Jiang Yunshu shuddered and finally came back to her senses. Looking at Erya, she slowly wiped the blood from her face.
“N-No… I’m fine…”
Erya glanced toward Chu Yi, then at the Imperial Guards flooding into the hall. Her heart skipped a beat as she whispered nervously,
“Your Ladyship… what should we do? The Imperial Guards are here. What if they think we’re accomplices of the assassins?”
Jiang Yunshu gripped Erya’s hand, steadied herself, and walked toward Chu Yi.
The commander of the Imperial Guards, An De, stepped forward and bowed.
“Your Majesty, I arrived too late to protect you. I beg Your Majesty to punish this humble servant.”
Chu Yi expressionlessly accepted a handkerchief from the eunuch beside him and elegantly wiped the blood from his sword.
“Clean this place up. Investigate where they came from.”
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
After speaking, he tossed aside the bloodstained handkerchief, sheathed his sword, and strode out.
His chief eunuch, Wang An, immediately called out,
“Quick! Escort His Majesty back to the palace!”
“We respectfully send off Your Majesty!”
As Wang An was leaving, his eyes landed on Jiang Yunshu.
“Which palace do you belong to, Your Ladyship? Why were you here in the middle of the night?”
Erya hurriedly answered,
“Replying to Eunuch Wang, my mistress is Noble Lady Jiang from Shuixiang Garden in Anning Palace. She couldn’t sleep tonight, so she came to Fenghua Hall for a walk. We never expected to encounter assassins attempting to kill His Majesty.”
Wang An had witnessed everything.
This little noble lady had a quick mind. She had even known to rush forward and protect the emperor.
She had clearly been terrified, yet she still threw herself toward His Majesty.
Looking at Jiang Yunshu, he smiled.
“Your Ladyship has rendered the great service of protecting His Majesty today. Tomorrow, there will be a pleasant surprise for you. Return to your palace and rest early. And in the future… don’t wander around at night. Be careful where you step.”
Jiang Yunshu lowered her eyes slightly and hurriedly slipped the jade bracelet from her wrist into Wang An’s hand.
“Thank you, Eunuch Wang, for your guidance.”
Wang An had seen countless priceless treasures. Her bracelet meant little to him.
But she knew how to conduct herself.
That alone made him think highly of her.
After all, he had served beside the emperor for decades. The fact that His Majesty hadn’t allowed the assassins to harm her suggested she had already caught the emperor’s attention.
So Wang An accepted the bracelet before turning and leaving.
After sending him away, Jiang Yunshu secretly let out a long sigh of relief and returned to her palace with Erya.
Back in her quarters, Jiang Yunshu sat soaking in the bath, replaying the night’s events in her mind.
Erya chattered beside her.
“Miss, you nearly scared this servant to death today. I thought Commander An was going to arrest us as assassins too.”
Jiang Yunshu simply smiled and shook her head.
Erya sighed helplessly.
“Miss, what exactly were you doing out there tonight?”
“Taking a walk.”
Erya’s shoulders slumped.
A walk?
They hadn’t eaten meat for several days, yet her mistress still had the mood to stroll around. Worse still, she’d given away her favorite bracelet to Eunuch Wang.
How were they supposed to survive from now on?
Life was truly difficult.
Meanwhile, Jiang Yunshu was thinking about something entirely different.
Should she continue lying low in this deep palace until old age…
Or should she take another risk and see if she could somehow return to her original body?
The thought gave her a headache.
Still, one thing was certain—her life from now on probably wouldn’t be as miserable as before. Otherwise, Wang An wouldn’t have deliberately hinted at something.
Everything she had done tonight…
The tyrant must have noticed it.
But the moment she thought of that tyrant…
She shivered.
He really was a tyrant.
According to the original owner’s memories, everything about him was horrifying.
He had murdered his own mother.
Killed his younger brother to seize the throne.
Even the current empress had been taken by force.
It wasn’t because he loved her.
He had simply wanted to show the world how powerful he was.
If he wanted to snatch the princess of an enemy nation and make her his empress—
Then he would.
Just thinking about it made Jiang Yunshu want to stay as far away from him as possible.
What possible benefit could there be in getting close to a madman… a monster like that?
Deep down, she knew perfectly well that the chance of returning to her original body was almost nonexistent.
After all, transmigration itself was already something beyond explanation.
It wasn’t something she could control.
Perhaps all she could do now…
…was accept her fate.
Inside Qiankun Palace.
Chu Yi sat in the bath while Wang An and the palace attendants served beside him.
Just as he closed his eyes to rest, Commander An arrived.
Without opening his eyes, Chu Yi asked,
“Did you find out?”
Commander An nodded.
“Yes, Your Majesty. They were all members of a foreign tribe… and every one of them was a dead soldier.”
A cold smile curled at Chu Yi’s lips.
