After the Empress left the capital, the atmosphere in the palace became more and more harmonious. Without a target to curry favor with, all of the conspiracies and plots were put to rest and disappeared without a trace.
Especially three days after the Empress left the capital, Empress Dowager Wang gave an imperial edict, saying that there had been a lot of annoying mundane matters recently. She did not want to get involved anymore. She closed the palace doors and did not allow anyone to pay their respects. She also did not allow anyone to disturb her. In an instant, everyone fell into a state of extreme boredom.
As for Bai Suyan, she did not feel much. She had just stabilized the poison and needed to recuperate. Normally, she slept more and spent less time awake.
Lady Wen Yu did not care about anything at the moment. If it were not for the palace maids and eunuchs serving her, she would have skipped the daily washing and grooming. She held a book from morning to night and did not flip a page for a long time. Not only did she read, but she also did not read. She was purely in a daze.
Concubine Zhao, who was also "recuperating," was much more energetic than Bai Suyan. Every day, she practiced with swords and knives in the courtyard. Sometimes, she just sat in the corridor, holding a sword and looking at the flowers. From afar, it was a picturesque scene. When the palace maids walked in to take a look, they found that she had fallen asleep.
For a time, the people in the harem who were supposed to be sick were sick, those who were supposed to pretend to be sick were pretending to be sick, and those who were supposed to recuperate went to recuperate. In short, they did what they were supposed to do until —
Empress Dowager Jin Yue, who had disappeared from everyone's sight for a long time, the ninth young master, who had been demoted to a bastard by the previous Emperor, rebelled in Yongzhou. Yu An Wang made peace in Yanzhou, breaking the peace of the past half a month. It was like a calm sea, but with the slightest gust of wind, the waves below would all surge.
Yongzhou was where the Zhao army was stationed. The head of the Zhao family, Zhao Bufan, was the commander of the nine gates of Yanjing. He was responsible for the internal and external security of the nine gates of Yanjing.
When the Empress Dowager Wang received the news, she quickly summoned the royal family, ministers, and their relatives into the palace and sealed the palace gates. However, the incident happened suddenly, and the Emperor was far away at the hunting ground. There was no prior warning. Fortunately, the "Raccoon" had been prepared, but they still did not have enough manpower. Some of the ministers who lived slightly further away from the palace did not have time to enter the palace and were detained by the rebel army.
When Bai Suyan heard the news, she immediately lifted the quilt, took a sword from the secret compartment under the bed, and rushed to Xue Xiu Palace. Green Waist, Winter Solstice, and the others hurriedly followed her, but they still missed her.
The people who served in Jianjia Hall, whether close or distant, had all become cold corpses. Bai Suyan had already forced herself to breathe. Once this breath was released, she bent her knees. Green Waist and Winter Solstice supported her on both sides and helped her sit down in the corridor. Winter Solstice then wrapped the cloak in his hands around her body.
Bai Suyan's face was pale. "Winter Solstice, immediately explain the situation in Jianjia Hall to the Empress Dowager Wang. Green Waist, summon the Mu Fei and borrow people from her. You must ask clearly if anyone has seen Concubine Zhao in the past two days. Then immediately inform the Deputy Commander of the Imperial Army and have him search the palace for Concubine Zhao's whereabouts."
The two received the order and went their separate ways. Not long after Green Waist walked out of Jianjia Hall, the Mu Fei arrived with people. She didn't care about Consort Yan's rude intrusion into the palace. She only asked, "What happened that made your Empress so flustered?"
Green Waist hurriedly bowed. "Zhao Family rebelled. All the palace servants in Jianjia Hall were killed. Concubine Zhao's whereabouts are unknown."
The Mu Fei gasped and almost fainted. She was supported by the palace maid beside her. She held Shanhu's hand and said, "Go to the Phoenix Palace and report to the Empress Dowager. On the way, go to the Willow Palace and inform Lady Wen Yu. Zi Ying, take people to investigate the people in Xue Xiu Palace and see if there are any suspicious people. Also, Concubine Zhao... if you encounter her, hide if you can. Don't confront her head-on. If you see her, immediately inform the Imperial Army and Imperial Bodyguards and let them pursue her."
"Mu Fei niangniang, my Empress Dowager has already sent people to inform the Empress Dowager and the Deputy Commander of the Imperial Army. Please send people to Jianjia Hall to assist my Empress Dowager. Please."
The Mu Fei nodded and said, "This consort understands. Leave Consort Yan to this consort."
Imperial Concubine Mu slowly walked to the entrance of Jian Jia Hall. The scene inside almost made her cry out in shock. Why almost? Because Imperial Concubine Zhao was holding a blood-stained longsword in her hand and was pressing it against Bai Suyan's neck. The longsword was still dripping with blood, dripping onto Bai Suyan's cloak and staining it with blood.
Bai Suyan didn't have enough strength. Leaning against a pillar, the sword in her hand was slightly unsheathed. She could only barely block, not allowing Concubine Zhao's sword to penetrate even an inch further. Concubine Zhao's smile was charming and beautiful, "I thought you were just a three-legged cat protected by your father and brother. I didn't expect you to have some real martial arts. You've been poisoned so deeply. After recuperating for half a month, you still have the strength to exchange blows with me."
Bai Suyan used all of her strength on her hand. She didn't even have the strength to open her mouth to speak. Concubine Zhao sneered and still used her strength. At the moment of imminent peril, a figure flipped down from the eaves and pushed Concubine Zhao's sword away.
Seeing the person who came, Bai Suyan let out a sigh of relief. She didn't have the strength to hold the sword anymore. She let the sword fall to the ground. Half of the sword fell out of the scabbard. She leaned against the railing and panted heavily.
