Zhou Ziqin hurriedly asked, “Jin Nu sat with us throughout the meal and never left. She ate the same food as us, so how did she end up poisoned while we remained unharmed?”

“Because she was a pipa artist,” Huang Zixia sighed. “Do you remember how before playing the pipa, she tested a few notes and complained that due to the late spring rains, the pipa had absorbed moisture and the notes weren’t clear? Then she took out a box of rosin powder and sprinkled two handfuls to slowly rub on the strings and pegs, correct?”

Zhou Ziqin nodded.

“Therefore, if the killer mixed poisoned bamboo splinters or harder wood splinters into the rosin powder, Jin Nu would naturally have her skin or nail beds pierced while rubbing and pressing. Those tiny wounds combined with the potent poison would be virtually painless – she’d only feel a slight numbness and itching. But arrow wood poison is said to be fatal at first blood. Even with just a trace amount of poison, after some time, by the time she returned to her quarters in the External Teaching Quarter, the poison would gradually spread from her hands throughout her body. She would fall unconscious and die without awareness, her body swelling until her features became unrecognizable – perfect for impersonating Miss Wang’s remains, allowing the real Miss Wang to escape and vanish completely from the world’s sight.”

The hall buzzed with discussion. Even the Emperor’s face showed amazement as he asked, “Why did the killer go to such lengths to provide a fake corpse to impersonate Wang Ruo? And how did they make Wang Ruo disappear from the palace? For what purpose?”

Huang Zixia responded, “Your servant has just solved the first mystery – the identity of Miss Wang’s corpse. All evidence now reveals it was Jin Nu, not Miss Wang. With Your Majesties’ permission, I will now uncover the second mystery: how Miss Wang disappeared and how she was replaced with Jin Nu.”

Li Shubai suddenly spoke to Zhou Ziqin: “Ziqin, you’ve worked hard with the artificial hand and testimony. You must be tired – why don’t you go rest?”

Zhou Ziqin looked confused: “But Yang Chonggu hasn’t solved the mystery yet…”

Li Shubai said nothing more, just narrowed his eyes slightly as he glanced at him.

Though naive, Zhou Ziqin wasn’t stupid. Seeing Li Shubai’s expression, he immediately understood and quickly gathered his things, saying, “This humble subject takes his leave!”

After Zhou Ziqin left and Huang Zixia closed the door, the Emperor nodded slightly and said, “We’ve heard about this from the Empress as well. It’s truly baffling. How could a living person simply vanish from within such heavy security? Most peculiar indeed.”

Empress Wang frowned and said bitterly, “It must be Pang Jun’s remaining forces, without doubt!”

Huang Zixia shook her head and said, “This case has been convoluted for days. The rumors about Pang Jun’s involvement are merely smokescreens used by the real killer. In truth, he has absolutely no connection to this case! And the real killer, in your servant’s opinion, should be right here in this hall.”

Her clear and forceful words made everyone present stiffen as if struck by thorns in their backs.

Empress Wang laughed coldly, “How dare you! Are you suggesting the killer is among us of the Wang family?”

“Your servant wouldn’t dare. Your servant is only making the sole deduction that can explain everything based on days of investigation. Regarding the killer, your servant speaks only facts, without other considerations.”

“If it wasn’t Pang Jun’s doing, and you’re saying one of us is the killer, then who do you think it is?” Wang Lin looked around at the few people in the hall and demanded angrily, “When A’Ruo disappeared, it was under the watch of both the Capital Defense Bureau and Prince Kui’s guards. You might not trust the palace people or the troops my son brought, but you’re from Prince Kui’s household yourself – do you not trust those guards?”

Li Shubai frowned slightly and said, “Please don’t worry, Minister Wang. That’s surely not what Yang Chonggu means.”

Huang Zixia replied neither humbly nor proudly, “When Miss Wang disappeared, Prince Kui and I were present, witnessing with our own eyes, hearing with our ears, experiencing it personally. I trust Prince Kui and the Capital Defense Bureau officials just as I trust myself.”

“Alright, everyone remain calm,” the Emperor raised his hand to pacify the crowd. “Let’s hear Yang Chonggu’s deductions first. If anyone has questions afterward, there will be time to ask them.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty!” With the Emperor’s permission, Huang Zixia ignored the others and bowed to the Emperor before continuing, “While Wang Ruo’s disappearance is certainly mysterious, an even more inexplicable event occurred before her disappearance – why would a palace servant risk attempting to assassinate her while she rested in Penglai Hall? And when I heard the commotion in the inner chamber and immediately ran to investigate, the assassin had already vanished. Outside Penglai Hall was completely open ground with no cover, yet the female officials like Chang Ling who arrived before me could still see a shadow leaping through the window, while I arrived just one step later to find no trace at all. Could there be some way for a person to vanish instantly?

