Grandfather.

You never actually planned to submit to Xiao Liheng’s will, did you?

You planned to feign compliance and look for opportunities along the way? I know you always kept weapons hidden in your sedan chair.

After seeing me arrive, did you form new ideas?

You maintained the pretense of cooperating with Xiao Liheng throughout.

You let me bring people to demonstrate and pressure your way to the residence gates.

To help me further separate from the Rong residence, to accumulate merit before the Crown Princess, so that from then on I would not only avoid being burdened by the Rong family’s great crimes, but could even soar to success through the reputation of righteously destroying my own family.

You knew there were explosives and poison buried underground beneath the walls and before the gates.

Of course—though I secretly dug tunnels under the pretense of renovating my courtyard, deceiving everyone else, I could never have deceived you, who had been Chief Minister for so many years.

Did you know that I did this to stop you, deter you, and deal with you when you betrayed?

You must have known.

Otherwise how could you have hidden an Abyssal Iron sword in your sedan chair.

Otherwise how could your sedan chair have stopped precisely in the middle of the street.

Otherwise why would you have refused to exit the sedan chair.

But I know you originally had no plans to use this tactic—you were never someone heroically brave who disregarded your own life.

You did it only for me.

Only because I made such a choice.

You only knew that my three kowtows transmitted a signal, and trusted confidants in the residence would execute the plan.

But because your sedan chair remained on the street, the fuse led from underground could only ignite the wall-destroying portion, while Xiao Liheng on the street surface could very well escape once alerted.

You knew I would send you away before igniting the ground.

You knew that to deceive Xiao Liheng, I would certainly not leave the street.

You knew I had already embraced certain death.

So you called me over, threw me clear, and ignited the spark in my place.

…

All these years, I chose to walk in the opposite direction from you, unwavering, moving toward the light.

For this I grew distant from you, abandoning family and you in your old age behind me.

Grandfather.

I thought you were the stubborn, corrupt authority figure in this family who would lead the entire clan into the abyss.

But it turns out the unworthy descendant was me.

…

Wind swept overhead, carrying the cold scent of rust and gunpowder.

Rong Pu’s face remained buried in the deep snow, not rising for a long time.

At the corners of his eyes and on his cheeks, teardrops froze into ice.

…

Inside the eastern side hall of Chongming Palace, two figures slowly emerged.

Both looked somewhat bedraggled, limping along. One had his right arm hanging limply, blood-soaked, with arm wounds faintly visible, while the other supported him, his hair covered in dust.

Chu Xingbai, Bai Xingchu.

Both inside and outside the hall were silent.

After a long while, Duan Yande’s incredulous voice came: “It’s you two…”

Outside the hall, He Zi and others looked worriedly toward Tie Ci.

The twins being traitors who played an inglorious role in His Majesty’s assassination was itself more worrying to them than the assassination itself.

Because the twins were personally selected by Tie Ci and sent to the Emperor’s side.

They were also the only two among the ten selected who were trusted and could attend His Majesty for extended periods.

In the end, they were also the only two spies.

Tong Rushi’s voice was cold and mocking: “Chongming Palace was heavily guarded with countless mechanisms and experts at hand, once impregnable.”

“Thanks to Your Highness’s infatuation with beauty—bringing Murong Yi into the palace and sending these two to His Majesty’s side—this perfectly coordinated assassination was completed.”

All eyes instantly focused on Tie Ci’s face.

The hall’s lighting was dim, making her expression unclear, but they could sense her complete stillness, as if she had become a statue.

Chi Xue somewhat inappropriately brought Tie Ci a cup of tea at this moment.

Tie Ci didn’t look at her, somewhat stiffly accepting it, slowly taking a sip, then returning it to Chi Xue.

The entire process was natural and silent, so that those immersed in anger and grief noticed nothing amiss.

Chi Xue took the teacup and retreated into the shadows.

She looked down at the cup.

The originally blue-green tea was now entirely dark red.

Chi Xue lowered her head as a tear silently dropped into that dark red.

Then she quietly poured the tea into a potted plant.

Tie Ci on her seat finally spoke. When she said the first word, her voice seemed somewhat hoarse, but quickly returned to normal.

She said: “I have a question.”

Tong Rushi warily didn’t respond to her words.

Tie Ci didn’t mind whether he responded, continuing on her own: “The Chu brothers were arranged into the palace through your painstaking efforts—they must have exceptional abilities. Forgive my poor judgment, but what exactly are these two’s talents?”

Tong Rushi’s heart jumped.

This was a huge loophole.

He had thought that under such a heavy blow, the Crown Princess’s mind would inevitably be confused. Once this questioning began, she would surely blame herself and suffer, which would be enough to destroy her.

He hadn’t expected this person to have a heart like iron and stone, remaining as clear-headed as ever at such a moment.

He laughed once: “How would I know?”

“Father Emperor had almost no martial skills, while Murong Yi is highly skilled. Since he entered the palace with the mission to assassinate Father Emperor, with his abilities, one person would have sufficed. Why would these two with mediocre martial skills be needed as unnecessary additions?”

Tong Rushi sneered coldly: “Your Highness truly has deep affection and heavy devotion for the Liaodong heir.”

His meaning was obvious—at such a time, Tie Ci was still trying to exonerate Murong Yi. How could she be worthy of ruling the realm?

Tie Ci: “Answer my question.”

“Then please answer my question first, Your Highness. I heard you were the first to enter the hall—what did you see?”

Tie Ci fell silent.

Tong Rushi sneered again: “Someone in the hall personally witnessed Murong Yi strangling Noble Consort Jing. How did Noble Consort Jing die?”

Tie Ci didn’t answer.

Tong Rushi said: “His Majesty cried out in the hall. Why don’t you have someone repeat what he shouted?”

Tie Ci still didn’t answer.

Among the arriving ministers, many were already frowning.

Especially Minister Jiang, who had only seen Murong Yi once—during that night intrusion into the palace walls.

But that one encounter left a deep and poor impression. Hearing Tong Rushi’s words, he immediately believed them.

He couldn’t help asking: “What did he say?”

Tong Rushi said: “I arrived late, not like you Crown Princess who reached there first. Why don’t you ask the people in the hall?”

Minister Jiang looked toward one of the Emperor’s personal attendants.

That person fell to his knees with a thud, trembling as he said: “In response to the lords… this servant faintly heard His Majesty shouting, saying… saying… saying Murong Yi had deceived him and the Crown Princess, saying Murong Yi wanted to kill the Crown Princess…”

Complete silence.

Only the sound of accumulated snow falling from the eaves under its own weight, still landing in the snow with deep marks.

After a long while, He Zi said coldly: “His Majesty was assassinated and Chongming Palace was in chaos with great commotion, yet you two are unharmed. Where were you then?”

The attendant kowtowed desperately: “This servant doesn’t know! At that time, somehow this servant’s mind was completely muddled, wandering dazedly in the courtyard, everything before my eyes seemed shrouded in mist. I faintly heard His Majesty’s cries but couldn’t find the way or know where I was… Only when I regained consciousness did I discover I was at the steps of the main hall, and only then saw… only then saw… but it was already too late… This servant speaks no false words—at that time not only this servant, but all the servants and guards in Chongming Palace were like this!”

He kowtowed desperately, and the Chongming Palace guards and palace servants all knelt and kowtowed together, confirming his words were true. One guard said tearfully: “Your Highness, with His Majesty in danger, we servants have no path to survival either. There’s no reason we wouldn’t act. It’s just that the situation was so strange then, we couldn’t protect His Majesty…”

Everyone slowly turned their gazes toward the twins.

While Murong Yi could easily assassinate the Emperor, it would be impossible for him to deceive or control all of Chongming Palace.

So these two were indeed Murong Yi’s accomplices.

What kind of abilities did they possess?

Chu Xingbai’s face was deathly pale as he smiled slightly: “Liaodong Embroidered Guards, paying respects to the Crown Princess and lords.”

Someone cried out in shock: “Embroidered Guards!”

That was Liaodong’s terrifying cold-blooded spy organization—people from this organization had actually infiltrated the imperial palace!

He Zi and others looked very grim. Several important figures knew that the head of the Liaodong Embroidered Guards was Murong Yi.

During the trade war with the Xiao clan, the Embroidered Guards’ intelligence network had played no small role.

Tie Ci suddenly said: “Since no one acted, why are you two injured?”

Tong Rushi’s heart jumped again.

Tie Ci was so sharp it was almost impossible for him to handle.

Hadn’t she been seriously injured fighting Sang Tang first, then encountered the most tragic event in the world? Why wasn’t she collapsing?

Tie Ci: “Don’t say you were injured by mechanisms and hidden weapons—there are no mechanisms in Chongming Palace that could cause such wounds. Your arm looks like it was clawed through by someone. Moreover, clawed through a wall—the wound contains sand and gravel. Who would rather smash through walls to grab you?”

