Song Ying simply assumed that she had accidentally dropped the decorative knot herself.
Before she could even turn around, she came face-to-face with Eunuch Runde.
She lowered herself in greeting, only to hear Fu Lanyue add from behind her,
“Sister Song, the note inside this decorative knot… I already threw it away for you. You mustn’t… take the wrong path.”
Fu Lanyue’s voice was neither too loud nor too soft—just loud enough for Eunuch Runde to hear.
Song Ying: ?
Before she could say anything, Fu Lanyue had already committed fully to the performance. Her body went weak as she dropped to her knees, tears streaming down her face.
“Eunuch, save me! This servant… this servant will never dare do it again!”
She spoke through tears, every sentence sounding as though it had been rehearsed a thousand times.
“It was Sister Song… She—she secretly asked about His Majesty’s preferences, and she even ordered this servant… to exchange tokens with people outside the palace… This servant was afraid the matter would be exposed, so I only wanted to persuade her to turn back before it was too late—!”
Her speech was disjointed and barely made sense, yet she had successfully placed several grave accusations on Song Ying’s head—privately exchanging tokens, colluding with outside officials, and prying into the emperor’s affairs.
Eunuch Runde’s expression instantly darkened.
Inside the hall, Emperor Yongzhao remained in the same position.
He rubbed the decorative knot between his fingers. The silk threads beneath his fingertips were soft and warm, just like their owner.
He listened quietly.
Listening as that woman from the Fu family wove her clumsy lies.
Listening as Eunuch Runde’s breathing grew increasingly heavy.
And listening to… the one heartbeat that remained perfectly clear and calm.
Song Ying’s.
She wasn’t afraid.
Emperor Yongzhao’s eyes abruptly darkened.
—At this very moment, the piece of evidence was lying in his palm.
In an instant, Emperor Yongzhao understood every key point.
This was a trap.
A trap that had been laid long ago, waiting for Song Ying to walk straight into it.
Gao Boshen’s target… wasn’t him, but the inconspicuous little palace maid at his side?
Before his towering rage could erupt, an even colder chill seized him.
It was belated guilt—a guilty conscience so shameful that even he despised himself for it.
Emperor Yongzhao suddenly realized that if he hadn’t acted on a whim and done something so absurd, how could anyone have spotted this opening and used it to frame her?
It was he who had taken away the very trump card she could have used to prove her innocence.
It was he who had placed her in a position where no amount of explanation could clear her name.
Stormy waves surged through his phoenix eyes in an instant, only to be ruthlessly suppressed and submerged beneath an icy abyss.
He couldn’t go outside.
If he produced this decorative knot, how was he supposed to explain it?
Was he supposed to admit that he harbored improper thoughts toward a palace maid, and had even stooped so low as to secretly steal one of her personal belongings?
As irritation churned inside him, that voice drifted into his ears again—
Casual, lazy, tinged with mockery, as though coated in a thin layer of sugar—sweet, yet prickly.
“Eunuch Runde, since Younger Sister Fu speaks with such certainty, why not ask His Majesty to judge the matter himself?”
She was actually asking for the matter to be escalated.
Was she so certain that he would uphold justice for her?
That inexplicable trust poured over him without warning, giving rise to a trace of pleasure.
He smiled.
That indescribable sense of satisfaction crept onto the corners of his lips and seeped into the darkness of his eyes.
Outside the hall, Eunuch Runde attempted to smooth things over.
“Little Miss Song, this is a serious matter. Perhaps—”
“No need.”
The door opened a crack.
What spilled from within was not light, but dense darkness.
Emperor Yongzhao stood inside with his hands behind his back, the hem of his bright yellow robe fluttering in the draft from the doorway.
His shadow alone seemed to make the surroundings several degrees colder.
His gaze passed over everyone and landed directly on Song Ying’s face.
Darkness churned in his eyes, yet deep within it hid a spark of fire that flickered briefly, almost as if to reassure her.
“Present that decorative knot.”
Then his gaze shifted, and every trace of warmth vanished.
