He quickly fixed his gaze tightly on Noble Consort Ai: “Mother, if this matter truly was your doing, then the fault lies with you, and I have even less reason to turn against Sixth Brother.”

“Oh, is that really so?” Something flashed quickly through Li Zhaoting’s eyes, but he soon smiled faintly again: “Seventh Master, would you like to hear this humble minister finish speaking?”

“Speak,” Lian Jie’s tone deepened.

“This humble minister says that Lian Yu has grown impatient. Though the Minister has done many transgressive things openly, he hasn’t spoken rebellious words publicly like General Liu. Lian Yu cannot condemn him to death. But what if you weren’t here? If he finds concrete evidence that the murder case that year was indeed Noble Consort Ai’s doing, and uses this opportunity to expose it, he need only find an excuse to condemn you, the son, along with her. Just as Seventh Master said earlier, without you, the Minister would have no reason to raise troops. Even if he later fights under the banner of avenging you, the common people won’t believe it, thinking the Minister has ulterior motives.”

“He ordered this case to be reinvestigated—is it truly just to offset grievances with Feng Su Zhen? With three thousand beauties in the imperial harem, would he really go to such lengths for one woman? Seventh Master, think carefully. For an emperor, what is most important? Would Lian Yu not understand? The reason he claims the murderer was Minister Feng is only because this person happened to appear that year and was Feng Su Zhen’s father. Using the excuse of offsetting grievances with the Feng family to eliminate your wariness—why wouldn’t he do such a thing?”

“Seventh Master, Zhaoting did form marriage ties with the Feng family, though without deep friendship. I never knew this Minister Feng was actually Prince Jin’s accomplice, but I understand his character quite well. Given his caution, he would never tell an attendant the purpose of the poisoning, and this attendant couldn’t possibly have survived until now to be discovered by the later judge.”

Lian Jie said nothing, his pupils contracting, faintly showing traces of grayish defeat.

Quan Feitong secretly gave Noble Consort Ai a meaningful look. Noble Consort Ai walked to Lian Jie’s side and said softly: “Jie’er, Mother may have done wrong that year, shouldn’t have taken Lian Yu’s mother’s life in a moment of anger. But Lian Yu’s scheming runs so deep—isn’t that even more terrifying? He’s trying to take our mother and son’s lives! Your father had deep feelings for Mother. You know how much he doted on me while alive—he did indeed tell me he wanted to pass the throne to you.”

“After so many years, the palace servants from that time are dead or gone, and Noble Consort Yu’s remains are no longer there. For Li Huaisu to find evidence proving it was my doing wouldn’t be easy. Therefore, we still have time to deploy. Now it depends on how you decide. Jie’er, think it through carefully.”

“Who really killed Sixth Brother’s mother—Mother, is it you, Minister Feng, or someone else? Who among you is lying? Is Lian Yu truly not the Sixth Brother I know?”

Lian Jie suddenly shouted, flicked his sleeves, and rushed away.

As he left, he stumbled, nearly tripping over the threshold.

Watching her son leave in such a stumbling manner, Noble Consort Ai’s eyes rarely showed a trace of heartache, but she quickly replaced it with an appreciative gaze, reassessing the young man beside Quan Feitong with generous praise: “My son is stubborn by nature, but each time he wavers slightly, it accumulates. Since he raised this question today, it means we’re almost there. Minister Li is talented, steady and reserved. Given time, he’ll surely be a pillar of the nation. Minister Quan has good judgment.”

Li Zhaoting bowed his head: “Your Ladyship flatters me. Zhaoting and the Minister come from the same school. Senior Brother’s affairs are Zhaoting’s affairs—this is family business. Your Ladyship is Seventh Master’s birth mother and was entrusted by the Late Emperor—this is state business. Family and state affairs are within Zhaoting’s duties.”

“Excellent!” Noble Consort Ai nodded approvingly.

Quan Feitong also raised his eyebrows slightly: “I indeed didn’t bring you here wrongly. Very good. Thus, we can almost plan the final few steps. Your Highness spoke correctly—for this upheaval, we indeed need a legitimate… beginning. Zhaoting, we may need to find that person from the Spring Hall again to handle some business. Can you still locate that person this time?”

When Li Zhaoting returned to his residence, his eyes were bloodshot and his brow showed fatigue, but his eyes, contrary to their usual gentle manner, held a sharp intent that was barely visible.

Little Four approached and whispered something in his ear. He nodded and entered the study, where he saw a man sitting quietly beside the desk in the center of the room.

Seeing him enter, the man didn’t immediately greet him, his gaze still fixed on a chess board on the desk.

The chess board was very neat, with only four white pieces.

Seeing him enter, the man smiled: “Your chess playing has become increasingly profound. What does this mean?”

“Perhaps it means winning the entire world, perhaps it means dying without redemption. I don’t know right now either.” Li Zhaoting also smiled slightly, noncommittally: “You’ll see in time. You’ve come at just the right moment—I need you to help with something.”

He whispered a few words. The visitor nodded: “I can do it. I’ll handle it when I return.”

“Thank you.”

“Speaking of thanks between us seems too formal. It’s just that by the day you win the entire world, I fear I won’t be able to see it.” The visitor smiled slightly, speaking indifferently.

Li Zhaoting’s gaze sharpened slightly: “You’re going to act?”

“Yes, the time has come. Whether I succeed or not, I’ve prepared that gift as you requested.”

Li Zhaoting lowered his head and bowed deeply, his eyes rarely showing a trace of emotion—clearly it was a substantial gift!

He then tried to dissuade him: “The risk is too great. Don’t you really need to reconsider? Moreover, forgive me for saying something unpleasant—if you succeed, Lian Yu won’t be the Lian Yu who can currently command the world.”

“Perhaps, but I must try. We can’t both walk down the same dark path, can we?” The visitor smiled proudly.

At this time in the Court of Judicial Review, having bid farewell to Wu Yan and settled one concern, Su Zhen prepared to begin investigating the mysterious deaths of the mausoleum assassins and Noble Consort Yu’s strange sudden death.

Previously, she had Wu Qing and others return to Six Doors to spread the word and investigate the origins of the dead assassins.

However, the Six Doors constables investigated through various channels based on portraits but couldn’t find any information about the assassins. Regarding the two mysterious assassins who died in prison, their names and origins were completely unknown.

“Everyone, since there’s no news about the assassins, I plan to investigate Noble Consort Yu’s case first. As long as we identify the murderer, the mastermind behind the mausoleum assassins will be revealed. The Court of Judicial Review will likely need to enter the palace to investigate this time. I want to completely reconstruct the circumstances of Noble Consort Yu’s sudden death that day. I must solve this case!”

Facing the Court of Judicial Review members who had been discussing intensely but without leads, Su Zhen spoke slowly, her eyes crystal clear.