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Ghost in the palace

Chapter 345: Blood in Prince Liang’s Courtyard · Nov 02, 2026

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Chapter List (462)

Page number / 10

301 Chapter 301: Prayers Beneath the Shadow of the North 2026-11-02
302 Chapter 302: The Dowager’s Fear 2026-11-02
303 Chapter 303: the weight of the throne 2026-11-02
304 Chapter 304: The Dowager’s Quiet Thoughts 2026-11-02
305 Chapter 305: Forgotten Memories and Hidden Fear 2026-11-02
306 Chapter 306: Whispers of Fear in the Imperial Court 2026-11-02
307 Chapter 307: Questions Buried in History 2026-11-02
308 Chapter 308: Villages Filled With Grief 2026-11-02
309 Chapter 309: — The Promise He Never Intended to Keep 2026-11-02
310 Chapter 310: The Dowager Empress’s Thoughts 2026-11-02
311 Chapter 311: A Mother’s Advice 2026-11-02
312 Chapter 312: The Return of the Lost 2026-11-02
313 Chapter 313: The Three Mischievous Ghosts 2026-11-02
314 Chapter 314: The Strange Weakness 2026-11-02
315 Chapter 315: The Cry in the Night 2026-11-02
316 Chapter 316: The Dowager’s Concerns 2026-11-02
317 Chapter 317: — A New Market for the Common People 2026-11-02
318 Chapter 318: The Emperor’s Decree 2026-11-02
319 Chapter 319: The Whisper Bowl Festival Meeting 2026-11-02
320 Chapter 320: The Kingdom Awaits the Festival 2026-11-02
321 Chapter 321: The First Day of the Festival Market 2026-11-02
322 Chapter 322: Smiles Across the Empire 2026-11-02
323 Chapter 323: — The Festival Beyond the Palace 2026-11-02
324 Chapter 324: The Festival of Prosperity 2026-11-02
325 Chapter 325: The Festival’s Great Success 2026-11-02
326 Chapter 326: The Scroll in the Night 2026-11-02
327 Chapter 327: The Dowager’s Fear 2026-11-02
328 Chapter 328: The Cry That Shook the Kingdom 2026-11-02
329 Chapter 329: The Morning After the Cry 2026-11-02
330 Chapter 330: The Boundary of Light 2026-11-02
331 Chapter 331: The Emperor’s Promise 2026-11-02
332 Chapter 332: Someone Among Us 2026-11-02
333 Chapter 333: The Courtyard of Too Much Silence 2026-11-02
334 Chapter 334: The First Report 2026-11-02
335 Chapter 335: Lunch Beneath Smiling Masks 2026-11-02
336 Chapter 336: An Unexpected Request 2026-11-02
337 Chapter 337: The Empress’s Feast 2026-11-02
338 Chapter 338: The Feast in the Empress’s Courtyard 2026-11-02
339 Chapter 339: Shadows Behind a Smile 2026-11-02
340 Chapter 340: Whispers in the Servants’ Courtyard 2026-11-02
341 Chapter 341: Cracks in the Story 2026-11-02
342 Chapter 342: The Ghosts’ Early Morning Hunger 2026-11-02
343 Chapter 343: A Heart That Beat Differently 2026-11-02
344 Chapter 344: The Monk’s Protection 2026-11-02
345 Chapter 345: Blood in Prince Liang’s Courtyard 2026-11-02
346 Chapter 346: The Dowager’s Doubt 2026-11-02
347 Chapter 347: The Palace of Wandering Spirits 2026-11-02
348 Chapter 348: Tea Beneath the Pearl Blossoms 2026-11-02
349 Chapter 349: An Invitation for Afternoon Tea 2026-11-02
350 Chapter 350: storm before storm 2026-11-02

The Imperial Palace had barely awakened when whispers spread through every corridor.

”What did you hear?”

”I heard Miss Shin Gu coughed blood!”

”The Imperial Healer said her condition is serious!”

”No... they say she may not survive.”

The rumors spread faster than the morning breeze.

Maids whispered while carrying water.

Eunuchs exchanged worried glances.

Even the palace guards quietly discussed the unexpected news.

No one had expected the calm and graceful Shin Gu to suddenly collapse.

---

Inside Prince Liang’s courtyard, every servant wore an anxious expression.

The usually peaceful courtyard had become silent.

Medicine bowls, towels, and basins of warm water surrounded the bed where Shin Gu rested.

Her complexion appeared unusually pale.

A faint trace of blood remained at the corner of her lips despite the maids carefully wiping it away.

