Chapter 22 - Like a sister

In the middle of a cold, starless night, a figure in black was rapidly rushing towards the palace. Leaping onto the cherry blossom tree in the corner of the courtyard, the figure stood on the highest branch and looked around the perimeter.

Her cold gaze anxiously searched for the person from whom she hadn't heard for the past four years.

Suddenly she felt a movement behind her as her long black hair slightly ruffled along the wind.

Her gaze darkened as she clutched tightly to her sharp blade. Nimbly turning around, she slashed her sword towards the other person's neck.

Xie Mei, who was dressed in a red robe, swiftly stepped away from her reach. Standing there quietly, her cold eyes analyzed the beautiful woman in front of her.

She didn't even flinch a bit when she felt a cold metal press against her neck.

"You know, you are the last person that I want to see or meet right now." The woman sneered as her gaze turned dark and gloomy.

"I wouldn't have called you if I had any other choice, Shu'er." Xie Mei whispered as she stared at her best friend in sadness.

"Don't call me that!!! You lost the right when you married that bastard and put the entire Xie family in danger!!" Feng Shu snapped.

Xie Mei quietly observed the woman who used to be like a sister to her. Their childhood was full of mischief, and they were called the little delinquents of their family.

Other parents used to avoid sending their kids to the same school for fear of their kids being misled by these two. Because of them, their poor mothers were never invited to any tea parties held by other mothers.

There was not a single person in the capital who didn't know how troublesome these two brats were.

She looked away as her eyes suddenly dimmed, remembering the way they parted four years ago. Feng Shu lowered her sword and jumped down from the tree, walking towards the small garden. Xie Mei followed suit as the two friends quietly walked beside each other.

"Why did you call me here!??" Feng Shu asked as she stared at the clouds that were gathering in the sky.

"Yu'er is gone." Xie Mei grimly whispered. Silence followed as a gust of wind ruffled their robes and hair.

"What do you mean by gone??" Feng Shu asked as her gaze sharpened.

"Someone took him and left this letter," she murmured as she took out a letter from her robe. Feng Shu quickly took the letter and read its contents. The more she read, the more sinister and cold her surrounding aura became.

"That whore!!! That's it!! I'm going to talk to Father about this and let him know about the things this father and daughter have been up to!!" she snarled. Xie Mei quickly held her hand and shook her head.

"Don't!!! If you think it's just that man who is involved, then you are wrong!!! Sigh!!!! Don't drag your father into this Shu'er; it will only bring trouble to him. The Court of Justice cannot step in on an issue that is directly handled by the Emperor's Council. Only with his majesty's orders can your father issue an investigation on this matter. Your father will only become a target if he gets into this." Xie Mei explained.

Feng Shu clenched the letter and glared at Xie Mei as if she wanted to rip off her head. Soon a mocking smile appeared on her lips as she stared at her best friend, who looked tired and miserable as if she hadn't slept for days.

"This is what you get for not listening to anyone!! You were so confident in yourself that you ignored everyone's warning until that bastard brought that bitch to share a bed." she mocked.

"Not only have you pushed your entire family under the knife, but your child has also been taken away," she sneered.

Xie Mei didn't say a word when she was being mocked like this; instead, she lowered her gaze and listened to everything. This behaviour further irritated Feng Shu, and soon a punch landed on Xie Mei's face.

"What the hell are you still standing there for?? Aren't you going to fight back??" Feng Shu screamed as she threw another punch. Xie Mei quietly wiped the blood from the corner of her lips and stood still. She deserved every punch and curse her friend threw; she deserved all this for what she had done.

"Tch!!! You moron, didn't I tell you not to marry that bastard? Now that the Xie family's army is at that bastard's mercy, you are of no use to him. You are nothing but trash in his eyes now!!" She snapped as tears ran down her face. She could never accept the fact that her best friend's life had been ruined by that bastard.

Feng Shu couldn't control her tears as she threw punch after punch, only to be reciprocated with nothing. She caught Xie Mei's collar and pulled her towards her. Staring at her cold eyes, she stated:

"You are such a stubborn bitch sometimes; it makes me want to punch you more!!!" she said, pulling her into a hug and wailing her heart out. Xie Mei quietly patted her back as the latter cried in her arms.

.....

Xie Mei quietly sat on the chair inside her bed chamber as Feng Shu prepared tea to warm up their bodies.

"What are you going to do now?? She has clearly warned you to stay away from the Xie family's matter." Feng Shu asked.

"I don't know," she whispered gloomily.

"I don't get it. How did this happen in the first place?? How did she manage to kidnap a child in the middle of the day?? That too in the presence of so many palace guards!!!" Feng Shu questioned She couldn't get her head around this situation.

"Yu'er was taken away by the crown prince to play as usual. But in between, Meng Zhi came in to take him, claiming that I asked her to bring him back," she answered.

"And now Meng Zhi is nowhere to be found, and your child is in that bitch's claws." Feng Shu concluded after listening.

Xie Mei nodded her head as she coldly stared outside the window.

"During my investigation, I found a list of unethical things done by Prime Minister Qiao. One of them was smuggling salt." Xie Mei revealed

"Of course!! What would you expect from a father who raised a whore like her?" Feng Shu sneered.

Xie Mei coldly stared ahead; she went to such lengths to find evidence only for her hands to be tied. She could never guess that by the time she came back from visiting her family, they would have already made their move.

Her gaze darkened, and her heart burned with rage. She wanted to kill them for falsely accusing her family and kidnapping her child. If this was like the battlefield, she would have ripped them apart in such a way that even their bones wouldn't have been found.

"Does that bastard know about this??" Feng Shu asked.

"I tried, but he said he had nothing to do with my child," she mumbled.

"What does he mean by nothing to do with your child??? That child is his as well; doesn't he know that???" she hissed. Feng Shu wanted to punch him so badly right now.

Glancing at Xie Mei, who looked gloomy and exhausted, she quieted down.

"What about his mother??" she asked.

"Concubine Ye is sick in bed and is not ready to meet anyone." Xie Mei gloomily replied. Today, when she asked for an audience with her, she was rejected, stating she was ill, but Xie Mei knew she was being avoided. She didn't make a scene but instead quietly walked away.

"I knew that woman was no good!!"

"Shu'er, I met my elder brother yesterday." She whispered. The black-haired woman stiffened as her gaze became gloomy.

"H-how's he??" She asked, trying to sound strong. But only she knew how much courage she had to muster up to ask about her beloved. Her heart twisted in pain, and her eyes filled with tears.

She wanted to meet him so badly, but she didn't have the guts to see him in that state. And she knew he would never want her to see him in his current state; he had too much pride to do that.

"He is... He's hanging in there..... Father, mother, and Ling'er are with him, so....." she whispered out. Xie Mei didn't dare tell her how broken he looked. How could Feng Shu not understand this best friend of hers, but she didn't have the heart to trouble her anymore? She already had too much on her plate, so she quietly nodded in response.

"Shu'er, can you do me a favour??" Xie Mei asked.