Chapter 636: Where Does the Secret Passage Lead?
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“My father grew up here since he was a child, and no one is more familiar with this place than him. Everyone thought that the Emperor didn’t love Xianming Empress Dowager, that she was just lucky to have so many children. But in this harem, without the Emperor’s protection and care, who could be so smooth? This secret passage was secretly built by the Emperor when he was still in power, known to very few, even Longsheng Great Eldest Princess didn’t know.”
Originally, only the Emperor Wen should have known, but unfortunately, he didn’t treat the old palace attendants around Xianming Empress Dowager well. Just after the Dowager passed away, he sent them all to guard the tomb. Instead, my father appreciated the old affection and brought several palace attendants who had been good to him to the northern territory to live out their days, so he happened to learn about this secret. So, do you know where this secret passage actually leads to?”
Yuwen Cong dragged Mingzhu forward and explained all the way. Although it was dark in the secret passage and Mingzhu couldn’t see his expression clearly, she knew he must be smiling smugly at the moment. What appreciation for old affection? It was clearly ambition for many years. Who knows, when Emperor Wen inherited the throne, this guy might have been resentful. Why wasn’t he the emperor? He was clearly the smartest and most powerful.
Behind them came the sound of clothes rubbing against the ground. Yuwen Cong asked, and received an affirmative response. It was his attendant, the one with ventriloquism skills, bringing Su Mei.
So Yuwen Cong felt even more secure, “I’ve planned for a long time, and it’s really hard to finally get you in my hands. It’s not easy!”
He had planned for a long time, step by step to achieve this wish. The first step was to help Yuwen Bai kill Yuwen Fu, then frame Yuwen Chu, so Yuwen Chu didn’t have the energy to take care of this side. The second step was to assist Empress Dowager Min in capturing Funing as a hostage, causing chaos between the Zhaoyang Palace and the Changxin Palace, leading to turmoil in the palace. The third step was to wait for Mingzhu and Imperial Consort Min to return to the Guangming Hall, and when Mingzhu sent out most of the people from the Ying Mansion to save Funing, send Jiang Shanshan to lead away the people around Mingzhu. The fourth step was to send someone to act against Imperial Consort Min, forcing Mingzhu not to dare to stay outside and come here to Huayang Wangfei.
These steps were intertwined. If one part didn’t connect, there might be deviations, resulting in failure. But he did it all! If he could bring Mingzhu back, it would be a great achievement. Even if his father was not satisfied with him, he had to consider the feelings of others and not treat him too harshly. As long as he had this breathing room, he was confident he could make a comeback.
The secret passage was very long, and Mingzhu thought a lot, even preparing for the worst. She thought she would never be a heroine, crying and fussing over a small touch or a small incident. She must find a way to survive so as not to disappoint her parents who had raised her so hard, not to disappoint her elder brother and sister-in-law who had been so good to her, and to see her son grow up safely. As for what Yuwen Chu would think, she really didn’t care anymore.
Yuwen Cong finally stopped, helped Mingzhu up and sat her against the wall, and chuckled softly, “I heard from those old palace attendants that the Emperor often passed through this secret passage to meet with Xianming Empress Dowager late at night. That’s how my father came here. They say the royal family is heartless, but I find it quite interesting.”
Mingzhu secretly snorted. Since when did the Emperor need to use a secret passage to summon a consort? It’s not like there was some hardship, obviously there was another reason. But since Yuwen Cong was daydreaming like this, she wouldn’t wake him up and let him live in his fantasy.
Mingzhu followed Yuwen Cong in the secret passage for a long time, not knowing the time, but she knew her stomach was very hungry, and it should be mealtime.
Su Mei, who had been silent all along, suddenly let out a groan. She wasn’t far from Mingzhu. Mingzhu immediately kicked her, indicating that she was right beside her. But before Su Mei could react, she was knocked unconscious again by Yuwen Cong’s attendant.
Yuwen Cong laughed, “Black Seventeen, your hand is really heavy. Even if this girl is awake, she can’t make any mistakes. You just need to gag her mouth. Why be so rough?”
Black Seventeen replied succinctly, “Why bother? It doesn’t matter even if she dies.”
Mingzhu secretly remembered the name Black Seventeen, but then heard Yuwen Cong laughing beside her, “You shouldn’t make enemies. Be careful that Ying Wangfei resents you and looks for a chance to deal with you in the future.”
Mingzhu really didn’t like Yuwen Cong. He was extremely clever and ruthless, but too fond of showing off his cleverness. Such people often didn’t end well.
“Okay, that’s enough.” Yuwen Cong suddenly stood up, lit a torch, and felt the wall. The wall that had been tightly sealed before revealed a gap that could only accommodate one person. Black Seventeen walked out without hesitation. After a while, he walked to the outside of the gap and whispered, “Everything’s normal.”
First, Yuwen Cong pushed Su Mei out, then he pushed Mingzhu out, holding Mingzhu’s arm tightly with one hand and followed out.
Outside was a small room, narrow and long, with no light except for a narrow bed with bedding. Yuwen Cong’s sitting stirred up a fine dust, obviously it was very old and hadn’t been cleaned or changed for a long time. He didn’t care, pulling Mingzhu over to sit down and wait quietly.
After a while, Empress Dowager Min outside whispered, “How does His Majesty feel?”
Then came the impatient voice of Yuwen Bai: “What can we do? Anyway, as long as we don’t die.”
Empress Dowager Min was a little unhappy: “Your Majesty is the ruler, how can you lightly talk about life and death?”
Yuwen Bai snorted coldly: “At this moment, I don’t even know how many people are hoping for my death. Being a ruler like this is meaningless. I just woke up and heard that Funing was rescued?”
Empress Dowager Min calmly replied, “No, she is too important. How could I let her be taken away so easily? I sent her out of the palace in advance. Fu Mingzhu sent someone to rescue County Princess Anle instead.”
Mingzhu was so angry that her liver hurt. So, was her effort at noon all in vain?
Yuwen Bai laughed, “I heard that Fu Mingzhu is missing. How about that old hag, the Great Empress Dowager? Has she been angered to death?”
Empress Dowager Min cheerfully replied, “Of course! She fainted immediately, and she hasn’t woken up yet. Yuwen Chu was blocked by Old Nine on the way, and Fu Cong has already entered the palace. In a while, he will probably be hacked to pieces by the executioners.”
Yuwen Bai laughed contentedly for a while, then asked puzzledly, “Where did Fu Mingzhu go exactly?”
Empress Dowager Min said, “I’ve sent someone to investigate. Once we find her, we’ll chop her into pieces too! It’s a pity that the little brat from her family was taken away by Fu Mingzheng, and we can’t send him to accompany her to the afterlife!”
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