“Fu,” he asked, “you said you threw away the note?”
“I’ll give you one shichen.”
“Find that note and bring it back to me completely intact.”
“If you cannot find it…” Emperor Yongzhao paused, the corner of his mouth curling in mockery. “Then pay with your tongue.”
The cold wind cut like a blade, biting painfully into the bones.
Every trace of color drained from Fu Lanyue’s face.
A short cry escaped her throat. Her lips trembled so violently that she even forgot to beg for mercy.
Pay with her tongue?
Song Ying’s heart also jolted.
She had wanted to make the matter bigger so she could use the emperor’s authority to accomplish her own goal.
But she had never expected this blade to be so sharp—
Sharp enough to draw blood without even asking why.
He was clearly judging Fu Lanyue, yet the bloody chill in his words seemed to stab directly into the tender flesh at the back of Song Ying’s neck, sending a shiver through her.
She abruptly raised her head and happened to meet those bottomless eyes.
This damned emperor…
He was serious?
Song Ying lowered her gaze, her long lashes concealing the emotions in her eyes.
She knelt outside the hall.
At first, the ground beneath her knees was cold.
Then numb.
Finally, the pain began seeping into every part of them.
The emperor’s gaze wound around her, scrutinizing her, leaving her unable to move.
She watched as Fu Lanyue was escorted away by two guards.
She watched Eunuch Runde stand nearby with a grave expression.
She watched the ink-blue sky sink completely into deathly darkness.
Before one shichen had even passed, Fu Lanyue returned.
Emperor Yongzhao glanced at her and let out a cold snort.
Fu Lanyue was being held up by others. Her hair was disheveled, and her small face was a complete mess from crying, but one hand was clenched tightly around something.
She raised it high, her voice hoarse and shrill.
“I found it! Your Majesty! This servant found it!”
Eunuch Runde’s expression changed.
He quickly stepped forward and took it.
—It was a crumpled piece of paper.
He carefully unfolded it and presented it before Emperor Yongzhao.
Emperor Yongzhao lowered his eyes.
That old fox Gao Boshen’s methods were still as crude and beneath notice as ever.
The contents were clumsy.
Laughable beyond measure.
Fine.
He could use this opportunity to make an issue of it, dispose of this spy with proper justification, and give Gao Boshen a warning at the same time.
This performance had to continue—
Emperor Yongzhao pinched the thin piece of paper between his fingers.
“Summon the Sizheng official. Once the handwriting is examined, everything will naturally become clear.”
“There’s no need to trouble the Sizheng official.”
Song Ying raised her head.
Under Emperor Yongzhao’s astonished gaze, she spoke each word distinctly.
“That handwriting belongs to this servant.”
The hand holding the note froze in midair.
The cold wind howled outside the hall, yet it couldn’t drown out Song Ying’s words:
“That handwriting belongs to this servant.”
Shock.
Absurdity.
He had paved every road for her, all so that she could emerge completely innocent and unharmed.
But her?
What was she doing?!
…Unless!
—Unless she had known all along that he possessed her decorative knot!
“Say that again.”
Emperor Yongzhao’s voice was frighteningly low.
He would give her one final chance.
As long as she changed her answer, he could still…
“Reporting to Your Majesty, that handwriting was indeed written by this servant.”
Song Ying kowtowed again.
“This servant lost her senses for a moment. This servant was foolish. I deserve ten thousand deaths. I beg Your Majesty to punish me.”
Her explanation was riddled with holes.
What was she doing?
Testing him?
Testing how far he was willing to go for her?
No. This was a trap.
A trap Song Ying had set for him.
A trap waiting for him to walk straight into it!
She had known his secret all along, hadn’t she?!
Emperor Yongzhao smiled.
“Fu.”
Fu Lanyue trembled violently at the sound, believing her death had finally arrived.
The emperor’s voice was calm, revealing neither joy nor anger.
“Since you were deceived and nearly took the blame for another person’s crime, you may withdraw.”
