Chapter 138: The Secret Base

The playful voice instantly drew everyone’s attention, and all eyes turned toward the same place.

In the distance, Hua Rong came bounding toward them in a dress, her face glowing with delight.

“W-Wait! Isn’t that Consort Rong?”

One of them clenched his teeth, still shaken to the core. Put bluntly, it was practically a case of the dead rising from the grave.

Someone shrank back, instinctively retreating several steps.

Even Noble Consort Wen found herself unable to maintain her composure. Something felt terribly wrong. “What exactly is going on? Why is Consort Rong—”

Hua Yue, on the other hand, wore an expression of unrestrained enthusiasm and ran straight toward Hua Rong.

“My dear sister, you’ve finally come back!”

“No, wait. What is going on? Could it be that Consort Rong was never dead at all, and she only deceived us earlier?”

Someone suddenly understood, though the revelation still seemed utterly unbelievable.

Hearing this, Jun Yeli gave them a simple explanation. “If this had not happened, how could the poisoner have been completely reassured and begun targeting someone else?”

Put that way, the entire affair had merely been a ruse to lure the culprit into the open.

Hua Rong glanced at Jun Yeli, then could not help pouting. “Since it was all an act, why didn’t Your Majesty tell me from the beginning? You made me miserable for so long!”

When she had fainted, she had truly thought she was about to meet the King of Hell.

Hua Rong drew a deep breath. Fortunately, Jun Yeli still possessed at least a little humanity.

Faced with her reproachful complaint, Jun Yeli did not take offense. Instead, he was secretly delighted. He moved closer to her and took her hand.

“What is it? You can see now that I went to such lengths for you, can’t you?”

He should not have interfered too deeply in the affairs of the inner palace. Yet the injured person had been Hua Rong. How could he possibly stand by and do nothing?

What an overwhelming display of affection. It was enough to leave everyone else feeling stuffed.

Hua Yue restrained herself and said nothing, but Noble Consort Wen could no longer contain her anger.

A hint of fury flickered between her brows. “You woman—if you were dead, why have you come back?”

Her tightly clenched fists radiated a faint, piercing tension that was impossible to describe.

Beneath the flowers and the moon, everyone else seemed to have become mere scenery for the two of them. The atmosphere was strikingly awkward.

Apparently noticing the situation, Hua Rong finally forced herself to withdraw her bashful expression and lowered her voice. “Everyone is watching. Stop being so ridiculous.”

At this, Jun Yeli swept his gaze around the gathering and suddenly said, “Why are you all still standing here? Could it be that you truly want to taste that lotus-seed soup?”

The moment he said this, the others turned pale with fright and hurriedly shook their heads.

“Well, if there’s nothing else, we’ll be leaving now!”

Before long, the crowd dispersed one after another. Only Noble Consort Wen and Hua Yue remained, both reluctant to leave.

Jun Yeli began to lose patience. “Do the two of you still have something to say?”

“Nothing. We simply wanted to spend a little more time looking at our sister.”

The two of them offered excuses back and forth. In truth, the word resentment was written plainly across their faces. In the end, however, they had no choice but to turn and leave.

“Come on.”

Jun Yeli slipped an arm around Hua Rong’s shoulders and pulled her toward another direction.

“Wait. Where are you taking me?” Hua Rong frowned slightly. In broad daylight, the two of them walking along like this, arm in arm, was hardly appropriate.

“I’m taking you to see something good. You suffered in that prison cell for so long, so I ought to take you somewhere and treat you properly.”

His words made no sense at all. Hua Rong followed him in a daze, not even knowing where they were going.

“How strange. I haven’t been in the palace for very long, but I’ve grown familiar with most of its corners, large and small. Why have you brought me here? Could there be some hidden world beyond this place?”

It was an abandoned garden. Since it stood beside the Cold Palace, hardly anyone ever came by, giving the place an eerie, desolate air.

If he truly intended to reward her here, it was difficult to understand his choice.

“Are you certain you meant to bring me here, rather than simply taking a wrong turn?” Hua Rong glanced at him hesitantly. She had the distinct feeling that something about him was different today, though she could not say exactly what.

Jun Yeli merely shrugged and ruffled her hair. “Don’t worry. I’m not as foolish as you are. Just follow me.”

He stepped into the ruined garden. The two artificial hills nearby were thickly covered in trailing vines. With a gentle sweep of his hand, Jun Yeli parted the foliage, revealing a narrow opening.

Then he bent low and slipped inside.

Hua Rong stood there in stunned disbelief. “There’s actually a passage here!”

She had never noticed it before. Judging by the desolation of the place, very few people probably even knew it existed.

After a moment of hesitation, Hua Rong imitated him, bending low and crawling through the opening.

They crossed a long passageway and walked several yards, their clothes quickly gathering dust and bits of grass.

Jun Yeli stopped first and straightened. Turning around, he gently extended a hand toward her.

“Come here.”

The tenderness of his gesture and the warmth of his smile made it difficult to keep her emotions under control.

Hua Rong’s heart gave several unruly beats. Blushing shyly, she placed her hand in his.

He gave it a firm tug, and Hua Rong stumbled straight into his arms.

The sudden collision nearly sent her falling. She could not help feeling a little irritated.

“What are you doing?”

“Lift your head and take a look.”

Jun Yeli’s gentle voice brushed against her ear like a warm breeze.

Hua Rong cautiously raised her head. When she looked around, she could not help gasping in astonishment.

A breathtaking landscape unfolded before her eyes. It truly felt as though they had stepped into another world.

“What is this place? Why have I never been here before?”

“Silly girl, if you had been here before, could it still be called a secret base?” Jun Yeli stood with his hands behind his back at the edge of the lake, gazing at its tranquil surface. His heart, too, seemed to grow more at ease.

“This place was once nothing but ruins. I happened to discover it and realized what a beautiful spot it was, so I secretly ordered people to renovate it. That is how it came to look like this.”

Under ordinary circumstances, Jun Yeli would never bring anyone here so casually. Once too many people entered this peaceful sanctuary, it would lose its special charm.

Yet now he had brought Hua Rong here. Even without saying the three most devoted words in the world, he had already made everything clear.

“You…”

Hua Rong’s lips moved soundlessly. Aside from being deeply moved, she had no idea what to say.