Typically, questions like these rarely yield positive answers. Taohua forced a smile and said, “I’m not particularly interested in the name of this palace passage, but could you esteemed eunuchs perhaps tell me the name of our destination?”
She hoped this information might offer a chance for escape.
One of the palace servants smirked, glancing towards the end of the passage. He lowered his voice and said, “This passage is called the Yellow Springs Road, naturally leading to the Underworld.”
“…” It sounded terrifying. Taohua let out a dry laugh. “Could you be more specific? Since I’m about to die anyway, shouldn’t you at least tell me how, so I can prepare myself?”
The palace servants lifted her and began dragging her along. One of them explained, “There’s something in our palace called the cremation furnace. It’s where we burn the bodies of servants who’ve contracted infectious diseases until nothing remains. Don’t bother plotting; there’s no coming back from this. The Crown Prince won’t know where you’ve gone, and he certainly won’t be able to find you.”
How ruthless! Jiang Taohua’s face paled as her eyes darted around. Seeing the approaching door, she finally panicked.
Without Qing Tai by her side, she had no hope of breaking free from so many hands. Once she was reduced to ashes, it would truly be the end of everything!
Looking left and right, Taohua forced herself to relax. Seizing an opportunity, she kicked back hard, breaking free from the person behind her, and then ran for her life!
“You wretched girl!” The palace servants cursed as they gave chase, though not with much urgency. “It’s a dead end ahead, with only the cremation furnace. If you want to jump in yourself, we certainly won’t stop you. Why did you have to kick us?”
Running through the door, Taohua looked up, her eyes filled with despair.
It truly was a dead end. A massive furnace burned so hot that the surrounding air shimmered. The air reeked of garbage and a strange, nauseating smell of burning flesh.
Next to the furnace stood an elderly palace servant holding an iron shovel. He turned to look at her, his eyes devoid of life. “Another one?” he asked.
Terrified, Jiang Taohua glanced around. The palace walls were far too high for her to climb in such a short time! Noticing a small room behind the old man, she gritted her teeth and, having nothing left to lose, darted inside to hide.
Knowing she had nowhere to escape, the old man chuckled and said to the pursuing servants, “Take your time catching her. There’s no rush; the previous one hasn’t burned through yet.”
The servants all laughed, leisurely surrounding the small room and unhurriedly searching for her.
Taohua hid under the bed, trembling with fear. She saw feet stop by the bedside and her pupils constricted involuntarily.
The world around her seemed to slow down. She could see the person by the bed slowly crouching down, a large face peering under the bed with a predatory gleam in their eyes. A hand reached out to grab her.
“Ah—” Taohua screamed, closing her eyes and covering her head with her hands, desperately chanting, “You can’t see me, you can’t see me, you can’t see me…”
How could they not see her when they’d already made eye contact? While trying to reassure herself yet feeling utterly hopeless, Jiang Taohua quietly waited to be dragged out. However, after a while, the person still hadn’t grabbed her.
Were their arms too short?
Slowly opening her eyes to look, she saw that the face was gone, but someone was still standing there. She could see exquisite black boots embroidered with silver edges, exuding an air of refined debauchery.
“Haven’t caught her yet?” the old man outside called out, startling Taohua and causing her to shrink further under the bed.
“I’ve got her,” a familiar voice calmly replied from inside the room.
Taohua, her mind blank with fear, couldn’t immediately place the voice. Suddenly, hands reached in from outside and dragged her out.
“Ahhh!” She screamed in terror, closing her eyes and flailing her limbs. “Let me go! Let me go! Let me go!”
The person had incredible strength, effortlessly lifting her into their arms. They restrained her limbs with disdain and said coldly, “Are you sure you want me to let you go?”
The familiar scent, tone, and embrace made Jiang Taohua freeze. She opened her eyes to see Shen Zaiyu holding her with an expressionless face. Four palace servants lay on the floor, either asleep or unconscious, making no sound.
“You…” Taohua instinctively clutched his clothes. “How are you here?”
“To send you into the cremation furnace,” Shen Zaiyu said emotionlessly as he carried her towards the door. “Your life is mine; I should handle this personally.”
“…” Beast!
Taking a deep breath, Taohua pulled back on Shen Zaiyu’s clothes like reining in a horse. She lowered her voice and said, “How does burning me benefit you? Let go of me now!”
“Keeping you alive is nothing but trouble,” he glanced at her and said flatly. “Judging by your recent words and actions, you don’t seem to want to live anyway.”
“I…” Taohua gritted her teeth. Seeing that he was about to open the door, she steeled herself, closed her eyes, and decided to use her feminine charms!
In one swift motion, she wrapped her legs around his waist, yanking him around so his back was against the door.
Bracing herself against the door, Taohua wasted no time in lowering her head to kiss his lips, her movements passionate and tender.
Shen Zaiyu’s body tensed briefly before relaxing, allowing her to press against him uninhibitedly. His half-lidded eyes held a strange light, appearing somewhat sorrowful to anyone who might have noticed.
