The ledger was tucked against Qun Qing’s body. Given her habits, she should directly find an opportunity to slip away.

Before her, bright lanterns swayed, yet she turned around and went back against the flow of people.

This wasn’t the first time the Meng family had moved against Lu Huating. If he died here, there would be trouble with what came after.

Just check if he’s dead.

But she had barely reached that floor when she caught sight of Prince Yan’s Manor’s shadow guards already quietly stationed at the exit, clearly waiting like hunters by a tree stump to prevent her escape.

Qun Qing felt she was being a bit foolish. She turned to try mixing into the crowd to flee, but a courtesan blocked her path.

All traces of timidity and delicacy had completely vanished from Wen Niang’s face. She bowed to Qun Qing: “This subordinate is Wen Su. I’ve met Miss Qing. Are you looking for the Chief Clerk? Follow me.”

This Wen Niang, or Wen Su, was Lu Huating’s inside agent at Siye Tower—Qun Qing had already guessed as much.

Wen Su had a photographic memory. When Qun Qing held Cui Zhu hostage, it was thanks to Wen Su distinguishing the seal and reminding her that she hadn’t been deceived by the fake ledger.

Unable to escape directly right now, and with the true ledger she had obtained needing Wen Su’s confirmation anyway, Qun Qing followed behind her.

Lu Huating stood at the side room entrance with several shadow guards, having already escaped. Seeing Qun Qing voluntarily return, he started slightly, his gaze following her up the stairs.

Qun Qing walked before him, examining the bloodstains seeping through his clothing from right shoulder to chest. Because it was black clothing, they weren’t obvious: “Chief Clerk, where are you injured?”

For Lu Huating, being attacked was already routine. Apart from his enemies, no one paid attention to the details of his injuries. Hearing Qun Qing speak, he instinctively sensed something unusual. But his gaze gradually brightened as he looked into her eyes: “It’s nothing serious. And you, my lady?”

As if just seeing her approach could fill him with fighting spirit.

Since he wasn’t dead, Qun Qing naturally hoped his injuries were more severe so he’d be too weak to compete with her. But when she raised her eyes, that enchanting and romantic face had some impact on her. Her gaze only settled on his lips.

Paler than usual—he must have lost blood. He couldn’t stay here much longer.

Knowing this was enough.

“All superficial wounds.” Qun Qing took out the ledger. “I’ve obtained the true ledger. Please have Miss Wen Su verify it.”

Wen Su looked at the blood-red seal Qun Qing had opened to, somewhat excited: “That’s right, this is Siye Tower’s true ledger.”

The shadow guards’ expressions were excited yet also worried. Having obtained the true ledger, the immediate question was how to handle it.

Lu Huating’s expression was calm as he asked Qun Qing: “What does Miss Qing plan to do with it?”

“Since it involves the crimes of numerous officials, I will hand the true ledger to Minister Wang of the Censorate.”

“Give it to me.”

His words were resolute. Qun Qing couldn’t help but look toward Lu Huating.

Lu Huating also looked at her: “If Miss Qing obtained the ledger to repay Yu Nu’s kindness, handing it to the Censorate will only trigger mutual accusations among officials. There are too many intermediate steps, and problems could arise. I will present it directly to the Emperor. Doesn’t my lady want Siye Tower to collapse as soon as possible?”

Qun Qing was very hesitant, but her mission was after all to hand the true ledger to Wang Zhen of the Censorate. At this final step, she naturally wouldn’t be swayed by Lu Huating’s few words.

“I’m handing it to the Censorate because that is the Censorate’s responsibility.” Qun Qing said. “For the Chief Clerk to present it directly would be improper. Setting aside whether the Emperor would punish you in anger, the Chief Clerk has no proof with mere words—how can I trust that after you take the ledger, you’ll truly present it?”

So she refused to hand it over.

Lu Huating’s expression grew solemn: “Whether it’s for Yu Nu or someone else, you should be clear in your heart, my lady. I’m also not certain you’ll actually hand the ledger to the Censorate.”

Her identity as a spy had long been known to Lu Huating. That he hadn’t moved against her and even agreed to cooperate was probably just mutual exploitation—how could he feel at ease letting her continue to complete Nan Chu’s mission?

