Who is spreading rumors that my filial piety towards them has changed?

"Then let's head over to Kunlun Mountain and visit Master Yun."

Zuo Qiuchi agreed: "That's a good suggestion. I haven't hugged my body pillow for a while."

Suddenly, Yongzhen raised her hand and said, "Wait a moment, Prince Yueqi wants to speak with me..."

Chu Mingkong wanted to know what they were talking about, but Yongzhen remained silent for a short while before indicating that the topic had ended.

"What did they say? How did they finish saying it all in one go?" Shangguan Rong asked, puzzled.

Yongzhen said, "The eldest prince said he invited you, Mingkong, also known as 'Cao,' to stay at the Moon Palace as a distinguished guest. The wedding banquet will begin soon, and you can take me away after the banquet is successfully concluded."

This eldest prince is far too informal...

Shangguan Rong guessed, "It's possible that something happened to the barrier just now, and he was worried about potential dangers. He wanted to recruit Mingkong as a bodyguard. Anyway, he originally planned to have Mingkong take Yongzhen away, so he could use Mingkong's skills to keep things under control."

This is indeed a possibility. After hearing Shangguan Rong's analysis, Zuo Qiuchi glanced at Feng Ying and asked her with a questioning look.

In this world, it is extremely dangerous to rashly break into someone else's lair. A person is not scary, but their home must be treated with caution, whether it is the Heavenly Palace or those sects and holy lands.

Fengying, however, was quite relaxed: "If you want to stay in the Moon Palace for two days, that's fine. Even if they really want to open another barrier to trap and kill you, I can easily break it."

Chu Mingkong glanced at the dilapidated temple, then took out the map and looked at it again, nodding and making his decision:

"Alright, we haven't stayed in any good places since we came to the Crescent Kingdom. Let's go and experience what it's like to stay in the Moonlit Royal Palace, and then move closer to the Kunlun Thunder Pool."

...But, my goodness, what kind of situation is this? Is this eldest prince really that easy to talk to? Should I have Yongzhen prepare some kind of life-saving plan so we can just go in and get him out? I feel like I'm becoming paranoid because of everything that's happening in the Heavenly Palace.

After making the decision, Shangguan Rong and Yongzhen felt somewhat helpless about the change in the trip plan, but they were happy to see Chu Mingkong adjust his mood.

The dilapidated temple was not far from the Moon Wheel Palace. Chu Mingkong and his group had only "escaped" for a short while when they re-entered Moon City as honored guests and even stayed at the Moon Wheel Palace.

However, some situations do indeed happen very suddenly...

That very night, the doll Yongzhen was poisoned, and rumors quickly spread throughout the palace that the eldest prince had poisoned Princess Tianji.

Just as everyone was about to confront the eldest prince about the truth, someone discovered that the eldest prince had died inexplicably, lying dead in his own bed without any wounds or signs of poisoning; his death was bizarre.

Chu Mingkong truly realized that this godforsaken place was not a place he could stay in for long!

Chapter 221 Soul Search

Let's rewind a bit, back to when we entered the Moon Palace openly and legitimately.

Because of Cao's special identity, the eldest prince naturally wouldn't openly receive him. Instead, he would have described him as "a highly skilled person from a foreign land discovered in Manyue City," without mentioning Princess Yongzhen, otherwise it would have been strange.

Aside from not receiving a personal audience, he was treated with the utmost courtesy. Since Ma Meng had heard that "Cao" was accompanied by two stunningly beautiful women, and fearing that this might cause him inconvenience, they arranged three extra rooms for him, all side by side, so that he could be taken care of immediately in any situation.

The room's decor is based on pure white, with gold inlays forming patterns. The strings of beads hanging from the bed are all made of pearls. At first glance, it exudes the ostentatious style of a wealthy family, which is completely different from the style of the wealthy family in the Tianji Empire. Each has its own merits.

"This place may be chaotic, but the royal palace is incredibly luxurious and beautiful. The rooms even have their own bathtubs. That's amazing," Zuo Qiuchi exclaimed, then said to Chu Mingkong, "Make me a room like this in Xiling later."

"Okay, okay, okay," Chu Mingkong agreed.

Fengying reminded him:

"Emma, ​​I've concealed your true form's presence. Don't wander too far. Just stay in the nearby rooms. Otherwise, it'll be troublesome if others see that there are two Emma's."

When Shangguan Rong thought back to when they were in the temple, Yongzhen took Chu Mingkong out alone. Now that she thought about it, it didn't seem like they were going out to talk about losing something; it seemed more like they were going out to get closer.

She only said she lost something Mingkong gave her. Was it really necessary to blush and feel weak in the knees, and have her butt tremble when she sat down again?

Chu Mingkong abandoned his plot to seize power, which immediately ended the cooperative relationship between Shangguan Rong and Yongzhen.

Thinking back to how she had just been worried about Yongzhen's safety, and then Yongzhen suddenly pulled Chu Mingkong aside for a secret tryst, she felt a pang of jealousy and said:

“Since Prince Yueqi said that Yongzhen can leave at will, can we ask Mingkong to put away the doll and let Yongzhen himself show up and perform? This way, we can avoid others wondering why Yongzhen suddenly became ‘mute’.”

When the eldest prince was communicating with Yongzhen and inviting "Cao" to his home through her, the doll Yongzhen communicated using paper, claiming that she was suffering from a sore throat due to the change in environment. The eldest prince, wanting to avoid trouble, did not pursue the matter further, as long as the message of inviting "Cao" was conveyed.

Yongzhen had originally intended to have Chu Mingkong put away the dolls, but after Shangguan Rong said that, she became wary instead.

If the doll is put away, wouldn't she be stuck in that room like she's in prison, unable to move around freely? Right now, her true self can move around freely in the Moon Palace with Chu Mingkong, but if it's the doll Yongzhen who is the bride, she can't move around freely.

She refused outright:

"There's no need. Let my doll stay there; it'll be like having another pair of eyes observing the situation. How about Rong'er, as my best friend, stay in my doll's room to keep her company and keep an eye on things?"

Chu Mingkong sensed the atmosphere between the two girls. The transition was incredibly fast. Without the pressing external goals, they immediately sparked a connection.

However, the fact that there's a hint of tension suggests that everyone's mindset is gradually becoming more relaxed. They've let go of the mess that's only made things worse in the Crescent Kingdom, and the pressure has lessened considerably.

Chu Mingkong spoke up to separate them:

"We'll see how things go. Let's all go to our own rooms and take a shower now. We got covered in dust in that dilapidated temple, a bath will do the trick."

Shangguan Rong and Yongzhen looked over at the same time.

"If we each take a room, Mingkong, you won't get one, so where will you stay? Since the eldest prince doesn't mind, you can go to my doll's room."

After Yongzhen finished speaking, she glanced at Shangguan Rong. Her words seemed to be directed at Chu Mingkong, but they were also meant for Shangguan Rong.

Just now, Shangguan Rong wanted to make a fuss about her dolls, but this time Yongzhen used the dolls as an advantage to fight back.

It seems that Chu Mingkong neither went to Shangguan Rong nor Yongzhen (her original body), showing no favoritism towards either side. But when they arrived at the doll room, and something really happened, wasn't it still Yongzhen who accompanied Chu Mingkong?

Yongzhen originally intended to save this move for dealing with Jinyu, who was fiercely competing with her for Chu Mingkong. Unexpectedly, she used it against Shangguan Rong first.

Chu Mingkong was embarrassed: "I'll stay here with Master. You all go and take a bath first."

After escorting them both to their prepared rooms, Chu Mingkong returned to Zuo Qiuchi's side and relaxed.

Zuo Qiuchi lay sprawled on the soft seat, too lazy to even pick up the grapes with his hands. He simply placed the exquisite silver fruit platter on his chest, stretching his neck to take a bite whenever he wanted, and casually remarked:

"Mingkong, your two girls are fighting too subtly. It's not as fun as your mothers and that girl Jinyu."

The concubines' commotion was a huge headache for Chu Mingkong...

Feng Ying commented, "I think it would be more interesting if Princess Chu and Empress Pei fought. If Princess Chu were to catch Ming Kong eating the Empress one day, Empress Pei wouldn't be able to be as tough as she was last time, and that would be quite a scene!"

I urge you to be kind!

Chu Mingkong warned her, and then immediately followed Zuo Qiuchi's lazy ways. Not wanting to pick the grapes with her hands, she stretched her neck, reached for her master's big bear-like penis, and took a bite of the grapes, feeling very happy.

"There are more over there, so you insist on getting them from me, right?"

"The food I left with you tastes better! Are you getting ready to take a bath? I'll scrub your back!"

"And me?" Fengying gently flicked his ear.

"Let's go together!" Chu Mingkong didn't mind at all.

Just as he was carrying Zuo Qiuchi and Feng Ying toward the bath, there was a knock on the door, and the voice of a maid came from outside.

