A banquet with ulterior motives, the princess in peril

  The sound of joy and laughter continued, amidst the bright red festive atmosphere, but Gu Yunxi couldn't feel even a hint of warmth. Her gaze swept past the man in the distance wearing festive attire, and beneath his seemingly refined and elegant appearance, how many cold and calculating thoughts were hidden?

  "The direction that Princess Jeonghwi went in was not where the new crown princess is, it must be someone with ill intentions trying to cause trouble at the crown prince's wedding by using Princess Jeonghwi. The fastest way now is to find the princess and ensure her safety, then make a decision afterwards!"

  Gu Yunxi's voice was urgent, and she paused for a moment before continuing, "It's just that there are many people in the hall now, and it's not good to stir up trouble. The banquet is not over yet, and the king cannot leave for too long."

  Gongsun Mo's eyebrows furrowed, and in this gathering today, the people he could use were indeed limited. "At present, time is pressing and there's no room for many considerations. The East Palace is vast, but it can't accommodate others wandering around at will. If Princess Jingci has an accident tonight, and this matter is also related to the De Wangfu, then all my arrangements over the past few months would be in vain."

  "Your Highness may continue to feast here, I am a new face and it's convenient for me to act. Let's just say... that I am a palace maid sent by Concubine Ya to find the Princess. Now, please have someone go to the Rear Palace immediately to inform Concubine Xiang, and have her tell Concubine Ya about the Princess's situation tonight, so as to avoid any trouble later on!"

  Gu Yunxi finished speaking, Gong Sunmo hesitated for a moment and nodded, "Alright, since that's the case, I'll let Sun Lu go with you. I'll also send the letter to the Queen Mother immediately. Tonight's matter, I'll leave it in your hands——"

  Gu Yunxi nodded, tightened the silver fox fur on her body, and turned to leave the hall. Sun Lu followed behind Gu Yunxi, holding a waist card given by De Wang. Xiang Bin was the mother of De Wang, and Ya Bin was the mother of the princess. To ensure that nothing went wrong, they could only rely on Xiang Bin in the harem to persuade Ya Bin.

  The stars and moon gradually appeared in the night sky, Gu Yunxi walked slowly back along the path she had just taken, Sun Lu followed closely behind her with a solemn expression, his eyes already filled with murderous intent.

  When she walked to the place just now, the master's shadow had indeed disappeared. Gu Yunxi looked around, one side was a dimly lit pavilion hall, and the other side was a brightly lit flower lantern corridor. After a brief hesitation, she resolutely headed towards the brighter firelight.

  "The lanterns on this side are too dazzling, and it's highly likely that there will be passersby. If someone wants to do something improper to the princess, wouldn't it be inconvenient?" Sun Lu seemed to think they should go the other way.

  Gu Yunxi's mouth twitched, but her feet didn't stop for a moment. "If something happens tonight, it will involve major consequences. What they want is to be seen by people, and the more commotion the better. If that person chooses a secluded place, it would be contrary to their intention!"

  Sun Lu's eyes lit up, and she followed closely behind Gu Yunxi. The pavilions and waterside buildings were far from the banquet hall, so at this moment, except for the guards, there was not even half a person in sight. Gu Yunxi walked over from afar, but before he could get close, he was stopped by the guard. "Who comes?"

  Sun Lu took out the token from her body, "The palace's Ya Concubine is concerned about the princess and specially sent this girl to search. Just now someone said that the princess was heading in this direction, have you two seen her?"

  Those two guards looked at each other with some difficulty in their faces after seeing the token.

  Gu Yunxi lightly coughed, "The two guards don't need to beat around the bush. The princess wasn't feeling well when she came out today, and Concubine Ya is worried sick about her. If something were to happen..."

  She didn't finish what she was saying, but the two guards dared not to deceive her. "Miss, it's not that we don't want to say, but just now the princess gave us some instructions. The princess has already taken the servants into the waterside pavilion and hasn't come out yet."