Prince Liang stood beside the bed with his hands clasped behind his back.

His brows remained tightly knitted.

”Imperial Healer.”

”Tell me honestly.”

”How serious is her condition?”

The elderly healer sighed before checking Shin Gu’s pulse once again.

Her pulse...

Weak.

Yet strangely steady.

Very strange.

After a long silence, he slowly released her wrist.

”The bleeding was severe.”

”If it continues...”

He hesitated.

”...she may not have much time.”

The surrounding maids immediately lowered their heads.

Some even wiped away tears.

Prince Liang’s face darkened.

”Do everything possible.”

The healer bowed.

”This humble servant will certainly try.”

---

Shin Gu quietly listened to every word.

Inside...

She was completely speechless.

”Less time left?”

”I’m perfectly fine.”

She could clearly feel that her body had suffered only a temporary shock.

Her spiritual energy was disturbed.

But she was nowhere near death.

However...

How could she explain that?

She couldn’t reveal what had truly happened.

If she admitted she had sensed an invisible spiritual barrier surrounding the palace ...

Everything she had hidden for years might be exposed.

That was impossible.

---

The room remained silent until Prince Liang finally sat beside her.

His voice softened.

”Shin Gu...”

”Can you remember what happened?”

She slowly opened her eyes.

Pretending to think carefully.

After a long pause she whispered,

”...I remember...”

”I was walking through the garden.”

Prince Liang nodded.

”And?”

Shin Gu frowned slightly as though trying to remember.

”There was...”

”...a strange powder floating in the air.”

Everyone looked confused.

”A powder?” Prince Liang repeated.

She nodded weakly.

”I accidentally breathed it in.”

”My throat immediately burned.”

”Then...”

”I don’t remember anything.”

The healer’s expression changed.

He carefully examined her throat again.

”Hmm...”

”It is possible.”

”There are flowers and herbs that may trigger violent allergic reactions.”

Prince Liang finally let out a relieved breath.

”So it wasn’t an incurable illness.”

The healer nodded slowly.

”Her pulse is already becoming steadier.”

”I believe the worst has passed.”

The frightened servants immediately relaxed.

One maid even smiled through her tears.

”Thank goodness...”

---

Prince Liang looked around the room.

”What powder?”

”We walked through the gardens today.”

”I didn’t notice anything unusual.”

The servants also shook their heads.

”We didn’t see anything either.”

The healer stroked his beard thoughtfully.

”Sometimes only one person reacts while everyone else remains unaffected.”

”It depends on the body’s constitution.”

Prince Liang accepted the explanation.

”I’ll order the gardeners to inspect every flower and herb in the palace.”

The healer nodded.

”That would be wise.”

---

Shin Gu lowered her eyes.

Inside...

Her thoughts were completely different.

”There was no powder.”

”There never was.”

The blood she had coughed up had appeared the instant her spiritual perception touched the mysterious force surrounding the palace.

It hadn’t merely blocked her.

It had pushed back.

The recoil had shaken her own energy.

She had never experienced such resistance before.

”Someone...”

”Someone has created a powerful boundary.”

Her fingers tightened beneath the blanket.

”Who?”

”The Emperor?”

”No...”

”He knows nothing about spiritual arts.”

”The Duke family or chen family?”

”They shouldn’t possess such knowledge either.”

Her breathing became slower.

”Then who is protecting the palace?”

For the first time in many years...

Shin Gu felt uncertainty.

---

The Imperial Healer packed away his instruments.

Turning toward Prince Liang, he smiled reassuringly.

”Fortunately, Miss Shin Gu’s condition has stabilized.”

”She simply needs several days of complete rest.”

Prince Liang nodded.

”I understand.”

The healer bowed before leaving.

One by one, the servants also quietly withdrew.

Soon...

Only Prince Liang and Shin Gu remained.

He looked at her with concern.

”You frightened everyone.”

A faint smile appeared on her pale face.

”I’m sorry.”

”I didn’t mean to.”

Prince Liang sighed.

”Rest.”

”Don’t think about anything else.”

She nodded obediently.

”I will.”

After he finally left the room...

The gentle smile slowly disappeared from Shin Gu’s face.

She looked toward the window where the morning sunlight filtered through.

Her calm eyes gradually turned cold.

”Someone stronger than I expected has entered this game.”

”The Empress lady chen survived death...”

”My spiritual perception was repelled...”

”And now I cannot even approach her without resistance.”

She slowly closed her eyes.

For the first time since arriving at the palace...

