There was nothing new to do in the palace. Mei Qingxue had long been bored. Taking advantage of the time when Du Guqing was in court, she dressed herself up and left the palace with Xuanqiao. Calculating that Luo Jiao should be giving birth soon, Mei Qingxue planned to go back home and spend a day there. Staying in the palace was really dull. She had long grown tired of playing those palace games with the maids and eunuchs.
She wondered how those people in the palace could spend decades in such a confined space. Just one courtyard for a whole lifetime! Mei Qingxue couldn't stand it. In her previous nine lives, she had a modern soul that believed in gender equality. In this society with a strict hierarchical system, she couldn't accept the fate of being confined in a courtyard for her whole life.
"Your Majesty, what if the Emperor gets angry when he finds out that we've secretly left the palace?" Xuanqiao said worriedly.
Even though the Emperor doted on the Queen, he couldn't let her do whatever she wanted. This was no longer the time when he was just a prince.
"It's okay. At worst, he can depose me and find someone else!" So what? If she couldn't live happily, she would choose to disappear. She had been so aggrieved in her previous nine lives. Now that her fortune had finally turned, she didn't want to spend her whole life being confined in a small courtyard.
"Ah, Your Majesty, we should at least leave a note for the Emperor." Xuanqiao tried to persuade her mistress.
The Emperor was the ruler of the country. She couldn't even imagine how terrifying it would be when the Son of Heaven got angry.
"You're so wordy, Xuanqiao. Are you almost eighteen?" She seemed as wordy as an eighty - year - old, even more so than Yueru.
"No, I'm only seventeen." Xuanqiao answered obediently.
"I'm going back to the Prime Minister's Mansion. You go and check on Yueru. Also, go and inspect the Prince Liu's Mansion to see if Uncle Fu has been doing his job well!" Mei Qingxue just wanted to get Xuanqiao out of the way quickly so that she could go and check on her own properties.
An Ying hadn't appeared for a long time. She wondered what had happened to him.
Mei Qingxue was worried about him. After all, he was a loyal subordinate who had gone through life - and - death situations with her. She couldn't just ignore him.
"Yes!" Xuanqiao didn't dare to be wordy anymore. Every task Mei Qingxue assigned to her was very important.
"I'll go and do it right away." Xuanqiao turned around to carry out Mei Qingxue's orders. Mei Qingxue quickly turned in another direction. Yingkelai was in that direction.
"Master."
"Where's An Ying?" Mei Qingxue asked anxiously.
"..." Yu Yi hesitated and didn't want to say. Mei Qingxue knew there was something wrong at once and became even more anxious.
"Speak quickly!"
"Master, An Ying he..." Yu Yi couldn't get the words out. There was a look of grief on his face. Mei Qingxue followed his gaze and saw that he was looking at the secret door. She pulled the door open and smelled a strong smell of blood.
"An Ying..."
An Ying was lying pale on the bed. When he saw Mei Qingxue, there was a faint smile on his pale face. "You really came to see me. Cough, cough. Even if I die now, it's okay..."
"Stop talking nonsense!" It was obvious that the guy was seriously injured. "What happened to you?"
"I'm fine." An Ying didn't want to say. Mei Qingxue knew that when An Ying didn't want to talk, it was probably a private matter.
"You have to tell me. I'm your master, and your life belongs to me." Mei Qingxue showed her rare domineering side. There was a blush on An Ying's face as he remembered that moonlit night when he had gently touched her lips.
"Really... I'm fine!" An Ying forced out a smile, but that smile looked so tragic on his face.
"Let me see your wound."
Yu Yi whispered, "He almost lost his manhood!"
Well, that meant he almost became a eunuch!
Mei Qingxue slapped the table hard. "Who dared to bully my man here? Tell me! If you don't, don't ever recognize me again!"
Ouch, the table was so hard. Her hand must be swollen. Damn An Ying, he was so stubborn.
"Yu Yi, lift the quilt and let me see the wound."
"Don't... look..." An Ying wanted to stop her, but he had no strength at all.
Yu Yi's hand was already tightly holding the corner of the quilt.
"I'll tell you..." How could he let a woman see his wound there?
An Ying's face was an abnormal red. Mei Qingxue didn't dare to make him excited. With such a serious injury, it might be life - threatening.
"He's an old enemy of mine, the Master of Pine and Crane." An Ying slowly told the story. He had gone to check the accounts of several shops as Mei Qingxue had ordered. Unexpectedly, he had met an old enemy and been ambushed. He had almost lost his life.
"The Master of Pine and Crane!" Mei Qingxue repeated the name. Just by the name, she could tell that he was a martial arts person. He dared to hurt her man. She would never forgive him lightly.
She had originally planned to go back to the Prime Minister's Mansion and laze around for a day. But after learning about this, how could she still be in the mood to go back? After leaving Yingkelai, Mei Qingxue turned around and went back to the palace.
Du Guqing was losing his temper in the palace. There were so many maids, but none of them knew where the Queen had gone. As soon as Mei Qingxue entered the Qingxue Pavilion, she saw a bunch of people kneeling on the ground. Du Guqing was in the middle, shouting angrily.
"Wow? Such a bad temper." Mei Qingxue was in a bad mood, and Du Guqing just happened to be there to be her target.
