Chapter 11

Jingzhe slept soundly. When he woke up and saw the familiar ceiling, he was still a bit disoriented.

The heat in his body had subsided. After the strange, consuming heat wave disappeared, even his bones felt lighter.

Was he... back in the North House?

How did he get back?

Jingzhe's mind was full of questions, but perhaps because he was too comfortable lying down, he didn't even bother to move, just quietly lying on the bed, spacing out.

The entire North House was very quiet, with only the rustling sound of snow.

He suddenly remembered that last night seemed to be New Year's Eve.

He had been so bewitched by that damn buff that he had lost track of time. When he met Rong Jiu, he didn't even remember it. Did he send him back?

Then today was the first day of the new year.

The New Year in the North House was truly tasteless.

So many people were still busy with the first seven days of mourning for Concubine Yao.

[Today is the second day of the new year.]

The system silently corrected the host's wrong perception.

Jingzhe, who had just gotten up, was stunned. He looked out the window blankly. It was early morning outside, with a hint of dampness in the air. Perhaps it had snowed or rained last night.

"How is that possible? I slept for a while, I couldn't have slept for a whole day..."

[The host indeed slept for a day and a night, otherwise how would the buff on the host be removed?]

Jingzhe was silent. The punishment buff was for three days, starting from the day of Concubine Yao's incident, which was the twenty-ninth of the twelfth month. It would only be a full day by the next morning.

He met Rong Jiu who had returned on New Year's Eve, the day after.

Now that Jingzhe felt his body had returned to normal, it meant that this was the morning of the fourth day.

Today was the second day of the new year.

He had actually slept for a day and a night?!

To be precise, it was even a day and two nights.

Jingzhe moved his limbs and checked his clothes all over. There was nothing unusual. He looked down at his lower body with a slight frown. Rong Jiu shouldn't have discovered his identity... right?

At that time, those who underwent castration were not completely cut off at the root.

Instead, the two testicles were removed, while most of the external form was preserved.

This was the reason why Jingzhe had been able to hide it until now, otherwise it would have been difficult to conceal.

He went out and washed his face with snow water. The icy coldness made him shiver, and he was completely awake.

Jingzhe learned from this painful experience. In the future, he could not be seduced by beauty and make inappropriate choices.

For example, staying at Rong Jiu's place this time. Although it was a kind gesture, what if he exposed himself?

A single mistake could also implicate others.

Especially with this system...

The previous buffs were not too serious, but this time the buff was truly vicious and almost killed him. If it happened one or two more times, he would really have no way to live.

[The system has made preliminary adjustments, the mission has been revised]

[Mission 4: Explore the secret of Concubine Yao's death]

"What's the benefit for Prince Rui's ascension to the throne to know how Concubine Yao died?"

Jingzhe frowned.

What good would it do for Prince Rui if Concubine Yao was alive?

[After careful analysis by the system, the host's statement is correct. The system's goal is to prevent the Helian court from declining from now on. As long as it can be prevented, it doesn't matter who is the emperor. However, the system's mission adjustment requires a certain amount of time, and some missions will still be in the 'high difficulty' level. Please be aware, host.]

In other words, the system's most important task was no longer to urge Jingzhe to help Prince Rui.

This was a good thing for Jingzhe.

Otherwise, it would be disgusting.

After washing up and changing his clothes, he walked around the North House and ran into Handan.

Seeing that he was up and walking around and seemed fine, Handan asked him to help fetch the meals. After Jingzhe agreed, he watched Handan hurry back to serve the masters, raising his eyebrows in surprise.

It seemed that Handan didn't know he wasn't in the North House yesterday?

How did Rong Jiu do it?

Jingzhe marveled as he went to the Imperial Kitchen.

Since Qian Qin's incident, the head of the Imperial Kitchen had been replaced. This Head Zhu Erxi looked thin and had a bad temper. His shouting could often be heard.

However, Jingzhe thought that the atmosphere in the Imperial Kitchen was better than when Qian Qin was there.

At least this Zhu Erxi said whatever he had on his mind and never hid anything.

