Crossing the Palace Fighting Fox Harem

Chapter 436: Temporary Division into Two Routes

Since entering the palace, the Queen's Palace has been empty. Ji Anni has never set foot in the Queen's Palace, only occasionally passing by the door.

Her deepest impression of the Queen's Palace was the dozens of steps and tightly closed doors. It seemed like an isolated and different dimension, exuding a mysterious atmosphere that kept people away and unapproachable.

After being carried high into the sky by the ghost, she had her first bird's eye view of the Queen's Palace, and she discovered that it was a beautifully designed forest garden. The overall shape was half-moon, with a green pond on the west side and corridors and buildings on the east side. Every scene and object was elegant. Although it was a bit desolate because no one had lived there for a long time, the desolate atmosphere made it more elegant, with a sense of being isolated from the world and not disturbed by the world. The person who lived here must be a person who was indifferent to worldly things... Ji Anni couldn't help but guess.

At this time, Ji Annie had been put on the grass by Cang Gui.

In the tunnel, Cang Gui was injured while protecting Ji Annie. Now he has exhausted all his strength and lies weakly on the ground like a dying baby bird. He does not look like an eagle at all.

Thinking that it was injured because of her, Ji Anni felt a pang of sadness in her heart.

She wanted to touch the ghost gently, but she found that she had no hands at all, only two thin claws. In desperation, she had to take the action of soothing wounds that animals usually do, and licked the injured wings of the ghost. Unexpectedly, as soon as the tip of her tongue touched the skin of the ghost, the ghost immediately trembled as if it had been electrocuted, and flapped its wings to drive Ji Anni away.

"What's wrong? I'm doing this for your own good. You really don't know how to appreciate kindness." Ji Anni said unhappily. The ghost used its wings to stir up dust all over the ground, which made her feel frustrated.

"You stay here and don't move around. I'll go explore the way." Canggui said as he flew upwards. But his injured wings could no longer fly, and even if he flapped his wings desperately, he couldn't get off the ground.

"You'd better not be so stubborn and have a good rest." Ji Anni rushed over and hugged Cang Gui tightly, who seemed to be about to fly up. "Hide here and don't walk around. Let me go explore the way. By the way, where's Yun Zhen?"

Ji Anni really wanted to grow two wings so that she could fly high into the sky and look for Yun Zhen’s trace.

Cang Gui was held so tightly by Ji Anni that he couldn't even breathe. He straightened his neck and said, "My master asked me to tell you..."

But he couldn't say any more, because Ji Anni's expectant eyes made him sad. Just now in the tunnel, Yun Zhen asked him to tell Ji Anni that he might break his promise again, the promise to stay together and leave the palace. But if he really told Ji Anni this, she would be very sad.

Cang Gui thought for a moment and finally chose to lie: "He asked me to tell you not to worry about him."

"Then where did he say he was waiting for me?" Ji Annie's eyes sparkled.

"He...he didn't say. But don't worry, I will keep you safe until you meet again."

"You can't even protect yourself..." Ji Anni didn't know where the dying Cang Gui got such confidence from, "By the way, Cang Gui, how long has no one lived in the Queen's Palace?"

When she and Yun Zhen were trapped in the tunnel, she clearly heard the footsteps of a man coming from behind the stone wall. Who was lingering in the deserted Queen's Palace? What was the purpose of his stay?

Cang Gui thought for a moment and answered, "After Queen Wang passed away three years ago, the Emperor's biological mother, Concubine Hui, lived alone in the Queen's Palace for a while. Later, the Queen Mother, An Yiru, adopted the former Concubine Shui's son as her adopted son, was named Queen and moved into the Queen's Palace. Concubine Hui was sent to the Xian Palace. Four months ago, King Hui passed away, and An Yiru became the Queen Mother and moved into the Queen Mother's Palace, so the Queen's Palace became empty."

Ji Anni had vaguely heard of this story. After the Emperor Long Mohan's biological mother became pregnant, she was invited by the kind-hearted Queen Wang to the Queen's Palace for recuperation. After Long Mohan was born, he had been living in the Queen's Palace, raised by Concubine Hui and Queen Wang, until he was forced to leave the palace by the jealous Tang Yu who used his family power to take him to Qi State as a hostage.

Although Long Mohan left, Concubine Hui still lived with Queen Wang, and the two were as close as sisters.

Three years ago, Queen Wang died suddenly of illness. The late King Hui was so sad that he had to appoint another queen. Concubine Hui was just a palace maid with a low status. Even though she gave birth to a prince and was valued by Queen Wang and invited to live with her, she did not occupy any place in King Hui's heart.

She ultimately failed to defeat An Yiru and quietly moved into Xian Palace.

She should have spent the rest of her life here in peace, hoping to reunite with Long Mohan and his son one day, but a year ago, she suddenly jumped into a well and committed suicide. The reason for her suicide is still unknown, but it seems to be related to the death of the little prince of the former concubine.

"Then who is most likely to be wandering around the Queen's Palace now?" Ji Annie had no idea.

"Maybe it's the emperor. After all, the Queen's Palace holds many of his childhood memories." Cang Gui guessed.

