Chunhua Hall looked the same as before, yet it gave Wei Yuan an inexplicable feeling of difference.
Wei Yuan and Liu Quangong walked one behind the other along the small paths of the palace towards Chunhua Hall. Along the way, they saw few palace maids or inner officials, making the vast Royal Palace seem filled with an intrinsic sense of desolation and solemnity.
After the Crown Prince's rebellion, which resulted in his defeat and death—given his frequent overnight stays at the Royal Palace—Prince Jin carried out a thorough purge within the palace. More than a hundred inner officials and attendants were beheaded, over a dozen concubines and hundreds of palace attendants were sent out for solitary reflection in monasteries in the mountain outside the city.
Most gaps remained unfilled, leaving the palace naturally cold and deserted.
While walking down the small path, they suddenly heard a maid's light exclamation from a side path: "Your Highness, please don't! Your Highness!"