Sneaking Into the Imperial Palace at Night

"Brother Yan." Li Chen Zhou took out several silver notes he had grabbed during the raid from his chest, worth about several hundred taels.

"Take these and treat the brothers to drinks."

Yan San accepted the silver notes and expertly pocketed them. "How can I accept this?"

"I'll leave things here to you, Brother Yan."

Having just received the money, Yan San patted his chest in assurance. "Brother, don't worry, just leave this little matter to me."

As Li Chen Zhou stepped out of the Imperial Prison, the twilight was painting the glazed tiles a gilded gold. He touched the confession in his chest, suddenly hearing the hawking of candied hawthorns from the street corner.

"Three skewers, extra sugar." He tossed a piece of silver and also bought a bag of osmanthus cake.

The fragrance of glutinous rice mixed with the scent of osmanthus entered his nostrils, and he vaguely remembered that he should bring something nice to Princess Xuan Yi.

The palace walls soared into the clouds, and Li Chen Zhou stuck to the shadows, using the Soaring Illusionary Steps.

The Thousand Faces disguise technique flowed in the moonlight, and after the guards had passed, he had transformed into an ordinary eunuch.

At this time, inside the Emperor's study.

"Your Majesty, that boy has quietly entered the palace and is heading towards Princess Xuan Yi's Ningxin Palace."

"Oh? This boy really doesn't stop. He's handled so many things during the day, and now he's going to seduce my daughter this late at night."

"Then this servant will..." Eunuch Cao, the Emperor's personal attendant, asked tentatively.

The Emperor smiled helplessly and waved his hand. "Forget it, let the young people handle their own affairs. I will naturally take responsibility if something happens."

Princess Xuan Yi's palace was brightly lit.

Delicate shadows were cast through the carved window frames. He held his breath and jumped into the courtyard, only to see the beauty leaning against the chaise lounge, her fair hand holding a half-read volume of the Book of Poetry, her moth-like eyebrows slightly furrowed as if she had something on her mind.

"Is Your Highness waiting for her lover?" he deliberately lowered his voice.

The Princess suddenly stood up, the wind from her wide sleeves stirring the Admonitions for Women on the table, revealing a half-written love poem tucked inside with a rustling sound. She hurriedly covered it with her sleeve, the moonlight casting a small shadow under her trembling eyelashes. "How dare you! Intruding..."

The ending trailed off, the knuckles gripping the jade hairpin turning white. "Li Chen Zhou?"

He removed his disguise, retreating to three steps away from the dressing table.

The paper bag of osmanthus cake gently landed on the table, the force of the push causing the lotus-patterned teacup to sway slightly.

"A newly opened shop in the south of the city." He tapped the paper bag with his fingertip.

Xuan Yi suddenly grabbed his hand as he was about to withdraw it, then released it as if shocked by electricity when she touched his calloused skin, turning her head away shyly. "It's good that you remembered."

"I wouldn't dare forget what I promised the Princess." Li Chen Zhou's gaze swept over the celadon bottle on the table. "Icy Silkworm Balm from the Western Regions?"

The jade bracelet on her fair wrist clinked crisply against the dressing table. "I heard about what happened to you today... this is for you to use."

She turned her face to look at the carved window frames. "You today..."

"Your Highness," before Princess Xuan Yi could finish speaking, Li Chen Zhou suddenly took half a step forward, then stopped abruptly, the hem of his official robe almost touching the pomegranate skirt. "There's rose dew on the second layer of the food box."

The iron horse bells under the eaves jingled, breaking the undercurrent in the room.

Xuan Yi hurriedly opened the food box, and sure enough, she saw a crimson liquid swaying in the glass bottle like blood from her heart.

"That Nangong Yue..." Xuan Yi suddenly spoke, "She sent an invitation the other day, saying she was going to hold a poetry gathering."

Li Chen Zhou's hand paused at her waist.

The image of the girl in the goose-yellow dress overlapped with the person in front of him, and he said vaguely, "My connection with her is just a rural rumor, nothing serious."

Xuan Yi pushed him away suddenly, her wide sleeves sweeping the celadon bottle off the table.

