The Imperial Palace shrouded in moonlight.
Ye Qichi had originally planned to find little Wu and then wait in the carriage for Xiao Jinxing.
But wisdom told her that in a place like the Imperial Palace, one must not roam about carelessly, as it could easily bring about lethal disasters.
Being favored by the Emperor tonight, it was possible that some already bore grudges against her.
She decided to wait for Xiao Jinxing right there.
She figured that upon returning from the Empress Dowager and not finding her in the carriage, Xiao Jinxing’s first thought would likely be to come here to look for her.
Thus, Ye Qichi patiently waited.
Though it was early summer, the temperature difference between day and night still made her shiver from the cold.
How long is Xiao Jinxing going to take?!
The Empress Dowager is no longer young; shouldn’t she prefer to sleep early for beauty rest instead of making a fuss over something?
Ye Qichi stamped her feet from the cold.
A figure seemed to be walking towards her in the distance.
Ye Qichi was excited for a second, then disappointed the next.
Nor was it Xiao Jinxing.
She saw an eunuch approaching her and respectfully said, "Princess Chen, this servant De Dezi, serves directly under the Empress Dowager."
"Greetings, Eunuch De." Ye Qichi responded with a salute.
Her mind was also rapidly spinning, searching for information about this person.
However, her mind was blank.
Was it because he was a minor character that she overlooked him?!
"The night is cold. The Empress Dowager fears that Princess Chen might catch a chill and sent this servant here to escort you to the inner sleeping chamber to wait for Prince Chen, who will still be a while before he leaves." Eunuch De explained his purpose.
"Thank you for the trouble, Eunuch De." Ye Qichi politely said.
"This way, please, Princess Chen." Eunuch De bowed deeply, appearing very humble.
Ye Qichi followed Eunuch De, walking inside the Imperial Palace.
The Imperial Palace at night, the lights were gradually dimming, aside from the occasional passing patrol soldiers, there were almost no other people around; the vast palace seemed overly quiet and empty.
"Has the Empress Dowager not retired for the night?" After walking some distance, Ye Qichi took the initiative to ask.
"Usually, the Empress Dowager retires very early, but tonight, to meet with Prince Chen, she has stayed up a bit later than usual."
"Oh," Ye Qichi responded and continued to quietly observe the surrounding environment.
The path was getting more secluded.
"Eunuch De, are we on the wrong path?" Ye Qichi asked.
"This is a shortcut, it’s closer." Eunuch De explained.
It was an easier way to kill her?!
From the beginning, she had noticed something fishy.
Yet, disobeying the Empress Dowager’s command was a grave disrespect!
Ye Qichi strived to keep herself calm.
She hadn’t expected that even in the Imperial Palace one could be subjected to an assassination.
Of course, she also knew who was behind it.
Apart from the Empress Dowager, no one else would dare such a bold act.
So, Xiao Jinxing being called away by the Empress Dowager was to discuss how to kill her, right?!
Xiao Jinxing, that damnable man, was he so eager for her to die?!
Ye Qichi bit her lip tightly.
Her eyes suddenly tensed.
Because Eunuch De, who was walking in front, suddenly stopped.
The man who had been walking bowed now straightened up.
He turned around, his face cruel as he looked at Ye Qichi.
Ye Qichi slowly stepped back, with caution, "Eunuch De, why did you suddenly stop?"
"Stopping..." Eunuch De approached Ye Qichi step by step, his voice coldly uttering, "To send you off!"
"Ah... Mmph!" Ye Qichi’s mouth was covered by De Gonggong.
His grip was so strong that Ye Qichi couldn’t resist at all.
She struggled to get away.
With a strong push, De Gonggong threw Ye Qichi into the nearby lake.
The lake was very deep.
The place was so remote that even the huge splashes couldn’t alert the patrolling soldiers afar.
De Gonggong coldly watched the person in front of him struggling continuously, until the splashes completely disappeared before his eyes.
A sinister smile crept along his lips, convinced that Ye Qichi was dead.
By tomorrow morning, Ye Qichi’s body would naturally float to the surface.
Her death would only be deemed as an accidental drowning.
No one would be suspected.
Task completed, De Gonggong didn’t delay a second, he swiftly went back to report!
Just after his departure.
The Ye Qichi who had been holding her breath under the lake suddenly quietly surfaced.
Fortunately, being in the apocalypse, she had all sorts of survival skills; swimming and holding breath was just an instinct.
And when De Gonggong had taken her to the lake, she had pretty much already resigned to her fate.
She took a deep breath and dove back into the lake, planning to climb ashore at another safer location.
After swimming for a while.
Not far away by the lake shore, some noises were heard, and suddenly a figure jumped into the lake, landing not far ahead of Ye Qichi.
Should she go over or not now?!
At this moment, the panicked voices of two palace maids suddenly erupted from the shore, "It’s bad, it’s bad, the young master has fallen into the water, somebody help, somebody help!"
One of the palace maids ran to call for help while shouting.
The other palace maid, crying, looked at the lake surface, shocked and wanting to jump in but not daring to.
Just as she determined to jump in.
Suddenly she saw a figure swiftly swimming towards the spot where the young master fell into the water.
The palace maid was astounded.
Who else could be in the lake water at this late hour?!
Before she could recover her senses, she saw the figure embracing the drowning young master surfacing from the lake.
Ye Qichi, holding the young master, swam very fast.
Initially, she had planned to just leave, considering that being in the Imperial Palace could easily bring trouble upon her, but in that moment of departure, she chose to rescue without any hesitation.
Life was of paramount importance, and as a doctor, she could not stand by and watch someone die. Being born during the apocalypse where humanity was near extinction, she valued life highly, and the teachings from her young age made it impossible for her to ignore a life in peril.
Of course, another purpose was also to ensure her own safe exit from the Imperial Palace.
She was well aware that even though her life might now be spared, it would not be easy to leave the Imperial Palace.
She now had to depend on this young master!
And this so-called young master was Xiao Zhanping’s youngest son, who had just turned six this year.
Xiao Zhanping had a myriad of beauties in his harem; however, he did not have many children—besides the Crown Prince, King Chu, and King Chen, along with 5 princesses, now it was only his youngest prince who he dearly doted upon due to having acquired him late in life.
Saving him was akin to saving herself.
Ye Qichi pulled the young prince up to the shore.
The palace maid was too shocked to question Ye Qichi’s identity, she was extremely anxious noticing the young master who had already passed out.
If anything were to happen to him, even ten heads would not suffice to atone for the mistake!
The palace maid turned pale with fright.
Ye Qichi calmly laid the young prince’s body flat on the ground, then started performing CPR to revive him.
The patrolling soldiers holding torches and lanterns quickly rushed to the scene.
Immediately, the emperor, empress and numerous concubines hurriedly gathered.
The Empress Dowager and Xiao Jinxing also arrived at the scene upon hearing the news.
Everyone was shocked to see Ye Qichi vigorously pressing on the chest of the young prince who had fainted.