Ping Zhao Lu

Return to the palace.

Chu Yunxiao did not delay at all and hurriedly walked towards the Xuan Zheng Hall, ready to go to court.

On the other side, Xu Zhouye returned slowly to Fengluan Palace.

As soon as he stepped into the vermilion threshold of Fengluan Palace, Xu Zhouye saw Qinghe, Su Ming and other palace servants already lined up there in an orderly manner, respectfully welcoming his return.

Xu Zhouye was slightly stunned, but soon a faint smile appeared on his face and he strode forward.

After entering the bedroom, Qinghe walked forward nimbly, gently helped Xu Zhouye take off his outer robe, and carefully arranged it and hung it aside.

At the same time, other palace servants also became busy. Some hurried to pour water for Xu Zhouye, while others began to organize the items in the room. Everything seemed so orderly and well-organized.

Xu Zhouye walked naturally to the soft brocade-covered couch next to him and sat down. He took the water cup handed to him by a palace servant and drank it all in one gulp.

Then, he gently placed the cup on the small table beside him, raised his head, and his gaze fell on Qinghe. He asked, "During the time that Your Majesty and I were out of the palace, has anything unusual happened in the palace?"

Hearing this, Qing He pondered for a moment, then replied solemnly, "Your Highness, nothing major has happened in the palace, but... just last night, rumors suddenly spread that the Prince of Zhenbei had actually attacked His Highness, causing him to be seriously injured, and it was said that the injury was extremely serious."

At this point, Qing He couldn't help but look worried, and asked with concern, "Your Highness, is the Crown Prince really so badly injured?"

Xu Zhouye looked solemn and nodded heavily: "The doctor tried his best to save his life. If he were to be stimulated again at this moment, I'm afraid..."

Having said that, he shook his head and sighed.

"This... is so serious!" Qinghe exclaimed.

*

At night, outside the west courtyard of the government office, moonlight shines through the mottled leaves and falls under the eaves.

A guard dressed in black held a bowl of steaming medicine steadily in both hands, and walked hurriedly towards one of the closed gatehouses with a serious expression.

When he came to the door, he paused slightly, then raised his right hand and knocked lightly on the door with his knuckles.

As the knock on the door sounded, he said respectfully, "Your Highness, it's time to take your medicine."

As soon as the words fell, there was a brief silence in the room, and then a slightly childish but extremely weak voice was heard: "Come in...come in."

After hearing the instruction to enter, the guard slowly pushed open the door, turned around quickly after entering, and closed the door gently.

Then, he walked towards the screen in the room with light and cautious steps.

He seemed hesitant with every step he took, and finally stopped a few steps away from the screen.

"Your Highness, do you want to take this medicine now or later?" the guard asked in a low voice, his tone full of temptation and caution.

Although he could not see the scene behind the screen clearly at this moment, he could guess from the faint movement of the bedding on the couch that the prince might not be in good condition at the moment.

After a while, a cough was heard from behind the screen. "Ahem... bring the medicine over here and put it on the table first," the voice said weakly.

"Yes!" the guard responded quickly, then carefully walked around the screen, trying not to make any noise.

He lowered his head slightly and gently placed the medicine in his hand on the table beside him.

The moment he put down the medicine, his eyes never left the figure lying on the couch.

Then, as if wanting to check on the prince's condition, the guard slowly raised his foot and moved closer to the couch.

Just as he was about to reach the edge of the couch, suddenly, a hand stretched out from under the quilt, holding an extremely sharp dagger and stabbed straight at him.

The guard was indeed a well-trained man. Faced with this sudden attack, he reacted extremely quickly and dodged to the side.

Seeing this, Shi'an did not give up, but continued to move forward.

Soon, the sound of fierce fighting was heard in the house.

There were flashes of swords and shadows, figures flying around, and the sound of tables and chairs falling to the ground.

Before long, the assassin dressed as a guard gradually fell into a disadvantage and was eventually pinned to the ground by the agile Shi'an.

However, this assassin was also a ruthless character. Seeing that the situation was extremely unfavorable to him, he wanted to bite his tongue to commit suicide without hesitation.

Shi'an was quick-witted and quick-handed. He grabbed the handkerchief he was carrying and quickly stuffed it into the assassin's mouth, preventing him from succeeding.

On the other side, Chu Heyuan had quietly boarded the carriage prepared in advance by Zhao Fuyin and sped towards the palace.

