At the stone table in the western courtyard of the Shen mansion, Shen Miao was playing chess with Shen Qiu.

It was rare for Shen Qiu to have a day off from sword practice. Knowing that Shen Miao’s chess skills had improved dramatically, Shen Qiu had been eager to defeat her for quite some time. However, the outcome was not as he had hoped.

Shen Miao placed a black piece on the board, and Shen Qiu’s previously dominating white pieces became surrounded by black ones, with no way to escape. Shen Qiu stared blankly for a while before asking Shen Miao, “Sister, isn’t this the strategy I used in our first game?”

He felt the pattern on the board looked somewhat familiar. The more he looked, the more surprised he became. Shen Miao was recreating the exact moves he had made in their first game. But she was using them more effectively—at least in this game, she was employing this strategy skillfully and aggressively.

“Fighting fire with fire,” Shen Miao smiled. “Big brother, can you find a counter to your technique?”

Shen Qiu shook his head. “This strategy of mine is designed to trap opponents. It sets up a dead end. I can’t find a way out of it myself, sister.”

Shen Miao gazed at the intersecting patterns on the chessboard and smiled faintly.

In her previous life, Shen Qiu had killed Sun Cainan and was imprisoned a few years later. The subsequent scheming probably had Shen Yuan’s fingerprints all over it. She wondered if Shen Yuan would recognize his tactics when used against him. Could he solve the deadly trap he had set for Shen Qiu?

Probably not.

As Shen Qiu was scratching his head, about to place a piece, he suddenly saw someone rushing into the courtyard. It was a second-class maid who handled cleaning duties. Her face was filled with terror as she frantically said, “Terrible news, First Young Master, Fifth Young Lady! Second Young Master has killed someone outside!”

“What?” Shen Qiu frowned, and a chess piece fell from his hand, spinning on the ground before coming to rest.

Shen Miao bent down to pick up the piece, looked at the maid, and asked in a gentle voice, “Who did he kill?”

…

In the deepest cell of the Capital Magistrate’s prison, Shen Yuan was confined. His hands and clothes were stained with blood, a horrifying sight, and his face also showed bruises.

This was the first time Shen Yuan had found himself in such a dire situation. During the fight with Jing Chuchu’s lover, for some reason, he had felt an extremely irritable emotion, as if his head was burning with rage. By the time he regained his clarity, he had already stabbed Sun Cainan to death with a knife. The tavern was a wooden structure, and the commotion from their fight had awakened many people. The screams from Taoyuan and Jing Chuchu almost immediately exposed the murder.

It was only then that Shen Yuan’s mind began to calm down. He had been too impulsive today.

Shen Yuan had always been proud and arrogant. What he hated most was having his dignity trampled. The incident at the Shen family banquet had been humiliating enough, but he had endured it only because he had been unconscious at the time. Now, everyone in the capital knew he was to marry Jing Chuchu, but she was still putting horns on his head outside. The people at the tavern seemed to be pointing and whispering about him, and Shen Yuan had been unable to control his anger.

Jing Chuchu had been taken away somewhere, but since she was the cause of this incident, her fate would likely not be any easier.

However… Shen Yuan still found it strange that the people at the tavern recognized him and Jing Chuchu. And why would Jing Chuchu choose that particular room to meet her lover? He vaguely felt something was off, but quickly shook his head. That place was where he met with Fu Xiuyi’s people; besides Fu Xiuyi’s men, no one else would know about it.

Shen Yuan thought deeply. Fu Xiuyi’s men must have arrived at the tavern and would have learned about what happened.

By now, he had completely calmed down. The panic had dissipated, and neither the bloodstains on his clothes nor the gloomy prison cell shook his composure.

Just then, a jailer approached and stopped in front of his cell. Shen Yuan looked up and exclaimed with delight, “Dong Hao!”

Dong Hao was the man who was supposed to meet with him. Now disguised as a jailer, he had infiltrated the prison to speak with him.

“Listen to me, this is all a misunderstanding,” Shen Yuan said urgently. “Please ask His Highness to help me this once, and I will repay him in the future.”

