies naturally surround me. I suppose they mistook me for a flower on the branch."

"A flower? Then today, I shall be the one to pluck this delicate flower."

Since then, the Son of Heaven would seek Beauty Xue to serve him almost every few days. In just one month, Beauty Xue was promoted all the way to Fragrant Consort.

This day, the green-furred fox came to the Fragrant Consort's palace again.

"How is it? Now that you have become the Emperor's favorite consort, I have not broken my promise."

At this time, the Fragrant Consort, having received the monarch's grace, already possessed nine parts of beauty; with every glance, charm naturally appeared.

"I must thank Young Master Fox." The Fragrant Consort brought a teacup to offer tea to the green fox, but the latter refused: "I am not a male fox; do not call me Young Master. Furthermore, I have repaid your kindness. According to our agreement, I will not come looking for you again."

Upon hearing this, the Fragrant Consort hurriedly said: "My kindness to the Fox Fairy was a life-saving one. If the Fox Fairy truly wants to repay me, helping me become a noble consort is not enough."

Seeing the green fox staring straight at her, the Fragrant Consort said as a matter of course: "If the Fox Fairy really wants to repay me, you must let me sit on the throne of the mother of the nation; there is no other way."

The green-furred fox widened its eyes, looking at this shameless human, but finally it relented: "Humans have their destiny. You sitting in the position of noble consort is your original fate; I merely blew a gust of wind to help you arrive a few years early, but you may not necessarily have the fate of an Empress."

Saying this, the green-furred fox stood on its hind legs and began to calculate with one of its paws.

After a while, the fox said: "You cannot suppress the position of the mother of the nation; I cannot help you with this."

The Fragrant Consort's expression changed instantly: "I don't believe it. You are a Fox Fairy with magic power; how can you not help me? Don't forget, I am your life-saving benefactor!"

The green fox looked at the Fragrant Consort, pondered for a moment, and said: "I can give you one more hint. If you insist on competing, perhaps you can become Empress, but you must bear the corresponding price yourself."

The Fragrant Consort's eyes lit up upon hearing this; as for the so-called price, she had long since thrown it to the back of her mind.

"To be the mother of the nation, you must possess the fortune of the country. As long as you give birth to a dragon son for the Emperor before the Empress does, you will naturally have a chance to become the mother of the nation in the future."

Before the Fragrant Consort could rejoice, the green-furred fox spoke again: "However, if you give birth to a dragon son first, you will surely face a tribulation in the future. I will give you one more piece of advice: if you encounter difficulties in the future, you can burn incense and pray, hang the portrait of the upright official Yu Gan from the previous dynasty, and recite the Ode to Integrity. Naturally, divine power will come to share your worries."

The Fragrant Consort was overjoyed, but when she wanted to thank the fox, the green fox's shadow was already gone.

Only the voice of the green fox came from outside the window—

"I have repaid your kindness. I will not come again in the future; take care of yourself."

After the green fox left, the Fragrant Consort thought of ways to win the Emperor's favor every day, and every time she served the Emperor, the tricks she used were never the same!

In short, Xu Qing was greatly shocked.

About two months later, just as the Empress's relatives and supporters in the court were preparing to submit a memorial to the Emperor to stop him from indulging in pleasure and neglecting state affairs, good news suddenly came from the palace: the Fragrant Consort was pregnant.

After ten months of pregnancy, the Fragrant Consort gave birth to a son, while the Empress still only had a princess and had not given birth to another dragon son.

The Fragrant Consort's momentum grew even stronger, and in the three palaces and six courtyards, she had vaguely surpassed the Empress and become the most favored darling.

However, just when the Fragrant Consort was getting carried away, demonic atmosphere suddenly broke out in the Fragrant Consort's palace. Many palace maids and eunuchs claimed to see ghosts flickering, and in the middle of the night, there were often rustling conversations in the palace, sometimes angry scolding or giggling, and sometimes sorrowful weeping sounds coming from the Fragrant Consort's sleeping quarters.

Palace rumors spread that the Fragrant Consort was transformed from a demonic creature, and the exotic fragrance on her body was evidence.

As for what kind of monster it was, some said it was a butterfly demon, some said it was a flower demon, and others even said she was the ghost of a concubine from the previous dynasty who had jumped into a well and died.

Consequently, the baby born to the Fragrant Consort was also tainted with an ominous filter.

The Son of Heaven did not stay at the Fragrant Consort's place for two consecutive months, and the prince, who should have been the eldest prince, was sent to the Empress Dowager to be raised. During this period, the Empress Dowager even invited the Celestial Master from the Celestial Master's Mansion to perform an exorcism.

The Celestial Master stated directly that there were indeed gloomy things causing trouble in the palace, and they were right in the Fragrant Consort's residence.

But the Celestial Master refused to enter the Fragrant Consort's palace to find the cause, citing the inconvenience of entering the important grounds of the inner palace.

The Fragrant Consort worried day and night. One afternoon, while taking a nap, the Fragrant Consort suddenly had a nightmare and woke up drenched in sweat, the bedding on the couch soaked through.

The Fragrant Consort wanted to call the palace maids to come and clean up, but no one responded even after calling three times.

In a fit of anger, the Fragrant Consort reached out and lifted the bedding, tearing away the soft mat underneath.

It was at this moment that the Fragrant Consort saw a white-haired turtle tied with a red rope in the bed she had lifted.

The turtle was already shriveled and dead, and the white hair it emitted looked like corpse hair that had grown after molding.

