Zhuang Li slept, but when she woke up, her entire body was in pain, she couldn't remember what sort of dream she had. As her thoughts cleared, she realized that she had fainted.
When he recalled that he initially went to He Jiang Pavilion according to the instructions on the note, he did not expect that he was tricked by someone else. That young eunuch must have had something poisonous in his hands that caused him to faint.
Then where was he now? Who was the person who wanted to harm him?
She opened her eyes, wanting to see more clearly, but all she saw was a blur. She couldn't tell where she was, but she was sure she was in a certain room.
Her head was dizzy due to what happened after she was stabbed, and she did not suffer from any of the wounds or pain from the heavy punishment. She could tell that it was due to the effects of the medicine that she was in such a condition …
A figure seemed to be approaching her, but she couldn't see who it was. Then she felt another stab in her arm. The pain was still like before, but this time she didn't faint. He only felt that his entire being had become more absent-minded.
"Imperial Noble Lady Ya?"
Zhuang Li bit her lips as her entire body uncontrollably trembled.
"Who are you?" she asked weakly. However, she didn't expect him to give her the answer.
"Who is Zhao Ci?"
She did not expect him to ask that question. There seemed to be a desire in her heart to tell him the truth, but she didn't know where to begin.
"I, I don't know. "However, other than me, no one else knows …" She spoke in a low voice, not knowing if the other party had heard her clearly.
She turned her head from side to side, trying to see who she was talking to, but her vision was still blurry. The man's voice came from above, filling her mind.
"Stop with the nonsense, you should just remember now, you are Zhao Ci. If you were to spout nonsense in front of empress, that little girl called Qing You might not be able to live past today. "
Zhuang Li could finally identify the person in front of her. It was the young eunuch she had met at the He Jiang pavilion. Isn't this the young eunuch who guided her to meet Hanqin in the Qingyang Palace the last time?
Then this fellow is Hanqin's person? The one who wanted to harm him this time was Zhao Qin?
Zhuang Li's hands were tied behind her back, and then she was pushed into the carriage.
She didn't know what poison the young eunuch had used to stab her, but she felt that even though he was extremely clear-headed, her head would occasionally hurt slightly. If she were to think about it carefully, her head would hurt even more …
Her mind kept repeating the last words the young eunuch had said to her.
"No matter what, your time is up today. It's best for you to be obedient and not make unnecessary struggles. If you still care about keeping that girl alive …
After today, everyone will know that you are Zhao Ci … "
Yeah, she was Zhao Ci after all …
She was the Imperial Noble Lady Ya, and the Imperial Noble Lady Ya was Zhuang Li … Zhuang Li is Zhao Ci...
She thought she could safely consider herself as Zhuang Li, Wang Su's Imperial Noble Lady Ya. But in the end, he still had to return to the original point …
like Zhao Ci who lent her body to atone for her sins …
If she admitted that she was Zhao Ci, then, what was the rest of her life?
The medicine caused her body to tremble slightly, as if she was unable to control herself. Trembling, she wiped her face and found that it was full of tears. She had been crying. Yet, he didn't feel anything …
It was as if he had realized for the first time that the body he possessed was not his …
in his head
Whoever you are. From now on, you are Zhao Ci …
Zhao Ci...
I'm going to have to face you eventually...
The carriage moved very fast, and she could feel the wind rushing through the cracks in the carriage. He vaguely heard the sound of the city gate opening. It seemed like they were heading towards the outskirts?
Then she thought of the obvious answer.
Hanging Palace...
At this time, there were quite a few people in the palace. The emperor, empress, officials … If she were to be found out that it was Zhao Ci, the crime of deceiving the monarch would be for naught …
Once this matter was brought up, under the pressure of so many pairs of eyes, he would definitely investigate to the end. Until the bottom of the water... Thinking of this, he couldn't help but feel despair …
The carriage finally stopped. Before she could regain her senses, someone grabbed her and dragged her out of the carriage. She could not stand still and was dragged along the ground by two people holding her arms and feet. With every step he took, he felt as though his footsteps were extremely weak.
She seemed to have made her way through the throng. He was dragged all the way into a palace. Her eyes could barely make out the surroundings, the colorful lanterns, the jade rabbits pasted on the windows …
Then, he suddenly remembered that it was the Mid-Autumn Festival. This was the encampment in the outskirts of the city. The emperor is going to have a holiday here...
It was true that she hadn't seen Wang Su for a long time, and when she thought of this place, she couldn't help but look around.
Wang Su was actually not here...
She felt a little disappointed. She finally couldn't see the person she met. If she died here today, he wouldn't even know how she died.
"What a bold servant, not even bowing when he sees empress."
Before she could react, she was once again grabbed by the wrist that was tied behind her back. She pressed her head to the ground and kowtowed.
"empress?"
The clearer his consciousness became, the clearer the scenery in front of his eyes became. However, there was still a faint pain in his head. She was in a small resting place in the palace. The palace was very small, and the people sitting on the chairs on the stage were the empress and Hanqin. There were a few eunuchs and maids around him.
empress supported herself with her head, lazily leaning on the chair, looking as though she had been waiting here for a long time. Hanqin sat on a chair beside her, unable to see her expression.
