Yuan Yu had only been momentarily enraged at the time, ordering people to smash all the pleasure boats. Who would have known that guards had already been arranged on those boats, and when disagreement arose, those people actually followed Chu Yun’s orders to attack him! This was simply unbelievable! In the intense conflict, someone struck him heavily on the back of his head, and he was forcibly knocked into the water. He gulped down a large amount of water, and his whole body was about to float upward when somehow two ice-cold hands pulled him down. He struggled desperately, but his vision quickly fell into complete darkness.

He didn’t know how long had passed before he awakened from unconsciousness, only to discover himself inside a prison cell. No matter how he cursed or pleaded, no one answered him. At first, he thought whoever had captured him would surely appear soon, but later he discovered that he seemed to have been forgotten—no one had ever come here at all. Every day at a fixed time, a deaf and mute guard would deliver a bowl of clear water. Relying on just this little bit of water, he had survived for several days.

The surroundings were so silent there wasn’t the slightest sound. Scenes of his past life of pleasure and luxury flashed rapidly through his mind, but when he opened his eyes, before him were only cold walls. He discovered with desolation that he had walked to the edge of death.

After an unknown number of days, torches lit up in the entire prison for the first time. Following this, footsteps sounded on the stairs. Then Yuan Yu opened his eyes and saw a pair of embroidered shoes inlaid with pearls, spotlessly clean. His gaze slowly moved upward—a light blue dress, a snow-white neck, and finally those eyes like an ancient well. For the rest of his life, he would never forget these eyes.

“So it really is you—” Yuan Yu spoke, only then discovering his voice was terrifyingly hoarse. He should have thought of it earlier—Li Weiyang was the one who had schemed to trap him. Yes, he had threatened her safety, knew about her past—how could she spare him? Previously at the banquet, acting as if nothing had happened, she was actually waiting for him here!

Li Weiyang smiled slightly and said, “What, not happy to see me? Oh, I understand—Prince Yan doesn’t like this environment?”

Only after she said this did Yuan Yu see clearly for the first time the place where he had stayed for so long. This was a very spacious prison cell, dark and damp everywhere. Outside hung all kinds of torture instruments covered in bloodstains, and the moldy, fishy smell in the air was unbearable. When he couldn’t see, he hadn’t yet realized how terrifying this environment was, but now seeing it with his own eyes, he felt increasingly horrified. Then suddenly, he realized where this was—and immediately he flew into a rage: “Are you insane?!” Good heavens, he had actually been imprisoned in the prince’s mansion’s dungeon, and these past days, he hadn’t even realized it at all.

Who would have thought this was the place holding him captive? How was this possible? Li Weiyang, this lunatic!

Li Weiyang laughed lightly and said slowly, “Prince Yan, you personally created this place. Now using it to imprison you yourself—isn’t that quite interesting?”

Yuan Yu lunged forward and grabbed the cold bars: “Let me out! Let me out! Do you know what punishment there is for privately imprisoning me?! You’ll be executed! Do you hear me, Li Weiyang? Have you really gone mad?”

Li Weiyang sighed. Yuan Yu had originally established this dungeon to imprison all those who dared resist him, or rather, to secretly eliminate some people Empress Pei didn’t want to see. But he never would have imagined that in the end he would become the judged one, imprisoned in this place. Life truly was a wonderful irony, wasn’t it? She looked at Yuan Yu before her—that face more beautiful than a woman’s had undergone tremendous changes, becoming extremely gaunt, his clothes tattered, his breath weak, making him look especially dejected. More importantly, because of excessive fear, the light in his eyes had been completely worn away, making him utterly different from the formerly handsome and elegant Prince Yan.

At this moment, suddenly a woman’s voice rang out: “Yuan Yu, the one who locked you here is me.” Under the flickering firelight, Princess Yongning emerged from the side, her face wearing a victorious smile as she coldly watched the suffering Yuan Yu.

Yuan Yu shouted angrily, “Yongning, you betrayed me?!”

Princess Yongning sneered and said, “I wholeheartedly wanted to marry you, followed you thousands of miles to Yuexi, but how did you repay me? Not only did you humiliate my lady official, you even caused my miscarriage. That wasn’t enough—you also incited those concubines to make things difficult for me, forcing me to take refuge in a nunnery! Do you think I would spare you?!” She was a princess of a nation, with the noblest blood flowing through her veins. She could tolerate harm, but she could not tolerate deception and humiliation. Yuan Yu had repeatedly attempted to deceive her, playing her for a fool—how could she possibly spare him?!