He would scold people, but with him, once the scolding was over, the matter was over, and there was no need to worry that he would hold a grudge. But Qian Qin was different. Qian Qin would only be gentle and then stab you in the back when you didn't know it.

As subordinates, they obviously preferred someone like Zhu Erxi.

When Jingzhe arrived, many palaces had already sent people to take their meals. By the time it was his turn, there were not many left.

At this time, the bustling Imperial Kitchen finally quieted down a bit.

But some stoves were still kept warm.

He took the things according to the rules and was about to go back, but was stopped by a young eunuch who looked unfamiliar.

"Are you Jingzhe from the North House?"

Jingzhe nodded, "And you are?"

The unfamiliar young eunuch said with a grin, "That's right, please wait a moment, Head Zhu wants to see you."

Jingzhe frowned. He had no dealings with Zhu Erxi.

He shouldn't know him.

Fortunately, the place where Zhu Erxi stayed was not too remote, and it was only a few steps away.

Zhu Erxi was cursing in the room. He looked thin, but his voice was quite loud. As soon as Jingzhe was brought over by the unfamiliar young eunuch, he saw him at a glance and gave him a once-over.

Jingzhe heard a few words from outside the door. It seemed that Zhu Erxi was saying that someone had entered his room.

The unfamiliar young eunuch said anxiously, "Head, did you lose anything?"

Zhu Erxi spat, "Nothing was lost."

Jingzhe observed Zhu Erxi's expression, and his heart moved slightly.

Wrong.

Something must have been lost.

That was not a look of relief.

Zhu Erxi looked at Jingzhe and raised his eyebrows: "You are Jingzhe?"

Zhu Erxi didn't know what he looked like?

Then why did he send someone to call him?

"Take this."

Zhu Erxi fumbled in his pocket, threw a small object over, and Jingzhe almost failed to catch it.

After finally catching it, he took a closer look and saw that it was a green thumb ring.

"Chen An left it for you." Zhu Erxi said indifferently, "He said at that time that if he could hear of your reputation in the palace, he would give this to you."

Jingzhe stared at the thumb ring in a daze: "...Grandpa Chen?"

Chen An was the head eunuch who handled the batch of eunuchs when Jingzhe entered the palace. He was able to enter the palace safely back then all thanks to Chen An's sleight of hand.

Zhu Erxi didn't seem to have any intention of explaining. The theft in his room made him very uneasy. He waved his hand at Jingzhe, signaling him to leave quickly.

Jingzhe was led out again by the unfamiliar young eunuch.

He chattered on, "Don't blame the Head, the Head is a good person, just has a sharp tongue. Recently, his room has been broken into by a thief several times, but the person has never been caught, so the Head is angry."

"Was nothing stolen?" Jingzhe asked subconsciously.

"The Head said no." The unfamiliar young eunuch shook his head, "Nothing was lost, but why does he keep coming, it's strange..."

He was also puzzled at the end, but he was friendly when he saw Jingzhe off.

Jingzhe remembered his name.

Hao Lin.

He had been with Zhu Erxi for several years and was considered a trusted subordinate.

On the way back to the North House, Jingzhe lowered his eyes.

Zhu Erxi had been in the palace for so many years, so naturally he was not so easily seen through, but his irritable temper was exposed, and a little could still be seen in the change.

Zhu Erxi had a clue about the frequent thefts. To put it more bluntly, he might know what the thief was looking for.

Jingzhe touched his chest.

Could it be this green thumb ring?

When Zhu Erxi gave it away, there was relief and relaxation in his eyes.

And a little bit of luck.

While he was thinking about Zhu Erxi, Zhu Erxi was also thinking about him in the house behind him.

Zhu Erxi and Chen An had a good relationship.

This good relationship meant that Chen An had saved Zhu Erxi's life.

A life-saving grace should be repaid.

So that green thumb ring had been hidden with him for so long, and he had never revealed it.

His temper was irritable, but he was very cautious.

The first day his room was touched, he felt it when he came back.

Although the palace was heavily guarded, there would still be people who would steal things.

But to steal from him?

That's going too far.

