After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

"Hmph, Master, if you ask me, you are very good at writing poetry and playing chess, but you are indecisive, not decisive, and not swift enough when doing things. You are also timid."

"Your master's wife has been missing for three days, and you're actually afraid of upsetting her and not going to see her? Tsk tsk tsk, in Gongsun's opinion, you should have gone to see your master's wife long ago. Maybe she's been waiting for you to see her..."

"Hmm...but..."

"Hmm... But being indecisive does have its advantages, you're a really good person. Many husbands' families don't allow their daughters to show their faces in public, and even women aren't allowed to show their faces in public. When I came to school, my parents scolded me..."

"I don't care about them... Not only are they not allowed to show their faces in public, but some of them also have to bind their feet. One of my aunts had her feet bound, and my father doted on her... Sigh... I wonder if my future husband will allow me to be a female teacher at the academy."

The moonlight was like water.

The water was sprinkled on the blue bricks and white tiles of the Ning Mansion's kitchen, creating a tranquil and leisurely atmosphere.

Unfortunately, the wisp of smoke rising from the chimney somewhat spoiled the elegance.

A woman named Gongsun Heng sat on the steps outside the kitchen, listening to the clanging sounds of stir-frying inside. She rested her chin on her hands, grumbling about random things, her eyes glazed over, filled with worry for herself and a hint of envy for her master's wife.

Standing in front of the stove, Mr. Ning, while wiping away the cooking fumes, said leisurely:

"Oh, Ms. Gongsun, isn't your goal to break the Laurel Chess Formation and get your grandfather's permission to stay home and practice Buddhism with your hair intact? The dignified Gongsun Laywoman, where would you get a husband?"

"Just thinking about it isn't allowed!" The woman wearing a headscarf said angrily, her cheeks flushed. After a while, she pursed her lips and muttered softly, "I just thought I wouldn't be able to find a husband's family like that, so I wanted to become a nun with my hair intact."

To the female disciple's complaints—that she clearly wanted to choose her own husband rather than be forced into an arranged marriage, yet feigned a vow of nurturing at home—Master Ning remained noncommittal, merely pursing his lips and exclaiming:

"Come over and try the food!"

The junior sister, whom the students of Bailu Academy cherished like a pearl, suddenly stood up. The kitchen was filled with a fragrant aroma. Gongsun Heng took a deep breath and ran over to Ning Nan's side in a few steps.

Master Ning prepared three dishes: rice wine duck, honey-steamed preserved fish, and a side dish that his wife liked, stir-fried chrysanthemum greens. The preserved fish and chrysanthemum greens were sent from the countryside by his mother. His wife had eaten them in the countryside before, so he thought she would like them.

Gongsun flicked his bamboo chopsticks, picked up a piece of duck meat, took a small bite, his eyes suddenly lit up, and after chewing with his pearly white teeth, he asked, "Is there any rice?"

Ning Nan rolled her eyes: "No, why eat so much so late?"

"Not bad." A fleeting look of disappointment crossed Miss Gongsun's face as she nodded her little head in praise.

She reached out and dipped her chopsticks into the dish of rice wine duck. After observing her expression, Master Ning knew that her cooking skills hadn't deteriorated, so he decisively put all three dishes into the eight-treasure food box, leaving only a pair of resentful chopsticks frozen in mid-air.

The Prince Xin's Mansion is right next door.

Master Ning did not take the carriage.

It was the hour of Hai (9-11 PM), and after countless autumn rains over the past few days, the air between heaven and earth was clear and pure.

A gentle night breeze caressed my face, giving me a refreshing and comfortable feeling.

Ning Nan carried the food box and walked towards the side gate of the Prince Xin's mansion in the night. Gongsun Heng followed behind him, her face flushed. Ning Nan said helplessly, "Why are you following me?"

Gongsun said confidently, "Can't I go and take a look at my master's wife?" But his eyes kept darting around, and he was thinking about seeing how embarrassed his master was in front of his master's wife, secretly smiling, and then telling his master's wife that she had been scolded by her master and cried today.

Qian Sijin, along with Xu Cheng and the other two, followed behind, their expressions both strange and uneasy. They were only responsible for protecting Young Master Ning, and they had no right to interfere with where Young Master Ning wanted to go.

Boom, boom, boom.

Ning Nan took a breath, pulled up the brass ring on the side door, and knocked.

A short while later, a tall doorman opened the door, glanced at the young man who was inexplicably carrying a food box, and asked, "Who are you, esteemed guest?"

Ning Nan smiled politely and said, "Brother, please. My surname is Ning. My wife is a clerk in the Embroidered Uniform Guard. She has been working at the Prince's residence recently and has not returned home for a long time. I have come to bring her a meal." Qian Sijin silently closed his eyes.

The servant gave him a strange look, sizing him up and down: "Imperial Guard? Clerk?"

"Not bad." Ning Nan took out two taels of silver from his sleeve and was about to hand it over.

The other person hurriedly waved their hand, saying, "No, don't come."

He frowned and said, "Brother, there is no one in charge of the Prince's mansion right now. Almost all of them have been sent out, and there are not many people left to guard it. The orders I received are that no one is allowed to enter."

There's no one capable of taking charge; they've all been sent out... Ning Nan frowned.

The doorman spread his hands and said, "If your wife were a maid or an aunt, I would go in and help you look for her and call out to her. But if you're talking about someone from the Embroidered Uniform Guard, then I don't know. There are usually people from various departments, but not today. They're all gone."

Ning Nan's expression froze, and his heart began to clench... What do you mean by gone?

He frowned and asked, "May I ask, sir, what is the current status of your esteemed household's female officials...?"

The doorman interrupted, "Brother, your wife should go back to whichever government office she works for now. There are no other government employees in the Prince's Mansion."

Ning Nan choked for a moment upon hearing this, his hand holding the food box tightened, and his mind suddenly became somewhat muddled.

He asked a few more questions, and although the doorman answered, his expression gradually became impatient. He said that there were only servants and some guards from the Prince's mansion in the mansion, and less than half of them. There was definitely no one from your wife's household.

Ning Nan glanced at the other person's expression and knew that if he asked any more questions, the other person would probably think he was a troublemaker, so he stopped asking and handed over the two taels of silver with a smile.

Perhaps because he had repeated the same thing so many times, the doorman got annoyed and accepted the two taels of silver this time, though his expression remained indifferent.

Ning Nan took his leave and stepped back a few paces. Ever since he saw the Prince Xin's mansion was quiet yesterday, he had been feeling uneasy. This morning, seeing the mansion still quiet, his unease intensified.

Now, as he stepped back and glanced at the Prince's Mansion, the vague unease finally materialized into reality before his eyes.

Only after this reminder did he notice that the lights in the Prince's mansion were many times dimmer than usual tonight, and many places were not lit at all.

Qian Sijin, Xu Cheng, and the others frowned. Their superior was Xu Tong, a centurion. Centurion Xu had only sent someone to tell them to protect Young Master Ning, and then said nothing more.

Ning Nan took a breath. Gongsun didn't know what was wrong. She looked at her master and was about to say a few words of comfort when she saw her master's face visibly darken. It was the same look she had seen when her father was angry at his subordinates when she was a child. Gongsun felt a chill in her heart and silently pursed her lips.

A night breeze swept across the long street.

A mournful whistle rang out.

Ning Nan squinted at the wind, glanced at the pitch-black Datong Street ahead, and after a moment of silence, said in a deep voice:

"Qian Xiaoqi... let's go to Qingliang Mountain."