Reborn as the Crippled King's Beloved
Chapter 467: Being Alive is the Greatest Comfort

Chapter 467: Chapter 467: Being Alive is the Greatest Comfort

It was deep into the night, and all was quiet.

Murong Jiu forced herself to close her eyes and rest for a while.

Even those made of iron needed rest.

She carried too many responsibilities on her shoulders.

If she were to fall ill, given Consort Dowager Qi’s abilities, she absolutely could not oversee the court; it might even lead to various suspicions and unrest.

Great Yan was in dire need of revival and could not withstand any unrest.

Yet, she still couldn’t sleep; every time she closed her eyes, the image of Jun Yuyan from her previous life, riddled with arrows, falling off the cliff covered in blood and void of any signs of life, would flash through her mind.

Such scenes had appeared too many times; she could hardly distinguish whether it was happening in her previous life or this one.

"Hong Yi, prepare a horse; I need to get out of the palace," Murong Jiu said as she sat up in bed and rummaged through the wardrobe for casual clothes to put on.

Hong Yi and Chun Tao, who were stationed outside, heard her but offered no objections; they just sighed inwardly and immediately went about their tasks.

Riding out of the city and whipping her horse to go faster, she found herself at Redcliffe Mountain before she knew it.

Standing on the mountain’s summit, the night wind blew fiercely, causing her robes to flutter loudly; a sudden and inexplicable thought of jumping crossed her mind.

"Your Majesty!"

As Murong Jiu took a step forward, Hong Yi quickly grabbed her wrist and pulled her back with a face filled with panic.

"Your Majesty, you mustn’t lose hope! The young princes need you!"

Murong Jiu came to her senses; looking down at the cliff, she felt a chill of fear.

How could she harbor such thoughts!

Zhijin and Zhiyu were so young and well-behaved; without their mother, no one would be able to protect them anymore.

That would mean repeating the tragic history of her previous life.

Murong Jiu reassured the pallid-faced Hong Yi, saying, "I just wanted to look ahead; I won’t lose hope. His Majesty is definitely still alive; he is waiting for me to find him."

It was unclear whether these words were meant to comfort Hong Yi or herself.

Tears welled up in Hong Yi’s eyes as she nodded: "Yes, Your Majesty, we will undoubtedly find His Majesty. He must be recuperating; once healed, he will return to the palace to see you."

"Yes, let’s head back down the mountain," Murong Jiu responded.

Riding the horse down the steep mountain path, the horse seemed accustomed to the route after several journeys.

They arrived at the base of the cliff while it was still far from dawn.

Murong Jiu dismounted and walked to the spot where Kai Xuan had previously discovered Jun Yuyan’s blood. Lying down, she looked up at the stars overhead, pondering whether Jun Yuyan, when he fell, had been able to do nothing but gaze at the sky like her.

Maybe not.

Falling from such a height, although the branches broke some of the fall, if he had hit his head, he might have remained unconscious after the impact.

She closed her eyes.

Tears slid from the corners of her eyes, dropping onto the stones and disappearing without a trace almost instantly.

On the side, Hong Yi, Chang Chonghai, and the others kept their lips tightly sealed, their eyes also filled with sorrow and sympathy for Her Majesty the Empress.

In recent days, they had helplessly watched as the Empress grew thinner and more absent-minded by the day.

Only when she faced the court officials did the Empress muster an energetic and authoritative facade, but at this moment, the Empress was merely a fragile and vulnerable woman.

Hong Yi brought over a cloak and draped it over Murong Jiu.

Having composed herself, Murong Jiu sat for a while before standing up.

"Let’s return to the palace, otherwise we won’t make it in time for the morning court."

Redcliffe Mountain was not close to the Capital City, and at this moment, riding swiftly back, changing outfits, it would soon be time for the morning court.

Hong Yi wanted to persuade Her Majesty the Empress to take a carriage and rest on the way, but seeing the expression on the Empress’s face, she swallowed back her words.

Time silently slipped away through the gaps between their fingers.

Several days later, Murong Jiu left the palace again.

This time, there was good news.

Kai Xuan had found clothes worn by Jun Yuyan in a mountain, and there were traces of someone having stayed in a cave.

"Ah Jiu, look, these are the clothes that weren’t completely burned and some gauze, and there are remnants of medicinal herbs nearby, indicating that His Majesty must still be alive, someone has treated him."

There were numerous footprints in the cave, clearly those of men, but there were also a few smaller and more delicate footprints; because they were incomplete, it was impossible to tell when they were made.

There was an extinguished fire pit inside the cave; perhaps there had been a sudden downpour while it was burning, extinguishing the fire, and thus, the items being burned hadn’t completely combusted.

One item was a half-burned robe, exactly the one previously torn on thorns, covered in bloodstains.

There was also white gauze, but it too was drenched in blood.

Thinking that all this blood belonged to Jun Yuyan, Murong Jiu felt a dense pain in her chest.

She squatted on the ground to examine closely, noticing a hole in the shoulder area where an arrow had hit, seeming that the arrow wound was not fatal, which made her breathe a sigh of relief.

The other torn areas were lacerated, likely left by branches during a struggle.

These marks must have been from when Jun Yuyan was first injured those days.

Though no other clues were found in the cave, overall, this was still considered good news.

Jun Yuyan was definitely still alive.

But who was it that saved him, and what was their purpose?

Their purpose was certainly not pure, for if the rescue had been a matter of chance, there would be no need to clean up the traces left behind.

It looked more like a planned event.

Like this cave, which was very secluded. Previously, Su Kai had sent people to search this area, but because there was a small waterfall nearby, and it was deep in the mountains, shrouded in dense fog all year round, and there were no traces left outside the cave, it was extremely difficult to find.

If it weren’t for Kai Xuan searching the mountains daily, reaching this area, and his sensitive nose detecting it, they wouldn’t have found it.

Murong Jiu personally collected the robes and the bloodstained gauze, ordering Chang Chonghai to take impressions of all the footprints found in the cave earlier; they might be useful later, including those two incomplete delicate footprints.

Among these people, there might be a woman skilled in medicine.

"Kai Xuan, well done, keep searching, you will definitely help me find His Majesty."

Murong Jiu patted Kai Xuan’s head, showing a faint smile for the first time.

Jun Yuyan being alive was the greatest comfort to her.

No matter what those people wanted, they would surely find a way to negotiate with her or threaten Jun Yuyan.

With Jun Yuyan’s cunning, he might even manage to escape on his own.

Perhaps having relieved a weight off her heart, Murong Jiu fell ill the moment she returned to the palace, spending the whole night with a high fever, unyielding, with the Divine Doctor Zhai personally attending to her, sighing throughout the night.

By the time it was almost time for the morning court, Murong Jiu suddenly woke up.

She struggled to get up and change her clothes, insisting on attending the morning court; though she was still feverish, not a single official noticed anything amiss.

Returning to Kunning Palace from the morning court, she fell into an unresponsive sleep, even struggling to swallow her medicine, until Divine Doctor Zhai could only resort to acupuncture to reduce her fever.

Upon hearing this, Consort Dowager Qi could not help but be somewhat moved.