Tingshu didn't understand. "The confession says Prince Shou was behind this—why are you bringing up Miss Pei?"
Li Chang'an set down the confession and rose slowly, speaking as he did. "The confession says Lady Zhang was sent to harass the Pei family. Lady Zhang must have gone to the Pei residence early this morning, so the news certainly came from there. Grand Secretary Pei had already left for court, and Madam Pei wouldn't do something so petty. That leaves only Miss Pei."
"But why would she do that?" Tingshu still didn't understand.
Li Chang'an tilted his head, silent, looking at Tingshu's puzzled face. He opened his mouth to sigh at his denseness, but remembering that Tingshu was his own choice, he changed his words instead. "Let's pay a visit to Prince Shou's residence."
Seeing his master stride toward the door, Tingshu hurried after him. "Shouldn't you go before the Emperor? You finally have something on Prince Shou—you should make a proper accusation!"
Li Chang'an stopped, rather exasperated, and called for Fuzi, telling Tingshu to stay behind.
Left behind, Tingshu felt quite wronged. He only asked because he didn't understand, yet now his master wouldn't take him out. He didn't dare go after him to ask. He grabbed a handful of pine needles and threw them on the ground in frustration, stomping on them—until he realized they were from the miniature pine bonsai his master had planted. He quickly tucked them into his sleeve and ran off to dispose of them, thinking that next time, even if he didn't understand, he'd nod and pretend he did.
Meanwhile, Li Chang'an made his way to Prince Shou's residence. Unlike him, Prince Shou had to attend court, so by the time Li Chang'an arrived, Prince Shou was not there.
So he sat down at Prince Shou's residence, sipped tea, admired the flowers and birds, and by the time Prince Shou received word and returned, he had already eaten three plates of pastries.
"Your Highness the Crown Prince." Prince Shou had returned in haste, still wearing his court robes, which drew a long look from the Crown Prince. But he had no idea why the Crown Prince had come.
"Third brother, no need for formalities. Those court robes really do suit you." Li Chang'an stared at Prince Shou without any pretense, admiration in his eyes.
Prince Shou sat down awkwardly. Only after the servants had served tea and he raised his cup did he take a careful look at the Crown Prince. On ordinary days, the Crown Prince never came to his residence. Now he had come and waited for half a day, which made him uneasy.
Li Chang'an looked up and gave Prince Shou a faint smile, then pulled out the confession and said indignantly, "I don't know who fabricated this false confession to drive a wedge between us brothers!"
Prince Shou's heart jolted. He rose and stepped forward, wanting to take it and read it, but Li Chang'an tore it up.
"No need to look at something like this. After all, you could never harm me, right, third brother?" Li Chang'an looked at Prince Shou with utter sincerity, as guileless as an ordinary brother bound by deep affection.
The paper was torn into tiny shreds, scattering across the floor. A few pieces were carried by the wind into the cracks between the floor tiles, and those near Li Chang'an's feet were ground under his boot until the words were illegible.
Prince Shou still didn't understand what was happening. He looked at the shredded paper on the floor, then back at Li Chang'an, and could only smile and nod in agreement, though his heart was racing with panic. But when he saw the smile on the Crown Prince's face, and remembered that the Crown Prince had never been one to be suspicious, he relaxed a little—though his brow remained furrowed.
Li Chang'an sat down and drank his tea in large gulps, still angry. "We are brothers who respect each other, and the world says you are of noble character, third brother—the most kind and virtuous of men. Yet now someone is sowing discord, clearly jealous of our bond. You must be careful, third brother, lest you fall victim to their schemes."
With those words said and his tea finished, Li Chang'an rose and headed for the door, and Prince Shou hurried to see him out.
When they reached the entrance of Prince Shou's residence, Li Chang'an stopped again, earnestly taking Prince Shou's hand and admonishing him, "I know that last year you…" He suddenly paused, sighed, then shook his head again, "Forget it, let's not bring up the past. We are brothers born of the same blood, and we must not let trivial matters affect our bond. When Father next deigns to see me, I will surely secure a good marriage match for you."
Prince Shou listened in utter confusion, still not knowing what the Crown Prince was referring to. He tried to probe with a few words, but the Crown Prince always blocked his attempts with a display of brotherly affection.
Only after the Crown Prince's carriage had driven far away did the steward, drenched in sweat, urge Prince Shou to go inside and see for himself.
In the front courtyard, inside a torn-open burlap sack, lay the guard Prince Shou had sent to make contact with the Zhang family—but the man had already stopped breathing. And the confession the Crown Prince had torn to shreds, when pieced back together, could only reveal disjointed phrases like "entangled with Pei Yue" and "Prince Shou."
