As soon as he heard that it was a game, Ying Hua immediately looked curious.
At his age, playing is probably the happiest thing.
Lin Mengya tried her best to soften her expression so as not to let the little guy see any flaws.
"Then, let's start now. Can you help me show the way and tell me where your mother-in-law's palace is?"
Ying Hua nodded immediately, his expression a bit determined to win.
What a smart child, Lin Mengya looked around, exchanged a look with Bai Su, and then secretly walked towards the harem in the most inconspicuous corner.
Lin Mengya knew very well that every child was the mother's heart and soul. I would like to ask, which mother would take away the wet nurse who is taking care of her child at such a time
Every mother will feel distressed if she bumps into something. What's more, Ying Hua is playing ball, shouldn't he be surrounded by a beautiful woman
Moreover, no one has been seen passing through the three palace gates. All of this is too abnormal!
Finally entering the last palace gate, there were finally people around.
Lin Mengya's vigilance was not wrong. In history, many princes and grandsons died in mysterious circumstances. Therefore, since she is here, she cannot let Ying Hua suffer the fate of premature death.
In the alleyway, people pass by from time to time. But they were all in a hurry, and they didn't look like they were looking for someone. Ying Hua was in Lin Mengya's arms, cleverly pointing her in the direction.
Perhaps because this place was close to his mother's palace, the little guy became a little excited. After all, victory was right in front of him!
Suddenly, Ying Hua excitedly pointed at a certain imposing palace gate.
Lin Mengya and Bai Su walked to the door and took a look. The three large characters of Yonghe Palace looked extremely solemn.
It seems that this little guy's mother-in-law is quite a powerful concubine.
Because at night, all the palace doors were closed, so Bai Su went to call the door. Soon, someone inside opened the door. Inside, a handsome face popped out, but when he saw the little prince in Lin Mengya's arms, his expression immediately turned into one of surprise.
"My little ancestor, where did you go? It's hard for me to find you. If I can't find you, I will skin you."
Having arrived at his mother's concubine's palace safely, Ying Hua was naturally happy that the game had been completed.
Lin Mengya also breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, she arrived here safely. Unlike being nimble and naughty in front of Lin Mengya, Ying Hua already had a little arrogance in front of the palace maid.
He pushed the sepak takraw ball into Lin Mengya's hand, and with his little hands behind his back, he scolded the palace maid in a matter-of-fact manner.
"You useless things, you can't find me every time you play hide and seek! Alright, I'm going to see my mother and concubine. Third sister-in-law, I'll come and play with you another day!"
After saying that, he got into the gate of Yonghe Palace without looking back.
The palace maid was also a little embarrassed. She smiled apologetically at Lin Mengya and bowed her thanks:
"Thank you, Princess Yu, for sending His Royal Highness the Tenth Prince back. It's just that it's getting late today, so it's inconvenient for Your Highness to disturb the queen's rest. I forgive you, Princess."
The maid's words were a bit rude.
Fortunately, Lin Mengya is not a stingy person. Everyone in the palace must be extremely anxious because of Ying Hua's disappearance. At this time, it was indeed inconvenient for her to disturb him. Otherwise, it will definitely make people feel like they are taking credit.
Besides, she is a hot potato in the palace now. It doesn't matter who she is, so it's better not to have anything to do with her.
"It's okay, go and accompany His Highness the Tenth Prince and say goodbye."
Lin Mengya smiled modestly, nodded to the palace maid, and prepared to leave.
But when he lowered his eyes, he saw that the palace maid was wearing a bright green bracelet on her hand. It was really of excellent quality, and in just a blink of an eye, the palace maid closed the door of Yonghe Palace.
Lin Mengya shook her head, and just about to leave with Bai Su, she found that she was still holding the sepak takraw ball belonging to Ying Hua in her hand.
How could this little guy be so anxious that he even forgot about this treasure
Suddenly, I seemed to remember something. No, that bracelet is absolutely extraordinary. There are strict regulations on food and clothing in the palace. If this person is the dowry of the imperial concubine, there is still some excuse.
However, dowries are often given to the imperial concubine's confidants. How could it be so unreasonable? It was as if he was anxious to drive her away.
"Bai Su, hurry up, smash the door!"
Lin Mengya didn't want to let go of any possibility that Ying Hua would be in danger.
After receiving the order, Bai Su immediately knocked on the door "dong dong dong". But only a few minutes later, there was silence behind the door.
Lin Mengya didn't care about anything else and followed Bai Su to slam down the door. After more than ten minutes of banging, there was a reply from behind the door.
"Who is it! Don't you know the rules in the palace? If you slam the door so hard, my queen will kill you!"
His voice was high-pitched, and he sounded like a eunuch.
