Mistakenly Treated The Princess As A Concubine - Chapter 97

Inside the Zichen Hall, the incense burner emitted a thin wisp of smoke, and soon the hall was filled with a hazy mist.

Yan Qinglan covered her nose and waved her hand to disperse the surrounding scent, suppressing her discomfort.

Even though the divine incense had already been declared poisonous, the princess’s palace was still burning it.

The person responsible for burning the incense had been arranged by Yan Qi. Yan Qinglan, not wanting to involve the embroidered envoys, did not order anyone to extinguish the incense.

“Your Highness, Miss Wen has left the palace and was not selected to become a consort. Also, His Majesty is on his way here.” an embroidered envoy who had been sent out to gather information hurriedly reported to Yan Qinglan.

Hearing that Wen Zhuojin had left the palace, Yan Qinglan finally felt a sense of relief.

Her business in the palace was nearly concluded. Since Wen Zhuojin had already left, she could also make her exit.

However, Yan Qi’s arrival at this moment was rather inconvenient.

Yan Qi would likely bring a contingent of the Black Armored Army with him, making it difficult for Yan Qinglan to leave without being noticed. She would have to deal with him first before making her escape.

As the eunuch announced Yan Qi’s arrival, the emperor strode into the hall.

“Elder Sister, the matter with Tianxuan Palace will soon be resolved. The noble families who once used the divine incense will soon turn to my side and no longer believe in Jiangxiao. Elder Sister, I can do this, I can handle everything properly!” Yan Qi said as he entered, his voice still carrying a youthful tone, as if seeking praise.

Hearing Yan Qi’s words, Yan Qinglan sensed that he was in a good mood, as if he had encountered some good news and had come to show off to her.

Just like when they were children.

But the current situation was far from what it had been in their childhood.

Would those followers really change their allegiance so easily?

What had given him such confidence?

“…Ah Qi, you have indeed grown up. You no longer need me.” Yan Qinglan sighed.

“Elder Sister, do you know where Jiangxiao has hidden all the silver Tianxuan Palace has extorted over the years? The shops and properties we’ve confiscated so far only account for a small portion. Is the rest still hidden within Tianxuan Palace?” Yan Qi asked another question.

“Jiangxiao and I were never of one mind. How would I know? Ah Qi, why don’t you let me out and allow me to investigate? I haven’t been able to leave all day, and the divine incense is still burning in my room. Why is that?” Yan Qinglan asked.

After Jiangxiao imprisoned Yan Qinglan, she had moved a large amount of silver. Later, the silver from the major imperial merchants was also seized by Jiangxiao. If this silver couldn’t be accounted for, its whereabouts would indeed be a problem.

“Elder Sister, rest assured. Everything I do is for your own good. Since you don’t know, I will investigate and find out. I will handle everything properly. You no longer need to worry about anything. From now on, you don’t need to concern yourself with anything. Just live a carefree life.” Yan Qi said, his expression changing as if he had finally removed a mask. His voice was cold, and his demeanor was distant and indifferent.

“Ah Qi, is imprisoning me and continuing to expose me to the incense poison also for my own good?” Yan Qinglan asked, the last remnants of her affection for him crumbling once again.

“You’re becoming more and more confused. My name is not something just anyone can call, not even you. I am the emperor of Northern Jin. You should have known this long ago. Losing the Golden Fish Token was a grave crime, but I chose to let it go out of consideration for our past relationship. As long as you don’t interfere and don’t ask for too much, I will treat you well.” Yan Qi said, his voice icy.

“…” Yan Qinglan remained silent, a sarcastic smile flickering at the corner of her lips before disappearing.

The pretense they had maintained before was now completely shattered.

The so-called affection between them was limited to letting bygones be bygones.

“Take good care of the Princess!” Yan Qi said, seeing that Yan Qinglan was no longer speaking. He then turned and left in a huff.

After he left, Yan Qinglan returned to her inner chamber to change her clothes.

The double that Jiangxiao had found for her, Yan Qinglan continued to use, with embroidered envoys accompanying her.

The double was deeply addicted to the incense poison, even more so than Yan Qinglan had been.

After changing her clothes and making slight adjustments to her appearance to disguise herself, Yan Qinglan followed an embroidered envoy out of the palace.

Compared to the stifling atmosphere inside Zichen Hall, the air outside the palace felt much fresher.

Meanwhile, Wen Zhuojin had already been out of the palace for some time.

Wen Zhuojin had initially wanted to go find her beloved sister immediately. She was on her way to Lanyuan to ask the guards who relayed messages about her sister’s current location. However, just as she was nearing Lanyuan, her carriage was stopped by a beggar.

The beggar was disheveled and dressed in rags. Wen Zhuojin asked the coachman to give the beggar some silver, but the beggar refused the money, tossing it back into the carriage and leaning close to whisper Wen Zhuojin’s name.

Hearing the voice, Wen Zhuojin gasped.

It was Xuanzhen’s voice!

Earlier in the palace, she had heard that most of Jiangxiao’s disciples had been captured, including Xuanzhen. How was she here? Had she escaped?

That useless emperor couldn’t even keep his prisoners under control!

Wen Zhuojin thought for a moment. If she were to call for help now, Xuanzhen would undoubtedly be captured.

But if Xuanzhen were captured, Wen Zhuojin would be seen as a traitor in the eyes of Jiangxiao’s remaining followers!

Before Jiangxiao was completely defeated, Wen Zhuojin didn’t want to become a target for assassination.

“You greedy beggar. Fine, take her back for a meal before sending her away.” Wen Zhuojin said after a moment of thought.

As for Xuanzhen, the little goodwill Wen Zhuojin had felt for her had long since vanished after Xuanzhen had tried to arrange for her to enter the palace and compete for the position of empress, even using her beloved sister as a hostage.

