Chapter 310: I Will Truly Die
The Empress sat alone at the highest seat, sipping fruit wine.
Her gaze was profound and inscrutable.
"Your Majesty," an elderly matron approached her from behind and whispered, "Consort Fang was admiring flowers in the rear courtyard when she slipped and fell. She's bleeding from her lower body."
The Empress suddenly frowned: "Just from a fall?"
As a woman of the inner palace, she knew well how much intrigue and deception filled the harem. There wasn't a single palace woman whose hands weren't stained with blood, especially regarding unborn children - countless had died unknown throughout the palace.
Her first thought was that Consort Fang had been schemed against.
"Consort Fang herself claims it was merely an accidental slip," the matron said softly. "I took the liberty of summoning the finest imperial physician without alerting others."
Just as the Empress was about to speak,
She looked up and saw the Emperor returning. Five or six steps behind him walked Guogong Furen, with Gao Gonggong positioned between them.
The Emperor sat directly beside the Empress.
Guogong Furen also returned to her seat.
The Empress stood up: "Your Majesty, I suddenly feel a headache coming on. I shall return to the Palace of Earthly Tranquility first."
The Emperor turned, concern in his eyes: "Is it serious?"
"Likely just a chill from last night," the Empress bowed slightly. "I shall take my leave now."
After the Empress departed, the Emperor remained seated for about fifteen minutes before also rising to leave.
The flower-viewing banquet was nearing its end when someone suddenly remarked: "I heard Consort Fang took a fall. We don't know her condition - perhaps we should go check on her."
A group of noblewomen stood up, led by the Crown Princess toward the rear of the Eastern Palace.
Yun Chu also rose. She had been looking for an opportunity to go to the rear courtyard to meet with Xie Ping, and now the chance had arrived.
The Eastern Palace's side consorts resided in side halls, while the low-ranking consorts' quarters were further back, sharing a smaller hall with the concubines.
While everyone went to visit Consort Fang, Yun Chu turned and walked around the palace wall to the rear.
The rear palace structures were somewhat smaller, but still divided into main and side halls. Xie Ping resided in a side hall, now going by the name Wu Linglong, addressed as Consort Wu.
Her arm had been torn open by a tiger, the flesh ripped away to the bone. Though she received the finest treatment, the arm remained half-crippled, unable to even lift a cup of tea.
But she didn't consider it a loss - in exchange for one arm, she had gained a new identity as the Crown Prince's low-ranking consort. Nothing to regret.
When the Crown Prince ascended the throne as Emperor, as his lifesaver, she would at least be ranked among the Four Consorts...
Xie Ping was about to turn and go inside
When from the corner of her eye, she noticed someone standing outside the side hall.
Her pupils contracted sharply, instinctively wanting to cover her face.
But it was too late. She saw the astonishment on Yun Chu's face: "Ping'er?"
"Mo— Princess Consort of the Pacifying West!" Xie Ping knew hiding was pointless now. She could only approach, her voice trembling slightly. "I—I'm not Xie Ping anymore..."
Yun Chu's eyes filled with shock: "After returning from the imperial mausoleum that day, I specifically arranged for someone to deliver some things to you at the mausoleum. But they said you had disappeared. A few days later, news came back that you had died... Ping'er, what exactly happened? Why are you in the Eastern Palace? What occurred?"
"I—I..."
Xie Ping couldn't utter a single word.
Once before, she had used every means to become Anjing Prince's principal consort.
Now, she had once again employed schemes to become the Crown Prince's low-ranking consort.At first, she hadn't thought much of it.
But the moment she saw her mother, she felt like a villain who had committed every evil deed imaginable.
Xie Ping grabbed Yun Chu's hand, pleading, "Mother—this is the last time I'll call you mother—I beg you, don't tell anyone about this. Otherwise, I'll die, I truly will..."
Yun Chu asked calmly, "Who was the person who died in your place?"
Xie Ping bit her lip and remained silent.
Yun Chu pressed on, "Did she die accidentally, or did you kill her?"
"She... she contracted a severe illness..." Xie Ping lowered her head. "She was already dead; I merely made use of her corpse... Mother, I was truly desperate and had no other choice but to take this path. I beg you to spare my life!"
"Fine, I won't tell anyone." Yun Chu stared at her. "But I'm not the only one who has seen you. Be careful."
With that, she patted Xie Ping's shoulder and turned to leave.
Xie Ping leaned against the palace wall as if all strength had drained from her.
She had once been Princess Anjing, and indeed many people had seen her, but only once or twice.
Back then, whenever she met with members of the imperial family, she was always lavishly dressed, adorned with hairpins, still possessing the youthful charm of a maiden, her face still full.
But now, dressed in plain clothes, her cheeks sunken and thin, her maidenly grace long gone, only those who had lived with her for an extended period might recognize her.
Yet she and the Xie family would never meet again in this lifetime.
As long as her mother didn't reveal the secret, no one would ever know that Consort Wu of the Crown Prince was the former Princess Anjing.
Time flew by, and soon it was June. After the full-month celebration for the Yun family's next-generation eldest legitimate daughter, Yun Zhi, Yun Silin was set to leave the capital for the Western Frontier.
At the same time, the Eighth Prince, Prince Yi, would also be escorted by Yun Silin to his fiefdom to assume his title.
Yun Chu and Chu Yi brought their two children to see them off.
The Eighth Prince was only nine years old this year, slightly shorter than Yun Chu. Though already enfeoffed as a prince, he lacked the imposing presence expected of one.
Lin Shi worriedly stroked the Eighth Prince's hair and said, "The journey is long and the roads are treacherous, and Xiaochang is a poor place. If you lack anything, write to the capital. Don't endure hardships."
The Eighth Prince bowed respectfully. "Thank you, Aunt."
Yun Chu added, "I often visit the palace to keep your mother company and ease her boredom. Don't worry too much about her."
The Eighth Prince glanced in the direction of the palace and sighed silently.
Originally, his father had permitted his mother to leave the palace to bid him farewell, but she had refused. He knew she disliked such scenes.
How he wished he were a girl, so he could stay with his mother forever.
But he was a prince, a prince with the right to inherit the throne. Only by leaving could his mother avoid being dragged into the struggle for succession.
This was the best path for both mother and son.
"Yun Ze, there's no need to remain in hiding any longer." Yun Silin looked at his eldest son. "I've left a thousand elite guards in the capital. Use them if needed."
Yun Ze understood the implication of these words and nodded solemnly. "Father, I've taken note."Yun Silin's gaze fell upon Chu Yi: "Our Yun family has entrusted Chu'er to you completely. No matter what happens, I hope you can protect Chu'er well. As for Yu Ge'er and Changsheng, they are your own flesh and blood. I believe I need not remind you how to act."
"Father-in-law, rest assured, I understand everything," Chu Yi said. "In this position, I am well aware of what I will face. Passive defense would only leave me in a vulnerable position, and I will not allow such a situation to occur."
From the moment he conceived such thoughts, he had already made thorough preparations.
He would never allow Yun Chu, their two children, or the Yun family to fall into a position where they could only passively endure attacks.
After conversing for a while, they bid farewell.
Just as Yun Chu was about to board the carriage, Chu Yi's expression suddenly darkened: "There's someone in the shadows!"
As soon as he spoke, Qiutong finally noticed that indeed someone was hiding behind a tree by the official road.
She leaped over and dragged out a person from behind the tree.
Yun Chu narrowed her eyes.
It was Xie Shi'an!
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