The Gilded Cage

In the thirteenth year of Zhaode, September 14th, the autumn mood is thick, and the long night is not yet young.

Chu Ningjing stood quietly in front of the couch, staring down at the young man with his eyes closed on the couch, startled in a daze.

The man was pale, with good-looking features and gentle eyes, especially the appearance of closing his eyes tiredly at the moment, he became more and more pure and quiet, and he seemed to have a soft power that subconsciously relaxed his vigilance.

However, Chu Ning's heart is very clear that under his handsome and gentle appearance, there is an inside that is almost paranoid and vicious.

This is the prince Xiao Yu, the husband who has been with her for two full years.

Everyone said that she could marry into the East Palace and take the position of the prince concubine, thanks to the prince's generosity and love for her.

But is this really the case?

Her heart seemed to be covered with a layer of mist, making her whole person at a loss, and even her eyes became wandering.

She asked herself that in the past two years, Xiao Yu had really treated her seriously, but the more so, the more conflicted her heart was.

"His Royal Highness is awake!"

The maid waiting by the side suddenly called out, interrupting Chu Ning's thoughts.

On the couch, Xiao Yu's head moved, and slowly opened his eyelids, revealing a pair of cold eyes, probably because the candlelight in the room was too bright, he subconsciously frowned, and stretched out his hand to block his eyes.

The maid hurriedly fetched the lampshade and put it on the candlestick.

The bright candlelight was sifted by the fine yarn, and it became soft at once.

Xiao Yu put down his hand and looked sideways at the figures gathered in twos and threes in the night outside the palace. Those were all ministers of the East Palace. At this moment, he was nervous about everything in the East Palace.

"Is there no news from Tai Chi Palace?"

He slept for four full hours, his voice full of hoarseness that hadn't drunk for a long time.

Chu Ning helped him up and leaned on a soft pillow, holding the warm tea handed by the maid and delivering it to his hand, shook his head and said: "Since your highness came back, the Taiji Palace has been under martial law. The people who went to transfer Jinwuwei came, but they were a step too late. Jinwuwei had been restrained by Qianniuwei, the imperial army. Two hours ago, the East Palace was also besieged. Your Highness, we can't go anywhere."

The East Palace is about to lose in this battle for the throne.

Xiao Yu lowered his eyes and sipped the warm tea in the cup. After hearing these words, his face remained expressionless, as if he hadn't been affected at all.

Chu Ning didn't make a sound of relief, but turned his body slightly, letting out some space, and quietly waiting for him to vent. The maid waiting in the room also tried her best to lower her head and retract herself into the corner, not daring to make any noise.

In a dead silence, the warm tea has been drunk. Xiao Yu's fingertips gently rubbed the lotus pattern on the wall of the cup, as if he was appreciating the exquisiteness of the utensils.

However, the next moment, he suddenly raised his hand and threw the teacup to the ground.

The porcelain touched the ground and suddenly shattered with a crisp sound. One of the sharp fragments flew up, just rubbing the index finger of Chu Ning's left hand.

A short trace was suddenly drawn from the green fingertips, and a few drops of blood leaked out.

"I have planned for so long, and it seems that something will happen. I can't think of it. I can't think of it—" Xiao Yu sat on the side of the couch with his eyes closed, his chest undulating because of anger, his pale face was stained with a strange red, "Queen Mother In order to deal with me, he was willing to get King Qin back!"

Chu Ning didn't speak, the blood from his fingertips fell on the skirt, slowly permeating along the lines of the fabric, just to dye the embroidered white orchid bright red.

She knew that now it was useless to talk about anything else. Trapped in the East Palace, without the power of soldiers, it became a fish that others could slaughter on the chopping board. All the prince needed was an opportunity to vent.

After all, before today, no one would have thought such a thing would happen.

…

Since the establishment of the ancestral dynasty, Great Liang passed through the two emperors Taizong and Gaozong before it was passed to the present emperor Xiao Lian of Zhaode.

Xiao Lian was not the current empress dowager Qi's parent and child, and because Qi Empress had nothing to do, he was chosen as the crown prince before Gaozong was critically ill.

He has a weak temperament and indecision. He doesn't have much thoughts on the political affairs of the court, and he is afraid of the Queen Mother. Therefore, for twelve years since he succeeded to the throne, the power of the court has always been firmly controlled by the Queen Mother.

More than a month ago, the emperor suddenly became seriously ill and was bedridden. Seeing that his illness and death worsened, a day seemed to be a day again. In Chang'an, there were many princes and nobles, heavy court officials, ordinary people, refugees, and beggars. Presumably, a new round of throne change may be just around the corner.

This was a great opportunity for Prince Xiao Yu.

The emperor’s heirs are thin. Except for the two married princesses, the only younger brother Wu Wanghuan who might threaten his crown prince was killed in the concubine Xue’s rebellion three years ago.

The throne seems to be his.

However, when he guarded the Taiji Palace for ten days, thinking that the throne was within reach, Tai Chi Palace suddenly changed.

The Qin King Xiao Kezhi, who had been in Ganzhou for 14 years and was almost forgotten, suddenly led his troops into Chang'an. He surrounded the Taiji Palace yesterday and forcibly sent his prince back to the East Palace from the emperor's residence Ganlu Hall.

