The Return of the Seventh Young Lady-Chapter 168 - 167

Chapter 167

The Royal Palace

Inside the Empress Dowager’s residence, she was reclining on a daybed when a palace maid hurriedly approached and reported to her personal attendant. Upon hearing the news, the attendant’s face changed color immediately.

"Your Majesty, there’s been an incident at Shin Wang Palace!"

The attendant swiftly reported to the Empress Dowager. Hearing that it was related to Shin Wang, the Empress Dowager’s heart skipped a beat. Mu Tingge was heavily pregnant and close to giving birth; any incident could be extremely dangerous.

"What happened?" the Empress Dowager asked sternly, her expression turning serious.

"Last night, there was a fire at the guest quarters of the imperial temple. Shin Wang sustained severe burns, and all the servants who accompanied him were burned to death."

"And what about Mu Tingge? Ai Jia recalls Shin Wang took her to pray at the temple. How is she?" The Empress Dowager asked, clearly alarmed.

The palace maid hesitated before answering, "Mu...Mu Tingge has gone missing, Your Majesty. When the fire was extinguished at dawn, someone went in to investigate and found only two bodies in the room, both belonging to her maids. There was no trace of Mu Tingge herself."

Hearing this, the Empress Dowager’s face turned pale and then darkened with worry. It was impossible for a heavily pregnant woman to disappear without a trace on her own. It must have been the work of someone who kidnapped her!

"Go! I will visit Shin Wang at his palace myself. Take all the royal physicians with us!"

The Empress Dowager commanded sternly. She quickly got up to change her clothes, preparing to leave the palace to visit Shin Wang. No matter what, she had to get to the bottom of this incident. The most important thing was the safety of Mu Tingge and her unborn child.

If the child in the womb was harmed, the Empress Dowager would be heartbroken for the rest of her life...

Shin Wang Palace

After Shin Wang was rescued from the inferno at the imperial temple, the guards swiftly brought him back to the palace for immediate medical attention. Royal physicians were summoned urgently, creating a chaotic scene as they rushed in and out of Shin Wang Palace.

At dawn, the Empress Dowager arrived at Shin Wang Palace with the remaining royal physicians to provide the best possible care for Shin Wang. While the physicians tended to his burns and injuries, the Empress Dowager summoned the guards present at the incident for a detailed inquiry.

"Explain everything to me. How could such a calamity occur?"

The Empress Dowager’s cold gaze swept over the kneeling guards, making them feel immense pressure. One of the guards stepped forward to recount the events.

"Your Majesty, we were originally patrolling the perimeter of the imperial temple to ensure safety. When the incident occurred, we discovered that the guards stationed around the guest quarters had been poisoned and killed. By the time we returned to the guest quarters, the fire had already broken out."

"Upon inspection, we found that the fire was not accidental. There were traces of oil deliberately poured around the guest quarters, particularly around the three rooms where the people from Shin Wang Palace were staying. This caused the fire to spread rapidly and fiercely so that it’s hard to put down. All the people inside the rooms were likely drugged, otherwise, they would have noticed the fire."

"How did you patrol so that you allowed outsiders to commit such an audacious act?"

The Empress Dowager’s voice was cold, and her expression turned unusually dark with anger. They were the imperial guards who protected Shin Wang, but they had allowed outsiders to harm Shin Wang instead. Their failure was intolerable!

"Your Majesty, during our patrol, we were certain no outsiders had entered. This must have been a premeditated act, with insiders involved, waiting for the right moment. I believe the culprits are among those in the imperial temple."

"Then drag them out! Be they monks or mere sweepers, bring them here!"

The Empress Dowager commanded fiercely, glaring at the guards with anger before the guards accepted the orders and quickly left.

The Empress Dowager closed her eyes, trying to calm the fury boiling inside her. From what she had heard, the mastermind behind this attack had planned meticulously. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have executed it so flawlessly. But who could want to harm Shin Wang so badly?

Why did the other party capture Mu Tingge?

Was it because of the child in her womb?

If it wasn’t to use the child as leverage against Shin Wang in the future, why else would they capture Mu Tingge?

Given the circumstances, the enemy intended to poison everyone in Shin Wang Palace, including Shin Wang himself, before dousing the residence in oil and setting it ablaze, hoping to kill everyone in the ensuing fire. It’s highly probable that Shin Wang would perish in such a fire, eliminating any need to capture Mu Tingge for negotiation purposes.

However, if it were for a different reason, the enemy’s capture of Mu Tingge might have been due to a personal vendetta, intending to separate Mu Tingge specifically...

As the Empress Dowager pondered and analyzed the unfolding events, someone came to inform her that the royal physicians had stabilized Shin Wang’s condition. When the Empress Dowager entered to see Shin Wang, now almost entirely bandaged except for his face, she was quite shocked.

