C181

Within the palace.

The gorgeous decorations in the hall had long since been thrown into chaos, the glass fragments and jade glaze had even shattered to the ground. Fang Rou's face was cold as she became furious at the palace maids who were trembling all over the hall.

"Dammit, that woman who appeared out of nowhere became the Empress just like that?!" With a wave of her hand, the priceless treasure, the pearl hairpin, scattered on the ground.

All the palace maids and eunuchs within the Hall of Gentle Yi did not dare to make a sound. They only lowered their heads, their expressions trembling with fear.

"Even if she dares to slap my palace, not only will the Emperor not punish me, he will also investigate my blame and the Fang family's responsibility. The Emperor is truly biased!" She still felt that she could not vent her anger, so she waved her sleeve and slammed the teacup and tea tray on the table onto the ground.

"Clang Dang ~" The Rou Yi Hall was once again deathly silent.

"That damnable woman, where did she get the ability to have the emperor accompany her as she strolls the imperial gardens?!" Fang Rou's expression was ferocious and she was no longer as calm as she was before.

"Cai Die!" she shouted, sipping hard.

"Nu …" Your servant is here. " Cai Die trembled, she walked up, and knelt down.

"Tell me, how can I make that woman disappear in front of the Emperor?" There was nothing Fang Rou could do, she could only turn her head and shout at Cai Die. Her every plan was to let that woman escape easily, this time she could not be let off easily.

"Empress, your servant …" "Your servant …" Cai Die stammered, Qiao Qiao's ability Cai Die also saw it in her eyes, her own mistress' methods were indeed incomparable to that woman's.

"Trash, what do I need you for!" Fang Rou raised her arm and mercilessly slapped at Cai Die's face.

Cai Die's eyes flashed with tears, tightly covering her left cheek, as if she felt wronged.

"A bunch of trash." Fang Rou could not help but fiercely sip.

"Empress, this servant has an idea, but I don't know if it will work." At this time, a maidservant dressed in the attire of a Third Order Palace maid walked up to Fang Rou with a sinister smile and spoke directly to her.

Fang Rou frowned. She didn't have any impression of this little girl in her mind, but as long as they could get rid of that girl, it didn't matter who gave the opinion.

"What can you do?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Niangniang, since the emperor dotes on his consort so much, there's no way even General Fang can impeach her multiple times. How about Niangniang find a killer in the underworld in private and treat that kind of woman like that without doing anything …" As the girl spoke, she gently placed her hand on her neck and lightly smiled.

Fang Rou smiled. How could she not have thought that even if the emperor was protecting her, it was impossible for her to be by her side for twenty-four hours. She would always send out assassins from the martial arts world when she was alone … Even if the matter was exposed, the Emperor wouldn't be able to investigate her. This was a pretty good idea.

"Do you have any reliable killers?" Fang Rou pursed her lips and smiled. Her previously angry face was now filled with pride.

"According to what this servant knows, in this martial world, other than the former Devil Palace which is now in disarray, there is also the top assassination organization: the Pure End Palace." The palace maid answered truthfully.

"Supreme Clear Palace?" Fang Rou frowned. She had never heard of these things before.

"Yes, Niangniang. The Qing Jue Palace has a very high position in the martial arts world. As long as the price is right, they will not fail. As long as the killer from the Qing Jue Palace takes action, the concubine will die without a doubt." The palace maid's face darkened as she hurriedly replied.

"Good, good!" Fang Rou sighed, "I'll leave this matter to you. If you want more silver taels, just say so."

"Yes, this servant will handle this matter well."

"By the way, what's your name?" After Fang Rou's happiness passed, she could not help but have a sense of appreciation for the girl in front of her.

"In reply to the Empress, your servant's name is Xiruo." The palace maid bowed as she replied.

"Alright, in the future, you will accompany me around as my aunt." Fang Rou laughed secretly and immediately turned her head to the side to look at the useless Cai Die as she shouted, "You are relegated to the Racing Cloth Bureau."

Cai Die's body trembled, but she could only retreat.

Xiruo raised her brows, bowed, and kowtowed as she said, "This servant thanks the Empress for her appreciation."

"Go on, this matter was done well, I still have a heavy reward!" Fang Rou's brows were filled with complacency, and as she spoke, she was even more elated.

"Yes, your servant will take his leave." Xiluo slowly walked out of the Yi Hall.

— —

Midnight.

The lights in the huge palace had all been extinguished. In the quiet palace compound, a dim candle flame was flickering.

"Empress, Empress, you can't go out." Die'er's face was filled with worry as she looked at her mistress, who was dressed in night clothes, trying to climb out of the hall while avoiding the surrounding guards.

"Shh, shh, be quiet." Qiao Qiao was still seated on the wall as he spoke to Die'er in a low voice.

"Empress, with your current body, you can't climb the wall." Die'er looked conflicted, tightly holding onto Qiao Qiao's arm as she spoke, her face full of worry.

"I'm fine now. I'm fine now. Come, come up. Let's go out." Qiao Qiao once again climbed up to the top of the wall and extended his arm, pulling Die'er's body with great effort to the top of the wall.

