Chapter 117 - 116: A Blood Feud
Faced with Consort De’s concern and her risky visit, Xia Wulei’s words instead sent a pang of pain through her heart. "Mother, how could you do this? If Father-Emperor finds out, it won’t just be you—I’ll get dragged down with you! Hurry and go back. Don’t ever come out again."
"You..." Consort De was so furious she was speechless.
Just then, Xia Wuyang withdrew his Soul Capturing Technique and erased all traces of it. He made it seem as though Xia Wulei’s anger had snapped Consort De back to her senses, making her realize what she had done. "I... for an unfilial son like you, I’ve already gone this far, and you dare to blame me? Fine, I’ll go back."
As Consort De was about to leave and return to the Cold Palace, she realized it was too late. A large contingent of the Imperial Guard had already surrounded Evergreen Hall.
"Lady De, what is the charge for leaving the Cold Palace without permission?"
The Commander of the Imperial Guard rushed into the hall, his face a mask of fury.
Consort De wanted to defend herself, but the deed was done. Having been caught red-handed, what defense could she possibly offer? "I... I was muddled for a moment. I’ll go back now."
Escorted by the Commander of the Imperial Guard, Consort De returned to the Cold Palace in a state of terror. Along the way, she was still bewildered. ’How could I have been so foolish? To think I knocked out my guards and escaped the Cold Palace just to see that bastard son of mine.’
’I was so worried about Xia Wulei, yet I never imagined he would say something like that. He has no filial piety whatsoever.’
’So stupid. I was so, so stupid. If I had known, I never would have done it. Now, I’m afraid Emperor Xia won’t let me off easily.’
Just as she feared, the news reached Emperor Xia’s ears, and he was enraged. "Consort De left the Cold Palace without permission, and Xia Wulei met secretly with a Sinful Consort. The severity of both their crimes will be increased."
"Effective immediately, Consort De’s Cultivation is to be sealed. She will remain in the Cold Palace for eternity, and no one is permitted to visit her. Xia Wulei is confined to his quarters for three years and is forbidden from taking a single step outside Evergreen Hall."
Upon receiving the news, Xia Wulei wailed, "This is all Mother’s fault! Why did she have to do that? Now I’m being punished for no reason! I was hoping to go out and find a good physician, but now look! I can’t even leave. When will my Yang Meridian ever recover? I don’t want to be a eunuch!"
Consort De’s Cultivation was also sealed, turning her into an ordinary person for the time being. She no longer had the power to escape the Cold Palace.
Seeing all this, a smile touched the corners of Xia Wuyang’s mouth. ’This isn’t over yet,’ he thought. ’This little punishment isn’t nearly enough.’
The news that Consort De’s Cultivation had been sealed was like a stone tossed into a placid lake, sending ripples throughout the Deep Palace.
Discussions erupted in every palace. Most believed Consort De was reaping what she sowed. Even Consort De herself thought she had simply been foolish, completely unaware that Xia Wuyang was pulling the strings from behind the scenes.
An eye for an eye, blood for blood. Xia Wuyang planned to repay Consort De and Xia Wulei a hundredfold for everything they had done to him.
Meanwhile, an old Palace Maid who had lived in seclusion at the Laundry Bureau for many years, now approaching her fifties, also heard the news.
Her name was Nanny Qin. Twenty years ago, her younger sister had broken Consort De’s beloved Jade Ruyi. In response, Consort De had her turned into a Human Pig—a sight too gruesome to behold.
Even Nanny Qin herself was implicated. She was publicly flogged, nearly beaten to death, and her once-delicate face was disfigured. Now, looking neither human nor ghost, she could only remain in the Laundry Bureau.
Looking at the ghastly woman in the mirror, Nanny Qin’s hands trembled. She wished she could just peel this face away.
When she thought of her sister, turned into a Human Pig by Consort De and dying a wretched death right before her eyes, an overwhelming hatred surged within Nanny Qin’s heart.
The years had not dulled the hatred in her eyes. Instead, like a strong, aged liquor, it had only grown more potent and piercing.
’It’s time for revenge,’ she thought. ’All these years of painstakingly cultivating the Concealment Dao, of learning every secret of this palace... wasn’t it all for this very day?’
Nanny Qin muttered to herself, her withered fingers clutching the hem of her clothes. "I will make her pay in blood!"
Late that night, Nanny Qin slipped away from the Laundry Bureau, stealthily making her way toward the Cold Palace.
She needed no encouragement from anyone, nor did she need Xia Wuyang to use his Illusion Technique. The moment the opportunity presented itself, Nanny Qin was ready to act.
Even Xia Wuyang, who had considered providing cover for Nanny Qin, was surprised to find that she had been preparing for decades. Despite only having a Seventh Grade Cultivation, she managed to pass through layer after layer of palace walls and sneak into the Cold Palace, accomplishing a nearly impossible feat.
The Imperial Palace was heavily guarded, with no shortage of experts from the Upper Three Grades. For a Lower Third Grade Martial Artist to sneak from the Laundry Bureau to the Cold Palace was a task harder than climbing to the heavens.
But Nanny Qin had done it. Relying on decades of cultivating her Concealing Skill and her intimate knowledge of the Imperial Palace, she had forced her way through. It was nothing short of a miracle.
The power of hatred was more astonishing than anyone could imagine.
In the Cold Palace, Consort De stared blankly into a Copper Mirror. With her Cultivation sealed, she could faintly feel her body beginning to age, a realization that filled her with terror.
Having suddenly lost her Cultivation, she was now weaker than an ordinary person. The regret in her heart was like a maggot gnawing at her bones, leaving her breathless.
’How could I have been so stupid?’ she thought. ’All for that heartless, ungrateful son, I knocked out the guards and escaped the Cold Palace, only to be endlessly blamed by him.’
’It’s like I was possessed. What am I going to do now?’
"CREAK..."
The palace door was pushed open, and Nanny Qin’s hunched figure appeared in the doorway.
"Who’s there?"
Consort De spun around warily. When she got a clear look at the visitor, a confused expression crossed her face. "You old wench, did I give you permission to enter?"
"Does Lady De not recognize me?" Nanny Qin closed the palace door and walked toward Consort De, one step at a time.
Consort De frowned. "My Dexin Palace has countless lowly servants. How could I possibly know all of them? Who in the world are you?"
"Twenty years ago, my sister broke your precious Jade Ruyi. For that, you had her turned into a living Human Pig. You nearly had me beaten to death as well, and you had my face destroyed. I wonder, does Lady De remember?" Nanny Qin’s hideous face contorted, resembling something out of a nightmare of Demons and Ghosts, and a chill ran down Consort De’s spine.
She remembered. "So, it was your wretched sister who broke my favorite Jade Ruyi. In all these years, I’ve never found another one as fine. How dare you appear before me? It seems I can’t let you live."
As she spoke, Consort De spun around and bolted for the door, opening her mouth to scream for help.
But Nanny Qin had anticipated this. She lunged forward and clamped a hand over Consort De’s mouth.
With her Cultivation crippled, Consort De had no time to react before Nanny Qin seized her. A look of sheer terror on her face, she was dragged into a nearby secret chamber. Only then did Nanny Qin let her speak.
"You audacious slave! How dare you treat me this way? Aren’t you afraid of being sentenced to death by a thousand cuts, of having your entire family wiped out?" Consort De blustered, her voice fierce but her heart filled with terror.