Chapter 7

Chapter 7

My heart jolted.

Yuan Mu still had a murder charge hanging over his head.

Over a month ago, he had a late-night meeting with Wei Qiong and was caught in the act by the Prince Consort.

Then, the Prince Consort died, right there at the doorway.

By the time the servants arrived, Yuan Mu was pulling a sword out-drawing the long blade that had pierced the Prince Consort’s chest.

Aside from himself and Grand Princess Anding, no one knew exactly how the Prince Consort had died.

Accompanied by dozens of palace attendants, Chief Official Gao of the Prison Ministry, and Clerk Zhou, Grand Princess Anding appeared in the dungeon with great fanfare.

She was dressed in plain mourning clothes, her bearing dignified. She wore no jewelry, only two small white flowers pinned to her temples.

The lower flower was in mourning for her husband, Lu Chengming.

The upper one was for her mother, Empress Dowager Lu.

Following my instructions, Chen Xiao cupped his hands and bowed to her.

“This guilty official, Yuan Mu, greets the Elder Princess.”

I knelt down immediately behind him.

“The Empress Dowager’s final edict personally pardons Lord Yuan. I, the Princess, have come to take him to the palace to pay his respects.”

Three or four female officials stepped forward and surrounded Chen Xiao. He was startled, but they were merely tying a mourning band to his arm and hanging a white silk knot at his waist…

Fortunately, Chief Official Gao was busy conversing with the Elder Princess, so she didn’t notice anything amiss.

Chief Official Gao was full of sycophantic words, expressing his profound grief and gratitude for the Empress Dowager’s benevolence.

Wei Qiong did not respond, nor did she spare him so much as a glance.

It wasn’t until Clerk Zhou chimed in flatteringly, “Lord Yuan was wrongly imprisoned this time, but we treated him with the utmost courtesy and did not dare neglect him in the slightest.”

Wei Qiong finally reacted, turning her head to look at him.

“And yet, I, the Princess, see what looks like the mark of a slap on Lord Yuan’s face.”

As the perpetrator, I buried my head even lower.

Clerk Zhou was stunned. “This… I didn’t know…”

“And you call that not daring to neglect him?” Wei Qiong looked away. “Ten slaps.”

Guards quickly dragged Clerk Zhou into the shadows out of sight, where he was given ten solid slaps. The sound was so sharp that Chief Official Gao didn’t dare speak another word.

Once Chen Xiao was ready, Wei Qiong prepared to take him back to the palace.

Chen Xiao looked at me kneeling on the ground. Facing the overbearing Wei Qiong, he didn’t know how to speak up.

“Lord Yuan?” Wei Qiong prompted.

Chen Xiao summoned his courage. “She comes with me.”

Wei Qiong seemed to notice me for the first time. Her gaze lingered for a moment before she turned to leave.

“Then let’s go.”

A female official handed me a jade pass for entering and exiting the palace.

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

Chen Xiao and I followed Wei Qiong into the palace.

The first thing to do upon leaving prison was to pay respects before the Empress Dowager’s coffin.

The Celestial Dynasty ruled the world through filial piety. The Emperor was extremely devoted to his mother, so the Empress Dowager’s funeral rites were exceptionally grand.

Five-colored prayer banners, a hundred meters long, hung from the heights of Taihua Temple, fluttering in the wind.

Below the white jade steps, monks stood in formation, the sound of their chanting never ceasing.

Taihua Temple had three main halls: the front, middle, and back.

The middle hall held the Empress Dowager’s coffin, where the imperial relatives presided over the ceremony. The front hall was where the court officials knelt in rows, and the back hall was for the palace concubines to keep watch and wail in mourning.

Officials from the Ministry of Rites hurried between the three halls, as busy as shuttles on a loom.

“Where are the people from the Prince of Dongyang’s Mansion? The Emperor is asking-when will Prince Dongyang arrive?”

Walking at the very back of the group, I couldn’t help but look toward the source of the voice.

“The letter was sent long ago! But the Prince was on his way back to his fief. It will take a few days even if he turns back to the capital immediately.”

“What about a reply? A confirmed date? We need some kind of word!”

Wei Qiong, walking at the front, also glanced over upon hearing this.

Seeing us both looking, Chen Xiao took a look as well.

Wei Qiong tilted her head back, swept a glance over him, and then looked away.

Chen Xiao intentionally slowed his pace, distancing himself from the group until he reached my side.

“Who is Prince Dongyang?” he whispered.

“The Empress Dowager’s youngest son.”

“He can even miss this?” Chen Xiao was shocked, then added in a low voice, “People say that returning for a parent’s funeral is the most important thing in the world.”

I looked at him coldly. “Yuan Mu doesn’t use such common slang.”

Chen Xiao covered his mouth and went silent.

Wei Qiong led us to a side hall. After a short wait, a eunuch came to lead the way.

Naturally, I couldn’t follow.

Chen Xiao stood up, bracing himself.

Wei Qiong warned him, “Be careful. Lu Zhun is there too.”

Chen Xiao said flatly, “It’s fine.”

He turned to look at me secretly.

With his face hidden from her, he widened his eyes and mouthed: *Who the hell is Lu Zhun?*

I spread my hands.

There was no time to explain.

“Lord Yuan, let us go.”

Chen Xiao managed a strained, “After you.”

Once he left, only Wei Qiong and I remained.

We sat in silence for a long time before Wei Qiong finally spoke.

“The last time I saw my sister Chao Er, it was also in the death row of the Prison Ministry. How many years has it been…”

“That was seven years ago.”

Wei Qiong lightly rested her fingertips on her forehead, stroking back past the white flower at her temple.

“Yes, it’s been too long. It feels like everything has changed.”

A commotion broke out outside.

Chen Xiao was helped back by two eunuchs. There was a prominent footprint on the clothes covering his abdomen.

“What happened?” Wei Qiong stood up.

The eunuch wiped away sweat. “We ran into Lord Lu… Lord Lu had a disagreement and… gave him a light kick!”

“You call that light?”

Pretending to clean the dirt off him, I helped Chen Xiao behind a screen.

Chen Xiao whispered in my ear, “I finally know who Lu Zhun is.”

I kept my voice extremely low. “What did you do to make him hit you?”

Chen Xiao feigned a couple of coughs.

“He blocked my path first. I didn’t know him. I saw everyone telling him to ‘restrain his grief,’ so I told him to restrain his grief too, saying that the dead cannot come back to life. His face changed instantly… Who would have thought I was the one who killed his son!”