The agonizing screams that had been tormenting everyone’s ears finally subsided. Surprisingly, it was the man bound on the right, who hadn’t yet been tortured, who spoke up first. His companion’s horrific state had terrified him into submission.
“Go fetch His Highness,” Wei Zhuo commanded. He then pulled out a folded white handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to Lu Chang. “Here, wipe your hands.”
Lu Chang thanked him and accepted the cloth, leisurely cleaning the blood from his hands.
“I’m impressed. For someone so young, your methods are quite ruthless,” Wei Zhuo remarked, gazing at the blood-covered man on the left who had already passed out.
Initially, Wei Zhuo had assumed that Lu Chang, being a scholar and the top-ranked imperial exam graduate, would be a refined young gentleman. He expected him to be like his father – a proud and aloof intellectual who would disdain torture and forced confessions. To his surprise, Lu Chang had acted without hesitation, displaying a decisive ruthlessness unlike his father, Lu Wenhan.
“You’re too kind, Uncle Wei,” Lu Chang replied calmly. The fierce aura he had exuded during the interrogation vanished instantly. He added nonchalantly, “He shouldn’t have touched someone who was off-limits.”
“You’re quite different from your father,” Wei Zhuo observed. In his youth, Lu Wenhan had been arrogant and unruly, appearing to be a spoiled aristocrat. In reality, he was deeply calculating and cautious. After more than a decade in office, he had become even more shrewd and slippery – the type of person Wei Zhuo disliked dealing with. In this aspect, Lu Chang was the complete opposite of Lu Wenhan.
If something were to happen to the Zeng family and Ming Shu, Lu Wenhan might consider the culprit’s status before seeking revenge. Lu Chang, however, would risk everything… There was a glint of recklessness in his eyes at times.
Prince Zhao Jingran was quickly summoned. Wei Zhuo sat beside him and handed the questioning over to Lu Chang, as no one understood the situation better than he did. Although Song Qingzhao had briefly mentioned some details the night before, Wei Zhuo only knew the general outline.
The assassination attempt was too serious to conceal, especially since the entire Lu family had nearly perished and Wei Zhuo had been present. Song Qingzhao had no choice but to reveal everything about the Jian family.
“Speak up. Who are you? Who sent you? What was your purpose?” Lu Chang continued wiping his hands, his slightly slanted gaze filled with malice, causing the man to tremble in fear.
“We… we’re from Jiangning… working for High Official Gao Shicai, the Deputy Magistrate of Jiangning Prefecture,” the man stuttered. “He ordered us to infiltrate Bianjing and assassinate the new top-ranked scholar Lu Chang’s sister, Lu Mingshu.”
“Why does Gao Shicai want to kill my sister?” Lu Chang paused, his eyes darkening further.
“We don’t know. I was originally a refugee who fled to Jiangning. He secretly recruited me into his household. Our lives are in his hands. We’re merely his pawns, carrying out his orders. He never tells us the reasons behind his actions.”
“Was killing my sister the only task?” Lu Chang pressed.
The man nodded repeatedly. “Yes, that was the only order.”
Lu Chang clenched the handkerchief in his left hand and suddenly grabbed the man’s throat. He held on until the man’s face turned red and he was on the verge of passing out before finally releasing him.
“If you don’t want to suffer, tell me everything you know without me asking. From now on, for every question I have to ask, you’ll be tortured once. Let me count your teeth and see how many questions I can ask.”
The man looked at him in terror and then said, “My lord, I truly only received one order.” Under Lu Chang’s intense gaze, he thought for a moment and added, “However, as far as I know, High Official Gao sent out two teams: one to hunt down Lu Mingshu and another to pursue Zhou Xiuqing.”
Zhou Xiuqing was the full name of the Jian family’s concubine.
Lu Chang frowned again, about to ask another question, but the man quickly continued, “I really don’t know the reason. We only followed the instructions of our leader. The one in charge of our infiltration into Bianjing is called Wu Si. We all act on his orders. We only moved when he commanded us to.” Before Lu Chang could speak again, he hurriedly explained how they communicated with Wu Si, where they usually hid, and what their secret codes were.
