Chapter 599: Invitation from the Palace

Chapter 599: Invitation from the Palace

The skies cleared, and news spread rapidly through the Holy City.

Soon, the entire city was buzzing with Helian Lin's words at Lord Yuwen's residence, overshadowing Lady Lu's efforts to pair Lord Yuwen with Miss Shen.

The name Shen Nan, practically unknown before, was anything but ordinary. It kept shocking people, inevitably thrusting her into the spotlight once more.

The palace hosted a plum blossom banquet, and Consort Hui's invitation found its way to the Bai family, landing in Su Youyue's hands.

"Miss..." Jin'er was a bit worried, "Why would someone from the Dongrong palace suddenly invite you?"

Su Youyue casually tossed aside the invitation, which many would consider an honor, warming the ointment in her palm before applying it to Jin'er.

"Dongrong has no queen. Above the consort stands the emperor. This invitation didn't come from Consort Hui but from the Dongrong emperor himself."

Jin'er's eyes grew even wider: "The Dongrong emperor! What does he want with you, Miss?"

Su Youyue didn't answer right away, letting Jin'er's impatience subside before saying slowly, "People in the Holy City love to gossip about me. The emperor is human too; he's curious."

In truth, the main reason was Xie Yuan's words that day.

But even if Xie Yuan hadn't spoken, given her past boldness and Prince Bei's favor, meeting the Dongrong emperor was inevitable.

"What should we do then..." Jin'er was deeply worried, "What if he asks something out of line or gets suspicious..."

Jin'er was ultimately anxious, fearing they might slip up.

Su Youyue finished applying the ointment and tapped Jin'er's forehead: "Alright, the Dongrong emperor isn't a monster. He won't devour your Miss. Just wait here for me to come back. I'll leave Zhe Jing to keep you company."

"Miss." Jin'er pouted. Ever since she and Zhe Jing confessed their feelings, Miss had been teasing her, making her blush.

Su Youyue teased her for a bit before taking the invitation and leaving the room. Seeing the shadow guard outside, her smile faded.

With a single glance, the message was clear.

Su Youyue followed the shadow guard to another room, where Zhe Ying was already waiting.

On the table lay several herbs—some dried and powdered, others still in pots.

"My lady, we've found Heartbreak Grass, Liyuan Flower, Beicang Wood, and Tiangu Seed! The first three are rare Dongrong herbs, though still obtainable. Only the Tiangu Seed isn't mentioned in Dongrong medical texts. I tracked the divine envoys sent by the Holy Church to find Tiangu and secured this herb. However, Tiangu is one of the Holy Church's hidden bases, heavily guarded and hard to penetrate."

Hearing that all four herbs had been found, Su Youyue felt a weight lift. But hearing the latter part, she grew suspicious: "A Holy Church base?"

The shadow guard nodded: "This is a secret Holy Church base. I saw the Pope and several priests coming and going myself."

Su Youyue's heart raced as she realized Tiangu likely concealed a major Holy Church secret. Could the holy medicine's antidote be there too?

Zhe Ying clearly understood, looking at her: "My lady, should I send more people to investigate?"

Su Youyue nodded: "If we can find the antidote to the holy medicine, we can bring Xie Yuan back to Dasheng... That would be best. However, you must prioritize your safety. This mission, your lives come first."

She knew these shadow guards would risk their lives for Xie Yuan, hence the extra caution.

It wasn't yet a desperate situation, and she didn't want anyone to sacrifice in vain.

Zhe Ying looked at her, vaguely recalling the time he left the Xie Mansion to assassinate Prince Rong, and his master's instructions.

His eyes showed a flicker of emotion before he composed himself: "Yes, my lady!"

Looking at the four medicinal herbs on the table, Su Youyue's gaze gradually turned icy.

What a deadly Sacred Medicine, a Sacred Religion that devours without spitting out bones, and a cold-blooded Dongrong royal family!

Even if Xie Yuan's poison is cured, she will never let go of anyone who has harmed him!

The sky continued to clear up.

The splendid winter scenery was complemented by the faint fragrance of plum blossoms.

The Dongrong palace inherited the consistent extravagant style of Dongrong, with magnificent palaces and layers of glazed tiles shining like a heavenly palace.

Outside the Qian'an Gate, a pair of golden lion statues stood on both sides, the male lion majestic and fierce, the female lion exquisite and unparalleled, each carrying the emblem of the Dongrong Sacred Religion on their backs, also carved from gold. Entering the Qian'an Gate and passing through three consecutive halls, one could vaguely see the legendary more than 1,400 carved panels and over 1,100 drainage dragon heads on the white marble hall base, just a glimpse of the grandeur.

The image of the Sacred Religion permeated the Dongrong palace, with carved beams and painted rafters depicting the ten-armed Sacred and the legends of the Sacred Religion. Su Youyue looked around and found it to be a uniquely exotic style, different from Dasheng.

Even the plum garden was adorned with luxurious decorations: light green jade slabs paved the way, plum blossom lanterns lined the sides, and silver tassels dangled from the red plum trees.

Shortly after Su Youyue followed the palace servant into the plum garden, a young eunuch approached: "May I ask if you are Miss Shen from the Bai family?"

Currently, there are two Miss Shens in the Holy City who are well-known, but no one has ever addressed Su Youyue as such before. It seems they were afraid of mistaking her identity. Su Youyue found it amusing and nodded: "Yes, I am."

The young eunuch immediately smiled: "I am Xiao Shunzi, the godson of Eunuch Ming. Miss Shen, Eunuch Ming is serving the Emperor today and cannot attend to you. If you need anything, you can come to me."

Su Youyue naturally thanked him and, observing Xiao Shunzi's demeanor, grasped Eunuch Ming's stance.

Eunuch Ming was a eunuch serving the Dongrong Emperor, typically holding a relatively high status. Even though they had met once before and he had promised to take care of her, there had been no contact between them since then, indicating that he did not take this powerless young girl seriously.

Now, his sudden interest in taking care of her must be due to some benefit consideration.

It seems the Dongrong Emperor's invitation was not malicious; otherwise, Eunuch Ming would not have been so enthusiastic.

Xiao Shunzi took over from the palace servant and led Su Youyue to her seat, then smiled ingratiatingly: "Miss Shen, if you need anything, feel free to call me. I'll always be here at your seat."

After Su Youyue responded, he retreated.

The once serene plum garden was now bustling with noise. Since the banquet was still some time away, not many people had taken their seats.

Su Youyue's seat was not at the back but rather quite forward. After looking around for a while, she was about to sit down when a voice called out from behind.

"Shen Nan, who gave you permission to sit here?"