She realized one thing.

The path ahead would no longer be easy.

Somewhere—

Someone unseen had begun protecting the Empress.

And that unknown guardian worried her more than anyone in the Imperial Palace.

A Decision Beneath the Moon

Morning sunlight filtered through the carved windows of the Imperial Palace.

Yet despite the bright sky outside, the atmosphere inside the Emperor’s study remained heavy.

Stacks of memorials covered the long desk.

Military reports from the northern frontier.

Tax records from the southern provinces.

Petitions from ministers.

Normally, the Emperor would have finished half of them before sunrise.

Today—

His brush remained motionless.

His thoughts were elsewhere.

A knock sounded outside.

”Your Majesty.”

”Enter.”

The captain of the Imperial Shadow Guards stepped inside and knelt.

”I have a report.”

The Emperor looked up.

”Speak.”

The captain lowered his head.

”Miss Shin Gu suddenly coughed blood this morning.”

The Emperor frowned.

”Blood?”

”Yes, Your Majesty.”

”The Imperial Healer was summoned immediately.”

”What was the diagnosis?”

The captain replied,

”The healer first believed her condition was critical.”

”The palace was thrown into panic.”

The Emperor remained silent.

”And now?”

”The bleeding has stopped.”

”The Imperial Healer believes she inhaled an unknown powder that caused an allergic reaction.”

The Emperor slowly leaned back in his chair.

”So...”

”She is fine.”

”Yes, Your Majesty.”

The captain paused before adding,

”The palace servants have already begun discussing the incident.”

The Emperor dismissed him with a nod.

”You may leave.”

The study became quiet once more.

Only the sound of the breeze disturbed the silence.

The Emperor walked toward the window.

His eyes rested on the vast palace below.

Everything appeared peaceful.

Yet nothing felt peaceful anymore.

He closed his eyes briefly.

First—

The strange incident at the lake.

Then—

The Empress nearly losing her life.

The unexplained attack outside the capital.

Now—

Shin Gu coughing blood for reasons no one could explain.

One strange event after another.

Almost as if unseen hands were moving pieces across a chessboard.

His jaw tightened.

”What is happening...”

He whispered to himself.

None of it made sense.

He remembered the old records stored inside the Imperial Library.

Ancient texts.

Forbidden histories.

Stories dismissed as myths.

People disappearing.

Villages speaking of invisible forces.

Ancient cultivators.

Spirit practitioners.

Dark rituals.

Until recently—

He would have laughed at such stories.

Now...

He no longer could.

Too many impossible things had happened before his own eyes.

The Empress herself had spoken about seeing ghosts.

Princess Zhi had described the strange sensation before losing consciousness.

The Duke had mentioned old records from his youth.

The attack outside the palace had been too precise.

Nothing fit ordinary logic anymore.

The Emperor exhaled slowly.

”We’re missing something.”

His gaze drifted toward a large map hanging on the wall.

The Empire stretched across mountains, rivers, and forests.

His eyes stopped on the northern provinces.

The Northern Highlands.

Remote.

Ancient.

Filled with forgotten temples and abandoned monasteries.

Years ago, scholars had recorded unusual legends from those regions.

At the time, the reports had been dismissed.

Now...

Perhaps they deserved another look.

He placed a finger on the map.

”The north...”

A decision slowly formed in his mind.

”We need answers.”

Not rumors.

Not guesses.

Answers.

If the truth still existed anywhere—

It would likely be there.

Hidden among forgotten records and isolated mountain temples.

A soft knock interrupted his thoughts.

”Come in.”

The Grand Chancellor entered and bowed.

”Your Majesty.”

”The ministers are gathering for court.”

The Emperor nodded.

”I’ll be there shortly.”

The Chancellor hesitated.

”You seem troubled.”

The Emperor looked once more at the northern mountains on the map.

”Tell me...”

”When was the last Imperial investigation sent to the Northern Highlands?”

The Chancellor thought for a moment.

”Many years ago.”

”The reports were incomplete.”

”They were considered... folklore.”

The Emperor gave a faint, thoughtful nod.

”Perhaps they were dismissed too quickly.”

The Chancellor looked surprised but asked no further questions.

After he departed, the Emperor stood alone again.

His expression was calm.

But his resolve had changed.

Whatever was hiding behind these mysterious events—

He intended to uncover it.

Even if it meant leaving the capital.

Even if it meant traveling to the forgotten mountains of the north.

Somewhere beyond those peaks...

The answers were waiting.

And he would find them.

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