“Dou Hongyan, do you still remember what Ji Jingyi said that day?” Ji Lan asked.
“Of course, I remember. That old man said he had poisoned Ji Zhao, who would surely die within fifteen days. To prevent Ji Zhao from discovering it, the poison would create the illusion of increased inner strength for the first ten days…” Dou Hongyan paused, “That old man is stalling for time.”
“I’m afraid Ji Zhao’s condition for these ten days is not increased inner strength but rather weakness,” Ji Lan squinted his eyes and sneered. “The Xuanjing Sect is built among the mountains. If they fled in haste, they must have headed into the mountains. If Ji Zhao is weak during these ten days, their escape will not be swift. There are only a few days left until the tenth day. Order the Imperial Guards to search the mountains thoroughly and find Ji Zhao and that mother and child within two days. No need to capture them alive. Kill them on sight.”
“Yes.” Dou Hongyan received the order and asked, “Should we deploy all fifty thousand Imperial Guards to search the mountains?”
Ji Lan hesitated for a moment before saying, “Recall thirty thousand by noon tomorrow.”
Ji Lan was determined to kill Wen Jingshan and her child, but the most dangerous enemy at hand was Ji Yan. Ji Yan was lurking in the shadows, and Ji Lan did not dare to deploy all the Imperial Guards.
Ji Chong was dead, and Ji Lan did not worry about an unborn child taking his throne. What concerned him was the exposure of his scheme against Ji Chong years ago. If Ji Yan found that mother and child first and uncovered evidence of Ji Chong’s murder…
Ji Lan asked again, “Why haven’t the people sent to Prince Wuxian’s residence returned?”
As soon as he spoke, the guards sent to investigate hurried over.
“Your Majesty, there is only a deaf and mute old man sweeping the grounds at Prince Wuxian’s residence. All the masters and servants have disappeared!”
Ji Lan’s face turned cold, and he angrily said, “Good for you, Gu Jingyuan! You put on a show of relinquishing power and living in seclusion, but secretly harbor malicious intent!”
Dou Hongyan spoke grimly, “A few days ago, his eldest daughter went out of the city to pursue Duke Xiangxi. Could it be that they had prepared in advance?”
“Hmph. Ji Yan covets my throne, and Gu Jingyuan also wants to rebel and change the dynasty?” Ji Lan was furious. “Summon the soldiers immediately to chase westward and catch up with Duke Xiangxi and his group! Kill them all!”
Ji Lan spent the whole day restless, waiting for news that never came. In the afternoon, feeling he could not remain anxious any longer, he got up and went to the Imperial Garden for a walk to cool his head, not allowing anyone to follow him.
Since childhood, whenever he was upset, he liked to walk alone along the red walls of the palace. The palace was so vast that by the time he reached the end, his frustration would be gone. He disliked having eunuchs follow him closely. Xiao Liuzi would always lag behind seven or eight steps, carrying a cloak, a paper umbrella, or holding a lantern for him.
Ji Lan pulled at the corners of his mouth in a self-deprecating smile.
The world is unpredictable, and people’s hearts are hard to fathom.
Ji Lan walked aimlessly, eventually finding himself in front of an abandoned palace. The palace was small and far less grand than other places, and it had long been deserted, with weeds growing in the courtyard.
Ji Lan suddenly felt a dull pain in his heart. Stiffly, he raised his hand and pushed open the lacquered red door.
Step by step, he walked forward, as if retracing the shameful past. This was where his biological mother had lived, and where he had spent his childhood.
Unlike the other princes who had powerful maternal families for support, Ji Lan’s biological mother was just a maidservant beside Imperial Concubine Wu. She gained favor and gave birth to him. At that time, Imperial Concubine Wu had only a princess under her care, so Ji Lan was taken to her side and called her mother.
Imperial Concubine Wu hated his biological mother.
From the moment Ji Lan could remember, his life was filled with constant beatings and scoldings.
Just a moment ago, needles were stabbed under his nails. The next moment, his father arrived, and he had to pretend nothing had happened, struggling to hold the pen and write. Imperial Concubine Wu never left visible marks on his body, and later, she didn’t even bother having others torment him, ordering him to pierce the needles into his own body without crying. She lounged lazily on the chaise longue, laughing softly.
He was a prince and had to be bullied subtly. However, his mother could be openly bullied by Imperial Concubine Wu. Slapping and scolding were common. Despite being surrounded by palace maids, Imperial Concubine Wu would have his mother wash her feet, and during the process, the foot-washing water would always end up all over his mother.
Ji Lan would never forget that winter when Imperial Concubine Wu went to the plum garden to admire the blossoms. Snow fell on the stone bench, and although it was brushed away, it remained ice-cold. Imperial Concubine Wu, claiming to be tired, stopped the little eunuch from fetching a chair and arrogantly ordered Ji Lan’s mother to kneel and serve as her seat.
Ji Lan’s robe, embroidered with a fierce, coiled dragon, brushed against the weeds in the courtyard as he walked step by step up the stairs and sat down on the topmost step. Just like when he was a child, he sat there waiting for his mother to return.
His mother always advised him to endure. When she was bullied severely, she would hug Ji Lan and weep, crying out hoarsely for him to succeed.
Ji Lan obediently called Imperial Concubine Wu ‘mother,’ served her tea, massaged her shoulders, and legs. He was as obedient as a dog.
Later, when Imperial Concubine Wu became pregnant, she secretly consulted a physician and found out she was expecting a little prince. In great spirits, she bullied Ji Lan and his mother less.
Ji Lan stood in front of her, smiling obediently. “When my little brother is born, I will protect him well. No one can bully my brother!”
