Consort of a Thousand Faces

At 5:45pm, Su Xi-er waited at the entrance of the posthouse, her face covered in a pale purple veil that matches the color of her dress. It wasn’t long before a plain wooden horse carriage arrived; its driver however, was unexpectedly Army Commander, Wei Mohai.

 

Wei Mohai couldn't help but inhale sharply when he saw her. This woman that Prince Yun found to dance has such charming eyes in addition to exuding an air of elegance. Why did he choose someone who so heavily resembles Ning Rulan?

 

Su Xi-er nodded to acknowledge Wei Mohai's arrival. She then approached the horse carriage and boarded it swiftly. Putting down the carriage curtains, she ordered, "Hurry to the Imperial Palace."

 

Her tone was aloof and calm, leaving a chill to run down Wei Mohai's spine. Even her speech and mannerisms are  similar to Ning Rulan.

 

"Hurry to the imperial palace." The distant voice of the woman sounded forth again from within the horse carriage.

 

If Wei Mohai wasn't certain that Ning Rulan was indeed dead, he would have thought that she was the one sitting in the horse carriage...

 

However, the dead cannot come back to life. Wei Mohai regained his composure and cracked his whip. Soon enough, the wheels of the horse carriage started to turn.

 

Once the horse carriage was out of sight, a man suddenly appeared from around the corner of the street. Dressed in blue robes with a blue silk veil over his face, his gaze became more intense.

 

That woman came out from the posthouse where Prince Hao of Beimin is currently residing, which means that she is with Prince Hao. Prince Hao himself has yet to leave the posthouse, but his people have already headed for the imperial palace.

 

It's Nanzhao’s state banquet today, so what is this woman heading to the palace for? I’ve encountered her several times, and even exchanged blows with her. She has a very flexible waist, and some of her movements are similar to...

 

At this thought, the man in blue narrowed his eyes.

 

A subordinate dressed in full black appeared before the man. "I have just been informed that Ning Anlian injured her ankle, rendering her unable to dance at the state banquet. She is instead being held captive in her repose palace."

 

The corners of his lips rising into a smile, the man in blue chuckled. "To think that she is already disabled without us having to do anything. However, a lesson like this is insufficient to make up for all of her crimes."

 

"Master, Ning Anlian was injured by another woman while in a restaurant. The woman in question entered the posthouse after leaving the scene earlier today."

 

With his eyebrows raised, the man in blue questioned. "Oh? It's her." Gradually, his eyes were consumed by playfulness. Is this woman friend or foe? She has inadvertently done me a favour.

 

"Master, what should we do now? Do we still need to infiltrate the imperial palace?

 

The man in blue waved him off and walked into the alley, "There's no need for that anymore; we will act again according to the situation."

 

The man in black nodded and quickly disappeared.

 

The horse carriage entered the imperial palace through a side entrance, the imperial guards not daring to stop the vehicle when they saw Wei Mohai at the helm.

 

As the horse carriage picked up speed again, Su Xi-er lifted up the curtain and took in the view before her. I have entered Nanzhao’s imperial palace… I am back again so soon.

 

Watching every passing tree and flower in her surroundings, they felt familiar, yet foreign at the same time. It felt as if she had only left to tour the counties for a while. Suddenly, the horse carriage began to move away from the imperial harem, pulling Su Xi-er from her thoughts.

 

As the bamboo forests lining the side of the path got increasingly denser, Su Xi-er furrowed her brows. A new repose palace was built here after I died?

 

Su Xi-er only found out the identity of this new palace after the horse carriage came to a stop, and she was standing before the palace entrance.