Zhang Mansion.
"The Mayor of the Capital specifically sought me out after court today! Do you have any idea how much gossip was spreading all over the capital last night?"
Madame Bai was momentarily stunned. She had spent the entire night rushing from one household to another, paying out countless hush-hush fees without a wink of sleep. Yet the moment her husband returned, he immediately gave her a dark look.
"My lord, you know how much I've done. Someone deliberately spread those rumors—I'm no god, how could I have known in advance?"
Her eyes reddened as she spoke. "I toiled all day, only to be scolded by my lord in the end."
Grand Secretary Zhang originally had more to say, but for every single sentence he uttered, his wife had two or three waiting in reply. He flicked his sleeve in frustration, yet still sat down beside Madame Bai.
"My dear, didn't I tell you beforehand? This Song Xiyan is a daughter of the Duke's Estate; no matter what, we could not take her life."
Madame Bai immediately retorted, "The Duke's Estate didn't care about her in the least! Was any of this because of them? It was because Song Xiyan didn't know who she was seducing before she died."
She let out a cold snort. "I only found out last night that everyone in Xiyan Courtyard is dead. Song Xiyan's coffin was even pried open and her corpse taken away. Doesn't that prove something?"
Madame Bai clenched her handkerchief. "Whoever did this is targeting us! My lord, you must have that person caught immediately!"
Grand Secretary Zhang paused. "Catching that rogue is indeed difficult, and we haven't been able to locate that maid, Azhu, either."
Madame Bai gritted her teeth, a sudden thought occurring to her. "My lord, wasn't there a talented individual who solved a major case recently and submitted a visiting card to you? At the time, you called him ruthless, said he was just a commoner raised in the dirt, and refused to see him."
"Although he's of humble birth, he does have some ability. Why not hand this matter over to him?"
Grand Secretary Zhang thought it over carefully and actually remembered the man. Mentioning him, he frowned and said, "Not only is he a commoner, but he's utterly vulgar. Oh well, if it weren't for our failure to tie up all the loose ends..."
He summoned the steward. "That commoner from the Grand Court of Revision—accept his visiting card and have him come into the mansion. Hand the assassin case over to him."
"Give him five days... Three days! If he can track down the culprit, I'll arrange his future for him."
The steward immediately nodded. "Understood, sir!"
Madame Bai looked at Grand Secretary Zhang. "My lord, what about Prince Han?"
Grand Secretary Zhang sneered. "Since he has a favor to ask of me, he naturally has to help cover for me."
"However, we cannot afford any more slip-ups with this. If that Qin Yanran cannot be saved, then let her die."
He was truly at his wits' end. His son had insisted on marrying Song Xiyan for Qin Yanran's sake, drawing endless gossip upon him in and out of court; and now, to protect Qin Yanran, his son had killed Song Xiyan, stirring up this massive mess. Given the high position he held, the moment any trouble arose, he had no shortage of political enemies eager to kick him while he was down.
Madame Bai nodded. "Ah, I understand."
***
Lingxiao left the Imperial Grandson's Residence. The Emperor had ordered Xiao Wuji to confine himself at home for half a month—a period ostensibly for recuperation, but in reality, house arrest. How Xiao Wuji would eventually be utilized would become clear within this fortnight.
The death of the Deposed Crown Prince last night was an event far greater than the murder of Grand Secretary Zhang's daughter-in-law, causing all factions to feel that a storm was brewing. The Imperial Grandson had returned from Liaoxi barely two days ago and had committed patricide to save his own skin, yet not a single person dared offer the Emperor any counsel on the matter. When all was said and done, it was a royal family affair, and furthermore, it touched upon the sensitive issue of the succession. Therefore, whether it brought imperial grace or wrath, they could only wait for the Emperor to make his own ruling.
In any case, he was merely an isolated imperial grandson who had killed his father; what waves could he possibly make? The outcome was already sealed.
Lingxiao pursued Prince Han, only to discover that his movements were quite peculiar. He passed by the Imperial Grandson's Residence and lingered outside for a long time without ever going inside. Afterward, he headed out of the city.
Lingxiao followed him all the way, only to find themselves arriving at the Capital Suburban Garrison.