“They overestimate themselves.”
After a brief pause, he continued,
“Go… have every palace servant by her side beaten to death.”
Wang An showed no surprise, as though he had long grown accustomed to such orders, and immediately went to carry them out.
Commander An remained kneeling on the floor, trembling violently, scarcely daring to breathe.
He had arrived late to protect the emperor.
Surely His Majesty would punish him.
Yet…
A long while passed without another word.
Wang An quietly gave him a look, signaling him to withdraw.
Commander An carefully rose and silently retreated.
Only after leaving the palace did he finally let out the breath he’d been holding.
When immortals fight, it’s always the little people who suffer…
He sighed.
Who knows how much longer this bloodthirsty emperor will keep tormenting everyone?
Inside the hall, Chu Yi knew Commander An had left.
He raised a hand.
Wang An immediately understood.
The emperor wished to leave the bath.
He signaled to the attendants, who hurried over with towels, dried Chu Yi, and dressed him in his sleeping robes.
Smiling, Wang An said,
“Your Majesty has had quite a fright tonight. You should retire early.”
Chu Yi ignored him.
Instead, he walked straight to the imperial desk in the outer hall and began reviewing memorials.
Wang An remained quietly at his side.
After a while, Chu Yi suddenly looked up.
“Which palace?”
Wang An froze for a moment before realizing who the emperor meant.
“Hm… Noble Lady Jiang of Shuixiang Garden in Anning Palace.”
Jiang Yunshu’s fair, slender neck flashed through Chu Yi’s mind.
“Summon her to attend me tonight.”
Wang An was stunned.
It took him several moments to recover.
Just as he’d expected…
This little noble lady truly had a promising future ahead of her.
He immediately went to make the arrangements, sending his apprentice, Eunuch Qing, to escort Jiang Yunshu.
Before leaving, he reminded him,
“Give Noble Lady Jiang a few pointers.”
“Yes, Master!”
At Shuixiang Garden…
Erya had just extinguished the lamps and was preparing to sleep when noise suddenly came from outside.
She opened the door in confusion.
There was only Erya serving inside the residence, along with a young eunuch named Xiao Zuo who handled miscellaneous chores.
Xiao Zuo hurried inside.
“Sister Erya! Eunuch Qing from Qiankun Palace is here!”
Eunuch Qing was Wang An’s apprentice—the future successor. Seeing him was practically the same as seeing Wang An himself.
What was he doing here?
Erya thought for only a second before realization struck.
She rushed inside.
“Your Ladyship! Wonderful news! Eunuch Qing from Qiankun Palace has arrived!”
Jiang Yunshu, who had just fallen asleep, shot upright.
“Eunuch Qing? At this hour? What for?”
Only two words flashed through her mind.
Attend the emperor.
It hit her like a bolt from the blue.
Every inch of her face screamed rejection.
Th-This…
This is way too fast!
She wasn’t mentally prepared at all.
Before she could react further, Eunuch Qing entered with a group of palace attendants.
They promptly dragged her away to bathe again.
They scrubbed her from head to toe until she was thoroughly scented with fragrant oils.
Then they wrapped her tightly in a luxurious brocade quilt…
…and carried her straight toward Qiankun Palace.
Jiang Yunshu’s eyes were filled with despair.
She had no choice.
It seemed she was destined to grow old and die within these palace walls.
Though every fiber of her being resisted, there was nothing she could do.
As she gazed at the magnificent imperial palace, even after living here for several dozen days, it still felt unreal…
Like a dream.
Passing through the endless palace corridors, they had to go by the Central Palace.
From afar, agonizing screams echoed through the night.
At once, memories from the original owner surfaced.
Beating someone to death by cudgel.
That was what the screams meant.
People were literally beaten alive until they died.
And according to those memories, such scenes played out in the Central Palace every month—
Always by the tyrant’s personal order.
The empress did not love the emperor.
Nor did the emperor love the empress.
So why had the tyrant ordered the execution of the empress’s palace servants again tonight?
Suddenly, a thought struck Jiang Yunshu.
The palace was heavily guarded.
How could assassins possibly enter so easily?
Which meant…
Tonight’s assassination attempt must have been connected to the Central Palace.
Very likely…
The empress had sent the assassins to kill the emperor.
And the emperor knew it.
Executing her palace servants was his warning to her.
The realization sent cold sweat pouring down Jiang Yunshu’s back.
The emperor was insane.
The empress was no less so.
She clearly knew she was throwing eggs against a stone, yet she insisted on fighting to the bitter end, even if it meant smashing herself to pieces.
Jiang Yunshu couldn’t help feeling anxious for her.
So many innocent people had died because of her.
Didn’t she feel even the slightest bit guilty?
Lost in thought, she realized they had already arrived…
…at Qiankun Palace.