Now that Tai Chi Palace is full of Queen Mother and King Qin's people, it is not difficult to guess what will happen next.

He and the Empress Dowager Qi had fought openly and secretly for many years. Seeing that he had the upper hand, he couldn't imagine that he would eventually be defeated by King Qin!

…

"Dang—Dang—Dang—"

The sound of Yunban came from the direction of Taiji Palace, like thunder in the silent autumn night, with one sound, it was creepy, and I couldn't help but hold my breath to count.

The maid who was quietly bowing to clean up the broken porcelain on the ground was so frightened that her hands shook.

"Get out!" Xiao Yu suddenly sat up straight from the couch and shouted at the maid.

After a long while, the silence in the Guangtian Hall was restored after the sound of the cloud board passed.

"Twenty-seven hits." Chu Ning looked at the dry blood on his fingertips, and said in a low voice, "His Royal Highness, the saint is dead."

When the voice fell, the ministers outside Guangtian Hall seemed to react at the same time, kneeling all together, and crying to Xiao Yu in the room: "His Royal Highness, the saint has collapsed!"

For a while, everyone's wailing lingered in the sky over the entire East Palace, and remained for a long time.

Chu Ning raised her eyes to look at the fuzzy figure hidden in the darkness outside the hall, and her heart was cold.

Among these people, none of them were truly sad for the death of the saint, and what they thought of was probably their own end.

The same goes for her prince.

She doesn't care about the saint, the queen mother, or even the prince, she only cares about herself.

She didn't want to lose this life, a life that finally survived, she didn't want to lose it at all.

"His Royal Highness, there is news from Tai Chi Palace!"

Outside the hall, an **** rushed in from Jiafu Gate and threw himself at the door, with cold sweat on his flustered face.

"Queen Dowager-known to the King of Qin, the sage, the sage's will, and ordered the King of Qin-to inherit the Datong, please, invite the prince to enter the Taiji Palace tomorrow, take care of the saint's funeral, and prepare the emperor to ascend the great ceremony..."

The voice fell, and there was a dead silence.

Since King Qin entered Beijing, everyone has expected the result today, but when faced with it, they still found it unbearable.

Xiao Yu's face was blue and white, and he leaned on the couch without saying a word, but the ups and downs in his chest became more and more violent. Finally, he couldn't help but burst out a mouthful of blood.

"Your Highness!"

The ministers gathered outside the door of the sleeping hall and exclaimed almost at the same time.

Chu Ning stood on the side of the couch, and the underskirt that had already been stained with a few drops of blood suddenly had dots on it.

Ignoring the dirt on her body, she stretched out her hand to take out the pill from the wooden box on the bedside, and skillfully delivered it into Xiao Yu's mouth, and took out the veil to wipe the blood on his lips.

Xiao Yu swallowed the pill and calmed down for a while before he felt the qi in his chest eased.

He slowly raised his head, stretched out his hand to caress Chu Ning's cheek, a little trance flashed in his eyes: "Aning, you go back to the house first, I'll talk to them."

"Here."

She gently turned her head away from his caress, put down the silk kerchief in her hand, led the maids out, and walked along the corridor to her bedroom.

"Lady," Maid Cuihe sent the others away while she walked beside her and spoke softly, "The prince is really-can't help it?"

She asked cryptically, but the two of them knew exactly what it meant-Tai Chi Palace Change, as long as the new emperor was not the prince, there would be only a dead end in the entire East Palace.

Chu Ning stopped, turned around, and looked back at the direction of the prince's bedroom.

The gate of the palace has been closed again, making it difficult to see what's inside. Her gaze flicked past the few people who were still waiting outside the hall, roughly guessing who was going in to discuss with Xiao Yu.

"Is there any way? They are still racking their brains." Her tone was unexpectedly calm, as if she was not a princess, and she didn't have to live and die with Donggong.

Cuihe breathed a sigh of relief, quietly comforting herself in her heart, as long as there is a glimmer of life, she can't give up, just like they came here three years ago.

"Cuihe, do you remember why we were desperately living three years ago? Why did I marry into the East Palace?"

Chu Ning raised the index finger that was cut by the tiles, looked at it for a moment in the dim light, and then pressed his thumb under the wound to exert force.

The wound opened again, and fresh blood broke through the coagulated blood stains, dripping little by little.

"When did the lady hurt her hand?" Cui He was startled, and hurriedly freed a hand to deal with her.

"It's alright." Chu Ning released her thumb, and gently held her index finger into her mouth until she felt a faint smell of rust in her mouth before pulling it out.

Somehow, the way Cuihe looked at her suddenly remembered what happened three years ago.

At that time, she was just standing in the dilapidated and leaky house, enduring the biting cold of winter, shaking her whole body, and swearing through gritted teeth that as long as she survived, she would wash her father's grievances.

"Lady..."

Suddenly, there was a burst of sourness on the tip of Cuihe's nose.

Chu Ning turned around and smiled at her, her beautiful face looming between the darkness and the shadows, not real, only a pair of bright eyes, shining in the dark.

"At that time, I survived to clean up my father's crimes and to restore his innocence. If I haven't done it now, I can't just fall down so easily, at least, not because of him."

Cuihe stared into her eyes blankly, only feeling that the fear in her heart seemed to ease.

For some reason, she faintly felt that "he" should refer to Prince Xiao Yu.