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

We didn't go through the main gate.

There were soldiers lying in ambush outside the gate.

There was no back alley from which we came.

The back alley is too obvious.

Yan Xiaoyi led me through a dog hole on the west side of the Huaihua Villa.

That's right.

Dog hole.

Clutching the complete inventory of the Yongning River channel, I, a dignified seventh-rank censor, crawled out through the dog hole of Qian Rong's villa.

Halfway up, my official hat got stuck for a moment.

Yan Xiaoyi was watching me from outside.

"Lord Shen, hurry up."

I gritted my teeth and said, "Can you please stop rushing someone who's carrying ironclad evidence from the imperial court and trying to crawl through a dog hole?"

"Then don't hug me."

"no."

"Then hurry up."

I struggled to climb out, my clothes covered in mud.

If Ah Liu were here, he would definitely say, "Young master, you're like someone who's been taken for a walk by a case and is now being rejected by a dog."

Unfortunately, he wasn't there.

So this is the only way I can think of it.

Outside the dog hole was a patch of wasteland.

The sounds of fighting could be heard in the distance.

Gu Xingzhi and the inner guards held off the ambush troops in the front yard.

Yan Xiaoyi led me into the woods.

Holding the bottom book, I felt increasingly uneasy as I walked.

"Shouldn't we wait for Gu Xingzhi?"

He told us to go first.

"Will he die?"

"Disaster."

Why?

"His death would be troublesome."

I actually felt a little reassured by those words.

Just as we passed through the locust grove, we suddenly heard a whooshing sound behind us.

Yan Xiaoyi grabbed my shoulder and pressed me down into the grass.

A short crossbow bolt whizzed past my head and embedded itself in the trunk of a tree ahead.

My back was instantly covered in cold sweat.

Another crossbow.

Ji Qing's men are certainly not short of weapons.

Yan Xiaoyi pulled me behind a tree.

Hold me tight.

"Hug what?"

"The bottom volume".

Do I even need to say it?

I hold it tighter than I would my life.

Someone darted in through the shadows of the trees.

Two men in gray.

Yan Xiaoyi went to greet him.

I didn't join in the fun.

I am very clear that my task is not to win.

Don't send the original copy back.

I turned and ran.

I ran very seriously this time.

When a person is holding a document that can bring down a third-rank official, their legs will naturally become more active.

I had only run a few steps when suddenly a person stood in front of me.

Green robe.

Ordinary face.

Six fingers on the left hand.

Ji Qing.

I stopped abruptly.

He stood under the tree, holding a short thorn in his hand, the golden crane pattern on his sleeve flashing in the night.

"Lord Shen."

His voice was still so low and hoarse.

It feels like there's sand stuck in my throat.

I took half a step back.

"Manager Ji is really idle."

Leave your things behind.

"You mean this original booklet?"

"It shouldn't have come out."

"Then where should it be?"

"In the fire."

I held the bottom book and sighed.

"You guys really like burning things."

Ji Qing looked at me.

"Burn it clean, and everyone can live."

"Did Fang Yuanshi survive? Did the old warehouse guard survive? Did Liu Laoqi almost survive? Is Bai Laoxiu even alive?"

Ji Qing's expression remained unchanged.

"They shouldn't have touched the accounts."

"What about Qian Fu?"

"He shouldn't have left the account."

"Where is Qian Rong?"

This time, Ji Qing paused for a moment.

very short.

But I saw it.

Qian Rong is not incapable of being cleaned up.

It's just not the right time yet.

That feeling came back to me.

Qian Rong may seem like a big fish, but in the net behind Ji Qing, he might just be an account that can't be burned for the time being.

Ji Qing slowly raised the short thorn.

"Lord Shen, you are too clever."

"Many people say that."

"Smart people die young."

"Some of them live a long time."

"Who?"

"emperor."

Ji Qing's eyes finally turned cold.

I'm not saying this to praise Xiao Jingheng.

I'm just stalling for time.

Yan Xiaoyi was right behind them.

Gu Xingzhi might also make a surprise appearance.

I just need to live a little longer.

Ji Qing clearly saw through my thoughts.

He stopped talking and started acting.

The moment the short thorn came, I grabbed the notebook in my arms and rolled behind a tree.

They rolled around in a very messy manner.

But it works.

The short thorns pierced the bark and almost went into my shoulder.

I flicked the lime powder from my sleeve.

This bag of lime powder has traveled with me all over the country, and it has finally come in handy again.

The white ash exploded.

