Assistance from the Empress Dowager

The maid immediately shrank back. How could she possibly dare to bully Yang Ninger? The truth was simply that Yang Ninger had ignored her earlier advice and ended up walking right into this place.

The imperial palace was immensely vast, and wandering out of it would take a fair amount of time.

Furious, Yang Ninger happened to spot a palace maid walking by—none other than Yue Qianxue.

Pointing a finger, she commanded, "You, come here."

Yue Qianxue had originally intended to ignore her, but if Yang Ninger caused a scene here, it would undoubtedly disrupt the plan.

Pausing in her steps, she walked over.

Without even sparing her a proper glance, Yang Ninger ordered, "Take this young lady to the palace gate. Hurry up."

Yue Qianxue was displeased. Just as she was preparing to make her move, Yang Ninger had to show up and cause trouble. Why would she ever obey Yang Ninger's command?

"This humble servant has other matters to attend to and is unable to guide the way," Yue Qianxue replied.

Yang Ninger raised an eyebrow. "Oh? You quite have a mouth on you, girl, actually daring to refuse this young lady. Do you even know who I am?"

Of course, Yue Qianxue knew very well; she was merely pretending not to recognize her.

It seemed that if Yang Ninger did not change this temperament of hers, it would get her killed sooner or later. Still, it was no surprise, as young ladies of prominent families always treated servants poorly.

If she were dealing with figures like the Empress or imperial noble consorts, she would no doubt be showering them with flattery.

"This humble servant does not know. However, I serve in the Empress Dowager's palace and am currently running an errand for Her Majesty," Yue Qianxue said, neither humble nor pushy. "My lady can walk a bit further ahead; there are plenty of palace maids there who can show you the way."

Yang Ninger hesitated slightly. After all, this was someone from the Empress Dowager's palace, so she still had to afford her a shred of decency.

Yet, after pausing for a brief moment, she recalled that the old hag of an Empress Dowager was now out of her mind—who in the world would still hold the Empress Dowager in any regard?

With a cold snort, she demanded, "Stop right there. So what if you are from the Empress Dowager's palace? I order you to guide me this instant. If you refuse, I shall go to my aunt the Empress and lodge a complaint against you, and have you whipped until your backside blooms tomorrow!"

Yue Qianxue frowned slightly.

At that moment, Wind Shadow guards emerged to patrol the Huafeng Palace.

Yue Qianxue noticed them pause briefly by the wall.

"What is this thing?"

"It looks like gunpowder."

"How could such a thing exist? The method for making gunpowder has been lost for centuries."

Seeing that the two Wind Shadow guards had discovered it, Yue Qianxue knew she could delay no longer.

With a darkened expression, she said, "If you refuse to leave, then you can stay and be the scapegoat."

Before Yang Ninger could fully comprehend what those words meant, Yue Qianxue moved in a flash, producing a small bell and ringing it. The sound was crisp and clear.

Yang Ninger hurriedly looked around, noticing nothing amiss.

Yet, only a brief moment later, explosions began to ring out all around them.

"Ah—!" Terrified, Yang Ninger dropped into a squat, though her screams were entirely swallowed by the deafening blasts.

Because they were standing at a distance, the gunpowder explosion could not directly harm them. However, as the palace wall was blown apart, numerous flying shards of stone came hurtling toward them. Yue Qianxue drew her dagger and deflected the debris one by one. Seeing this out of the corner of her eye, Yang Ninger finally understood what Yue Qianxue had meant by acting as a scapegoat.

With trembling legs, she tried to crawl away, but Yue Qianxue shifted her position and blocked her path.

Trembling with fear, Yang Ninger pleaded, "Spare... spare my life..."

Paying her no mind, Yue Qianxue watched as Qingyang and a small group of people leaped out. Though there were only a handful of them, every single one was a master martial artist.

"Knock her out and take her with us," Yue Qianxue instructed.

Qingyang immediately struck, rendering Yang Ninger unconscious before carrying her inside.

The palace wall had been blown wide open, and the Wind Shadow guards stationed outside were all caught in the blast, suffering various injuries.

The newly rushed-out Wind Shadow guards attempted to counterattack, but a second wave of explosions erupted.

Carefully discerning her timing, Yue Qianxue headed toward a specific palace hall alongside Qingyang.

In that hall, several Wind Shadow guards remained completely motionless, regardless of what was happening around them.

Working together, Yue Qianxue and Qingyang quickly disguised Yang Ninger, outfitting her with a human-skin mask molded to look like Yan Luoyu.

This substitution was merely a tactic to draw away a portion of their forces.

People from the palace would arrive very soon, and waiting any longer would be too late.

Acting swiftly, Yue Qianxue dragged Yang Ninger out, shouting, "Help! Someone, help! She broke out and got injured!"

Initially, those Wind Shadow guards would not have bothered to care, but a glance revealed a truly alarming sight: it was none other than Yan Luoyu, who had been locked inside the room.

Amidst the chaos, they had no leisure to check whether Yue Qianxue was truly a palace maid from within; their sole mission was to guard Yan Luoyu securely. Even the loss of a single finger was utterly unacceptable.

They rushed forward immediately, shoving Yue Qianxue slightly to the side. Two Wind Shadow guards stood watch at the doorway, but Qingyang deployed her poisonous powder, effortlessly neutralizing them.

Before long, Qingyang emerged carrying an unconscious person, and they quickly evacuated.

