Early the next morning, Qin Wan made her usual visit to the palace to check the Empress Dowager’s pulse.
On this day, the Empress Dowager appeared no different from usual, though her spirits had been declining. After Qin Wan finished checking her pulse, the Empress Dowager didn’t ask about her condition. Instead, she instructed Chen Mama to search the palace storehouse: “I remember several inkstones that His Majesty loved most were stored there. They’re the finest Huzhou Duan inkstones, along with some pine soot ink sticks. They’ve been stored for so many years, that I’d almost forgotten about them. Find them and send them to His Majesty.”
Chen Mama agreed with a smile. Qin Wan asked, “Empress Dowager, what made you suddenly think of sending these to His Majesty?”
The Empress Dowager smiled gently, “These were things he loved in his youth.”
Qin Wan nodded without speaking. The Empress Dowager continued, “He’s worked too hard these years. As his mother, I haven’t properly cared for him.”
The comment seemed out of context, leaving Qin Wan momentarily confused. The Empress Dowager watched Yan Sui through the window and said, “I notice the Ninth Prince enjoys martial arts and swordplay. I’m thinking of inviting a great sword master to teach him. What do you think? You’re close to him, and with my health failing, you must look after him more.”
“Please don’t worry. I can see the Ninth Prince genuinely enjoys it, so teaching him would be good.”
The Empress Dowager nodded, “That’s good then. For someone with the Ninth Prince’s temperament, having something he enjoys doing is excellent.”
Outside the window, Yan Sui stood in the cold wind, practicing the steps as Yue Ning had instructed. Unlike ordinary children who learned swordplay out of restlessness, his methodical movements showed he truly wanted to master it. With the palace affairs still unsettled and Yan Sui’s studies suspended, it would be unwise for him to have no pursuits.
The Empress Dowager seemed lost in thought as she watched Yan Sui’s small figure.
Soon after, Chen Mama returned with servants carrying two sandalwood boxes. The Empress Dowager’s eyes dimmed slightly upon seeing them. “Bring them here for me to look at.”
Chen Mama presented the boxes to the Empress Dowager, who opened them to reveal neatly arranged inkstones and carefully wrapped pine soot ink sticks. Looking at these items, the Empress Dowager murmured, “When they began their studies, naturally everything had to be of the finest quality. These items came from the great scholar He Qianshan of Lingnan. They were meant for His Majesty, but he was too precious about using them, so they were stored away. In the blink of an eye, over twenty years have passed.”
The Empress Dowager touched the surface of the box, then closed it. After a moment, she suddenly changed her mind, “Never mind, keep them here. Don’t send them.”
Chen Mama looked puzzled, while Qin Wan felt uneasy seeing the Empress Dowager like this.
“Empress Dowager, why have you decided not to send them?”
The Empress Dowager waved her hand, unwilling to say more. Soon after, she felt drowsy, so Qin Wan and Chen Mama helped her to the inner chamber to rest.
After seeing the Empress Dowager settled and giving Chen Mama detailed instructions, Qin Wan took her leave. As she exited the main hall, she saw Yan Sui pointing an unsharpened short sword at a young eunuch, saying, “You, come fight me…”
Upon hearing this, the young eunuch’s face turned pale. “Ninth Prince, this humble servant wouldn’t dare offend you.”
Yan Sui frowned, “My sword isn’t sharpened. It won’t hurt you.”
The eunuch was caught between laughing and crying, “It’s not about hurting me, Your Highness. Even if you took my life, I wouldn’t dare resist. I’m afraid of hurting you!”
After saying this, the eunuch was nearly in tears. Yan Sui frowned, “I won’t blame you if I’m hurt!”
The eunuch fell to his knees with a thud, “Ninth Prince, you’re making things difficult for this humble servant. I truly dare not.”
Yan Sui frowned for a moment, “I’ll reward you with a hundred gold taels. How about that? Su Mama isn’t here now, no one will blame you. Even if Grandmother blames you, I’ll speak up for you.”
The eunuch’s protests suddenly stopped. It was usually very difficult for eunuchs to save any private money, and here was Yan Sui offering a hundred gold taels upfront – that was worth more than his life!
