Chapter 356: Xie Ping Ambushed
At the end of the first month, the Empress's funeral procession departed.
All civil and military officials accompanied the coffin to the imperial mausoleum for burial.
After this period of daily vegetarian meals, Yun Chu had lost significant weight, though her two children fared better since she secretly fed them meat in private.
As she boarded the carriage, she spotted the Gong Xi Princess Consort with her two children among the crowd.
Now that the Gong Xi Prince had been stripped of his title and thrown into the dungeon, his wife and children hadn't been implicated yet, but their lives had become difficult. Without even a carriage, they followed the funeral procession on foot to the imperial mausoleum. The youngest child wasn't even one year old.
Yun Chu shook her head.
This was the way of royalty—born into extreme luxury, yet one misstep could plunge them from the clouds into hell.
People said children were innocent, but those born into the imperial family knew no such concept. They enjoyed privileges when times were good, and suffered when disaster struck.
In her previous life, when Chu Yi was framed and imprisoned, Yu Ge'er and Changsheng had likely endured similar hardships...
Fortunately, the tragedies of that past life would not repeat themselves.
Yun Chu boarded the carriage with her two children, following the funeral procession toward the imperial mausoleum.
The imperial city had largely emptied out.
Chu Rui, recently enfeoffed as a prince, stood supported by palace attendants on the city wall, watching the procession gradually fade into the distance.
After saving the Emperor during the longevity banquet, he had been restored as Prince Zhuang. Due to severe injuries that hadn't healed after forty-nine days of recuperation, he remained residing in the palace—specifically, the Empress Dowager's former residence, Kunning Palace.
He spoke softly: "I'm going out of the palace. No need to accompany me."
Donning heavy robes, he took only his most trusted aide, departing the palace by sedan chair before heading to the dungeon.
Now serving not only as Prince Zhuang but also as a third-rank Minister of Works with substantial authority, gaining entry to the dungeon with some silver posed little difficulty.
The Gong Xi Prince Chu Mo was imprisoned there.
He had long lost the splendor of his princely days—his hair hung in dirty strands, his face was smeared with grime, and his clothes were tattered rags. Only his eyes retained their spark, burning with intense hatred.
A black-clad death guard stood outside his cell, whispering with bowed head: "Your Highness, rest assured. With the imperial city now vulnerable, we have made thorough preparations to rescue you..."
The Gong Xi Prince responded gravely: "Since our father shows no benevolence, don't blame me for lacking filial piety."
For this grand undertaking, he had schemed for years. Beneath his princely residence lay stockpiles of weapons and provisions.
Since his father had convicted him of rebellion, he might as well make the accusation true. Even in death, he wouldn't perish ingloriously.
As they conspired, the dungeon door suddenly swung open, flooding the space with harsh light. Before the death guard could react, a sharp weapon pierced his throat, and he collapsed dead.
"Even behind bars, you still weave such intricate plots." The newcomer's voice sounded frail as he slowly approached. "One rebellion already cost thousands of lives—the price is too high. It's time to stop."
"Chu Rui?!" Chu Mo's eyes widened. "You... you..."
This man who had been gravely ill since birth—shouldn't he have died long ago? Why was he still alive?
Moreover, he had actually entered the dungeon and killed his most trusted subordinate!
"You were never truly ill!" Chu Mo spat out each word deliberately. "You used sickness to deceive the Empress Dowager, to deceive the Emperor! What exactly are you plotting?"
Chu Rui smiled faintly: "I merely wish to prevent the people from suffering devastation."He spoke as he took a small black pill from his sleeve and handed it over. "Take this."
Chu Mo immediately stepped back.
However, he was too late.
The servant standing behind Chu Rui reached out and grabbed Chu Mo's hair, pressing his head against the prison bars.
Chu Rui's pale fingers reached through the bars, pinched Chu Mo's chin, forced the pill into his mouth, and clamped it shut. In an instant, the pill dissolved, flowing down his throat with saliva and into his stomach.
After leaving the dungeon, Chu Rui washed his hands with cold water.
He coughed, looking extremely frail.
Coughing, he dragged his weakened body step by step back to the palace.
By this time, the Empress's coffin had already arrived at the imperial mausoleum. Without a moment's rest, the crowd followed to the mausoleum entrance, continuously kneeling and kowtowing...
By the time all the busy rituals concluded, it was already night.
Yun Chu led the children to rest. Yu Ge'er and Changsheng were utterly exhausted, falling asleep as soon as they touched the bed.
She didn't bother to wash the two children, simply removing their shoes and outer clothes before covering them with the same quilt to sleep.
The imperial mausoleum gradually grew quiet, though some people were still weeping.
The one crying most bitterly was naturally the Crown Prince, who had lost his mother.
Over the past month, the Crown Prince had rapidly wasted away, his cheekbones protruding while his eyes remained swollen from crying, altering his appearance considerably.
"Your Highness, please moderate your grief..." Xie Ping softly advised. "If Your Highness continues to ruin his health like this, Her Majesty won't rest peacefully in the afterlife..."
As a low-ranking imperial concubine, she normally wouldn't be qualified to come to the imperial mausoleum. But the Crown Prince feared leaving her alone in the Eastern Palace where she might be harmed, so he brought her along.
The Crown Prince murmured: "What should I do? What should I do? Without Mother Empress, who will advise me now..."
Xie Ping didn't understand these matters either.
After comforting him gently for a long time, she finally persuaded the Crown Prince to eat something.
Overjoyed, she said: "Please wait a moment, Your Highness. This humble consort will prepare it personally."
The Crown Prince particularly liked the plain noodle soup she made. With a poached egg added, he would even drink all the broth.
Now that the Empress was dead and the Crown Princess dared not make a move under her threat, she finally no longer feared for her life.
The Crown Prince had promised that after she gave birth to their child, he would promote her from low-ranking imperial concubine to Side Princess Consort.
If she gave birth to a boy, and when the Crown Prince eventually ascended the throne, she might even contend for the position of Empress...
Of course, it was still too early to think about such things now.
Xie Ping brought a palace maid to the kitchen. Just as she arrived, she saw an old man pushing a cart of fresh vegetables.
Even for the imperial family, getting fresh leafy greens in the first month wasn't easy. Xie Ping stopped and told the maid behind her: "You go start the fire first. I'll select some vegetables."
The maid hurried into the kitchen.
The old man smiled and said: "If you want fresh vegetables, noble lady, why not come with me? Just picked from the fields, very crisp."
Without much thought, Xie Ping followed him to the back of the kitchen.
She didn't wonder why an old man would be delivering vegetables late at night, nor why he was leading her further and further away...
She began to hesitate about continuing.
She didn't necessarily need the freshest vegetables anyway - the Crown Prince wouldn't be able to tell the difference.
She stopped: "Never mind, I don't want them anymore."
As she turned to leave, she suddenly saw from the wall's reflection that the old man was right behind her, holding something as he lunged toward her.The moment she screamed, a thin rope tightened around her neck, choking her cry back into her throat. The sensation of suffocation overwhelmed her.
She smelled the scent of death.
But she didn't want to die.
She had just become pregnant.
She had won the Crown Prince's favor.
She was about to establish her position in the Eastern Palace.
She might become the Empress.
She could clear the He family's name...
She couldn't die like this...
Yet the old man showed no mercy, continuously increasing his strength...
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