Zhu Erxi checked the entire room and found that nothing was missing. He replayed the whole night and only then vaguely guessed where the trouble came from.

Chen An, oh Chen An, you really cause trouble for me even after you're dead.

Zhu Erxi complained like this, but he still bent over and grunted as he lifted the wardrobe. Under the heavy wardrobe, the bottom wooden board was actually hollowed out downwards, and a wooden box was embedded in it.

When the wooden box was opened, there was another green thumb ring.

Zhu Erxi put away the green thumb ring and was about to throw away the wooden box, but he suddenly paused, and then put a gold ring back in its place. Then he carried the green thumb ring with him.

Sure enough, a few days later, there was another thief.

After several times, Zhu Erxi had time to check again, and the wooden box was empty. It was really verified that something was lost, and Zhu Erxi's face was particularly ugly.

He thought about it again and again, and still decided to give this thing to Jingzhe.

Although Jingzhe was just a young eunuch in the North House, and it was impossible to say how much reputation he had in the palace, at least Zhu Erxi knew that before Qian Qin's incident, he went to the North House and asked Chen Mingde for someone.

This person was Jingzhe.

Regardless of the reason, at least the name Jingzhe was known to Zhu Erxi again after several years... it didn't count as him violating the conditions agreed upon at the beginning, right?

Zhu Erxi hurried to send this hot potato away.

...

Jingzhe returned to the North House, delivered the meals to various places, and said a few words to Handan.

Handan told him that Matron Ming had already sent a message back, and they would be back in a few days.

The two of them were left behind in the North House to serve the remaining masters.

Concubine Yao was originally only supposed to stay for seven days. But it happened to be during the New Year, and Empress Dowager Huang found it unlucky and didn't want to deal with this matter when the New Year's atmosphere was strong, so she planned to hold the funeral after forty-nine days.

In this way, the meaning was different. Empress Dowager Huang sent some more people to take over, and Chen Mingde and Matron Ming could come back as long as they waited until the first seven days were over.

Jingzhe touched his chest again and subconsciously looked at Concubine Yao's residence.

Handan: "What, still thinking about this?"

"I just don't understand, who was the one who wanted to harm Concubine Yao before?" Jingzhe said softly.

Handan: "Whoever it is, it's none of our business."

Her words sounded a bit cold, but it was the key to survival in the palace.

Don't meddle in other people's business.

She saw Jingzhe frowning and shrugged, "If you have nothing to do, you can go and tidy up her room. Although Heye has cleaned it, some things haven't been cleared away, and they all have to be returned."

Jingzhe had this intention in the first place, and with Handan's words, he went with the flow and nodded.

Half an hour later, Jingzhe had finished inventorying all of Concubine Yao's belongings in her room, and had categorized them and made a list.

Everyone in the North House knew he could read, so there was no need to hide it.

When Handan passed by the door, she looked at the bustling scene in the room, shook her head and walked away.

In this North House, only Jingzhe would do this.

Always doing thankless tasks that only troubled himself.

But in this North House, when something happened, the first person they would think of was also Jingzhe.

It might not be useful to find him, but Jingzhe would not harm you.

This was the biggest difference.

They could not become Jingzhe, and they had laughed at Jingzhe.

But they had also envied Jingzhe.

He lived much more openly than many people.

And now, the open and honest Jingzhe, after sorting out Concubine Yao's things, returned to his own residence.

With a hint of sneakiness, like a cat.

There were traces of a search in Concubine Yao's room.

Jingzhe was the closest person to Concubine Yao in the North House. He also often went to Concubine Yao's residence. He wasn't very familiar with it, but he knew more than others.

Concubine Yao's room had definitely been touched.

This was consistent with his judgment.

Concubine Yao was murdered.

The person who killed her also searched her room afterwards.

The North House had no defenses to speak of, so it was normal for people to come and go as they pleased.

But this feeling gave Jingzhe a potential sense of crisis. Being able to easily kill Concubine Yao also meant... being able to kill others at will.

However, at the same time, Zhu Erxi's room was also robbed. In the heavily guarded imperial city... could this be a coincidence?

The most unbelievable thing in the world is coincidence.