Seeing his master remain silent, the steward hesitated and spoke cautiously, "Your Highness, does the Crown Prince know something?"
"Impossible!" Prince Shou retorted immediately. "The Crown Prince's thoughts have always been written plainly on his face. If he were scheming, he wouldn't constantly be caught out by the court officials, nor would he fail to clear up every misunderstanding. With the Crown Prince's intellect, there is absolutely no way he was hinting at anything."
"But Liu Sheng was beaten and then smothered to death. When the Crown Prince sent him over, he… he seemed already motionless. Should we perhaps send someone to investigate thoroughly?" The steward also felt the Crown Prince was not the type for veiled insinuations, yet Liu Sheng was dead and the confession destroyed, leaving a deep unease in his heart.
Prince Shou drew a long breath, his eyes narrowing to slits. "We cannot investigate. Today's matter must never be known to anyone. As for that Lady Zhang—don't keep her around. The Zhang family brought this upon themselves; they deserve to die." He had not informed his mother the Empress or his maternal uncle about today's affair, all because he could not swallow the anger from yesterday. When he happened to notice Zhang Qianyuan had been arrested, he had come up with this scheme. If it blew up, not only would his mother blame him for lacking composure, but if it reached the Emperor's ears, it would be even more troublesome. So it had to be quietly covered up.
The steward nodded in agreement and immediately sent someone to handle it.
Prince Shou recalled the Crown Prince's final words—that he would surely secure a good marriage match for him?
Hmph. A sinister glint flashed through Prince Shou's eyes as he called to his attendant, "Prepare the carriage. I am going to the palace." His marriage alliance with the Jiang family could not be delayed any longer.
From the Crown Prince's visit to Prince Shou's residence to his return to the Eastern Palace, Lin Feng reported every detail to Pei Yue.
Pei Yue had assumed the Crown Prince would storm into the palace in anger to see the Emperor, but instead he had gone to see Prince Shou.
"Uncle Lin Feng, what do you make of the Crown Prince's actions?" Pei Yue sat on the soft couch by the window. Lately, she always felt stifled indoors and preferred places with fresh air.
"Hard to say." Lin Feng was also quite taken aback. "If the Crown Prince had taken the confession into the palace, it would certainly have brought trouble to Prince Shou, but at the same time, it would have incurred the Emperor's displeasure toward the Crown Prince. After all, fraternal strife can only remain in the shadows; bringing it into the open would be disgraceful." At this point, Lin Feng could not help but cast a meaningful glance at the young lady. "But the Crown Prince went to Prince Shou's residence instead. That leaves only two possibilities. One: the Crown Prince was shrewd, throwing the problem back to Prince Shou, leaving him to toss and turn in anxiety, ideally causing him to slip up. But looking at the Crown Prince's past behavior, that seems unlikely. The other: the Crown Prince lacks the wit and still trusts Prince Shou."
Lin Feng phrased it tactfully—in ordinary households, it was already difficult for a stepmother to treat her stepson well, let alone among the imperial brothers. Prince Shou and the Crown Prince were both legitimate sons; one was outstanding and universally praised, while the other was so mediocre that everyone knew it. With a bit of effort, Prince Shou might well ascend to the throne—how could brotherly harmony be expected?
With the throne in sight, the temptation was simply too great.
Pei Yue understood Lin Feng's implication at once—he was saying the Crown Prince was foolish.
"Since the Crown Prince has chosen to handle it this way, I won't interfere any further. When Father returns, please relay this to him, Lin Feng, and let him decide whether to step in." Through this matter, Pei Yue gained some insight into the Crown Prince's character and became even more certain she did not want to marry him—an unhelpable fool, one who could not be lifted even with the Pei family's political acumen behind him.
That night, after Grand Secretary Pei heard Lin Feng's account, he showed no surprise at the Crown Prince's actions, but was somewhat taken aback by Pei Yue's handling of the matter—though the reaction was fleeting. Finally, he instructed Lin Feng, "Yue'er is a perceptive girl. It's a pity the Emperor's move came so suddenly. Had he given even the slightest hint beforehand, I would never have let Yue'er wade into this murky water. Prince Shou's scheme was too underhanded. I had no intention of involving myself in his struggle for succession with the Crown Prince, but if he dares to harm my daughter, that is unacceptable."
"What do you intend to do, my lord?" Lin Feng asked.
Grand Secretary Pei looked at the flickering candle, and with a single snip of the scissors, the flame dimmed by more than half. "The mining disaster in Jizhou—the Jiang family was behind it, working in secret. Over the years, the Jiang family has amassed power by riding on Prince Shou and the Empress Dowager's coattails. Find someone to investigate and drag the Jiang family out of this affair, to dampen their arrogance. Let them know that Pei Que's daughter is not to be touched."