Yue Qianxue did not linger either. Seeing the Wind Shadow guards carry Yang Ninger back inside, she seized the opportunity to slip away.

This plan could never have succeeded without such immense chaos. Fortunately, she had previously acquired the formula for making gunpowder.

Gunpowder was a dangerous substance and had always been kept strictly under wraps.

Even the formula for fireworks differed greatly from the one capable of inflicting lethal damage.

The sudden appearance of such destructive gunpowder had completely thrown the Wind Shadow guards off balance, leaving them entirely oblivious to the fact that Yan Luoyu was a fake.

They were closest to the Cold Palace, so they retreated there briefly to rest, and Yue Qianxue immediately checked on Yan Luoyu's condition.

For safety and convenience, Qingyang had knocked Yan Luoyu unconscious. After inspecting her and confirming she was the genuine article, Yue Qianxue finally revived her.

She had resorted to the substitution trick precisely because she feared the aged Emperor might also use a decoy to deceive them.

Upon waking, a groggy Yan Luoyu caught sight of two figures.

She had been knocked out before she could even process what was happening, and had no recollection of the events that followed.

Staring intently, she panicked and asked, "Who are you?"

"Are you Yan Luoyu?" Yue Qianxue asked, intending to test her identity.

Yan Luoyu looked at Yue Qianxue, but due to the human-skin mask, she could not tell who she was.

She simply nodded, then suddenly realized, "Are you the ones sent to rescue me?"

"That's right," Qingyang replied.

Yan Luoyu then stated, "Today, I bought a candied hawthorn."

"What?" Qingyang froze, wondering if Yan Luoyu had lost her mind.

Grown somewhat wary, Yan Luoyu thought that if they didn't know the secret pass-phrase, they had no business claiming to be sent by her father.

However, Yue Qianxue merely smiled and continued, "And it happened to be one short. When I asked who ate it, no one dared to confess, yet a scent of sugar syrup lingered right on Uncle's breath."

Yan Luoyu looked delighted. "That's right, that's the nonsense rhyme."

Looking slightly helpless, Qingyang muttered, "What kind of nonsense rhyme is that? It doesn't match up at all."

Yue Qianxue explained, "The Yan family has been merchants for generations, so their literary skills are a bit lacking. This must be a little game you and Yan Chuan played when you were children."

Yan Luoyu couldn't help but smile and nod. That uncle of hers was not much older than her, which made him exceptionally mischievous.

Glancing around, she fretted, "We're still inside the palace. How are we supposed to get out? That seems like a terribly difficult task."

With so many Imperial Guards swarming the palace—especially after such a massive commotion—escaping would surely be harder than ever.

"Indeed it is," Qingyang agreed.

Yue Qianxue said, "Yang Ninger won't wake up immediately. We must make the most of this time and head for the side gate."

Frowning, Yan Luoyu objected, "Is it really wise to just swagger out of the palace like this? Palace maids need tallies to enter and exit, and their identities are strictly verified. I... I don't have a maid's identity."

Yue Qianxue had already prepared for this. Only then did Yan Luoyu realize what a master of disguise Yue Qianxue was, which explained how she had managed to infiltrate the palace so easily.

"Remember," Yue Qianxue instructed, "we are palace maids from the Empress Dowager's residence."

Yan Luoyu nodded, her heart pounding with anxiety, though she was willing to try anything for a chance at escape.

Still, Qingyang worried aloud, "My only concern is that the palace gates might be locked down to thoroughly search for assassins, in which case we won't be able to get out."

Anticipating this obstacle as well, Yue Qianxue furrowed her brow and said, "Wait here for me a moment. I'll be right back."

"Where are you going?" Yan Luoyu asked anxiously.

"To ask the Empress Dowager for help," Yue Qianxue replied before vanishing from sight.

Yan Luoyu felt a bit dazed and asked, "Is she really that close with the Empress Dowager?"

After a moment of thought, Qingyang could only offer a vague reply, "Well... pretty close, I suppose."

Yue Qianxue had actually sought out the Empress Dowager earlier; she simply hadn't known whether the Empress Dowager would be willing to help.

Nanny Yan was pleasantly surprised to see her arrive. "Why has this little maid only just arrived? Her Majesty the Empress Dowager saw the gift you sent yesterday and couldn't close her eyes the entire night! Come inside quickly."

Yue Qianxue had not revealed her true face, choosing to remain cautious while operating here.

Nanny Yan led her inside, where the Empress Dowager was still in poor health and resting in bed.

The moment she saw Yue Qianxue enter, however, the old woman's eyes lit up with a spark of excitement. "It's you... you... Where is my Xue'er? Where is she?"

Seeing the Empress Dowager's eager gaze, Yue Qianxue felt a pang of sympathy.

Nevertheless, biting her lip, she stated, "She said that if the Empress Dowager wishes to see her, Your Majesty must come out of the palace to meet her."

Nanny Yan was startled. "What? Miss Yue is truly not dead? Thank the heavens! But Her Majesty's health is poor right now—how can she possibly leave the palace?"

The Empress Dowager hesitated as well, well aware that her own physical condition meant she did not have many days left to live.

Precisely because of this, she desperately longed to see Yue Qianxue.

Little did she know that the person standing right before her was Yue Qianxue herself.

Sighing softly, the Empress Dowager murmured, "I don't have many days left anyway. If leaving the palace is what it takes, so be it. Little girl, accompany me out of the palace to find her. I must see her one last time."