"Lord Cao, His Highness the Crown Prince asks if you are free and would like to have a chat with you."

Damn it, couldn't we have come at a different time? This is really the worst possible time.

However, given the Crown Prince's lavish hospitality, Chu Mingkong found it difficult to refuse; at least he wanted to hear what the prince had to say first.

The maid outside the door was still waiting for a response when she heard a voice say, "I'm busy, I'll come back later." She was still wondering how to explain this to her master when the door opened.

The person clad in bone armor said, "Lead the way. I was just venting, don't take it to heart."

......

Upon meeting the eldest prince, Chu Mingkong felt that the man was rather unremarkable in appearance, with the most striking feature being his heavy gold ornaments, which exuded luxury.

The eldest prince felt extremely awkward when he met "Cao". He couldn't touch the princess who had come for the marriage out of caution, and now he had to show respect to that person, who was, after all, a person of status. No matter how he thought about it, he felt uncomfortable and unhappy.

A man with a bruised and swollen face standing next to the eldest prince would occasionally give him a wink, which helped keep the conversation going.

The topic the eldest prince wanted to discuss with "Cao" was nothing more than this.

On the one hand, it shows that he has no intention of being an enemy of "Cao Mou", and he really did not know that Princess Yongzhen had such a powerful admirer.

What he said was similar to what Yongzhen relayed: after the marriage ceremony, Yongzhen could simply take him away. The Yueqi royal family only wanted the support of the Tianji Empire to sweep away the rebellious royal tribes and achieve unification.

On the other hand, it was to test Yongzhen's and his "Cao's" attitude.

The eldest prince strongly suspected that Yongzhen, with such a powerful admirer, was capable of seizing the opportunity to usurp the throne and seize power. He was eager for Yongzhen to leave, and therefore wanted to know from "Cao" whether they had any such hostile intentions.

Since the other party had asked so frankly, Chu Mingkong didn't hide too much from them:

"At one time, we did, because we didn't like the emperor. Our positions were opposite to the emperor's. If we really had any ambition to seize power, we certainly wouldn't want the Emperor of Heaven to have another ally. But now we don't have that thought anymore. The Crescent Moon is too chaotic. I'd rather go back to living a quiet life."

The eldest prince gave an awkward laugh, momentarily at a loss for words. Talking to this person was truly awkward. It took him a while to find a topic to discuss:

"What I want is to restore the former glory of Crescent Moon. Since the internal forces cannot solve the problem, I can only look to borrow strength. It is really helpless. The current Crescent Moon Kingdom is not what I want."

Although his tone was awkward, you could tell he genuinely meant it; his passionate anticipation didn't sound like acting.

However... Chu Mingkong thought of the slums outside Yueqi City, and then of the magnificent splendor inside the city. He felt that this eldest prince was really all talk and no action.

Even if such a person were to eventually unify the Crescent Kingdom and restore the Moonlit Empire, their future would be predictable.

The people below became dissatisfied, and then chaos erupted again.

The Crescent Kingdom truly exudes chaos and despair.

After the eldest prince explained that he could take Yongzhen away, Chu Mingkong left.

That evening, Chu Mingkong checked each room one by one. Rong'er and Yongzhen were both in the "doll bride's" room, keeping an eye on each other to prevent Chu Mingkong from secretly visiting either of them.

Chu Mingkong was afraid they would start arguing, so he stayed by their side to prove his innocence.

Yongzhen and Shangguan Rong were speechless for a moment, so she used a note to chat with her mother, Madam Zhen.

In the silence, the doll Yongzhen was writing when suddenly he spat out a mouthful of black blood onto the paper.

Madam Zhen, far away in Kunlun, was happily chatting with her daughter when she suddenly saw a bloodstain on the note and froze.

Chu Mingkong stared wide-eyed in alarm: "Yongzhen?!"

Shangguan Rong also came over and looked at the doll Yongzhen's suddenly pale face, the black bloodstains on her lips were even more glaring.

Fortunately, the real Yongzhen severed the connection between his soul and the doll in time, and the suffocating pain immediately disappeared.

She waved her hand and said, "I'm fine. It was the doll that was poisoned. It didn't affect me."

Fengying's figure emerged from a cloud of golden dust. She took out her own antidote pill and gave it to the doll to detoxify it.

Her gaze swept around, searching for the source of the poison, and finally settled on a faded gold pattern on the doll Yongzhen's nightgown.

The faded parts are the poison disguised as gold jewelry, which then seeps into the skin unnoticed!