Yun Chu Ling

Chapter 428 The Heavenly Maiden's Identity

Concubine Jiang and her group moved closer.

They happened to be in the queue closest to the Heavenly Maiden. When they reached the front to receive the Sweet Dew, the Heavenly Maiden was just diagonally across from them.

Concubine Jiang looked up and murmured, "This feels so familiar. I must have seen her somewhere before..."

Xie Xian stood on her toes to receive a bowl of Sweet Dew. Without drinking it, she asked sweetly, "Can I take the Sweet Dew back with me?"

"No," the guard distributing the Sweet Dew said sternly. "It must be consumed on the spot to receive the Heavenly Maiden's blessings for dispelling illness and misfortune."

The Sweet Dew was only half a bowl. Xie Xian put it in her mouth, then walked aside and spat it onto her handkerchief. Her mother had told her earlier that it was best not to drink this Sweet Dew.

After spitting it out, she suddenly caught a familiar fragrance.

She turned and followed the scent, discovering it emanated from the Heavenly Maiden herself.

As Concubine Jiang led her away, Xie Xian couldn't help but say, "Mother, the Heavenly Maiden's scent... I think I smelled it when I was little..."

Concubine Jiang's fingers stilled.

She urgently asked, "When you were little? How young? Where did you smell it?"

Xie Xian tilted her head in thought. "I think it was at the Xie residence..."

She had been away from the Xie family for too long, and many memories had faded, but that fragrance stirred recollections of her time there...

"The Xie residence!" Concubine Jiang's eyes widened in shock. "Could it be her?"

Xu Ti looked incredulous. "Mother knows the Heavenly Maiden? She's from the Xie family?"

With many people still queuing for Sweet Dew around them, Concubine Jiang didn't dare draw attention. She quickly led the two children away. Even from a distance, she glanced back, her eyes still filled with disbelief.

When they reached a secluded spot, she finally spoke. "It's Concubine Tao."

Xie Xian no longer remembered who Concubine Tao was, let alone Xu Ti, who had never known of such a person.

"She was a courtesan gifted to Xie Jingyu by a nobleman. The mistress took pity on her and elevated her to concubine status. Later, she bore Xie Jingyu a son, Xie Shikang." Concubine Jiang explained slowly. "Afterwards, when the Xie family fell into decline and Xie Jingyu died, leaving hundreds of thousands in debt to the court, his children had to repay it. Half of that debt fell on Xie Shikang... Ah, Xie Shikang was frail from birth, yet burdened with such massive debt. Concubine Tao couldn't bear the pressure, abandoned her child, and fled... The Xie family searched for her but never found her. Who would have thought..."

Concubine Jiang looked toward where the Sweet Dew was being distributed. "Who would have thought she would become the Heavenly Maiden... A woman who abandoned her own child—how could she possibly be a compassionate savior of the people? It's utterly ridiculous!"

"This is all a fraud!" Xie Xian declared. "We must report this to the Empress Dowager!"

Concubine Jiang withdrew her gaze. "The Empress Dowager is clever enough to have already known."

"Not necessarily," Xu Ti said calmly. "The Empress Dowager probably only knows there's something wrong with the Heavenly Maiden and the Sweet Dew, but not the specifics. We should still inform her as soon as possible."

The three quickly made their way to the city gate, but it was tightly shut, allowing no one in or out.

Concubine Jiang tried to have the gate guards relay a message, but they ignored her and drove her away.It was nearly dusk by the time the line of people receiving the Sweet Dew finally dwindled away.

As the Heavenly Maiden descended from the high platform, her legs were so stiff that she nearly collapsed. The maids on either side hurriedly supported her and helped her into the largest tent at the very center.

Once inside, the Heavenly Maiden removed the veil covering her face, revealing an expression of utter exhaustion, her eyes filled with numbness.

Had any member of the Xie family been present, they would have recognized her immediately—she was none other than the former Concubine Tao.

