Chapter 289: The Enigma of Consort Wan

“Nothing important, so I’ll leave first,” Shang Qinghua said as he releasing him and stretching lazily. “Prince Rong, are you coming along?”

It was clear he was subtly giving Yue Mingxuan a hint to send Rong Tieshan away.

Rong Tieshan naturally didn’t wish to leave. He said, “Regarding Consort Wan, there are still some details I haven’t recalled.”

“If you have anything, just say it now or are there some secrets you want to share privately with Yue Mingxuan?” Shang Qinghua’s expression grew slightly sharper.

Yue Mingxuan frowned at the two men going back and forth and turned to leave. “If you want to argue, do it outside! This isn’t some public park!”

Though this wasn’t the first time Yue Mingxuan had said something like this, the two of them clearly didn’t understand what he meant by “public park.”

Even so, at this moment, even a fool could tell that Yue Mingxuan was displeased.

Shang Qinghua refused to yield, so Rong Tieshan could only sigh and lay out everything he knew.

It turned out that Consort Wan had once been a relatively favored concubine in the palace.

However, her personality was not particularly easy to get along with, which meant she had quite a few enemies within the harem.

Especially during times when concubines competed for the emperor’s attention, Consort Wan’s aloof and self-respecting attitude, her refusal to create trouble, only made her an easier target for gossip and resentment.

Many people assumed that her high-mindedness was merely an act, which caused them to dislike her even more.

But Consort Wan had always followed her own path and caring little for the opinions of others.

Naturally, this meant that schemes against her in the palace were numerous.

The palace maid who had suddenly broken into Consort Wan’s quarters that day had also been placed there deliberately.

But who exactly had orchestrated it?

No one knew.

After all, Consort Wan had offended far too many people; pinpointing who wanted to frame her was nearly impossible.

“So, in other words, someone deliberately framed Consort Wan?” Yue Mingxuan seemed to have a sudden spark of realization.

He had indeed considered this possibility before, but he had never been able to figure out who might have wanted to set her up.

Although Consort Wan had made many enemies in the palace, Yue Mingxuan still felt that her death could not have been caused by the other concubines.

The palace was full of people, yes, but very few of the concubines were skilled in martial arts.

If someone wanted to frame Consort Wan, it surely wouldn’t have been one of these fragile, powerless women in the court.

Then, if someone had the ability to frame Consort Wan and also knew martial arts, who could it possibly be?

Yue Mingxuan could not wrap his mind around it.

“What if Consort Wan hadn’t actually gone mad back then?” Shang Qinghua said after a moment of silence.

In fact, it wasn’t entirely impossible.

After all, being interrupted while practicing her martial art and later hearing all the women in the Cold Palace claim she had gone insane, everyone had simply accepted that as the truth.

But what if that wasn’t really the case?

That question cast the entire matter into a deadlock.

“As for Consort Wan, that’s all I know,” Rong Tieshan shrugged with a look of innocence on his face. “After all, I am a prince. We were never supposed to get too close to concubines.”

That much was true.

Princes and concubines did not share the same status and naturally could not be treated the same.

Most princes were not allowed to approach the concubines closely and Rong Tieshan was no exception.

No matter how scandalous or significant the matter of Consort Wan was, all he could do was rely on secondhand information; he could not investigate personally.

After all, Consort Wan was a generation senior to him in rank and status.

“Based on the information we have now, we still can’t be certain of anything,” Yue Mingxuan nodded. “The messages we managed to get from the Cold Palace amount to little more than this. Those concubines who have gone mad likely won’t reveal anything useful anymore.”

Hearing Yue Mingxuan’s words, Yin Su let out a small sigh of relief.

She couldn’t bear the thought of going back to a place like the Cold Palace again.

Alhough she’s clever and quick-witted, she was still a young girl; staying too often in such an oppressive and eerie environment would be unbearable.

“If you can’t figure it out, then don’t think about it. Go back and rest for a while!”

With that, Yue Mingxuan dismissed them.

Shang Qinghua and Rong Tieshan both touched their noses and left.

Of course, before leaving, the two men could hardly avoid another round of subtle “blood and thunder” exchanges.

It’s bloodless, yet still chaotic.

Yue Mingxuan paid them no mind.

He needed time to process everything that had happened recently.

Moreover, after mastering the Ninefold Celestial Mystery, his body seemed stronger than before, but he also felt hungrier than ever.

If it weren’t for Yin Su and Sui He restraining him, he might have devoured two or three times his usual meal in one sitting.

“Perhaps my body is really starting to have issues lately…” he muttered to himself.

In recent days, he had been talking to himself more often and it’s apparently a side effect of cultivating the Ninefold Celestial Mystery.

This martial technique was undeniably strange and dangerous, yet Yue Mingxuan forced himself to practice it.

Even though those around him strongly opposed it, he refused to give up.

He silently recited the familiar incantations of the technique several times, confirming that he had not made any mistakes, then folded his legs beneath him and continued his cultivation.

He had the persistent feeling that this martial art was somehow intricately connected to Consort Wan, though exactly how remained a mystery that would only be revealed once he fully mastered the Ninefold Celestial Mystery.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep