Disease rights policy

The stench of blood lingering around her nose grew stronger. Qiao Ran frowned slightly, her heart racing. She bent down to retreat, and just as she was about to touch the threshold of Consort Rong's palace, a gust of wind suddenly came from behind her, and the wind and waves swept over Qiao Ran's slender neck.

In the blink of an eye, Qiao Ran nimbly bent over to dodge the sneak attack, and then tried to retreat quickly, but was forced back into the house by a sharp hook.

The door to the palace was closed, and Qiao Ran finally saw the man in black who was playing chess with her. His features were very prominent, and his deep-set eyes did not resemble those of people from the capital. The man in black was obviously surprised that Qiao Ran knew martial arts, and he was shocked after a few moves.

"Isn't Consort Rong afraid I'll call for reinforcements? General Yao is right outside your palace gates!"

Hearing her speak, the man in black became even more ruthless, but Qiao Ran managed to deflect his attacks. His eyes darkened, clearly indicating that he intended to kill her.

Qiao Ran was forced to reveal her skills, which made her less secure in the palace. Her face turned cold, and she raised her voice, "Yao—!"

"Ru Feng, step back."

After observing the situation for a while, Consort Rong finally spoke up. She smiled and beckoned to the man in black, who then said, "Your Highness, she will inform on us."

“She won’t.” Consort Rong walked barefoot to Qiao Ran and suddenly clapped her hands. “I really didn’t expect that Miss Qiao was so unassuming.”

"I never expected Consort Rong to be so audacious."

Qiao Ran took a step back. Consort Rong and this thief named Ru Feng were clearly acquainted; perhaps she was the one who sent him to assassinate the Empress.

"Likewise," Consort Rong said, her smile fading. "You infiltrated the palace by impersonating the daughter of the Prefect of Qianzhou, deliberately concealing your skills. Who knows what your true intentions are?"

Qiao Ran stiffened and looked at Consort Rong with a scrutinizing gaze. She actually knew!

“You don’t need to rack your brains to guess how I know, and you wouldn’t be able to guess anyway. You’re not Miss Qiao, so I’ll just call you Miss Qiao for now,” Consort Rong said. “Tonight, just pretend you didn’t see or know anything in my Yuxiu Palace, and go out to report back.”

Qiao Ran: "Your Majesty is so magnanimous. Aren't you afraid that after I leave, I will tell Yao Yuze the truth, and the Imperial Guards will immediately surround your Yuxiu Palace?"

Consort Rong raised an eyebrow. "What's the point of a lose-lose situation? You're not stupid."

“But I respect the Empress,” Qiao Ran said. “If Consort Rong sent people to break into Kunning Palace at night, you can’t blame me for being nosy.”

Consort Rong glared at Ru Feng, then said, "If I wanted to harm the Empress, I wouldn't have waited until today. It was just a misunderstanding. Ru Feng was injured and recklessly entered Kunning Palace to avoid the Imperial Guards. It won't happen again."

"Is that so?" Qiao Ran smiled. "How would I know how credible Her Majesty's words are?"

Consort Rong chuckled, then walked back to the couch and sat down leisurely, crossing her legs. "Whether you believe it or not is up to you, Miss Qiao. Anyway, what does the strife in the palace have to do with you? Instead of worrying about these things, you should think more about how to protect yourself in this abyss."

"Your Majesty is overthinking this." In a moment, Qiao Ran made her choice. It wasn't about compromise; it was simply a win-win situation.

She glanced at Ru Feng, snorted coldly, and was about to leave when she turned back and smiled, saying to Consort Rong, "I wonder if Your Highness knows a Master Cang from Shu?"

Consort Rong's expression changed slightly, and Qiao Ran strode out of Yuxiu Palace. The night breeze was cool, but she still felt sweaty.

Consort Rong is right. What does it matter to her who wants to harm whom in this palace?

Since Consort Rong has admitted that she did not intend to harm the Empress, there is no need for her to persist in pursuing the matter. In the end, she will also expose her own identity and fight to the death. In that case, she will probably not be able to leave the palace alive.

With the spring hunt approaching, she couldn't afford to cause any more trouble.

When Yao Yuze saw Qiao Ran come out, his expression turned sour. "Why did you take so long? Were there any thieves in Consort Rong's palace?"

"Just because I said there is, does that mean the General can go in and arrest me?" Qiao Ran sneered.

Yao Yuze's expression grew increasingly grim. "The safety of the palace is not something you can treat lightly!"

Qiao Ran was truly fed up with his pretentious act. "Consort Rong is perfectly fine. If you don't believe me, go in and see for yourself."

Yao Yuze: "Then why did you come out so late?"

"Consort Rong finally got some sleep, and then she was woken up again. If you were in her shoes and got a beating, would you have come out sooner?"

Yao Yuze was speechless. Judging from Qiao Ran's upset expression, what she said must be true.

Pu Jing, however, suddenly felt some sympathy for Qiao Ran and interjected, "It's common knowledge that Consort Rong has a bad temper. Just bear with it and it will pass."