The ointment shattered on the bluestone bricks, her almond eyes wide with anger. "A rural rumor? Last year during the Lantern Festival, you braved the snow to find plum blossoms for her, and were sick for half a month; last month on her birthday, the Western Regions glass lamp you sent was more valuable than my coming-of-age gift!"

Li Chen Zhou lowered his eyes, looking at the mess on the ground, his Adam's apple bobbing.

The original owner had indeed spent all his wealth for Nangong Yue, even using the Emperor-bestowed Nine Revolutions Soul Returning Pill to exchange for her smile.

At this moment, the words "Heavenly Desire Palace" on the confession in his chest gleamed coldly in the moonlight, and he suddenly remembered the secret letter he had found in the Imperial Prison today—Nangong Yue was actually a member of the Heavenly Desire Palace.

"My relationship with her..." He was about to explain when he saw Xuan Yi suddenly turn around and pull out a stack of letters from the bottom of the makeup box.

The moonlight reflected the ink on the letter paper, which was exactly the love poem Li Chen Zhou had written last year: "Of the ten miles of Yangzhou road in the spring breeze, none can compare to you behind the raised pearl curtain."

Li Chen Zhou quickly racked his brains and answered, "I copied it."

"Copied it?"

Li Chen Zhou forcefully argued: "That day, I made a bet with a friend. I lost the bet, so I copied this poem according to his request."

Princess Xuan Yi said suspiciously, "Really?"

"As real as real gold."

"Are you going to Nangong Yue's poetry gathering tomorrow night?"

Li Chen Zhou was about to refuse when a mechanical voice suddenly boomed in his mind.

System prompt: The Skinner's presence has been detected at Nangong Yue's poetry gathering.

Li Chen Zhou quickly changed his tune: "I must go. I'm going to support you."

Princess Xuan Yi pouted her small mouth. "That's more like it."

By the time Li Chen Zhou left the palace, the moon was high in the sky, and the scent of jasmine still lingered on his collar.

He touched the confession in his chest. The words "Heavenly Desire Palace" gleamed coldly in the moonlight.

At Duke Zhen's Estate, the bronze Vermilion Bird lamps flickered with eerie blue flames, casting Duke Zhen Guo's fish-shaped tally into a grotesque, fanged mask.

Li Chen Zhou had just stepped through the gates of Duke Zhen's Estate when the servant at the entrance said, "Young Master, the Duke said he's waiting for you in the study. He wants you to go there when you return."

"Mm, I know."

He had barely crossed the threshold of the study, Li Chen Zhou's shadow just beginning to stretch across the "Rivers and Mountains" screen, when a scroll of imperial yellow silk whizzed past his ear, smashing the Ru ware celadon glaze brush washer with a 'smash'—it was the indictment against Prince Rong issued earlier that day.

"You're back?"

"Mm." Li Chen Zhou didn't stand on much ceremony with Li Qing Shan, and directly found a seat.

Li Qing Shan began, "Prince Rong has fallen."

Li Chen Zhou wasn't surprised. "Mm, I know. It was the Emperor's gambit, and I was the one who drew the blade."

"Mm? How did you know the Emperor was the one orchestrating this behind the scenes?" Li Qing Shan found it a bit unbelievable; he had thought about it for a long time before figuring it out.

"With Prince Rong's power, this case could only appear in the Brocade Guard's records if the Emperor intervened. No one else could have done it," Li Chen Zhou said nonchalantly.

"Then you still took it?" Li Qing Shan was even more surprised.

"I have my reasons for having to take it." Li Chen Zhou didn't explain further.

"The Emperor wants you to be an isolated official, a blade in his hand, simultaneously intimidating the court's civil and military officials while using their resistance to weaken Duke Zhen's Estate's influence."

Li Chen Zhou didn't think much of it. "But he doesn't know that this blade can hurt the wielder if it's not used properly."

"The case of Prince Rong ends here. It's enough that this case has toppled the Court of the Imperial Clan. Involving anyone else would be counterproductive," Li Qing Shan warned.

Li Chen Zhou nodded. The system wasn't giving him any more tasks, so naturally, he would take it slow for now. "I understand. I know what I'm doing."

"Alright, go back and rest early."