The eunuch stared intently at Yan Sui for a long while, and then suddenly his eyes widened, “Very well then, this humble servant will do as Your Highness commands.”
Yan Sui wrinkled his nose, seeming both helpless and somewhat disdainful, but stepped back and assumed a rather proper starting stance. The eunuch stood up and loosened his joints, but quickly realized how ridiculous he looked facing someone only as tall as his waist. So he twisted his wrist in a show of bravado, “Your Highness, please be careful. This humble servant is about to strike.”
Saying this, the eunuch threw a half-hearted punch at Yan Sui, but it merely grazed past him without causing any harm.
Yan Sui’s brows immediately furrowed, his eyes fixed steadily on the eunuch, not saying a word, yet making the eunuch break out in a cold sweat.
The eunuch gave an awkward smile and shrank his neck, “Let’s try again. This humble servant will be serious this time.”
Yan Sui stepped back, and the eunuch’s eyes darted around before he gritted his teeth and suddenly threw a punch at Yan Sui. Yan Sui dodged to the side and swung his short sword. Though the sword was short, the eunuch had already closed in, and seeing Yan Sui swing the sword, he instinctively dodged. This dodge caused his punch to miss completely. However, the eunuch quickly realized the unsharpened sword couldn’t hurt him, so he threw another punch. This time, Yan Sui didn’t dodge. Taking advantage of his height, he nimbly evaded and then thrust his short sword at a spot three inches below the eunuch’s ribs—
A cry of pain rang out as the eunuch fell to the ground clutching his side, immediately breaking into a cold sweat from the pain. He stared at Yan Sui, who remained calm after landing the strike, “Your Highness, you…”
He dared not complain, not even cry out in pain, only curling up and gasping for breath while holding his stomach.
Yan Sui stood quietly watching, while the serving maids nearby were surprised but dared not approach. Qin Wan, seeing this, finally walked forward, also surprised in her heart.
The spot where Yan Sui had struck was the eunuch’s kidney area. If the sword had been sharpened, the eunuch would have died instantly from a kidney wound.
Qin Wan wasn’t sure if this was accidental or if Yan Sui had done it deliberately.
“Your Highness…”
Qin Wan called out, and Yan Sui turned around in surprise.
Seeing Qin Wan approach, Yan Sui opened his mouth as if to explain, but didn’t know what to say.
The eunuch quickly scrambled to his knees. Qin Wan glanced at him, then crouched down before Yan Sui and asked, “Who taught you this?”
Yan Sui lowered his eyes, and his hand holding the short sword also dropped. His brows were stubbornly furrowed, and after a moment he said, “I once heard it when watching the palace guards sparring. They said if you want to attack someone’s abdomen, striking below the ribs from behind works best.”
He quickly glanced at Qin Wan again, “My sword isn’t sharpened.”
Qin Wan understood and looked at the eunuch whose eyes were red with pain, “You may go.”
The eunuch kowtowed and scrambled away. Qin Wan then led Yan Sui to sit in a nearby pavilion, “Your Highness is very impressive, remembering such things just from watching others once…”
Yan Sui’s eyes brightened immediately, staring at Qin Wan as if he couldn’t believe she was praising him.
Qin Wan smiled and smoothed Yan Sui’s messy black hair, “Your Highness has great talent. Since that’s the case, don’t waste such talent. Just as I excel in medicine, Your Highness will one day have your precious sword. When that time comes, if anyone dares harm Your Highness, you must strike without hesitation as you did today. But Your Highness must never become a cruel person, alright?”
Yan Sui’s eyes sparkled brightly, his lips curving upward, his whole being radiating youthful energy, “Alright! I promise you!”
Qin Wan also smiled, wiping his sweat and pulling out a sugared chestnut cake from her sleeve. Yan Sui quickly glanced back, then unwrapped the oiled paper as if receiving a treasure, devouring the sweet cake in a few bites. After finishing, he licked the sugar powder from his lips like an unsatisfied cat.
Qin Wan laughed helplessly, “Your Highness is losing teeth right now, you shouldn’t eat too many sweets.”
Yan Sui had a loose tooth lately but didn’t like others mentioning it. When Qin Wan brought it up, his cheeks reddened with embarrassment. Qin Wan found it amusing, but just then Su Mama appeared, so Qin Wan instructed her to take Yan Sui for some water while she took her leave.