“My lord, I’ve told you everything I know… Please don’t ask anymore. I really don’t know anything else…”
Lu Chang temporarily spared this man, only gagging him again. He then splashed water on the other man to wake him up and questioned him as well. This man’s mouth was full of blood, making it difficult for him to speak clearly. It took Lu Chang some effort to interrogate him, but the information he provided was largely consistent with the first man’s account.
Once the interrogation ended, they left the dungeon and returned to Wei Zhuo’s council chamber. Wei Zhuo immediately summoned his deputy and, based on the information Lu Chang had extracted, ordered him to arrange for the capture of the remaining criminals.
“Your Highness, Lu Chang, there’s no need to worry,” Wei Zhuo assured them after issuing his orders. “Following yesterday’s incident, I’ve already commanded a city-wide lockdown. If they’re still in the city, that’s fine. Should they attempt to escape, they’ll only be walking into our trap.”
As the Imperial Guard was responsible for defending the capital, Wei Zhuo’s orders meant increased security at all four city gates, making it extremely difficult for the culprits to leave.
“Thank you, Commander,” Prince Zhao Jingran said.
“Your Highness is too kind. Ensuring the capital’s safety is my duty,” Wei Zhuo replied, bowing respectfully.
“Zi’ao, what are you thinking about?” Zhao Jingran asked, noticing Lu Chang’s silence.
“Your Highness, I’m pondering Zhou Xiuqing’s whereabouts,” Lu Chang replied thoughtfully. “Based on the interrogation, it’s clear that Gao Shicai is connected to the Jian family case. That’s why he issued the kill order. He’s likely the mastermind behind it all.”
“With such a major case in Jiangning Prefecture, local officials will surely face dismissal, including the Prefect,” Zhao Jingran added. “Gao Shicai, originally the Deputy Magistrate, is now acting as interim Prefect due to the former Prefect’s downfall. He’s the most likely candidate to fill the vacant position permanently. If he’s indeed the mastermind, his motives may extend beyond mere wealth to seeking higher office.”
“So when he learned that Zhou Xiuqing, a key witness, was being secretly transported to Bianjing, it’s not surprising that he desperately tried to silence her,” Lu Chang continued. “However… Zhou Xiuqing was kidnapped, not killed. I questioned the men escorting her at the time. The attackers in black didn’t intend to harm her; they wanted her alive. This doesn’t align with Gao Shicai’s objectives. Moreover, if Gao Shicai sent two teams – one for Ming Shu and one for Zhou Xiuqing – then who was behind the attack on me?”
Lu Chang carefully unraveled the threads of the mystery.
“Furthermore, our agents in Jiangning were operating covertly. Even if they alerted Gao Shicai that someone was investigating the Jian family case, Ming Shu wasn’t involved. How did he discover so quickly that Ming Shu was hiding in the capital and is now my sister?”
Lu Chang couldn’t understand how Ming Shu’s identity had been so thoroughly exposed.
Unless someone who knew Ming Shu’s identity beforehand had informed Gao Shicai.
And this person was likely the same one who had abducted Zhou Xiuqing.
Behind them lurked a mysterious figure with unclear allegiances and motives.
“These arrows and this knife are also problematic,” Wei Zhuo said, placing the arrowhead removed from Lu Chang yesterday, along with the arrow shaft he had brought back, and the short blade on the desk.
Lu Chang and Zhao Jingran each took an item for closer inspection. The weapons were sharp and clearly of military quality, not ordinary items.
“Weapons are strictly controlled in the markets. Bows, arrows, and swords are explicitly forbidden for private ownership in our dynasty,” Wei Zhuo explained, pointing at the arrow. “These are military-grade weapons that even ordinary local militias aren’t allowed to possess. How could a Deputy Magistrate’s household have so many? Moreover, standard military weapons always bear the arsenal’s mark on the shaft, but these don’t. They must be privately forged.”
Private weapon forging was a matter of grave national security.
As Wei Zhuo spoke, his eyes grew stern.
After interrogating the criminals and engaging in a deep discussion with Wei Zhuo and Zhao Jingran, Lu Chang had not only missed lunchtime but also his medication.