Yuan Yu looked at Yongning in disbelief. He couldn’t understand at all how Princess Yongning had actually betrayed him! She was clearly such a foolish woman, completely in the palm of his hand—how could everything have turned out like this! His mind raced and his expression changed dramatically. He threw himself against the bars, his eyes filling with tears: “Yongning, save me! I was wrong, I was wrong, please forgive me! I’ll never make you angry again. Whatever you want me to do, I’ll do it. I can dismiss those servants and concubines for you, and I’ll never be intimate with any woman except you again! Tell her to spare me!”

Yongning was shocked—she hadn’t expected him to be able to cry on command without feeling any shame at all.

Li Weiyang sighed and said, “Prince Yan, your acting skills are getting better and better!”

Yuan Yu’s expression changed abruptly as he shouted fiercely, “Li Weiyang, it’s all you! You deceived Yongning, you ruined our marital relationship, you orchestrated all of this!” Then he turned to Princess Yongning again, his eyes full of pleading: “Yongning, why would you listen to an outsider’s words to harm me? Have you forgotten—we’re husband and wife! Do you want to become a widow again?”

Li Weiyang laughed softly and said, “Prince Yan, Princess Yongning has already become a widow for the second time. While you were in the dungeon, didn’t you hear the funeral being held outside?”

Prince Yan Yuan Yu’s face turned terrified. He looked at the calm-faced Li Weiyang, then at the completely unmoved Princess Yongning. He could barely understand what they meant. Already become a widow for the second time—the meaning of these words was— Very quickly, his face lost even a trace of color…

“You—you actually—you actually dare!” Yuan Yu pointed at them, too terrified to speak.

Li Weiyang looked at him with a half-smile: “What, is Your Highness afraid?”

Yuan Yu’s face completely contorted. They had fabricated news of his death, which also meant they were certain he had no way to see the sun outside alive. From now on, there would never again be a person called Prince Yan Yuan Yu in this world.

He opened his mouth wide but hesitated to speak. Li Weiyang knew what he wanted to ask, so she said, “On the third day after Prince Yan disappeared in the water, someone found your corpse in the river.”

Yuan Yu murmured, “But I’m still alive.”

“Yes, you’re still alive, but in the hearts of everyone in the capital now, you’re already dead. Moreover, your whole body was so bloated from being in the water that even your original appearance couldn’t be recognized.” Li Weiyang spoke lightly and skillfully, her tone very calm.

Yuan Yu’s body shook violently, as if struck by some unbearable force, his face turning ashen: “Empress Pei won’t believe it—she definitely won’t spare you!”

Li Weiyang smiled and said, “No, she will believe it. Prince Yan admires that Miss Chu Yun so much—do you know who her true patron really is?”

Yuan Yu stared at Li Weiyang, vaguely sensing something was wrong. Many clues he had previously overlooked surfaced in his mind. Indeed, Chu Yun had obviously been waiting for someone at the time, but not for him. So Li Weiyang knew this and deliberately had Princess Yongning invite him out, taking the opportunity to create conflict. But Chu Yun was just a small songstress—even though countless people spared no expense to praise her, she wouldn’t have the courage to openly refuse him, much less have her guards attack him. This could only prove one thing: the person behind Chu Yun had power and influence far above his own. In the capital, such people could be counted on one hand…

Li Weiyang saw Yuan Yu’s strange expression and seemed to kindly remind him: “Empress Pei’s biological son, Crown Prince Yongwen, is Miss Chu Yun’s patron. What, as Empress Pei’s trusted confidant, Prince Yan didn’t know this?”

Yuan Yu’s expression underwent tremendous changes. The shock from just now was instantly covered over, leaving only bone-chilling terror. Since the Dali incident, Empress Pei had distanced herself from him. Adding to that his marriage to a Dali princess, which Empress Pei rather disliked, even Crown Prince Yongwen had coldly neglected him. If Chu Yun truly was the crown prince’s lover, he would have known before, but now he had overlooked such important information…

Princess Yongning sneered, “You needn’t be surprised. It’s all because Chu Yun’s status is too low—she’s not even qualified to be the crown prince’s confidante. Naturally the crown prince wouldn’t broadcast it everywhere, much less tell someone useless like you.” Actually, she was also very curious why Li Weiyang would know such important information… She didn’t understand!

The smile at the corner of Li Weiyang’s lips made one’s heart turn cold: “Your Highness, do you want to know how I discovered this secret?”

Yuan Yu stared at Li Weiyang, his gaze extremely vicious, as if he wanted to tear her apart. