My father ordered me to kill the emperor, but His Majesty bestowed a princess upon me instead.

When Zhou Xian said "I don't know," his voice was a little hoarse.

This is rare.

For a ceremonial officer in the Ministry of Rites, the most important things are to maintain a steady voice, proper etiquette, and a composed expression.

Now none of his three things are very stable.

This illustrates two things.

Either he genuinely didn't know.

Either he knew a little, but didn't know that "Fang Liushi" would be sewn out inside.

I prefer the latter.

Most officials in the capital are not entirely corrupt.

They often only know a little bit.

To receive a small benefit.

To handle a small matter.

Close your eyes a little.

When the name of the deceased was taken out of the wedding dress, they realized that their "little bit" was enough to warrant beheading.

In the courtyard, the lanterns swayed gently in the wind.

The red light fell on the inner robe of the wedding ceremony.

It was blindingly red.

I had Ah Liu place the old cloth piece on a clean piece of paper, and then I took a rubbing of the wooden plaque of the Liu family from the West Soup Vendor.

The two items were placed together.

One is a wooden sign.

One is old clothes.

A document proving that a dead person received grain from the Ministry of Revenue's accounts.

A piece of clothing, a testament to the dead, was sewn into my wedding dress.

The name Fang Liushi is like a needle, pricking me from the Ministry of Revenue to the Ministry of Rites, and then back to me.

Qiu Tang looked at the two pieces of cloth, and her face turned cold.

"seal up."

She only said one word.

The lady-in-waiting of the princess's residence immediately took out the vermilion seal paper and sealed the old cloth, inner robe, box seal, and yellow silk one by one.

Zhou Xian finally realized what was happening.

"Miss Qiutang, these are the wedding robes sent by the Ministry of Rites. If they are all sealed away, how can the wedding ceremony continue?"

Qiu Tang glanced at him.

"Is Lord Zhou still thinking about the wedding ceremony?"

Zhou Xian's face was grim.

"National gifts must not be neglected."

I couldn't help but laugh.

Zhou Xian looked at me.

I said, "Don't worry, Lord Zhou. If you really wear this inner robe into the palace, the wedding will definitely not be delayed."

Zhou Xian asked in a deep voice, "What does Lord Shen mean?"

"It's my life that's been ruined."

He stopped talking.

I walked up to the inner robe.

"Lord Zhou, the Ministry of Rites is in charge of the wedding attire. The chest was sealed and sent by the Ministry of Rites' Ceremonial Office. The seal on the chest bears the Ministry of Rites' seal. The inner robe is sewn with old clothes from disaster victims in Jiangbei. You can say you don't know, fine. But you must tell me, who knows?"

Zhou Xian remained silent.

I continued, "What about Du Heng?"

His eyes flickered slightly.

"Du Heng has fallen ill today."

"What illness?"

"A cold."

"Have you seen a doctor?"

Not yet.

"That's a coincidence," I said. "There are also many patients in the South Soup Shelter, and they all become quite calm after drinking the calming soup."

Zhou Xian's face turned even paler.

I asked, "When did Du Heng enter the Ministry of Rites?"

Three days ago.

Who recommended him?

Zhou Xian closed his eyes.

"Feng Ke, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites"

Feng Ke.

New name.

well.

This net has gained another thread.

I asked, "Why did Feng Ke recommend a minor official from Jiangbei for a position in the Bureau of Ceremonial Affairs?"

"He said that Du Heng was familiar with the old registers of post-disaster relief in Jiangbei, and the Ministry of Rites recently needed to verify the replacement of old clothes for disaster victims in Jiangbei, which would come in handy."

"Replacing old clothes with new ones?"

"Yes."

"Who should we supply?"

Zhou Xian couldn't answer.

I laughed.

"The disaster victims in Jiangbei have been properly settled in the Ministry of Revenue's accounts; they have been given food, medicine, and shelter. Why is the Ministry of Rites suddenly issuing replacement clothing? Who are they to be given this to?"

Zhou Xian's forehead began to sweat.

It's not that he can't answer.

He realized that no matter how he answered, he was wrong.

If the statement is about providing relief to disaster victims, then it's an admission that the Ministry of Revenue's claim of "already resettling" is false.

If it's just for archiving, then why was the old disaster clothes fumigated with medicine, why was it put in the ceremonial room, and why was it sewn into my inner robe?

I looked at him and lowered my voice.

"Lord Zhou, if you don't speak now, you may not have the chance to speak later."

Zhou Xian looked up at me.

In that instant, I saw a struggle flash in his eyes.

