Chapter 12 To Save or Not to Save
Hong Chou's figure swayed slightly, her head lowered, not daring to show any emotion. She clutched her sleeves tightly, afraid, but more afraid of dying.
"Reporting to Eunuch, I did encounter Eunuch Yu the day before yesterday. I was ordered to pick flowers when Eunuch Yu kindly directed me towards the area around Xingqing Hall," Hong Chou slowly said, doing her best to control her trembling voice.
"Is that so?" Eunuch Kang Ning seemed somewhat skeptical. "And where did Eunuch Yu go afterwards?"
"This servant does not know. After thanking Eunuch Yu, I went to pick flowers. It seemed like Eunuch Yu headed in the direction of Ningze Garden, but I dared not ask," Hong Chou continued slowly, having rehearsed these words countless times in her mind, not daring to make any mistakes or speak out of turn.
"You truly do not know?" Eunuch Kang Ning's brows furrowed. Palace attendants who passed by had seen the two talking. He had inquired for two or three days, yet the only leads—thin as spider silk—had been severed here at Ningze Garden; no one had seen Yu Lihuai since then.
The account given by this minor palace maid held no immediate suspicion for the time being, furthermore, her frail figure matched the type his apprentice liked; that he would speak more with her was what he would do.
"You may carry on with your duties," Eunuch Kang Ning said with a wave of his horsetail whisk. Yu Lihuai's status in the palace was not such that he would vanish without a trace. He assumed these lowly palace attendants didn't have the courage for such action. Even if there was something amiss, it was not the time to startle the snake in the grass.
In the harem, the first thing Eunuch Kang Ning of significant status thought was that someone was targeting him through this incident.
Therefore, the investigation quickly extended from Bushou Palace, and news arrived swiftly. In just half a day, another eunuch had found something.
"That person?" Eunuch Kang Ning was even more puzzled.
"Master, my people found something belonging to Eunuch Yu on his servant, who was about to take it out of the palace to destroy the evidence. Now my people have detained him there. Master, we must act quickly, this matter requires your decision," Ling Qing, although not as eloquent as Yu Lihuai, was efficient and greatly trusted by Kang Ning.