The royal physician reported Shin Wang’s injuries candidly: he had been severely burned all over his body, resulting in numerous blisters that would be difficult to heal back to normal skin. His left leg had been crushed by a heavy wooden beam, breaking the bone, and the heat had severely damaged the skin, necessitating the amputation of his left leg to save his life.

Ultimately, even though Shin Wang survived, it was a fate worse than death!

His skin was entirely blistered, causing irritation and pain with any change in the air or a mere breeze. When the wounds healed, they would leave horrific scars. The loss of his left leg rendered him disabled, unable to walk normally ever again.

From a capable and heroic man, he was reduced to a disabled person, hideous and frightening overnight!

Ordinary people would struggle to accept such a condition, let alone Shin Wang. When he regained consciousness, he would likely go mad...

The Empress Dowager, after seeing Shin Wang’s condition and hearing the physician’s report, felt weak and light-headed, almost fainting, necessitating immediate attention from the physicians. Shortly after the Empress Dowager recovered, another shocking report came in.

"Y...Your Majesty, Mu Tingge has been found."

A guard from Shin Wang Palace reported with a trembling voice. Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager felt that not all news today was terrible, and she felt significantly better. "Has she returned? Bring her to me!"

"She...uh, she was found abandoned at the palace gates, Your Majesty."

This statement gave the Empress Dowager a strange and ominous feeling. "What do you mean by that?"

"Bring her in..."

As the guard finished speaking, two other guards appeared in the distance, carrying a stretcher with someone on it into the hall. The body was covered with a white cloth, making it impossible to see the person beneath.

When the Empress Dowager saw the scene before her, her expression changed several times before becoming deathly pale. Her lips trembled with shock, but no sound escaped.

As the two guards brought the stretcher before the Empress Dowager, they removed the covering, revealing the familiar face of Mu Tingge lying with eyes wide open. Her face was stained with blood flowing from every orifice, presenting a ghastly sight.

It was clear from just one look that the young woman had endured excruciating torment before her death!

The Empress Dowager stared blankly at Mu Tingge’s corpse. Her mind now went entirely blank, unable to process anything further, before the world seemed to suddenly darken, and she collapsed to the floor in a faint.

Thud!

"Empress Dowager!"

"Fetch the royal physician! The Empress Dowager has fainted!"

"Physician!"

The hall erupted into chaos immediately. The royal physicians who were attending to Shin Wang were quickly summoned to tend to the Empress Dowager. They inwardly lamented what a calamitous day it was, 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

With one high-ranking noble after another falling ill!

...

..

.

After about two hours, the Empress Dowager finally regained consciousness. When she remembered everything, her expression changed several times before her eyes took on a chilling, fearsome coldness.

From the guard’s report, Mu Tingge’s corpse had been thrown at the palace gates just moments ago, clearly intended to insult and provoke Shin Wang.

Upon seeing the horrific condition of Mu Tingge’s body, the Empress Dowager immediately knew that the child in her womb could not have survived. The only heir of Shin Wang was lost, and he would no longer have an offspring to carry on his lineage...

The entire sequence of events, particularly Mu Tingge’s agonizing death, led the Empress Dowager to conclude that the person behind all of this harbored a deep grudge against Shin Wang Palace, especially against Mu Tingge. If the young woman were to die, who would benefit the most?

None other than Mu Luofei!

Suddenly, the Empress Dowager’s eyes blazed with intensity. She had heard rumors that Mu Luofei had been treated poorly by Shin Wang, causing her significant resentment. Moreover, Shin Wang openly favored his concubine, Mu Tingge. Mu Luofei was already displeased that her half-sister was pregnant by her husband. If Mu Tingge were to die today, Mu Luofei would undoubtedly be the happiest.

"Where has the Consort been during all of this?"

The Empress Dowager turned and asked one of Shin Wang Palace’s guards, her face serious. The guard responded truthfully.

"Your Majesty, for the past two months, the Consort has been confined to her room by order of Shin Wang. She has not stepped outside her room even once."

The Empress Dowager found this hard to believe. If she remembered correctly, since this woman had entered Shin Wang Palace, many unfortunate incidents had occurred. If they were not caused by this woman, then she must be a source of misfortune herself!

"Ai Jia shall go see the Consort."

With those words, the Empress Dowager had her trusted maid support her as they walked to the eastern wing. It wasn’t long before they arrived at the consort’s quarters. Upon seeing the Empress Dowager, the guards at the door knelt in respect and then opened the door to let her in.

As the Empress Dowager stepped inside, she immediately sensed the silence and loneliness that permeated the quarters. She walked deeper into the residence until she saw a figure sitting behind a desk, carefully writing characters.

