ebookland Chapter 314: Monster Hunting (1)
Chapter 314: Monster Hunting (1)
After being asked this by Empress Li, the palace fell silent. Imperial Concubine Lin was the first to understand Empress Li's intentions. She looked up at her and then asked doubtfully, "Sister, now that you mention it, I do find it a little strange. The appearance of Imperial Concubine Yu is indeed very strange. I heard that there are no records of Imperial Concubine Yu before she entered the palace. This mystery is so strange that it seems like a fox demon in a play."
The Queen looked at Concubine Lin with a slight admiration. As expected, this former rival was the one who understood her thoughts best. However, there are no eternal enemies in this world. When the Emperor favored Concubine Yu alone, it was destined that the Queen and Concubine Lin would become friends.
These words made the concubines present explode, and the originally silent hall began to become noisy with chatter.
"That's right, that Imperial Concubine Yu really does look like a fox demon in disguise. Otherwise, why would His Majesty not attend court for three days?"
"Not only that, I heard that vixen has been pestering Your Majesty all day long lately. For so many days, you've only turned over her card."
"Yes, yes, that Imperial Concubine Yu must have used some kind of witchcraft!"
"..."
A single stone caused a thousand ripples. Before, the concubines in the palace were filled with resentment towards the inexplicably appearing Concubine Yu but were powerless to get rid of her. Now, after being reminded by three or five people, the rumor that Concubine Yu was a fox demon seemed to be true.
The person who was most satisfied with this result was the Queen. She had been feeling depressed these days because the Emperor only favored Concubine Yu. Now, seeing that everyone was acting according to the plan, she felt a little better.
"Since all of you sisters have this doubt, why not follow me? I want to see with my own eyes whether this Imperial Concubine Yu, who His Majesty is so concerned about, is a human or a demon."
As Queen Li spoke, she stood up from the phoenix chair. The palace maid beside her had already prepared a fine sable shawl. Queen Li had a graceful posture and a dignified look, and for a moment she had a bit of the charm of the mother of the country.
"Someone, please bring Taoist Master Wang over!"
The concubines then realized that the queen had already made all the arrangements and was just waiting for them to come and add fuel to the fire.
But there is one thing they are very sure of, that is, Concubine Yu, who has been in the limelight recently, is going to be in trouble!
Not long after, a thin but vigorous old Taoist priest came to Queen Li and the others with two handsome young Taoist priests. The old Taoist priest wore a white Taoist robe, and the whisk in his hand made him look a bit like a Taoist immortal, but his eyes looked wretched no matter how you looked at them.
The old Taoist priest walked up to the Queen and the others and bowed respectfully, "Amitabha Buddha, I greet you all."
"Master Wang, please stand up quickly!" Queen Li opened her mouth to give the order, but she saw that the old Taoist priest's eyes fell on Concubine Lin beside her, and there was naked greed in his eyes.
Such a look made Concubine Lin very uncomfortable. She wanted to scold him but then she remembered that this person was sent by the Queen. Even if she didn't like him, she should at least give the Queen some face. She immediately warned the Taoist priest with a cold look.
The old Taoist priest didn't seem to be angry. He just gave Concubine Lin a mysterious smile, which made Concubine Lin shocked and scared.
Queen Li saw all this and felt a little unhappy. Who on earth had this Nanny Li called in this time? How could she be so mean? Her eyes made people feel uncomfortable. I wonder if she had any ability at all.
Thinking of this, Queen Li coughed as a warning. Fortunately, the old Taoist priest did not go any further. After receiving Queen Li's warning, he stood politely with his hands hanging down, with an unfathomable look on his face, which was completely different from his wretched appearance just now.
"Master Wang, I believe you have already heard the reason why I invited you here, right?"
Taoist Wang nodded slightly, "Don't worry, Your Majesty. Since I have agreed to take action, I will naturally eliminate all the evildoers hiding in this palace one by one."
The old Taoist priest spoke in a casual tone, as if he was sweeping away the dust in the room, but this sentence made Queen Li very satisfied.
"Someone, go and summon Concubine Yu to see me!"
Queen Li gave the order, and soon a clever eunuch walked towards the Wolong Palace. According to the records, His Majesty had flipped the name card of Concubine Yu last night, so she was easy to find.
At this time, Concubine Yu had already arrived at Ju'an Hall with her two palace maids.
Yu Qingli was a little surprised by Concubine Yu's arrival. According to what they had agreed upon, Concubine Yu should not have come to see Yu Qingli in private. But today, Concubine Yu was obviously frightened by Murong Shileng's temptation and panicked for a while, so she was so impatient to find Yu Qingli.
"Her Royal Concubine has arrived. Qinghe, why don't you go and make some tea? I want the best Longjing tea before the rain."