“However, after repeatedly pondering this afterward, I realized this momentarily-appearing assassin served only one purpose: to prompt Her Highness the Empress to take action – moving Miss Wang to Yongchun Hall.”

Empress Wang laughed coldly, “So you’re saying I was wrong to care for A’Ruo and try to protect the future Princess Kui for the court and Prince Kui?”

“I wouldn’t dare suggest Her Highness was wrong. Your servant means that precisely because Miss Wang was under such heavy protection, it facilitated this mysterious case. Because Yongchun Hall was a pre-arranged stage, perfect for Wang Ruo’s vanishing act – of all places in the palace, it appeared the most secure but was the most suitable for this disappearing trick-“

She took out a folded thin paper from her sleeve and spread it before everyone – it was a map of Yongchun Hall that she had prepared in advance.

She pressed the silver hairpin in her hair, pulled out the jade pin from its center, and used it to draw on the paper as she explained to everyone in the hall: “Yongchun Hall was originally used as an inner storehouse, with impenetrable walls on all four sides. Moreover, the Empress had asked His Majesty to dispatch two hundred troops to gather there, which created confusion amid the crowd of onlookers. Wang Ruo deliberately walked out of the chamber to thank the Prince before her disappearance, making us watch her return to the chamber, then vanish from a place that should have been impossible to disappear from – the most secure location.”

Her hairpin drew a circle around the eastern chamber of the central hall, showing the most heavily guarded center: “After her disappearance, I remained completely puzzled – we watched Wang Ruo enter the chamber, yet how did she vanish in an instant? How could she possibly have evaded everyone’s gaze and disappeared so completely?”

The hall fell silent. Even Li Shubai, who already knew the inside story, couldn’t help but focus intently as she unveiled the core trick of this case.

“However, we’ve been misled all along. Even considering ten thousand possibilities, we could never figure out how she disappeared in Yongchun Hall. It wasn’t until I was inspired by a street magician in the West Market that I discovered the truth of this disappearance – Wang Ruo didn’t mysteriously vanish in the eastern chamber of Yongchun Hall, because from the very beginning, she never entered the eastern chamber at all!”

Wang Lin said coldly, “But I heard that Prince Kui, you, and dozens of guards in the hall all saw Wang Ruo enter the inner eastern chamber. She walked in under everyone’s watch. Now you’re saying she didn’t enter – are you suggesting everyone experienced a hallucination?”

“Not a hallucination. Lord Wang, did you notice that after Yongchun Hall was converted from a storehouse to living quarters, to break up its rigid square layout, an ornamental rock garden was placed in the courtyard near the inner hall, between the outer and inner halls?”

“But this rock garden was very low, with only one or two rocks higher than a person’s head. How could that be used for any trickery?”

“Just one spot high enough to conceal a head is sufficient,” Huang Zixia explained calmly. “This trick required only a moment to succeed. Because Lord Wang Yun deployed the guards, there was no one behind the rock garden. The only guards who could see behind it were the two stationed outside the eastern chamber’s window, who were ordered to face the window and watch the entrance exclusively. Under these circumstances, when everyone supposedly watched Wang Ruo return to the eastern chamber, they were only watching a back view walking away.”

“Isn’t seeing her back view enough?”

“Of course not. Because the supposed disappearance completed at that moment needed just an instant.” Huang Zixia’s hairpin pointed to the rock garden. “Between the outer and inner halls is a very low rock garden, with a winding blue brick path through it. This is the highest point, just tall enough to conceal someone of Wang Ruo’s height of five feet seven inches. Therefore, all that was needed was for someone wearing the same clothes as Wang Ruo, with the same hairstyle and accessories, to hide behind the rock garden in advance. When Wang Ruo reached the highest rock, she would crouch down while the other person stood up and walked out from behind the rocks. In that instant, the switch was made – the Wang Ruo we watched walking toward the eastern chamber had already become someone else!”

Huang Zixia turned to look at the trembling Xianyun and Ranyun prostrated on the ground, saying slowly, “Ranyun was accompanying Wang Ruo to see Prince Kui, so naturally, the person impersonating Wang Ruo behind the rocks was Xianyun.”