She hadn’t forgotten her appointment with Yan Ze, and it was nearly noon.
Leaving Shoukang Palace, Qin Wan walked outside of Zhengyang Gate. The Imperial Guards had noticeably increased these days, but seeing Qin Wan, they didn’t dare question her too much.
After leaving the palace, Qin Wan immediately spotted a small blue cloth carriage waiting outside the palace gates, with Tan Xiang standing beside it.
Qin Wan approached with Bai Ying, and Tan Xiang said, “Greetings, Princess. His Highness couldn’t come himself, so I’m here to escort you.”
Qin Wan nodded, and seeing that Tan Xiang had prepared a carriage, she sent the Qin family carriage back to the manor and boarded Tan Xiang’s carriage.
Tan Xiang drove the carriage, turning toward the southern part of the city. Although Qin Wan was fairly familiar with the southern district, Tan Xiang took only small roads, and soon Qin Wan lost her bearings. If not for Bai Ying accompanying her, Qin Wan might have felt unsafe.
The carriage wound through the southern city’s small alleys for nearly half an hour before finally coming to a stop. Qin Wan lifted the curtain and saw they had stopped before a modest dwelling. Though low-rise, the house didn’t appear run-down; rather, its white walls and gray tiles gave it a simple yet elegant feel.
Tan Xiang called from outside, “Princess, we’ve arrived, please—”
Qin Wan stepped out of the carriage to find the small alley deserted, with no sign of Yan Ze’s carriage.
Looking at the half-closed courtyard gate, Qin Wan knew Yan Ze must be inside.
Qin Wan approached the gate with Bai Ying, and Tan Xiang pushed it open.
It was a single-courtyard residence without a screen wall, only a square flower bed. On either side of the flower bed were two large water vats containing lotus plants, though they had withered. The main house’s door was tightly closed, not to indicate if anyone was inside.
Qin Wan hesitated, turning to look at Tan Xiang, who gestured forward, “Princess, please enter…”
Qin Wan raised an eyebrow and slowly walked toward the main house, with Tan Xiang following. When she reached the door and was about to push it open, her hand instinctively paused. For some reason, she felt the house was empty. With a creaking sound, the door opened to reveal a dimly lit room with simple furniture. Against the north wall at the far end appeared to be an arhat bed.
Tan Xiang, standing behind Qin Wan, said, “The task His Highness needs Princess’s help with is inside.”
After Tan Xiang finished speaking, Qin Wan asked, “Where is His Highness?”
Tan Xiang replied, “His Highness will arrive shortly…”
Qin Wan frowned. He needed her help but hadn’t arrived yet. The house was completely silent – what was she supposed to do?
Qin Wan grew wary, eyeing the arhat bed against the far wall as she stepped inside.
Upon entering, Qin Wan felt a rush of cold air. The house lacked human presence and probably hadn’t been inhabited for some time. A glance showed the furnishings were extremely simple, and Qin Wan could tell the house was rarely visited.
In the entire house, only the arhat bed that seemed to hold something drew Qin Wan’s attention.
Qin Wan walked toward the arhat bed. As she got closer, she could see it was covered with a white cloth that showed slight undulations, though what lay beneath wasn’t clear. Qin Wan’s frown deepened as she finally reached the bed.
Though the white cloth showed some contours, whatever was underneath wasn’t large, giving the impression that the cloth was merely there to keep off dust.
Bai Ying spoke from behind Qin Wan, “Miss, perhaps I should…”
Bai Ying moved to step forward, but Qin Wan raised her hand to stop her. She narrowed her eyes and leaned forward, then her expression turned cold as she unhesitatingly lifted the white cloth.
As the cloth came away, even Qin Wan, who had seen many shocking things, felt a chill run down her spine. The first thing she saw was a grayish skull, and as more of the cloth was lifted, she saw the chest vertebrae, ribcage, hip bones, and beyond… It was a complete human skeleton!
Qin Wan’s pupils trembled slightly, and the white cloth slipped from her hand to the floor.
Looking at the female skeleton before her, Qin Wan suddenly understood what Yan Ze wanted her to do.