Fu Lanyue felt as though she had received a pardon from heaven.
She practically crawled away on her hands and knees.
Eunuch Runde bowed and slowly backed out step by step.
Outside the hall, only Song Ying remained.
And a deathly silence.
Emperor Yongzhao’s gaze once again pressed down upon Song Ying’s slender back.
He had paved every possible road for her, all to secure her complete innocence.
Yet not only had she kicked them aside, she had turned around and put him in check instead.
She had used his unspeakable secret to block every word he could say.
She had him in her grasp.
Good.
Very good, Song Ying.
For one instant, Emperor Yongzhao genuinely wanted to twist her neck until it snapped.
The thought came so violently that even his fingertips twitched.
Boiling killing intent surged up once more, mingling with the desire to seize control of what had slipped beyond his grasp.
“Why?”
He ground the word out through clenched teeth.
Slowly, she raised her head.
There was no fear at all on her clean, unadorned face.
Even those usually lazy eyes were frighteningly clear now.
Song Ying met his gaze directly, staring straight back at him.
“Because there is something this servant wants to know.”
Emperor Yongzhao narrowed his eyes, his smile turning savage.
He had thought she would beg for mercy.
That she would defend herself.
That she would use an even more elaborate lie to cover this enormous deception.
He hadn’t expected her to remain so calm.
“Oh?” he mocked. “What do you want to know? Whether I’ll have you executed by lingchi?”
“No.”
Song Ying shook her head.
“This servant wants to know whether Your Majesty is… ill.”
In an instant, the fury and mockery on Emperor Yongzhao’s face froze into a strange expression.
His phoenix eyes contracted sharply, as though they might suck the person before him inside and crush her to pieces.
He said nothing.
Yet the bone-deep chill radiating from him was far more terrifying than any roar.
Song Ying seemed not to notice and continued speaking.
“Your Majesty dislikes incense. You dislike the sound of string and wind instruments. And you dislike crowds even more.”
“Everyone says Your Majesty has an eccentric temperament and favors simplicity.”
“But that isn’t actually true.”
“Your five senses are naturally different from those of ordinary people. Sounds and sights that seem normal to others become distorted and magnified when they reach you.”
“And when this servant is here, Your Majesty feels better.”
Her final words were not a question.
They were a statement.
A palace maid had calmly laid bare the emperor’s most unbearable secret.
“Shut up!”
Emperor Yongzhao finally moved.
The next instant, his hand was already clamped tightly around Song Ying’s throat.
Suffocation struck immediately.
Song Ying’s face flushed crimson, but she didn’t struggle.
Those clear eyes continued staring directly at him.
“You have quite some nerve.”
His fingers tightened, almost crushing the bones of her throat.
“Who told you?”
Emperor Yongzhao’s face gradually grew larger in Song Ying’s blurred vision.
“No… one… This servant… was gambling…”
Using every last bit of strength in her body, she forced the words out one by one.
“Gambling… on whether… Your Majesty… could bear… to kill me…”
Couldn’t bear to?
Emperor Yongzhao felt as though he had heard the greatest joke in the world.
He was the Son of Heaven, possessor of all within the Four Seas.
What could there possibly be that he couldn’t bear to lose?
He should immediately—
Right now—
Without the slightest hesitation—
Snap her neck!
And yet, the hand wrapped around her throat loosened uncontrollably the moment he heard those words.
Just slightly.
Song Ying seized the chance to breathe.
She collapsed forward onto the ground, coughing violently until tears welled at the corners of her eyes.
“I… I deliberately dropped the decorative knot because I wanted to see whether Your Majesty would pick it up.”
“I deliberately let Fu Lanyue see it because I wanted to see what move Gao Boshen would make…”
“I deliberately… admitted to every accusation in front of Your Majesty… cough, cough, cough…”
Song Ying braced both hands against the ground.
The red marks encircling her neck were startlingly vivid.
She raised her misty, tear-filled eyes.
“This servant only wanted to see whether Your Majesty… whether you truly… can do without this servant.”