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

Once you exit Taiping Gate, you'll find yourself at Xuanwu Lake.

On the lakeside embankment near the city gate.

Willow branches droop.

The grass was knee-high.

As the night wind blew, the fishy smell wafted from the water to the shore, making people frown, while the green grass on the shore swayed in the lake breeze.

The wind howled.

The grass and trees are rustling.

Four imperial guards, wearing black gauze hats and each carrying a dim yellow lantern, bent over and poked around in the grass with their embroidered spring knives.

They stared intently at every spot that had been searched countless times, hoping to find even the slightest clue that had been overlooked.

A black greyhound named Jinbao pounced into the bushes, its paws slapping across the grass for a while before it emerged from another spot, its glossy black fur gleaming in the moonlight.

The black dog's eyes gleamed, and it panted heavily, occasionally letting out a low "woof".

Such barking doesn't indicate the discovery of any clues, but rather the shooing away of stray cats, other stray dogs, or the sighting of a mouse. Accompanying Jinbao's barking are often a few sharp meows and barks from startled stray cats and dogs.

Shangguan Xiu leaned on his embroidered spring knife.

He gazed at the waning moon reflected in the lake.

He secretly cursed Qin Yuanyao's mother, his face flushed red.

He gritted his teeth and spat into the water several times, cursing, "Damn black-skinned woman, you're going to die a thousand times over."

A pair of hands pressed the hilt of the knife firmly to the ground, and the scabbard sank more than an inch into the mud.

This case is so big, so confusing, and so fraught with danger... Only three days have passed since Prince Xin ascended the throne... but Prince Xin has disappeared!

When he heard the news the night before last, his heart sank to the bottom, and he instantly turned pale!

Immediately afterwards, the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Beijing Garrison were mobilized, the city gates were closed, and a thorough search was conducted throughout the city!

He dared not even imagine what kind of earth-shattering upheaval the entire Liang Dynasty would face if Prince Xin was still not found after three days...

Although such news was still being suppressed, embassies and vassal states of various countries had already begun to take action, and the imperial court was also under pressure. Officials were not only overwhelmed with worry, but could even be described as panicked.

The sudden murder of Lü Xiang left the officials uneasy, and they all went back to clean their inner quarters.

In the past two days, a large number of officials from the Eastern Palace have gone missing. The memorials that were originally to be sent to the Eastern Palace have been temporarily changed to be sent back to the Grand Secretariat, where the Grand Secretaries will make the decision and His Majesty will approve them.

This change made it clear to everyone what kind of bloody storm was brewing, and for a time, the whole city was filled with unease.

The seventh son of the Marquis's family, who had recently been promoted to commander of a thousand households, gritted his teeth. He dared not even imagine what kind of feelings the seriously ill emperor was having as he waited for their report.

What's even more troublesome is that, as a nobleman and a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, he knows a lot of things. Since last night, many people have come to him and his mother to inquire about the news... Among these people are noblemen and members of the imperial family, as well as some assistant generals and the like, all asking if it is possible to temporarily change the heir apparent... If there is no heir apparent to succeed to the throne when the delegations of various countries and the vassal states are in the capital, and His Majesty is in a state of anger and distress, the foundation of the country will be in turmoil.

Their minds began to wander.

Shangguan Xiu pulled the embroidered spring knife out of the mud, slammed it on the ground, and let out a long sigh.

"Meow--"

Jinbao, who was not far away, was scaring the stray cat again, and the unknown stray cat let out a pitiful howl.

He glanced over there, then looked away. His mood these past few days had been one of burning anxiety. Since last night, every time those people asked him questions, his feelings became even more complicated. He remembered that the five-year-old eldest grandson of the Prince of Qi had been recognized by the imperial clan and various vassal states a year ago, especially the Prince of Gui's mansion, which had even submitted a memorial praising the eldest grandson of the Prince of Qi.

Seeing this trend resurface, his heart sank even further. In an instant, he realized that someone must be stirring things up behind the scenes.

As for who it was, he dared not think about it.

