Traveling through the Tang Dynasty: The Concubine Goes to War

After a brief discussion, Yunxi and the emperor decided to end this incognito visit early and return to the palace immediately.

The two of them sat in the carriage on the way back to the palace. The emperor seemed very interested in Aida. He asked about some things about Aida in Turkic. Yunxi answered evasively. She concealed the fact that Aida was jealous of the love that the former Turkic prince, now the Turkic Khan, had for her.

"I noticed that you didn't look very well when you first saw her just now?" The emperor looked at Yunxi with a hint of doubt in his eyes.

Yunxi's heart tightened, but she pretended to be relaxed and said, "I am really surprised."

The emperor nodded slightly and asked again: "Did she do anything special or say anything special when she was in the Turks?"

Yunxi hesitated for a moment, but finally decided to conceal part of the facts and only said, "Your Majesty, when Princess Ayiduo was in the Turkic Empire, she was always committed to maintaining peace between the two countries, and there was nothing special about it."

The emperor seemed to have noticed that Yunxi was hiding something, but he did not continue to ask. Instead, he changed the subject and said, "Forget it, let's not talk about this for now. Now we need to return to the palace as soon as possible to handle government affairs."

Yunxi secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that it was fortunate that the conflict between her and Ayiduo had not been discovered. After all, less trouble is worse than more trouble. If she talked about the conflict between Ayiduo and the Turkic prince because of jealousy, I wonder what the emperor would think.

However, she knew that this matter could not be kept secret forever, and she would need to be careful in the future.

The carriage continued to move forward, the wheels rolling and making a "gurgling" sound, the scenery outside the window kept receding, but Yunxi's heart could not calm down.

She knew that the emperor's attention to Ayiduo might bring potential dangers, which made her feel uneasy and alert. She knew that she had to be more careful so as not to let the emperor know about the past entanglement between her and Ayiduo.

Back in the palace, Yunxi quickly sat down at the desk, picked up a pen and paper and began to write letters. She wrote two important letters, one to Yang Binghuai in the Yang Mansion, and the other to Han Xuan in the General's Mansion. These letters would convey her concerns about the situation and seek their support and help.

After writing the letters, Yunxi handed them over to a reliable eunuch to ensure that the letters would be safely delivered to their destination. She believed that Yang Binghuai and Han Xuan would understand her intentions and take corresponding actions to protect her.

At the same time, Yunxi realized that in order to protect herself and her family, it was not enough to rely solely on external forces. She needed to show more tenderness and consideration in front of the emperor to consolidate her position in the emperor's mind. Only in this way could she better deal with possible crises.

Time passed quickly, and soon after, a grand banquet was held in the palace. Ayiduo, as one of the invited guests, also came to the banquet. Yunxi dressed up carefully, wearing gorgeous court costumes, and accompanied the emperor dignifiedly and elegantly. She showed her charm with a smile and gentle manners, trying to make the emperor feel her love and care.

When Ayiduo walked into the banquet hall, her exotic beauty and unique temperament immediately attracted the attention of many people. However, when she saw Yunxi sitting with the emperor, she almost dropped her jaw. She originally thought that Yunxi was just an ordinary envoy, but she didn't expect that she could be so close to the emperor.

Yunxi noticed Ayiduo's surprised expression, smiled slightly, and nodded to her as a greeting. Ayiduo forced a smile back, secretly thinking about this sudden competitor. She knew that if she wanted to gain the emperor's favor, she would have to face challenges from all sides.

At the banquet, Yunxi skillfully communicated with Ayiduo, trying to understand her true intentions. However, Ayiduo always maintained a mysterious smile, making people unpredictable.

After the banquet, Yunxi fell into deep thought again. She was thinking about the real purpose of Ayiduo coming to Datang. She knew the cruelty of the court struggle, and Ayiduo's appearance undoubtedly brought her greater challenges. But she was not afraid, and was determined to use her wisdom and means to protect her status and love.

In the following days, Yunxi was always on high alert against Ayiduo and paid close attention to her every move. She found that Ayiduo frequently contacted some powerful people in the court, who were important officials or relatives of the emperor. This made Yunxi suspicious: "Does she want to use the power of these people to deal with me?"

Yunxi decided to investigate the matter secretly to see if she could find some clues. However, despite her best efforts, she could not get conclusive evidence to prove Ayiduo's intentions. Just when she was anxious about the matter, Yang Binghuai and Han Xuan finally sent news.

Yang Binghuai told Yunxi that he found out during his investigation that Ayiduo seemed to be colluding with a mysterious organization. This organization was low-key, very hidden, and hard to figure out. Han Xuan said that he had accidentally heard Ayiduo conspiring with a powerful official. Although the specific content was unclear, from the tone of their voice, they seemed to be planning a huge conspiracy. Moreover, he sent Gu Tianxing to investigate the Turks and found that the Turkic tribes were stable and did not need support from the Tang Dynasty as Ayiduo mentioned.

Faced with such a complicated situation, Yunxi knew that she could no longer sit still and wait for death. She had to take action to protect herself and the emperor. After careful consideration, Yunxi decided to take the initiative to attack personally.

Therefore, Yunxi carefully prepared a Hongmen Banquet and invited Ayiduo to attend. This banquet seemed to be very lively, but in fact, it was full of mysteries. Yunxi specially selected several smart, loyal and reliable palace maids to serve, and also arranged some guards with special skills to guard secretly, just in case.

When Ayiduo entered the banquet hall, Yunxi greeted her with a smile and warmly invited her to sit down. After the banquet began, Yunxi deliberately brought up a topic to try to test Ayiduo's attitude.

After three rounds of wine and five dishes, Yunxi felt that the time was right, so he pretended to casually mention the mysterious organization.

"Princess Ayiduo, I heard that you made a lot of friends in Turkic. I wonder if you have heard of a mysterious organization?"

A hint of barely perceptible panic flashed across Ayido's eyes, but she quickly regained her composure.

"You are joking, Concubine Xi. When I was in Turkic, I only wanted to promote friendship between the two countries. I didn't have the time to make friends with any mysterious organization."

Yunxi smiled, picked up the wine glass and took a sip.

"That's good. I was just asking casually. However, if anyone has ill intentions and attempts to undermine the relationship between the two countries, I will never let them go easily."

Ayiduo quickly raised her glass.

"Of course, Your Majesty is very understanding. The friendship between the Turks and the Tang Dynasty will last forever."

Yunxi looked at Ayiduo and sneered in her heart. She knew that Ayiduo was definitely not as simple as she seemed. This banquet was just the beginning, and she would slowly uncover Ayiduo's true face.