“Absurd!” Wang Lin sneered. “Master Yang, what impressive speculation – seeing a street magic trick lets you apply it to this case. And you don’t even care that Wang Ruo and Xianyun differ in height by half a head? Wang Ruo was notably taller than average. Wouldn’t people notice if the Wang Ruo emerging from behind the rocks suddenly had a back view half a head shorter?”

“Altering height isn’t difficult, especially for women. The cloud-stepping shoes sold in the markets have wooden soles up to five or six inches high – making Xianyun half a head taller wasn’t challenging. I noticed Xianyun’s foot caught on the threshold when entering the hall, naturally because she wasn’t used to such shoes. Another more compelling piece of evidence is that Xianyun left shortly after entering, taking a food box to the small kitchen in the corner behind the hall. I suspect she burned her disguised clothes and shoes there. Unfortunately, her inexperience and panic led to evidence remaining – we found a half-burnt piece of wood shaped like a horseshoe in the stove, which was the remaining heel of the cloud-stepping shoe!”

Seeing Wang Lin momentarily speechless, Li Shubai asked, “Then, when everyone immediately began searching Yongchun Hall afterward, where did Wang Ruo go?”

“Simple enough – she changed into palace maid or eunuch clothes that had been hidden in the rock garden cavity beforehand. When everyone was searching for her jade dew-collecting hairpin near the rocks, she pretended to be one of the palace servants helping with the search and left the rock garden.”

“Ridiculous! Wouldn’t someone question the appearance of a person who looked identical to Wang Ruo?” Wang Lin shouted.

“No one would notice her. Because Chang Ling, the Empress’s female official, quickly appeared with a group of palace maids and eunuchs. She left some people in the hall to help search and took others to report to the Empress – and Wang Ruo was among those who left with her. After leaving the chaos of Yongchun Hall, Wang Ruo naturally vanished like a bird into the forest or a fish into the sea, leaving no trace. Later, when Yongchun Hall’s security was withdrawn, leaving only a few old eunuchs and maids guarding it, it would have been simple for someone with eyes and helpers in the palace to secretly move a corpse into the palace and place it in the eastern chamber.”

Everyone fell silent, and Yanji Hall sank into dead silence.

The Emperor pondered Huang Zixia’s words, his gaze seeming to turn toward the Empress. Empress Wang kept her eyes lowered, looking at the silver patterns on her white dress, and asked slowly, “From Master Yang’s meaning, it seems you’re already clear about who was behind all this?”

“Your servant dares to speak… I didn’t want to think this way. But the methods used in this case – no one else could have accomplished them except that person.” Huang Zixia raised her head to look at her, gaze clear and fearless. “Even if I offend powers beyond my imagination, I must reveal the truth I’ve discovered, from beginning to end.”

Everyone in the hall remained still with changing expressions, except for the Emperor, who maintained a gentle demeanor and nodded, saying, “In that case, tell us who was ultimately behind Wang Ruo’s mysterious disappearance?”

“Looking at all the signs, it’s not hard to determine. First, this person could decide the location of the incident in advance, moving Wang Ruo to Yongchun Hall. Second, this person could command senior palace maids and eunuchs like Chang Ling and Chang Qing beforehand. Third, after the incident, they could have Yan Ling take Wang Ruo away. Fourth, after Jin Nu’s death, they could easily move her body into Yongchun Hall.”

As she spoke, she kept her eyes on the ground, not looking at anyone. But the answer was already evident: “Regarding the mastermind, let me first mention one thing – the beginning of these events. On the day Wang Ruo prayed at Xianyou Temple, a mysterious man appeared before us holding a birdcage, performing an illusion. He warned Wang Ruo that past lives cannot be hidden, then mysteriously disappeared within the heavily guarded temple – it was this mysterious man’s appearance that triggered the subsequent chain of events.”

The Emperor nodded, “I’ve heard of this – another strange occurrence. In your opinion, who was this man in Xianyou Temple, how did he come and go, and what was his purpose in all this?”

“In your servant’s opinion, Xianyou Temple had high walls and deep courtyards. That day, the temple had been cleared of visitors and was guarded by Prince Kui’s soldiers. At the time, I was fixated on wondering where the mysterious man came from, but never considered that he was actually with us from the beginning, always by our side. When we left the crowd, he only needed to put on a disguise to appear before us, and disappearing was just as simple – he only needed to remove his disguise in the back hall, burn it in the incense burner, then quickly descend through the shrubbery beside the mountain path steps to appear before us again… and the first person to appear before us then was you – Commander Wang Yun.”