It felt like a dream, a fairy from a painting.
The surroundings were as if in a dream.
Suddenly, Zhan Tianye's eyes tightened. He felt that although she was right in front of him, she was still very, very far away.
Yun Shu was somewhat surprised. Why was he in the palace?
"What business does the Empress Dowager have with you?" Zhan Tianye asked.
Perhaps it was the gentle moonlight, but Yun Shu had an illusion that the man before her spoke with a gentle tone, tinged with concern.
She glanced at the palace servants behind her and said with a smile, "The Empress Dowager merely saw me because I was feeling a little unwell. I am fine now."
She didn't believe this excuse herself.
Zhan Tianye frowned. "Unwell?"
He looked at the palace servants behind Yun Shu. "Are there no imperial physicians in the palace?"
The palace servants trembled at his words, not daring to meet Zhan Tianye's gaze. They could only stammer, "Your servant... Your servant..."
She didn't know either!
She was just a palace maid standing guard outside. She had no idea what business the Empress Dowager had with Miss Yun Er.
Although she knew that the Empress Dowager could not possibly have summoned Miss Yun Er merely for a doctor's visit, especially since the palace had highly skilled imperial physicians, these words could not be spoken in front of Prince Ye.
"Your servant... is not entirely sure," the palace maid finally stammered after a long pause.
"Return and report to the Empress Dowager. If she is truly ill, she should summon an imperial physician immediately. Miss Yun Er is not an imperial physician, and it is too late at night for her to be summoned to the palace. Report this now and return." After saying these cold words, Zhan Tianye directly dismissed the palace maid.
The palace maid froze. "The Empress Dowager ordered this servant to escort Miss Yun out of the palace. This servant..."
Suddenly, her voice abruptly stopped.
Her back stiffened as she took a step back, not daring to say another word. She quickly turned to leave.
The bluestone path of the deep palace was quiet. There were no longer any palace servants around.
A gust of night wind blew.
Yun Shu felt a chill. She looked at Zhan Tianye, who was no longer sparring with her as usual. "I need to leave the palace now. Prince Ye, shall we go together?"
It was a good opportunity to discuss some matters on the way.
Zhan Tianye nodded.
The two walked towards the palace gates, Qiu Lu silently pushing Zhan Tianye.
He secretly looked at his Prince, then at Miss Yun Er.
The more he looked, the more he felt that the two of them were a perfect match. How did the saying go? A match made in heaven!
"After the coroner's examination, the result was that the charred body was not pregnant. However, there is a possibility that the child in the womb had not yet formed," Zhan Tianye said.
Yun Shu paused when she heard "coroner," then understood that he was referring to Yun Yueyin.
Yun Shu nodded. "Are there any traces of Yun Yueyin in the capital?"
Zhan Tianye shook his head. "She had no opportunity or time to leave the capital, but there are no traces of her within the capital, unless someone secretly helped her."
Secretly?
Yun Shu suddenly thought of something. She said nothing, her mind lost in thought. Recent events had always been orchestrated by a hidden hand.
Not long ago, Aunt Xiao and Yun Ying suddenly disappeared, followed by the matter of Bai Chun. Then, the Empress Dowager's pregnancies over the years had yielded no news. It seemed that the hidden hand was lurking nearby.
"You suspect that if Yun Yueyin is still alive, the person who helped her is Bai Chun's enemy?" Zhan Tianye's voice lowered as he asked in a deep tone.
Yun Shu hummed, "It seems to be related."
She glanced around.
It was quiet.
Apart from the three of them, there was no other presence.
She then said in a low voice, "I discovered something while taking the Empress Dowager's pulse."
If Ruan Xi investigated this matter, he would not find any clues. But if Zhan Tianye's men investigated, they would surely dig deeper.
After all, this was a matter concerning the royal family.
"What is it?" Zhan Tianye's expression turned serious as he heard her lowered tone.
Yun Shu slowly explained.
The information conveyed in her soft voice was extremely explosive.
Zhan Tianye was filled with a chill.
Qiu Lu's eyes widened in shock. "This!"
It was unbelievable!
Never heard of, never seen before!
"No wonder the Empress Dowager left the palace years ago!" Qiu Lu exclaimed.
So she had gone to give birth!
After a moment of silence, Zhan Tianye said in a deep voice, "Very well, I will have my men investigate this matter."
Yun Shu nodded and then shared her speculation. "I had previously suspected that the person involved with the Empress Dowager was the Regent. However, given the Regent's physical condition, even with adjustments, it would not have allowed a woman to become pregnant years ago. Therefore, the person involved with the Empress Dowager must be someone we overlooked but who had the opportunity to be by the Empress Dowager's side."
After she finished speaking, for some reason, she waited for a moment without receiving a reply from Zhan Tianye.
She immediately turned her head to look at Zhan Tianye.
He had been looking at her the entire time!
Her reflection was clearly visible in his unfathomable dark eyes.
Yun Shu felt a strange mix of emotions rising within her due to his focused gaze.
Just as she was about to speak, he averted his gaze and looked at the palace gate not far ahead. "Yun Shu, if I had known back then that Yun Yueyin had locked you in a cave, and that you gave birth to Xiao Li and the others while enduring hardship, I would never have let you face it alone."
As Zhan Tianye watched her calmly analyze everything, he increasingly felt that she was distant from him.
For years, she had been able to turn the tide by herself, and she could analyze and face everything alone.
And he had become the most superfluous one.
For a moment, his heart ached intensely.
Yun Shu was stunned.
Gazing into his sincere dark eyes, she was momentarily unable to recover.
What was wrong with him tonight?
For a moment, a strange feeling settled in her heart. Yun Shu glanced at the sky and said with a complicated mood, "It's almost dawn. I should be going."
Then, her footsteps quickened, and she rapidly headed towards the palace gate.
"Uh... Your Highness, should we chase after her?" Qiu Lu was stunned.
Why did Miss Yun leave so abruptly? And so quickly!
It had to be said that Miss Yun's Qinggong was excellent. In the blink of an eye, without them noticing her using Qinggong, she had quickly opened a distance between them.
Even if they chased, they might not be able to catch up.
Zhan Tianye stared at Yun Shu in the distance and asked coldly, "Does she hate me?"
"Ah?" Qiu Lu was bewildered. "Does Miss Yun hate Your Highness? No, your humble servant has not noticed Miss Yun hating Your Highness. Your humble servant thought Miss Yun was too touched by Your Highness's words, or perhaps she was shy."
He had been shocked when he heard what his Prince had said earlier.
It seemed his Prince truly had feelings for Miss Yun!
"Shy?" Zhan Tianye narrowed his eyes, repeating the word "shy" in his mind.
Was she really shy?