“He’s gone completely insane.” Prince Gong said coldly, and suspicion began to rise in his heart toward Chief Clerk Ling as well—otherwise, why would he be so different from before? It was as if he had lost his mind. Recently, he’d been lifeless and dejected. Whenever questioned about anything, aside from “I don’t know,” it was just “I don’t know”—he knew nothing at all. What use was such a Chief Clerk?! He had forgotten that he himself had told Chief Clerk Ling to just rest and retire, and instructed Wu Feng: “This matter still needs to be investigated, investigated thoroughly and carefully.”
Wu Feng respectfully bowed at the waist and acknowledged the order, then looked at Prince Gong: “Then what about the matter with White Stork and that side…”
Previously, they had said they would let Han Yang take charge of this assignment, but now Han Yang was clearly under suspicion. Having him go—wouldn’t that be too risky? Prince Gong nodded: “Find an excuse. Tomorrow I’ll tell him not to manage this matter. You may go. Keep a close eye on them.”
Han Yang stumbled and rushed back to his residence in a frenzy, his heart nearly leaping from his chest in agitation and worry. Although Wu Feng had clearly found nothing during the search, the terror and anxiety in his heart hadn’t diminished one bit. When he reached the residence, he first stopped and looked at his servants methodically closing the door and ushering him into the house. Then, seeing the door immediately shut behind him, he was somewhat dazed.
Inside the room stood someone of similar build to him, excitedly slapping the table and spouting grand proclamations about sharing future prosperity. Lu Ran was hidden in the side room, poking his head out slightly to give him a meaningful look. Understanding immediately, he secretly crouched down and slipped along the base of the wall like a wisp of smoke into the room. Seeing that Marquis Dingyuan and Han Yu were both there, he finally truly relaxed: “That scared me to death.”
While speaking, he grabbed a teapot from the table, not caring whether it was hot or cold, poured it all down his throat. After gulping it down, he looked up at them: “Something’s happened. Word came from the capital that Prince Gong’s two sons didn’t manage to leave, and the biggest nail buried in Empress Dowager Lu’s palace was also pulled out. Prince Gong is furious beyond measure and now suspects someone leaked the information. I’m the first one being suspected.”
That Prince Gong would suspect him was actually quite normal. Lu Ran was waving a handkerchief, wiping the stains on his robe. Upon hearing this, he said nonchalantly: “What’s there to say about that? It’s obvious. From the moment Wu Feng was sent in to search for people, I knew what it was about. With Sixth Miss guarding the palace in the capital, and us having sent advance notice to Minister Cui, who in turn sent word back to Sixth Miss—Prince Gong still wants to succeed? That’s a pipe dream.”
Han Yang poured himself another gulp of tea, dispelling some of the tense anxiety from his rapid-fire ordeal, then shook his head: “That’s not entirely true. This Prince Gong is extremely cunning—he might still have backup plans. I think he definitely doesn’t only have that Court Attendant Xie as his only person. If this attempt failed, there will surely be a next time. Moreover, on my father’s side…”
He lifted his head and glanced at Han Yu. Han Yu understood and nodded, picking up his words: “That’s right. Whether or not Prince Gong’s people were caught doesn’t matter much, but my father’s people definitely won’t be caught so easily.”
Since these matters were happening far away in the capital, no matter how worried they were, they couldn’t intervene. Marquis Dingyuan immediately steered the conversation back to the matter at hand: “After such an incident, given Prince Gong’s temperament, he definitely won’t entrust you with the task of winning over the White Stork army anymore. Moreover, he’ll certainly have people watch you closely. The person outside replacing you can speak for at most another quarter-hour before someone comes knocking at the door, urging you to quickly bring people to Prince Gong’s residence to settle matters. Do you believe me or not?”
Han Yang naturally believed him. He sighed, and the vibrant energy he had displayed moments ago in front of Prince Gong and Wu Feng instantly turned to lifeless gray: “I believe you. In that case, should we just flee?”
Han Yu scoffed first: “Flee? Flee where? Right now, this entire Xibei region is Prince Gong’s and Father’s domain. If we’re caught, losing our lives would be the least of it—I’m afraid we wouldn’t even be able to die properly.”
Han Yang deflated again, plopping down onto a stool: “Then what can we do? You all keep saying that Sixth Miss is so incredibly capable—why not send a letter to ask her?”
Lu Ran, who had become quite familiar with him, slapped him on the head: “Don’t talk nonsense. At this point, how could there possibly be enough time?” He thought for a moment: “He suspects you, so we’ll muddy the waters.”
Han Yang was rather puzzled: “Muddy the waters how?”
Clarifying muddy water was somewhat difficult, but muddying clear water was much easier. Lu Ran smiled: “Frame others, shift blame—there are plenty of methods.”
Speaking thus, he actually provided a solution: “Just now you said, who else knows about what you mentioned? The things your father told Prince Gong.”
Han Yang thought for a moment and said: “Chief Clerk Ling, Zou Yanzheng, and Wu Feng also knows.”
Lu Ran clapped his hands: “Find some people and have them make several trips to those places. Prince Gong is extremely suspicious—he’ll immediately shift his attention to them.”
Han Yang agreed swiftly: “Then what about the White Stork matter on the Weihai Guard side? How do I handle that?”
A flash of disappointment crossed Lu Ran’s eyes, but he still maintained his composure and spoke honestly: “What else can be done? At this moment, we take things one step at a time. At the very least, clear yourself of suspicion first.”
Han Yang responded somewhat listlessly, then grew curious about how they’d evaded the search: “Wu Feng is extremely meticulous, and the people around him are all as difficult to deal with as Imperial Guards. How did you escape?”
He had truly been on tenterhooks, terrified they’d be caught red-handed.
Marquis Dingyuan said nothing. Lu Ran covered his lips and coughed. Han Yu was the most forthright: “We hid in the chicken coop. The chicken coop is under cement-built stairs where no one goes to look. Plus, Ping’an pretended to be having a nighttime tryst with someone, so no one noticed us.”
Well, although it was a bit degrading and hiding in a chicken coop was rather pathetic, at least they’d gotten through it. Han Yang laughed a couple times and began pondering how to find people to discreetly make a few rounds to Chief Clerk Ling’s and Zou Yanzheng’s places without leaving traces.
Chief Clerk Ling himself didn’t know he was being schemed against. He sat under the dim yellow lamplight. Wind from outside the window blew in, dispelling all his drowsiness and making his previously sleepy state vanish completely. He slowly picked up his cup, then picked up the pot to pour himself some water. After taking a sip, he let out a slow sigh.
Prince Gong had truly gone mad—to actually want to kill Empress Dowager Lu.
To actually collude with Han Zhengqing and bring the Tartars through the pass—such morally bankrupt and disgraceful acts would surely be recorded in the history books. If he weren’t insane, he couldn’t possibly do such things. And he still wanted to contact Han Zhengqing, still wanted to patch things up and make repairs, still wanted to make moves in the capital. He couldn’t see how the Tartars ravaged the common people when they came through the pass. When reports of the atrocities at Datong came in, he didn’t care either. He was simply a madman!