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

When the fire broke out in the old material room of the Imperial Clothing Bureau, the smoke had already climbed over half of the palace wall.

There is no fear of open flames in the palace.

What I fear is that things that shouldn't be burned should be burned with an open flame.

A piece of silk burned; it was an accidental fire.

Burning a clothing store signifies settling accounts.

When we arrived at the Imperial Wardrobe, palace servants were kneeling on the ground, and imperial guards and eunuchs were running back and forth carrying buckets of water. The smoke was mixed with the smell of burnt cloth, which made people's throats feel dry.

Ah Liu was originally left outside, but when he heard that the Imperial Wardrobe was on fire, he still came along carrying a bucket of water.

When he ran to my side, his face was covered in dust.

"Young master, I've thought about it, and fire is easier to understand than tent. I can help!"

I looked at the empty bucket in his hand.

"Where's the water?"

Ah Liu looked down.

The bucket is empty.

He froze.

"I was in such a rush that I forgot to answer."

Yan Xiaoyi passed by and casually took the empty bucket from his hand, tossing it to a young eunuch.

"Go stand further away and don't add firewood."

Ah Liu was very hurt.

But this time he didn't refute it.

The secondhand materials room was located behind the Imperial Clothing Bureau, where old satin, scraps of thread, discarded patterns, and expired clothing were usually piled up.

This kind of place is most likely to burn.

It is also the best for burning.

Because after you burn it, it's all old cloth, and no one can tell if there's a deadly piece of paper hidden inside.

Qin Shangyi was escorted by the imperial guards, and when she saw the fire, her face turned as white as paper.

"The lacquer box is at the bottom of the cabinet on the east wall."

I looked at Yan Xiaoyi.

He had soaked his outer robe and covered his mouth and nose with it.

"I'll go."

Xiao Lingyi was about to step forward when Qiu Tang stopped her.

"Your Highness, the fire is too big!"

Xiao Lingyi said coldly, "Get out of the way."

I grabbed her sleeve.

She turned to look at me.

I immediately let go.

"His Highness is keeping an eye on Consort Qin and the exit from outside."

Her eyes were cold.

"Are you going in again?"

"I will not go in."

I am very sincere.

"If I were to go in, I would likely implicate Yan Xiaoyi."

Upon hearing this, Yan Xiaoyi actually nodded.

"This time he told the truth."

I look at him.

Now is not the time to undermine them.

He had already rushed into the fire.

I stood at the doorway, staring at both sides of the old materials shed.

The fire started from the inside, but the smoke went out differently to the sides.

The east side is black with smoke, and the west side is gray with tobacco.

This indicates that there was more than one ignition point.

Someone didn't just start the fire randomly; they intentionally burned it from both sides, so that no matter which corner the contents were hidden in, it would be too late to save them.

I asked Qin Shangyi, "Does the used materials storage room have a back door?"

Qin Shangyi said in a trembling voice, "There is a small door that leads to the old dyeing pool."

Gu Xingzhi immediately sent someone to the back door.

Soon, the defense reported back.

"The back door was locked; the person has escaped."

I asked, "Footprints?"

"Women's shoes, bound feet, embroidery powder."

Suque.

She is still in the palace.

Or they just left.

Xiao Lingyi's voice was cold: "Chase after them."

The two guards immediately chased after the old dye pool.

The fire was getting bigger and bigger.

The roof beams creaked.

Ah Liu was pacing anxiously nearby.

"Why hasn't Guard Yan come out yet?"

"Soon."

I'm actually not sure either.

The old materials room was full of cloth and paper, which would burn faster than the officials of the Ministry of Revenue could shift blame.

Just as I was about to order someone to rush in again, Yan Xiaoyi rolled out of the smoke.

He was holding a blue lacquered box in his arms.

The box was half blackened by smoke, and sparks were still rising from the bottom.

Yan Xiaoyi threw the box on the ground, stomped out the sparks, and coughed twice.

"The bottom of the cabinet on the east wall."

