That night, Qi Yue returned fully laden and quickly fell into a deep sleep in his space, but the entire Donggao Imperial Palace was turned upside down.
The Qianhua Hall, where the Donggao Emperor usually dealt with state affairs, had been burgled!
The throne, imperial desk, piles of petitions from the past few days, plaques, books, maps, even the candlesticks and tables for the candlesticks had been stolen.
The side halls on both sides were also emptied!
But most importantly, the Jade Seal!
The Jade Seal had disappeared!
This was a disgrace of monumental proportions!
Upon receiving the news, the Donggao Emperor immediately had a bad premonition and hurried to his private treasury, only to pass out on the spot!
After being revived, the Donggao Emperor nearly died right then and there!
All these years, his public persona had always been one of poverty!
Military expenses and such were covered by allowing soldiers to plunder the Beiyuan Border, hence the loss of his private treasury could not be disclosed no matter what.
âCurse this thief, why didnât you just empty the national treasury!â
That was the wealth he had accumulated with great difficulty over decades since becoming the Emperor!
More than twenty million taels of gold and silver and numerous treasures had vanished into thin air!
The Donggao Emperor was heartbroken and fainted once again.
Compared to something like the concubinesâ chambers being ransacked, this was a far greater crisis.
In no time, the Imperial City Division, Royal Guards, Yanjing Defense Army, Dali Temple, Ministry of War, all were plunged into the major case of the Imperial City burglary.
So much so that the matter of the Underground Beast-fighting Arena was also shelved for the moment!
If the Beiyuan Army wanted to save their people, let them save as they please. Catching the thief was the top priority!
But what thief to catch?
What did the thief look like?
No one could give a clear description.
The guards in charge of protecting the Emperorâs private treasury insisted that besides the Emperor himself, no one had been there that night!
The favorite old eunuch claimed he couldnât remember anything, only that he had been washing his feet!
Even the Princely Heir Qi Yun, who had been roaming around the Imperial Palace that night, was called back for questioning.
God knows what he was thinking, but he didnât betray Qi Yue, just claimed ignorance.
The officials of Donggao discussed all night but couldnât figure out who could have moved so many items in such a short time?
And completely undetected at that!
This was simply impossible!
Whoever did it was certainly not human!
Consequently, hundreds of court officials finally came to a conclusion â this was an act of heaven, not of man!
Finally, someone found the note in the private treasury and presented it to the Donggao Emperor.
Upon reading the contents, the Donggao Emperor summoned the Fox King to come to the palace that very night, furiously throwing the note at the highly respected prince.
âDo you have someone under you named Qing Nanzun? Kill him for me, kill him!â
The Fox King picked up the note and his face turned black upon reading it.
It read, âI hear Qing Nanzun is a royal descendent cast out? With his miserable ratâs eyes and deerâs face, keeping him around is truly a disgrace!â
On the back, there was another line of writing.
âIf he doesnât die, I will come again.â
So, the Fox King immediately galloped forth at breakneck speed, ordering his men to find Qing Nanzun while secretly issuing an order.
âOnce the person enters the city gate, execute him on the spot!â
But soon, a new question arose:
If it truly was a divine being, with such ability, they could have directly killed Qing Nanzun. Why take such a roundabout approach?
The Donggao Emperor found this reasoning sound, and he promptly commanded, âSearch for me, search thoroughly. We must find this audacious thief! I will have him killed!â
In an instant, Yanjing was in turmoil once more, with soldiers swarming the streets to catch the thief.
Many from the Martial World, as well as citizens with good martial skills or great strength, were captured for interrogation.
The entire Donggao, from the Emperor down to the military and civilians, were entwined in this shocking case.
Only two people remained unmoved, like mountains.
One was Qi Yue, who had changed into womenâs clothes, disguising herself as a Donggao lady, spending her days indulging in eating, drinking, and merrymaking in the streets, to her heartâs content.