The door bolt was opened wide, and Lin Mengya and Bai Su immediately rushed inside.
"Hey, hey, which palace are you from? Why are you so unruly?"
Lin Mengya couldn't care less, grabbed the eunuch's collar, and asked anxiously:
"Where is Ying Hua? Where is your eleventh prince? Where is he?"
The eunuch had never seen anyone so eager. Coupled with Lin Mengya's serious face, he was also startled and subconsciously replied:
"The prince went somewhere to play somewhere, and he hasn't come back yet. Everyone in the palace is looking for him. You... who are you?"
Although the woman in front of him was a bit unfamiliar, the eunuch served in the palace after all. With some eyesight, her clothes and appearance are not inferior to those of the empress in the palace, and she also knows which mistress of the palace may be in front of her.
"No, Ying Hua has come back! Just now, a palace maid wearing an emerald green bracelet took him away! I sent him back in person, there will be no mistake! You hurry up and find someone, and you must find that person ! Remember, the more remote the corner, the harder it is to let it go! Otherwise, Ying Hua will be in danger!"
Lin Mengya spoke very fast and her tone was very serious. The eunuch saw the takraw ball in her hand, which was the young master's favorite object.
He immediately understood the seriousness of the matter and stopped blocking her. Instead, he shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Someone, come quickly! My little master is in danger! Someone, come quickly!"
Not to mention, this thin male duck voice is really confident. A shout seemed to be heard by the entire palace.
Lin Mengya and Bai Su also started searching from room to room.
But what made them anxious was that they had searched almost every corner of the front yard, but still didn't see any familiar sounds.
At this time, because of the eunuch's shouting, many people had joined the search.
The night is getting darker and darker, but the Yonghe Palace is brightly lit.
Lin Mengya and Bai Su had already arrived in the backyard. Those people were also carrying lanterns and scattered around, conducting carpet-like investigations.
"Ah! These are the young master's shoes!"
Suddenly, an extremely frightened voice came. Lin Mengya immediately ran over and saw in front of her a pond whose ice surface had broken for some reason.
And what a palace maid held in her hand was the small shoes that Ying Hua was wearing just now.
"Did the young master fall into the water?"
Someone immediately said worriedly, and then, several strong eunuchs and guards jumped down with a 'pop' and 'pop'.
Everyone braved the biting cold and fished in the water for a long time. But there was still no sign of Ying Hua, and Lin Mengya felt a chill in her heart.
No, Ying Hua will be fine!
Looking at the small shoes in the palace maid's hands, Lin Mengya immediately came over to check.
There are no water stains on the shoes, not even a mud mark. On the other hand, adults like them, because they were standing on the edge of the pond, were more or less stained with muddy water.
Moreover, those were supposed to be to make it appear that Ying Hua had slipped and fallen, so not only did they crack the ice, they also loosened the surrounding soil a little.
In such a short time, excluding the distance, no matter how weak the child is, he should be struggling now.
Unless, Ying Hua would be killed first and then thrown into the water. Now, no one has discovered it yet, which means that the person may have only done half of it. Maybe Ying Hua is still somewhere around this pond!
As her thoughts changed, Lin Mengya looked around.
Suddenly, I discovered that not far away, there were several small rooms that may have been used by gardeners to store tools.
"Everyone, look around for people in the water. Don't stay there for too long. Otherwise, you will get frostbite. Who will make some hot water and ginger soup for these people who have fallen into the water to drink!"
Although I don’t know who this woman is, they are all people who do what they are told.
Lin Mengya assigned them tasks without hesitation, and these people immediately mobilized.
Holding up their skirts, Lin Mengya and Bai Su ran at the front.
Those small rooms were stained with rust and had obviously been locked for some time. Lin Mengya shook it and finally found a little rust under a lock.
This means that someone has opened it recently!
"Who has the key here! Hurry, Ying Hua might be here!"
As soon as they heard that they might have found the young master, the maids and eunuchs came running over in a swarm. But this is the gardener's place, and no one has a key.
Time was running out, and Lin Mengya couldn't take care of that much.
After dodging, Bai Su Yijiao kicked open the door of the hut.
The door panel collapsed, and Lin Mengya rushed in immediately. There were dusty tools everywhere, and at a glance, there was no trace of Ying Hua anywhere.
But Lin Mengya didn't give up and borrowed a lantern. A group of people crowded into the small room and searched carefully.
Apart from the messy footprints, Lin Mengya didn't find anything. In a place as big as a palm, it is impossible for these people to miss traces.
The disappointment in her heart was getting deeper and deeper. Lin Mengya almost thought that she was about to see a living being disappear from her eyes. However, she found a few boxes in the corner that were a little strange.