“But—” Wang Daxia bit his lip, not daring to look at Wei Caiwei. “I was the one who insisted on bringing Ding Wu to watch the dragon boat race. It’s my fault. I have to find him and return him safely to Dr. Wei.”

If something happened to Ding Wu, she probably wouldn’t forgive me.

Lu Ying said: “You usually seem quite clever, but how are you being so muddled today? Right now we can’t startle the snake in the grass and let the other party guess our intentions, or else how can we lure out the messenger? I won’t be returning either for the time being—I’ll just send a message by carrier pigeon to the prison guards, having them stay alert. I’ll pretend I haven’t guessed anything and search for people by the moat, checking every ice bowl barrel to confuse them. You just need to do your job and win the dragon boat race. Do you understand?”

Wang Daxia nodded. He thought to himself that this superior of his was usually fierce, but at crucial moments she’d protect me—I need to live up to expectations.

Lu Ying secretly released a carrier pigeon. Then she made a big show of searching for people, lifting the lids of every ice barrel and even mung bean soup pot to check if anyone was hidden inside. When passersby wanted to watch, they were all scared away by Lu Ying’s words: “Imperial Guards conducting business! Idle people disperse immediately, or you’ll be treated as accomplices!”

The Imperial Guards immediately caused waves of commotion along both banks of the moat, drawing the attention of the commanding officers of the twenty-four guards in the stands.

At this time, the dragon boat preliminaries on the moat had reached the third batch. The commotion on both banks affected the atmosphere of the dragon boat race on the river, making it increasingly tense.

Wang Daxia returned to prepare for the finals. Lu Bing ordered his subordinates to ask what had happened.

Wang Daxia wrote a note and passed it to Lu Bing. After reading it, Lu Bing said to the other commanding officers: “We’ve received intelligence that enemy spies have come to the dragon boat race, and we’re catching spies. Everyone can rest assured—with the Imperial Guards here, they can only make small troubles and can’t cause big waves.”

Lu Ying deliberately had her subordinates stir up trouble on both banks—this was actually a strategy of besieging Wei to save Zhao, while the real net had already been cast at the Imperial Guards’ prison.

Jiangmi Lane, Imperial Guards headquarters.

Today was the Dragon Boat Festival, so the headquarters was closed for the holiday. Only those on guard duty remained. The weather was too hot, and the hunting dogs lay panting under the tree shade with their long tongues out.

The underground prison cells were also swept by heat waves. Ding Rukui was so hot he couldn’t even read, so he sat in meditation on his straw mat—a calm mind naturally brings coolness.

It was time for the midday meal.

Other death row prisoners ate only morning and evening meals twice a day, but Ding Rukui received preferential treatment with three meals: morning, noon, and evening. Today’s lunch was seasonal rice dumplings and rice wine.

The kitchen cook put the heated rice dumplings in a food box for the prison guard to collect.

Wu Mask, who managed firearms in the storage, had finished his noon meal in the dining hall. Carrying a bamboo cricket cage, he said to the guard: “I bought a steel-toothed cricket from a Shandong man. Want to have a look?”

Half of Wu Mask’s face had been blown off by firearms, so he always wore a mask. When eating, he’d find a corner with his back to everyone, facing the wall to eat. After finishing, he’d put his mask back on. Over time, everyone called him Wu Mask.

Cricket fighting was popular in the Ming Dynasty. From the imperial family down to commoners, everyone enjoyed cricket fighting. The cricket’s calls echoed through the dining hall, immediately drawing the guard’s attention. He put down the food box and crowded around the cricket cage.

While the guard’s attention was on the steel-toothed cricket, Wu Mask secretly opened the food box and replaced the rice dumplings inside.

Today’s lunch was later than usual. The guard carried the food box in, set out the rice dumplings and rice wine, and collected the morning’s leftovers.

Ding Rukui thanked him politely as usual. The guard felt a bit embarrassed: “You must be hungry—it’s a bit late today. Got tied up with some matters.”

Ding Rukui quickly said: “No problem. I was just focused on the heat and didn’t feel hungry.”

The guard waved his palm to fan himself: “This year is really strange—it’s already this hot during Dragon Boat Festival. What will happen when we reach the dog days of summer?”

The guard left with the food box, passing through three iron doors. Each one was locked after passing through—except for Lu Bing’s trusted men, no one else could approach this place.

Despite ten years in prison, Ding Rukui still maintained his habit of washing his hands before eating. Today’s meal consisted of three large rice dumplings. Ding Rukui unwrapped the first dumpling—it was a red bean dumpling. Stuck to the red beans was a small note that read: “Ding Wu is in my hands. You die, or he dies.”

Ding Rukui’s body shook. He quickly looked around. The guard on duty had eaten his fill of watermelon and was lying down preparing for an afternoon nap. He didn’t want to move at all—any movement would cause sweating—and seemed to pay no attention to his unusual behavior.

For caution’s sake, Ding Rukui moved his chair to the opposite side, turning his back to the guard, and opened the second dumpling. The note in this dumpling read “Swallow it.”

From this salted egg yolk dumpling, Ding Rukui discovered a small gold seal about the size of a thumb, carved with the character “Wu.” It was exactly the seal he had personally made for his son Ding Wu years ago. His son had strung it on a cord and worn it around his neck, keeping it close to his body and never parting with it.

Something had happened to his son.

Someone was using his son to threaten him, forcing him to swallow gold and commit suicide.

The prison cell was constantly guarded by people outside the three layers of iron doors. Hanging oneself or banging against walls was impossible. All eating utensils were made of wood or bamboo—there could be no sharp objects.