When Qin Shangyi saw the box, she seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, but also seemed even more frightened.

"That's it."

I crouched down and looked at the bottom of the box.

Sure enough, there were three horizontal lines.

It was embroidered with old palace needles; if you don't look closely, it looks like wood grain.

Xiao Lingyi stepped forward personally.

She did not open the box immediately, but looked at Qin Shangyi.

"key."

Qin Shangyi said in a low voice, "I don't have a key."

"Who has it?"

"Aunt Zhaoyue."

Zhaoyue is dead.

The keys were most likely taken away as well.

Yan Xiaoyi drew his sword.

I stopped them.

"etc."

The lock was old, but there was no dust in the keyhole.

This indicates that someone has driven it recently.

Since someone has already opened it, there may still be nothing left inside.

But when Qin Shangyi said "save the lacquer box," she didn't necessarily mean save the inner lacquer layer.

I turned the box over and carefully felt the three horizontal lines on the bottom.

The old palace needle-hidden thread method.

Aunt Sun once said that the late Empress often hid paper in the thread in her palace.

I used my short blade to lift the third horizontal line and sure enough, I felt a very thin hidden clasp.

"It's not the lock that's open."

I say.

"It's the bottom opening."

Xiao Lingyi squatted down, reached out and pressed the corner of the box, and gently pushed it.

With a click.

A thin sheet popped open at the bottom of the lacquered box.

Ah Liu's eyes widened.

"There really is a hidden compartment!"

Bai Zhi stood aside and said coldly, "If the person who hid the tent only knew how to use a lock, they would have died long ago."

That makes a lot of sense.

There was a thin roll of clothing in the hidden compartment.

It was wrapped in oil paper and wax, and the edges were slightly scorched by fire, but the main body was still intact.

Xiao Lingyi's hand froze in mid-air.

I know what she's afraid of.

I'm afraid of seeing the truth once I open it.

I'm even more afraid that there will be nothing inside after opening it.

I took the coat and slowly unfolded it.

The first line reads:

In the winter of the fourteenth year of Chengxi, at the Changning side hall's changing room.

The following is the time of day.

At the beginning of the day (亥初), the late Empress changed her clothes while ill.

Those present:

Shining on the moon.

Qin Zhao.

Sun Ajin.

Han's Little Embroiderer.

Liu Shen, medical officer of Tai Hospital.

Feng happy, the head of the inner court.

Offering vessels of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, Zhou Bingli.

The document was sent from the old treasury of the Imperial Secretariat by Pei Shen.

Zheng Huai'en, regarding the old accounts of grain restitution from the Ministry of Revenue.

As I read this, all around was so quiet that only the crackling of the fire could be heard.

Qin Shangyi knelt down.

Xiao Lingyi's face was bloodless.

Gu Xingzhi's gaze was also terrifyingly deep.

Liu Shen.

If I'm not mistaken, it's the same Liu, the hospital director who's been claiming illness and staying home all these days.

Zhou Bingli has already presented Wang's name in the Golden Hall.

Pei Shen appeared in the Changning side hall in the fourteenth year of Chengxi.

Zheng Huaien also appeared.

It wasn't one person who killed the late empress.

Many people, on the same night, each brought different things into the Changning side hall.

medicine.

Fragrant.

Clothes.

Documents.

Old debts.

Ritual vessels.

Palace decree.

Everyone does only one thing.

The last person died.

I continued reading.

At the hour of Hai (9-11 PM), the Empress personally ordered that the sick clothes be changed, and a page of the disaster relief folding method be hidden inside the clothes, to be given to Zhaoyue for temporary refuge.

At midnight, in the side hall of Changning, sheltered from the wind, all was quiet and the lights were dim.

Zizheng, the Imperial Hospital will administer another calming prescription.

At the beginning of the day, the Empress fell into a daze.

The clown and the end of the day are forbidden from entering or leaving.

The last few lines were blackened by smoke, but a few words could still be made out.