Qun Qing looked at him: “Everyone has selfish motives. Isn’t the Chief Clerk acting for Prince Yan’s Manor?”

Lu Huating said: “Miss Qing seems to hold a grudge against Prince Yan’s Manor.”

Qun Qing paused for a moment: “I am the Crown Princess’s maid. The two highnesses are like fire and water—is there any reason I should like Prince Yan’s Manor?”

“This true ledger is very important to me.” Lu Huating wouldn’t yield. “I promise you, my lady, after the Emperor has seen it, I’ll personally hand it over to the Censorate.”

“No.” Qun Qing’s hand touched the ram’s head sachet, unwilling to take risks. “This true ledger is also very important to me.”

With that, she turned to go downstairs. Below, four shadow guards from Prince Yan’s Manor were already stationed, forming a pincer formation.

“What if I don’t let you leave, my lady?” Lu Huating’s voice came lightly from behind, seemingly suppressing emotion.

Qun Qing said: “Then I’ll have to force my way through.”

She looked at the four shadow guards below. These four had just fought alongside her, but now they would have to draw blades against each other. They too showed hesitation. Qun Qing suppressed her emotions, her gaze instinctively moving toward the window frame, secretly calculating the possibility of escape.

She hadn’t taken risks in a long time. Her palms were soaked with cold sweat. Fortunately, she had asked Fang Xie for ginseng slices.

“My lady, reconsider and give the true ledger to me.” Lu Huating gazed at her back, as if looking at a slender moonbeam. “You can’t break through.”

Unexpectedly, Qun Qing actually turned around, light reflected in her eyes, smiling at him: “I haven’t tried yet—you’re all so confident?”

Lu Huating thought of something, and his pupils darkened. Juan Su swallowed. The Chief Clerk had said that in his dream, half of Prince Yan Manor’s shadow guards fell to this woman’s hands. Could it be this time?

Just then, a sharp screech pierced their ears.

This dark shadow, with a wingspan as wide as a seven-year-old child’s outstretched arms, burst through the window, carrying fragments of the window frame as it charged inside the building.

Qun Qing barely made out the creature’s appearance before a gale hit her face. In that instant, she instinctively protected the ledger and raised her arm to block, preventing it from snatching the book away. But her arm collided with its hard beak, as if pierced by a sword, sending bone-deep pain through her.

Only then did everyone see clearly—it was Prince Yan Manor’s gray falcon.

This gray falcon had tremendous force and seemed to have gone mad, pecking at her, trying to knock her down the steep stairs. Qun Qing’s heart sank. The instant she lost balance and stepped into empty air, a hand suddenly grabbed her wrist and pulled her back from the fall.

In her alarm, Qun Qing saw Lu Huating’s dark eyes. He reached back to draw Zhu Su’s sword and with one strike pinned the gray falcon to the wall, black blood and feathers spraying out, some spattering on his jade-white face.

What was happening… hadn’t he arranged this?

The gray falcon let out a piercing shriek, still struggling violently. The other shadow guards were also stunned by this sudden change and rushed forward with blades: “Has it gone mad? Why is Ruler Su’s falcon only targeting Miss Qing?”

“Quickly help the Chief Clerk!”

Qun Qing lowered her lashes, her eyes shifting slightly. She seized his wrist and twisted it back. A cracking sound.

“Miss Qing!” Juan Su shouted.

In intense pain, Lu Huating raised his eyes. In his dark pupils he saw Qun Qing’s figure tumbling down the stairs.

His left hand in his sleeve had been twisted by her, muscles and bones dislocated. His fingertips were still stained with her blood. For some reason, his fingertips trembled uncontrollably.

Lu Huating looked down at Qun Qing, his expression indescribable. She had deliberately let herself fall from his hand.

The pain of the dislocated bones in his wrist seemed to spread all the way to his heart, almost unbearable.

A drop of black blood fell from his motionless eyelashes.

Qun Qing curled herself up, protecting her chest, following the momentum as she fell, trying to minimize her injuries as much as possible.

The shadow guard who had been stationed at the stairs had run up to attack the gray falcon, leaving an opening.

Counting the time, An Lin should have arrived. Though this method was risky, it could achieve escape.

