Chapter 125: The Story of a Beauty

Chapter 125: The Story of a Beauty

The imperial palace was heavily guarded, but these assassins managed to slip past the Changyang Gate undetected. Under the cover of midnight, they lunged their swords at Zhao Changnian, who was engrossed in documents.

The palace had been bustling with activity these past two days, and her martial arts-trained attendants were on rotating duty. Seeing how exhausted they were, Changnian allowed them to rest this evening, leaving only ordinary guards outside her door. Little did she expect an ambush; she turned her head just in time as a silver needle barely missed her face, embedding itself in the bookshelf nearby, followed by a sweeping sword strike.

Springing to her feet, Changnian frowned at the five black-clad intruders that had suddenly appeared. She whispered, "You want to kill me?"

Otherwise, why would they dress up like this in the middle of the night? The leader seemed disdainful and swung his sword at her.

Logically, at this point, Zhao Changnian should have fought all five assassins with elegance and flair, disposed of them, and then calmly instructed someone to clean up the bodies—her legend would live on forever.

However, after assessing their fighting styles, Changnian made a wise decision.

"Help! Assassins!"

Her sudden, piercing scream startled the attackers so much that their sword hands trembled. The doors to the chamber burst open, and the guards outside rushed in.

The assassins' faces paled, but they reacted swiftly. Ignoring everything else, one of them lunged his sword directly at Changnian's face. She tried to dodge but unfortunately got her arm injured in the process.

The guards rushed to protect the emperor, forcing the assassin out of the study. Chang Nian examined the wound and sensed something amiss. She grabbed the warm tea on the side table and used it to rinse the blade.

Fortunately, her quick thinking paid off. The tea washed away much of the poison. When the imperial physician examined the wound, he sighed in relief, stating that the amount of venom was not excessive. At worst, it would cause a high fever, but with proper care, there would be no threat to the emperor's life.

With a frown, Chang Nian held her arm and inquired, "What kind of poison is this?"

The imperial physician replied, "It's a mixture of cuckoo flower and snake venom."

Cuckoo flower again? Chang Nian felt a sense of familiarity with the substance, as if she had encountered it before, but couldn't quite recall the details.

The next day, she instructed someone to investigate the palace's medicinal records. After a thorough search, the imperial pharmacy staff reported, "Cuckoo flower, also known as Large-flowered Cuckoo, has both its leaves and seeds used medicinally. However, due to its toxicity, it is not commonly traded. To make poison, several pounds of flower and leaves are needed, which the palace would not typically possess."

Large-flowered Cuckoo? Large-flowered Cuckoo!

A memory stirred within Chang Nian, and she asked with a trembling voice, "Has this substance ever been associated with Chungmu Palace?"

Flipping through the records, the imperial pharmacy attendant answered, "Yes, since last year, Prince Wu has been experiencing severe coughing fits. He requested cuckoo flower seeds for treatment."

"..."

Beside the dilapidated garden, Prince Wu, who had been mistaken for a courtier digging in the soil, howled towards the sky. Back then, he was indeed planting the Large Flowered Fleeceflower!

But... how could it be? Father Emperor had always emphasized the importance of brotherly affection, as he owed his ascension to the throne to the support of several princes. He had always treated Prince Wu kindly. How could Prince Wu possibly turn against him?

There must be other places with Fleeceflowers, there just had to be.

Chang Nian turned her head, asking Feng Jingxian to investigate. Feng Jingxian visited every pharmacy in the capital and returned with the answer: "Large Flowered Fleeceflower is scarce in the Great Zhou, mostly reserved for the imperial pharmacy. Elsewhere, it's commonly replaced by Xun Grass."

Chang Nian fell silent.

While Ye Jiangbai was lost in thought at home, Xu Zhi reported softly in his ear, "The Ye family has been arrested. Seventh Prince personally went to their residence to summon Ye Family's patriarch for an imperial interrogation."

"Mm," he replied indifferently, seemingly not at all concerned.

Xu Zhi sighed. "They're still your kin. Aren't you going to help?"

"There's no need for me to intervene," Ye Jiangbai said calmly, without a ripple of emotion. "With my father's name, many would rush to save them."

He was right. Ever since the Duke's residence established a council hall to handle official affairs, the court officials had been vying to curry favor with Ye Jiangbai. Any dish he glanced at during banquets would overflow the kitchen the next day. People he merely stared at on the road would end up at his mansion.

However, His Highness still seemed somewhat unhappy, or rather... rather alone.

Xu Zhi couldn't comprehend the source of this sense of solitude, but standing by his side, he always felt a distance between them.

There was a moment of silence in the room before Ye Jiangbai suddenly turned to ask, "Has Elder Ye entered the palace?"

"Yes."

Ye Jiangbai rose and looked down, saying, "Then let's go see him as well."

Huh? Didn't he just say he didn't care? Xu Zhi followed him out, his face a mask of confusion.

Chang Nian had a slight fever and was bundled up in thick clothing, sitting in a chair with her pale little face. However, this did nothing to dull the sharpness in her gaze as she looked at Elder Ye kneeling before her. She wished she could pierce a hole through his face.

"Seventh Prince," Elder Ye spoke to her rather kindly, "Why have you summoned this old man? Do you have any orders for me?"

"There are too many things I don't understand, and I wish to seek answers from you," Chang Nian croaked. "There are no outsiders here, so please speak honestly."

Elder Ye smiled warmly and replied, "Your Highness, please proceed."

Clenching her fists, Chang Nian asked, "Why did you poison my father?"

Elder Ye lifted his head and chuckled softly. "Your Highness only remembers your father but not your own birth mother?"

"Birth mother?" Chang Nian was taken aback, furrowing her brows. "What do you mean by that?"

"It's about to rain outside. Why not have a cup of tea and listen to an old man's story?" Elder Ye appeared gentle, his gray hair giving him a kindly air.

If he weren't the one who had killed her father, Chang Nian would have offered him a seat and a cup of tea. But now, she poured a cup and placed it on the ground in front of him. "Go on."

Elder Ye understood her attitude and accepted it. Holding the hot tea, he lifted the lid and breathed in the steam.

"More than twenty years ago, there was a renowned beauty in the capital. Her heart was set on a hero of the time, and she was willing to forsake all for him. Unfortunately, the hero had another love, and their union never came to pass. Later, the beauty was summoned to the palace as a concubine candidate. The beauty had a childhood friend with whom she shared a deep bond. To prevent her from being chosen, he bribed the palace servants—believing that this would keep her away from court life."

"Little did he know that fate had other plans. The beauty was eventually selected, becoming a concubine and winning the emperor's favor."

"One might say that such a life wouldn't be bad, but tragically, the hero's beloved also entered the palace as an imperial consort. In order to protect his love, the hero sought the help of the beauty, asking her to aid his sweetheart."

"The beauty was deeply in love with the hero and followed his request. However, the sweetheart proved to be insatiable and ambitious, dragging the beauty into a sea of troubles, making her the target of jealousy."

The beauty's heart turned cold, no longer admiring heroes, but devoting herself entirely to the king. The king, in return, treated her with utmost favor and affection, even entertaining the thought of elevating her to the position of empress.

"Who could have known that during that spring, the beauty and her beloved found themselves with child at the same time?"

A hint of crimson tinged the old Master Ye's eyes as he gazed at Chang Nian.

Chang Nian was slightly taken aback, sensing resentment and pity intertwined in that stare.