"You've arrived. It looks like Zhao Bufan has lost half of his battle." Concubine Zhao still had the leisure to throw flirtatious glances at Bai Luoyan. She didn't care at all about the people outside the palace who had the same surname as her. Truthfully speaking, she didn't really want to take Bai Suyan's life. It was just that her remaining curiosity made her want to test this female general who was like her.
Bai Luoyan's face was mostly covered by the bronze mask so people couldn't see her expression. "Jianjia Hall has been surrounded by 'Raccoon.' Concubine Zhao, please allow yourself to be captured. You are a member of the inner courtyard of the imperial harem. His Majesty will not make things difficult for you."
Concubine Zhao twirled a strand of hair in front of her and complained half-truthfully, "I am a member of the inner courtyard of the imperial harem. For better or worse, I have fought on the battlefield, received awards, and held a position in the court. Just because I married someone, I became a member of the inner courtyard. This world is really unfair to us women."
Bai Luoyan didn't say anything. She swung her sword and attacked. Concubine Zhao also put away her sorrowful feminine attitude. Her eyes revealed a fierce light. Each of her moves was cunning, all aimed at fatal points. The former only wanted to capture and didn't want to take her life. The latter closed in step by step, fighting with her life. Even though Bai Luoyan's martial power was much higher than hers, it became a stalemate for a moment.
Bai Suyan knew that if she stayed on the side, her brother would have some misgivings. When she felt that she had recovered some of her strength, she propped herself up, picked up her sword, and ran out of the courtyard. Concubine Zhao naturally saw her movements and sneered. Ignoring Bai Luoyan's deadly sword, she threw the sword in her hand at her.
Bai Luoyan couldn't stop in time and the sword stabbed into Concubine Zhao's shoulder. Concubine Zhao grabbed the sword with her white hand and didn't let her retreat. Helpless, Bai Luoyan could only abandon the sword and turn towards Bai Suyan.
In the midst of Concubine Mu's screams, Bai Suyan did something that made her extremely embarrassed when she thought about it later. She threw herself forward like a frog. "Clang — —" A hidden weapon shot out from a corner and slowed the sword's momentum. This delay was enough for Bai Luoyan to catch up and grab the sword hilt, "Susu, are you okay?"
Bai Suyan was lying on the ground. She turned her head and looked, "Brother, Concubine Zhao wants to leave!"
Concubine Zhao pulled the sword from her shoulder and held it in her hand. She leapt out of the courtyard. "Raccoon" people appeared to block her. There were palace maids, palace eunuchs, and black-clothed masked people. The sword in Concubine Zhao's hand was vicious and ruthless. Those people were completely not her match. In a few moves, she broke through the encirclement. There was even a palace maid whose stomach was pierced by her sword, creating a rain of blood that sprinkled vermilion spots on the ground.
Before Concubine Zhao left, she even had the mood to turn her head and smile at Concubine Mu. Concubine Mu did not see it. She and Shanhu were so shocked that they did not know how to react, especially when the palace maid's corpse was just a few steps away from them. Concubine Mu recognized this person. This person was one of the palace maids who swept the floor in her palace. Everything under the heavens belonged to the Emperor, everything under the heavens belonged to the Emperor.
Bai Luoyan helped Bai Suyan up, "Brother, I'm fine. Quickly chase after Concubine Zhao. You can't let her leave!" Bai Luoyan saw that she could stand firm and turned to chase after Concubine Zhao.
Bai Suyan slowly moved to the outside of the courtyard and slowly slid down to sit on the threshold, "Concubine Mu, are you okay?"
Concubine Mu wasn't sure what kind of person Bai Suyan was. Was she His Majesty's imperial concubine like her, or was she His Majesty's eyes and ears like those people just now?
Bai Suyan gasped for breath and said, "Concubine Mu niangniang is intelligent. There are some things that ben gong doesn't need to remind you. You should let them rot in their stomachs. Even if their stomachs rot, they shouldn't say it out loud." It was just one sentence, but it took her a lot of effort to say it.
Concubine Mu and Shanhu supported each other as they stood up. Their voices trembled as they said, "Ben, ben gong... has never been here before... how would I know what happened here? Ben gong, will go back to rest now." Finished speaking, master and servant supported each other and slowly walked away.
Xia Zhi, who was in Liuying Palace Hall, saw the commotion at Snowrest Palace Hall and hurried over. She just so happened to brush past Concubine Mu and the others. She saw Bai Suyan sitting on the threshold with her eyes closed, looking like she didn't know anything. She thought that Bai Suyan was injured and almost cried as she threw herself at her, "Niangniang, niangniang, answer this servant. Niangniang, don't scare me!"
"Xia Zhi," Bai Suyan lifted her eyelids and slowly said, "You're so noisy. Ben gong is just resting here for a while."
Xia Zhi wiped her tears and then wiped them on herself. Then, she went to check Bai Suyan's pulse. After confirming that Bai Suyan was just temporarily tired, she let out a sigh of relief. Her tears fell again as she said, "Niangniang, you scared this servant to death. This servant will help you back. Next time you come out, don't walk by yourself. There's a Luan sedan!"
At this time, Bai Suyan really didn't have any strength left. She put all her strength on Xia Zhi and helplessly smiled, "Next time, don't be so anxious. You should remember to bring the Luan sedan with you. Right now, ben gong can directly use the Luan sedan to carry me back. There's no need to walk by myself."
"Yes, this servant will remember. Next time, this servant will definitely remember to bring the Luan sedan."
"You've been very obedient recently."
"This servant has always been very obedient," Xia Zhi said with a pout, "Niangniang, don't talk anymore. Save your energy. Why don't you come up and let this servant carry you back?"
In a play, the most frightening thing was that even the people next to you were actors. On the stage, where there were only false feelings, people would freeze to death.
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