......

The atmosphere in the Cining Palace was extremely tense and depressing.

There was a crisp "click" sound, and a high-quality glass teacup fell to the ground and instantly shattered into crystal fragments.

Seeing this, the palace maids who were serving on both sides were so frightened that they turned pale and fell to their knees to beg for mercy.

Queen Mother Jiang, who was sitting above, was still holding her dark-colored Buddhist beads as always, but at this moment her face was as dark as the sky before a storm.

Her face was gloomy and she demanded with gritted teeth, "Didn't they say that the little bastard was dying and would not live long? How come none of the people we sent over came back!" Her words were filled with anger and disbelief.

The palace maid kneeling in the center was trembling all over, her voice trembling as well: "Your Majesty the Queen Mother, this servant was right beside the Queen at the time, and I heard it absolutely correctly, there is no mistake..."

Before she could finish, Queen Mother Jiang slammed the table, stood up, pointed at the kneeling people and shouted, "You are all a bunch of useless trash! You can't even handle a child. What's the point of me raising you?"

*

In the East Palace, everything was silent.

Chu Heyuan, who had quietly returned to the palace, was now sitting on the couch in a daze, not moving.

The night was as dark as ink, but his eyes were as bright as cold stars, without a trace of fatigue.

He just maintained the same sitting posture, like a sculpture, as if silently waiting for the arrival of an important moment.

Time passed minute by minute, and after an unknown amount of time, a slight noise was finally heard outside the silent palace.

The sound was very soft, but to Chu Heyuan, who was concentrating at the moment, it was as clear as thunder - it was a familiar sound of footsteps!

Chu Heyuan, who was originally a little dazed, came back to his senses in an instant. His little head seemed to be pulled by an invisible force, and he looked towards the door impatiently and a little anxiously.

When he saw the person who walked into the room, a bright and innocent smile suddenly bloomed on his face, which was always serious and reserved.

"You're back!" Chu Heyuan exclaimed in delight, his tone filled with unconcealable joy and concern. "How's it going?"

Shi'an quickly walked to the bedside, bowed respectfully to Chu Heyuan, and said, "As expected, those people learned that you were seriously injured and showed up one after another to take your life. I waited for them for so long and finally caught one alive. I've handed him over to Shang Jiu to pry him open."

Hearing this, Chu Heyuan nodded with satisfaction and said obediently, "Okay, thank you for your hard work, Shi'an. It's so late, go and rest."

"Yes." Shi'an responded, then turned around and prepared to leave.

However, before he had taken a few steps, Chu Heyuan's panicked cry suddenly came from behind him: "You...your back is bleeding!"

Chu Heyuan's face was full of anxiety. He hurriedly rolled off the couch, staggering but trotting quickly towards where Shi'an was.

When he got closer, he couldn't wait to tiptoe, stretch out his slightly tender little hands, and carefully touch the cloth on Shi'an's body that was gradually soaked with bright red blood.

"What on earth is going on?" Chu Heyuan was horrified, his voice trembling slightly with fear.

He stared at the blood stains on his hands with wide eyes, muttering to himself in disbelief, "With your skills, Shi'an, you shouldn't be easily injured!"

After hearing this, Shi'an's expression froze for a moment, but he quickly regained his composure.

His eyes dimmed, and in the face of Chu Heyuan's concerned inquiries, he kept his lips tightly closed and said nothing.

Seeing Shi'an so silent, Chu Heyuan couldn't help but feel a pang in his heart, as if he had guessed the reason.

He hesitated again and again, but finally mustered up the courage and asked in a soft voice with a slight hesitation: "Is... is it your father punishing you?" However, the only response he got was a suffocating silence.

When Chu Heyuan saw this situation, he understood everything.

He lowered his head sadly, like a wounded puppy, and muttered with a tone full of guilt: "It's me who has caused you trouble..."

Upon hearing this, Shi An slowly turned around, shook his head gently at Chu Heyuan, and said comfortingly, "Your Highness, please don't say that. It was my fault for not doing my job well and failing to protect Your Highness. It is only natural that I should be punished. Your Highness, don't blame yourself."

However, at this moment, Chu Heyuan was unable to hear these words at all.

He frowned tightly, his face extremely solemn, and said to Shi'an solemnly: "You'd better not say anything. I will send someone to call the imperial physician to treat you properly."