  Gu Yun's eyes flickered slightly, and she took a step back to whisper in Sun Lu's ear, "The princess is definitely inside the Water Pavilion. The people following her are likely enemies rather than friends. Anything can happen now, so you must return immediately and report to the king. Gather as many men as possible. If anyone dares to escape from the Water Pavilion, capture them at once. Remember to take them alive!"

  "But Miss, you're alone..."

  "I'm not bothered, but it's best if tonight's matter doesn't involve the Duke of De's mansion at all. So when gathering people, we still need to use some of the prince's power, please remember four words: 'Unjustly accused and unable to explain'."

  Watching Sun Luoyuan leave, Gu Yunxi pulled the corner of her mouth and turned around, "This person actually left me behind like this, I wonder if this young man can accompany me to find the princess? This Eastern Palace is not a place where ordinary people can come and go, and slaves are not allowed to move freely."

  ——

  "Hey! Didn't you say that this water pavilion has a secret passageway leading to the Crown Princess's bedroom? We've been walking for half a day, where are you taking me?"

  The soft voice became more and more unbearable, the eunuch walking in front glanced at a small house at the end of the corridor and said, "This humble servant followed King De to this water pavilion before, I know that there is a secret door inside that house which was set up by him and the Crown Prince when they were young, it leads directly to the Crown Prince's bedroom."

  Gongsun Ci's mouth curled up, and a hint of smile emerged in his bright eyes. "Hey, the current crown prince is having a drinking party now, I'd better hurry over!"

  With a creak, the palace maid respectfully opened the hall door for Gongsun Ci. She walked in somewhat impatiently, "Where is it? Where is it?"

  The sound of "bang" echoed, but there was no response from the person behind him. Gong Sun Ci turned around, and his eyes suddenly changed!

  At some point, the palace maid in green behind her had slowly untied that green shirt. A chill ran up Gong Sun's legs, "You, why..."

  The humble servant's face floated with a cold smile, and upon closer inspection, there was a hint of intoxication in his eyes. "In order to see the princess, I didn't even dare to reveal my black shirt from the De Wang Fu."

  Gongsun Ci was stunned, she hadn't noticed that the man had been saying he was a personal guard of the De Wang Fu, but the clothes on his body were actually those of a servant from the Taizi Fu. At this moment, the blue shirt fell down, and only then did a deep, dark black color reveal itself.

  "Who exactly are you and why must you see me, Your Highness?!"

  Gongsun Ci's words still carried an air of superiority, but her voice had already betrayed a slight tremble. She looked at the man whose eyes shone with intense light and took a step back.

  "I was once fortunate enough to see the princess, and from then on, I couldn't stop thinking about her. Today, I finally get to fulfill my wish!" The man's blue shirt fell to the ground, but he was now preparing to take off his black shirt, his eyes fixed intently on Gong Sun Ci, who felt a chill run down her spine as she looked at him.

  "What do you want to do—"

  "And you, princess?"

  With a "bang", Gong Sun Ci's back hit the wall behind him, and a suffocating sense of despair surged up to his head. He was already at a dead end, while the man took off his outer shirt, and then unbuttoned his undershirt.

  Gongsun Ci's breathing gradually became unstable, her slender body had already begun to tremble. She suddenly picked up the ceramic bowl beside her and threw it at the man, then turned around and rushed towards the door!

  At this moment, the man quickly dodged the porcelain basin, and in the next instant, his large hand had already grabbed her shoulder. A "whooshing" sound, a sudden chill invaded, making Gong Sun Ci's whole body tremble. A surge of great strength completely trapped her, wanting to struggle but unable to move even a little bit!

  "Help! Someone come quick! Help, hurry someone come!"

  The man's large hand wandered over Gong Sunji's body, his head lowered to her ear with a sly smile, "How is it? Have you called out enough? If you've had enough, then lie down for me..."

  Suddenly, a shrill cry burst out between the quiet waterside pavilions, like a sudden clap of thunder. Gu Yunxi's footsteps paused as she turned her gaze sharply towards the opposite corridor, her face set with a heavy expression, "It's the princess!"