Shen Yuan had never expected Shen Gui to come to his rescue. Shen Gui was the kind of person who would do anything to protect his career, so how could he possibly risk himself for his son? The only one who could help him now was Fu Xiuyi, but royal family members were not known for loyalty. The only way was to prove his usefulness. Shen Yuan said, “The evidence I gave to His Highness still has some incomplete parts. His Highness is about to submit a memorial to the Emperor soon. Please find a way to get me out of here, and I will complete the final piece for His Highness.”

Hearing this, Dong Hao’s gaze flickered. Shen Yuan’s words indicated that the evidence against Shen Xin that he had given to Fu Xiuyi was incomplete. Shen Yuan had kept something back, probably as insurance against Fu Xiuyi abandoning him. But now, finding himself imprisoned, he had no choice but to reveal his trump card early.

Seeing Dong Hao’s silence, Shen Yuan grew anxious. “This is just a misunderstanding and not difficult to resolve. I can provide the money myself. His Highness just needs to put in a word with the authorities. Things like this have happened before with others.”

Shen Yuan was so calm largely because the situation didn’t seem that dire to him. It was even simpler than the incident at the Shen family banquet. At the banquet, he and Jing Chuchu had been caught sleeping together in front of all the madams, and no matter what, it was Jing Chuchu who had suffered the loss, and the Jing family was being unreasonable, leaving him no way out. But with his killing of Sun Cainan, only Jing Chuchu and her maid had witnessed it. As long as they testified, he could still escape. As for the lover, he could give some silver to appease them, and with Fu Xiuyi’s men fabricating a crime, such as claiming the man was trying to assassinate Shen Yuan but was subdued, it could be covered up. Murder, as long as the victim wasn’t from a high-ranking family, could always be concealed.

Moreover, his identity had not yet been discovered. From others’ perspective, they only knew someone had been killed, but not who the killer was.

Dong Hao shook his head and said, “Shen Yuan, you’ve got yourself into big trouble this time.”

Shen Yuan’s emerging smile vanished abruptly, not understanding Dong Hao’s meaning.

“Do you know who you killed?”

Shen Yuan felt an ominous foreboding rise within him as he watched Dong Hao slowly open his mouth in the darkness.

“The only legitimate son of the Minister of Personnel, Sun Tianzheng’s son, Sun Cainan.”

…

Outside the General’s Mansion, a large crowd had gathered. These people were holding clubs and looked menacing, and even the Shen family’s guards were having trouble holding them back. Inside, Shen Yue was hiding in Chen Ruoqiu’s arms, trembling with fear. “Mother, did the second brother kill someone?”

As Chen Ruoqiu comforted her, she also felt puzzled. Those people outside claimed to be from the Minister of Personnel’s household, saying that Shen Yuan had killed the Minister’s legitimate son, Sun Cainan. They were creating a disturbance, demanding to enter and wreak havoc. But why would Shen Yuan kill Sun Cainan for no reason?

Shen Gui and Shen Wan were already outside blocking them. If it weren’t for Shen Xin’s army, those people would have already broken in.

Concubine Wan was hiding in a small room, nervously holding Shen Dongling’s hand, saying, “If Second Young Master killed someone, those people won’t do anything to us, right?”

“Don’t worry,” Shen Dongling replied. “They’re only after Second Brother. What does it have to do with us?” She sat behind the screen, but the pages of her book remained unturned.

“Miss!” Jingzhe bounced into the room and said, “The people outside are causing such a commotion that even the Old Madam has been disturbed!”

Shen Miao didn’t even raise her eyelids and asked, “Oh? How is the Old Madam?”

“After hearing that Second Young Master killed someone, she immediately fainted again,” Jingzhe said with a hint of schadenfreude.

“Miss, will this matter implicate us?” Guyu asked worriedly. After all, they all knew why Shen Yuan had killed someone—it was all because of Shen Miao’s machinations behind the scenes.

“It’s fine. People are shielding us. Sun Tianzheng is powerful, but the Shen family is no less formidable. Besides, their ultimate target is still Shen Yuan. If Shen Yuan pays with his life, they will have no more complaints.”