Ji Qing turned her head away, but was still slightly blinded.

I backed away, clutching the bottom book.

The short blade is drawn.

I know I can't beat them.

But as long as it can block it for a moment.

One time is enough.

Ji Qing closed one eye, switching the short dagger from his left hand to his right, his movements still very steady.

His movements are much faster than mine.

When the short thorn approached again, I didn't even see how it got to me.

Just then, a short stick flew from the side and struck Ji Qing's wrist.

Yan Xiaoyi has arrived.

Ji Qing was forced to step back.

Yan Xiaoyi landed in front of me, her voice slightly panting.

"You're quite fast."

"I was scared."

"it works."

Ji Qing glanced at Yan Xiaoyi and did not continue the fight.

The sound of the inner guards' bamboo whistles drifted from afar.

Gu Xingzhi's men are moving this way.

Ji Qing knew he couldn't get the original book back.

He suddenly raised his left hand and pressed his palm against the tree trunk.

I saw blood on his palm.

He was injured during his fight with Yan Xiaoyi.

Bloodstains fell on the tree bark.

Six fingers.

Clearly and distinctly.

He looked at me.

"Lord Shen, having the complete records in your hands may not be a good thing."

I said, "It's definitely not a good thing if it's in your hands."

Ji Qing sneered, turned around, and disappeared into the woods.

Yan Xiaoyi tried to chase after him, but I stopped him.

"Don't chase after them."

"Not going to pursue her again?"

"The final copy is crucial."

He glanced at me.

"You're getting better at making choices now."

"I was forced to."

Not long after, Gu Xingzhi arrived with his bodyguards.

He was covered in blood.

It's not his.

It doesn't look like it, at least not.

He glanced at the booklet in my arms.

"Still there?"

"It's still there."

"Open."

I froze for a moment.

"Now?"

"Now."

I understand what he meant.

If we bring out yet another fake book, it will be too late by the time we get back to Beijing.

I sat under the tree, dried my hands with my sleeve, and opened the oilcloth bag.

The last volume is very old.

The paper is yellowed and the edges are frayed.

The first page contains the overall catalog of the Yongning River channel review.

The second page is the list of raw materials.

The third page is for checking shipping costs.

The further I turned the pages, the heavier my heart became.

This is not a fake.

This is the most authentic copy imaginable.

The document states the actual quantity of Hengshan bluestone, the actual mileage of material transportation, the number of craftsmen, and the number of days of construction.

Compared to the official register of the Ministry of Works, it is different in almost every way.

The main register states that there are 3,700 pieces of green stone from Hengshan.

The bottom volume contains 1,600 prescriptions.

The official register states that there were 3,200 people involved in river engineering.

The final register lists 1,470 people.

The official register states that the land route is eighty li and the water route is thirty li.

The bottom of the book states that the waterway transport was less than twenty li (approximately 10 kilometers) away, while the land route was less than twenty li (approximately 10 kilometers).

In other words, the Ministry of Works misrepresented the amount of stone, labor, construction period, and transportation costs.

I continued flipping through the pages.

The middle pages contain approvals and signatures.

It is not an official seal.

It is a small private seal with the character "钱" (money).

It matches the wooden stamp in Qian Fu's account bag.

It says next to it:

Qian Pi Yi, transferred to Yongfeng Third Counter.

Qian Pi Er, Shunfeng Chema Xing.

Qian Pisan, the inner warehouse material room is temporarily suspended.

Qian Pi Si, Guangchumen Old Equipment Return Transport.

Every single detail matches the clues we've uncovered over the past few days.

Tao Family Iron Workshop.

Hitchhiking.

Yongfeng Bank.

Inner warehouse/material storage room.

Guangchumen.

This booklet is not a single piece of evidence.

It's like a needle, stringing together all the scattered evidence from before.

Gu Xingzhi finished reading and spoke in a very low voice.

That's enough.

I nodded.

"That's enough for the Golden Palace."

Yan Xiaoyi leaned against the tree and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Can you go to sleep now?"

Just as I was about to speak, my fingers suddenly paused.

The last few pages of the booklet were torn out.

The tear is old.

It wasn't torn tonight.

At least for some days.

I turned to the last page, which was a complete sheet of paper.

Only half a line of text remains above.

...Old accounts were incorporated, in the eleventh year of Chengxi, in the southwest...

That's all.

southwest.

It felt like something had hit my chest.

The eleventh year of Chengxi.

southwest.

These words are too close to me.

