Chapter 98: Are You Worthy of Your Imperial Uncle?

“What is going on? It sounds like it’s coming from the chambers of the Emperor’s two consorts. Your Majesty, should we go and take a look?”

Fu Shou was the first to react, her face full of astonishment.

After Liu Xie had sent her back to the inner palace the previous night, she only knew that he had returned shortly afterward as well. She had asked him about Guan Yu and the others, and Liu Xie had said that everything had already been arranged. Only then had the two of them gone to sleep.

But now, hearing those cries, it did not sound like everything was fine at all.

“I’ll go with Qiao Feng to take a look. Your Majesty, stay behind us and keep watch. If any irrelevant maidservants come near, drive them away at once. After all, these two ladies of Liu Bei’s have rather special identities!”

Fu Shou had no objection. After all, Qiao Feng was not even a nobleman; there was no way he could suppress those maidservants.

After sending Fu Shou away, Liu Xie led Qiao Feng straight to the sleeping quarters of Liu Bei’s two consorts. Others might not understand what was going on, but the two of them understood perfectly well.

“Your Majesty, has this matter succeeded?”

“It may count as half a success. With Guan Yu’s standards, even if he drank quite a lot, he still wouldn’t do anything too outrageous, so the rest will have to depend on you.”

Qiao Feng nodded and followed Liu Xie quickly to the door.

Inside came the sound of women weeping. After listening for a moment, Liu Xie nodded to Qiao Feng, and Qiao Feng pushed the door open without warning and went in.

Of course, to avoid seeing anything he ought not to see, Liu Xie waited a little while, and only after hearing Qiao Feng’s voice did he follow him inside.

What met Liu Xie’s eyes was Mistress Mi, her clothes in disarray, sitting before the desk and weeping bitterly, and Guan Yu, likewise disheveled, standing on the floor, looking somewhat at a loss.

On the other side, Mistress Gan’s clothes were neat enough, but her face was just as blank, as if she had no idea what had happened.

“Ah? General, don’t tell me you spent the entire night here and never returned to your residence!”

After entering, Liu Xie stared at the scene in astonishment for a long while, then pointed at Guan Yu in disbelief, his voice trembling as he asked.

Over the years, Guan Yu had always been the sort of man who stood tall between heaven and earth, with nothing to conceal and no habit of hiding what he had done.

So when Liu Xie asked whether he had spent the whole night in the imperial residence, Guan Yu nodded, effectively admitting that he had indeed stayed there all night.

The situation was now painfully clear. The disordered bed, Guan Yu and Mistress Mi both in disarray—anyone with even a little imagination could figure out what had happened here last night.

“You! You! General, she is your brother’s wife. How could you do such a thing? How are we ever to face Liu the Imperial Uncle?”

Liu Xie stamped his foot hard, his expression one of utter disappointment, full of frustration that Guan Yu had failed him.

“Your Majesty, though I did not leave the residence, last night I truly drank beyond my limit. After sending the ladies back, I fell asleep upon that bed and nothing happened as Your Majesty imagines!”

Though Guan Yu was a frank and upright man, if he had done something, he would admit it; if he had not, he would not claim it.

“So what the General means is that after sending the two ladies back, you were merely overcome by drink and sleep, and lay down with the mistress upon her bed, doing nothing else?”

Guan Yu naturally felt there was nothing wrong with Liu Xie’s words and immediately nodded. But on Mistress Mi’s side, hearing this only made her cry even harder. Clearly, the mere fact of sleeping on the same bed with Guan Yu was already too much to bear.

“Could it be that the lady thinks the General’s account is untrue? No matter! Since I am already here, if your body has felt anything unusual, you may say it boldly. Though Yunchang is a general of our Han, and both I and Sun Ce hold him in high esteem, if he truly committed such a deed against his brother’s wife, I will not spare him!”

Liu Xie’s blunt words did not ease the atmosphere at all. Instead, they made Mistress Mi sob even more desperately, as though she wished to throw herself on the ground and die.

“Th-this... General, it would not be proper for you to remain here any longer. Let it be so—you return first. I shall have this matter investigated thoroughly. If it is truly as you say, I will speak with Sun Ce and clear the air, and I will not allow any misunderstanding to arise between you and Liu the Imperial Uncle!”

In Guan Yu’s eyes, Liu Xie was surely a trustworthy and good emperor. Besides, Mistress Mi was already in such a state; whatever he said at this moment would carry little credibility.

“In that case, I thank Your Majesty!”

After saying this, Guan Yu, though still very angry with himself, had no choice but to stride quickly out of Liu Xie’s sleeping quarters.

“Give the order: anyone in this residence who has seen what happened here and lets word of it reach beyond these walls—kill her on the spot!”

After Guan Yu left, Liu Xie said this to Qiao Feng, which made Mistress Mi’s sobbing lessen slightly. After all, the matter had only spread a little within this sealed space for the moment and had not yet caused too much of an impact.

“Lady, what do you think of this? Is what the General said believable or not?”

Since there was no one else here, and Mistress Mi was still crying terribly, he could only ask Mistress Gan.

Mistress Gan’s chambers were deeper inside. In fact, she had only just woken when she heard Mistress Mi’s shriek. She was still completely bewildered, and a part of her even worried that during the long night, Guan Yu might have first risen from her bed and then gone to Mistress Mi’s.

So when faced with Liu Xie’s question, Mistress Gan could only say that she had also drunk too much last night. She knew only that Guan Yu had brought them both back, but she did not know why he had not left afterward; as for anything else, she knew nothing at all.

“Sigh, I am a man, and it is not proper for me to investigate such matters. Let us do this: Qiao Feng, this affair will be entrusted to you. You must restore innocence to Mistress Mi and the General!”

“Your Majesty may rest assured. I will do my utmost!”

To Mistress Mi’s ears, Liu Xie’s words carried no problem at all. But to Mistress Gan’s ears, they were deeply troubling. By saying it this way, did it not mean that whether there had been anything between the two of them or not, once the investigation was over, it would be counted as nothing? Then who would ever know whether there had truly been anything?

Such a result was unfair to both her and Liu Bei. Yet at this moment, Mistress Gan gave no response. She thought that although Liu Xie was the emperor, in the end this matter should still be left to Liu Bei himself to decide.