Collecting Interest

Because Lingjiu Mountain was so far from the Imperial City Hunting Grounds, even hiring a carriage would mean a two-month journey to her destination.

And the journey would hardly be safe, especially since she was still a little girl who had not begun cultivating.

With that in mind, Xue Fuyao used the hair ribbon to give herself the appearance of a boy and exchanged her dress for boys' clothes.

Although she was not leaving yet, getting used to her new identity sooner would keep her from showing her tail when the time came.

Fortunately, while looting the palace earlier, she had noticed that her imperial brothers' clothes were all embroidered with gold thread and plainly worth a fortune, so she had taken them all.

Among them were quite a few clothes from when they were little, all brand-new, too.

Xue Fuyao picked out the ones that fit her, then chose the most inconspicuous-looking outfit among them to wear, planning to leave once things in the Imperial City settled down.

What she did not know was that, back at the palace, the rebel leader who had finally fought his way inside and killed the Emperor was turning green with fury as he watched the palace burn fiercely.

After finally putting out the fire, he discovered that the entire palace could only be described as empty. Not only had the Emperor's private treasury and the national treasury been cleared out, but even the consorts had not been spared.

That alone would have been one thing, but the tables, chairs, stools, and curtains were gone, too. Even the flowers in the imperial gardens had not been spared, plucked until the beds were bare. The koi in the ponds had been scooped out without a single one left, and the imperial kitchens had been emptied as well.

It could be said that, apart from the people and whatever could not be moved, nothing remained in the entire palace.

Zhang Zhenyu, the leader of this rebellion, widened his eyes, grabbed the palace servant nearest to him, and demanded loudly, "Speak! Who did this? Where did everything in the palace go?"

The palace servant shook like chaff in a sieve and said in a trembling voice, "I-I don't know either."

Zhang Zhenyu then questioned several more people in succession, but every answer was that they had no idea, that they did not know. After all, everyone had been concerned only with fleeing for their own lives at the time. Who could have spared a thought for anything else?

As for the Emperor, the one person who might have known the truth, Zhang Zhenyu had already killed him, along with all his children.

Just as Zhang Zhenyu, having slaughtered every last member of the Xue Imperial Clan, was preparing to take over the country in triumphant satisfaction, what greeted him was an empty palace.

By now, Zhang Zhenyu was convinced that the old Emperor had known he would lose and had deliberately hidden everything away.

"Search! There was so little time, they couldn't have taken those things far. Dig three feet into the earth if you have to, but find them!"

Meanwhile, after spending two quiet days in the house without anything else happening, Xue Fuyao decided to go out and gather news.

She was dressed as a boy now. The fabric of her clothes was excellent, but this was practically the most inconspicuous outfit she owned. Her formerly exquisite features had become ordinary, and at first glance, she looked like a perfectly ordinary five-year-old child.

Unfortunately, the hair ribbon could only change her appearance and voice, not the size of her body. It was still far too dangerous for a five-year-old child to go out, but she had no choice.

The entire Imperial City had now been taken over by the rebels. The once-chaotic streets were tidy again, but everyone on the roads wore a wary expression, and soldiers could occasionally be seen training in the streets.

Soon, from the conversations around her, Xue Fuyao learned that the Xue Clan had been slaughtered to the last.

The imperial family, the imperial relatives-even the daughters who had married out had not been spared.

Xue Fuyao had already experienced this once in her previous life, but going through it again still left her heart feeling painfully clogged.

A crude wooden cage hung above the palace gates, holding a bloody human head. It was her Imperial Father's head.

Across her previous life and this one, she could count the number of times she had seen this man on one hand. Though there had hardly been much affection between them, she still could not help the sting in her nose.

Fortunately, Xue Fuyao knew that shedding tears now would be no different from seeking her own death, so she held them back.

Her damp eyes gradually grew resolute.

Just then, a carriage passed beside her.

The wind lifted its window curtain, revealing the person inside.

It was a middle-aged man dressed in crimson official robes.

At the sight, Xue Fuyao's gaze darkened. In her previous life, she had discovered through her investigation that, while her Imperial Father bore some responsibility for his defeat and death, the greater reason was that more than half the officials at court had chosen to betray him.

It was precisely with these people's help that the rebels had swept forward like a blade splitting bamboo and entered the Imperial City so smoothly.

She did not yet have the ability to take revenge, but surely she could collect a little interest.

That night, Xue Fuyao disguised herself and once again crawled through a dog hole into a luxurious residence.

She did not know who owned this residence, but that did not matter. Anyone who could still live in such a lavish residence after the rebels had stormed the Imperial City was either a rebel leader or a traitor. Neither would be dying unjustly.

Xue Fuyao swept a cold gaze around her, then quickly made her way to the kitchen and took the poison she had prepared out of her Storage Bag.

She had found this poison in a consort's palace. It was called Beauty's Drunkenness, and supposedly, anyone poisoned with it would show no symptoms, merely having sweet dreams every day before dying in their dreams on the third day.

She sprinkled the poison over the ingredients in the kitchen. Once she had finished and was about to leave, she saw a furtive figure climb in through the window.

The figure was hidden in the darkness, preventing Xue Fuyao from making out the person's appearance.

However, the person did not seem to have come to the kitchen to find food, but to put something away.

Xue Fuyao watched with her own eyes as the person moved the heavy water vat aside, revealing a concealed door behind it. Only after watching the person disappear through the door did she emerge from the corner where she had been hiding.

Although she was very curious about what lay behind the concealed door, she also knew that now was not a good time to investigate. Besides, she had other things to do. There would be plenty of days to come.

She then left the kitchen on silent feet and crawled out through the dog hole.

Throughout the night, Xue Fuyao kept crawling through dog holes and spreading poison, only stopping once she had used up all the Beauty's Drunkenness she had on hand.

By now, it was broad daylight, and she yawned as she headed back.

Her current body was still too young. Staying up all night had already pushed her to her limit, and now she had to go back immediately to catch up on sleep.

On her way back, Xue Fuyao suddenly heard passersby mention the words "little princess."

Although their voices were somewhat indistinct, those words instantly chased away every trace of her drowsiness.

She hurried to catch up with the two people, wanting to find out exactly what was going on.