Her original name was Tao Guizhi. She had once worked in the entertainment quarters, selling her talents but not her body, until a high-ranking official purchased her and presented her to Xie Jingyu. From then on, she became Concubine Tao of the Xie residence.

She had believed the Xie family would be her lifelong refuge, but then the family fell from grace... Her frail son was burdened with a staggering debt of nearly a hundred thousand taels—a sum she could never repay. Overwhelmed and broken, she had no choice but to flee...

At that time, her household registration documents were still with the Xie family. Without proof of identity, she eventually found herself back in the entertainment quarters.

There, she met another man and once again became a concubine. But the primary wife of that household was vicious, forcing her to kneel in the freezing snow. The child she had just conceived was lost there in the snow, and she was left with a host of illnesses, losing the ability to bear children forever. Eventually, that family sold her off... She was passed from one place to another, her body racked with pain and sickness.

She believed it was all punishment from heaven for abandoning her own son.

So, she escaped from her master and made her way back to the capital. After much inquiry, she learned that the Xie family had returned to Jizhou.

She painstakingly scraped together some travel funds and, after great difficulty, reached Jizhou. The moment she arrived at Xiejia Village, she encountered... Xie Shi'an.

Just as this thought crossed her mind, a maid’s voice sounded at the tent entrance: "Lord Xie."

Tao Guizhi immediately composed her expression.

Shortly after, Xie Shi'an entered. With a polite demeanor, he clasped his hands and said, "Heavenly Maiden."

Tao Guizhi pressed her lips together and replied, "There’s no need for formalities when it’s just the two of us."

"In the coming days, the Heavenly Maiden may have to endure considerable hardship," Xie Shi'an said, lifting his head. "But such days will not last long."

Tao Guizhi nodded. "I understand."

Back in Ningzhou, she only needed to bestow the Sweet Dew for two hours each day. During the journey to the capital, the task of distributing the Sweet Dew hadn’t fallen to her.

But now, at the gates of the capital, to attract more commoners, she had to stand on the high platform all day, maintaining the same posture and expression...

She paused before asking, "When will I be able to see Kang Ge'er?"

"What’s the hurry?" Xie Shi'an replied indifferently. "As you are now, with nothing to your name, what could you do even if you saw Kang Ge'er? Wait until our great undertaking is accomplished, and the new emperor confers upon you the title of a noble lady. Only then, when you have the means to treat Kang Ge'er’s illness, will he acknowledge you as his mother. Is such a simple truth beyond your understanding, Concubine Tao?"

Tao Guizhi lowered her head. "Very well."

Outside the city, as the sun rose each day, the Heavenly Maiden began bestowing the Sweet Dew. This was already the third day.

"Your Majesty, Empress Dowager, the number of commoners gathering outside the city is increasing daily."

"The capital’s gates have been closed for three days, severely disrupting the lives of the people inside. Many are causing disturbances. This cannot continue."

"The thirty thousand garrison troops are stationed just outside the city. Why not deploy them to take action? Otherwise, the consequences will be dire.""Although Cheng Wang has many followers, they are all unarmed civilians, including a large number of the elderly, weak, women, and children. They are no match for the garrison troops at all!"

Yun Chu's voice was calm: "Since we know they are all unarmed civilians, taking action against them would be equivalent to destroying our own foundation. The consequences would be even more severe."

The ministers below wore worried expressions.

"Then, what should we do?"

"Does the Empress Dowager have any good strategies?"

"If we delay for too long, it will be greatly disadvantageous for us."

Yun Chu already had a plan in mind, but she was wary of Chu Rui and therefore did not speak it outright.

The poison Cheng Wang used to control the common people was simple. Over a dozen imperial physicians from the Imperial Hospital had already worked through the night to produce the antidote. What needed to be done now was to administer the antidote to over two hundred thousand people—no simple task.

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Four chapters updated today. Wishing everyone a Happy New Year, all the best in everything, success in career, smooth studies, family happiness, and good health!