zChapter 996 - Your Majesty, You Are Vigorous in Old Age (1/2)
The security around the Imperial Palace was very tight, but that was strictly in regards to others. In this world, there was practically nowhere that Feng Yuheng could not get into. With her pharmacy as a hiding space, she could move around without any resistance. This included bringing along a grown man like Xuan Tianming, as that only required a little more care. There was no other difficulty.
The two were both people who were extremely vigilant, especially Xuan Tianming. With internal strength, his hearing was extremely good, as was his night vision. He was also extremely familiar with the layout of the Imperial Palace. That was why he was the one to guide Feng Yuheng on this trip through the Imperial Palace.
When the two arrived within the vicinity of Winter Moon Palace, they found a space to come out. Xuan Tianming quickly pointed out a few places them quietly said: “Those places will have people who are not the female guards from Winter Moon palace. Instead, they came under other orders.”
At present, to speak of other powers in the Imperial Palace, there would only be the eighth prince and Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu. Feng Yuheng furrowed her brow. With such tight security, what exactly did the eighth prince intend to do? Could it be that he wanted to control the Emperor until the day came when he was ready and could directly usurp the throne?
She did not continue to remain and pulled Xuan Tianming back into the space and said: “Us going into the palace to check up on imperial concubine mother is most important. I keep feeling that it’s a good thing that we came tonight. If we waited a little longer, I fear that Winter Moon Palace would no longer be safe.”
Xuan Tianming also felt the same about this matter, following her through the space a few times. Finally, the two stood behind the screen in Imperial Concubine Yun’s sleeping quarters. Feng Yuheng took the initiative to walk past the screen to go and call Imperial Concubine Yun; however, she found that the person was not on the bed.
She hastily turned around and shook her head at Xuan Tianming. At this time, they heard the sound of footsteps belonging to palace servants coming from the outside. Immediately following this, they heard a granny ask the palace servant standing guard outside: “Has Her Highness still retired to her chambers?”
The palace servant replied: “I did not see her come over.”
The granny sighed and said: “I heard that she has been sitting on the moon-viewing platform ever since the afternoon. Now, it’s already past midnight, yet she still has not come back. I really am worried about Her Highness’ health.”
The palace servant said: “With this sort of thing happening in the palace, Her Highness must be feeling unhappy. Don’t look at how Her Highness did not want to see His Majesty in the past yet allows him to visit now. When the time comes, she still chases His Majesty out. Having been with Her Highness for so many years, are you still not able to understand? Her Highness does think about His Majesty. It’s just that she can’t get over her own temperament. This servant had thought that His Majesty was earnest in his feelings for Her Highness, but now it seems…” She paused for a bit then continued: “To say something improper, after not seeing each other for over 20 years, His Majesty would think about her every day. But now that he has seen her and seen her quite frequently, it’s just that sort of a deal. In the end, His Majesty is a man. When a fish has eaten the bait, it will no longer want more.”
“Alright, just keep this sort of talk limited to inside Winter Moon Palace. You must not speak without a filter when outside.” The granny lectured the palace servant, “In the end, he is the Emperor, and he is the ruler of the world. Right now, the inner palace sees Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu hold the most influence. If you want to keep your head, you need to keep your mouth under control. Who knows what might happen if your words were to get out. Your little life would be gone.”
“Granny is right.” The palace servant’s voice rose once more, “This servant is just venting some frustrations for Her Highness. Aside from this, I will not speak out of turn.”
The two inside the room heard this conversation and also felt unhappy. Although they did not believe that the Emperor would be this sort of person, so what if they did not believe it? The things had already happened, and the Emperor had even said that he would be giving the throne to the eighth prince. Feng Yuheng had a question on the tip of her tongue that she did not dare ask. Was this Emperor really still the Emperor?
“Let’s go to the moon-viewing platform.” Xuan Tianming tugged at her and said with concern. “She started drinking in the afternoon. Who knows just how drunk she has become by now.”
In truth, Imperial Concubine Yun had a high tolerance for alcohol, and the wine that she was drinking did not have a high alcoholic content. It was just some plum wine. Although she had been drinking for quite a while, it would not be enough to get her to be completely drunk. But she was still a little tipsy. At the very least, when Xuan Tianming and Feng Yuheng stood in front of her, she just asked in a daze: “Who are you two? How did you get in?”
Imperial Concubine Yun had female guards hidden and protecting her at all times. The female guards also really wanted to know the answer to the second question. How did His Highness the ninth prince and the ninth princess get in? But these female guards had all been personally trained by Xuan Tianming and Xuan Tianhua. They could be considered their disciples. It was quite normal for the master to be more powerful than the disciple. Because of this, they just thought of this as a discrepancy in ability. Either way, the person who had come in was one of their own. Who cared how they got in! It was not a problem.
Feng Yuheng stepped forward and sat down next to Imperial Concubine Yun. Reaching out and taking the wine cup from her hand, she placed it on the ground before saying: “Imperial concubine mother, it’s His Highness the ninth prince and A-Heng!”
Imperial Concubine Yun liked sitting on the ground while drinking on the moon-viewing platform. This floor had some heating installed, which was similar to modern floor heating. It was very warm. Hearing Feng Yuheng’s words, Imperial Concubine Yun took a long time to react. It was only after Feng Yuheng stuck something sweet into her mouth and had her suck on it for a while that she began to sober up slightly. She recognized the two but asked in confusion: “It’s the middle of the night. How did you two get in?”
Xuan Tianming rolled his eyes, “Of course, we snuck in. Right now, the palace is filled with old eighth’s people. Just outside Winter Moon Palace, who knows how many hidden guards were placed there. Aside from this, there are a large number of imperial guards who are making their rounds. The security is quite tight.”