Mistakenly Treated The Princess As A Concubine - Chapter 111

In the dark and damp dungeon, Xuan Zhen took off her outer robe and neatly spread it as a cushion for Jiangxiao to sit on.

“Master, you’ve suffered. Please endure a few more days. Senior Brother Xuancheng knows the palace layout like the back of his hand and will surely abduct the double. Southern Chu will cooperate from within, and then the one in the palace will be exposed as a Southern Chu spy. Let’s see how she proves herself. Several feudal lords are just looking for a reason to enter the capital to protect the king. Since she doesn’t want us to live, Northern Jin won’t have peace either.” Xuan Zhen whispered into Jiangxiao’s ear.

After being poisoned by Wen Zhuojin’s incense at Tianxuan Palace, Xuan Zhen and Jiangxiao were soon captured by the arriving troops.

Xuan Zhen, deeply affected by Wen Zhuojin’s actions, grew increasingly bitter, even causing trouble in the dungeon.

Jiangxiao’s face was pale, her cheeks sunken, as if she had lost her soul, still not recovered from the previous shock, seemingly oblivious to Xuan Zhen’s words, lost in her own world.

“Why? Why?” Jiangxiao murmured softly.

Xuan Zhen looked at Jiangxiao with concern.

Since their capture, Jiangxiao had been like this.

“Master, have you forgotten? We still have gold, which can buy many things. The people from Northern Qiang and Southern Chu will surely find a way to rescue us.” Xuan Zhen said, then hesitated.

She had told Wen Zhuojin about the gold!

Wait, if Wen Zhuojin had told Yan Qinglan about the gold, why would Yan Qinglan still send people to interrogate Jiangxiao and her?

It must be because they hadn’t gotten the gold.

Who, knowing the location of such a large amount of gold, would easily tell others?

It seems the relationship between Wen Zhuojin and Yan Qinglan wasn’t as deep as it seemed, despite their previous displays of affection.

Since the people from Northern Qiang and Southern Chu didn’t know the gold had been revealed to Wen Zhuojin, they would still come to rescue them.

Thinking this, Xuan Zhen felt relieved.

“Master, I know you still think of her, I will help you. Since she can be with Wen Zhuojin, it means she can accept women. That’s good for you. Even married couples can divorce, who’s to say they won’t fall out? Master…”

Xuan Zhen looked at Jiangxiao, then decided to comfort her, perhaps only this could reignite Jiangxiao’s will to survive.

Jiangxiao’s expression changed slightly, as if moved by Xuan Zhen’s words.

Meanwhile, Wen Zhuojin took Jin Rui and a nimble maid to a small three-courtyard house she had originally prepared for Wu Yuanheng and her two cousins in Yunjing City, then went to the Marquis’s residence to fetch the fake princess.

Wen Zhuojin instructed the two to take care of the fake princess and administered medicine to her.

Jin Rui, who had seen Yan Qinglan before and knew she had been ill and almost cured by Wen Zhuojin, was puzzled to see her ill again, looking strange, but didn’t ask Wen Zhuojin, diligently caring for her with the maid.

After a long day of turmoil, Wen Zhuojin was physically and mentally exhausted, ate a little, and fell asleep before dark.

Her sleep was restless, filled with nightmares.

In her dream, a beautiful woman in a crimson undergarment looked at her with resentment, tears in her eyes.

“Ah Zhuo, why have you abandoned me? Ah Zhuo…”

The soft, aggrieved voice made Wen Zhuojin’s heart ache, wanting to embrace her immediately, but then the same face changed expression, and the scene shifted.

In a grand palace, a cold and imposing woman sat above, while Wen Zhuojin knelt below.

“Wen Zhuojin, do you know your crime?”

One by one, the 108 torture instruments of the Northern Jin government were brought out and used on Wen Zhuojin.

By the second instrument, Wen Zhuojin woke up in terror.

Sitting up abruptly, Wen Zhuojin clutched her chest, gasping for breath.

In her chest, there was fear, but more so a tearing pain.

Yunjing City was under strict lockdown for three days.

During these three days, everywhere was sealed off.

Wen Zhuojin only went out at night to the incense shop to get materials and check the situation, spending her days making incense in the house.

While in the house, Wen Zhuojin only checked on the fake princess when observing the symptoms of the incense poison, spending the rest of the time in her room.

She didn’t inquire about the fake princess’s real name or original identity.

Every time she saw the fake princess, despite knowing she wasn’t the same person, the similar features reminded Wen Zhuojin of many things.

The fake princess, suffering from addiction, especially resembled the person from before, looking pitiful.

However, Wen Zhuojin’s heart seemed dead.

Only memories remained, with no other feelings.

Despite the same appearance, she felt no delusional attachment to this fake princess.

Wen Zhuojin even felt repelled by her presence.

But since she had saved her, she had to see it through.

Fortunately, with the help of two maids, Wen Zhuojin only needed to check the situation and adjust the medication.

Jin Rui, who had always followed Wen Zhuojin, understood the relationship between Wen Zhuojin and the lady. Seeing Wen Zhuojin suddenly distant, she wondered if there was a conflict, but as a maid, she didn’t ask.

While making incense, Wen Zhuojin reconsidered her future plans.

She thought through various possibilities.

Once the lockdown ended, she would find a way to leave. Once out of Yunjing City, the world would be her oyster.

The plan to escape to Southern Chu for business, originally intended to hide Jiangxiao and take Yan Qinglan, now had to be undertaken alone.

“Miss, it seems the lockdown is over. I heard voices and went out to look. There are no soldiers around.” Jin Rui’s voice brought Wen Zhuojin back to reality.