Looking at this evil thing, the Fragrant Consort intended to call the eunuchs and maids to dispose of it, but remembering the rumors about the Fragrant Consort's palace, she suppressed the idea of spreading the matter.

If others knew that there was a dead white-haired turtle under her bed, who knows what kind of gossip and rumors they would spread about her.

What if someone said the prince was born of her and the turtle demon? How would she defend herself?

That day, the Fragrant Consort couldn't eat or sleep. Until night fell, and the giggling and scolding sounds were heard in the palace again, the Fragrant Consort finally remembered the words given by the Fox Fairy.

Immediately, the Fragrant Consort took out the portrait of the upright official Yu Gan from the previous dynasty that she had treasured earlier, burned incense in the palace, prayed, and told the story.

When it was midnight and the Fragrant Consort was sleepy, she suddenly dreamed of a Bixi carrying a stone tablet coming before her.

The Bixi spoke in human language: "I am an official of the previous dynasty; today I am a ghost, but I cannot manage the affairs of the current dynasty. The injustice you have suffered is a matter of the current dynasty, and I cannot manage it. Do not seek my help again in the future!"

Upon hearing this, the Fragrant Consort said urgently: "Your concubine has heard that Lord Yu is an upright official whose name will last for ages. Now that I see you, you are also a person who fears the fierce and fears the evil, and treats people differently."

"Right now, your concubine has an injustice, and I am begging you to make the decision to uphold justice, but I never thought Lord Yu would be so afraid. Could it be that when you were alive, you also threw difficult injustice cases to others, which is why you have such a clean reputation today?"

If it were anyone else, no matter how they pleaded, it would be difficult to shake Yu Gan's determination, but this Fragrant Consort happened to be someone who wouldn't let anyone off with her words.

The green-furred fox had seen through this point, otherwise it wouldn't have guided her to seek the help of an upright official from the previous dynasty.

Yu Gan called himself a ghost, and all ghosts have obsessions, and being an upright official was his obsession.

Now hearing the Fragrant Consort's words, Yu Gan's mind was fixed, and he immediately responded: "I, Yu Gan, have never feared evil. In the past, I could handle the evil deeds of the imperial relatives in Qianxi, and today, when I encounter injustice, I can also handle it!"

After saying this, Yu Gan guided the Fragrant Consort to take out the white-haired turtle she had discovered during the day, saying: "This turtle is a suppression object used by the current Empress to harm you. If you want to break this method, you need to smash the suppression object and throw it into the well. The turtle connects to the water path, and once the suppression object is broken, it will naturally follow the old path and backfire on the person who performed the method."

"After breaking the method, when the Son of Heaven visits this palace again in the future, you only need to explain the cause and effect to the Son of Heaven, let him burn a stick of incense, call my name, and I will naturally entrust a dream to him to clear your injustice."

Sure enough, ever since the Fragrant Consort smashed the white-haired turtle and threw it into the well, the Empress suffered from headaches, which did not improve for several days until the talisman water from the Celestial Master's Mansion was invited, only then was she safe.

Less than half a month later, the Son of Heaven moved to the Fragrant Consort's palace. That night, the Bixi carried the stone tablet and arrived as scheduled.

Yu Gan stated his identity, and the Son of Heaven then knew that the Bixi was the tomb-guarding beast before the tomb of Yu Gan, a loyal official of the previous dynasty.

And at this time, Yu Gan was already a ghost!

The Son of Heaven learned the inside story, and while comforting the Fragrant Consort, he did not forget to remind her: "I already know about this matter, but you must know that family ugliness should not be spread, and the affairs of the imperial family should not be told to outsiders at will. I will explain it to the Empress myself, you don't need to worry."

Although he said so, according to the Fragrant Consort's nature of not letting go when she was in the right, how could she be at ease and obey?

Not many days later, in the three palaces and six courtyards, including the streets of the capital, rumors spread that the true spirit of the upright official Yu Gan had appeared to judge the current Empress for plotting to harm the Fragrant Consort and her son.

The Son of Heaven was furious upon hearing this, and within two days, he had the eunuch send white silk, intending to grant the Fragrant Consort death.

The Fragrant Consort was shocked. She was clearly in the right, so why did the Son of Heaven treat her like this?

The eunuch said: "It's all because you don't know your place. Who do you think can be Empress? In the end, you were just a young lady selected for the palace. Being able to become the Fragrant Consort is already a great imperial grace. What is the Empress's background? You probably forgot who the current imperial relatives are!"

"Not to mention the Empress, even Yu Gan, who meddled in affairs after his death, had his Bixi smashed. This servant heard that when the Bixi cracked, bright red blood poured out..."

The imperial eunuch smiled and said: "I have already made myself clear. It is best if the Empress does not make things difficult for us servants. After all, my hands have no sense of lightness or heaviness; if I accidentally hurt the Empress, it wouldn't be good."

Seeing that the Fragrant Consort was still unwilling, the eunuch said again: "The Empress should just go in peace. His Majesty has said that the Empress died of a serious illness after giving birth to the prince, and will be posthumously honored as Empress after death."

The Fragrant Consort widened her eyes, a breath choked in her throat, and she fell straight to the ground, losing all sound.

It turned out that the Empress in her fate was an Empress of the underworld. There can only be one mother of the nation in the world; if there are two, one must have already collapsed.

The revolving lantern ended, and the Scripture of Saving People gave the corpse an evaluation: Earth-grade, medium quality.

The reward was a technique of suppression and a Heavenly Fragrance Pill.

(End of chapter)