Qing He quickly obeyed the order, but suddenly remembered that there seemed to be no Rain Dragon Well tea in the Ju'an Palace. This meant that the eldest prince's wife was trying to get rid of her. She felt increasingly puzzled. Why would this mysterious Yu Guifei come to see the eldest prince's wife? Did they know each other?
Yu Qingli found an excuse to get the others away, asked Xiao Liuzi to wait outside the door, and only let Xiluo serve in the room. Although Concubine Yu knew that her visit was a bit sudden, she was really panicked today. What's more, she had told so many lies that she couldn't even tell which ones she had said and which ones she hadn't.
When everyone left the room and only Imperial Concubine Yu and the other three were left, Yu Qingli's expression turned slightly grim. She lowered her voice and asked, "Imperial Concubine Yu, are you in trouble? Why did you come to me all of a sudden?"
Concubine Yu sighed and recounted Murong Shiling's probing attempts today. She ended with a worried look, "Miss Yu, what should I do? I'm terrified. If I keep hiding this again and again, I'm afraid I won't be able to find a suitable excuse."
Yu Qingli gave her a soothing look, "Don't worry, Concubine Yu. Judging from the current situation, you've done very well. In fact, you don't have to have any psychological burden. Just remember that you are Yu Liuli, and everything will be solved."
"Of course I don't care about that. But if Your Majesty investigates further, will he discover my identity? I don't mind it myself, but my father..."
Yu Qingli looked up at Concubine Yu, a hint of displeasure in her eyes. Was she regretting it now? Then she shouldn't have agreed to it in the first place.
Seeing the questioning and obvious alienation in Yu Qingli's eyes, Concubine Yu frowned and said, "Sorry, maybe I was too excited."
Yu Qingli was about to say something comforting when she saw Xiaoliu, who was supposed to be guarding the door, hurried in with a frown on his face.
"Master, something bad has happened. News has come from the Queen that she has united with the ladies in the palace. She has found a Taoist priest from somewhere and is trying to catch a demon! She has already sent people to Wolong Palace to look for Concubine Yu."
Concubine Yu's face was a little flustered. She stepped forward and grabbed Yu Qingli's hand, "Miss Yu, you have to save me. The Queen must be coming for me. She might even try to harm me in the name of catching a demon."
"Concubine Yu, please calm down first!" Yu Qingli's expression was stern, and she began to get anxious. This matter was unexpected, so she had no preparation at this time, but from the news, it seemed that the Queen and others wanted to prove that Concubine Yu was a monster and not an ordinary human being.
If it were just this simple, wouldn't it be enough for Concubine Yu to prove that she is a human being? But it is obvious that things should not be that simple.
Based on her understanding of Queen Li, this woman has always been cautious and watertight in her actions. In addition, her actions this time are targeted. It is feared that it will be difficult for Concubine Yu to clear her name unless she can have a justifiable identity.
Yu Qingli frowned. This matter seemed difficult to handle. She quickly came up with a solution and immediately gave an order, "Xiao Liu, go to Anle Palace immediately, and then go to the upper study..."
Yu Qingli instructed Xiaoliu on what she was going to do, then stood up from her chair and told Xiluo, "Hurry up and change my clothes. I need to accompany Concubine Yu to the Chaofeng Palace."
"Miss, if you go there in person, will you cause any unnecessary trouble?"
Xiluo was a little worried, and Yu Qingli curled her lips and smiled, "It's okay, I haven't seen how to catch monsters yet, so today is a good time to go over and see for myself!"
Concubine Yu felt relieved upon hearing this. For some reason, her intuition told her that as long as Yu Qingli was by her side, she wouldn't have to worry so much. This eldest prince's wife sometimes gave her a feeling of being unfathomable, as if there was nothing she couldn't handle as long as she took action.
As the two were talking, the palace servant sent by the queen came running in, panting. It seemed that he had already visited the Wolong Palace and followed after learning that Yu Liuli had arrived.
After hearing the palace maid explain her purpose, Yu Qingli smiled gently and elegantly, "What a coincidence! I was just about to go pay my respects to my mother when Imperial Concubine Yu came over. This is perfect. I'll go to Chaofeng Palace with Imperial Concubine Yu."
The palace maid obviously didn't expect Yu Qingli to go with Concubine Yu. However, Yu Qingli also said that she was going to pay her respects to the Queen and was just going along the way with Concubine Yu. Therefore, she didn't say anything and just led the way.
This journey was torture for Concubine Yu, but it was an enjoyment for Yu Qingli. The autumn sun was warm and it felt very comfortable shining on people. In addition, the garden was not bleak at all. The flowers were in clusters and very attractive, especially the begonias outside the Chaofeng Palace, which were extremely gorgeous. The scenery was really beautiful.
But now, it seems not the time to appreciate the beautiful scenery. She wants to see what tricks the queen can play.