“But will Second Young Master pay with his life?” Guyu asked. “Second Master won’t so easily let his son go to his death.”

“If there were no Shen Yuanbai, Second Uncle would certainly do everything possible to exonerate Second Brother,” Shen Miao said. “But with Shen Yuanbai, Second Uncle has a fallback. In his eyes, losing one son to appease the Sun family’s anger is worthwhile.”

Among the three sons in the Shen family, Shen Gui cared the least about family bonds. At least Shen Wan showed genuine affection toward Shen Yue, but Shen Gui showed no real concern for any of his children, whether the legitimate Shen Yuan, Shen Qing, and Shen Yuanbai or the illegitimate Shen Dongling. To Shen Gui, his children were either political assets or his heirs. No wonder the children of the second branch felt no affection toward Shen Gui.

If there were no Shen Yuanbai, Shen Yuan would be Shen Gui’s only son, and Shen Gui would certainly fight for him. But with Shen Yuanbai, Shen Gui had another son, so Shen Yuan was no longer indispensable. Besides, would the Sun family be so easily placated? In her previous life, Shen Qiu had killed Sun Cainan, and the Sun family had thrown Shen Qiu in prison. Shen Xin had to spend his entire fortune to save Shen Qiu’s life. Sun Tianzheng had only one legitimate son. Having lost his only son, how could he easily let his son’s killer go?

“But is Second Young Master the only one who’s going to suffer?” Jingzhe asked provocatively. “What about the young lady? She’s still hiding in the mansion and won’t come out.” After the incident, Jing Chuchu had somehow slipped back and was hiding in the Shen mansion with her family.

“How could she not?” Shen Miao smiled slightly. “After all, she’s the root cause.”

Outside the mansion gate, Shen Wan was awkwardly trying to persuade the crowd, “Everyone, please listen. We haven’t yet clarified the situation. Please return home for now, and we will certainly give you all an explanation!”

A woman spat in Shen Wan’s face, put her hands on her hips, and said, “Repay debts with money, repay lives with lives! Our young master was killed by Shen Yuan. We demand a life for a life! This matter is not over!”

Shen Gui cowered slightly, cursing Shen Yuan to hell in his heart. Outside, besides the servants from the Minister’s mansion, there were also commoners gathered to watch the commotion. Someone shouted, “Wasn’t the murder committed out of jealousy? What does this beauty, who was fought over, look like? Let us all have a glimpse! ‘Losing one’s head for the beauty’—how beautiful must she be?”

As soon as these words were spoken, those around immediately joined in. The Minister’s household’s people suddenly realized that in their chaos, with Sun Cainan leaving home normally only to return as a cold corpse, they had been focused on grieving and demanding Shen Yuan’s life, forgetting about Jing Chuchu. Now, reminded by the onlookers, they remembered. Since Sun Cainan and Shen Yuan had fought over Jing Chuchu, leading to Shen Yuan accidentally killing Sun Cainan, Jing Chuchu was the femme fatale!

The Sun family’s people immediately shouted, “Right! Hand over that slut! She seduced our young master—shameless little prostitute! Hand her over quickly!”

Not just the Sun family, but even Shen Gui himself would have liked to kill Jing Chuchu with his own hands. Since Jing Chuchu had arrived at the Shen mansion, the second branch of the Shen family had suffered one misfortune after another. First, the family banquet incident had ruined Shen Yuan’s reputation, and now it had led to Shen Yuan getting into a murder case. Without a second thought, Shen Gui ordered his servants, and before long, Jing Chuchu was bound and brought out.

Shen Gui gave Shen Wan a look, and Shen Wan said, “Everyone, please don’t be angry. We will be reasonable. Since this matter was caused by Chuchu, I will hand her over to you to do as you please!”

Jing Chuchu let out a miserable cry, but the crowd gave her no chance to resist. The Sun family’s people grabbed the bound Jing Chuchu, who looked like a trussed pig, and slapped her dozens of times on the face, causing her to faint on the spot.