Blue clothes must not be stored in the warehouse.

If the money is put into storage, old accounts will be unclear, and people will be uneasy.

The last line is written in a different handwriting.

The strokes are very light, as if a woman is struggling to write.

If Zhao Ning sees this, do not believe in the mercy shown throughout the palace.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Lingyi closed her eyes.

That was the late Empress's handwriting.

She wasn't unaware that she would die.

She even knew that everyone in the hall would feign compassion.

Ah Liu listened with tears welling up in his eyes, but dared not cry out loud.

Bai Zhi stared at the line "Old accounts of grain restitution by the Ministry of Revenue, Zheng Huaien," her fingers clenched until they turned white.

Her father's old grievances were indeed connected to this night.

I flipped my clothes back.

There is also a string of small characters on the back.

It is not the original character for "clothes".

It was added later by someone else.

Bai Song's old account book, in triplicate.

Once you enter the blue robe.

Upon entering Yongfeng, one finds three cabinets.

Once in...

The last two characters were burned away.

Ah Liu was so anxious that he kept stamping his feet.

"How come the crucial parts are burned out!"

Bai Zhi stared intently at the scorch mark.

"It wasn't burned away."

I looked at her.

She said, "It was scraped off beforehand."

Upon closer inspection, I confirmed it.

The paper where those two characters were located was thinner than the surrounding paper; it wasn't burned, but scraped off with a knife.

Someone had scraped off the third destination a long time ago.

This is worse than burning it.

Explaining the whereabouts of the third set of old accounts is even more important than the three accounts of Yongfeng.

Xiao Lingyi said softly, "There's one portion left."

"One copy was taken from Lan Yi."

I say.

"One copy was in the third counter of Yongfeng, and it was also taken away or transferred."

Bai Zhi continued, "There's another one, but I don't know where it is."

Gu Xingzhi looked at his crotch.

"It may already be destroyed."

I shook my head.

"Won't."

Everyone looked at me.

I pointed to the area that had been scraped off.

"If it's destroyed, don't scrape it off. Scraping it off means someone doesn't want others to know where it is, but it might still be there."

Qin Shangyi suddenly whispered, "This servant heard Aunt Zhaoyue say something like that."

Xiao Lingyi looked at her.

"explain."

Qin Shangyi's voice trembled: "She said that the person Her Majesty trusts most is not in the palace."

A thought struck me.

Not in the palace.

The late Empress sent Zhaoning to find Gu Xingzhi.

Gu Xingzhi was guarding the outer gate back then, not inside the palace.

Could the third one be with Gu Xingzhi?

I looked at Gu Xingzhi.

He frowned slightly.

"I don't."

He said it very simply.

I believe him.

If he had it, the late Empress would not have said in her letter, "If there is no one you can trust, go to Gu Xingzhi," but would have directly said that the accounts were with him.

Not in the palace.

And it is the most credible.

Besides Gu Xingzhi, who else could it be?

Before I could figure it out, a scream suddenly came from behind the old materials shed.

An imperial guard dragged a young palace maid back from the direction of the old dye pool.

The palace maid was soaking wet, her hands were covered in ash, and she had been stabbed in the right shoulder, but her face showed little fear.

Gu Xingzhi asked, "A white sparrow?"

The guard replied, "Yes."

We finally caught a live accountant.

Su Que was forced to kneel on the ground.

She looked about seventeen or eighteen years old, with very ordinary features, so ordinary that she would be hard to recognize if thrown into a group of palace maids.

However, her hands did not resemble those of a palace maid.

Thick tiger's mouth, calluses on the palm.

I walked up to her.

"Suque?"

She looked up at me and suddenly smiled.

"Lord Shen."

She knows me.

I asked, "Where is Aunt Lan?"

Her smile deepened.

"Lan Gu is everywhere."

Ah Liu got goosebumps just listening to this.

"That sounds like something out of a ghost story!"

Su Que glanced at him.

"Those who settle old scores are inherently demons."