Before the twins could answer, she continued: “Murong Yi has escaped, so why didn’t he take you two? And why didn’t you escape during the most chaotic moment, instead staying in Chongming Palace? Are you brain-dead seeking death, or did you have to stay to confirm certain things?”

Chu Xingbai was silent for a moment, then smiled: “Is Your Highness still unwilling to give up?”

Tie Ci said indifferently: “I don’t ask about intentions, only about truth.”

“The truth is that we are subordinates of the Liaodong Embroidered Guards. This trip was to assist the heir in fulfilling the oath he made before the Great King—to assassinate His Majesty. The heir’s oath in court is known to everyone in Liaodong. Yet for unknown reasons, he was unable to succeed for so long. The Great King feared the heir would break his oath, so he specially sent us two to assist. Thanks to Your Highness’s favor and the heir’s secret help, we were selected in the academy competition and sent to His Majesty’s side, thus completing this mission.”

Bai Xingchu smiled and continued: “As for why we two didn’t leave, it’s because the Great King feels that while the heir is good in every way, he’s somewhat fond of beauty. He also fears the heir will continue to be entangled by beauty in the future, so he sent us two to stay and help the heir use his wisdom sword to cut emotional ties.”

“Just to sever his emotional attachments, you two don’t even want your lives?” Tie Ci’s lips curved in a mocking smile.

“Naturally it’s not just that. We two were originally death warriors. During the Tang King and Lu King rebellion years ago, over a thousand subordinates of the two kings were slaughtered. We two should have been among those on the execution block, but were saved by our families’ desperate efforts. By chance we received the Liaodong King’s rescue and have survived until now. To repay family vengeance and the Great King’s kindness, we naturally don’t spare our lives.”

“As for why we’re injured, it’s indeed as Your Highness guessed—the heir attacked us. But I’m afraid we must disappoint Your Highness. The heir attacked only because he still wanted to conceal the truth and didn’t want us two to stay, fearing it would make reconciliation between him and Your Highness impossible.”

Tie Ci slowly closed her eyes.

Many loopholes.

Even outright lies to her face.

But the vicious part was that some things only she knew were wrong, but any words she spoke now questioning this matter would be seen as attempting to exonerate Murong Yi.

It was useless.

Seeing her stop speaking, Tong Rushi smiled maliciously: “Sorry to disappoint Your Highness.”

The Chu brothers looked at each other and smiled, simultaneously flipping their wrists.

The next instant there was a buzzing sound, and a plum tree in the courtyard suddenly trembled. Several plum blossoms broke from their branches and fell, trembling again in mid-air and scattering, transforming into several red streaks of light that instantly pierced the two men’s backs.

The two men had their backs to the plum tree, not expecting it to also be a killing mechanism. Their backs ached, and their entire bodies immediately went limp.

The next moment they began screaming madly.

The plum petals hadn’t entered their bodies but swirled within all the major pressure points on their backs, churning the muscles, meridians, and flesh there into a bloody mess before rising again with a buzz. They scattered in the air then gathered again into plum blossom shapes, returning to the plum tree.

The plum tree still bloomed luxuriantly, each blossom tragically beautiful—impossible to tell which was the killing flower.

Only the twins were left screaming and rolling in the snow, but gradually they lost even the strength to roll. Their injuries weren’t to vital points, but in the blink of an eye had destroyed all their meridians and would continue to corrode bone and invade meridians for a long time, until flesh rotted, meridians severed inch by inch, bones softened, and organs decayed.

This process was extremely long, and they would remain conscious throughout.

Tie Ci watched expressionlessly.

This wasn’t a mechanism—this was one of the Mo clan’s most sinister and vicious poisons, so cruel that when arranging it, A Kou had been unwilling, feeling such poison harmed heaven’s harmony and was rarely used even in their clan.

But Tie Ci felt she wouldn’t mind if it were ten times more cruel.

Whether it harmed heaven’s harmony or her own dark virtue didn’t matter.

She had already borne the heaviest sins in this world—she didn’t mind a few more.

Guards came over and knocked out all their teeth with punches to prevent them from committing suicide in their agony.

Tie Ci sat before her couch, gazing distantly at Tong Rushi: “How Father Emperor died, what the truth is, who should bear the guilt—these are not matters for you to worry about. I only tell you: whoever strikes will die.”