Denghuangtai

"My Lord".

The next morning, Pei Qingyan had just woken up when there was a knock on the window. Immediately afterwards, the window was pushed open, and Yuan Man jumped in through the window.

Pei Qingyan pulled his robes up and sat up. "Is there a clue?"

Yuan Man dragged the round stool to the bedside, sat down, and said with a solemn expression, "I'm afraid the Lord may not want to hear such news."

Pei Qingyan was taken aback at first, but her expression immediately changed drastically. She closed her eyes briefly to calm herself, sighed deeply, and opened them again, a cold glint in her eyes. "Was it the Empress Dowager, or were both of them involved?"

"The Empress Dowager was the mastermind behind the defeat at Yixiantian, who instigated the military council officer to betray military intelligence. As for Yun Zheng..."

Yuan Man paused, looking at Pei Qingyan, "The people sent to pick up the family of the military council officer were from his own household."

Pei Qingyan's heart sank; there was no escaping it now.

Yun Zheng is most likely involved in this.

Pei Qingyan felt increasingly desolate and bleak, and a chill crept into his heart from his limbs.

"My lord?"

"It's nothing," Pei Qingyan said slowly, regaining his composure.

Yuan Man looked at her, sighed, and did not expose her feigned composure, nor did she expose Pei Qingyan's tear-streaked face.

To protect Pei Qingyan's peace of mind, Yuan Man has also bribed several inconspicuous Taoist priests these past few days, and learned from them about the changes in the relationship between Pei Qingyan and Yun Zheng.

If this hadn't happened, she would have been happy to see Pei Qingyan and Yun Zheng reconcile. But alas…

Yuan Man sighed inwardly.

"My lord, there is one more thing."

"What is it?"

"It is said that the Grand Marshal was unwell before setting out on the campaign..."

"Unwell?" Pei Qingyan's heart tightened. "Have you found out the reason?"

Yuan Man shook his head, his tone troubled, "We haven't found any concrete evidence. Logically, the Grand Marshal's health was being treated by the palace physicians, but strangely enough, all the medical records in front of the Grand Marshal were inexplicably destroyed."

Mysteriously destroyed...

Upon hearing these four words, Pei Qingyan roughly understood the hidden crisis behind them.

It is well known that the families of the powerful and wealthy are most prone to accidents. To prevent a lack of evidence in the future, the pulse records of royal relatives and nobles who received medical treatment from palace physicians were compiled into a book by a special person.

As soon as Pei Qingyan stepped into the main courtyard, memories of the past flooded back.

In the sixth year of the Jianyuan era, her father, Pei Xuan, was promoted to General of the Cavalry and enfeoffed as Marquis of Changping for his military achievements.

This residence was also bestowed upon him by His Majesty at that time.

At that time, she and her brother, who were young, were led by their father on either side, and met the princess for the first time here. Later, her father fought in many battles, while she lived with the princess in the main courtyard for many years.

From childhood to adolescence, she played and frolicked here, and also practiced martial arts here.

During his brief rest in Beijing, his father would take his two children to the courtyard. Whenever they practiced until they were drenched in sweat, the eldest princess would descend like a goddess, gently inviting the three of them into the house with pear soup and perilla drink.

The past is still vivid in my mind, but those simple and happy times are gone forever.

Thinking of this, Pei Qingyan felt as if her heart was being pricked by needles.

She raised her hand and rubbed her face, suppressing the bitterness in her heart. She walked past the dilapidated crabapple trees, went up the steps, and pushed open the door to the main house.

The room was empty; all traces of the princess had been erased. Just as she was about to step inside, a sharp whistle suddenly came from outside.

Pei Qingyan's expression darkened slightly. She turned and leaped onto the roof, where she saw a figure running swiftly along the roof. She chased after it.

The person seemed to be more familiar with the place than Pei Qingyan, the master. After being chased through several courtyards, he disappeared in a flash.

Pei Qingyan was both angry and annoyed. He clutched the wound on his chest and gasped for breath. Suddenly, he looked up and saw a set of armor standing there. Not far away, there was a weapons rack with swords, spears, and halberds neatly arranged on it.

Her father led these expeditions east and west, defeating the Xiongnu so fiercely that they fled in terror.

In a letter home last year, her father jokingly remarked, "I am in good health and in the prime of my life. If given the opportunity, I will certainly serve on the battlefield, wielding weapons and armor to defend our country."

During the winter months, her father still had this ambition, but the following spring, he suddenly died.

How is that possible?

And her brother.

Her brother was the most upright and proper person she could be. He had been self-disciplined and respectful of etiquette since childhood and had never overstepped the bounds of propriety. If he were to violate military secrets, there would probably be very few people in the world who would abide by the rules.

Ironically, a strong man died suddenly, while a law-abiding man was executed for violating military discipline.

How could Pei Qingyan not have doubts about such a bizarre result?

Pei Qingyan's eyes were overflowing with hatred; she clenched her fists, her hands trembling slightly.

"A young lady?"

A hoarse voice sounded from behind.

She turned around and saw an elderly man with gray hair standing not far away.

Uncle He.

Pei Qingyan called out to her father, who was a staff member of the Grand Marshal's office.

Uncle He looked her up and down, a look of pity appearing in his cloudy eyes.

"Please accept my condolences, young lady."

His voice was neither sad nor happy, as if he were saying this as a routine matter.

Pei Qingyan found it strange that as her father's confidant, she spoke of his death with such calmness.

And that figure that just disappeared...

She was filled with confusion, but this wasn't the time to dwell on it. She needed to find the mastermind behind the assassination of the imperial envoy and carve out a way out for herself.