“Don’t be so overbearing!” Jing Guansheng and the Jing couple also rushed out and were furious at the sight. The Sun family’s people laughed coldly, “No wonder you’re from a small place like Suzhou. Not only are you shallow-minded, but you also have such corrupted morals. A betrothed woman going around seducing men. This matter is not over, and none of you should expect to get away with it!”

The Jing family was both angry and afraid—angry at the Sun family’s arrogance, and afraid because they had no backing in the capital except the Shen family. And the Shen family had already been on bad terms with them. Now that they were in trouble, it would be fortunate if the Shen family didn’t push them into a deeper pit, let alone lend a helping hand!

The commotion continued outside the Shen family gate for quite some time. As the sky darkened, the people from the Sun family finally left with the barely conscious Jing Chuchu. Before leaving, the leading woman sneered, “Today is just the beginning. You Shen family members, wait and see. The master has already written a memorial to the Emperor. There’s no reason in this world why someone who has taken a life can go free. A life for a life—no one will get away with it!”

Watching the Sun family leave behind a mess and depart swagger, Shen Gui almost couldn’t catch his breath. The final words about Sun Tianzheng having already written a memorial to the Emperor particularly horrified him. Sun Tianzheng had only one son, and with Sun Cainan’s death, Sun Tianzheng would not let him off even if it meant mutual destruction. From the looks of it, even if Shen Yuan died, it might not appease the Sun family’s anger.

Shen Qiu returned to the western courtyard, wiped his sweat, and complained to Shen Miao, “The Sun family is too rude. They almost broke down the main gate. Even our soldiers couldn’t hold them back.”

“The pain of losing a son,” Shen Miao comforted him. “Naturally, they needed to vent.”

“Father and Mother have decided not to intervene this time,” Shen Qiu muttered. “But Shen Yuan has never been impulsive. Even if Jing Chuchu was meeting with Sun Cainan in private, why would he kill in a fit of rage?”

“Who knows?” Shen Miao said casually. “Perhaps Sun Cainan was destined to die, regardless of whose hands he died by.”

…

In the main hall of the Sun mansion, a room full of concubines knelt on the ground. In the center of the hall was a corpse covered with a white cloth. Even so, there were traces of congealed blood on the cloth.

Madam Sun had fainted as soon as she learned of Sun Cainan’s death. After waking up, she was nearly broken, inconsolable. Sun Tianzheng, now in his fifties, had bloodshot eyes, and his cheeks were trembling slightly.

A wandering Taoist had once predicted that he would be childless throughout his life. In his early years, Sun Tianzheng had married numerous concubines but couldn’t father a son. Sun Cainan was conceived by Madam Sun after great difficulty, making him a son born in Sun Tianzheng’s later years. Therefore, he had been pampered since childhood, which over time fostered Sun Cainan’s lustful and playful nature. However, due to Sun Tianzheng’s high position, fearing the scrutiny of imperial censors, he had long warned Sun Cainan against being too conspicuous. If he wanted to play with women, he should take them as concubines into the mansion. Sun Cainan, not being in an official position, indulged in affairs within the mansion, and not many people knew him. As for those in official positions at court, they were even less likely to have any connection with him.

Yet, he had died at the hands of Shen Yuan. Now, the Taoist’s words had proven true—Sun Tianzheng was indeed destined to be childless.

“Shen Yuan…” Sun Tianzheng gritted his teeth and said, “I want him to pay with his life!”

“Master,” one of Sun Tianzheng’s favorite concubines wiped tears from the corners of her eyes and said, “I heard the servants have brought that woman back too. After all, it was that woman who led our young master to this. Master plans to…”

Sun Tianzheng laughed coldly and said, “Don’t kill her yet. Leave her with a breath of life and send her to the madam.”

The concubine shuddered. All the concubines had experienced Madam Sun’s methods. Now, with the pain of losing her son, what Madam Sun would do to Jing Chuchu was unimaginable.

