Unparalleled Beauty

Chapter C114

For a time, the entire hall was silent as a graveyard.

Clearly, countless torches illuminated the hall, yet an eerie atmosphere permeated the crowd.

Wushuang's face was shockingly pale, and even Emperor Qianwu wore a stunned expression.

Her heart pounded fiercely, so intensely that she felt a pang of pain. She involuntarily clutched the front of her gown. Seeing her distress, Emperor Qianwu quickly embraced her.

"What's wrong? Are you unwell?"

"I want to go inside and see," Wushuang whispered.

Emperor Qianwu looked towards Zhang Pu.

Zhang Pu hastily said, "This stone door has never been opened. After seeing this stone tablet, this subject did not dare to open it. Moreover, there seems to be a mechanism on this door, making it difficult to open by ordinary means."

As he spoke, he quickly pointed to the beast-faced ringed door knockers on the stone door.

These knockers served as decorations on doors, and almost every household had two. Poorer families used copper and iron, while wealthier families used gold and silver. Even many gates in the imperial palace had these beast-faced knockers.

However, in this underground palace, they were not merely for decoration but also served as a mechanism to open and close the main doors of the underground palace's rear hall.

In principle, after the emperor was buried, the underground palace doors would be sealed from the inside with stone blocks, making it impossible to open from the outside. However, there was another scenario: if the emperor and empress did not pass away simultaneously, there would be a situation of one being buried first and the other later. In that case, the doors could not be sealed shut but had to retain a method of opening, allowing the coffin to be brought inside at the appropriate time.

Thus, the knockers on the mausoleum doors were crafted by artisans into 'locks,' complete with 'keyholes' and 'keys.' Only by inserting the 'key' into the 'keyhole' would the mechanism inside the door be activated.

Zhang Pu's statement implied that he had seen the keyhole on the beast-faced knocker.

Emperor Qianwu walked over to examine it, during which Zhang Pu explained to him what 'keyholes' and 'keys' were.

The 'key' could be anything, depending on what the artisans used as a replica when creating the mechanism, usually jade pendants, jade seals, or gold seals.

Just then, Emperor Qianwu suddenly ordered everyone to withdraw, leaving only Zhang Pu, Fusheng, and two guards.

After everyone had retreated, he crouched down in front of Mei Wushuang and reached into the hem of her skirt. Shortly after, he held two objects in his hand.

They were the small gold and jade seals that had been circling Mei Wushuang's ankles for some time.

Before others could clearly see what it was, Emperor Qianwu had already inserted the two small seals into the mouths of the beasts and rotated the two door knockers.

Two "ka-ka" sounds were heard, and the mechanism seemed to have been opened.

But no one moved; everyone stared at the stone door.

Zhang Pu trembled with fear, his heart filled with excitement, curiosity, and dread.

He had inadvertently stumbled upon such a fantastical and mysterious matter. Now, those present were all the Emperor's confidants, while he was merely a minor official from the Ministry of Works. The words on the stone tablet were not difficult to understand, and they were clearly related to His Majesty.

Would His Majesty allow him to see what was hidden behind this stone door, in the rear hall? And after seeing it, would he lose his life?

Such complex feelings were difficult to describe.

Just then, Emperor Qianwu was already holding Wushuang's hand with one hand, and placing the other on the stone door.

With his strength alone, he naturally could not push open this stone door, but at this moment, he had completely forgotten about this. Mysteriously, the palm of one person was the combined strength of two.

The door was pushed open, only revealing a crack.

A dim and profound darkness seeped out from the crack, accompanied by the flickering light of the torches in the stone hall, as if it were alive. Within, there was a faint black mist rolling and leaping.

Fusheng suddenly said, "Your Majesty, this old servant will open the door."

The other two guards and An Yi also stepped forward.

Zhang Pu was startled by the sudden appearance of An Yi, but Emperor Qianwu shook his head.

As the crack filled with deep darkness grew larger and larger, there was a faint sound of the door shaft moving the stone door. This stone door did not seem heavy, or perhaps it was built not long ago. The door was very smooth, and after being opened a crack, with Emperor Qianwu's effort, the door was quickly fully opened.

A spark suddenly flashed in the darkness before them, the spark flashing and leaping rapidly in the darkness. Before the crowd could exclaim in surprise, suddenly the lights blazed brightly.

When people could see, they realized that in this instant, Emperor Qianwu had pulled Wushuang behind him, and standing in front of him in a protective stance was An Yi.

The entire hall was illuminated as if it were daytime.