He fears.

I'm not the one who's afraid.

This is the case behind me.

The person who can make the Minister of Rites so afraid must hold a high position.

Qiu Tang suddenly said, "Lord Zhou, His Highness said something..."

Zhou Xian looked at her.

Qiu Tang calmly said, "If the Ministry of Rites still knows that it is the Ministry of Rites, then it shouldn't be sewing wedding clothes with dirty hands."

Those words are harsher than mine.

Because I am merely an imperial censor.

Xiao Lingyi was Princess Zhaoning.

She was the emperor's legitimate daughter.

She will also be the other half of the marriage that will take place seven days later.

The Ministry of Rites can say that I am using this case to cause trouble, but they cannot say that the princess has ruined her own wedding ceremony.

Zhou Xian remained silent for a long time before finally speaking.

"Feng Ke had Du Heng deliver a sample of altered sleeves, saying that the cuffs of the prince consort's wedding robes needed to be narrowed according to the new design. When I inquired about the reason, he said that the Secretariat had reminded him that recently, palace etiquette required strict checks on items hidden in sleeves."

Zhongshu (Secretariat).

My heart sank little by little.

"Who reminded you of this in the Central Secretariat?"

Zhou Xian shook his head.

"Feng Ke didn't say."

"What about the old disaster clothes?"

"Three boxes of old disaster relief clothing were approved by Feng Ke. He said that the old clothes used for disaster relief in Jiangbei needed to be fumigated with medicine and then sampled for verification to prevent the spread of disease to Beijing."

"Where did one of the boxes go?"

Zhou Xian's voice was even lower.

"The inner storeroom of the Ceremonial Office."

"Who took it?"

"Du Heng".

Do you know?

He closed his eyes.

"I knew he took a box, but I didn't know the contents would end up in the prince consort's inner robe."

This statement finally sounds like the truth.

The truth is usually hard to hear.

It's also incomplete.

But it has at least rough edges.

Lies are too clean.

I continued, "Where did this box come from today?"

The Ministry of Rites' Ceremonial Affairs Office.

"What about before?"

Zhou Xian did not answer.

I said, "Qinghe Lane?"

He suddenly looked up.

That's enough.

Ah Liu whispered from the side, "It really is Qinghe Lane."

Qiu Tang immediately instructed the female official to make a note of it.

Zhou Xian realized he had made a mistake, and his face turned ugly, but it was too late to take it back.

I looked at the disassembled inner robe.

Narrow cuffs.

The lining is dirty.

The box is sealed under heavy pressure.

Use old clothes to fumigate with medicine.

Fang Liu Shi.

Feng Ke.

Du Heng.

Qinghe Lane.

The Central Secretariat issued a reminder.

The line is getting longer and longer.

He no longer looked like someone who could be pulled by Zheng Huaien, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, on his own.

Zheng Huaien investigated the disaster relief funds.

Feng Ke, from the Ministry of Rites, altered his wedding attire.

Du Heng visited old households north of the river.

Qinghe Lane out of the box.

Someone from the Secretariat reminded him to check the sleeve.

It's like a pre-arranged play.

And I am the one who has to go on stage in costume.

The venue for taking the stage was the royal palace.

The day she went on stage was her wedding day.

The emperor, princess, all the civil and military officials, Shen Lie's undercover agents, and members of the Qingzhang Society were seated below the stage.

If I make one wrong move, I will die amidst everyone's applause.

I looked up and asked Zhou Xian, "Where is Du Heng now?"

"This humble official is unaware."

"Where is Feng Ke?"

Ministry of Rites.

"Are you here tonight?"

"It should be."

I looked at Qiutang.

Qiu Tang understood what I meant.

She immediately said to the female official behind her, "Report back to Your Highness and request that Your Highness immediately order someone to keep an eye on Feng Ke of the Ministry of Rites."

The female official bowed and left.

I also called the doorman.

"Go to the Censorate and ask Lord Zhao to send someone to keep an eye on Feng Ke, and also send someone to Qinghe Lane."

The doorman ran off quickly.

Zhou Xian couldn't help but say, "Lord Shen, Physician Feng is a fifth-rank official in the Ministry of Rites. Without an imperial edict..."

I look at him.

"Is Lord Zhou still speaking up for Feng Ke?"

He shut up.

I wrapped the two pieces of old cloth up and put them back into the sealed bag.

Then he walked to the inner robe and reached out to pick up the narrow sleeve.

The cuffs were so narrow they almost touched the wrists.

If I wear it, the short blade will indeed be difficult to conceal.

But now I understand.

