"Jian Feng, use your inner force to break through that wall," the Emperor commanded.
"Yes, your subordinate obeys!"
Jian Feng walked to the wall, gathered a surge of palm wind in his palm, and struck the wall. With a rumble, the wall collapsed, revealing a passage.
"Your Majesty, there's a passage here. We don't know where it leads," Jian Feng said.
"Go in and take a look!"
The Emperor's tone was laced with anger. Although he didn't love the Empress, he certainly didn't want to be cuckolded.
—
Phoenix Perch Palace
At this moment, the Empress was playing with her newly acquired orange cat.
Suddenly, Xiao Anzi rushed into the Empress's chambers from outside and knelt before her.
Grandma Rong, standing beside the Empress, frowned at the impetuous Xiao Anzi.
"Your... Your Majesty... Empress, I heard... something big happened in the Cold Palace," Xiao Anzi said breathlessly.
Upon hearing this, the Empress jolted, and the cat was thrown to the ground.
"Meow—"
The cat let out a pained cry, then got up from the ground. Grandma Rong quickly stepped forward and picked up the cat.
"Say that again!" the Empress demanded, pointing at Xiao Anzi, making him tremble all over.
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty, this servant... this servant heard from a young eunuch beside the Emperor that King Leng and his Consort discovered something significant in the Cold Palace, and His Majesty was also invited over by the Consort," Xiao Anzi stammered.
"What? When did this happen?" the Empress asked.
"Just now," Xiao Anzi replied.
"Mm, I understand! Take some people and go to the Cold Palace to keep watch. Report anything to me immediately," the Empress ordered.
"Yes, this servant will take his leave now!"
The Empress waved him away.
Xiao Anzi immediately left Phoenix Perch Palace, leading a few followers towards the Cold Palace.
"Grandma Rong, you may also go. This Consort wishes to rest," the Empress said calmly.
"Yes, this old servant will take his leave!"
Grandma Rong cast a sideways glance at the Empress and then turned to walk out of her chambers.
After Grandma Rong left, the Empress became restless, pacing back and forth in her chambers. If her affair with the man in black were discovered by the Emperor, she would be finished.
Fortunately, she had been cautious two days ago. She had added a door to the passage leading to the basement and sealed the secret passage beneath her Phoenix bed. Otherwise, if the Emperor discovered her misdeeds, her family's Duke of Lin's mansion would also suffer, and her Yao'er would be further from that position.
—
In the basement, Jian Feng entered the passage behind the wall. After searching for a long time without finding any mechanisms, he emerged.
"Your Majesty, your subordinate found no mechanisms inside that could lead elsewhere," Jian Feng reported truthfully.
"No need to look further. I know what's going on."
The Emperor's gaze fell on the passage, his clouded eyes thoughtful, exuding an unfathomable depth that was impossible to decipher.
"Yes!"
Jian Feng said respectfully.
"Jian Feng, send these women out of the palace and then, together with the Consort of King Leng, assist King Leng in apprehending the culprits," the Emperor commanded.
With that, the Emperor left the basement with several Imperial Guards.
After the Emperor had left, Jian Feng dispatched four Imperial Guards to escort the women out of the palace.
Once everyone had departed, Leng Ruo Li and Jian Feng went to the bed. They pressed a serpent's head, and the bed slowly moved apart from the center, revealing a bottomless pit beneath it.
Leng Ruo Li jumped in without hesitation, and Jian Feng followed closely behind.
The hole was very deep. Leng Ruo Li and Jian Feng slid down like they were on a playground slide, sliding for about half an incense stick's time before emerging from the opening.
The area outside the hole was pitch black. Leng Ruo Li took out her flashlight to illuminate the surroundings. She noticed that a subterranean river flowed outside the hole. The water was not deep, and they could walk along the river to exit the cave.
"Jian Feng, let's follow this river and see if we can get out of the cave," Leng Ruo Li suggested.
"Your subordinate listens to the Consort!" Jian Feng bowed respectfully.
Hearing this, Leng Ruo Li gave a slight smile.
"There are only the two of us here, you don't need to be so formal."
"Yes, Consort!"
Jian Feng bowed again.
Leng Ruo Li: "..."
Alas, the ancient concept of hierarchy was deeply ingrained, and Jian Feng could not change it overnight.
She could only leave him with a command: "Let's go, keep up!"
With that, Leng Ruo Li took the lead with her flashlight.
After walking for a few minutes, a swarm of unknown bats flew past them. Leng Ruo Li quickly turned off her flashlight and motioned for Jian Feng to squat down. The bats soon flew over their heads.
A moment later, Leng Ruo Li turned on her flashlight. She saw that Jian Feng's forehead was bleeding.
Leng Ruo Li's brows furrowed instantly. "Jian Feng, were you bitten by a bat just now?"
"Consort, your subordinate is fine!" Jian Feng said calmly.
"What do you mean 'fine'? Bats carry viruses, and those were blood-sucking bats," Leng Ruo Li said with exasperation.
As she spoke, she took out some disinfectant and medical supplies for bandaging wounds from her sleeve and carefully treated his wound.
Although Jian Feng didn't understand what Leng Ruo Li meant by 'viruses,' he knew the Consort cared about him. He felt touched that the Consort of King Leng was bandaging his wound, which surprised him.
"There, take this anti-inflammatory medicine. Apply it to the wound three to four times a day, and it will heal in a few days."
Leng Ruo Li gave Jian Feng some serious instructions before turning and continuing along the underground river.
Finally, the two of them spent a full incense stick's time before emerging from the underground river.
Leng Ruo Li shone her flashlight on the surroundings, which felt very familiar.
"Isn't this the moat? The place where the five female corpses were found last time."
"So those five corpses were transported out through this underground river."
"No wonder the bodies appeared in the moat," Leng Ruo Li murmured.
Jian Feng also carefully observed the surroundings and said earnestly, "Consort, this is indeed the moat."
"Let's go! We'll go ashore."
Leng Ruo Li nodded slightly.
They pushed aside the withered grass around the opening and quickly reached the shore.
"Let's go, we need to find King Leng quickly."
With that, Leng Ruo Li quickened her pace.
However, after she had walked only a short distance, Jian Feng called out to her from behind. He suddenly crouched down and placed his ear on the ground to listen for a moment.
Then, Jian Feng looked up at Leng Ruo Li and said, "Consort, your subordinate heard sounds of fighting from the east with his inner force. Shall we go and see?"
"Are you sure?" Leng Ruo Li asked.
"Your subordinate is sure," Jian Feng replied affirmatively.
"Alright, let's head east quickly!"
After Leng Ruo Li spoke, they immediately changed course and headed east.