As for the disappearance of Prince Xin... Shangguan Xiu's gaze shifted, and he couldn't help but look towards the north of Xuanwu Lake, where there were rows of buildings and twinkling lights, and some very important residences of imperial relatives, such as the residence of General Zhao Jun, the residence of Prince Jing, the residence of Prince Wu, and... the residence of Prince Qi.

Shangguan Xiu glanced at it, his eyes filled with fear, and his heart grew even colder... If he wasn't careful this time, the Great Liang... might really be in turmoil.

At this critical moment, when the safety of Prince Xin, Princess Tang, and the court officials was still unknown, and when the very foundation of the mighty Liang Dynasty was about to be shaken...

That damned dark-skinned woman actually arranged for him to take a dog to Prince Xin's mansion to sniff out scents...

Then follow the clues based on the scent...

call.

Shangguan Xiu exhaled from his lungs and cursed again, "Damn dark-skinned woman."

The day before yesterday, he thought the dark-skinned woman trusted him greatly and gave him Jinbao, the best greyhound in the yamen. But after investigating for two days as she instructed, he hadn't found a single clue! She didn't even give any to her own people. He, a dignified commander, was leading four men, running around with a dog, doing things even a junior officer could do... The commander, who had just made a great contribution last month, felt his heart clench. If it weren't for the urgency of the situation, he would have already run back to the yamen and given the dark-skinned woman a good scolding!

Jinbao, the dog, sniffed around the city yesterday, but after arriving here this morning, he keeps circling around Xuanwu Lake.

But this area had already been searched by the other Imperial Guards and the Capital Garrison, and there was nothing left to search. He didn't know why he was still so unwilling to give up and had followed this dead dog here so late at night.

"Woof woof woof!"

"Woof woof woof!"

Suddenly, a fierce and savage bark rang out!

"Jinbao has called!" the four Imperial Guards shouted, rising to their feet in unison. Their movements were so violent and swift that the lanterns in their hands swayed violently.

Shangguan Xiu instantly turned his head, his eyes gleaming, and looked towards the source of Jinbao's shout. He picked up his embroidered spring knife and was about to go to the place where Jinbao had found the evidence.

"Puff puff puff puff!"

A series of hurried footsteps rang out.

Under the moonlight, a dark shadow sped away at breakneck speed, rushing into the distance like an arrow released from a bow!

Shangguan Xiu was stunned. The dark figure was Jinbao... Jinbao didn't stay where he was, but ran away?

He looked in the direction Jinbao had run off to, initially thinking that Jinbao had discovered someone, and his heart was filled with joy. But when he looked up, he found that Jinbao had run off to... the city gate.

A row of bonfires was lit on each side of the city gate, their lights shining brightly.

Above the city gate, a row of armored soldiers holding long spears and carrying bows and arrows stood quietly.

Below the city gate, there were two squads of soldiers guarding the city, one inside and one outside.

Shangguan Xiu hurriedly left the lakeside and walked onto Taiping Outer Street. He didn't know why Jinbao had suddenly gone mad and was running towards the city gate.

Just then, the sound of a carriage rumbling came from inside the city.

A large yellow horse pulled a brown carriage out of Taiping Gate with great momentum, like a baby emerging from its shell, followed by about ten other horses.

The clatter of hooves mingled with the rumble of wheels as the procession marched out of the city gates in a grand procession.

Jinbao, with its shiny black fur, was barking and chasing after the carriage, tearing at it.

To avoid accidentally injuring the dogs, four imperial guards rushed to the main road and shouted, "Don't hurt the dogs!"

The familiar carriage rolled in and came to a slow stop in front of Shangguan Xiu.

Jinbao was caught up by one of the Imperial Guards and put on a dog leash.

Jinbao, whose nose was one of the best among the thirty greyhounds personally raised by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, bared its teeth and continued to bark wildly at the carriage.

The curtain was lifted.

A young man dressed in a moon-white robe stepped down from the carriage.

He glanced at Shangguan Xiu, took a deep breath, slowly exhaled, and said a few words to Shangguan Xiu.

"Commander Shangguan, I know everything now."

Shangguan Xiu was taken aback.

Before he could answer, the man spoke a second sentence.

"I'll give you a contribution that surpasses even that dark-skinned woman's, do you want it?"