"Hanqin, is this your sister?"
"Yes."
"Raise your head."
When the empress on the stage spoke out, Zhuang Li's neck was immediately twisted by the two people beside him. A look of surprise crossed the empress's face.
"How could it be this person …"
No one heard the empress's whisper. When she saw the face, she was almost astonished and immediately realized that something was wrong.
How could she not know this woman? To put it bluntly, this woman was the most breathtaking woman she had ever met since she was young. Although he wasn't willing to admit it, he had no choice but to admit it … She was jealous, and extremely jealous. I saw her last time at Huhe Palace... Furthermore, he had no intention of letting her leave the Imperial Palace alive at that time …
But he never thought that he would actually still let her go out alive, and would even accompany the Emperor at his side everyday, serving within the Imperial Study. Even though he hated her to the point that his teeth itched, the emperor had already labeled this woman with his name and written it down clearly … How could she dare to so easily touch her again?
But now, he had been sent to her as such. For a moment, she could not understand. Was this an opportunity given to her by the heavens? It was just a trap set up by the gods …
This was like trying to kill someone with your own hands. Someone would prepare a knife for you, and even tie that person up and give it to you, just waiting for you to kill it. She wasn't that stupid, and she didn't believe that there was such a great thing as a pie falling from the sky in this world …
But no matter what, since it had already been delivered to him, he had to ask clearly.
"Imperial Noble Consort Hanqin. Since you found out about it first, then I'll let you talk about it first.
"When I returned to empress, I knew that I had two younger sisters from a young age, and I greatly doted on them. But the youngest sister, Zhao Ci, was sent back to her hometown because she was naturally mischievous and refused to stay in the capital. I was too young to look for her. It was only in recent years that he had heard of her … She never lived in her hometown...
However, she no longer contacted the Zhao Family and no one knew where she went …
"Until one day, chenqie coincidentally met her in the palace …"
She turned her head to look at the little palace maid by her side. The little palace maid was quite quick-witted, so she quickly took out the items from her robes and handed them over to the empress. It was then handed to the empress …
It was a handwritten roll.
Opening the letter, he realized that it was from a relative of Gan Su's Zhao Mansion, which proved that Zhao Ci had never returned to Gan Su for more than ten years.
"If what Hanqin said is all true, then you are truly amazing. It's fine if the palace maid beside the emperor lied and claimed that she was from the Princess of West Cold, but in the end, she was the daughter of a palace minister?
But at most, this scroll can only prove that the youngest daughter of Zhao Family had never lived in Gansu Province before, so it doesn't mean that the Imperial Noble Lady Ya is your lost little sister? "
"empress, chenqie has been looking for my sister for many years, so I naturally have my own judgment." Hanqin took a small paper box from young eunuch's body and asked the servant beside him to present it.
"This painting is my little sister's mother. I have always carried it by my side and only recently did I realize that the Imperial Noble Lady Ya is no different from the person in the painting … "I think it's because I'm afraid of the crime of deceiving the sovereign that I don't dare to admit to being your older sister. Furthermore, I've committed a capital offense and came to my palace to steal the portrait …"
Hanqin didn't need to continue speaking and only used her sleeve to cover her face, as if she was crying from the pain.
The box was opened and the portrait inside was placed on the table in front of the empress.
The picture scroll was a little yellow, but it was still preserved to the point of being perfect. The beauty on the picture scroll was just that her clothes were different from Zhuang Li's, but her face was almost exactly the same.
This was a peerless beauty in the world, but now, she was a weapon that could make Zhuang Li lose her life …
Zhuang Li only felt that it was extremely absurd, but it was a pity that Hanqin was speaking the truth, she was definitely Zhao Ci … Furthermore, the crime of bullying was also included. No matter which crime it was, it could be considered as a crime of death within the palace …
Naturally, she already knew that one day she would be exposed, but she didn't expect it to be now …
"Is what Imperial Noble Consort said true? Imperial Noble Lady Ya? Now, what do you have to say for yourself? "
As long as Zhuang Li tried to think a little, she felt a sharp pain in her head. It seemed that the poisonous substance was not simple either. She had dangerously avoided's attacks several times, and did not seem to be injured at all. But now that she thought about it, Zhao Qin had gone all out, knowing that she was sharp tongued and was good at acting crazy, so naturally, she had taken every aspect into account this time. He must have found this poison because he wanted her to be unable to refute him.
On the contrary, the thoughts in his head were exceptionally clear. He could clearly see this person trampling his own fate beneath his feet …
"empress is in charge …"
Zhuang Li finally opened his mouth. It took a lot of effort to say a single word. However, this was her fate. She hadn't lived long enough …
"I did not know my past... Exile to West Cold at a young age. He became the servant of the Princess of West Cold. In his childhood memory, he could not remember it clearly … If, if Imperial Noble Consort can help me find my birth mother. "Your servant should be forever grateful …"