A sudden, fierce, and violent gust of cold wind swept into the small courtyard, catching the bolts of dyed fabric hanging from the wooden racks and whipping them upward toward the bamboo poles. In that instant, the shadows lurking in the dark revealed their forms, their crescent sabers already unsheathed.
Rainwater streamed down the blades, reflecting pairs of vicious, cold eyes in the flashing steel.
Meanwhile, the hands of the Jinyiwei remained resting upon the hilts of their still-sheathed sabers.
The shadow guards excelled above all else in silent, stealthy assassination. The chaotic ambient sounds of the rainy night gave these creatures of the dark an overwhelming advantage. Even filled with reluctance and fury, none of them dared to act rashly for the moment after all, blades were pressed directly against their throats.
Chunxue cast a cold, detached glance at the subdued Jinyiwei. Quickening her stride, she shouted sternly before she even crossed the threshold: “The Empress Dowager’s imperial decree has arrived!”
Multiple pairs of eyes instantly turned outward from within the room.
Chunxue’s eyesight was exceptionally sharp, capable of perceiving things in the pitch-black night that ordinary people could not. Thus, the moment she arrived, she spotted the two Jinyiwei standing behind the Princess.
An overwhelming urge to kill instantly seized control of her reason.
“Chunxue!”
It was the Princess calling her.
Chunxue recovered a measure of lucidity. Striding up the stone steps, she entered the room.
The Jinyiwei standing behind Zhu Yue recognized Chunxue’s reputation; she was Zhu Yue’s sharpest blade, a woman far more ruthless and terrifying than any man. Not only was her martial prowess formidable, but the sensory acuteness of her senses far surpassed that of ordinary mortals.
Sensible and prudent, they quickly sidestepped to clear the space behind Zhu Yue.
Chunxue stepped forward, master and servant locking eyes.
In truth, Zhu Yue had a multitude of things she wished to say, but not a single word escaped her lips, dissolving instead into a soft, choked sob in her throat.
Presenting the imperial decree, Chunxue said, “Your subordinate deserves death for allowing Your Highness to suffer such fright.”
Taking the decree, Zhu Yue murmured softly, “It is of no consequence.”
Without opening it, Zhu Yue immediately turned her gaze toward Lu Bingqiu. Her previously weak tone instantly hardened into an icy chill: “Lord Lu, this is an imperial decree issued by the Empress Dowager to the Grand Princess’s estate. Would you care to take a look?”
Lu Bingqiu’s expression was exceptionally grim. His hand still hadn’t released the Xiuchun saber embedded in Xie Zi’an’s arm.
In truth, even across the distance, he had clearly seen the decree Zhu Yue accepted. It was fashioned from Ling brocade with jade rollers and fine silk materials that could not be forged anywhere else.
Yet Lu Bingqiu simply could not fathom why the Empress Dowager would issue such a decree. It came completely without rationale, especially since her venerable self had contributed no small share of effort to the downfall of the Xie family.
He could not fathom the calculations of those at the top. All he could do was release his captive; offending the Empress Dowager was no trivial matter.
Lying in a pool of blood, the youth recognized that he had won his gamble, the corners of his torn lips curling upward in an involuntary smile.
However, Lu Bingqiu had no intention of letting Xie Zi’an off so easily. Crouching down, he whispered directly into Xie Zi’an’s ear using only his breath: “Kid, do you think you’ve latched onto a towering tree that will never fall? But don’t forget the one who truly wanted to wipe out your entire family wasn’t the Emperor; it was the Empress Dowager. Think about it: how long do you suppose you can survive under her thumb? Perhaps we’ll be seeing each other again very soon.”
Hearing this, Xie Zi’an couldn’t help laughing, looking precisely like a malevolent ghost crawled straight from the underworld. Blinking his bloodshot eyes, he mustered every ounce of remaining strength to spit out a few distinct syllables: “Good then… I’ll… wait… for you.”
He had lost count of how many times he had heard threats of this nature in his past life. They might work to frighten a child, but they were useless against him. After all, he was hardly a child, nor was this his first time brushing shoulders with death so intimately.
At that, Lu Bingqiu’s expression turned even frostier.
How could this person be so utterly unlike the rumors?
Calm, rational, enduring his performance didn’t resemble that of an ordinary person at all; it was the composure of an assassin!
A terrifying thought crawled into Lu Bingqiu’s mind: If this boy is not eliminated today, he will undoubtedly become a massive disaster in the future!
If he could already display such a terrifying capacity for survival and growth at this age, it was impossible to imagine what he might become down the road.
Regrettably, Lu Bingqiu had lost his chance today.
Exerting a slight force, he jerked the Xiuchun saber free from the blood-soaked arm.
The moment the blade pulled away, tearing against bone and flesh, searing agony wrung cold sweat from Xie Zi’an’s brow. His brows knitted tightly together, his back teeth aching fiercely.
