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

The crossbow was nailed to the dressing table.

The tail feathers were still trembling.

Madam Qian was pulled behind the screen by Yan Xiaoyi. Her face was as white as paper, but she did not make a sound.

She just stared at the crossbow.

It's like finally realizing that the house I've been living in all these years isn't a proper residence.

It's a cage.

A maid's scream came from outside.

The steward in blue robes roared, "Guards! Guards!"

I, however, don't quite trust the guards at the Qian residence.

At this moment, even Madam Qian herself probably couldn't tell who the guards were, who the assassins were, and who the gray-clad men were waiting to silence them.

Yan Xiaoyi whispered, "Two, the rooftops."

"Can you stop them?"

"able."

"how long?"

"Before you ran out."

That doesn't sound very reassuring.

I carefully put the oil paper package inside my body and said to Madam Qian, "Madam, come with me."

She nodded.

My hands were trembling a little, but my steps didn't falter.

This surprised me.

Madam Qian is more stable than many high-ranking officials in the imperial court.

It's at least more stable than money.

We didn't go through the main entrance.

There must be someone waiting at the main entrance.

Yan Xiaoyi pushed open the back window and climbed out first.

I wanted to look presentable, but after glancing out the window and then at the outside, I resigned myself to my fate and climbed out.

Lately, I've been crawling through windows, walls, and dog holes, which makes me seem quite unlike a government official.

Fortunately, Mrs. Qian didn't laugh.

She even lifted her skirt herself and stepped out from under the window onto a low stool.

His movements were clumsy, yet decisive.

As soon as they landed, the sound of crossbows came from the roof again.

Yan Xiaoyi flicked his short stick, deflecting an arrow astray.

The arrow grazed the corner of the wall and embedded itself in a pillar.

Mrs. Qian swayed, and I helped her up.

"Is the lady afraid?"

She looked at the arrow on the pillar, her voice very soft.

"Afraid."

"Then why not call it?"

"Even if I cry out, no one will die for me."

Upon hearing this, I suddenly didn't know how to respond.

The backyard of the Qian family mansion was in chaos.

The guards ran around holding lanterns.

The steward in green robes led his men into the west wing. When he saw us leaving through the back window, his face turned extremely ugly.

"Lord Shen, where are you taking your wife?"

"The Censorate".

"Madam is the mistress of the Qian family!"

"Also a witness."

The steward in green stepped forward.

Yan Xiaoyi stood in front of me.

He didn't speak, he just raised the short stick.

The steward in blue stopped.

He knew very well that he was no match for Yan Xiaoyi.

Mrs. Qian suddenly spoke.

"Get out of the way."

The steward in green looked at her.

"Madam, the master will not allow it."

Mrs. Qian smiled.

"The master is currently at the Censorate."

The steward in blue stiffened.

Madam Qian said, word by word, "Qian Zhong is dead, my dowry chest has been altered, and someone on the roof wants to kill me. And now you still want to stop me?"

The steward in blue finally bowed his head.

But I didn't relax.

Because those who truly intend to kill will not stand up and talk about etiquette.

They only know how to shoot crossbows.

We had just stepped out of the backyard when Luo Wanqian popped out from the corner of the wall.

He was still wearing the tattered clothes of a sugar figurine seller, but he was holding a small whistle in his hand.

"Lord Shen, there are two people at the back gate, they look like they're dressed in gray."

"Can it be bypassed?"

"Yes, there's a dog hole by the west wall."

I remained expressionless.

"Change to another one."

Luo Wanqian was taken aback.

"Then let's use the small door to the woodshed."

"Let's go to the woodshed."

Yan Xiaoyi glanced at me.

He probably wanted to laugh.

I ignored him.

Mrs. Qian didn't ask why they didn't use a dog hole.

This lady is very sensible.

Sure enough, you can get out through the small door in the woodshed.

But as soon as they stepped outside, two men in gray pounced from the shadows.

Yan Xiaoyi went to greet him.

Luo Wanqian shrank back in fright, still shouting, "I only sell information, not my life!"

I pulled Madam Qian behind me, and a short blade slid out from my sleeve.

I can't beat an assassin of that level.

But I can delay by half a step.

Half a step can sometimes be enough to save your life.

A man in gray bypassed Yan Xiaoyi and aimed his blade straight at Madam Qian.

I raised my hand and tossed out the fresh lime powder that Ah Liu had given me.

The white ash exploded.

The man in gray was prepared; he closed his eyes and turned his head away, but he didn't expect me to kick him.

There was some firewood lying on the ground outside the woodshed.

The firewood rolled to his feet.

His steps faltered.

Yan Xiaoyi's short stick has arrived.

boom.

The man was sent flying sideways by the impact.

Madam Qian's face paled even more as she watched this scene unfold.

I said, "Madam, please don't look."

But she did not close her eyes.

"I want to see clearly."

I was taken aback.

She whispered, "I want to see clearly who really wants me dead."

This doesn't sound like something a mistress of the Qian family would say.

Like someone who has finally woken up.

One of the two men in gray was knocked unconscious, while the other committed suicide by biting into poison.

It's so familiar that it annoys me.

After examining him, Yan Xiaoyi shook his head.

"The one that's alive can't open its mouth either. It has poison under its tongue, and it bit its tongue before I knocked it unconscious."

It broke again.

These people were settling accounts, including themselves.