“The Shen family can only touch Shen Yuan. Does the Jing family, with their commoner status, think they can get away unscathed?” Sun Tianzheng made a cracking sound, breaking the cup in his hand. The cup cut his hand, and blood dripped down, but he didn’t notice, saying hatefully, “I want all the Jing family members to accompany my son in death!”

The entire capital was discussing Shen Yuan’s killing of the Minister of Personnel’s only son. In Prince Ding’s mansion, Dong Hao stood in the hall, bowing to the person seated on the high chair.

Fu Xiuyi stroked the rim of his teacup and pondered, “I was going to present the memorial about the Shen family to Father Emperor tomorrow, but Shen Yuan got into trouble today.”

“Shen Yuan’s evidence is still incomplete, Your Highness. Should we try to extract the rest from him?”

“No need,” Fu Xiuyi waved his hand. “What Shen Yuan provided is enough. Even if I wanted more complete evidence, I can’t intervene in this matter.”

“Does Your Highness mean to abandon Shen Yuan?” Dong Hao asked.

“If it were anyone else, it would be fine, but it had to be Sun Tianzheng. Sun Tianzheng is Prince Zhou’s man. Prince Zhou will surely get involved. If I step in, it will only alert Prince Zhou. Shen Yuan has caused too much trouble this time.” Fu Xiuyi shook his head.

Dong Hao remained silent for a moment. “But what if Shen Yuan decides to bring Your Highness down with him and reveals everything?”

“Shen Yuan always keeps a backup plan for himself, so what you said needs to be guarded against.” Fu Xiuyi looked at the teacup in his hand. “So not only can we not help Shen Yuan, but we must also urge the Ministry of Justice to execute him quickly. Killing Shen Yuan in prison would arouse suspicion, so find a way to poison him.”

Dong Hao hurriedly agreed and then asked Fu Xiuyi, “Will Your Highness still submit the memorial tomorrow?”

“No,” Fu Xiuyi rubbed his temple. “This incident will cause a stir. Bringing up the memorial now would not be impactful enough. Let’s wait a bit.” He suddenly opened his eyes. “However, you’d better investigate who Shen Yuan has had conflicts with recently.”

Dong Hao was startled. “Does Your Highness mean that someone is scheming behind the scenes?”

“Shen Yuan has never been impulsive. This time he acts impulsively and kills someone, and that someone happens to be Sun Tianzheng’s only son. Don’t you think it’s too coincidental? Moreover, why would Jing Chuchu’s affair happen to cross paths with Shen Yuan? It’s very strange.”

“Shen Yuan is not one to be easily schemed against,” Dong Hao said. “And if someone can control even the aftermath, this person must be very familiar with Shen Yuan.”

“To force Shen Yuan into such a situation,” Fu Xiuyi said, “this person cannot be spared. I cultivate a chess piece not for it to be used by others and become a waste.” At this point, a trace of darkness flashed in Fu Xiuyi’s eyes. He wasn’t as calm as he appeared. Shen Yuan was a chess piece he had carefully cultivated for many years, not only because of Shen Yuan’s intelligence but more importantly because he was a member of the Shen family. Being in Shen Yuan’s position would make many things easier in the future. But now he had to sacrifice a piece to save the game. The carefully cultivated confidant would never be of use again.

Moreover, it was through such a crude and brutal method involving a woman.

“I will thoroughly investigate this matter,” Dong Hao said. “Fortunately, Shen Yuan had already handed over the materials to Your Highness before the incident.”

Fu Xiuyi said, “It’s a pity we have to wait a while longer.”

Meanwhile, on the upper floor of the Fenxian Pawnshop, Ji Yushu clapped his hands, grinning from ear to ear. “Marvelous! Miss Shen truly lives up to her reputation—when she strikes, it’s stunning. Tomorrow was supposed to be Shen Xin’s downfall, but today Shen Yuan is imprisoned. The timing is impeccable.”

“It’s just a coincidence,” Gao Yang rolled his eyes at him. “Shen Miao probably doesn’t even know about this yet.”

“Whether she knows or not, I’ve won the bet with you anyway,” Ji Yushu said smugly. “Send the bank note to the pawnshop later and give it to Hong Ling.”

