It was a soul-piercing question, yet Wen Chang smiled.

“Chang Ge, I will help you partly out of gratitude for your protective care, but also for A’Jue.”

“Oh?”

Taking a step forward, Wen Chang said sincerely: “Let’s speak honestly – we both know that His Majesty is the prime suspect in this matter. Since you’ve returned, he’s the first one you’ll investigate. I know your capabilities – even if I don’t help you, you’ll always find your own way to uncover the truth. You don’t absolutely need me.”

“But if I don’t help you, then in the future, should His Majesty truly be involved in this affair, there will be no one by your side who can plead for him. With no concerns holding you back, Xiao Jue would be in great danger.”

“So I’m grateful for your trust in me, and grateful that you’ve given me this opportunity. I will do my utmost to help you find the true culprit behind the Changle Palace massacre. I believe that if I can contribute my humble efforts to you, should the real perpetrator truly be connected to A’Jue, given your character, perhaps I’ll still have a chance to plead for him rather than being completely without voice and excluded.”

“This is the only thing I, as his sister, can do for him.”

Qin Chang Ge remained silent. After a pause, she turned and smiled at Wen Chang.

“He hasn’t treated you kindly all these years for nothing…”

“I believe in A’Jue,” Wen Chang said. “He’s straightforward and decisive. Though his personality is somewhat domineering, he doesn’t have a particularly scheming or treacherous heart.”

“People can change,” Qin Chang Ge smiled leisurely. “The Emperor Qian Yuan I hear about now seems to be a moody tyrant.”

“That’s because…” Wen Chang started to speak then stopped, becoming somewhat lost in thought.

Back then, she had arrived a step too late. Though she hadn’t witnessed it herself, she vaguely heard that the Emperor was the first to rush to Changle Palace. Finding the imperial palanquin too slow, he jumped down and ran on foot. When he saw the blazing Changle Palace slowly collapsing in the fierce flames, without any hesitation, he immediately threw himself into the fire like a madman, only to be desperately dragged back by his guards. It was said that her brother, who never shed tears, knelt on one knee outside Changle Palace at that time, head buried in silence. His face, blackened by smoke, was streaked with stark white traces carved by silent, torrential tears.

Such desolation and despair, such a man who had suddenly lost his beloved wife and precious child in an instant of agony.

How could she believe he was the instigator?

After a long sigh, Wen Chang said: “Given my position, whatever I say is useless. Chang Ge, you are exceptionally intelligent – see for yourself.”

“Naturally,” Qin Chang Ge smiled gently. “The vast net of heaven spreads wide, waiting to ensnare. Who will be the first to stumble into it for my observation? And what manner of human nature will I witness?”

She smiled as she walked out the door.

“I’m so looking forward to it…”

Within days, rumors spread through the palace that Grand Princess Wen Chang had requested an audience with the Empress Dowager, speaking of her ill-fated destiny and inauspicious nature, saying it was inappropriate for her to continue residing in the palace. She wished to take vows and become a nun to pray for the nation’s welfare. The Empress Dowager was greatly pleased and immediately granted her consent.

When a Grand Princess becomes a nun, she naturally needs attendant palace servants to accompany her. The servants of Jin’Ou Palace should logically follow her, but the Grand Princess said they had impure roots and unfinished worldly attachments, making them unsuitable to accompany her lest they blaspheme Buddha.

This was quite truthful. One need only look at the dress of Jin’Ou Palace’s maids to see they differed from other palaces, being particularly bright and ostentatious. The reason was simple: the young and handsome Emperor, respecting his elder sister, often visited Jin’Ou Palace – no less frequently than he visited the various consorts in the harem. In other words, the palace maids of Jin’Ou Palace had no fewer opportunities than those serving the consorts… though in recent years, none had seized such chances.

In recent years, aside from the routine selection of new consorts, the Emperor had not favored any palace maids.

When Qin Chang Ge heard this news, she was burning incense in the inner hall of Cuiwei Palace. Sandalwood curled upward from the purple-gold flying phoenix lily tripod, the smoke pale and white. The gold-inlaid carved long windows were half-closed, and waves of commotion filtered through.

Jin Yun hurried into the hall. Seeing Qin Chang Ge, she whispered: “Ming Shuang, His Majesty is about to arrive. He’s in a foul mood – it wouldn’t be proper if you offend him. Since you’re not on duty in the palace today and it wouldn’t look good for Her Ladyship to see you, you should avoid him.”

Qin Chang Ge looked up, smiled, and replied: “Alright.” She covered the tripod and left.

Jin Yun stood there stunned, watching Ming Shuang leave unhurriedly, her bearing casual yet her temperament noble, and couldn’t help frowning slightly.

Ming Shuang seemed… rather strange.

Her expressions and behavior weren’t particularly unusual, but somehow, when looking at her recently, Jin Yun always felt that beneath her continued respectfulness was an added casualness. This wasn’t a lawless sort of casualness, but rather the composed grace that only those born wise, with everything settled in their hearts, those in positions of authority, could possess. Ming Shuang had always been different from the other palace maids in Cuiwei Palace – though not a stunning beauty, her elegance was especially fine. Now she seemed even more outstanding.

With such qualities, Jin Yun wasn’t sure whether it was good or bad that she didn’t want her to encounter the Emperor.

Hearing approaching footsteps, Jin Yun smiled and shook her head. Why think so much? Each person has their own fate. She bent down and stepped aside.

Qin Chang Ge also heard the sounds of the imperial arrival. She immediately left the hall, passing through Cuiwei Palace’s garden, wrapping her hands with cloth and casually picking a few five-colored plum blossoms and wood hibiscus.