When we brought Madam Qian back to the Censorate, it was already broad daylight.

At the entrance of the Censorate, Ah Liu saw Madam Qian and his eyes widened.

"Young master, why did you bring Madam Qian back with you?"

"She is a witness."

Ah Liu glanced at Madam Qian, then lowered his voice, "So, is staying at this inn getting more and more expensive?"

I almost lost my composure.

Madam Qian heard this, but only smiled faintly.

The laughter was lighter than the crying.

Zhao Guanlan came out to greet them.

When he saw that Madam Qian had come back with me, his expression became much more serious.

"Would you be willing to be a witness, madam?"

Mrs. Qian nodded.

"willing."

Zhao Guanlan said, "This matter involves Qian Rong, Madam, you need to think it through carefully."

Mrs. Qian glanced at her cuffs.

When I escaped, my sleeve was torn by the window slats.

She whispered, "I've thought about this for over twenty years, and only today have I finally figured it out."

She sat down in the hall.

She didn't cry.

He did not protest his innocence.

She simply recounted how Qian Rong had secretly added a hidden compartment to the dowry chest, how Qian Zhong had taken control of the ancestral hall key, and how Qian Rong had forbidden her from touching the chest for many years.

His tone was as calm as if he were reporting an account.

I suddenly realized that this was the most scathing accusation.

She doesn't need to cry.

The crying was too soft.

Once she lays out all the items from over the years, Qian Rong will no longer be able to claim that they were Qian Fu's private collection.

After the confession was written, Madam Qian pressed her fingerprint on it.

She finally closed her eyes when the red fingerprint fell on the paper.

"Lord Shen."

"lady."

"Will the master die?"

I remained silent for a moment.

"Let's see how many he recruits."

Mrs. Qian nodded.

"Then let him recruit more."

Ah Liu, who was listening nearby, gasped in shock.

Madam Qian added, "Qian Zhong cannot have died in vain. The children of the Qian family cannot bear the burden of an unknown crime for the rest of their lives."

I cupped my hands in greeting.

"I'll try."

She looked at me.

"Lord Shen, you shouldn't have died in vain."

I was taken aback for a moment.

She spoke very calmly.

It was just a casual reminder.

But those words carried more weight than Ah Liu crying and telling me to go to sleep.

I handed the two missing pages and the tattered letter to Zhao Guanlan for safekeeping.

After reading it, Zhao Guanlan's expression changed visibly.

"The Southwest military pay, the Empress is checking the accounts, the Imperial Treasury..."

I nodded.

"The last page is missing."

"Who's holding it?"

"have no idea."

Yan Xiaoyi leaned against the door and suddenly said, "It might be on Ji Qing, or it might be on the person who cut off his finger."

I looked at him.

That statement hits the nail on the head.

Ji Qing lost an extra little finger.

But the missing page wasn't on him.

This means someone beat us to it, intercepted Ji Qing, took his things, but didn't kill him.

Why not kill them?

It might still be useful.

Either you can't kill them.

We could either deliberately leave him behind, letting him continue running and leading us in the wrong direction.

Footsteps suddenly came from outside the door.

Gu Xingzhi has arrived.

He still had that expressionless face.

Upon entering, my eyes were immediately drawn to the missing pages.

"His Majesty wishes to see you."

I asked, "Now?"

"Now."

Zhao Guanlan frowned: "Madam Qian just testified, and the missing pages were just sealed. Shen An hasn't slept for two days."

Gu Xingzhi glanced at him.

"His Majesty is not asleep either."

it is good.

If the emperor isn't asleep, then nobody should sleep.

I rubbed my temples.

"Does Your Majesty wish to see the missing page?"

"It depends on you."

My heart sank.

This is more troublesome than checking for missing pages.

Gu Xingzhi added, "There is another person in the palace."

"Who?"

Princess Zhaoning.

Xiao Lingyi.

I looked at the tattered letter on the table.

If I do not return, I will make friends with the old friends of Zhaoning.

These words were finally about to fall upon her.

I picked up the box containing the missing pages.

Mrs. Qian suddenly spoke.

"Lord Shen."

I turned around.

She sat under the lamp, her face dry.

"If you see His Majesty, please ask him this for me."

"What do you want to ask?"

"I've been married into the Qian family for over twenty years, and I've kept his accounts hidden for over twenty years. How many women like me are there in Daliang?"

The room fell silent.

I did not answer.

Because I can't answer that.

I can only bow my head in apology.

"I'll ask."

As I walked out of the Censorate, Ah Liu chased after me and shoved the hot pancake into my hand.

This time he didn't say anything.

I looked at the pancake in my hand and suddenly smiled.

"Ah Liu."

"exist."

"When I come back, save me a bed."

Ah Liu's eyes lit up.

"Has the young master finally decided to sleep?"

I thought about it.

"It depends on whether His Majesty will allow it."

Ah Liu's eyes darkened again.

I boarded the imperial carriage, holding the missing pages and fragments of the letter in my arms.

The sunlight was blinding.

But I was so sleepy I felt cold.

But I knew that the next hearing wouldn't be about Qian Rong.

It was to see the emperor and the princess.

This also brought the Yongning case to the forefront for the first time, bringing it to the forefront of the old cases in the southwest and the old cases of the late empress.

The door was already ajar.

What's shining through isn't light.

It's a deeper black.