Gao Yang was silent for a moment before saying, “Shen Yuan probably never thought he would fall victim to such a low-level tactic.”

Because of his wife’s affair, he had fought with her lover out of jealousy and mistakenly killed him. No matter how one looked at it, it wasn’t a glorious situation. Whether it was the adulterer, the unfaithful wife, or the cuckolded husband, people would only discuss this incident as a joke. Shen Yuan was talented and knew how to be patient. Having just returned to the capital, with Fu Xiuyi’s high regard for him, given time, he would have become someone formidable. Who would have thought he would meet such a humiliating and tragic end?

Though it seemed like a joke, the consequences were severe, simply because the person he killed was Sun Tianzheng’s only son.

“Sun Tianzheng will submit a memorial tomorrow. Gao Yang, do you think Shen Yuan will pay with his life this time?” Ji Yushu asked.

“What do you think of Shen Miao?” Gao Yang asked an unrelated question.

“What does this have to do with Miss Shen?” Ji Yushu was puzzled.

“Once you fall into a trap set by Shen Miao, have you ever seen anyone escape unscathed? You should have seen it since the time with Prince Yu. Her traps are never single-layered. This matter seems to target Shen Yuan, but in reality, it’s not just about him.”

“You’re saying she has more moves planned?” Ji Yushu asked. “At most, Shen Yuan pays with his life. What more could she want?”

“I think Shen Yuan is just one of many targets,” Gao Yang shook his head, his expression becoming serious despite himself. “If she makes a move, I feel it won’t be against just one person.”

Ji Yushu was silent for a moment before asking seriously, “What deep grudge does Miss Shen have against the other members of the Shen family? Such elaborate schemes, though chilling, must have a reason. Did the Shen family do something unforgivable to her?”

It seemed insufficient to explain why a young girl would resort to such cruel and meticulous planning just because the Shen family had used a “kill with kindness” approach to raise her as a simple-minded girl.

Gao Yang shook his head. “I don’t know either, but she acts too boldly. This time, getting Shen Yuan imprisoned—Shen Yuan is Prince Ding’s man. Prince Ding has suffered a loss and will surely notice her. The people we sent out have already said that Prince Ding’s subordinates are investigating this matter.”

“It’s not good for Miss Shen to go against Prince Ding,” Ji Yushu worried. “Prince Ding is deep-minded and uses strange methods. Once he discovers it was Miss Shen’s doing, who knows what he will do in the future.”

“Don’t worry,” Gao Yang said. “I think Shen Miao is very familiar with Prince Ding. Perhaps in everything she has done, she has considered the consequences of Prince Ding finding out. Rather than worrying about her, you should worry about yourself.” Gao Yang looked at Ji Yushu. “Have you found the person Xie San asked you to find?”

“Ahem,” Ji Yushu rubbed his nose. “I’ll send someone right away.”

…

“Who would have thought the Shen family was so chaotic? Such a big drama at the beginning of spring this year, what will happen in the future?”

“Ah ya ya, two young nobles from influential families falling for a commoner girl, one dead and one injured due to jealousy—this is like something straight out of a theater script.”

“If you ask me, that commoner girl is quite ordinary-looking. I don’t know how two young nobles could be so blind as to fight over her out of jealousy. They’d be better off together themselves.”

“Huo Long, have you been reading strange novels again recently?”

The black-clad woman flipped her long hair, truly charming and seductive. “Am I wrong? For men to fight over a woman, she should at least have beauty like mine.”

“Having fun, are we?” A sudden voice rang out, and the group of black-clad people from the secret department who had been chatting and playing immediately fell silent. They stood up as if facing a great enemy, looking at the person before them.

The purple-clad youth had handsome features, appearing even more cold and arrogant in the night. He glanced at everyone. “Why did you stop talking?”

Everyone lowered their heads in silence.

Xie Jingxing turned to leave, and only after he had left those people far behind did he stop his steps, self-mockingly smiling. “The little girl is quite skilled.”

He lowered his gaze, looking at the starless night sky, and said softly, “But I don’t have time left.”