I squatted down.

"Did you kill Zheng Huaien?"

"It doesn't count as killing."

"What does that count for?"

"Send him back to his post."

I felt a chill in my heart.

"Where is Zhaoyue?"

"She should have returned the money long ago."

Xiao Lingyi's eyes suddenly turned cold.

Yan Xiaoyi's knife was almost drawn.

I raised my hand to stop him.

"Who authorized you to put the inventory list in the princess's residence?"

Su Que looked at me.

"The tablet should have been returned to His Highness."

Xiao Lingyi said coldly, "What do you mean?"

Su Que laughed very softly.

"Because the very first plaque of the Clearing House was made by the late Empress."

These words were like a bucket of cold water, poured over everyone's heads.

Ah Liu was completely dumbfounded.

Bai Zhi's expression also changed.

Xiao Lingyi stared intently at her.

"impossible."

Su Que said, "If Your Highness doesn't believe me, you can ask Commander Gu."

All eyes turned to Gu Xingzhi.

Gu Xingzhi remained expressionless.

"I have no idea."

Su Que laughed and said, "Of course you don't know. You're just the gatekeeper."

That's a very harsh statement.

Gu Xingzhi was not angry.

I stared at the white sparrow.

"Are you saying that the late Empress established the Accounts Clearance Committee?"

That's not what I meant.

She looked at me.

"It's true."

"Where's the evidence?"

"The evidence was hidden by Zhaoyue."

"Bai Song's old grievances?"

"That's just an account."

"What is the evidence?"

Su Que did not answer.

She lowered her head, and a little black blood suddenly spilled from the corner of her mouth.

Gu Xingzhi's expression changed, and he grabbed her chin.

late.

She had poison hidden in her mouth all along.

Doctor Song is not here.

Even if they were there, they might not be able to save them.

Su Que collapsed to the ground, breathing rapidly.

Xiao Lingyi stepped forward.

Explain yourself!

Su Que looked at her, her eyes gradually becoming unfocused, yet she still smiled.

"Your Highness..."

"Your mother... isn't settling old scores..."

"He's a former official..."

Her head lolled to the side, and she died.

Outside the old materials shed, the wind swirled cigarette ash down.

As I looked at Su Que's corpse, my heart sank deeper and deeper.

Did the late empress make the first clear account?

Were the Qing officials former officials?

If this gets out, the dirty water of the Clearing Accounts Committee will be completely poured onto the late Empress.

It will also splash onto Xiao Lingyi.

Why did Su Que say that before she died?

To frame someone?

To undermine Xiao Lingyi?

Or is it to tell us that the Clearing House wasn't originally like it is now?

Xiao Lingyi stood there, her face so pale it was almost transparent.

I closed my coat and whispered, "Your Highness."

She didn't look at me.

He only asked, "Shen An, do you believe me?"

I paused for a moment.

"I do not believe it entirely."

She finally looked at me.

I continued, "But I believe that the original meaning of the 'clear account card' may have been different from what it is now."

Settle old scores and stabilize the court.

If these eight characters were written by the late empress, it is not necessarily because she killed someone for greed.

It could also be to investigate former officials and eliminate long-standing abuses.

Later, someone took these eight characters and turned them into a murder account.

That's the most toxic.

Killing one person is not enough.

They even wanted to use her name as a knife.

Xiao Lingyi slowly closed her eyes.

When she opened her eyes again, the slight tremor in them had subsided.

"Check the third one."

I nodded.

"check."

She looked at the old building that was half burned down.

"We also need to find out who originally made the signboard."

I looked at the clothes rack in my hand.

"Your Highness, if we truly find the late Empress..."

Xiao Lingyi interrupted me.

"Investigate that too."

Her voice was very steady.

It was as steady as a knife returning to its sheath.

"If the Empress Dowager is wrong, I will take the blame for her."

"If someone uses the Empress Dowager's name to commit murder."

She looked at Su Que's corpse.

"I will personally settle the accounts."