“Although the Prince of Pingyang’s household released her contract of servitude, Lüdou is still serving Princess Changle.”
“We also discovered that Princess Changle was at the shop today.”
“After the Heir Apparent and Commandery Princess Anning left, Princess Changle left as well.”
“However, our men did not see her return to the Prince of Pingyang’s residence.”
The eunuch reported everything he knew, one detail at a time.
Prince Ling’s eyes narrowed.
“Go investigate!”
“You must capture Changle!”
“And bring that coachman here as well! No matter what, we must find out the Heir Apparent’s whereabouts!”
Thinking of the way his father had looked at him, Prince Ling was filled with irritation.
“If we don’t find the Heir Apparent and the Commandery Princess today, no one will be keeping their head!”
The menace in Prince Ling’s voice made the eunuch shudder.
He scrambled out of the room on all fours.
Prince Ling rubbed his temples.
Why did he feel that everything had been going wrong for him lately?
Could it be because he had been neglecting Princess Funing?
Prince Ling shook his head and began opening the memorials on the table.
His mother had already fallen out of favor with the emperor. He could not allow the emperor to catch him making any more mistakes.
He needed to think carefully about what path he should take from this point onward.
When Consort Shu saw Consort Li being taken away and Prince Ling leaving as well, she immediately covered her face and began sobbing theatrically.
“Your Majesty, please let me stay and take care of you!”
“I already know that I was wrong. I promise I’ll never do it again!”
“Please be magnanimous and forgive me!”
The emperor said nothing. He merely stared coldly at Consort Shu.
Consort Shu cried for a long while without receiving any response.
She raised her head in confusion, only to see that the emperor had been staring at her pensively the entire time.
Her heart jolted, missing a beat.
“Your Majesty? Why are you looking at me like that?”
“You’re frightening me!” Consort Shu said as she took the emperor’s hand and guided it toward her chest.
The emperor pulled his hand away and tilted his head slightly to the side.
“Tell me. What is the powder on Prince Ling’s body?”
Consort Shu’s heart lurched. She hurriedly fell to her knees.
“Your Majesty, if even the hidden guards didn’t see what happened, how could I possibly know?”
“If I had known that powder was poisonous, I would have stayed far away from them!”
“What if some of it had gotten onto me? Wouldn’t I have been unable to clear my name even with a hundred mouths?”
The emperor looked at Consort Shu but said nothing for a long time.
Consort Shu lay prostrate on the floor, not daring to move.
The room fell silent.
Sweat dripped steadily from Consort Shu’s forehead.
Yet her legs, pressed against the floor, felt icy cold.
She swayed unsteadily and looked as though she might collapse at any moment.
Just then, Eunuch Li hurried in.
“Your Majesty, we’ve found the answer.”
“The poison was in the medicine bowl.”
“A low-ranking palace maid from the Imperial Kitchen threw herself into a well and died.”
Eunuch Li wiped the sweat from his forehead, doing his best to quiet his breathing.
“No one from the Imperial Kitchen is to be spared,” the emperor said lightly.
Consort Shu, however, trembled in terror.
“When did the powder get onto the Crown Prince?” the emperor continued.
Eunuch Li lowered his head even further.
“Your Majesty, no one noticed.”
“However, there aren’t many palace attendants along the route from the Hall of Mental Cultivation to the Hall of Supreme Harmony.”
“Investigate further!” A dark glint flashed in the emperor’s eyes.
Someone had actually dared to poison him right under his nose!
What audacity!
“Yes!”
Eunuch Li bowed his head and withdrew.
The emperor looked at Consort Shu on the floor.
“You may leave.”
Consort Shu raised her head and saw that the emperor had closed his eyes wearily.
She bowed low.
“This consort takes her leave.”
Consort Shu pushed herself up from the floor and slowly backed out.
After she had left, the emperor’s eyes suddenly opened.
“Someone come!”
The instant the emperor spoke, a black shadow floated down from above.
“Tell me everything that happened today, from beginning to end.”
After bowing, the hidden guard began his report.
Consort Shu walked out of the Hall of Supreme Harmony and glanced back at the doors once more.
Her personal maid came forward to support her.
“Your Highness, let this servant help you back.”
Consort Shu nodded.
“Did you manage to send word to Prince Xian?”
The maid glanced around before lowering her voice.
“The palace gates have been locked. His Majesty ordered that no one be allowed to leave.”
A cold smile curled the corners of Consort Shu’s lips.
“Let’s go. I’m still under confinement, so I can’t linger outside for too long.”
The maid looked at Consort Shu in surprise. But when she saw the expression on her face, she immediately lowered her head.
Inside the antique shop, Li Jin was discussing with Duoduo how they could return to the prince’s residence.
Just then, someone knocked on the door again.
Li Jin was startled.
He motioned for Duoduo and Lüdou to keep quiet.
Then he took up his sword and walked out silently.
Peering through the crack in the door, Li Jin saw more than a dozen Imperial Guards outside.
“Open the door!”
One of the Imperial Guards pounded hard on the door.
Li Jin recognized him as the commander who had left earlier.
Could they have decided that the silver he gave them wasn’t enough?
No!
If they had wanted more, they wouldn’t have left in the first place.
This was bad!
They must have discovered something!
Keeping close to the crack in the door, Li Jin carefully observed the situation outside.
There were more than a dozen Imperial Guards.
He could deal with them alone.
However, the entire city was now crawling with Imperial Guards searching for them.
The slightest commotion would surely attract more of them.
Yet judging by the way the guards were acting, they were determined to enter the shop.
What should he do?
Li Jin rapidly considered his options.
At that moment, Duoduo cautiously emerged.
Li Jin hurriedly waved for her to stop.
The Imperial Guards outside were pressing against the door and peering inside.
Li Jin was hiding in a blind spot where they couldn’t see him.
But if Duoduo walked over from inside, that might no longer be the case.
Duoduo raised the crossbow in her hand toward Li Jin, then tossed it to him.
The door was closed, leaving the shop dim.
Li Jin could only see Duoduo throw something in his direction.
He instinctively reached out and caught it.
The moment he took hold of the object, he understood what Duoduo meant.
He waved for her to go back, and Duoduo quietly retreated.
Li Jin aimed at the commander outside and silently pressed the trigger.
There was only a faint “ting.”
“Thud!”
The commander of the Imperial Guards suddenly collapsed to the ground.
The guards outside were startled and began searching frantically for the attacker.
Li Jin aimed at a second man and pulled the trigger again.
As the mechanism engaged, another needle as fine as a strand of hair shot out.
“Thud!”
Another Imperial Guard collapsed to the ground.
“There’s an enemy attack!”
After two of their men died in succession, the Imperial Guards immediately descended into chaos.
They waved their weapons wildly and hurried away.
“Commandery Princess! Hurry, we have to go!”