"Come, let's jump down together." Joe continued to look down at the top of the wall, but it was only two meters high, so it was a piece of cake for her.

"Empress, no! You can't jump! You can't jump!" Without waiting for Die'er to stop him, Qiao's light body had already landed on the ground.

"Come on, jump off, I'll catch you." Joe said to Die'er on the wall, still holding up his arm.

"Empress …" Die'er's pretty face became bitter as she sat on top of the wall and looked down, "This servant doesn't dare."

"I'll catch you. Hurry up, someone will find out later." Qiao Qiao still stood at the foot of the wall and urged anxiously.

"Servant …" This servant doesn't dare. " Die'er mumbled to herself as she looked down at the wall. She closed her eyes and looked timid.

"Don't be afraid, jump down with your eyes closed." Qiao Qiao was still consoling her in a gentle voice. At this moment, she really regretted bringing this timid girl out. It was a pity that she had already thrown Die'er onto the wall. It was too late for her to regret.

Ah!" Dia'Er let out a cry, closed her eyes and jumped down from the top of the wall.

Just when Die'er thought that she would come into intimate contact with the earth, she did not expect that her Empress' soft hands would hold her tightly. She staggered forward a few steps before regaining her balance.

"Empress, are you alright? How could you do such a dangerous thing?!" Die'er looked worried. Qiao was still pregnant, but she did not know it herself. If she were to do something so dangerous and hurt the baby in her womb, she would be a sinner of the Happy Country.

"It's nothing, it's nothing." Qiao Qiao continued to swing his hands and pulled Die'er. Relying on his memories, he quickly rushed to the bamboo forest arch bridge that he had once built for Luo Qinglun.

"Empress, what are you doing here?"

Dia'Er looked timid. On a night that was already pitch-black, a light breeze blew and the surroundings became quiet. However, the Empress brought her to the forbidden grounds of the imperial palace. She had heard that there were often ghosts there …

"Of course it's something important!" Still chuckling softly, Qiao Qiao raised her foot and walked towards the arch bridge that she had not been able to cross that day.

"Empress, don't go." Die'er lowered her trembling voice and made a move to stop him.

However, Qiao Qiao had already stepped into the middle of the bridge.

Die'er was helpless. She closed her eyes and bit her lower lip. With her will to live and die with her own mistress, she defeated her own cowardice and stepped onto the bridge.

"Empress …" Has the Empress entered the cave? " However, Die'er still had her eyes closed, tightly holding onto Jo's arm. She could only hear the breeze by her ears, but did not dare open her eyes.

"Right away." Qiao Qiao was still holding the lantern with one hand, and he carefully walked towards the dark cave.

Normally, it was frighteningly quiet here, but at night, it was even more eerie.

"Empress, esteemed Empress, say something." Die'er was so frightened that her legs went limp, and her hand that was holding onto Qiao Qiao couldn't help but tremble.

"Shh, be quiet, don't attract anyone." Qiao Qiao continued whispering as he raised the lantern in his hand and looked into the cave.

Die'er still kept her eyes closed. She didn't even dare to make a sound.

"Dia'Er, come quickly and light the candle."

When they finally reached the cave, the faint light from the lantern was not enough to clearly see the appearance of the cave, so Joe couldn't help but urge Die'er.

"Yes." Die'er bravely opened her eyes and lit the cave full of candles.

For a time, the cave was brightly lit.

Qiao once again placed the lantern in his hand to the side, and looked at the empty cave in front of him.

There were no ornaments in the cave, and Joe could see the end of it at a glance. He was still looking around, not letting go of any of the corners.

Bamboo forest, arch bridge, cave, the westernmost side of the palace … It was still easy for Qiao Qiao to connect this place to the Western Bamboo Garden that Yu Qing Ao spoke of. In her heart, she knew that there was something fishy going on here. Otherwise, why would she faint on the arch bridge a few days ago?

"Die'er, bring a candle!" Joe was still looking around, afraid that he had found something on the ground.

"Yes." Die'er said as she handed the candle in her hand to Joe.

Joe still took the candle and shone it on the ground. He separated a small white rice grain from the dust on the ground.

"It's rice grains!" Joe, still holding the rice grains in his hand, said to Die'er.

"Rice grains?" Die'er wrinkled her brows and looked at Qiao Qiao's hand. She did not know what the Empress meant.

"The rice grains are soft, so they must have been stored here not long ago. There must have been someone here a few days ago." Qiao Qiao's face was still grave, as if he had discovered something. "Look!"

Joe still pointed. "There are footprints here." After saying that, she stood up and walked forward, carefully examining the footprints on the ground.

"The footprints are deep and solid. His steps are firm and powerful. He should be a martial arts practitioner." Joe said coldly.

Die'er followed behind Joe, still confused, carefully examining the footprints the Empress was pointing to.

"There's blood over there!" Qiao Qiao's brows remained cold as he scanned the area. He immediately walked forward and wiped away the blood on the stone slab. "This blood stain has been dried up for a long time. It seems that someone was injured here long ago."

"Empress, the Empress has words here!" Die'er stood by the cave wall and called out to Joe.

Qiao Qiao's heart was still filled with joy. He raised his foot and ran towards Die'er.