In Another World, Everyone Want to Kill Me!-Chapter 274: The Sealed Coffin
If Gongsun Xing had not known for certain that only the two of them were here, that single glance over his shoulder would have been enough to make him scream.
Yue Mingxuan tried several times, but he simply did not have the strength to force it open.
Gongsun Xing hurried over and pressed a hand down on his shoulder.
"What are you doing?"
Yue Mingxuan gritted his teeth and kept pushing.
His palms were red from the effort and a patch of skin had been scraped raw against the coffin wood.
Fine threads of blood were visible, but he had no time to fuss over it and paid it no mind.
"Opening the coffin. What do you think I’m doing, exercising?" Yue Mingxuan shot back, his words squeezed out between clenched teeth.
Gongsun Xing felt that no matter how much courage a person possessed, it would never be enough if they stayed by Yue Mingxuan’s side.
At this rate, he was bound to be scared out of his wits at least once a day.
He patted his chest to steady himself.
"Opening it for what? Do you even know whose coffin this is?"
Yue Mingxuan exhaled sharply and slapped a hand against the lid.
The impact sent dust flying up and both of them broke into coughing fits.
He waved at the haze before his face, squinting as he coughed.
"Isn’t it written right here? Imperial Noble Consort Wan. One of the Emperor’s consorts."
The Emperor had likely had too many consorts over the years.
Gongsun Xing could not immediately recall who this Imperial Noble Consort Wan had been. But Yue Mingxuan kept staring at the coffin with a look that said he would not give up until it was opened.
Gongsun Xing rolled up his sleeves and preparing to help.
Yue Mingxuan raised a hand to stop him.
"There’s wax. The edges of this coffin have been sealed with wax. No wonder I couldn’t push it open no matter how hard I tried. Quick, Gongsun Xing, burn it off."
Together they melted away the sealing wax.
This time, they braced their shoulders against the lid and shoved.
It shifted upward and with another heave, they pushed it aside.
The coffin lid hit the ground with a heavy thud, sending up yet another cloud of dust.
Yue Mingxuan had the sudden, absurd thought that if he stayed in this place for two or three days, he might very well come down with pneumonia.
It was filthy beyond belief.
The dust was everywhere.
"Ah—" Gongsun Xing let out a startled exclamation.
Yue Mingxuan had been looking at the fallen lid on the ground, but Gongsun Xing’s voice drew his attention.
Gongsun Xing was staring fixedly into the coffin, his eyes unblinking.
Yue Mingxuan turned his head to look as well.
Inside the coffin lay a stunning beauty, truly the kind who could topple a kingdom.
To call her celestial would not have been an exaggeration.
Her face was like a peach blossom in full bloom, lips red, brows dark and perfectly shaped.
Most striking of all was the tear-shaped mole beneath the corner of her eye.
In ancient times, women with tear moles were rare.
The physiognomy texts said: a life like flowing water, half a lifetime adrift like duckweed, an inauspicious lone star entering one’s fate.
It was not a fortunate destiny.
And yet, she was breathtakingly beautiful.
If a man were to have such a wife, whether she bore the fate of a lone star or not, once he fell in love, how could he possibly compromise?
Even lying there, she gave off a fragile air.
Yue Mingxuan reached out and touched her skin.
It was still smooth.
The body had not decayed.
There must be a preservation pearl or some kind of luminous night pearl placed within her.
"She... why hasn’t she turned into bones?" Gongsun Xing asked.
He had been here twice before.
He could tell this coffin had been placed here for a very long time; the ground beneath it had already sunk under its weight.
So why had the body not rotted?
Gongsun Xing did not understand such matters well.
If it came to using medicine to prevent a corpse from decaying, he would not be entirely confident, but neither would he say it was impossible.
Yue Mingxuan lowered his head and examined the woman carefully.
"There should be a preservation pearl or a luminous pearl in her mouth. That can keep a body from decaying. But that’s not right..."
According to current burial rites, only someone of the same rank as Empress Suyin would be permitted to have a luminous pearl placed in her mouth.
So why would she be buried here?
Looking more closely at her clothing, it was lavish and dignified.
The headdress alone was of the kind reserved for a Noble Consort.
Imperial Noble Consort Wan?
Imperial Noble Consort Wan...
Where had he heard that name before?
"Then why did you open the coffin?" Gongsun Xing asked.
Ah, right. He had nearly forgotten the real reason.
Yue Mingxuan fixed his gaze and began searching for any place on her body where something could have been hidden.
But just as he was about to reach out, he hesitated, falling into brief contemplation.
It was not fear.
It was simply that... there were too many places on Imperial Noble Consort Wan’s body where something could be concealed.
Her deep purple robe was luxurious and ornate.
At least for now, he had not seen anyone in the palace wearing such a vivid color and she suited it perfectly.
The sleeves.
The folds at her chest.
Inside her shoes.
There were far too many places on a corpse where something could be hidden.
Suddenly, Yue Mingxuan’s eyes flashed.
He reached out and took Imperial Noble Consort Wan’s hand and studying it carefully for a long while.
Gongsun Xing leaned in to look as well.
Her hands were too thin, it was almost fleshless, long and slender.