Now, she only saw Xuanzhen as a lead.

If she could extract some information about Jiangxiao’s hidden forces from Xuanzhen, she could help bring them down sooner and eliminate future troubles.

After the carriage entered Lanyuan, Wen Zhuojin dismissed the others and was left alone with the beggar-like Xuanzhen. Only then did Xuanzhen push aside her messy hair, revealing a smudged face.

“Ah Zhuojin, have you heard? That dog emperor has turned on us! He’s trying to capture Master and all of us disciples to punish us! He’s even claiming that the divine incense is a poisonous drug, slandering Master as a spy from Chu! How outrageous!” Xuanzhen, who had been holding back her emotions, now spoke with agitation to Wen Zhuojin.

“I’ve been in the palace these past few days and didn’t know the details. How could this happen? Master and my wife are both trapped in Tianxuan Palace. I don’t know if they’ve been hurt or are starving. Ah, what can we do about this situation?!” Wen Zhuojin had no choice but to play along.

“It’s a long story…” Xuanzhen grabbed Wen Zhuojin’s arm and began recounting her recent experiences.

She spoke of how the emperor had turned on them, how she had been captured, interrogated, and the hardships she had endured in prison.

Wen Zhuojin listened for a while, then had a maid bring food and clean clothes. After Xuanzhen had freshened up, her emotions stabilized somewhat.

“To be honest, I wasn’t selected to be a consort. These past few days, I’ve just been under house arrest for observation. Perhaps because of Master’s situation, the emperor is wary of me. If it weren’t for my knowledge of the incense formula for horse breeding, I might have been imprisoned as well. But if it weren’t for that, I wouldn’t have been able to see you, Senior Sister. Senior Sister, with Master and my wife still trapped, do you have any ideas on how to rescue them?” Wen Zhuojin asked, her expression filled with concern. She was worried that Jiangxiao, like Xuanzhen, might escape!

Was that emperor even competent?

As Xuanzhen listened to Wen Zhuojin’s words, her gaze grew more affectionate.

Although Wen Zhuojin hadn’t been chosen as a consort, she was still able to move about freely, which was good news.

Now that Yan Qi had issued an edict declaring Jiangxiao’s faction a cancerous tumor, Wen Zhuojin’s ability to protect herself, remember past kindness, and still try to rescue her was commendable.

“I never expected Tianxuan Palace to be surrounded and for me to be captured so quickly! I was lucky to escape, but I can’t even leave the city. After thinking about it, the only person I could turn to in Yunjing City is you. Besides the shops and banks openly affiliated with Tianxuan Palace, there’s also a large amount of gold stored in a house. Master once said that if we were ever in danger, we could take the gold from that house and leave Yunjing City. Master is still trapped, so I won’t take the gold and flee. I only want to use it to rescue Master. Are you willing to help me with this?” Xuanzhen asked, looking at Wen Zhuojin.

The main reason Xuanzhen had come to Wen Zhuojin was that Tianxuan Palace held a “hostage” and Wen Zhuojin’s abilities were indeed impressive.

“Senior Sister, if we can rescue Master and my wife, I would go through fire and water without hesitation!” Wen Zhuojin immediately declared, her tone righteous, though her heart raced.

The gold hidden by Tianxuan Palace—how much could it be?

All ill-gotten gains!

“Good! I knew you were a person of integrity! The gold is hidden… There’s too much of it, and I can’t move it alone in my current state. I’ll need your help.” Xuanzhen said excitedly, revealing the location of the hidden gold.

“What will we use the gold for? How will it help us rescue them?” Wen Zhuojin asked.

“I’ve thought about it. We can use part of the gold to bribe people in Yunjing City. There are still some who secretly support Master, and they need the divine incense. If we give them some gold, they should be willing to help. We can use another portion to seek help from Southern Chu! Since the dog emperor claims Master is colluding with Southern Chu, we might as well seek their assistance!” Xuanzhen said, her expression turning fierce.

“Once we rescue Master, your wife will be saved too. I’m counting on you, Ah Zhuojin.” Xuanzhen concluded.

“…Alright, I’ll do my best!” Wen Zhuojin agreed.

Wen Zhuojin understood that Xuanzhen was entrusting her with such an important task mainly because of the “hostage” they held.

But what Xuanzhen was asking her to do was treasonous and punishable by death.

Wen Zhuojin never imagined that after living a disciplined life for so many years, she would one day find herself in such a situation.

Fortunately, the person they had sent was a fake. If it had been the real one, Wen Zhuojin might have actually gone along with Xuanzhen’s plan.

Now that her greatest enemy, Jiangxiao, was on the verge of being captured, and the emperor had promised not to make her a consort, why would she rebel?

Unless she had a death wish.

Yunjing City was her home, and her uncle and aunt were about to return from their post. If everything remained peaceful, it would be best for everyone to live in harmony without having to flee far from home.

From Xuanzhen, Wen Zhuojin learned about some people who could be contacted to rescue Jiangxiao. After discussing a concrete plan, Wen Zhuojin arranged for Xuanzhen to rest.

As soon as Xuanzhen left, Wen Zhuojin hurriedly sought out the guards left at Lanyuan to inquire about her beloved sister’s situation.

“Madam is waiting for you at the house on Wu Jiu Lane.” the guard whispered upon hearing Wen Zhuojin’s question.

Wen Zhuojin had initially thought her beloved sister had already left Yunjing City.

After all, that was what she had instructed Manager Lin to do when they parted. If they had moved quickly, they might have already reached the capital of Southern Chu.

She never expected her sister to have returned to Yunjing City!

Why hadn’t she listened? Why had she come back?

Wen Zhuojin’s eyes grew warm, and her bl00d surged. Without another word, she hurriedly made her way to Wu Jiu Lane.