Chapter 267: Escaped

Qilin: "Where's the emperor? Did you capture him alive?"

He's still waiting to tie him up and bring him over so Senior Sister can get her revenge and vent her anger!

Gu Rongjin: "We'll know once we enter the capital."

"Let's go, leave this place for them to clean up." Qilin said.

"Aren't we waiting for the main force to enter the capital together?" Mu Yuanzhi asked.

Gu Rongjin: "No need, even if there are remnants of the previous dynasty, I can protect you!"

Mu Yuanzhi: "That's not the issue."

"Then there's no problem, let's go!"

The city gate was wide open, with no one guarding it, and the three of them—Mu Yuanzhi and company—passed through unhindered.

Upon returning to the capital once more, Mu Yuanzhi surveyed this prosperous capital, and for a moment her heart churned with countless thoughts.

She had returned again, but this time everything would become different.

Mu Yuanzhi gazed toward the direction of the palace gate.

Perhaps because the night was deep, perhaps because they were avoiding the war's chaos, the streets were empty, every household had shut their doors and windows tightly.

Wait until tomorrow, when the sun rises, and this heaven and earth will have changed into a new scene.

"Miss Mu!"

Hearing the familiar voice, Mu Yuanzhi and company turned their heads, and saw Yun Jing Lou waving at them.

"Young Master Jin! Young Master Qilin!"

"Here comes the great meritorious official?" Mu Yuanzhi teased, smiling at Yun Jing Lou.

Yun Jing Lou said proudly: "Of course not? I, too, am a first-class merit!"

After saying that, he sighed: "What a pity, the former emperor escaped."

Qilin exclaimed: "No way? He could still escape? Wasn't the imperial palace surrounded?"

Yun Jing Lou shrugged: "Who knows?"

Mu Yuanzhi: "After all, he's the emperor; he must have a retreat and helpers."

Yun Jing Lou: "By the way, what do you plan to do with the people inside the palace gate?"

Gu Rongjin: "We discussed this before: the Grand Empress Dowager retains her position, the imperial consorts are dismissed; as for those princes, those who submit keep their princely titles, those who don't sit in prison, and the same goes for everyone else."

"Quite merciful, Prince Jia."

"Of course, otherwise we wouldn't have chosen him." Gu Rongjin said.

Mu Yuanzhi: "I haven't seen the Grand Empress Dowager in a long time; I want to go see her."

I don't know how she's doing now.

Whether she's willing to see me or not…

Gu Rongjin: "I'll accompany you."

"Mm."

Prince Jia's main force had already entered the capital; Mu Yuanzhi and company arrived at the palace gate, and the atmosphere inside the gate was the same as outside, filled with turmoil.

No one was guarding the gate; after just a few steps, they saw the Minister of Justice walking toward them.

"Young Master Jin, Princess Mu Yuanzhi!"

"Please call me Miss Mu." Mu Yuanzhi corrected the Minister of Justice.

The Minister of Justice readily changed his address: "Miss Mu."

"What's happening inside the palace gate, Minister?" Gu Rongjin asked.

"For now, we'll temporarily place them under guard in each palace, awaiting Prince Jia's disposition."

Gu Rongjin asked again: "How many people refuse to submit?"

Minister of Justice: "Zero; even the Second and Third Princes have expressed willingness to submit."

"Does Pei Shangjue also submit?"

Mu Yuanzhi was somewhat surprised—not because she thought Pei Shangjue was particularly stubborn or foolishly filial, but because she found it strange whether he submitted or not.

The Minister of Justice nodded: "Miss Mu, would you like to go see him?"

Mu Yuanzhi shook her head: "I'm going to see the Grand Empress Dowager."

"Good, the Grand Empress Dowager is still in the Grand Moon Palace, and no one is neglecting her."

Inside the palace gate there is a secret passage that hardly anyone knows about—not even the former emperor knows of it, yet the National Teacher does.

"What Er'er said is right—it really is you!" The former emperor's dark face twisted somewhat; he no longer bore the aura of the Son of Heaven, now he was merely a defeated rooster, struggling to maintain what little dignity remained.

The National Teacher lightly sighed: "Your Majesty's trust and cultivation, I have nothing to repay with."

"Nothing to repay?" The former emperor laughed loudly: "You have repaid me—you overturned my realm! Yang Jianyu, my trust in you even surpasses that for the crown prince; I released Qi Shihuai's sister because of you, yet it turns out you're all in cahoots?! Why?"

He pointed angrily at the National Teacher: "I have not treated you poorly—why do you betray me?"

"Your Majesty, the late emperor bestowed kindness upon me." The National Teacher said.

"The late emperor showed kindness to you? Do I have none?!"

The National Teacher: "So I left Your Majesty a retreat."

The former emperor: "Is this your way of having nothing to repay?"

His face was darkened with gloom; he wished to slay the traitor before him, to hack him to pieces to vent his hatred!

He must be blind to have trusted this traitor so much!

"If Your Majesty would heed advice, you wouldn't have come to this point." The National Teacher expressed anguish: "Even knowing your ascension was illegitimate, I still chose to conceal the matter."

"Should I thank you?!" The former emperor sneered.

"Take care, Your Majesty."

"Hmph, you let me go today, but you will surely pay a heavy price for this someday!" The former emperor's expression was like that of a bloodthirsty asura.

He finished speaking, flicked his sleeves, and left.

The National Teacher turned back, came out of the secret passage; outside, the sea was vast and the sky wide, yet between him and his former friend they had already reached the end.

He had calculated that the dragon veins had returned to their place, the former emperor's fate was exhausted, making it impossible to stir up trouble; therefore he made this decision, leaving a path of survival for this friend.

Mu Yuanzhi and Gu Rongjin came together to the Grand Moon Palace; unlike the other palaces, the Grand Moon Palace still retained its original appearance, the guards had withdrawn far away to stand watch, not disturbing the Grand Empress Dowager's tranquility.

Here, one could not even sense the turbulent atmosphere outside; it seemed as if the palace gate remained the same as before.

Granny Zhang would occasionally come out to gather news; she was anxious as if on fire, fearing that something else might happen; upon seeing Mu Yuanzhi, she felt as if separated by worlds: "Princess Yuanzhi? Young Master Jin?"

"Granny, how is the great-grandmother doing?" Mu Yuanzhi asked.

The only Pei clan relative she still recognizes is the Grand Empress Dowager.

Granny Zhang nodded, "The Grand Empress Dowager is well, but... but the outside world has changed, she always worries a bit."

Gu Rongjin: "No need to worry! Prince Jia is also a close grandson of the Grand Empress Dowager; he is kind-hearted and still respects the Grand Empress Dowager."

Granny Zhang said nothing, but invited them inside.

The Grand Empress Dowager was chanting sutras and praying to Buddha; upon hearing Granny Zhang come in to deliver a message, she snorted: "She still remembers me, this old lady? Or did she think I'd gotten rid of the mill and killed the donkey?"

"The Grand Empress Dowager is clearly worried about Princess Yuanzhi." Granny Zhang helped the Grand Empress Dowager up.

"Shut up, your mouth that constantly gossips about the master ought to be sealed." The Grand Empress Dowager snorted again, yet her face showed she could not wait to see Mu Yuanzhi.

Upon seeing Mu Yuanzhi, the Grand Empress Dowager couldn't hold back her smile, yet she tried to act indifferent and spoke in a sarcastic tone: "You still know to come see this old lady of mine?"

"Great-grandmother, please calm your anger."