Xie Zi’an had imagined he could hold out until he actually laid eyes on the ledgers before passing out, but he had overestimated the frail constitution of the young marquis’s body. He could no longer sustain consciousness; his head spun violently, and his eyelids grew increasingly heavy, as though pressed down by a thousand-jin boulder. The scene before him blurred rapidly until it dissolved completely into a pitch-black abyss.
“I have no right to question or inspect an imperial decree issued by the Empress Dowager to the Grand Princess’s estate.” Sheathing his sidearm once more, Lu Bingqiu halted abruptly as he reached the doorway, leaving behind a parting remark loaded with layered meaning: “This subject only wishes to remind Your Highness: beware of raising a wolf only to invite disaster.”
Zhu Yue remained silent.
The instant Lu Bingqiu stepped out of the courtyard, Chunxue blew her secret whistle.
The Jinyiwei possessed their own system of signals, and the shadow guards had theirs. Each faction operated through distinct schools and lineages, conveying complex tactical orders via variations in the tempo, pitch, and duration of their whistles.
Thus, the shadow guards stationed throughout the courtyard simultaneously lowered their weapons.
Only after Lu Bingqiu had completely departed the compound did Zhu Yue finally break her silence.
“Dispatch shadow guards to rush Xie Zi’an back to the Grand Princess’s residence immediately, and summon Imperial Physician Blue from the Imperial Hospital to treat him. Above all else, make sure his life is preserved,” she ordered, glancing with unconcealed reluctance at Xie Zi’an’s right arm, which was mangled nearly to the point of exposing bone. “As for that arm… save it if you possibly can.”
Xie Zi’an’s injuries were far too severe; ordinary physicians could no longer pull him back from the brink. Only Imperial Physician Blue, renowned for his miraculous ability to bring the dying back to life, might afford him a glimmer of hope.
Scanning over Xie Zi’an and the two figures on the wooden bed with a placid gaze, Chunxue acknowledged: “Understood.”
She blew her secret whistle once more.
Within three seconds, two shadow guards strode into the room. Chunxue issued brief instructions: one guard hoisted Xie Zi’an onto his back to carry him back to the Princess’s estate, while the other dashed off at a full gallop toward the Imperial Hospital.
The torrential rain that had battered the night away suddenly ceased at dawn, plunging the surrounding environment into a death-like stillness.
Sitting on the wooden bed with his garments still disarrayed, Zhao Chengxiao abruptly realized that Zhu Yue was staring straight at him with a gaze so intense it felt as though she meant to swallow him whole.
Subconsciously dodging Zhu Yue’s aggressive, piercing stare, he opened his mouth to tell Li Hanchi they needed to leave this place, only to see Zhu Yue marching directly toward him.
Panic seized Zhao Chengxiao. What on earth does she want?!
Could it be for the ledgers?! Yes, it has to be for the ledgers. Xie Zi’an must have told her!
Yet he couldn’t hand over the ledgers; they represented the sole hope for both himself and the Third Prince to stage a comeback.
At a complete loss for what to do, Zhao Chengxiao instinctively buried his face into Li Hanchi’s chest. He trusted that Li Hanchi would protect him; surely Zhu Yue wouldn’t dare make a move against Li Hanchi.
Zhu Yue uttered no words, merely sweeping a cold, piercing glance over the pair. Standing to the side with full comprehension, Chunxue stepped forward and spoke: “By imperial order of the Empress Dowager, we are taking Zhao Chengxiao into custody and detaining him at the Grand Princess’s residence. Young General Li, step aside.”
Hearing this, Zhao Chengxiao understood the situation perfectly, but he remained silent. He refused to let all his efforts be flushed down the drain he had even steeled himself to sacrifice his own purity and reputation!
As long as he refused to admit the ledgers were in his possession, he still had hope.
Moreover… moreover, Li Hanchi would never allow Zhu Yue to drag him away by force.
True to expectations, Li Hanchi responded in a chilling tone: “If the Empress Dowager wishes to detain Chengxiao, she ought to provide a proper justification.”
Before Chunxue could reply, Zhu Yue violently lashed out with her hand: “Slap!”
The sound rang out with startling clarity though the blow did not land on Li Hanchi’s face, but squarely across Zhao Chengxiao’s!
A bright crimson handprint bloomed instantly on Zhao Chengxiao’s cheek. Cradling his face in silence, he bit back his words as hot tears streamed continuously down his face.
How could Li Hanchi stand by and watch Zhao Chengxiao suffer such humiliation at the hands of a woman? Loosening his embrace around Zhao Chengxiao, he surged to his feet, fists clenched tight as he glared angrily: “What is the meaning of this, Your Highness?!”
