I don’t know when Chaoyang Palace started, but it was freezing to the bone day and night.
In the palace, maids often fell ill for no apparent reason and died in the middle of the night.
In addition, the monarch Sima Wenxin has been seriously ill since a year ago and is now on his deathbed, which makes the already solemn and cold Chaoyang Palace even more cold.
These days, after night falls in the palace, few servants dare to walk around the palace.
Sichen Palace was originally the sleeping palace of Crown Prince Sima Luo. Now it has been gradually abandoned due to the dethronement and mysterious disappearance of Sima Luo.
The surrounding area has not been cleaned for a long time and is overgrown with weeds and spiders.
Some timid servants happened to pass by the Sichen Palace at night and heard bleak cries and laughter coming from the palace.
Others say that in fact, Sima Luocheng is no longer alive, or he felt ashamed of his superiority because of his frivolous behavior towards his concubine, so he committed suicide in the Sima Palace. His body may have been eaten by monsters, so no one found him.
However, his ghost is entrenched in Sichen Palace and refuses to leave.
Only then will anyone hear those harsh laughter and cold cries.
This night, the moonlight was cold and cold, and the gauze in Sichen Palace was fluttering in the wind, but there was a faint scent of agarwood, and thin smoke was scattered in the palace due to the cold night wind.
A red shadow flew in, walking slowly among the gauze and mist.
In a moment, the palace door creaked open, and a man in black came in from outside the palace, took a few steps forward, and knelt at the feet of the red figure.
The words were low and hoarse, without a trace of emotion, "Reporting to your Majesty, according to reports from Shang Kingdom spies, Sima Luo City has been personally escorted by the Shang Kingdom King to take refuge in the Northern Kingdom!"
Hearing this, the red shadow gently teased the gauze in front of her eyes. Through the moonlight, she could see a pair of extremely white and slender hands. The nails on her ten fingers were painted with bright red khaodan. At this moment, she was slowly lifting the kneeling man.
The jaw of the man in black at her feet.
"Oh?! Didn't you just tell me that he died of the plague?" Her tone sounded charming, and her index finger caressed his cheek, making him feel numb all over and the corners of his lips trembled slightly.
.
"My Majesty, please forgive me! It's my subordinate who didn't do his job well, so please punish me!" A trace of guilt flashed across the face of the man in black, but in his heart he hoped that she would give him another chance.
But she didn't say anything for a long time, she just looked down at him quietly, narrowed her slender eyes slightly, and let go of the hand that was originally covering his face.
Taking a step back, a ray of moonlight happened to shine into the hall, covering her whole body.
The man in black glanced secretly, only to see the person in front of him in a red shirt and thin skirt. He had a lightly rolled up bun, his jade shoulders were slightly exposed, and his graceful figure attracted people's imagination.
Her charming face, even without makeup, still makes people enchanted.
I think back then, just because of her looking back and smiling, I was willing to degenerate from the guard commander of Chaoyang Palace to a chess piece in her hands, letting her do whatever she wanted.
Just when he was deep in thought, he heard her soft words float into his ears, "Have you seen enough?"
The man in black hurriedly lowered his head and kowtowed, "I don't dare! Please ask the empress to let my subordinates perform meritorious service and go to the North Kingdom to kill that Sima Luo city to avoid future troubles!"
"No need! I have my own arrangements for this matter! Your mission ends here! Thank you for your hard work these days, Commander Ji!"
A trace of panic flashed across the eyes of the man in black, and an ominous premonition arose spontaneously.
"Haha!" After she heard her charming smile, the man in black, whom she called Commander Ji, fell down in response. His eyes were straight and his whole body was stiff.
Then, the red shadow flew away in the wind, leaving only the light gauze and agarwood floating in the wind in the morning palace.
That night, another attendant of the Department of Internal Affairs fell ill and died in the middle of the night.
That night, the guards who were on duty passing by Sichen Palace clearly heard the cold laughter coming from the palace.
Xuanyang, Nancheng Gongbo Mansion Villa.
Most of the maids and attendants were sent back to the uncle's mansion in the city by Gongbo Longhai, leaving only two strong nurses, four smart and well-behaved maids, a steward and an excellent cook.
Mother, take care of the daily life of Xi Meng and his party in this villa.
It's about Hai hour, it's late at night and everyone is quiet.
Only the wing room where Mu Zili lived was still lit.
In the room, Simeng suppressed sleepiness and listened carefully to Sima Luocheng's arrangements.
"What worries me most now is the safety of your father and my third brother, so I need to trouble you both to help me enter the palace to investigate."
Mu Zili nodded, "This is easy, but it's difficult to reveal the whereabouts of the young master. It's better for me and Meng'er to go there."
"Exactly, we'd better work separately! Did Baili Rong tell you who to help you when you return to Xuanyang City? You won't just wait like this, right?" She seemed to be dreaming about that night with him.
In the Zhaohe Palace, he once borrowed 50,000 troops from Bai Lirong, but now he has no soldiers for his use, so he is a little worried about whether Bai Lirong will deceive him.
Sima Luocheng's eyes paused, and then he said: "Meng'er doesn't have to worry about this. Bai Lirong has signed the alliance and will not regret it. She told me to just leave my mark at Furuiju, the largest inn in the city.
Then someone will come looking for me. Then just follow the plan!"
"In this case, let's go to Furuiju early tomorrow morning, and I will go to the palace with Senior Brother Mu at night." Xi Meng felt a little relieved after hearing what he said. Seeing that the night outside the window was getting darker, he added, "Tonight
Now, you should go back and rest early!"
The next day, Chen time.
Due to the sensitive status of Sima Luocheng, it was inconvenient to show up. After careful consideration, today's trip to the city was still carried out by Mu Zili and Simeng.
In order to keep a low profile, the two of them dressed up as ordinary people and walked all the way to Furuiju.
In Xuanyang City, most of the shops facing the street were not open for business, and there were few pedestrians walking on the street.
It was clear that the sun was shining brightly and the autumn air was crisp, but the city was actually a desolate scene, dead silent and lifeless.
Along the way, they saw nothing more than a few grocery stalls and noodle stalls. Most of the inns and restaurants facing the street were empty and no one was interested.
Shi Meng was filled with doubts. Xuanyang City was still the capital of the Yun Kingdom. Even if the country's power declined, it should not be so depressed.
The street in front of her could accommodate at least four carriages at the same time. Now, apart from her and Mu Ling, there were only three or four people scattered at the noodle stall in the front right on the entire street.
Look at the closed doors and windows of many shops along the street. The faded ribbons and silk fabrics are floating in the wind on the window lattice. Most of the shop signs on the door frames are inlaid with gold edges. They are still shining dazzlingly in the sun. All this shows that this place is here.
The prosperity and liveliness of the past.
Turning the corner, what comes into view is the once-famous Furuiju.
Although it is not as beautiful as it was back then, it is still lively compared to other inns and restaurants in the city.
There are also many businessmen gathered on the two streets adjacent to Furuiju.
The ups and downs of the hawking sounds, as well as the pedestrians stopping in front of the stalls in twos and threes, made Simeng's originally depressed mood slightly improve.