Hua Manman carefully unfolded the wad of paper.
The paper was palm-sized. On it was a drawing of a grid, and the square in the top-right corner was circled in red.
Hua Manman and Qing Huan both stared at it, completely bewildered.
’What is this?’
Hua Manman turned the note over and over, looking for any other clues.
But there were none. The only thing on the paper was this strange grid.
Hua Manman studied the grid all morning but couldn’t figure anything out. Instead, she just ended up with sore, strained eyes.
Qing Huan reminded her, "It’s time for lunch."
Hua Manman rubbed her eyes and got up to eat.
As she passed a curio shelf, Hua Manman suddenly stopped.
She turned her head to look at the curio shelf beside her and abruptly asked a question.
"Don’t you think this shelf looks a lot like the grid drawn on the paper?"
Qing Huan didn’t know what a "grid" was.
Hua Manman took out the small note and compared it to the curio shelf. The more she looked, the more she saw the resemblance. However, the grid on the paper had more squares than the shelf had compartments. ’The drawing probably isn’t of this curio shelf.’
Having finally found a clue, she lost all interest in eating and began searching everywhere for shelves.
She finally found a bookshelf in the study.
The size and number of its compartments were an exact match for the grid depicted on the paper.
Hua Manman had someone bring a ladder, intending to climb up and take a look herself.
Qing Huan hurriedly stopped her.
"This kind of thing... let... me... do it. You just stand there... and don’t move."
Hua Manman touched her large belly. It was true that in her current state, she wasn’t suited for climbing up and down. So, she nodded in agreement. "Alright, be careful."
Qing Huan climbed the wooden ladder. She took out all the books from the top-right compartment of the bookshelf and searched it inch by inch, discovering a seam between the wooden boards.
She took out her sword, inserted the sharp blade into the seam, and gave it a gentle pry.
A soft click was heard.
The wooden panel popped open, revealing a hidden compartment inside.
A metal ring was embedded within the compartment.
Qing Huan grasped the ring and pulled hard.
The bookshelf in front of her actually split in two and began to slowly move apart.
Qing Huan immediately jumped off the ladder and moved it to the side.
Once the bookshelf moved aside, it revealed an extremely well-hidden secret passage.
When Hua Manman read Palace Intrigue, there was no mention of a secret passage like this in the Imperial Palace.
She was very curious about this passage and decided to go inside and take a look.
Qing Huan gripped her sword tightly and led the way.
Hua Manman tucked a letter she had written earlier into her sleeve and followed behind, carrying a lantern.
The warm light from the lantern illuminated the path at their feet.
They followed the secret passage until they discovered a hidden room.
Inside the room was an incense table with an incense burner and offerings of fruit. A cattail hassock sat on the floor in front of the table, and on the wall behind it hung the portrait of a woman.
Mu Qing was currently kneeling on the hassock, kowtowing to the portrait.
Seeing Hua Manman and Qing Huan appear, Mu Qing stood up, placed the incense stick she was holding into the burner, and only then did she speak.
"This servant greets the Princess."
Hua Manman looked at the woman in the portrait. She had a dignified and noble air, clearly a woman of extraordinary birth.
Most importantly, her features gave Hua Manman a strange sense of familiarity.
Hua Manman couldn’t help but ask.
"Who is the person in the portrait?"
Mu Qing: "She is the master of Chaoyang Palace."
Hua Manman paused for a moment before it dawned on her. Chaoyang Palace was the residence of the late emperor’s first wife, the Empress.
In other words, the woman in the portrait was the late Empress.
This only confused Hua Manman more.
’Logically, I shouldn’t know the late Empress, yet she looks so familiar.’
After scrutinizing it for a moment, she actually felt the late Empress’s eyes and brows bore a slight resemblance to Li Ji’s.
’But they aren’t related by blood at all. How could they look similar? Is it just a coincidence?’
While Hua Manman was lost in thought, Mu Qing had already placed three sticks of incense into her hands.
"Now that you’re here, Princess Consort, you should offer some incense to the late Empress."
Before Hua Manman could figure out what was going on, she had already bowed to the late Empress in a daze.
Mu Qing watched her place the incense into the burner, and the expression on her face gradually softened.
Only then did Hua Manman belatedly ask.
"Why did I have to offer incense to the late Empress?"
Mu Qing: "To show respect for the dead."
Hua Manman pointed to Qing Huan beside her.
"Then shouldn’t she offer some incense to the late Empress too?"
She had only said it casually, but to her surprise, Mu Qing actually placed three incense sticks into Qing Huan’s hands and had her bow as well.
Qing Huan hadn’t expected to get dragged into this, but she had no choice but to bow as well.
Hua Manman was left speechless.
Mu Qing: "The late Empress ordered this secret passage to be built. Very few people know about it.
After the late Empress passed away, I was the only person left who knew of its existence. Of course, now there’s you two.
If you follow this passage all the way, it will lead to the flower garden.
Behind the flower garden is a waterwheel cart used for transporting water. You can hide in the cart and sneak out of the Imperial Palace."
Hua Manman was full of questions.
"Why are you telling us such an important secret?
Also, how do you know this passage exists?
Who exactly are you? And why have you saved me time and again?"
Mu Qing avoided her questions. "None of that is for you to know. No one has noticed you’re gone yet. You should leave quickly."
Hua Manman: "I’m not leaving. I still have things to do."
Mu Qing was perplexed. "What things do you have to do?"
Hua Manman explained her plan.
"I need to see the Empress Dowager and Princess Consort Zhen. The Empress Dowager wants to ask Prince Zhao to bring his troops back and save the emperor, but I don’t want Prince Zhao to risk his life for them for nothing. I want to use this opportunity to negotiate with the Empress Dowager and secure the greatest possible benefits for Prince Zhao."
Mu Qing looked at her belly. "But you’re pregnant right now. If you’re discovered, it will cost you both your life and your child’s."
Hua Manman pleaded, "That’s why I need your help. Can you deliver a letter to Princess Consort Zhen for me?"
Mu Qing was moved by the determination in her eyes.
Mu Qing had always thought Hua Manman was a dodder flower, clinging to Prince Zhao for support. She believed that everything Hua Manman had was thanks to the Prince. Only now did Mu Qing realize she was wrong. Hua Manman wasn’t just a delicate dodder flower; she was also doing everything in her power to protect Prince Zhao.
They were two trees, standing side by side, supporting one another. Neither was inferior to the other.
"Give me the letter."
Hua Manman pulled a letter from her sleeve and placed it in Mu Qing’s hand.
"I’m counting on you for this."
Mu Qing tucked the letter away safely. "You should go back for now. I will wait for you here tomorrow at the same time."
"Okay."
Hua Manman led Qing Huan out of the secret passage.
After the bookshelf closed again, Qing Huan put all the books back on the shelf.
They restored everything to its original state, leaving no trace behind.
...
I’m exhausted, so I’m heading to bed. I’ll post the other two Chapters tomorrow around noon.