Refusing to spare him even a glance, Zhu Yue replied indifferently: “When the Empress Dowager acts, since when does she require your permission to explain herself?”
She couldn’t bring herself to strike Li Hanchi, but a mere concubine-born son of the Zhao family dared to put on airs before her? If not for him blurting out Xie Zi’an’s name, Lu Bingqiu might never have recognized Xie Zi’an’s face.
Shifting her tone with a cold sneer, Zhu Yue warned: “If the Young General refuses to leave this instant, your grandfather will soon be paying a visit to the Grand Princess’s estate to collect you. Have you carefully weighed the consequences of your romantic escapades tonight? You may have no regard for your own face, but the Li family surely requires a shred of dignity.”
Li Hanchi had crossed paths with Zhu Yue rarely and knew nothing of the sharp, ruthless blade concealed beneath her gentle, refined exterior. Determined to hold his ground, he planted himself firmly in front of Zhao Chengxiao and gritted his teeth: “I demand a reason.”
“Very well,” Zhu Yue countered. “Why don’t you ask Zhao Chengxiao what he took that does not belong to him?”
Li Hanchi whipped his head around to stare down at Zhao Chengxiao.
Meeting those stark, unblinking eyes, Zhao Chengxiao panicked completely. Terror gripped his heart, he was terrified that even Li Hanchi would abandon him.
Stammering incoherently, he failed to form a coherent sentence: “I… I… I…”
There was no need for Zhao Chengxiao to spell it out. Connecting the events of this stormy night, even an idiot could have pieced it together. Li Hanchi grabbed Zhao Chengxiao tightly by the upper arm: “You took the ledgers!”
Despair bloomed abruptly in Zhao Chengxiao’s chest. At this late hour, he knew his dream of utilizing the ledgers to win his father’s favor had been utterly shattered!
Weeping silently, he nodded in admission.
“You fool! How could you dare touch a dangerous, trouble-courting thing like that?!” Li Hanchi rebuked him in exasperation.
That being the case, he was entirely powerless to protect Zhao Chengxiao.
Turning his back, Li Hanchi asked Zhu Yue: “Once the ledgers are handed over, when will he be released?”
Reading the cold detachment in Zhu Yue’s expression, Chunxue knew better than to waste another syllable on Li Hanchi: “Please take your leave, Young General.”
Li Hanchi was not unfamiliar with the methods practiced within the Grand Princess’s estate; their handling of matters was hardly more benevolent than the Jinyiwei’s jackals. It was simply going to be hard on Chengxiao.
Sigh. Yet his hands were completely tied.
The military fund corruption case was an issue of monumental gravity, far exceeding petty squabbles. If his grandfather were to discover what transpired tonight, a tempest of wrath would inevitably erupt. Not only would it shatter the Li family’s untarnished reputation, but it would also drag them headfirst into this treacherous political quagmire.
His grandfather had lived an entire lifetime with prudence and discretion, never once giving anyone cause to point a finger at his spine. He could not allow his grandfather to suffer profound humiliation in his old age.
No matter how deeply Li Hanchi cherished Zhao Chengxiao, he resolved that he absolutely could not entangle himself in this mess.
“Chengxiao, I am sorry,” Li Hanchi murmured with heavy guilt. “Don’t be afraid. Listen to me—just hand the ledgers over to them obediently, and everything will be fine.”
Realizing that Li Hanchi refused to intercede for him, Zhao Chengxiao let loose another silent stream of tears as his heart plummeted entirely into the freezing, muddy waters of the rainy night.
Because he knew full well that simply handing over the ledgers would not restore safety.
Once Zhu Yue brought him back to the Grand Princess’s residence, the fact that the ledgers had passed through his hands would inevitably leak. By then, not only would his father lose all face before the Emperor, but he himself would forever lose any standing in his father’s eyes!
The morning sun crept upward, the clouds at the edge of the firmament washing out into a hazy, misty white.
A carriage rattled its way out of East Street toward the Grand Princess’s residence, its massive wooden wheels crushing swiftly over the pitted, muddy road and sending water splashing in all directions.
Inside the bouncing carriage, Chunxue steadied Zhu Yue against the sway: “Your Highness, take care.”
Clutching the heavy stack of three ledgers alongside the imperial decree in her lap, Zhu Yue allowed herself a rare, relaxed smile: “How did you manage to secure the Empress Dowager’s imperial decree so quickly? Did you run into the person I dispatched to the palace? They moved with astonishing speed, I assumed it would take at least two hours.”
Chunxue replied: “Your Highness, open the decree and look for yourself.”
Resting the ledgers upon her knees, Zhu Yue hurriedly unfurled the timely-rain-like imperial decree only to discover that the silk scroll was entirely blank!
Staring in astonishment, she widened her eyes and swung her gaze toward Chunxue.
What on earth was going on here?!