Crossing the Palace Fighting Fox Harem

Chapter 177 The uncertainty of life and death

Ji Anni, Yizhen and Huarong came to the West Palace to see Concubine Baogui for the last time.

I thought there would be a lot of people here, but it was surprisingly quiet.

When I came to the West Palace before, Xiaoyao always led the way. But now Xiaoyao is dead, and Concubine Baogui is also dead. Without the master, the West Palace is naturally much more deserted than before. Not only is it deserted, but there is also a bit of a gloomy atmosphere. Yellow paper and white banners for offering sacrifices to the spirits are floating everywhere, and even in broad daylight, it seems shadowy and full of ghosts.

Led by the aunt who was in charge of the West Palace, Ji Anni and others walked into the West Palace.

As soon as I stepped onto the stairs, I felt oppressed by the gloomy atmosphere in the hall and subconsciously slowed down my steps.

"Aunt, where is the Imperial Master? Has the Imperial Master come to see Empress Bao?"

Ji Anni was anxious to know Yun Zhen's news. How could Yun Zhen, who loved Baogui Fei deeply, bear such a blow? When she thought of his sad look, Ji Anni's heart couldn't help but ache.

The aunt replied softly, "The Imperial Master left the palace directly and has never been here."

Never been here... Well, this is the expected answer.

Yun Zhen now probably doesn’t have the courage to face the cold body of Guigui Fei?

After entering the hall, Ji Anni and Yizhen burned incense and kowtowed to Concubine Baogui. Seeing the coffin covered with white cloth in the mourning hall, and thinking that Concubine Baogui would lie quietly inside and never get up again, Ji Anni couldn't help but choke up.

Concubine Baogui was the first empress she met and the one who treated her best.

She still remembered that on her first day in the palace, it was Concubine Baogui who helped her comb her hair and change her clothes.

I subconsciously clenched my hands, and it seemed as if I could still feel the temperature of Concubine Baogui's body at that time...

But that person has disappeared, gone forever...

"My queen... My queen, you won't die... You won't die..."

Ji Anni sobbed and burst into tears. It is said that good people live longer, but why do good people die first in reality?

"Xiao Zhao, don't be sad. Baogui Fei will definitely become an immortal. She will always be watching over us from heaven."

Yizhen gently held Ji Anni's shoulders and comforted her softly. After learning the news of Baogui Concubine's death, her heart sank. She couldn't believe that the kind and gentle Concubine Bao would be bitten to death by a poisonous snake in the dungeon.

But the dead cannot be resurrected. The dead are gone, and the living must continue to live.

Yizhen helped Ji Anni sit down on the guest chair, and quietly accompanied Baogui Fei through her last time in the palace as the Taoist priests performed a ritual to pray for the soul of the deceased.

Ten years, a full ten years, from entering the palace to leaving the palace, from a little girl of only thirteen years old to a cold corpse.

These ten years were the last journey of Concubine Baogui's life, and also the most painful one for her.

The source of her pain was Yun Zhen, and the relationship that she could not let go of even after ten years.

Now, ten years later, she left quietly, leaving Yun Zhen, who had been waiting for her, alone in the world. What a cruel thing it was.

Yun Zhen, who lost his precious concubine, was like bricks and tiles without a roof beam; he was doomed to collapse and fall apart.

As evening approached, Kang Xiaorong brought a small group of imperial guards to escort Concubine Baogui's coffin out of the palace.

Lai De was also in the team. He sneaked up to Ji Anni when no one else was paying attention and stuffed something into her hand. Ji Anni opened her palm and saw a small sugar cube.

Lai De said in a low and hurried voice: "My queen, there are many bitter things in this world, but there are also sweet things. Don't just remember those sad and painful things, but also think about the taste of sugar from time to time."

Ji Anni clenched the candy in her hand, nodded vigorously, and couldn't help but let her tears fall again.

"Thank you, Lai De..."

If I could meet you, I would not regret entering the palace. Lai De's care was small, sometimes just a word, a hug, or even just a piece of candy now, but every time he could bring the warmest comfort to Ji Anni when she was most sad.

"Annie..." Lai De suddenly leaned over to whisper in Ji Annie's ear.

Ji Anni was stunned.

"Annie..."

Lai De said it again, and after seeing Ji Anni's surprised expression, he scratched his head and explained: "My lady, did I make you unhappy? Didn't you say before that as long as I called you Anni, you would cheer up? Was I wrong?"

Ji Anni shook her head vigorously.

No, no, Lai De was not wrong, it was me who was wrong. Although Empress Bao had passed away, the palace was still in crisis. There were still two months before the autumn empress was enthroned. Who would be the next target of the An family? Concubine Kang, Concubine Gan... or myself? Now was not the time to grieve. If I only indulged in grief, I would definitely encounter more painful things in the next two months.

At this time, Concubine Baogui's coffin had been lifted up by the guards and was being carried towards the door.

