The beloved baby has a space

Chapter 581 Awakening
The Empress Dowager did indeed know about the Soul-Sharing Gu. But she never expected that, after so many years, the first person to ask her about it would be a young girl.

Looking at Qin Huai before her, even if the Empress Dowager tried to reduce her spies, she would know that this child was probably the Empress's.

The same eyebrows and eyes, and the same expression.

Speaking of which, this child named Ayu, whom she loves, looks somewhat like one of the Empress's former friends.

However, the Empress Dowager quickly came to her senses and told Ayu about the Soul-Sharing Gu.

"I'm just saying this for now, so take it with a grain of salt. Once you're off this ship, pretend you never heard it," the Empress Dowager said. "If word gets out, I won't acknowledge it either."

Ayu: "I know."

And so, by the light of the moon and lamp, the Empress Dowager began to speak slowly.

The story was much simpler than they had imagined.

It was an old story from many years ago. At that time, the Eastern Desert Kingdom still existed and had a good relationship with the Great Chang Kingdom, so a princess was married to the Great Chang Kingdom.

That princess was the late emperor's concubine, Rufei. Like many women in the harem, she received some favor for a short time after being brought into the palace, and then quickly faded into obscurity.

The late emperor succeeded his father, and the previous emperor was Emperor Gaozu, who was also a ruler who maintained the status quo. Both were considered benevolent and wise rulers.

When the Empress Dowager mentioned the words "benevolent ruler," a fleeting hint of sarcasm crossed her face. Seeing Ayu looking at her, she continued speaking slowly.

"Regarding the past of the late emperor, one must mention a prominent figure in the Great Chang Dynasty—"

"Princess Yongchang!"

Princess Yongchang.

Ayu and Qin Huai spoke in unison, continuing the conversation.

They had no prior knowledge of Princess Yongchang until they traveled to Yongchang City and heard many stories about her.

Some say she is a celestial being descended to earth, some say she has long since passed away, some say she is a man disguised as a woman who has now become a prince or minister, and some say she has become a nun.

In any case, many versions of the story of Princess Yongchang circulated among the common people and in the martial arts world, and some even wrote it into a storybook called "The Legend of Yongchang".

"It seems you all know about Princess Yongchang." The Empress Dowager smiled slightly. "She was about your age back then, but she was a very obedient person. When she was 12, Yongchang entered the palace..."

Those were extremely peaceful years. The late emperor had just come of age and had subdued two barbarian tribes.

The Empress Dowager was in high spirits and invited many noble ladies to the palace to celebrate together, including Princess Yongchang.

The Empress Dowager was still the Empress at the time, about the same age as the late Emperor, but she still had some girlish qualities.

The Empress and Princess Yongchang were separated by many years, but they hit it off immediately and became close friends that very day. They continued to correspond with each other afterward.

The late emperor somehow found out and began to frequently visit the empress's palace, which led to the trouble.

"There are rumors in the palace that the late emperor went to my palace not to see me, but to see a letter from Princess Yongchang. In fact, the late emperor was in love with Princess Yongchang."

Ayu's mouth dropped open: "But at that time, Princess Yongchang was only 12 years old. How could she be admired?"

Ayu thought about herself; she was only 9 years old (actually 11). If an unrelated person said they liked her, she would feel disgusted.

If they're around the same age, that's fine, but if they're seven or eight years older—

Hmm, that's strange when you think about it.

Ayu rubbed her goosebumps.

Qin Huai silently took out a handkerchief and wiped A Yu's hands. A Yu took it, wiped her fingers, and then put it back into Qin Huai's palm.

The Empress Dowager pretended not to see it and continued, "That's what I thought at the time too. If Yongchang had come of age, it would be possible for her to think that way. Not long after this news spread, Consort Ru was arrested and it was said that the rumor originated from her."

Consort Ru was banished to the Cold Palace, and Yongchang, to avoid suspicion, stopped corresponding with the Empress. The Empress, however, adored her so much that she went out of the palace to visit her several times.

