Beloved Empress Chapter 53

Chapter 53

Who Should I Trust?

Mo Qi Qi gives him a guilty look, "Yue Hen, I don't want to implicate you.  You know that if I run away, I will be a runaway convict.  If you run away from me, you will not only lose your title, but also your life!"

"I don't care for all that.  As long as I can take you out of here safely, I can live without all that," Jun Yue Hen confesses emotionally.

Mo Qi Qi is shocked by what Jun Yue Hen said.  She is touched.  There is actually a man like him in this world; she regrets the fact that she is not the Mo Qi Qi that he loves.

"Yue Hen, I think you should re-consider this. I am not worthy of all that."  She does not wish to have emotional entanglement with any man at this moment.  No matter how in love Jun Yue Hen is, she does not want to have any romantic relationship with him.

"I am willing to do this myself, I will not blame anyone.  Once night comes, I will send someone to take you out.  I will be waiting for you outside the palace.  I will leave first."  Jun Yue Hen leaves without listening to Mo Qi Qi's reply.

Mo Qi Qi helplessly sighs, if possible, she really does not want to owe Jun Yue Hen anything, but there does not seem to be any other option right now.  She should leave the palace first and figure out the rest later.

Duke Zhen's Manor,

Duke Zhen has been busy with Sheng Jiang Military Camp.  Though he is Mo Cheng Xuan's father, they are in charge of different camps.

Duke Zhen's Sheng Jiang Military Camp is Hua Chen Kingdom's biggest camp.  It holds the power of the other four big military camps.

Mo Cheng Xuan is in charge of Hua Nan Military Camp, one of the four Tong, Xi, Bei and Nan Camps.  The power that Mo Clan wield is really big.

(TN: Tong = East, Bei = North, Xi = West, Nan = South.)

Today, when the Duke returns to the manor, he finds out about the house-arrest that has been imposed on his daughter.  He is furious, "The emperor actually dares to impose a house-arrest on the empress?  Does he even has me in his eyes?  I was busy in the camp doing things for him and yet he repays it by bullying my daughter?  I will go to the palace and talk some sense into him!"

After saying that, the Duke walks out while huffing in anger.

Seeing this, his wife and his son quickly stops him.

"Please calm down, Father."

"Laoye, calm down first."

Duke Zhen unhappily glares at them, "Qi Qi is our daughter.  Now that her life and death is uncertain, how am I supposed to calm down?  As for you Xuan Er, Qi Qi is your little sister.  You are in the capital all along, why didn't you do something to help her?"

Mo Cheng Xuan patiently tries to persuade him, "Father, the empress is only facing a temporary house arrest, she has not been convicted yet.  Do not be hasty, Father.  I believe the emperor will dispatch people to investigate this matter properly."

Duke Zhen's wife echoes Mo Cheng Xuan, "What Xuan Er said is right.  Laoye, you have only returned, you should rest.  I believe that with you here, the emperor will not make things hard for Qi Qi."

Duke Zhen nods, "What furen said is right.  The emperor probably does not dare to do anything to Qi Qi.  If he dares to convict Qi Qi, I will make him regret it!"

Mo Cheng Xuan sighs.

The day passes really quickly, in the blink of an eye, it is already night.

In Feng Yang Palace, Mo Qi Qi anxiously paces in her room. After Jun Yue Hen left earlier on, Mo Qi Qi's heart has been in an uproar.

Her heart tells her to leave the palace with Jun Yue Hen, but if she does, she will automatically become a run-away convict.  By then, Jun Qian Che can come up with 1000 excuses to kill her.  If she stays here and bravely face everything, she might be able to figure out the way to clean her hands off this matter.  She believes that with Mo Clan's power, Jun Qian Che will not be able to go after her life.

Mo Qi Qi's heart feels very tangled at the moment, she does not know what to do.

Ban Xiang tries to comfort her, "Your Ladyship, you should stop pacing.  You have been doing that since noon."

Mo Qi Qi looks at Ban Xiang uncertainly, "Ban Xiang, do you think I should leave with the 7th king?"

Ban Xiang scratches her head.  After thinking hard for a moment, she shakes her head.

Mo Qi Qi immediately grabs her by the arm, "You think I shouldn't leave too, right?"

Ban Xiang shakes her head.

Mo Qi Qi impatiently scolds her, "You shake your head to everything that I asked you!  What do you mean by that?!"

"Your Ladyship, this servant does not know whether or not you should leave with wangye," Ban Xiang replies with a low voice.

Mo Qi Qi looks up to the sky and screams, "Ah!  Can somebody help me decide?!"

At that moment, a guard enters and pays respect to her, "Greeting Your Ladyship the empress."

Mo Qi Qi looks at the unfamiliar guard before asking, "Who are you?  Why are you here?"

The guard lowers his voice, "Your Ladyship, this subordinate is sent here by the 7th king to take you out of the palace."

Mo Qi Qi is shocked, "The 7th king really wants to sneak bengong out of the palace?"

"Your Ladyship, the 7th wangye is currently waiting for you inside a carriage, outside the palace.  We must hasten, Your Ladyship.  This subordinate will try his best to take you out of the palace smoothly," the guard respectfully replies.

Mo Qi Qi hesitates; can she really just go?  Though she has no feeling for Jun Qian Che, she is still his empress.  Would running away with Jun Yue Hen be considered as elopement?  With that kind of title placed over her head, how will she live from now on?  Women in ancient times cares about their reputation the most.  If she is known as a married woman who has an affair, everyone will be out to get her.

Jun Qian Che is the emperor.  He will not tolerate over being cheated on.  He will definitely release warrant on them and by then, even the powerful Mo Clan will not be able to do anything to help them.  The public will side with the victim for cases like these.  If she leaves, Jun Qian Che will automatically become the victim.  If Mo Clan tries to interfere with anything, they will draw public outrage.

But if she doesn't go, she will be convicted for sure.  Is she supposed to just stay here waiting for death?  What should she do?  What should she do?

Seeing Mo Qi Qi falling into a daze, the guard speaks up, "Your Ladyship, should we go now?"

"Bengong still need to pack, wait for bengong outside.  Bengong will be done soon." Mo Qi Qi sends away the guard, hoping she will have some time to make a reasonable decision.

The guard retreats outside.

Ban Xiang quickly asks her, "Your Ladyship, you haven't made your decision yet?"

Mo Qi Qi nods, "My brain is a mess right now.  I don't know what to do."

Ban Xiang gives her a suggestion, "Why don't we sneak out to meet Duke Zhen and see what he has to say?"

Mo Qi Qi immediately shoots the idea down, "No!  Father's temper is too volatile.  If we seek him out, he will march into the palace with his troops!  Things will get even uglier"

Mo Qi Qi suddenly remembers what Jun Qian Che said last night.

"I hope Dong Fei's case will be closed soon.  I hope she will rest in peace and I hope my innocence will be proven."

"If you profess that wish to zhen, perhaps zhen can fulfil that much faster than the lantern can."

"Now that the emperor has heard my wish, will you make it happen faster?"

"It depends on the empress' performance."

Remembering those words, a thought suddenly surfaced in Mo Qi Qi's heart:  Perhaps I should trust Jun Qian Che this one time.

Chapter end