Because there were so many lamps in the hall, not only were stone lamp stands carved into the walls, but even the top of the hall was hung with lamps, one after another, according to strange patterns.

The ground was also covered with lamps, arranged in strange patterns. At first glance, it looked like the Eight Trigrams, and then like a Yin & Yang diagram. These lamps were embedded in the ground, connected to the lamps on the walls and the top of the hall, so that when one was lit, all were lit.

And where all the lights converged was precisely at the center of the main hall, upon a stone platform taller than a person.

"This platform, this platform is built directly upon the golden well that was determined at the beginning."

The so-called golden well was, in fact, the acupoint of the mausoleum, the most crucial location of a feng shui treasure land. Generally, only after determining the location of the golden well could the design of the underground palace be conceived according to the location of the acupoint, and the entire mausoleum be constructed. Once the mausoleum was completed, the coffin of the mausoleum's owner would be placed upon the golden well in the future.

Back then, the location of this golden well was surveyed and re-surveyed by the Ministry of Works, and the final location was submitted by Zhang Pu to Emperor Qianwu for confirmation, which was why Zhang Pu said such a thing.

While others did not understand the meaning, they could generally guess, and thus the gazes directed at the stone platform became filled with fear.

The overall shape of this stone platform was that of a lotus flower, with the petals all carved from stone, lifelike and vivid. Many lamps seemed to be lit within the lotus heart, but due to the varying heights of the petals obstructing the view, one could only vaguely see that there seemed to be something inside, but the specifics were indiscernible.

"Let's go take a look."

The voice that had been incessantly chattering in his mind earlier suddenly fell silent after seeing the stone platform, and now it suddenly spoke again, giving Emperor Qianwu a strange sense of foreboding.

Wushuang suddenly raised her foot and walked towards that place, and Emperor Qianwu subconsciously grabbed her.

Fusheng and the others popped up again, saying that they would scout the way first, and after confirming that there was no danger, the Emperor and Empress could then step forward to investigate. However, Emperor Qianwu shook his head and said to Wushuang in a low voice, "We will go together."

The two held hands and walked forward.

Although there were so many stone lamps on the ground that there seemed to be no path at all, Emperor Qianwu led Wushuang along a strange route.

Others did not understand its meaning and could only see that this route contained profound mysteries. In fact, Emperor Qianwu did not know why he knew how to walk, it was as if he knew how to walk in the dark.

Only when they reached the back of the lotus flower did they discover that there were actually stone steps leading up.

The stone steps were spotless, and the two stepped forward.

One step, two steps, getting closer and closer. After stepping onto the last stone step, the two finally saw everything within the lotus flower clearly.

What kind of scene was that?

A pair of embracing men and women were surrounded by a multitude of lamps. The man was dressed in black robes, and the woman was dressed in white robes. The two were embracing and sleeping, their cascading black hair all scattered, as if intertwined together, just like their entangled fates.

One lamp after another surrounded the two, burning quietly. And above their heads, seven golden lamps, significantly larger than the other lamps, were arranged in a strange shape, with faint blue flames burning within them.

This pair of men and women seemed to be asleep, sleeping very soundly, very sweetly.

If there had been a third person present at that moment, they would have noticed that they were clearly themselves—one pair embracing in sleep, the other embracing while standing. Apart from the difference in clothing and hairstyles, everything else was exactly the same.

The scene was strange and dreamlike, beautiful to the extreme, yet it revealed a sense of illusion. Although surrounded by countless lamps, one could not feel any sense of burning. It was as if everything before her eyes was a bubble, so beautiful that it would break at the slightest touch.

The two standing figures had both fallen into silence.

Tears streamed from Wushuang's eyes as she murmured, "The sixth year of Qianwu… does that mean he died after I died?"

***

"This method of changing fate and altering destiny has never been successfully arranged. Not only has the technique been lost, but the celestial phenomenon of the Seven Stars Alignment is a rare sight, occurring only once every hundred years. I only gleaned a glimpse of it from handwritten notes passed down by my ancestors… Besides the timing of the heavens, it also requires the advantage of the earth. Nothing in this world can support the changing of fate and altering of destiny, except for intercepting the Dragon Vein's energy… Even if the formation is set up, whether it will succeed is still unknown, and the Dragon Vein's energy, once damaged, cannot be restored. This matter concerns the dynasty and the world; Your Majesty should act with caution…"

Faintly, it seemed someone was speaking, accompanied by a surge of blood-red light soaring into the sky, along with a dazzling array of colors leaping and flickering. Then, a vast expanse spread out, and in an instant, time and space reversed.