Ming Shu anxiously watched the medicine warming on the stove. If it weren’t for the closed-door meeting that no one dared interrupt, she would have delivered the medicine to him long ago.
Did he think his body was made of iron? He had returned so badly injured yesterday, yet today he couldn’t even rest properly?
As she thought this, Ming Shu felt a twinge of resentment towards Wei Zhuo and the prince for disregarding Lu Chang’s injuries. Just as she was feeling frustrated, Lu Chang’s voice came from outside.
“Please prepare hot water. I need to bathe.”
Bathe?!
Ming Shu jumped up and rushed to the door. Before Lu Chang’s servant could leave, she flung the door open, standing there fuming.
“What bath? The doctor just said yesterday that your shoulder wound can’t get wet!”
She couldn’t understand why he suddenly cared so much about cleanliness after getting injured when he usually wasn’t so particular.
“…Don’t come closer,” Lu Chang hesitated, stepping back slightly and quickly waving for the servant to prepare the water.
Ming Shu was bewildered.
“I’m dirty,” Lu Chang explained reluctantly. “I just finished interrogating the criminals.”
He opened his hands, and Ming Shu finally noticed the bloodstains on his clothes – splatter from the prisoners’ wounds or mouths that he couldn’t avoid during questioning.
“Still, you don’t need a full bath. Just have someone wipe you down and change into clean clothes,” Ming Shu said, moving aside to let him in.
“You don’t understand,” Lu Chang said, unable to explain further.
As Ming Shu poured his medicine, she looked up: “What don’t I understand? You’ve never been a neat freak before.”
Lu Chang didn’t respond.
He wasn’t the one with cleanliness issues – Ming Shu was.
Yes, he could change clothes, but the blood and saliva that had sprayed into his hair during the interrogation… He felt the smell wouldn’t dissipate without washing, and he knew Ming Shu would find it disgusting.
“Drink your medicine!” Ming Shu thrust the cup into his hands.
Lu Chang drank it in two gulps. Ming Shu gave him water to rinse his mouth, then he asked about Madam Zeng. As Ming Shu ordered food to be prepared, she replied, “Mother was pleased to hear we chased away the Minister of Rites… Don’t worry, she’s fine. Her foot injury had the dressing changed again this morning, and the swelling seems to have gone down.”
“That’s good,” Lu Chang said. “I’ve already discussed with His Highness and Uncle Wei that we’ll temporarily stay at the Commander’s mansion for safety. We’ll move to the Top Scholar’s residence once the danger has passed.”
“When will the danger pass? Another month?” Ming Shu asked, arms crossed, with a wry smile.
Lu Chang raised an eyebrow – Ming Shu hadn’t asked a single question about the reason for her assassination attempt.
As clever as she was, how could she not connect this sudden misfortune to recent events? But because of their one-month agreement, she had suppressed her curiosity to get to the bottom of things…
Lu Chang clenched his fist, about to say something when a servant knocked on the door.
The hot water and clean towels for the bath had arrived. Ming Shu opened the door and personally directed the servants to bring everything into the adjacent washroom – towels placed within easy reach by the tub, clean clothes hung on the rack for Lu Chang to dress easily, water temperature checked to ensure it was just right…
Lu Chang sat quietly in the room, watching her busy herself. Never had he felt that his arrow wound was so worthwhile as he did at this moment.
Once everything was prepared, Ming Shu let Lu Chang enter.
Lu Chang disliked having people attend to him closely, so he always bathed alone.
Ming Shu, still worried, called out loudly from outside the door: “Be careful, the floor is slippery. Walk slowly.”
“Don’t fall asleep while bathing, and don’t get your wound wet…”
“If anything happens, remember to call me…”
Before she could finish, Lu Chang suddenly opened the washroom door.
Ming Shu was startled.
Lu Chang had just removed his hair pin and let down his long hair. Leaning against the door, he looked at her and said, “If you’re so worried, why don’t you come in and help me?”
After a long pause, Ming Shu only threw one word at him: “Shameless.”
Lu Chang chuckled softly in response.