However, Jiang Taohua didn’t look at him at all, focused solely on how to quickly placate him and secure her escape.
Since their last encounter, the two hadn’t been this intimate. Shen Zaiyu felt it had been an eternity. He couldn’t help but grab her waist, pulling her closer.
“Haven’t you caught her yet?” The old palace servant outside finally couldn’t wait any longer and knocked on the door. “How can so many of you not catch one little girl?”
The knocking sound startled Shen Zaiyu back to his senses. He frowned, pushing away the person on top of him, and wiping his mouth in disgust. Without a word, he took her and left through the window.
By the time the old servant pushed open the door, Shen Zaiyu was already striding out of the courtyard with Jiang Taohua in tow. She had truly run as fast as a rabbit; despite her small stature, her agility had almost outpaced him.
“In such a hurry to be reborn?” he asked.
Having just escaped death, Taohua was still trembling. She rolled her eyes in annoyance and retorted, “A dog’s mouth can’t produce ivory!”
“What did you say?” Shen Zaiyu narrowed his eyes. “Did I hear that wrong?”
Did she dare to insult him to his face?
“You must have misheard!” Taohua grinned. “This concubine was praising you, praising your good teeth.”
Snorting, Shen Zaiyu looked around to ensure they were safe before crossing his arms and saying, “I warned you to be careful early on, but it seems you didn’t take it to heart. If it weren’t for me today, you really would have been reborn.”
“This slave thanks the Minister,” Taohua pouted. “Consort Lan told us to look out for each other, and you’ve done well. If you want a reward, you can ask Consort Lan for it.”
Wiping the corner of his mouth, Shen Zaiyu frowned and said, “You violated me just now. Don’t you think you should apologize?”
…Violated? Taohua looked at him incredulously, scanning him from head to toe. “Consort Lan praised your eloquence, but you can’t just say nonsense. I’ve never heard of a woman violating a man!”
“You’re merely a palace maid who took advantage of the Chancellor,” Shen Zaiyu said matter-of-factly. “I’m not a greedy person; just return that ten thousand taels of gold to me.”
“…” Why don’t you just rob me outright? Jiang Taohua sneered and turned to leave. “It’s written in the contract that if you take my life, Minister, the gold becomes mine. Wanting it back now seems rather ungentlemanly, doesn’t it?”
“I didn’t intend to take your life,” Shen Zaiyu lowered his gaze and clicked his tongue. “I was…”
“Miss Meng!” Someone suddenly ran over from ahead, calling out from afar, “Is that Miss Meng?”
Taohua froze for a moment, then swiftly pushed Shen Zaiyu into the nearby bushes without hesitation. Her movements were clean and decisive. She then turned to the approaching person with a smile and asked, “What is it?”
“We’ve finally found you,” the palace servant said, out of breath. “The Crown Prince was asking where you’d gone. Please come back with me quickly.”
“Alright,” Taohua nodded slightly and followed the servant without looking back.
Shen Zaiyu emerged from the bushes, his face dark as he plucked off leaves and grass from his clothes. He pressed his lips together and followed in their direction.
After a long discussion with the Crown Prince, the Emperor looked both guilty and heartbroken. He summoned Shen Zaiyu and said, “Chancellor, assist the Crown Prince in enshrining Consort Chu’s spirit tablet in the Imperial Ancestral Temple.”
“What?” Shen Zaiyu looked surprised. “Didn’t Your Majesty… Has something happened? Please explain so I can better instruct those below me.”
“Ah,” Emperor Mingde leaned back on his soft pillow, showing his age for the first time. “I may have truly misunderstood Chu’er. Back then, she willingly became a hostage to borrow troops from Wu for me, yet I suspected her of having an affair with the King of Wu. I didn’t even believe that Wuxia was truly my flesh and blood… This misunderstanding cost a life, and I don’t even have the chance to ask for forgiveness.”
Slightly stunned, Shen Zaiyu glanced at Mu Wuyin.
The Crown Prince sighed lightly and said, “Chancellor may not know, but Consort Chu was already pregnant with Prince Nan before she went to Wu. However, someone sealed the imperial physician’s lips, keeping Father in the dark. That’s why Prince Nan suffered such injustice for so many years.”
Of course, he knew this. When Consort Chu went to Wu, she gave birth to Prince Nan in less than eight months. By any calculation, he had to be Emperor Mingde’s son.
“It’s good that the misunderstanding has been cleared up,” Shen Zaiyu looked at the Emperor. “It seems the Crown Prince should be rewarded for this. If not for him, Your Majesty’s years of inner conflict might have remained unresolved.”
“Indeed,” Emperor Mingde looked at Mu Wuyin and said, “I had thought this child lacked brotherly affection, but it turns out he’s truly kind-hearted and values family ties. He certainly deserves a reward.”
“As long as Father feels at ease, that is the best reward for your son,” Mu Wuyin smiled. “Father, please focus on recovering your health.”
(End of Chapter)