"Not at all. These servants have done something wrong..." As soon as Du Guqing saw Mei Qingxue, a big smile appeared on his face, as if the one who had been angry just now wasn't him.
"What wrong did they do? Tell this Queen and let me hear it."
"I'll tell you later, Your Majesty. Come, Your Majesty, have some water!" Du Guqing could tell at a glance that Mei Qingxue had left the palace. It was useless to get angry at these servants. They were just a bunch of useless people who couldn't even keep an eye on his Mei Qingxue.
"You may leave!" Mei Qingxue waved her hand. But without the Emperor's order, those maids and eunuchs didn't dare to get up.
"Can't you hear what the Queen said?" Du Guqing quickly shooed them away.
"So it seems that the Queen's face doesn't work either."
"No, no. It's just that I was so angry just now that they were scared." Du Guqing noticed that there seemed to be a look of worry on Mei Qingxue's face when she came in, so he asked, "Xue'er, is there something wrong?"
Mei Qingxue looked at Du Guqing. "I remember you have an organization."
"Yes. I originally planned to hand it over to you."
"I don't want your people. But you can do something for me." Mei Qingxue's face became serious. "There's a person called the Master of Pine and Crane. He injured my subordinate. My subordinate has been through life - and - death situations with me for so many years. I've never even scolded him. But he almost lost his life in the hands of that bastard. I want him alive."
"Okay!" Du Guqing knew that it was An Ying who was injured. He had originally not told Mei Qingxue for fear that she would be worried and think that he was monitoring her.
"Aren't you going to ask me who he is?" Mei Qingxue asked Du Guqing curiously.
"I know everything, really!" Du Guqing looked at his wife. "Don't frown. I'll catch that person for you soon."
The Master of Pine and Crane... He had made his Xue'er unhappy. His life should come to an end. It was a pity that Xue'er wanted him alive.
"How many days?"
"Huh?" Du Guqing was stunned. He didn't expect Mei Qingxue to ask like this.
"How many days will it take for your people to finish this?" An Ying was so seriously injured. She didn't know if he could survive.
"As soon as possible, okay?"
"Okay. Do you have any good medicine for treating injuries? An Ying... my subordinate, is seriously injured!" Mei Qingxue didn't want anything to happen to An Ying. She had worked so hard to turn a killer group into a proper organization. She didn't want anything bad to happen to them. If her actions of "whitening" them had brought them danger, she might have to step in and unify the martial arts world for real peace and tranquility.
The martial arts world was just like the underworld in ancient times, wasn't it? Mei Qingxue had made up her mind. If her actions didn't bring peace to her people, she would use force to achieve it. Du Guqing's organization could still be useful.
"Medicine for treating injuries?" Du Guqing thought for a while. Seeing that Mei Qingxue was so concerned about An Ying, he felt a pang of jealousy in his heart. He didn't even want to give her the medicine. But seeing the clear worry in Mei Qingxue's eyes, he knew that she was really worried about her subordinate. So he nodded. "My master gave me a miraculous medicine for treating injuries."
"Xue'er, wait a moment. I'll go and get it!"
Du Guqing was struggling in his heart. He didn't know if he should take this opportunity to get rid of An Ying. But if he did, Mei Qingxue would hate him for the rest of her life.
"Okay." Mei Qingxue was too anxious to notice the hesitation on Du Guqing's face. She was worried that it was too late and An Ying might die.
"Here!" Du Guqing took out a small box and put it in Mei Qingxue's hand. He didn't do the bad thing he had thought of.
"It's getting late. My guard is seriously injured and dying. Your Majesty, would you like to protect me personally?" Her people weren't a secret. She could let him know. Besides, that guy didn't let her see his wound. It should be okay for Du Guqing to take a look.
"Okay!" Du Guqing didn't expect that she would ask him to go with her. Only a person with a clear conscience could be so open and aboveboard. He had been so petty just now.
"Let's go." Mei Qingxue wanted to go through the palace gate. She was extremely anxious. Du Guqing put his arm around her waist and took her flying over the eaves and walls.
The cool night wind messed up Mei Qingxue's bangs. Looking at the man beside her, Mei Qingxue was touched.
"Yingkelai."
"I know!"
"Okay!" Mei Qingxue knew the Emperor's means. When he married her, he must have found out all her secrets.
"Yu Yi, how's An Ying?"
Yu Yi was surprised to see Mei Qingxue bringing a strange man. "He's still the same."
"You guard the front door well."
Mei Qingxue opened the secret door. The smell of blood in the room was even stronger. An Ying's complexion was even worse.
"Mas...ter?" An Ying didn't expect that Mei Qingxue would bring Du Guqing.
"Your Ma..."
"Qing, take a look at his injury." Mei Qingxue turned her head.
Ancient people were so particular about the separation of men and women.
"There are several wounds and they're still bleeding. Bring the medicine." He had given the medicine to Mei Qingxue before. Mei Qingxue took out the small box from her sleeve and handed it to him.
"Is it serious?"
"He needs to rest for a long time. He can't use his martial arts anymore."
"Thank... you." An Ying didn't expect that the Emperor of the country would check his wound for him. He recognized that pill just now!