Chapter 217: White-Hot
Overnight, the red silk palace lanterns prepared for the Mid-Autumn Festival in the palace were all removed, and the newly hung red silk ribbons also disappeared.
In their place was a stretch of white mourning cloth.
Imperial Consort Xiao had suddenly passed away. The Son of Heaven was grief-stricken, immediately removed his imperial yellow dragon robe, and decreed that all six palaces should wear mourning clothes and lament. He further ordered a five-day suspension of court sessions…
This sudden turn of events, like a tidal wave crashing against the shore, instantly stirred up a huge storm in the Capital City.
The princes and nobles changed color upon hearing the news, fearing they would be entangled in the vortex of assassination by Xizi Death Warriors, and were filled with dread.
In the marketplaces and residential areas, rumors flew everywhere.
The common people gathered in tea houses and taverns, their faces full of fear and curiosity as they inquired and discussed this bloody and bizarre palace tragedy…
The storytellers in the major tea houses were also invigorated, unfolding new storybooks.
With a clap of the wooden clapper, the melon seed shells of the tea guests scattered all over the floor.
“Esteemed audience! The third act of the Golden Hall Bloody Case Chain Scheme is truly a storm of blood and gore—”
“The murderer was originally a favored concubine of the Prince’s Mansion, with the face of a Guanyin and the heart of a tiger and wolf, her belly filled with the intestines of Asuras…”
“Just look at the Snakeberry Juice, secretly made by Xizi, hidden in her sleeve. As Imperial Consort was dozing in the Imperial Garden, she poured it into the green jade lotus leaf cup—”
The storyteller’s spittle flew as he transformed Xue Sui and Imperial Consort Xiao into figures from a previous dynasty, narrating with such vividness as if he had witnessed it himself.
Waves of applause echoed throughout the hall.
A man selling cooked wheat cakes elbowed his neighbor.
“How could the Minister’s Mansion raise such a vicious woman?”
“Hush, didn’t you hear what the story said?” The old scholar stroked his beard, shaking his head and mumbling, “Consort Xue was abducted by kidnappers when she was eight years old. They say she grew up in the Old Mausoleum Swamp. What kind of pure-hearted young lady could grow up in a place where jackals roam?”
“No wonder!” The cooked wheat cake seller smacked his lips. “My cousin’s brother-in-law works in the scout camp. He said the water in the Old Mausoleum Swamp is black, with two hundred thousand skeletons floating in it!”
“Alas, the death of Second Young Lady Lu was truly unjust. Such a beautiful young woman, on the verge of entering the Eastern Palace, who would have thought she would become the murderer’s scapegoat…”
The crowd chimed in, adding fuel to the fire, spreading the tale with incredible embellishments.
And those two Princess Protector of the Nation and Princess Tuya, who had Xizi bloodlines, did not escape the public’s gossip.
“What kind of monsters are nurtured by the snow water of the Sacred Mountain? Who knows what sorcery they used to bewitch the Imperial Heart!”
“Xizi spies are skilled in using the beauty trap…”
“That Princess Protector of the Nation also had an affair with General Lu… The two have long been in an improper relationship. General Lu abandoned his wife and children just to be with Princess Protector of the Nation.”
“I heard that in the brothels, the top courtesans have already composed new lyrics and are singing them with their pipas…”
“Indeed! The new tune released at Tianxiang Pavilion yesterday was absolutely stunning—”
A peddler lowered his voice, imitating the courtesan’s singing style, humming and hawing.
“Little widow, take off your hemp clothes, in the Golden Hall copying scriptures, you meet your old lover, black hair entwined with a silver spear, fragrant jade in the general’s tent—”
A few ruffians in the audience heard the singing and burst into laughter.
–
West Courtyard of the Xue Mansion.
When Madam Qian heard the servant’s report, she was so angry she put her hands on her hips and cursed, “These gossips, they don’t even fear making things worse, spreading baseless rumors as if they were true. Hmph, these scoundrels must have received a lot of silver from Princess Ping Le’s private treasury to feed their tongues…”
She took out a box of banknotes and slammed it heavily onto the desk, her eyes like copper bells fixed on Xue Qingxiu.
