Chapter Ninety-Five: The Crown Prince Is Stuck in the Dog Hole Again

It seemed that the princess consort’s entry into the palace this time had truly been planned down to the last detail. Every move inside the palace had already been arranged. Even the imperial heirs had been hidden away, clearly to prevent us from making any move. It looked as though we could only cast caution to the wind and fight with everything we had.

Xiao Jingxuan’s eyes, dark and profound as ink, grew even colder.

"Zhuo Yuean, take Yunbai and leave. Go to the Spirit Herb Palace."

Xiao Jingxuan had never met anyone from the Spirit Herb Palace, but it was said to be a mysterious place with influence reaching everywhere. Otherwise, neither the emperor nor the empress of the current reign would have gone there to study for so many years. Su Jingluo was the palace lord’s daughter. Though Xiao Jingxuan did not know what had happened, and though Su Jingluo and the people of the Spirit Herb Palace had never been in contact all these years, Yunbai was still her flesh and blood. If any unforeseen change arose, Xiao Jingxuan could only gamble that the Spirit Herb Palace would take Yunbai in and protect him.

Before Yunbai existed, Xiao Jingxuan had never had anyone to entrust his fate to. So whether it was the all-powerful Spirit Herb Palace, or the emperor and empress, once things were broken apart there would be nothing to fear.

But now that Yunbai was here, Xiao Jingxuan had to think not only for himself, but for him as well.

"Your Highness, what are you doing? The situation is still unclear, and you’re already ready to stake your life on it?" My dear prince, how could someone’s judgment drop so quickly just because of Su Jingluo and her son? Zhuo Yuean had never seen Xiao Jingxuan so panicked before. Even on the battlefield, when he had only a dozen personal guards and was surrounded by a thousand enemies, he had never been this unsettled. Right now he looked like a trapped beast whose food had been snatched away.

"Everyone in the palace has already arranged their own escape route. Jingluo is in extreme danger there. She can’t wait until the situation becomes clear. Go."

Veins stood out on the hand Xiao Jingxuan had clenched around his sword. He could no longer care about anything else.

At that moment, a shadow guard suddenly came in, whispered a few words into Zhuo Yuean’s ear, and vanished without a trace.

"What is it?" Xiao Jingxuan had lost his usual composure. Seeing the shadow guard arrive, he hurriedly asked.

"Uh, Your Highness... the Crown Prince is climbing through our manor’s dog tunnel."

This was getting rather strange. The Crown Prince and the other princes had gone missing. They had thought it was all arranged by the palace and had no idea where to begin searching. But now it was easy enough—the man had delivered himself right to their doorstep.

"Hm?" Even Xiao Jingxuan was left baffled by this turn of events. The Crown Prince was climbing through a dog tunnel again?

Not only had the Crown Prince climbed through a dog tunnel, fate had circled back on itself once more.

He had gotten stuck in the dog tunnel again.

"Yunbai, why are you like this? Last time I climbed through the dog tunnel, you said I refused to use the proper gate. This time I wanted to go through the proper gate, and you insisted I climb through the dog tunnel. Were you doing it on purpose?" Crown Prince Xiao Chengze had jammed his head into the dog tunnel and was now stuck there, in the little courtyard where Su Jingluo and Yunbai had once lived. Yunbai and the two princesses, Qiuhe and Chunying, were all tugging hard at Crown Prince Xiao Chengze’s head, the three of them grimacing with effort.

Nearby, the round little Princess Xiahe, who had just turned a little over one year old, was munching on malt candy and staring blankly at the scene, completely unable to tell what the others were doing.

"Stop complaining. Xiao Chengze, could you maybe lose some weight? Look at how easily Qiuhe and Chunying slipped in." Yunbai’s face was red from straining, and Xiao Chengze’s face had been scratched red by the three of them.

"What are you all doing?" As soon as Xiao Jingxuan stepped into the courtyard, he could not hide the amusement on his face. Well then, all the trouble had been worth it—the emperor’s children were all gathered here at once.

"Uncle Prince Jing, hurry and save me. Yunbai is about to pull my head off!" The moment Xiao Chengze saw Xiao Jingxuan, his eyes lit up. For an instant, he felt as though he might never get out of that dog tunnel.