Someone caught Qun Qing at the bottom of the stairs, stopping her tumble. He helped her up with one hand, saying: “You should be more careful. Miss, are you hurt from the fall?”

It wasn’t An Lin, but the voice was very familiar.

Qun Qing suspected she had heard wrong. Enduring the pain throughout her body, she raised her head and saw a young man in short clothes wearing a conical hat. Under the hat, a face looked at her curiously.

This person had martial features, pale complexion, traces of dark stubble on his upper lip, and a small pale red birthmark on his cheek.

Li Huan.

This was Prince Yan Li Huan without his mask.

Qun Qing’s entire body began to tremble. Not just from fear, but also shock. She clearly remembered that Li Huan should still be on the road back to Chang’an at this moment. She had personally ordered An Lin to ambush and kill him.

How could Li Huan appear here?

Li Huan had appeared, yet Lu Huating and the others showed no surprise.

Qun Qing’s thoughts raced, and she suddenly realized—she had fallen into a trap.

Among the three shadow guards traveling with Prince Yan, there was one named Ying Su who excelled at disguise. In her previous life, Ying Su had once impersonated Minister Wei, lying on a bamboo chair, and nearly taken her life.

This time, Lu Huating must have had Ying Su act as Prince Yan’s double, returning to court with Prince Zhao Li Pan. The real Prince Yan Li Huan had long since secretly returned to Chang’an on a fast horse alone, removing his mask to move about—right before her eyes.

That memorial about the returning army was specifically written for her to see, precisely to… lure out the Nan Chu spies lying in ambush on the road and catch them all in one net.

Those spies were probably in grave danger.

Qun Qing struggled to stand, raising her head to look at Lu Huating.

Her hair had come loose, that graceful skirt was torn, blood seeping through in several places. With sharp coldness in her eyes, that face actually displayed a striking beauty.

Lu Huating stood on the stairs, gazing back at her from afar. Two strands of hair also hung by his temples. From blood loss, his face was deathly pale, making his eyes appear bottomlessly black and cold as a deep pool.

At this moment,府 army came to report: “Chief Clerk, news from Jiannan Circuit—the route was completely clear, no ambush.”

No ambush.

Waves of emotion flickered in Lu Huating’s expression.

But Qun Qing even withdrew that gaze meant to determine victory or defeat, turning her head to brush past Li Huan’s side.

Her enemy stood right before her. Wanting to resist doing nothing seemed somewhat difficult.

Li Huan was skilled in martial arts after all. Almost instantly, relying on his keen predictive ability, he blocked Qun Qing with the long staff in his hand. A blade fell from her sleeve.

The staff moved upward, pressing against her throat.

Who knew Qun Qing would pull another dagger from her sleeve and stab it cleanly and decisively into Li Huan’s arm. Li Huan tried to move but dropped the staff in pain.

This small dagger wouldn’t take his life, but it would make his blood flow like a torrent, causing unbearable agony.

The shadow guards were completely unprepared. Earlier Lu Huating hadn’t ordered them to act. Now they didn’t dare loudly announce Prince Yan’s presence and rushed down together.

Qun Qing’s figure had already disappeared outside the door. An Lin pulled her running into the night: “Go!”

Inside the building, shadow guards surrounded Li Huan.

“Why did Master need to come here?” Zhu Su said.

“When I returned to the Manor, there wasn’t a single person. Hearing that death warriors had appeared, how could I let you all take the risk? I came to help. If you’d just said you were blocking someone, I wouldn’t have taken this blade for nothing. She escaped.”

Li Huan gritted his teeth, veins showing from the pain. The instant he raised his arm to see the dagger clearly, his expression changed. He looked toward Lu Huating: “Yunming, this thing we seized in Xuancheng—this is your dagger?”

Lu Huating was just coming down the stairs, which were covered with Qun Qing’s dripping blood. Hearing this, his steps paused.

He naturally saw it—the gemstone on that dagger refracted brilliant light.

The dagger Qun Qing had asked him for was now mercilessly discarded and stabbed into Prince Yan’s body instead.

“This subject failed in his duties. Please punish me, Your Highness.” After a long moment, Lu Huating said.

Everyone stared at him in shock. Failed in his duties—in all these years, when had they ever heard the Chief Clerk say such words?