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Prince An and the three leaders were escorted back to the side hall.

The knot was tighter than before. Duan Heng's knife had been taken away and was placed on the ground outside the threshold, the tip pointing outwards. Helian Mu's iron pipe was placed in the corner, the opening facing down. A thin mark remained on Li Chong's clothes, clearly from when the short blade was pulled away.

Lin Yanzhou walked from outside the hall to stand in front of Prince An, holding the jade pendant in his hand and asked, "Where did you get your jade pendant?"

Prince An sat on a round stool, his hands bound behind his back, the knots embedded in the folds of his sleeves. He didn't answer immediately, remaining silent for a moment before speaking: "On the low table beside the Emperor's bed. The late Emperor lay facing inward, the jade pendant resting on the edge of the table. There was no one guarding it in the hall."

"Are you sure that was the same night the late emperor passed away?"

"Confirmed." Prince An's tone remained unchanged. "I was summoned to the palace by urgent orders. When I arrived, the late emperor had already passed away. I waited outside the hall for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, but no one came to arrange the follow-up matters. I pushed open the door and saw the late emperor lying on his couch, with his jade pendant placed on the edge of a low table. I took the jade pendant and left the side hall." He paused for a moment. "As for the cause of the late emperor's death, who he last saw, or what he said, I know nothing."

Lin Yanzhou stared at him for a while: "After you took it, did you try out the jade pendant's purpose?"

"I've tried." Prince An's gaze fell on the jade pendant. "I've consulted old books, trying to find corresponding records in the classics. I've also tried exposing it to light at different times of day to observe the color changes on the jade's surface, but I found nothing unusual. I also sent people to the Guandi Temple to investigate, because I remember that the late Emperor often went there and always wore this item. But my men went five times, spanning nearly two years, and each time they returned with the same conclusion—there was nothing unusual inside the Guandi Temple, and the side hall was always locked and inaccessible."

Are you sure it's five times?

"Five times, with different people each time," Prince An said. "My men searched the area from the outer perimeter of the Guandi Temple to the side halls. There were no hidden doors, no secret rooms, no bricks or stones that could be moved, and no mechanisms whatsoever. The Guandi Temple was just an ordinary old temple. What the late emperor did there, and what connection that jade pendant had with it, I have never been able to find out."

Zhao Yan stood to the side, remaining silent until now. He finally spoke: "Father, before going to the Guandi Temple, did you arrange any specific time or preparatory actions?"

Prince An's reply was a beat slower than before: "I have investigated. He always leaves the palace in the afternoon, goes through the south gate, and arrives at the Guandi Temple within a fixed timeframe. He returns via the same route without deviation. I speculate that he may be going to a specific location within the Guandi Temple, rather than the entire temple. The temple is not large; if he were truly searching for something specific, he should not be confined to the area of ​​the regular route."

Zhao Yan shifted his gaze from the jade pendant: "You investigated for so long, found nothing, and then stopped investigating."

"The trail has gone cold, and further investigation will only be a waste of time," said Prince An. "I can only confirm that this item was a personal possession of the late Emperor, and he never parted with it during his lifetime, but I do not know its specific purpose."

The side hall was quiet for a while. Zhao Lingxi stood in the shadows beside the side door and suddenly asked, "Did Father always go to the Guandi Temple alone when he was alive?"

Prince An glanced at her: "He never brings anyone with him. Not even his personal eunuch. The records of the Imperial Household Department only record the time he leaves and returns to the palace; everything else is blank."

Lin Yanzhou stood beside the table, his gaze fixed on the jade pendant. He recalled a piece of intelligence Xiaolan had previously given him—someone had noticed a dry well in the backyard of the old Guandi Temple residence. The wellhead was covered by a thick stone slab, suggesting it hadn't been disturbed recently, but someone had indeed lingered at its edge longer than if simply passing by to rest. If the late emperor always visited the Guandi Temple without entourage, taking the same route, and going to the same spot, that dry well was likely at the end of that route.

He mentally retraced the steps of the bluestone slab, then turned to look at Zhao Lingxi: "Once things are settled here, let's go to the Guandi Temple."

Prince An sat on a round stool, the rough hemp edges of the rope binding his wrists showing dark brown lines under the oil lamp light. He spoke, "The old abbot of the Guandi Temple passed away three years ago. The last few times my men went there, only an old gatekeeper remained, and he knew nothing. Your investigation will yield no results."

Lin Yanzhou waved his hand, ordering his men to imprison Prince An, with the outcome to be determined after the origin of the jade pendant was investigated. As for the rest, they were not of his kind; they were to be beheaded immediately!

Night had completely fallen outside. The sound of footsteps changing shifts came from the direction of the city wall, and the torchlight formed a winding curve along the ridge of the wall. Judging by the timing, the rebels should be arriving soon, and the troops I had arranged to the north should also be preparing to outflank and encircle them.

Lin Yanzhou took the princess's hand and said, "My dear, today is our wedding day. I'll treat you to a fireworks display. Come, let's go watch it together." Emperor Zhao Yan, still a child at heart, called to his ministers to straighten their clothes and watch the fireworks together.

After dusk had completely fallen, all the torches on the city wall were lit.

Four cannons were lined up on both sides of the city gate, their barrels gleaming a dark iron color in the firelight. The muzzles were lowered, aimed at the outside of the city. Two gunners squatted beside each cannon, one adjusting the angle and the other loading the cannon. The sound of the ramrod being inserted into the breech was short and clear in the night wind.

Thirty wooden crates were neatly stacked along the base of the city wall, their lids open, revealing three thousand hand grenades with their wooden handles exposed, fuses facing upwards, and matchlocks already twisted. The musketeers crouched behind the crenellations, arranged in two rows, the front row with their barrels level, and the rear row with their ramrods gripping, ready to pass the muskets to the front row as soon as they finished firing a round.

Below the city wall, the rebels' torches began to gather again, forming an arc extending along the base of the wall. The swordsmen and shieldmen in the front ranks were slowly advancing, while the archers in the rear ranks had already drawn their bows. The torchlight cast their silhouettes into blurry shadows, and the clanging of metal was exceptionally clear in the night wind.

Lin Yanzhou stood in the center of the city gate tower, a short black stick beside him. He glanced down at the outside of the city, then looked up at the thickening clouds in the night sky, before turning to Zhao Lingxi and saying, "Stand next to me, and hold me tight in a bit."