"But the emperor is seriously injured and unconscious. He is probably resting on his sickbed. It is impossible for him to appear in the Queen's palace." Recalling the steady and powerful footsteps behind the stone wall, Ji Anni was sure that the sound was not made by Long Mohan.

"Then there is one more possibility... the only possibility..."

Cang Gui's voice gradually became lower, but before he could reveal the answer, a burst of hurried footsteps came from not far away. Ji Anni and Cang Gui subconsciously lowered their bodies and hid themselves in the dense grass.

"It's him..." Ji Anni's pupils gradually dilated as she recognized the person.

The man who hurried out of the Queen's Palace was Kang Xiaorong's father, General Kang Qingyuan. Kang Qingyuan's footsteps were exactly the same as the footsteps heard in the tunnel, and Ji Anni immediately determined that the general was the person behind the stone wall.

"What is he doing walking around the Queen's Palace?" Ji Anni leaned over to ask Cang Gui.

"I don't know. Maybe he suspects there's something else going on in the Queen's Palace. I've seen him coming and going near the Queen's Palace recently..." Cang Gui had long since listed the general as a suspect. If it hadn't been interrupted by the footsteps just now, it would have told Ji Anni that the general was the most suspicious person entering and leaving the Queen's Palace.

The Road of Life and Death was broken by lightning, and the ground of the palace was badly damaged. Many people ran out of their houses and took shelter on the roadside. Soon, the road was full of people, all of whom were frightened and pale, as if they had just returned from a trip to the underworld.

Ji Annie and Cang Gui, two little animals hiding obediently in the grass, did not attract much attention.

They lay quietly in the bushes and listened to the discussions. The young people said it was an earthquake, a natural disaster, while the older people, who were more knowledgeable, said it was the lightning spell that split the sacred tree where the dungeon was now located, not a natural disaster but a demonic disaster.

"There are too many people here. Let's find a quiet place." Cang Gui was afraid that Ji Annie would be discovered.

"Wait a minute." Ji Anni found Liuguang in the crowd and wanted to see what he was going to do. She didn't know why, but she always felt that this man was unusual. Not only did he behave very strangely, but he also had a weird personality, like someone with a secret.

Liuguang hurriedly walked forward to talk to Kang Qingyuan. They were too far away, so Ji Anni couldn't hear what they said. But from Liuguang's serious expression, it could be seen that he was probably reporting to Kang Qingyuan about the damage to the roads and personnel in the palace.

After listening to this, Kang Qingyuan waved his hand, as if to let Liuguang leave.

At this moment, Liuguang suddenly turned his head and looked over where Ji Anni was.

Ji Anni lowered her head guiltily, hiding herself better. But it would have been better if she hadn't hidden herself. Her sudden hiding action was too violent, causing the grass beside her to rustle. If it was just an ordinary person, they might just treat it as the sound of the wind and ignore it. But Liuguang was a careful person. After hearing the unusual sound from the grass, he actually walked towards Ji Anni.

"Oh no..." Cang Gui anticipated that something bad was going to happen. Liu Guang and Yun Zhen were classmates in Wenhua Academy when they were young, and they studied sage books together for several years. Liu Guang was very interested in Yun Zhen's psychic ability. Yun Zhen once introduced Cang Gui, a loyal shikigami, to Liu Guang, so Cang Gui and Liu Guang were familiar with each other.

"I'll lead him away, and you try to find a safe place to hide. I'll meet up with you later."

In a hurry, Cang Gui had no choice but to use himself as bait to divert Liu Guang's attention. Otherwise, if Liu Guang saw a fox hiding in the bushes, he would definitely think that it was a fox demon related to the landslide.

"Hey! Hey..." Ji Annie was about to stop Cang Gui, but Cang Gui had already opened his wings and flew into the sky.

It was injured and flew very slowly. Because of its slow speed, Liuguang could see it clearly and recognized it as Yunzhen's Shikigami.

Shikigami usually only come out to act after receiving orders from their masters. Canggui appeared in the most severe place of the ground fissure. Does this prove that all this is related to Yunzhen?

Liuguang's gaze followed the Cang Gui who was gradually flying higher, and he did not look down at Ji Anni who was sneaking away in the bushes.

Thanks to Cang Gui, Ji Anni successfully escaped from Liu Guang's sight. But where is the safe place? Ji Anni ran around aimlessly.

As I ran, I suddenly felt that the scenery around me was becoming more and more familiar. After taking a closer look, I realized that I had arrived at Wenhuayuan.

Because the Road of Life and Death did not pass under Wenhua Courtyard, Wenhua Courtyard was less affected by the lightning strike. Only a few stone slabs on the ground were lifted up, and there was almost no visible change in the others.

This is good, Prince Ming will not be in danger...

Ji Anni thought of Prince Ming who was studying in Wenhua Academy and couldn't help but feel a little worried. The last time she met Prince Ming, she was still in a state of wandering soul. When Prince Ming saw Zhao Ji lying unconscious on the bed, his sad expression made Ji Anni still felt a little heartbroken when she thought about it now. Since she had come to Wenhua Academy by some strange coincidence, she might as well go and see Prince Ming...

While thinking, he walked towards the beginner's lecture hall where Prince Ming was taking classes.