“You go and find some singers, and have them sing that Vicious Princess Chain Scheme, about how Princess Ping Le killed her own mother, forced Second Young Lady Lu to her death, and framed our Sixth Young Lady. Sing it, make it even more exciting than their storybooks! Our family is not short of money; if it’s not enough, I’ll go back to my maternal home to borrow…”
“My dear!” Xue Qingxiu quickly grabbed her, his expression anxious and helpless.
“Be careful, walls have ears!”
“Third Master is right, Third Madam, please don’t cause great trouble out of momentary anger!” Jinshu also advised her in a low voice, “The most important thing now is to have Master find a way to look after our Young Lady, so she doesn’t suffer in prison…”
Madam Qian’s eyes turned red upon hearing this.
“First Master is being evasive, using his official authority to pressure people—he says the evidence in this case is conclusive. As the Minister of Justice, he needs to avoid suspicion and can hardly speak up!”
Jinshu frowned: “Then why not have Old Madam say something…”
Madam Qian glanced at the dejected Xue Qingxiu and sneered twice.
“Since the news came yesterday, Old Madam has claimed to be ill and hasn’t come out, not even going to the Buddhist hall. If you ask me, Sixth Sister was devoted to Old Madam before. Now that disaster is upon us, everyone is hiding. What kind of noble families, they are not as good as our merchant families, which value loyalty and righteousness…”
After speaking, she wiped away a tear.
“Poor our Sixth Young Lady, abandoned by her closest relatives since childhood, enduring humiliation for ten years. She finally gained some respect, only to suffer such a vile incident, becoming a scapegoat…”
“Why is her life so bitter… She has suffered such injustice, and the Xue family has no one willing to speak a word of justice! Do these noble families value their reputation more than the lives of their flesh and blood? If Sixth Girl has any misfortune, won’t they fear retribution!”
Xue Qingxiu listened to her words, which were both sharp and piercing to the heart. He clutched the crumpled calling card in his sleeve, the palm of his hand hurting so much that he almost broke out in a cold sweat.
After the incident, he went to beg General Yi Wu all night. However, the gatekeeper returned the banknotes untouched, along with a message.
“Master Xue, it’s not that the General is unwilling to help, but the case has been decided from above. Prince Duan himself presented the evidence. Even if the General wanted to help, he couldn’t intervene.”
Xue Qingxiu understood the situation.
Not only could General Yi Wu not intercede, but others were also helpless.
With his last shred of hope, he asked someone to approach the Eastern Palace.
Unfortunately, he couldn’t even get to see the Crown Prince…
He pushed back the banknotes Madam Qian had given him.
“My dear, some things cannot be resolved with money.”
Madam Qian gritted her teeth in anger, tears welling up in her eyes, “What kind of noble families, imperial relatives! Now Sixth Sister is in the Heavenly Prison, she probably can’t even get a bowl of hot soup. And her father, brothers, uncles, and other family members, all holding official positions, I don’t believe they can’t even get a single note through.”
Xue Qingxiu gritted his teeth and glanced at Jinshu.
“Perhaps only one person can help right now—”
Madam Qian asked, “Who?”
Xue Qingxiu glanced at Jinshu, “Sixth Sister herself.”
–
In Rui Jin Hall, where Imperial Consort Xiao’s coffin was laid, layers of snow-white mourning banners hung down, immersing the palace with its carved beams and painted pillars in a cold and desolate gray.
Li Huan knelt before the coffin, adding incense. His face was paler than the white silk, and a bone-chilling cold emanated from his eyes.
“Imperial Brother…”
Princess Ping Le entered, stepping over the scattered paper money. The white gauze curtains around the mourning bed rustled in the wind.
She had been confined for half a month, never expecting that the price of her release would be the life of her birth mother.
The candlelight reflected in her red-rimmed eyes, but tears did not fall. Instead, her heart churned with hatred.
“Mother Consort hated loneliness the most. Lying in this cold side hall, without anyone to speak intimate words with, will she be lonely? Will she be afraid?”