The other was the Princely Heir of the Qi clan.
Although he had seen Qi Yue in the palace that night, he did not believe that the theft was her doing.
After all, he had seen clearly that day that Qi Yue didnât even have a package on her.
He was just curious about what she was doing entering the Imperial Palace.
At first, he thought Qi Yue was like him, a daughter from a noble family, raised by one of the palace ladies.
But later inquiries revealed that there was no such person in the palace.
This piqued his curiosity greatly, and he was eager to see Qi Yue again, thus he also left the palace under the pretense of helping to catch the thief.
Meanwhile, Zhao Xiyan in Dongjiang was also burning with anxiety.
Half a month ago, when Zhao Chong hurried back to the Capital City and reported everything about the Dongjiang trip in detail, he immediately became restless.
Fortunately, the marriage arrangements for Zhao Shuanghua had already been completed.
Shen Yu, at the age of forty, was pregnant again, reigniting the discouraged Zhao Yongzheâs fighting spirit and he began to take care of family matters. Only then was he able to leave the Capital City and head to Dongjiang.
Little did he expect that upon reaching the medicine factory, he would learn that Qi Yue had long gone back to Longnan, leaving him to meet only Old Madam Zhang.
Old Madam Zhang was a bit puzzled seeing the dusty and travel-worn Zhao Xiyan. Hadnât Qi Yue said that Zhao Xiyan wouldnât come?
What was going on?
With that thought, she let the question slip out.@@novelbin@@
Upon hearing this, Zhao Xiyan was even more surprised.
âYueyue said I wouldnât come? Why would she say that? When did she say it?â
Old Madam Zhang recounted everything that had happened since her arrival in Dongjiang.
Learning that Qi Yue had indeed gone to the Capital City to find him, but had left in a hurry, and even left the city that same night, a tinge of unease rose in Zhao Xiyanâs heart.
âCould it be that the Marquis didnât meet the young miss last time?â
Hearing Old Madam Zhangâs question, Zhao Xiyan felt increasingly that there was a big problem, but he couldnât figure out what exactly it was.
Suddenly, he remembered the box of letters and asked hastily, âOld Madam Zhang, have you ever heard Yueyue mention anything about the letters?â
âNo, the young miss never mentioned them.â
âThen when she left, did she leave a letter for me?â
Old Madam Zhang shook her head. âNo. Ever since we arrived in Dongjiang, the young miss rarely mentioned the Marquis. Sometimesâ¦â
At this point, she paused, uncertain if she should continue.
But Zhao Xiyan urged her urgently, âSometimes what?â
Seeing the usually dignified and aloof Marquis so anxious like a young lad, Old Madam Zhang finally couldnât help but sigh.
âMy Lord, please allow this old servant to speak frankly. I feel like thereâs been some problem between you and the young miss. Ever since arriving in Dongjiang, the young miss seemed unhappy all the time, but she wouldnât say why, and it wasnât right for me to ask. Once I brought you up, the young miss was very cold, telling me not to talk about you two anymore, and also mentioning since thereâs been a divorce, you are now strangers to each other.â
Strangers to each other?!
Zhao Xiyan felt as though his head had been struck by lightning five times in succession!
His heart was tightly squeezed by a hand, the pain so intense that he couldnât catch his breath.
For a moment, he couldnât understand where things had gone wrong.
Why had Qi Yue suddenly become like a different person?
Hadnât he made his feelings clear to her back in Longnan County Government?
Hadnât they been getting along well?
Although Qi Yue hadnât explicitly said she liked him and wanted to get back together, he could tell that she did like him.
He thought she was just reserved, or maybe shy, too embarrassed to say it.
Now that he thought about it, there seemed to have always been problems between them.
Looking back carefully, things seemed to have changed from the time of the divorce.
No matter how fond her gaze, she wouldnât take a step closer to him like she did on the road to exile.
Why?
What was the reason?