Their goal of leaving me nowhere to hide my knife is just the first step.

They would rather I be covered in evidence of crimes that are not mine.

Old clothes worn by disaster victims.

Fumigation for epidemic diseases.

Remnants of a wooden sign.

Perhaps there's something else I haven't unpacked yet.

I said to the lady-in-waiting at the princess's residence, "Continue the demolition."

Zhou Xian's expression changed.

"Still demolishing it?"

"certainly."

I looked at the inner robe.

"They've even sewn the names of the dead inside. You think there's only one place sewn in?"

The female official continued cutting.

This time, the sleeve base was removed.

After the needle and thread were picked open, some crumbs fell out.

Like scraps of old paper.

The lady-in-waiting picked it up with tweezers.

The paper scraps had turned yellow from the smoke, with only the edges still showing traces of ink.

Ah Liu leaned closer, trying hard to make out the details.

"Young master, it looks like... a travel permit?"

I took it.

Two words were left on the scrap of paper.

southwest.

My fingers tightened suddenly.

All the sounds in the courtyard seemed to fade into the distance for a moment.

southwest.

These two words shouldn't appear in my wedding robes.

It should at least not have been sent by the Ministry of Rites.

Ah Liu saw it too, and his face turned deathly pale instantly.

"Young master..."

I raised my hand, signaling him to shut up.

Qiu Tang's gaze also darkened.

She knew what those two words meant.

Xiao Lingyi has been investigating my identity before I came to Beijing.

She already suspects I'm from the southwest.

Having doubts is one thing.

If fragments of the old "Southwest" travel permit were found inside my wedding robe, that would be a different story.

Some people didn't just want to sew in the old clothes of disaster victims.

I also want to sew my origins from Southwest China into the book.

The old clothes of Fang Liu prove that I colluded with the disaster victims.

The use of calming fumigation medicine proves that I came into contact with the epidemic shed.

The Southwest Road permit proves that my origins are unclear.

Add another knife.

I went from being a prospective prince consort tasked with investigating a case to becoming the perfect rebel assassin.

I suddenly chuckled.

Ah Liu got chills from my laughter.

"Young master, please don't laugh, I'm scared."

I looked at the scrap of paper with "Southwest" written on it and muttered, "They really think highly of me."

Zhou Xian also saw those two words, and he felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

"This...this wasn't released by the Ministry of Rites."

I looked at him.

"Lord Zhou, you've said that many times tonight."

"This humble official truly did not know!"

I believe you halfway.

He was startled.

I said, "As for the other half, we'll talk about that after you lead me to Du Heng and Feng Ke."

Just then, hurried footsteps came from outside the door.

Old Zheng rushed in, still out of breath.

"Young Master! A messenger from the Censorate says that Lord Zhao just sent someone to the Ministry of Rites, but before they even reached the entrance, they saw a fire breaking out in the back alley of the Ministry!"

My eyes darkened.

"where?"

"The old warehouse of the Ceremonial Affairs Office!"

Everyone in the courtyard paled.

The old warehouse of the Ministry of Rites' Ceremonial Office.

There may still be old disaster relief clothing, altered sleeve patterns, Du Heng's transfer order, and Feng Ke's approval document there.

There may also be a pattern that can prove who sewed the "Southwest" shreds into the wedding dress.

I immediately said, "Prepare the horses!"

Ah Liu exclaimed anxiously, "Young Master, are you still going? This is clearly an attempt to lure you in!"

Of course I know.

The fire started at the perfect time.

It was a coincidence, much like the night the old archives building of the Prince's Mansion caught fire.

In the first volume, I inquired about the fire record, and it turned out that the old archive building of the Prince's Mansion had burned down.

Now I've unearthed the names of the dead and scraps of paper from the southwest; the old warehouse of the Ministry of Rites' Ceremonial Office has been burned again.

When clearing accounts, one should clear the books, not just the paper.

They cleaned the people, their clothes, their names, and even the ashes from the fire.

Qiu Tang said, "Lord Shen, His Highness will send someone to the Ministry of Rites."

I shook my head.

"Too late."

I picked up the piece of paper with the word "Southwest" on it and put it into a sealed bag.

"This fire isn't for the Ministry of Rites to see; it's for me to see."

Ah Liu's face turned deathly pale.

Why?

I looked in the direction of the Ministry of Rites.

"Because they want to tell me."

"What?"

I said, word by word, "Their origins are also recorded in the tent."

As soon as he finished speaking, a faint light appeared in the distant night sky.

It was as red as a wedding dress.

It also resembles blood.