Time flew by, and Yongchang came of age. The Duke of Anguo's family began to arrange marriages for her.

At this time, Princess Yongchang's second sister was suddenly embroiled in a scandal, so Duke Anguo petitioned the late emperor to grant her a marriage outside the palace.

The late emperor directly bestowed her upon a northern country, a country with a fierce and uncivilized culture, rumored to be a land where people lived like barbarians.

Her second sister absolutely refused to agree, and even claimed that Princess Yongchang had ruined her and that Princess Yongchang should marry in her place.

“Was it really Princess Yongchang who did this? But I don’t think Princess Yongchang is that kind of person.” Ayu couldn’t help but say when she heard this. “In Yongchang City, everyone likes Princess Yongchang. Nobody speaks ill of her.”

The Empress Dowager nodded: "Yongchang is a kind and gentle person. People say she is well-educated, capable in both literature and martial arts, a model of a noble lady, and the best in Dachang. But in my opinion, she is just a fool."

It turned out that Princess Yongchang had stepped forward at that time, saying she was willing to marry into the north in place of her second sister.

The late emperor disagreed and even ordered the second young lady of the Duke of Anguo's mansion to go beyond the Great Wall at a certain time.

It was around that time that the matter of the "Shared Fate Gu" was exposed. It turned out that Princess Yongchang and the late emperor had both been found to be infected with the "Shared Fate Gu".

Thus, in the eyes of outsiders, the late emperor's intention to protect Princess Yongchang was self-evident.

Firstly, it was for survival; having Princess Yongchang by her side allowed her to keep an eye on her at all times.

Secondly, it was for love. The Fate-Binding Gu made the two people's lives intertwined, and it was also a Gu used for love in the Eastern Desert Kingdom.

"Later it was discovered that Princess Yongchang was indeed poisoned by the 'Shared Fate Gu,' but not by the late Emperor, but by Consort Ru. Consort Ru, believing the rumors, wanted to poison Princess Yongchang before taking her own life. However, she miscalculated the timing. When Yongchang was poisoned, she was killed by another concubine, so Yongchang was not connected to her by fate. The poison that poisoned the late Emperor was the work of the second young lady of the Duke's mansion. She wanted to protect herself and also wanted to marry into the royal family. From beginning to end, she was the instigator of everything. She was present at the Empress Dowager's banquet and fell deeply in love with the late Emperor, which led to all the subsequent events..."

At this point, the Empress Dowager sighed. The people involved in the story either died on the spot, committed suicide later, or disappeared without a trace like Yongchang.

In the end, she was the only one left who knew the whole story.

Now, twenty-four years after the late emperor's death, many people don't care about this matter, or have never even heard of it. The Empress Dowager guards this old story, never telling anyone a single word in previous years; anyone who asked would die. This year, however, she suddenly felt utterly bored. Since someone had asked, she wanted to tell them too.

After hearing the story, Ayu was extremely puzzled: "Your Majesty, I still don't understand. Since the Soul-Sharing Gu is a very important Gu that ordinary people can't obtain, why did Brother Ayou get infected by it?"

The task that Tuanzi received was to enter the palace, and then guide her to find the "storyteller" in order to obtain the clues to the fate-binding Gu.

Even though the Empress Dowager explained it so clearly, Ayu still couldn't understand.

The Empress Dowager looked at Qin Huai and beckoned to him: "Child, come here and let me take a look at you."

Qin Huai then stepped forward.

The Empress Dowager examined Qin Huai's eyelids and then looked at his palm. She nodded and said, "It's a sign of the Soul-Sharing Gu. However, you should have taken the medicine made from the Golden Rain Worm. In terms of your life, it's no longer a problem. Yongchang got the Soul-Sharing Gu back then, and he also took the medicine made from the Golden Rain Worm. He was fine afterward. Don't worry, whether you get treatment or not, it won't harm your life."