Kang Xiaorong passed by Ji Anni and saw Lai De slacking off, and scolded him in a low voice.

Lai De was so scared that he hurried back to work.

"Major General!"

Ji Anni suddenly stood up and asked, "Can I go with you to escort Concubine Baogui out of the palace?"

I thought the other party would definitely refuse this impulsive request, but after a brief surprise, Kang Xiaorong actually nodded in agreement and said softly, "Empress Zhao Fei, in fact, the emperor has already given the order. If you want to send Guibao Fei out of the palace, you can ask for permission to go with us."

"Really?" I couldn't believe it. The emperor had already arranged everything for me.

Kang Xiaorong nodded, and then said to Yizhen beside him: "But I'm sorry, Concubine Su Congfei, the emperor has not approved you to leave the palace."

Yizhen smiled faintly and nodded to show that she understood.

In fact, she has always been very clear about the status gap between herself and Ji Anni.

Although Ji Anni treated her as a sister, outsiders could clearly tell the two of them apart.

One is the mother of Prince Ming and a strong contender for the throne of the imperial harem; but the other is just the daughter of the magistrate of Nanhu County. She is destined to die without ever seeing the emperor and to be a palace maid all her life.

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Ji Anni followed Kang Xiaorong's team out of the palace and came to the residence of the Minister of War.

This was the first time that Ji Anni had left the palace since she entered it. In the sedan chair with pearl curtains, she quietly looked at the imperial city under the setting sun, without a trace of excitement about leaving the palace. The people coming and going on the streets did not attract her interest. She was only thinking of two people in her mind, one was Guibao Consort, and the other was... Yun Zhen.

"Empress, we're almost there." Kang Xiaorong reminded Ji Anni while riding on horseback.

Ji Anni looked forward and saw that a lot of people had gathered in front of a large house with two lions leaning against the door about ten meters away.

I guess that must be the residence of the Minister of War, which is also the hometown of Concubine Baogui.

Among the crowd that came out to welcome the coffin, only a few older maids were crying. Perhaps before entering the palace, Concubine Baogui grew up under their care. Who would have thought that when she was sent away ten years ago, Concubine Baogui was still a young girl who could run and laugh; when she was welcomed back ten years later, she was just a dead body lying in a coffin, motionless...

Ji Anni got off the sedan chair, gently holding the coffin of Concubine Baogui with one hand, and walked into the mansion with the guards.

Along a long gravel road covered with paper banners, the morgue with white silk hanging on it is right in front of us.

At this moment, there was a sudden commotion behind him. Several guards raised their swords and rushed out the door.

"What's wrong?" Ji Anni hurriedly asked Kang Xiaorong beside her.

Kang Xiaorong calmly guessed, "Maybe the Imperial Master has arrived."

"Yun Zhen?" Ji Anni's heart suddenly tightened and she almost suffocated.

Kang Xiaorong said calmly, "In fact, when he was in the palace, Yun Zhen wanted to see Baogui Concubine for the last time, but he was stopped by the Queen Mother's people and forcibly escorted out of the palace. Now that Baogui Concubine's body has been sent back with great difficulty, he will definitely come to see her, even if it is just to see her for the last time."

The last meeting... The weight of these four words was as heavy as a thousand pounds, weighing heavily on Ji Annie's heart.

It turns out that Yun Zhen did not lack the courage to meet Baogui Concubine, but was stopped by the Queen Mother's people. Since the Queen Mother did not want Yun Zhen to meet Baogui Concubine, why did she let Yun Zhen leave the palace? Did the Queen Mother have a plan in advance and wanted Yun Zhen to force her way into the Shangshu Mansion? Yun Zhen was not free from the responsibility of Baogui Concubine's death. Did the Queen Mother want to use the Shangshu Mansion's people to torture Yun Zhen?

"Major General, if it is really Yun Zhen, please let them let Yun Zhen in!"

Ji Anni looked up and grabbed Kang Xiaorong's sleeve to ask. He didn't want to see Yun Zhen conflict with the people in the Shangshu Mansion, nor did he want Yun Zhen to be insulted and scolded by the people in the Shangshu Mansion, and he didn't want to see Yun Zhen and Baogui Fei so close but unable to meet.

Hearing this, Kang Xiaorong smiled again: "My queen, don't underestimate Yun Zhen. If he wants to come in, no one in the Shangshu Mansion can stop him."

Before Ji Anni could figure out what he meant, she suddenly saw a white light behind her, followed by a scream.

By the way, Yun Zhen knows magic.

Recalling the time on the execution ground, Yun Zhen used magic to fight the demon fox until the sky collapsed and the earth split. The reason why he could travel through time and space was because Yun Zhen caused time and space confusion when fighting with some demon, causing him to fall into this world. After that fight, Yun Zhen was also seriously injured. In order to recover from his injuries, he stopped using magic.

Now, in order to see Concubine Baogui for the last time, he will definitely break through all obstacles at all costs, even at the cost of his life.