The mad princess forces love upon him, and the aloof imperial advisor trembles every night.

"Sophistry..." he said hoarsely, "This is... the talk of a beast..."

But his clenched fist loosened at some point.

Cangming saw it.

The corners of her lips, hidden beneath the mask, curved upwards again.

"...Is there no other way?" Chu Xuanjing asked, his voice tinged with the last vestige of struggle.

Cangming shook his head.

"Three hundred thousand taels of gold is only enough to buy one life," he said coldly and clearly. "Two hundred thousand is for your life, and the remaining one hundred thousand is for your princely status."

"If I'm not mistaken, someone will bring 'ironclad evidence' to court tomorrow morning to report you—you and Consort Li can only have one way out."

"Third Prince, have you made up your mind? There's not much time left, and I... need to make arrangements promptly."

"Three hundred thousand taels of gold..." Chu Xuanjing suddenly laughed, "I spent such a price... and this is the 'path to survival' I bought?"

Cangming's voice remained gentle, yet every word pierced the heart:

"Your Highness is mistaken."

"The 300,000 taels of silver were for the 'guidance' from Jinxue Pavilion, not a promise."

"The path to survival is now clear—choose one: you die, and Consort Li lives; choose two: Consort Li dies, and you live."

"It's perfectly fair."

Chu Xuanjing closed his eyes.

His mother's face appeared—she smiled gently, wiping the crumbs of pastry from the corner of his mouth: "Jing'er, your mother doesn't want anything, she just wants you to be safe."

Later, she learned to tearfully complain to her father and to quietly eliminate her rivals in the palace.

She gripped his hand tightly, her nails digging into his flesh.

"Jing'er, you must live up to expectations and sit on that position... All of your hopes in this life are on you."

"Have you made up your mind, Third Prince?"

Cangming's voice was as soft as a lover's whisper, yet every word was piercingly cold.

"At the third quarter of the hour of Yin (3:45 AM), before the morning court bell tolls."

"If you do not speak, the evidence will be presented to the Censorate by the Empress's people 'coincidentally'—at that time, you and Consort Li will be punished as equals, and you will have no bargaining chip for 'putting righteousness before family'..."

The dungeon was deathly silent.

Only the crackling of torches and the dripping of water against the stone wall could be heard.

a long time.

Chu Xuanjing opened his eyes and looked at Cangming.

There was no more struggle or hesitation in those eyes, only a lifeless, icy pool—bottomless and covered in frost.

"I, the prince, choose option two. But I want to raise the price—500,000 taels of gold, to buy your Jinxue Pavilion's protection on my path to the throne. If I become emperor, you will have rendered meritorious service in supporting the dragon's ascension and will enjoy half of the country."

Cangming chuckled softly, the sound echoing through the dungeon, eerily pleasant to the ear:

"Your Highness is quite the businessman. It's a pity..." He leaned forward, his mask almost touching Chu Xuanjing's blood-stained face, "Jinxue Pavilion doesn't sell kingdoms. We only sell—the ghosts in people's hearts."

He straightened up and took out a roll of yellowed letter paper from his pocket. The edges were worn, indicating that it was a very old piece of paper.

"This is a secret correspondence between Consort Li and the deceased Third Prince of Beiming twelve years ago."

"The letter mentions 'to help Jing'er seize the throne, and Beiming can take three border cities as a reward'—the handwriting has been secretly verified by three great calligraphers and is indeed the Empress's own handwriting."

Chu Xuanjing's pupils suddenly contracted.

Twelve years ago...

He was only sixteen years old.

My mother actually...?!

"Your Highness need not be surprised." Cangming slowly unfolded a corner of the letter, revealing delicate yet deadly handwriting. "The women in the harem are more ruthless than those who fight on the battlefield when it comes to scheming for their son's power. Your Majesty has endured humiliation and hardship for many years, and today... it is time for you to reap the rewards."

"Of course, this letter was 'helped' Her Majesty recall it."

"The real letter perished in the flames along with the Third Prince of Beiming. This is a copy, but it's indistinguishable from the original—we also have people in the Surveillance Department."

Chu Xuanjing stared intently at the letter.

He was very familiar with his mother's handwriting; he had copied it countless times when he was a child and could never mistake it.

