Ruge smiled, "This question... I think you know the answer better than me. These two are your closest people."
Ji Lingxue was speechless for a moment. She was so concerned that she was confused. Even for the people she was most familiar with, she no longer had the confidence to trust them.
Ruge poured a cup of hot tea and pushed it in front of Ji Lingxue and said with a smile, "I will take care of this matter for you. Since you don't want to have any contact with him anymore, don't expose yourself easily." Otherwise she would get deeper and deeper into trouble.
Ji Lingxue picked up the tea, took a sip, and sighed softly.
In the palace's prison, Xiao Yichen was sitting on a chair in a white robe, staring at Mo Xiang, who was placed on a wooden frame with a calm expression, as if he was a dead pig that was not afraid of boiling water.
When the new emperor ascended the throne, he was the only one who wore a white robe instead of a dragon robe. Although the ministers said that they hoped Xiao Yichen would wear the dragon robe to look like an emperor, Xiao Yichen sneered and retorted, "I wear a white robe to commemorate my deceased wife and to remember my father and mother. What's wrong with that?"
The ministers were speechless after the refutation and didn't know what to say for a while. You are the emperor, just do as you are happy.
Xiao Yichen stared into Mo Xiang's eyes and asked word by word: "I'll ask you again, where is your master?" Mo Xiang's master was naturally Ji Lingxue.
Today, when he opened Ji Lingxue's coffin and saw that there was only a cenotaph inside, he began to doubt Ji Lingxue's death. She suddenly committed suicide by taking poison and was buried in a hurry. He didn't even see her for the last time, which made him very angry.
"The master is where she should be." Mo Xiang answered truthfully. This sentence was very well-written. In fact, he did not deceive the emperor. There was something hidden in his words, allowing Xiao Yichen to point out the mistake.
The corners of Xiao Yichen's mouth gradually curled up into an arc that seemed like a smile, he spread out his hands, and someone brought him a cup of tea.
Blowing the tea leaves slowly, Xiao Yichen's words were colder than the winter wind, "It doesn't matter. The night is long. You can slowly recall to me where your master is."
If the elite soldiers had not noticed something was wrong when passing by Ruge's carriage, they would not have discovered Mo Xiang in disguise. Mo Xiang was guilty to begin with, and was quickly caught by the experienced elite soldiers. A basin of cold water was poured on him, and all the traces of color on Mo Xiang's face disappeared. This made the elite soldiers very excited. Mo Xiang had been found, and they could finally report to the emperor.
Mo Xiang said: "I have already said it."
The eunuch standing next to Xiao Yichen smiled grimly, "Your Majesty, some people's mouths are very hard, and you have to use some torture instruments to pry open their tightly sealed mouths."
Xiao Yichen raised his finger, signaling the eunuchs around him to go ahead and do it.
Mo Xiang's mouth trembled. The torture instruments brought by the jailer included whips, pliers, daggers, and stick clamps. Some of them still had bright red blood stains on them, which showed how miserable it would be for the person who was lucky enough to use them.
Mo Xiang's heart trembled a little, but she didn't dare to expose Ji Lingxue. Her master's happiness was more important than her life.
The eunuch picked up the whip and walked in front of Mo Xiang, "Miss Mo Xiang, you'd better confess the truth, so as to avoid physical pain. You also know that the emperor cares about the queen the most."
Mo Xiang said with a determined look: "I told you, the master is where she is."
The eunuch shook his head in disappointment and said, "Since you are so stubborn, don't blame me for being rude." As he said that, he swung the whip in his hand towards Mo Xiang. With a ripping sound, his clothes were torn by the whip, leaving a long wound. Mo Xiang's pretty face turned pale with pain, and she couldn't help but gasp.
She had barely breathed halfway when the second and third whips were swung at her. Mo Xiang bit her lip but did not cry out in pain. The father-in-law who was torturing her admired her perseverance.
After whipping her ten times, the eunuch stopped and turned to look at Xiao Yichen. After all, she was the queen's personal maid. If the queen were still alive, she would probably blame the emperor for being so cruel and hurting her people.
Xiao Yichen stood up and said, "Let's stop here tonight." Then he turned and walked out. As soon as he left the prison, a guard came to report what happened over there.
Xiao Yichen felt a little disappointed. Could it be that he was wrong? The woman next to Ruge was really not Ji Lingxue
Xiao Yichen returned to the imperial study without any sleepiness. He stared at the portrait of Ji Lingxue on the wall in a daze. Memories replayed in his mind one by one. Suddenly, he felt a tightness in his chest and difficulty breathing.
What kind of personality does Ji Lingxue have? I remember that he ignored her for a whole year after marrying her. During that time, Ji Yuqing often bullied her, and the maids and servants in the mansion didn't like them. They were completely abandoned in the side yard to fend for themselves. No matter how hard those days were, she didn't commit suicide by taking poison until the night he married Ji Yuqing...
Xiao Yichen tightened his grip, as if he had grasped something important.
Later, he gradually began to pay attention to her and was attracted to her. She gradually came into his sight and finally penetrated into his life.
But when he proposed to consummate the marriage, Ji Lingxue always found reasons to refuse, or they would have an argument and finally parted unhappily. It was not that she was playing hard to get, she was just taking revenge on him. Now that the revenge was enough, she faked her death to get away and disappeared from his life. The same was true for An Ge. Her so-called dying to atone for her sins was just a decoy.