Wushuang didn't dare to move an inch; she had maintained this stiff posture for a long time.

A heavy weight pressed down on her body—he had actually buried his face in her chest.

Such a shameful position!

But Wushuang didn't even dare to cry, for she feared waking this person and losing her life like that palace maid from just now.

She didn't know how much time had passed, but she felt that he must be sound asleep.

She tried to move a little, but he didn't react at all. She tried to move again.

She probed little by little. Fortunately, the bed was soft enough; she was sinking into the soft bedding. Although it was difficult to exert force, it was precisely because of this that he hadn't pressed down on her too firmly. She gradually wriggled, finally freeing herself from beneath him.

Wushuang sat slumped on the ground for a long time, her whole body devoid of strength. But she hadn't forgotten that she was in a dangerous situation; she had to leave here quickly and return to her residence, that small courtyard.

She staggered to her feet and walked outwards.

But this great hall was truly too deep, filled with draperies everywhere. As she walked, she lost her way again, just like before. Just as she was sinking into despair, she suddenly saw a door, and then a person, and hurriedly ran over.

"I… I am the wife of the Second Young Master of Duke Zhao's Mansion. I entered the palace with my mother-in-law to pay respects to Concubine Hui, but I don't know why I was led here and got lost. Sir, could you possibly…"

This person was wearing a Chamberlain's uniform, with a fair face and no beard, appearing to be about forty years old, holding a duster in his hand.

But Wushuang didn't recognize any of these things; she only knew that the Chamberlains in the palace all looked about the same. She was truly flustered, so she couldn't help but ask for help.

Little did she know, this person had been secretly observing her for a long time, and seeing that she couldn't find her way out, he had chosen a spot to wait for her to come.

"Does this concubine wish for this one to find someone to escort you to the Mingyi Hall?"

Wushuang subconsciously said, "No!"

Though her mind was a whirlwind of confusion, she was not foolish. Being inexplicably led here, inexplicably almost losing her life, all of this must be related to Consort Chen. If she went to Mingyi Hall again, wouldn't that be like a sheep walking into a tiger's den?

"I want to go back... home..."

"The poor thing." The chamberlain sighed and said, "Wait here."

As he spoke, he walked away. Wushuang dared not wait and followed him cautiously. Soon, they exited the massive palace and arrived outside, seemingly in a courtyard.

She stood at a distance, watching the chamberlain summon a young chamberlain.

"Find a palanquin and send this madam out of the palace."

"Grandpa?"

Fusheng tapped the other with his horsetail whisk: "What 'Grandpa'! Serve carefully and send her back to Duke Zhao's Mansion."

The young chamberlain looked at Fusheng, then at the palace behind him, feeling as if he understood something. He hurriedly nodded and bowed in agreement.

Fusheng eyed his self-smart little expression, and wanted to tap him again with his horsetail whisk, but he did not. Instead, he turned and went before Mei Wushuang again.

"He will escort you out of the palace."

"Thank you, Chamberlain."

Fusheng watched her leave with the young chamberlain, muttering, "Consort Chen, Empress..."

He suddenly scoffed and turned back into the gate.

The small palanquin was carried by four strong eunuchs.

Those familiar with the palace would know that these small palanquins were generally used to carry honored individuals within the palace.

This young chamberlain's 'self-smartness' was not only displayed in the arrangement of this small palanquin, but also in the fact that he leaned by the palanquin window and spoke with Mei Wushuang along the way.

Wushuang actually had no desire to speak, but it was impolite to not answer when someone asked. Thus, back and forth, not only was her identity extracted, but also the fact that she did not know Chamberlain Fu.

So, how else could she have emerged from Chenhui Hall?

Who would have thought that His Majesty, with countless beauties in his harem, doesn't favor beauties, but rather, loves married women!

In light of this, the little Chamberlain was particularly attentive to Wushuang.

Not only did he arrange a sedan chair to escort her out of the palace, but upon reaching the palace gates, he also arranged a carriage, personally escorting her back to Duke Zhao's Mansion.

Upon arriving at the gates of Duke Zhao's Mansion, he didn't escort her any further. Instead, he revealed a knowing smile, helped Wushuang down from the carriage, and then boarded the carriage and departed.

The gatekeeper hadn't expected the Second Madam to return at this hour. Hadn't the Second Madam entered the palace with the Madam? How was it that the Second Madam had returned first?

Wushuang had no mind to concern herself with what the gatekeeper thought. She hurriedly returned to her own courtyard, unaware that at this moment, within the palace, her fortunate escape and subsequent escort out of the palace had stirred up a minor ripple.