“The lockdown is over?” Wen Zhuojin’s expression changed, and she immediately got up, took a veil hat, and went out to check.

Indeed, the outside was bustling.

Notices were posted on the streets explaining the recent events, reassuring the public.

Wen Zhuojin didn’t squeeze through to look, but someone inside read it aloud for everyone to hear.

The notice mainly stated that Jiangxiao and Northern Qiang and Southern Chu conspired to create incense poison, harming Northern Jin citizens, and joined rebel forces to usurp the throne. The emperor was assassinated by Jiangxiao’s rebels, and spies infiltrated the city, hence the lockdown.

“Now, the Princess has stabilized the situation, captured the rebel Jiangxiao and her accomplices, and suppressed the rebels, turning the tide.”

The notice ended with the achievements of Princess Yan Qinglan.

“It’s all thanks to the Princess, otherwise, our Northern Jin citizens would be in danger.”

“The Princess has been recuperating from illness for half a year, and so much has happened. As soon as she emerged, she resolved everything. Truly the reincarnation of the Celestial Lady, seeing through everything!”

“Long live the Princess, a thousand years, ten thousand years!”

After hearing the notice, Wen Zhuojin heard many people praising the Princess.

Indeed, over the past six months, Yan Qinglan’s power had been weakened, and she hadn’t participated in many palace activities.

With this notice, Yan Qinglan’s reputation soared again.

Wen Zhuojin’s mouth twitched slightly.

Did Yan Qinglan capture Yan Qi herself, attributing it to Jiangxiao’s rebels?

Killing two birds with one stone, not wasting anything.

Wen Zhuojin wasn’t interested in hearing more. She needed to go to the merchant house to see when they would leave the city, so she could follow with her people.

Wen Zhuojin had her own merchant house, but her current identity couldn’t be revealed, so she had to find a merchant house from the Dashi Country, paying some silver for accommodation.

Wen Zhuojin had learned the Dashi Country’s language, so communication wasn’t a problem.

“Now, only the Yongning Gate is open, with strict checks. Without a Northern Jin identity token, it’s hard for you to leave with us!” The Dashi Country merchant bargained with Wen Zhuojin.

Wen Zhuojin brought a lot of silver notes, reluctantly spending them on this matter.

The Dashi Country merchant smiled, taking many silver notes before agreeing to arrange several Dashi Country identities for Wen Zhuojin, dressing in their characteristic clothing and applying heavy makeup.

Even a normal Northern Jin person, with such heavy makeup, would look somewhat like a Dashi Country person.

Wen Zhuojin didn’t want to be recognized, so the heavier the makeup, the better.

While Wen Zhuojin arranged her escape plan, Yan Qinglan was in a carriage not far from the only open Yongning Gate.

Also in the carriage was Qing Chenning.

Qing Chenning’s heart was still uneasy.

She didn’t know what the Princess was thinking.

These past few days, the Princess had gone on a killing spree.

Yan Qi’s people in the court, Jiangxiao’s remaining forces, she had dealt with them all, reorganizing the corrupt Northern Jin officialdom with an iron fist.

Such a Princess, even Qing Chenning was afraid.

After making a big mistake that day, Qing Chenning feared the Princess, in her rage, might have her head chopped off. Unexpectedly, Yan Qinglan later just stopped summoning her, only having her do other tasks, like continuing to interrogate prisoners, not letting her enter the palace again.

It was only today, when Qing Chenning found some information and reported it to the Embroidered envoy to send into the palace, that Yan Qinglan summoned her.

The Embroidered envoy had captured Southern Chu spies, and during Qing Chenning’s interrogation, she learned about the conspiracy between Southern Chu and Jiangxiao. Jiangxiao’s disciple Xuancheng would abduct the fake princess and deliver her to Southern Chu, who would protect the fake princess and spread rumors throughout Northern Jin that the princess in the palace was a Southern Chu spy, and the fake princess was the real one.

The plan was good, but they waited several days without success.

When Yan Qinglan heard Qing Chenning’s report, the suppressed worries of the past few days finally erupted.

Jiangxiao and Southern Chu’s conspiracy failed, Xuancheng died, and the double was taken by someone else.

Meaning the previous speculation was overturned.

The possibility of Wen Zhuojin disappearing with the double increased.

These past few days, Yan Qinglan, besides reorganizing the court, capturing spies, and searching for remnants, had to review memorials and handle state affairs the emperor should have dealt with, keeping her extremely busy.

Amidst the turbulent court and her own plans, a thread of rationality kept her focused on state affairs.

If she concentrated her forces to find Wen Zhuojin, she might succeed, but it would disrupt the entire plan.

However, after days of suppression, hearing Qing Chenning’s report, combined with the Embroidered envoy’s reports of Wen Zhuojin’s two maids disappearing and the incense shop’s materials, including those for treating incense poison, being significantly reduced, Yan Qinglan’s thread of rationality snapped.

Southern Chu spies hadn’t been fully eradicated, some in the court still opposed her, and a pile of memorials awaited Yan Qinglan’s review, but she couldn’t care for now.

Only one city gate was open; she wanted to see if Wen Zhuojin would leave through it.

From the moment the gate opened, Yan Qinglan and Qing Chenning had been watching from the carriage.

Everyone passing through the gate was checked, carriages thoroughly searched, only allowed to leave after Yan Qinglan’s nod.

An hour passed, Yan Qinglan hadn’t seen Wen Zhuojin, still staring at the gate, her eyes slightly red, glistening with moisture.