Ji Lingxue, is this your plan
The more Xiao Yichen thought about it, the more irritated he became. He pushed the door open and came to the prison again. Unlike the last time, he came alone this time, without the majesty of an emperor.
In the cell, Mo Xiang leaned against the cold wall, unable to fall asleep due to the pain. She looked up at the bluestone above her head and wondered what Ji Lingxue was doing at the moment. Did she know that she was caught? Would she come back to rescue her
Just as she was thinking, Mo Xiang glanced and looked at the white figure outside the iron fence in surprise. It was Xiao Yichen who had returned. He stood there silently, as quiet as a shadow, staring at her eyes, making her scalp tingle.
"Your Majesty..." Mo Xiang murmured.
Xiao Yichen was silent for a long time and then asked, "Ji Lingxue is still alive."
Mo Xiang was startled, a drop of cold sweat oozed from his forehead, his pupils shrank, and he held back the urge to ask, "How did you know?"
Xiao Yichen said: "You are nervous, it seems that I guessed right, Ji Lingxue is not dead, which can explain why there are only a few pieces of clothing in the tomb next to Guanyin Temple..."
Mo Xiang only felt her scalp tingling, and for the first time her breathing felt a little disordered. He was really just lying to her just now, but she didn't say anything, so how did he confirm her guess
Xiao Yichen asked: "Mo Xiang, is your master doing this because he is disappointed with me?"
Mo Xiang lowered her eyes and no longer looked at Xiao Yichen, fearing that her thoughts would be seen through her eyes. Besides, how could she know what her master was thinking
Xiao Yichen asked again: "I have one last question..." He deliberately dragged out the last word and did not continue the rest of the sentence. When waiting for Mo Xiang to raise her head, he continued, "Is An Ge not dead?"
Mo Xiang nodded. Xiao Yichen had already guessed it anyway, so it didn’t matter whether she said it or not.
Xiao Yichen nodded, "So that's what I mean", turned around and walked away, disappearing at the end of the cell in a flash of white shadow.
Mo Xiang murmured: Master, I didn't betray you, it was Chen... The emperor is too smart and has guessed everything.
"A-choo!" Ji Lingxue rubbed her nose. Who was missing her so much behind her back that made her sneeze
Ruge knocked on the table and said, "It's getting late, sister, you should go to bed. Tomorrow... someone will come to test you."
Ji Lingxue curled her lips, "You haven't told me yet, what are you going to do to Mo Xiang?" She was also guilty of deceiving the emperor, and now Xiao Yichen is still angry, so it's not easy for you to let her off easily.
Ruge smiled, Xiao Yichen would not do anything to Mo Xiang even if it was for your sake, at most she would suffer some physical pain. "
Ji Lingxue sighed, "I am sorry for her... I didn't protect her well..."
The next morning, Yiyun sent someone to tell Ji Lingxue to go to the garden with her, saying that there would be a banquet in the palace today and all the unmarried children of the court officials had to attend, which was also a blind date for Ruge in disguise.
Since Dayan is going to negotiate peace with Dongqi, naturally, such a beautiful thing as a marriage is inevitable. If Ruge finds someone she likes, that would be the best. If not, she will have to continue to work hard to select a candidate for the marriage. Since Xiao Yichen has just ascended the throne and there is no princess of the right age yet, she can only choose one from the children of ministers.
When Ji Lingxue opened the door and saw Linglan dressed as a palace maid standing at the door, her whole mood became bad.
Linglan smiled and bowed, saying, "This servant greets the Princess of Dayan. The princess has come from afar, and my master has specially prepared breakfast for her. Please go ahead."
As expected, Yiyun was still in the harem. She was the final winner. She had fought with Ji Yuqing for so many years, but was defeated by Ji Yuqing, a latecomer. Yiyun should be very proud now. She heard that a princess from Dayan had entered the palace, so she was probably worried that her position as a concubine would be in jeopardy, so she found an excuse to check on her.
Ji Lingxue curled up the corner of her mouth with a sneer, "Thank you, sister, for leading the way."
Linglan led Ji Lingxue through the imperial garden with ease, through layers of flowers, through rockery and waterside pavilions, and came to the Peony Pavilion where Yiyun was.
Yiyun was wearing a gorgeous aqua blue palace dress and her makeup was heavier than before. Hearing footsteps, Yiyun put down her teacup and looked up, just in time to meet Ji Lingxue's gaze.
Their eyes met and separated immediately. Yiyun smiled and waved at Ji Lingxue, saying, "Princess, come and sit down."
Ji Lingxue had no intention of kneeling down to greet Yiyun. She walked to the seat opposite Yiyun, sat down, picked up the chopsticks without any hesitation, and started eating, as casually as if she was eating at home.
The corners of Yiyun's mouth twitched. After all, she is the master of this palace, right
Ji Lingxue looked up and said, "This flower petal cake tastes okay, this bird's nest has been stewed for too long and the taste is not fragrant, this papaya..."
Yiyun's face was full of black lines. He coughed and asked, "The princess is really picky. She even disliked the cooking skills of the royal chef. It seems that she has tasted better delicacies."
Ji Lingxue nodded.
Yiyun continued, "By the way, Princess, are you coming to Dongqi for marriage?"
This question seemed to be asked knowingly. Yiyun just wanted to know whether the Princess of Dayan was moved when she saw the handsome and elegant Xiao Yichen.
Ji Lingxue raised her head and looked at Yiyun with a half-smile, "Dayan and Dongqi have negotiated a permanent alliance, and marriage is natural."
(End of this chapter)