Carrying the little lucky star, leading the villain on the road to exile

Chapter 585, Section 586: Chaos
Rong Ruiyuan stayed in the courtyard for half an hour before leaving in a daze and looking dejected.

Gu Antong knew that her words had some effect, but she couldn't guarantee exactly how much. Anyway, the seed had been planted, and it was just a matter of when it would take root and sprout.

Looking at her obese body, she didn't want to live such a miserable life for even a day longer.

Anyway, we've done everything we can to help, but unfortunately she still doesn't know who her enemy is.

He called Caihua in, saying, "You've been with me for a while now, and the bond between us, master and servant, has long since been exhausted."

Caihua was puzzled. "Your Majesty, I was wrong before. I hope Your Majesty will give me a chance to correct my mistakes. I will serve Your Majesty wholeheartedly from now on."

Gu Antong thought her life was hopeless, but she never expected that the prince would come today, and only because of a letter. This was enough to give her new hope.

“Take these,” Gu Antong pushed a box in front of her. “If you can find a way to get out of here, go as far away as you can. If you can’t, then that’s your fate.”

"Your Majesty, what do you want to do?" Caihua was a little nervous. Now she understood that she and Gu Antong were one. If Gu Antong was not good, her life would be almost over as well.

"This is a one-time opportunity. Although this money isn't much, it might be the only way to leave this place. You don't have much time left, so make the most of it." Gu Antong closed her eyes after saying this, not because she had any deep feelings for the girl, but because she wanted to do something good for herself one last time.

"..." Caihua remained silent for a long time before picking up the box. She bowed respectfully and then turned to leave.

Back in the corner room, those people were gone, and the only good thing was that she could be alone.

He closed the door, his hands trembling as he opened the box. No wonder it felt so heavy before; inside, besides a hundred taels of silver, there was a set of headdress and some small pieces of jewelry.

She recognized it. This set of jewelry was part of Gu Antong's dowry, and the Gu family had spent several dozen taels of silver to purchase it.

As for the jewelry, it was a gift from the Princess and other Consorts during the tea ceremony that day; it was nothing more than a superficial gift.

“This…” Caihua licked her lips. These pieces of silver were the monthly allowance that the princess had sent to replenish during this period. She had thought about using these silver to make some money before, but she didn’t expect that this time it would be so easy for her to get her hands on it.

What should have been a joyful mood was instead shrouded in gloom.

With these bribes, she can leave here, but what about Consort Gu?
Her pupils dilated instantly. Your Majesty, this is arranging a way out for her, this is saying goodbye to her.

At this moment, she was filled with boundless regret. What terrible things had she done before? How could she treat her master, who cared for her so much, like this?

But looking at the box in front of her, she was unwilling to go back and continue guarding it.

In this small courtyard, there was truly no hope left. In the end, he gritted his teeth, took out the loose silver coins, stuffed them into his pocket, and walked out of the courtyard.

Gu Antong watched this scene through the window, a smile playing on her lips. "Don't blame me..."

☆

Three days later, the entire capital was in an uproar. Consort Gu of the Ning Prince's Mansion perished in the fire.

This fire destroyed half of the Ning Prince's Mansion and caused a sensation throughout the capital.

You have to understand that even if a concubine's courtyard is in a terrible state, she still has a lot of maids and servants. How could it possibly catch fire?

Rumors that had been circulating privately before were being dug up again.

One version is the most outrageous, claiming that Consort Gu has been favored by Prince Ning ever since she entered the mansion, causing jealousy and rivalry among the women in the harem.

Unable to bear seeing Prince Ning and Consort Gu in love, these women began to use all their skills and underhanded methods against Consort Gu. As the rumors spread, not a single woman was innocent; they even had a detailed account of what drugs they had given her.

This also affected the families of the women in the Ning Prince's mansion. All the married women in their families were suspected by their husbands' families. In order to protect themselves, these families conducted various searches and interrogations, and they actually managed to find some clues.

This incident is like opening a Pandora's box; everyone in the mansion is on edge, wondering if there might be such a ruthless person living among them.

A beautiful young woman, who had only been in the Prince Ning's mansion for a few months, ended her life in such a tragic way.

Everyone in the capital was on edge and began to investigate themselves. The secrets they uncovered were presented in different versions every day.

These people began to lose interest in attending court and started a power struggle between their families.

In the imperial court, the memorials the emperor received were not about important national affairs, but rather various impeachments.

The emperor spent a whole day looking through it, and only felt a chill run down his spine.

If ordinary people and officials' families have so many problems, what about the entire imperial harem?

The emperor suddenly felt insecure and secretly ordered his men to begin searching the premises.

This investigation revealed that none of the concubines were innocent.

Looking at the dazzling array of bottles and jars on the table, the emperor thought he was really lucky to have lived so long.

The eunuch served him with trepidation, fearing that this anger would fall upon him.

He cursed all the concubines in the harem in his heart. Why did they have to make such a fuss when life was so good?
If the emperor is angered, will they even see the sun rise tomorrow?
"Isn't it with the Empress?" The Emperor carefully examined the label, the only exception making him feel somewhat unreal.

He knew he owed the Empress, so the power in the palace was always in her hands.

Zhonggong has no offspring, doesn't he feel resentment?

He admitted that over the years, he had harbored deep suspicions about the Empress, and had even been weakening the power of the Duke's mansion.

"Your Majesty, we have searched the Empress's quarters several times, and there is indeed nothing there..."

"Have you checked the people who serve you?"

"We've investigated everything." It's common knowledge that the Empress is out of favor in the palace, so they certainly wouldn't do her any favors.

"Excellent, truly excellent." The emperor slapped the table. "Summon the imperial physician."

The imperial physicians arrived in a hurry, and upon seeing all these bottles and jars, they all fell silent.

They were certainly aware of what was happening in the palace, and it seemed unlikely they would be able to leave today.

"Take a closer look at what these medicines are and write them down for me," the emperor said, then summoned his guards. "Go and find out where these came from."

"You guard the palace gates, you protect the safety of the palace, and this is how you're supposed to guard it."

The guards all knelt down; how were they supposed to answer?
They were guarding the palace gates, but it was impossible to search everyone who entered the palace. At least, which of the ministers and the ladies of noble birth attending banquets could they touch?
Besides, so much time has passed, how can they investigate? Are they supposed to imprison all the concubines in the harem and torture them?