The day before yesterday, his son Ding Wu had come to see him through the iron door. Father and son had tightly held hands, with opportunity to pass objects. So if Ding Rukui committed suicide by swallowing gold, outsiders would think he had obtained the small gold seal during his son’s prison visit and killed himself—they wouldn’t suspect someone had tampered with the rice dumplings.

What masterful methods!

It must be the work of Yan Shifan, known for his ghostly cunning!

Had he seen through their act of feigning mortal illness that night?

Ding Rukui hid the small gold seal in his pillow and slowly ate the rice dumplings, also chewing and swallowing the notes, washing them down with rice wine. He finished all three large dumplings, leaving only a few yellow-green dumpling leaves with sticky rice grains.

His son Ding Wu was his only relative in this world.

Without doubt, he would sacrifice himself for his son. It was he who had implicated his son. His son should have had good prospects, but now didn’t even have the qualification to take the imperial examinations, working as a minor clerk in Tieling.

Now, his son’s life hung by a thread.

However, Ding Rukui had been severely betrayed by Yan Song and Yan Shifan ten years ago. He had developed paranoia and no longer trusted anyone.

Even when Wei Caiwei recognized him under the moon, and even when she had him swallow fire crane pistils in prison to feign mortal danger and deceive Yan Shifan, then carefully nursed him back to health, he didn’t believe Wei Caiwei was truly Wei Nanshan’s adopted daughter until Ding Wu personally confirmed it.

This small gold seal was indeed Ding Wu’s, but how could he know whether Ding Wu was in Yan Shifan’s hands, or whether Ding Wu had already met with disaster?

If his son was already dead and he still committed suicide by swallowing gold, who would avenge him in the future?

But what if—what if Ding Wu really was in Yan Shifan’s hands? If he didn’t die, his son would definitely be in great danger.

What should he do? Ding Rukui fell deeply into contradiction…

Meanwhile, on the moat, the competition had reached the finals stage. Wang Daxia still sat in the front row of the dragon boat, his forehead still tied with that distinctive red cloth strip—still that splash of red among thousands of men.

The young man’s flamboyant confidence, dazzling handsomeness, and arrogant air seemed quite deserving of a beating from his opponents’ perspective, but it greatly boosted his own team’s morale.

Only Wang Daxia’s expression during the finals no longer held the frivolity of the preliminaries—he was obviously more steady now, holding his paddle like a warrior grasping his weapon before charging into battle.

The commanding officer of the Flag Guards, who had already lost qualification for the finals, said sourly: “Oh, isn’t this Wang Yanei, one of the Four Scourges of the North City? Commander Lu really knows how to train people—in just one month, you’ve turned a piece of rotten wood into talent.”

It seemed Wang Daxia’s reputation as a wastrel had “spread far and wide”—even the Flag Guards’ commanding officer knew of the Four Scourges’ fame.

Lu Bing’s mind was in chaos, thinking about how Ding Wu was doing now, who the mole in the Imperial Guards was, and so on, but his face remained as steady as an old dog. He said modestly: “An orange grown south of the Huai River remains an orange; grown north of the Huai, it becomes a bitter orange. He was already a rough jade, just lacking a bit of polishing.”

A bronze gong sounded, and the six dragon boats in the finals shot forward like sharp swords.

Wei Caiwei didn’t watch the race. To perform their act together, she was like a panicked rabbit, weaving through the crowd, futilely searching for Ding Wu’s figure until she exhaustedly “fainted.”

Lu Ying caught the “unconscious” Wei Caiwei in her arms and even spent lavishly, buying up all the ice barrels from the ice bowl vendors. Barrel after barrel of ice was carried into a temporarily erected tent to cool down the “heat-stricken” Wei Caiwei.

The cold, handsome Commander Lu publicly carrying a weak, beautiful woman dressed as a widow into a tent—this scene caused another sensation!

Although the Imperial Guards strictly forbade onlookers, they couldn’t prevent wagging tongues. People used the corners of their eyes to watch barrel after barrel of ice being transported to the tent, wishing they could poke a hole in the tent with their gazes to see what was happening inside.

Rumors and gossip boiled like waves:

The untold story of Commander Lu’s illegitimate son and the little widow.

Sure enough, an illegitimate son is still an illegitimate son—no manners!

The little widow’s fainting might not be from heat stroke—she’s probably pregnant with a little illegitimate grandchild.

Just look at how concerned Commander Lu is—it must be his bastard offspring!

Commander Lu carrying the little widow into the tent in front of Commander Lu—he’s forcing his father to allow him to marry the little widow!

The rumors grew worse through word of mouth, escalating from heat stroke to secret pregnancy. Naturally, they reached the ears of the twenty-four commanding officers in the stands. Everyone looked at Lu Bing with expressions of gloating: Your Imperial Guards win every year, and even if you win today, you’ve completely lost face! Haha!

Lu Bing: That’s about enough—you’re all overacting!

A gong sounded, and the Imperial Guards won with a lead of two boat lengths over second place, taking first again!

The scene erupted in thunderous cheers—though most were just making noise.

The commanding officers of the other twenty-three guards all stood up to congratulate Lu Bing: “Congratulations, congratulations! First place again!”

They congratulated Lu Bing every year, but this time everyone’s smiles were genuine, and their congratulations heartfelt—congratulating Commander Lu on becoming a grandfather!

By evening, Wu Mask handed over the warehouse keys and went home, with disguised Lu Ying and others secretly following behind…

Author’s Note: Daxia: Rumors are fearsome—give me back Caiwei! Today’s boat updated on time—please praise me!