The words and phrases are glaring:

"...Jing'er is exceptionally intelligent. If she receives Bei Ming's assistance, she will surely ascend the throne one day..."

"...Three border cities can be offered as a reward..."

"...If this succeeds, the Li family and Beiming will be forever allied..."

It turns out... my mother had already paved the way.

He used his future, the three border cities, and countless lives to pave a bloody path to the throne.

"How should I... expose them?" Chu Xuanjing asked in a hoarse voice.

"It's very simple."

Cangming took out a pill from his sleeve.

Crimson red like blood, the size of a pigeon egg, it shimmered with an eerie luster in the firelight.

"This pill is called 'Regretful Bones'. Three hours after taking it, the five internal organs feel like they are burning, and the pain is unbearable, resembling a severe poison attacking the heart—precisely the appearance of 'being betrayed by a close relative and feeling unbearable remorse'."

"After Your Highness takes the medicine, I will 'coincidentally' bring the imperial physician to save you."

"At that time, you will weep and plead, handing over this letter at your utmost, saying, 'Your son is unfilial, failing to detect your mother's treason in time'..."

"And so the play was completed."

Chu Xuanjing stared at the red pill for a long time.

Then, he slowly opened his chapped lips.

Cangming put the pill into his mouth.

The sound of swallowing was exceptionally clear in the deathly silence.

The pill slid down my throat, initially feeling slightly cool.

Within moments, a burning sensation exploded from his stomach, instantly spreading to his limbs and bones.

Chu Xuanjing suddenly arched his back, the iron chains rattling. He tried to scream, but no sound came out—the excruciating pain choked his throat, and he could only squeeze out broken, hissing breaths from between his teeth.

"Cough...cough cough..."

Black blood gushed from the corner of his mouth and dripped down.

He looked up, his bloodshot eyes fixed on Cangming, and squeezed out a sentence through a moment of intense pain:

"When...did you...prepare...this...?"

Cangming paused, seemingly considering his words:

"From His Highness's good brother..."

"No, forbidden lover... that's not quite right either. It should be said to be His Highness's most precious treasure—from the moment Zhou Qingchen stepped into the Yin-Yang Pawnshop."

"Jinxue Pavilion is always thorough in its work."

Chu Xuanjing suddenly smiled.

"What a fine tactic the Ashes Snow Pavilion is..." He laughed while coughing up blood. "You... your mastermind... truly has impressive methods!"

"This is forcing me to kill my own mother... and then expect me to be...grateful to her!"

The eyes beneath the Cangming mask remained completely calm.

"Your Highness is too kind."

Chu Xuanjing suddenly looked up, his eyes bloodshot, his hatred solidified into a tangible form:

"I have chosen two! But I demand a promise from Jinxue Pavilion—that after the deed is done, my maternal grandfather's entire Li family will be spared!"

Cangming chuckled lightly.

"Deal," he said decisively, "but we have to follow the rules—one life for two hundred thousand taels of gold. Buy ten, get one free, after all, Jinxue Pavilion is just a business that takes money and does things."

Chu Xuanjing's eyes widened, and he coughed up another mouthful of blood:

"Why...why don't you just rob it?!"

"Even the Snow Pavilion has its bottom line," Cangming said calmly, straightening his cuffs. "It has principles."

Chu Xuanjing asked, "...What is the bottom line?"

Cangming looked up, his eyes curving into a beautiful arc beneath the mask:

"Our bottom line is that we have no bottom line. We don't rob because moving gold is too tiring. We prefer... what comes to us."

Chu Xuanjing opened his mouth, but could only manage to squeeze out one sentence:

"Does your Jinxue Pavilion have a single good person?"

Cangming stopped looking at him, raised his hand, and lightly struck the air three times.

From the shadows, a man dressed as a jailer silently emerged, carrying a black wooden tray with a bowl of water, a wolf-hair brush, and a blank sheet of paper on it.

"Your Highness, please." Cangming stepped back two paces and gestured for him to proceed.

"Write it down. Write about how you 'accidentally discovered' your mother's secret letter, how you were 'overwhelmed with shock and grief,' and how you were torn between loyalty to your country and filial piety..."

"Every word is written in blood, revealing true sincerity."