Records of Mysterious Things in the Southern Dynasties

Chapter 521 The Princess Returns

Ren Yuan and the others waited patiently on the sidelines, letting the long-separated couple stuff dog food into their mouths.

It took Lü Kutao a while to calm down under Yang Zhong's comforting words. She realized that there were still a group of people watching.

She wiped away her tears shyly, curtsied to everyone, and said, "My eldest brother-in-law, third uncle, and youngest uncle are all back... I thought I would never see you again."

"Brothers and sisters."

"Second Sister-in-law." Ren Yuan and the other two greeted her.

After hugging Su Xiaoxiao and A Yao, Lü Kutao greeted everyone and said, "Please sit down, I'll go cook for you."

"Second Sister-in-law, there's no need. We have urgent business." Ren Yuan stopped her and asked, "Do you know anything about Commander Chen?"

"I've heard about it." Lü Kutao nodded and said, "The other day I was at home when Zhou Fangzheng suddenly came over and showed me a notice."

As she spoke, she quickly searched through the documents and handed the imperial notice to Ren Yuan.

The text above reads:

"It is said that loyalty and filial piety are the foundation of one's character, and integrity and righteousness are the guiding principles of a subject. The traitor Chen Qingzhi, though of lowly birth, was promoted from humble beginnings by His Majesty, rising through the ranks to become Right Guard General and granted the title of Marquis of Yongxing, enjoying unprecedented honor and favor. Who would have thought that instead of repaying his lord's kindness, he would harbor such treacherous ambitions and secretly plot such wicked schemes!"

"It has been discovered that this traitor secretly colluded with the northern barbarians, spies traveled between the Yangtze and Huai rivers, and leaked military intelligence to the border. Furthermore, he secretly stockpiled 100,000 armored soldiers in Zhongli and Shouchun, employed over 10,000 laborers, cultivated extensive connections with bandits, and cultivated numerous trusted henchmen. He also secretly harbored assassins in his residence and possessed imperial robes, plotting to usurp the throne and overthrow the imperial authority!"

"The judicial authorities have now jointly investigated, and the court has interrogated him. The confessions are irrefutable. According to the law, 'those who plot rebellion shall be executed along with their entire clan' to uphold the law of the land. However, His Majesty, out of benevolence and compassion, remembers his past minor merits and has granted him special imperial grace. He is hereby stripped of all his official titles and ranks, imprisoned in the imperial jail, and awaits further orders for execution. His accomplices, those who have strayed from the right path and repent, are permitted to surrender and be pardoned; those who remain obstinate will be implicated and punished without exception!"

"You soldiers and civilians, you must distinguish right from wrong, loyalty from treachery, and not be misled by seditious words, lest you repeat the mistakes of the past. Anyone who reports any remaining members of the traitorous rebellion will be rewarded with a thousand taels of silver; those who conceal such reports will be punished as accomplices. This proclamation is hereby issued to the world, so that all may know!"

As the crowd watched, they cursed loudly, "They're calling a deer a horse and turning black into white!"

"Oh dear, I'm so angry!" Chen Baxian was even more furious, pounding his chest and stamping his feet, saying, "That old man Xiao Yan is utterly shameless, unworthy of being a ruler!"

"Is the Buddhist sect so eager to kill Commander Chen?!" Yang Zhong exclaimed indignantly. "He has no supernatural powers now; he's just a mortal!"

"Because they miscalculated A Yuan, allowing him to escape death and even become a god. They learned their lesson and didn't want to take any more risks this time. At this moment, Chen Lingzhi walked in from outside."

"Lingzhi, what brings you here?" Ren Yuan hurriedly got up to greet him. In fact, he had sent a message to Chen Lingzhi as soon as he arrived in the capital... but he was just pretending to be surprised.

“My home has been ransacked, and my father and brothers have been imprisoned,” Chen Lingzhi said with a sorrowful smile. “I have no choice but to come and beg for your help.” With that, she bowed deeply.