"No, Your Majesty, my grandmother said we must find the person who is pulling us, because that person could very well be Brother Ayou's mother. It would be very dangerous if we didn't untie her! But we can't be completely sure it's her, which is why we came to you."

"Oh?" The Empress Dowager understood; she had now confirmed Qin Huai's identity.

Lately, her son has been running rampant around the palace like a mad dog, yelling at the imperial physicians to have their whole family executed, which suggests that the Empress is not doing well.

Now that they're facing each other again, there's nothing they don't understand.

The symbiotic poison has taken effect and is being controlled by a third party, causing the empress to be critically ill.

This palace is like a sieve; it hasn't yet sifted out all the spies from the Eastern Desert Kingdom.

"Your Majesty, please!" Ayu clasped her hands together. "Please help us out, since you look so much like my grandmother. I'll make you some tea!"

As long as it can save Brother Ayou and his mother, Ayu is willing to spend the Sacred Fruit of All Spirits and the nutrient solution.

Anyway, the fairy said that if she saved Brother Ayou and then married him, what was his would be hers, and what was hers would also be his; you have to give up something to gain something.

Ayu thought it made perfect sense.

The Empress Dowager knew from the tea she had just drunk that it was definitely not her own sweet tea. The tea was very strange; it must be some kind of miraculous elixir.

My chronic ailment no longer causes me any pain.

When people get old, they don't ask for anything else, except for less illness and a better mood.

Now that she has her own children, she naturally won't make things difficult for them.

The late emperor is dead, and she's been angry for so many years; it's time for her anger to subside.

"Qingye," the Empress Dowager called out.

Qingye quickly came in: "This servant is here."

"Summon Commander Zhang to see me after noon tomorrow." The Empress Dowager looked at Ayu and Qin Huai and added, "Clean up Fengyu Palace and let the two of them stay there. Send someone to talk to the Emperor."

This time, Aoba simply lowered her head and said, "Yes."

Ayu then pulled Qin Huai along and followed behind Qingye.

"Brother Ayou, shouldn't we send someone to talk to Mr. Chijia?" He must be getting impatient waiting outside.

Aoba, who was walking in front, straightened his back even more, looking like he definitely wouldn't help them.

Ayu didn't even look at her, took out three jade stones from her pocket, and threw them in one direction.

Under the moonlight, a light flashed, and the jade stones were caught by the hidden experts of the inner palace.

Ayu's joyful voice came along with the jade: "Like last time, please help us deliver a message, thank you!"

The inner palace expert who instinctively caught it: "..."

"What a spendthrift," Qingye muttered.

Ah Yu hummed a song, pulling Qin Huai's arm and swinging it back and forth, very happy.

She has plenty of that jade.

Since they were all bought by Tuanzi, I used one point to enter a lucky draw and won a bundle. The bundle contained 12 bags, and each bag contained 100 of these exquisitely carved stones.

She didn't really like it, but it wouldn't be good to lose it.

She loves all the things her grandfather carves!

"Achoo!" In the middle of the night, Old Wang, who was sleeping soundly, suddenly woke up from his dream and sneezed loudly.

He turned around and saw Old Mrs. Wang sleeping soundly beside him. He gritted his teeth and whispered, "Old woman, that's not fair of you. How can you curse me in your sleep!"

Old Mrs. Wang was woken up by the noise and kicked him, causing Old Wang to fall off the bed.

"Who insulted you? Have you been sculpted to the point of stupidity? Staying up all night instead of sleeping, pretending to be a ghost!" After saying that, Old Mrs. Wang turned over and went back to sleep.

Old Wang climbed back into bed, satisfied, and muttered to himself as he fell asleep: "I knew it, it must have been you who scolded me."

Otherwise, how could he sneeze in the middle of the night?

Looking up, I realized this article has reached one million words—amazing!

There will be a small update during the National Day holiday, but the exact date is still uncertain. Anyway, there will be one.

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(End of this chapter)