This was a sentence his father often said.

Jingzhe's heart sank. These seemingly ordinary things, after going around in circles, were actually related to him?

But he was just a mere Jingzhe, who could he have offended?

Fortunately, he did not find no clues at all in Concubine Yao's room.

Just as Zhu Erxi carried the thumb ring with him and made a fake one to fool people; Concubine Yao also had her own skills. Although the entire room was turned upside down, she still left some things in the room that were not discovered.

Concubine Yao had a sewing kit.

There was nothing hidden in the sewing kit, it was all needles and thread. The silver needle used to test for poison was also in the sewing kit.

But that sewing kit was made of two layers of cloth, and the inside could be turned out to reveal a different color.

Jingzhe also had a flash of inspiration, remembering that Concubine Yao was always fiddling with those silver needles, and that's where he got the idea.

The sewing kit was still in the room, which meant that the secret inside had not been discovered, so it fell into Jingzhe's hands.

On the turned-over sewing kit, there were tiny words written.

"No matter what year or month I die, the person who kills me must be related to the Empress Dowager. Because in this world, only I know that the death of Empress Dowager Cisheng is inextricably linked to her. I have hidden the important item behind the side hall of the Chuxiu Palace, behind the eighth green brick on the side of the small path. You can retrieve it yourself."

? Didn't they say it was the late emperor?

How is it related to the Empress Dowager now?

Concubine Yao's handwriting was not at all as crazy as she usually appeared, but rather extremely beautiful.

But no matter how beautiful the handwriting was, it couldn't stop the tangled mess in Jingzhe's heart.

Chuxiu Palace...

That place was only opened during the selection of concubines.

It was usually like a cold palace, and no one went there except for those responsible for cleaning.

It was indeed a good place to hide things.

Difficult to discover.

But it would also be very troublesome for Jingzhe to go.

He needed a suitable excuse.

...

In Qianming Palace, a female official was speaking.

Her voice was gentle and soft, with a bit of grace, very moving.

"...The targets in Chenghuan Palace have not mentioned Jingzhe recently... Qiu Yi has investigated Jingzhe's identity..."

"Zhu Erxi gave a thumb ring to Jingzhe."

"Concubine Xu, Beauty Liu, Consort De, and Consort Zhang have all sent people to contact people in the North House..."

"The people sent by the Empress Dowager to handle the funeral have..."

All the secret and not-so-secret matters were turned into her slowly spoken words.

Emperor Jingyuan was listening.

He closed his eyes, but was playing with a round jade bead in his hand.

It was pure black all over, with a luster.

After the female official's voice stopped, Emperor Jingyuan opened his eyes, but held up the dark jade bead in his hand and said casually, "Do you think the dug-out eyeballs can be as beautiful as this black jade?"

The female official paused slightly: "Each person only has one pair of eyeballs, they should be more precious than black jade."

Black jade is ultimately a dead thing, not comparable to human life.

Human life is sometimes very expensive, and sometimes very cheap.

She pondered for a moment and knew that the few in Chenghuan Palace were in mortal danger.

Those targeted by Emperor Jingyuan might not have trouble immediately.

But most... would die sooner or later.

"But there are many people in the world, and many eyeballs, but pure black jade is rare." Emperor Jingyuan's voice became indifferent, "Just as there are many cunning people, but few who are purely good."

Interesting people are also very few.

Purely good?

Such people, in the palace, would have died out long ago, right?

The female official complained in her heart, but dared not say it, and bowed respectfully.

In less than two days, this beautiful black jade appeared before Jingzhe's eyes.

He held this thing that looked extremely expensive and stared dumbfounded at Rong Jiu outside the door.

His tall figure firmly blocked all the light from the half-open door. That handsome and beautiful face, as if a unique creation of heaven, made Jingzhe unable to help but look at it again and again.

"You said you want to give this to me...?"

Rong Jiu said calmly, "A souvenir from my return, I forgot to give it to you."

Black jade should be more likable than eyeballs, right?

Jingzhe shivered inexplicably.

He had no idea that he might have originally received a wet, bloody eyeball!

...An incredibly brutal gift.