Mu Luofei, hearing the footsteps of many people entering the room, looked up in surprise. When she saw that the visitor was the Empress Dowager, her beautiful face immediately showed a look of alarm. She quickly put down the brush in her hand and stepped forward to pay her respects.

"I pay my respects to the Empress Dowager."

"You may rise," the Empress Dowager said calmly, walking past her to sit on a couch not far away.

"Thank you, Your Majesty,"

Mu Luofei said, rising and following to stand before the Empress Dowager. "I did not know Your Majesty would visit. I apologize for not preparing a proper reception."

"Have you been here this entire time?"

Ignoring her apology, the Empress Dowager got straight to the point, her eyes narrowed with pressure as she scrutinized Mu Luofei’s face for any sign of guilt. However, all she saw was Mu Luofei’s bitter smile.

"Yes, Your Majesty...I have been confined here for two months by the order of His Highness. I haven’t stepped outside, so I know nothing of the outside world," Mu Luofei forced a smile, her eyes reflecting sadness and appearing quite pitiable.

"So you do not know what has happened?"

The Empress Dowager asked further, her expression inscrutable, making it difficult to guess her thoughts.

"I do not, Your Majesty. Only the kitchen staff delivers food through the guards at the door. Even my maid has not been allowed out," Mu Luofei replied with a puzzled look on her face. "...Has something happened outside?"

"If you do not know, then it does not matter,"

The Empress Dowager dismissed her concern, standing up to leave the residence. Mu Luofei watched in confusion. Once outside, the Empress Dowager turned to give orders to her trusted maid.

"Send someone to investigate her recent activities. If possible, bring her maid in for questioning, and have some guards keep a close watch on Mu Luofei. Do not let her out of your sight."

The Empress Dowager’s voice was so cold that it gave her maid goosebumps. It was clear that the Empress Dowager suspected the Consort of being the culprit. If it turned out that Mu Luofei was indeed behind everything, her end would be as tragic as Mu Tingge’s...

Meanwhile, back in her quarters, Mu Luofei’s face, which had previously appeared innocent, turned cold as soon as the Empress Dowager left. Her almond-shaped eyes revealed a ruthless glint, completely different from before.

She never expected Shin Wang to survive. However, it was just as well; making him live in a state of living death was as satisfying to her!

...

..

.

Three days later, when Shin Wang awoke to find his pitiful condition, he fainted again, unable to accept the reality. He had become disabled and looked more horrifying than a ghost.

No matter how hard he tried to think, he could never have imagined ending up like this!

He became violent once again because of the injuries he sustained, and he was despair to the point of attempting suicide for several times, but each time the guards saved him just in time, further driving him to madness as he couldn’t end his life. Eventually, the Empress Dowager had to visit Shin Wang Palace again to console and counsel him personally.

The Empress Dowager spent more than half a day talking to calm him down. After leaving his room, she went to Shin Wang’s study to hear the report from the shadow guard investigating the incident at the imperial temple.

"Your Majesty, our investigation revealed that the perpetrators were indeed from the imperial temple. A monk who joined the temple a year ago, along with three novice monks, drugged the people of Shin Wang Palace that night. They confessed that they were hired to poison the guests’ food on that day, and then secretly opened a side gate to let in an outside group to carry out the attack.”

"Upon further investigation, we found an abandoned hut hidden in a nearby forest. When we reached the hut, we found a large amount of blood and signs of ropes that had been untied and discarded. I recall that Mu Tingge’s limbs had rope marks, likely from the ropes found in the hut used to bind her.

"We believe this hut was where the culprits tortured Mu Tingge. Upon further inspection, local villagers recalled seeing a noble family of three—mother and two daughters—staying at the hut last year. Further investigation confirmed that Mu Furen and her two daughters from the Mu family had lived there before returning to the Mu family, Your Highness."

Upon hearing this report, the Empress Dowager immediately remembered the circumstances under which she had first met the three women of the Mu family. It was due to a life-saving incident on their way back from the imperial temple. Bai Lijun had mentioned that they were punished by the Mu family and sent to the temple to live in hardship in the abandoned hut not far from the temple.

Everything seemed to fall into place!

The abandoned hut was well-known to Mu Luofei and her mother. The monk and the novice monks at the temple were also familiar with them before they returned to the Mu family. Given this, the events that transpired could undoubtedly be their doing!

"Continue the investigation and bring me irrefutable evidence!"

The Empress Dowager commanded with a ruthless expression, her eyes cold and menacing as if she wanted to kill someone in the blink of an eye. If this was indeed the work of Mu Luofei and her mother, she would not let the Mu family escape unpunished, no matter what...

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