It was so close that I immediately thought of my father, Shen Lie.

I recall his uprising in the southwest.

I remember the look in his eyes when he ordered me to go to the capital to kill the emperor; they seemed to be burning with rage.

Why does the record of the Yongning River channel include old accounts from the southwest dating back to the eleventh year of the Chengxi reign?

Gu Xingzhi saw it too.

He didn't speak.

But I felt him glance at me.

This glance was very light.

But it sent a chill down my spine.

Did the emperor know?

Did Gu Xingzhi know this too?

Xiao Jingheng asked me to investigate the Yongning case. Did it really start with Yongning?

Or did he already know that this debt would eventually drag me back to the southwest?

I closed the booklet.

Gu Xingzhi said, "A page is missing."

"Um."

"Did Qian Rong tear it?"

"uncertain."

I looked down at the tear.

The edges are old, and the tears are neat, not hasty.

Perhaps when Qian Rong got the last few pages, they were already missing.

Or perhaps he hid the last few pages somewhere else.

Because those pages weren't meant to protect Qian Rong.

It is used to protect other people.

Gu Xingzhi said, "Return to the capital."

I stood up, clutching the booklet.

My legs feel a little weak.

This time it's not sleepiness.

It was because I suddenly realized that the Yongning case would soon involve Qian Rong.

But even after Qian Rong was overthrown, there was an even older, deeper, and colder layer of history beneath the surface.

On the way back to Beijing, no one spoke.

We entered the city as dawn was breaking.

Gu Xingzhi took the bottom register and went to the palace to report.

I insisted on returning to the Censorate first.

Gu Xingzhi glanced at me but did not object.

He probably knew that I couldn't hand over the complete register directly to the emperor yet.

At the very least, the Censorate should seal the copy first.

He only said, "Enter the palace in one hour."

I nodded.

When they returned to the Censorate, Ah Liu was already waiting at the door.

When he saw me covered in mud, he was initially delighted, but then his eyes welled up with tears.

"Young master, you've really returned."

I held up the bottom book.

"Where are the hot pancakes?"

Ah Liu immediately wiped his eyes.

"Buy! Buy three right now!"

Zhao Guanlan took the booklet, but after flipping through only a few pages, his expression changed.

"This thing..."

"Is that enough?" I asked.

Zhao Guanlan said in a deep voice, "Enough money for Rong to go to jail."

Just as I was about to sit down, a bailiff rushed in from outside the door.

"Lord Zhao, Lord Shen, news has come from the palace."

My heart skipped a beat.

"What?"

The constable said, "Qian Rong submitted his self-defense early this morning."

"What are you stating?"

"He said that Qian Fu, the accountant in the government office, had embezzled the Ministry of Works' records and colluded with carriage and horse shops and banks to misappropriate public funds. He also said..."

The constable glanced at me.

I have a very bad feeling.

"What else is there to say?"

"It is also said that Lord Shen colluded with the Imperial Guards last night to force Qian Fu to give false testimony, sneak into the Huaihua Villa, and forge records to frame a high-ranking official of the court."

Ah Liu jumped up in anger.

"Has he no shame?!"

I sat in the chair and actually laughed.

Qian Rong was indeed not so easy to kill.

He rushed to submit Chen Zhe first, pushed Qian Fu out, claimed the register was forged, and dragged me and the Inner Guard into the mess.

This is the old official.

Even with a knife to his throat, he can still write an article claiming that he brought the knife himself.

Zhao Guanlan looked at me.

"Shen An".

I looked up.

"Attend court."

"Now?"

"Now."

He closed the booklet.

"Since Qian Rong submitted the memorial first, we will submit the certificate in court."

I stood up.

I haven't slept for one night, two nights, or three nights; I've lost count.

But I know one thing.

This battle will finally take place from the alleys, the fireground, the old warehouses, and the ironworks at night, all the way to the Golden Palace.

I patted the mud off my clothes.

Ah Liu asked anxiously, "Young master, aren't you going to change your clothes?"

I glanced down at it.

His official robe was covered in mud, his cuffs were dusty, and the hem was torn by a dog hole.

It certainly doesn't resemble a court session.

But suddenly I felt that it was pretty good.

Let all the officials see this.

This copy wasn't taken from the study.

They were snatched from fire, mud, and piles of dead bodies.

I said, "No, I won't change it."

Ah Liu was stunned.

Why?

I picked up the bottom volume and walked towards the door.

"It's better to be a little dirty."

"Let Qian Rong see how his accounts were uncovered."