After Prince Han entered, he did not emerge anytime soon. Lingxiao began to weigh whether she should take him down here and now; Your Highness Changsheng's physical condition truly could not afford to wait. Prince Han's attitude toward Your Highness Changsheng was bizarre. If he harbored murderous intent toward Your Highness Changsheng like other princes, it wasn't quite the same. The way he had taken Xiao Wuji away from outside the Golden Luan Hall and brought him to the Celestial Prison... it rather... looked more like he was forging a path to survival for Xiao Wuji.
Lingxiao stroked the short blade at her side—the very knife she had prepared to kill Prince Han.
She did not hesitate for long before turning and slipping into the Capital Suburban Garrison.
When she had rescued Your Highness Changsheng earlier, she had largely destroyed the dungeon, yet when trouble struck the Capital Suburban Garrison, not a whisper of it reached the capital. This showed just how elevated the status of the person who had imprisoned and assassinated Your Highness Changsheng truly was.
The Capital Suburban Garrison itself had problems, and the fact that Prince Han could come here to find someone meant that he, too... had problems!
Lingxiao walked up to the outer tent and concealed her presence.
She heard Prince Han's voice, as well as the sound of him engaged in a fierce argument with someone.
"I told you! Were you supposed to keep a close eye on him? Don't let anyone know he is here!"
"I have guarded this place with absolute strictness, and no one knows he left Liaoxi! And you? Not only did you botch the job, you even implicated—"
Prince Han's voice cut off. Lingxiao's eyes turned icy as she looked into the tent. Prince Han was sitting slumped on the ground in defeat, while not far away, the general of the Capital Suburban Garrison knelt on one knee, his expression far from pleasant.
So the one who had imprisoned Your Highness Changsheng was Prince Han all along!
Had he been keeping close tabs on Your Highness Changsheng's news all this time, which was how he managed to spirit Your Highness Changsheng away from outside the Golden Luan Hall?
Lingxiao stared at Prince Han's back and raised the short blade in her hand.
"Do you know? I could have saved Imperial Elder Brother. Originally, I could have saved him..."
Lingxiao froze.
Prince Han broke down in bitter tears. "A person as formidable as him—how could he end up dying at the hands of his own biological son? Of all the ways to die, it should never have been at Xiao Wuji's hands!"
Lingxiao frowned. Was the person Prince Han spoke of the Deposed Crown Prince?
"If no one had known that Xiao Wuji had returned, Imperial Elder Brother wouldn't have had to die to save him. Do you understand?"
With that, Prince Han suddenly burst into a violent fit of coughing. The general kneeling on one knee hurriedly looked up just in time to see Prince Han lose control and cough up a mouthful of blood!
"Your Highness!"
The general scrambled forward on his knees, reaching out anxiously. Prince Han clutched his chest, breathing heavily in a state that looked remarkably like an asthma attack.
Lingxiao was stunned. Prince Han gripped the general's hand tightly, the veins on his forehead bulging as despair bled into his voice: "I... have no time left. Do you understand..."
The general, a rugged warrior nearing forty, was now weeping openly. "Your Highness! It is this subject's fault, it is this subject's fault..."
What was wrong with Prince Han?
No, wait—the reason Prince Han's fortune was so wretched was because he was already teetering on the brink of death!
Was he, too, someone whose fortune was being siphoned? Was he also one of the people belonging to Your Highness Changsheng's faction who was being devoured by demons and monsters?
Lingxiao hesitated. She could see that Prince Han still wielded power; if he lived, he might yet provide assistance to His Highness. But if she struck him down now, letting the demons completely consume Prince Han's fortune, she would only be aiding the demons...
Scarcely had a few breaths passed when Lingxiao tightened her grip on the short blade. Yet before she could move, Prince Han suddenly hurled a dagger toward a dark corner!
"Hiding your head and tail like a rat!"
Following the sound of the blade piercing flesh, an assassin in black tumbled out from behind a folding screen.
With a heavy thud, the rest of the hidden assassins abandoned their cover and rushed forward to kill Prince Han.
Even with his days numbered, Prince Han's combat prowess remained formidable, but there were simply too many assassins, and he found himself hard-pressed to cope.
Lingxiao no longer concealed herself as she lunged into the thick of the battle...