"No, no, no!" The crowd hurriedly waved their hands, saying, "Don't worry, Miss Lingzhi, we are Commander Chen's soldiers. Rescuing Commander Chen is our duty!"

"Thank you all." Chen Lingzhi was moved to tears, her pitiful appearance making it impossible for A Yao to feel any hostility towards her.

"Is Chen Shuai really imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison as the proclamation says?" Ren Yuan asked in a deep voice.

Chen Lingzhi shook his head and said, "I don't know either. The divination result is also very vague, as if someone has covered up the secrets of heaven."

"Hey girl, don't you and Chen Shuai also have that... telepathic connection?" Chen Baxian asked, puzzled. "Can't we just ask him directly?"

“We lost contact a long time ago.” Chen Lingzhi shook his head and said, “Our connection must have been severed by the witch.”

Everyone looked at Chen Lingzhi with strange expressions, unable to imagine what it would feel like to be at odds with themselves.

“Young lady, don’t mind me asking a question.” Chen Baxian asked quickly, “Does that witch know you’re here?” “Don’t worry, she doesn’t.” Chen Lingzhi said confidently, “We are two sides of the same coin, like a coin. The sunny side can never see its dark side. So I don’t know what she did when she controlled the body, and she doesn’t know what I did when I controlled the body.”

"That's interesting." Chen Baxian nodded.

"I see..." Ren Yuan nodded slightly, but he was a little uneasy. Based on his understanding of gods, that witch might have some way to see his other side.

God is a being far beyond human imagination.

“Then I’ll go to the palace to investigate,” he said in a deep voice after a moment’s thought.

"Don't act rashly," Chen Lingzhi said worriedly. "The restrictions in Taicheng are extremely powerful; even gods cannot run wild inside."

“I know,” Ren Yuan nodded. “Isn’t it because it shares the same origin as the Jinling Grand Array, enough to resist the invasion of gods?”

In fact, he not only knew about it, but was also very familiar with the restrictions of Taicheng... When he was investigating the theft of the imperial seal, he carefully examined all the restrictions in the palace.

“That’s right, so you must not do anything reckless.” Chen Lingzhi said anxiously, “You must not lose both your wife and your army.”

"Don't worry, I have a brilliant plan," Ren Yuan said with a confident smile.

~~
Xuanwu Lake, Yingzhou Villa.

This was Princess Yongkang's summer retreat. Before going to the Ghost Kingdom, she used the excuse of leaving the palace to relax and came here, then escaped with Tianliangzi.

I just never expected that this would last for more than a year...

Although Emperor Xiao Yan is now devoted to Buddhism and his familial ties have become extremely weak, the princess's disappearance during her travels still enraged him. He imprisoned all the guards and palace maids on the island, forbidding them from leaving until the princess returned.

At first, they eagerly awaited the princess's return, but as time went on, they gave up hope and treated it as a life sentence.

Their eyes had lost their light; they were like walking corpses, just getting by.

That day, Liu Changshi, the princess's personal maid, had just finished lunch and was about to take a nap when she suddenly sat up as if she had seen a ghost, rubbing her eyes vigorously.

"Princess? I'm not seeing things, am I?!"

Princess Yongkang, who had been missing for over a year, appeared in the inner chamber.

"It is indeed I, the princess." Her voice was a little hoarse after a year apart.

"Great! The princess is back!" Liu Changshi was overjoyed and shouted outside, then quickly covered her mouth and knelt down to beg for forgiveness. "This servant has lost her composure, please punish me, Your Highness."

"It's alright, it's only human nature." The princess shook her head.

Soon, Xiahou Li, the head of Princess Yongkang's guards, and a group of palace servants all rushed over upon hearing the news. They were all overjoyed and wept when they saw her.

"It's great, great!"

"Thank goodness." Now we can finally get off the island...

(End of this chapter)