Chapter 167
Chapter 167
All three keys had been gathered.
Only the royal seal containing the clue to the treasure’s location remained.
Fusheng Duan had once imagined what he would do after obtaining all the wealth.
He would leave most of it to his subordinates and let them take the money and do whatever they pleased. As for himself, he would find some quiet place to spend his remaining years in peace.
But now, that idea–already nearly rooted in his mind–had begun to waver.
He could cut himself off from the world and remain indifferent to fame and fortune.
But what about Shengsheng Zhou?
Without his identity as Noble Consort, he was merely a commoner carrying the blood of Qing Kingdom’s royal family from a thousand years ago.
He drew a bottle of pearly white liquid from his robe and lowered his eyes in thought for a long while before finally stepping forward.
Something about him seemed to have changed. Or perhaps it was only an illusion created by the wind.
…
Explaining the truth proved far harder than imagining it. Shengsheng could not reveal the matter of A-Pang, so she spoke evasively, coaxing and circling her way through the entire story.
Throughout the explanation, she did not dare look at Zhiyu Jiang’s expression. Only after finishing did she cautiously raise her head.
Then she froze.
Completely unlike what she had imagined, Zhiyu’s expression was perfectly calm.
So calm that it was almost eerie.
“Are you allowed to tell me this?” Zhiyu asked.
Shengsheng blinked. “There isn’t exactly a rule saying I can’t…”
Zhiyu lowered her eyes and whispered, “If what the princess said is false, may lightning strike me.”
Perhaps frightened, Zhiyu closed her eyes after speaking and loosely covered both ears with her hands.
But she waited for a long time, and the lightning that had already struck eighty-nine times did not fall again.
Only the faint rustle of leaves blown down by the wind reached her ears.
Shengsheng glanced up at the sky. Seeing no storm clouds gathering, she quietly sighed in relief.
When she lowered her head again and saw a crystalline tear strike the ground, she did not immediately understand what had happened.
Only when a sweet-smelling figure suddenly rushed over and embraced her–and quiet sobs became loud wails–did Shengsheng realize that Zhiyu was crying.
Zhiyu’s tears made Shengsheng cry as well. “Don’t cry… It’s my fault. I waited until now to tell you.”
Zhiyu shook her head and clung tightly to Shengsheng. Tears blurred her vision and streamed down like beads from a broken string. “After you left, Beauty disappeared too. I was alone, and it… it hurt so much… I thought you didn’t want me anymore. Boohoo…”
Shengsheng stroked her head. “How could I not want you? Where else in this world could I find a Xiaoyu better at summoning lightning?”
Zhiyu buried her face in Shengsheng’s shoulder and shook her head.
Back then, she had been so foolish, nothing but a burden.
Until the day Noble Consort came and handed her a bottle of some unknown substance, saying Shengsheng wanted her to drink it.
She obediently finished it. Her muddled mind suddenly became clear, and the memories she had lost long ago surged from the deepest reaches of oblivion.
At the same time, she suddenly understood.
She understood why Xiangxiang had abruptly been promoted to replace Shengsheng Zhou, and why everyone in Qianyi Palace refused to speak the name Shengsheng Zhou.
She was dead.
The person in her memories who had always cared for her and treated her like a child was dead.
At this point in her recollection, Zhiyu cried even harder. “You can’t leave me again! No matter where you go, I’m going with you!”
Caught between laughter and tears, Shengsheng loosened her hold. “Silly girl, how will you ever marry like this? Do you plan to remain a single dog forever?”
Zhiyu wiped her tears. “A woman protected by a lion would never settle for a wild dog.”
Shengsheng: “…” She never should have taught her so much.
Just as the two smiled at each other, footsteps suddenly sounded nearby.
They turned and saw Xiyuan Duanmu clutching her stomach, legs squeezed together, her face green.
“No… Are you two finished talking? I can’t hold it anymore. I’m about to crap my pants right here.”
Shengsheng Zhou and Zhiyu Jiang simultaneously stepped aside, revealing the latrine behind them.
Shengsheng thought, *No wonder it has smelled strange this entire time.*
Zhiyu asked softly, “Then I’m the first person to learn your secret. Does Beauty know?”
At the mention of Beauty, Shengsheng’s feelings grew complicated.
She did not actually blame her. Beauty had never harmed her, after all. She had probably been taken away by Fusheng Duan together with Jierge.
“I don’t know where she is either…”
The two returned arm in arm, only letting go when they reached the door. They still had to maintain appearances. They could not suddenly become this close the moment they met.
The lightning incident had been resolved unexpectedly quickly, something Weiqing Song had never anticipated. He wondered when Fusheng would finish his business.
Once everything was done, they had to hurry back to the palace.
Before leaving, Weiqing had asked about his imperial father’s health as usual. The imperial physician had hinted that it would happen this year. His father would likely not survive the winter.
Looking at the two girls’ identically red and swollen eyes, Weiqing thought, *Are you two afraid people won’t notice that something happened?*
“Imperial Brother, are you just sitting around doing nothing?”
Seeing his idle appearance, Shengsheng could not help asking.
Weiqing set down the room’s only dusty little jar and thought, *Why does this thing look so familiar?*
“Mm. I finished the storybooks I brought.”
Shengsheng looked at him reproachfully. “How can you read storybooks all day? People should read more proper books.”
Weiqing crossed one leg over the other. “Does Sheng’er have any recommendations?”
Accepting the banana Zhiyu handed her, Shengsheng thought for a moment. “Mr. Lu Xun’s *From Baicaowei to Three Squirrels*?”
She did not enjoy reading much. As far as she remembered, that seemed to be the only book she had ever read.
Weiqing: “…” He did not know who Lu Xun was, but he could guess with his toes that this title had definitely been tampered with!
Shengsheng deliberately refrained from asking where Fusheng had gone. The two of them remained in Xiyuan Duanmu’s house and waited.
Shengsheng had originally wanted to explore outside, but Zhiyu stopped her with an indescribably complicated expression.
She said it was best not to interact with the villagers. Shengsheng did not know why she was so wary, but Xiaoyu would never harm her, so she abandoned the idea.
Mealtime arrived.
Shengsheng was the only person present who knew how to cook, but her current identity made it inappropriate. Weiqing adhered to the principle that a gentleman should keep his distance from the kitchen. In the end, Xiyuan had to prepare the meal.
Eating the charred cabbage, Shengsheng sent Zhiyu a look across the table.
She finally understood why Zhiyu had lost so much weight. So that was the reason.
Zhiyu herself said her tongue had long since gone numb. She was used to it.
After the four resigned themselves to finishing the tasteless meal, Fusheng still had not returned.
Only after they had played three rounds of mahjong did they faintly hear a knock at the door.
Weiqing opened it. Shengsheng quietly pricked up her ears and heard him complain, “Why are you only back now?” Then he suddenly fell silent, followed by an exclamation.
Shengsheng’s curiosity was instantly aroused.
She walked to the door with Zhiyu.
The man in red looked no different from when he had left, except…
His complexion now looked even worse than it had while performing the social shake.
When she saw the little boy standing beside him, not even reaching his thigh, Shengsheng felt as though lightning had struck her.
The boy’s clothes were obviously too large and hung loosely from his body. They were filthy and ragged. Yet he had a round dumpling face, glossy black eyes like grapes, rosy lips, and pearly teeth.
He was certainly adorable, but that did nothing to change how closely he resembled Siran Ming!
Weiqing walked inside. The brother and sister exchanged a look, and Weiqing voiced exactly what she was thinking.
“Eighteen Babies in One Birth: The God of War’s Beloved Consort Runs Away Pregnant.”