Qiao Ran gave her a look, then hurried back to Kunning Palace to report.

Upon returning home, the Empress was still awake, waiting for news from outside. When Qiao Ran reported that the thieves had not yet been caught, the Empress's face showed even more worry.

Yinghong whispered, "Should we report this to the Emperor?"

The Empress paused for a moment, then shook her head: "Report in two more hours, don't disturb His Majesty."

"Yes."

"Alright, Yinghong, stay. Everyone else, go to sleep."

Qiao Ran: "Yes."

After all that commotion, Qiao Ran didn't sleep a wink all night. She woke up early with dark circles under her eyes. She hadn't moved her body in a long time, and her arms were still aching from her brief fight with Ru Feng last night. She asked the palace maids in the courtyard.

"Did the Imperial Guards catch the thief last night?"

"No."

This is how it should have been; the person was hiding in Consort Rong's palace, something Yao Yuze could never have imagined.

After she finished washing up, she went to pay her respects to the Empress. All the concubines had arrived early, and it seemed that they were all quite frightened by what happened last night. The Empress was already irritable and had to comfort them one by one.

By the time everyone had left, it was almost noon. Qiao Ran waited at the door for a while, and when she saw Consort Rong come out, she gave a slight bow.

Consort Rong smiled without saying a word, twisting her alluring figure as she smiled and withdrew her gaze from Qiao Ran.

Qiao Ran always felt that there was something hidden behind her smile.

Within fifteen minutes, her idea was proven correct. The eunuch reported to the Empress that the thief had been caught.

The Queen breathed a sigh of relief. "Where was it caught?"

“In the dry well of the abandoned palace,” the eunuch said, “Your Majesty, when the Imperial Guards pulled the person out, he was already dead.”

"Dead? How did he die?" the Empress demanded.

The eunuch recounted the whole story: "The thief was seriously injured. He must have panicked and fled to the abandoned palace in the night, where he fell and never woke up again."

The Empress sat back down and, after a long silence, asked, "What about His Majesty?"

"Your Majesty, His Majesty has punished General Yao and ordered him to thoroughly investigate the origins of the thieves."

Consort Rong's trick of substituting the prince for a cat was quite clever. Qiao Ran stopped the eunuch who was reporting in the courtyard and pretended to be surprised, saying, "Eunuch, General Yao has been punished?"

The eunuch recounted vividly, "Yes, His Majesty was furious. Many people heard it and said that if the General fails in his duty again, he will be dismissed."

Qiao Ran gloated, as if Yao Yuze's displeasure would make her feel better.

Later that evening, someone came to tell her to go to Fengxing Pavilion. When Qiao Ran arrived, she saw Kong Hanyan waiting for her. The two hadn't seen each other for a few days.

"Xiao Ran," Kong Hanyan came over and pulled her aside, asking immediately, "I heard that a thief broke into the palace last night, are you alright?"

Qiao Ran shook her head, "I'm fine, are you all alright?"

"It's all alright." Kong Hanyan pulled Qiao Ran to sit down on the steps, and when she saw that no one was around, she whispered, "I have something else to tell you."

"You said."

"The spring hunt is in a few days, did you know?"

Qiao Ran nodded, "I've heard about that too, and this spring hunt seems to be different from previous ones."

"It is different. My father sent me a message that he will also be coming to the capital this time. Because people from Pingjing and Jinchu will be coming for this spring hunt, preparations for the spring hunt began a month ago at the hunting grounds in the western suburbs. It is being carried out with great pomp and circumstance."

The Prince of Jiangling is actually coming; it seems this spring hunt is indeed significant. Qiao Ran thought for a moment and asked, "Is he an envoy?"

It was common for envoys from the three kingdoms to visit each other.

But Kong Hanyan shook her head. "They are not ordinary envoys, but nobles from both countries."

"A nobleman? Could it be a prince who has come?"

Kong Hanyan: "I don't know the specifics."

"So you came here specifically to tell me this because you guessed I would take the opportunity to run away?" Qiao Ran smiled helplessly.

Kong Hanyan said with concern, “Since ancient times, when distinguished guests come to visit, firstly, the level of security will be stricter, and secondly, there will be more defenses in the hunting grounds. It is not a good time to take the opportunity to leave. I am here to remind you, and you should reconsider.”

Qiao Ran said she understood, and that even if the security was tight, she would still give it her all.

To seize this opportunity, Qiao Ran didn't leave Kunning Palace for five or six days in a row. She practiced her skills whenever she had free time, day and night. In the blink of an eye, the day of the spring hunt arrived.

His Majesty naturally had to travel ahead, and Kunning Palace made timely preparations, departing a day earlier than the Empress's imperial carriage.

Qiao Ran spotted Chen Jiu in the Imperial City Guard's ranks. He was constantly following behind Gong Yuyi. During this time, the two exchanged a glance from afar, and Qiao Ran's heart suddenly felt much more at ease.

Chen Jiu is so smart, he probably guessed that I was going to slip away. I hope everything goes smoothly.