Holding a lantern, guiding souls across, Lady Hou comes from the underworld.

"Who else is in the cabinet?"

"...The Eastern Palace."

In fact, even if Du Yueming hadn't said it, Ren Fengjue would have known.

Therefore, upon hearing the words "Eastern Palace," he wasn't too surprised, only asking, "So, the person who truly wants to see you is the Crown Prince?"

Recalling that night, Du Yueming was still confused: "I went there in a daze, and when I saw the Crown Prince there, I was really scared."

Then, he beckoned to Ren Fengjue with his finger and lowered his voice, saying, "Do you know what the last time I saw the Crown Prince was like?"

He spoke with an air of mystery, but Ren Fengjue shook his head.

A year ago, the Crown Prince was granted a title and moved into the Eastern Palace, but soon after, he fell ill inexplicably.

At that time, he had only been married for a short time, and his wife was Tang Yuelang, the daughter of the Duke of Tang, who was Du Yueming's maternal cousin.

Therefore, in terms of relationships, Du Yueming definitely knows more than him.

"The last time I saw him was in the Eastern Palace. At that time, I received news that... he was terminally ill and his days were numbered."

Du Yueming's voice lowered even further: "I went to the East Palace with the old man to visit him, and the rumors were indeed true; I saw it with my own eyes..."

"The crown prince is so ill he's practically unrecognizable!"

This matter certainly cannot be discussed behind one's back.

But Ren Fengjue felt that there must be a connection between the two.

What illness did the Crown Prince have at that time? Almost no one in the court knew.

How it was cured remains unknown.

Perhaps I should make another trip to the Imperial Medical Bureau.

Thinking this to himself, Du Yueming continued, "But that time at Zuihua Tower, the Crown Prince seemed to have undergone a complete transformation; his entire demeanor was different from before..."

Although Ren Fengjue had little contact with the Crown Prince, he shared the same feelings.

The former crown prince, though reserved and unassuming, still managed to stand out among the princes.

But the Crown Prince at Fu Lou that night was different…

He appeared humble and polite on the surface, but he couldn't hide the arrogance and swagger in his eyes.

Their inherent sharpness is simply unstoppable.

Ren Fengjue asked, "What did the Crown Prince want with you that time?"

Du Yueming hesitated for a moment before replying, "It's just a small matter."

"Is it really a small matter?"

Last night at Fu Lou, Ren Fengjue still clearly remembered the young master's words, "each to their own."

Based on his understanding of Du Yueming, he knew that Du Yueming would only speak evasively when he felt guilty.

Knowing he couldn't hide it any longer, Du Yueming simply confessed, "It's really a small matter..."

"The manager said that the Fu Lou needs dancers and maids, preferably... with some looks. She wants me to go to the Jiaofangsi (a government-run entertainment institution) to find suitable candidates."

Although the young master did not hold any official position in the court, with his connections, it wouldn't be difficult for him to get a few people from a place like the brothel.

However, bringing this matter up in public would be against the rules.

Du Yueming secretly observed Ren Fengjue's face and continued, "Look, nowadays, most of those who enter the Jiaofangsi are daughters of disgraced officials or fallen noble ladies. They'd be better off going to Fulou than Jiaofangsi."

He spoke with righteous indignation, but Ren Fengjue scoffed, "So, you think you've done a good deed?"

Du Yueming shrank back as if someone had grabbed the back of her neck.

He didn't respond, and continued to say to himself, "It's strange, but Fu Lou is indeed a good place to raise people."

"The women I found for Manager Bai have all become more and more beautiful since they entered Fu Lou."

Ren Fengjue frowned and remained silent.

Ignoring him, Du Yueming continued, "You know, which of those women didn't experience the hardships after their homes were ransacked? No matter how beautiful they were, after a few meals of hunger, they would all look like wilted eggplants."

"But once they go to Fu Lou, within a day or two at most, they are like completely different people."

He spoke with great amazement, but Ren Fengjue's expression grew increasingly cold.

I had already vaguely glimpsed the truth in my heart.

"So, how many people have you sent to Fu Lou in the past six months? Do you know?"

Seeing that his expression was not good, Du Yueming quickly estimated in her mind, "Probably around ten."

"After all, not everyone meets the requirements for being assigned a house."

"What are your requirements?"

"Requirements include appearance, figure, age, and something rather strange: birth date and time."

Ren Fengjue suddenly stood up and said coldly, "Make a list of the identities of those women and tell me all of them."

Seeing his sudden seriousness, Du Yueming couldn't help but feel a little afraid.

"Is this... related to what happened yesterday?"

Ren Fengjue's face was terrifyingly cold: "Those women you sent there are probably already bones."

"ah?!"

Du Yueming was startled and stood up to argue, "But I saw them just two days ago!"

Ren Fengjue didn't intend to explain too much to him, nor did he want him to get involved too much. He immediately patted his arm lightly and said seriously, "These days, you should go out less. If Manager Bai or the Crown Prince come to see you, don't see them in private."

Du Yueming looked on in surprise as he walked straight out.

As he approached the door, he paused again: "Remember to give me the list of those women as soon as possible."

After leaving the Duke's mansion, Ren Fengjue went to Fu Lou again.

At this time, a number of skeletons had been retrieved from the blood pool of Tongtian Pavilion. According to the skulls, there were seven people in total, all of whom were women.

Yu Lang was in charge of overseeing this place, and he had to suppress his disgust.

Retrieving these remains was already a headache, but unexpectedly, the Taoist priest Yan Zhengchu, who had been fiddling with a compass inside the building for a long time, also made a new discovery.

Beneath the glass jade hand in the main hall of Fu Lou, there is an unfathomable secret passage, the destination of which is unknown.

But the moment the stone door to the secret passage was opened, the compass in Yan Zhengchu's hand, which had been calm, suddenly went mad.

As the pointer swung wildly, a faint, eerie wind howled, indicating that the "thing" inside was extremely ferocious.

This really excited Yan Zhengchu.

The strange thing about Fu Lou is that it is very eerie, but it looks unusually "clean" on the surface.

It was as if a barrier had been placed over it...

Now that some clues are finally emerging, the answer to our questions won't be far off.

Yan Zhengchu originally wanted to call two yamen runners to light lanterns and enter the secret passage with him, but before he could even speak, everyone was already so frightened that they retreated.

Only Yu Lang's eyes were practically gleaming, as if he couldn't wait to "see the ghost."

In this situation, Yan Zhengchu seemed to have no choice but to take him along.

Just as the two were about to go inside, Ren Fengjue's voice came from behind them.

"Yu Shaoqing."

Yu Lang paused, sensing something was wrong.

He turned around and saw Ren Fengjue striding over. "Have the identities of those skeletons inside Tongtian Pavilion been confirmed?"

Yu Lang thought to himself: How could it be so fast? That's a pile of bones! Even if it's a corpse, it's impossible to find it so quickly.

Before he could explain, Ren Fengjue simply took the lantern from his hand.

"The case is urgent and needs to be handled as soon as possible."

"..."