“You still have the nerve to ask?” Li Huan stood up from the cushion, his mourning clothes almost blending into the night.
“If it weren’t for your willful behavior, how would Mother Consort have suffered such a calamity?”
Ping Le suddenly looked up. The ever-burning lamp on the offering table split her eyebrows into light and dark halves, her expression sinister.
“Your Imperial Brother’s words are utterly ridiculous! Mother Consort was poisoned, what does it have to do with me? Isn’t Xue Liu already in prison? You yourself found the evidence, and now you’re trying to blame me…”
“Slap!”
A heavy slap landed.
Li Huan shattered Ping Le’s unfinished words between her teeth.
She stumbled two steps and leaned on the offering table, looking back at Li Huan, trembling with anger.
“You hit me, how cruel…”
“This slap is for Mother Consort.” Li Huan’s voice trembled slightly. “A dignified princess, trampling on human lives, utterly devoid of conscience. Hitting you is still considered lenient.”
“Imperial Brother, do not slander me…”
“You don’t think I know what you did, do you?” His pupils were dark, his voice as cold as the autumn wind outside the hall.
“Ping Le, Second Young Lady Lu called out your name before she died!”
Ping Le’s stunned face, tears still on her cheeks, a flicker of panic flashed in her eyes.
Then she regained her composure and let out a cold laugh.
“I didn’t expect Imperial Brother to defend that slut Xue Liu. Of course, a day as husband and wife creates a hundred days of affection. She climbed from a concubine to a consort in such a short time, it must be due to Imperial Brother’s favoritism and promotion…”
After speaking, she glanced at Li Huan with a half-smile, her expression full of mockery.
“Since Imperial Brother is reluctant to part with her, why did you imprison her? Why not simply bring her back to Prince Duan’s Mansion and keep her as your mistress…”
Li Huan remained silent, looking at her coldly.
Ping Le’s words were not finished, and she gritted her teeth in anger again.
“You desire Xue Liu’s beauty, indulged her in secretly poisoning and killing Mother Consort. And now you pretend to be a filial son?”
Li Huan delivered another slap.
“Still unrepentant! Do you think your schemes can deceive heaven and earth? If I hadn’t cleaned up after you, the one wearing shackles and imprisoned right now would be you!”
Ping Le was stunned.
Before entering the palace, she had already learned that Lu Xi had died violently on the way to the Ministry of Justice Prison. The symptoms of bleeding from all seven orifices were exactly the same as her mother consort’s, which was Snakeberry Poison…
She didn’t know what means Xue Liu had used to swap the poison and kill her mother consort.
But she knew that Lu Xi’s death was perfectly timed. It was Li Huan who saved her life. Otherwise, if Lu Xi had been interrogated and revealed that she had ordered the poisoning, even her Imperial Father might not have protected her.
“Brother… I know I was wrong.”
She walked towards Li Huan, grabbed his sleeve, and large tears fell onto his mourning clothes.
“Mother Consort has passed away. Father Emperor has so many children, I only have you, only you…”
Li Huan looked down and pulled her arm away.
“Ping Le, when will you understand? In this deep palace, once you make a move, you can never be clean.”
The firelight flickered in his eyes, as if trying to burn away the exhaustion in his heart.
Ping Le looked at his dazed and pained expression and said softly, “Imperial Brother’s heart aches, is it for Mother Consort, or for Xue Liu?”
“Silence.” Li Huan looked up, veins bulging on his forehead.
Ping Le’s body trembled slightly, and she suddenly leaned in and whispered, “Imperial Brother has fallen for her, haven’t you? That slut, has she captured your heart?”
Li Huan looked at the white mourning curtains on the coffin, his voice as cold as ice, “Mind your own business.”
Ping Le suddenly became agitated and stepped forward, lifting a corner of the brocade quilt to reveal Consort Xiao’s pale face.
“Imperial Brother, look carefully! Open your eyes and look! If you still have a shred of filial piety, you should repay blood with blood, and not let that vicious woman walk out of the prison alive!”