A child’s eyes are so sincere and bright. Imperial Concubine Wu, pleased, patted his head and praised him for being so good and understanding.
Then, six-year-old Ji Lan pushed Imperial Concubine Wu.
A mother and her unborn child died together.
She cried so miserably; who knows if in the afterlife, she was chased by evil spirits.
Ji Lan cried sorrowfully beside her, and everyone praised his filial piety, but no one knew the joy in his heart.
In this world, it is indeed the law of the jungle, and the palace is even more so, with everyone scheming against each other. It’s a matter of life and death. Everyone wears a mask, hiding their true faces. To avoid being bullied, one must climb higher and higher, to the very top.
The journey was arduous, but he was not weary because of his aspirations.
Ji Lan bent down, broke off a stalk of foxtail grass, and recalled how his mother taught him to weave grasshoppers in his childhood. Unfortunately, it had been so long that he had forgotten how to do it.
The person he longed to protect had passed away many years ago from illness. He had not been able to let her enjoy a moment of peace.
The grass in his hand slowly fell to the ground.
Sun Yinzhu, wrapped in a large cloak, hurried to the Eastern Depot. Those at the Eastern Depot tried to stop her but dared not truly obstruct her.
Sun Yinzhu found Ji Jingyi curled up in a pile of dry grass, covered in blood, barely breathing.
She crouched in front of Ji Jingyi, carefully examining his expression. Confirming that he was still alive, she said, “Mr. Ji, how about we make a deal?”
Ji Jingyi remained motionless.
“I heard that Mr. Ji is highly skilled in medicine and excels in making drugs. I can save you if you have a feign-death drug.”
Ji Jingyi slowly opened his eyes and glanced at her.
A little palace maid, who had been standing guard outside, came running in, saying anxiously, “Madam, Supervisor Dou has arrived!”
Sun Yinzhu frowned.
“I’ll come back to see you next time, sir.” Sun Yinzhu stood up and walked out with an air of nonchalance. As she walked out, she ran into Dou Hongyan. Before he could speak, she burst into anger, “Pah! What kind of divine doctor is he? He doesn’t even have medicine to make someone taller.”
Dou Hongyan was taken aback for a moment and asked speechlessly, “Madam, you came into such a dirty place just for that kind of medicine?”
“What do you mean by that look of disdain?” Sun Yinzhu lifted her skirt, jumped up, and patted Dou Hongyan’s forehead. “Hmph, tall people don’t understand the worries of short people. Not only does the Supervisor stand without back pain, but he also speaks sarcastically.”
Dou Hongyan was somewhat speechless about Sun Yinzhu’s childish antics, but given her status, he bent down, smiled apologetically, admitted his mistake, and even promised to help Sun Yinzhu find the medicine.
Gu Jianli fled into the mountains with her household on the night of the seventeenth of the twelfth lunar month, first by carriage, and later, when the mountain roads became impassable for carriages, by horseback. By the following night, even the horses were unusable.
Gu Jianli instructed Changfeng and Changlin to lead the horses and tie them on a different path to mislead the pursuers.
She had Changfeng lead the way.
Changsheng carried Ji Wujing on his back and followed closely. Yuanshun was beside her, occasionally helping out.
Originally, Gu Jianli had Lizi take care of Ji Xinglan along the way, but seeing that the maidservant Xiaohe beside Wen Jingshan was unreliable, she had Lizi and Xiaohe take turns carrying the ailing Wen Jingshan.
Nanny Lin and Jixia took turns carrying Ji Xinglan, while Yuanping and Yuan’an took turns carrying Ji Xinglou. Although Ji Xinglou was young, he was quite strong and walked most of the way himself, only being carried during rough parts.
Changlin brought up the rear.
After a day and night of trekking, everyone except the few men was exhausted.
“Changlin, hurry ahead and find a place where everyone can rest for a while,” Gu Jianli said, panting.
Yuanshun, holding Gu Jianli’s arm, said with concern, “Madam, if we keep walking, let me carry you!”
Gu Jianli looked at Yuanshun’s pale, tired face and shook her head.
In such a life-and-death situation, there’s no point in maintaining the master-servant hierarchy. Everyone was tired, and everyone was struggling. Except for Wen Jingshan, who had difficulty walking, and the two children who needed care, everyone else could take care of themselves.
Changfeng found a cave, and the group quickly hid inside, taking out water and dry food and eating hungrily.
Gu Jianli sat down, her back against the cold, hard rock wall. She lowered her head, massaging her legs that had almost lost all sensation from the long journey. Seeing everyone so exhausted, she decided they wouldn’t move tonight and would rest here. They took turns keeping watch and sleeping.
The men claimed they could hold out without sleeping, but Gu Jianli shook her head and refused to let them stay awake. Who knows what tomorrow holds? Even the strongest men can’t endure such strain without rest.
“Madam, have some water,” Jixia said, handing a water pouch to Gu Jianli before she had taken a sip herself.
Gu Jianli took a sip and handed it back.
She turned her head to look at Ji Wujing, only then noticing a smudge of dirt on his left cheek, likely from brushing against something during their flight.
If he knew his face was dirty, he would certainly be unhappy, looking at her listlessly, dragging out her full name in his discontent.
Gu Jianli poured a little water from the pouch into her palm and bent down to carefully wipe the dirt from Ji Wujing’s face. After cleaning his face, she lowered her eyes to examine his complexion closely.
Ji Wujing’s complexion was worsening by the day. Now, his pale face had a strange, eerie blackness to it, cold and sinister.
Gu Jianli frowned and gently squeezed his cool hand.
You’re forcing the poison out, right? You’ll wake up the day after tomorrow, won’t you?
I’m so tired from all this walking. Please wake up soon and carry me.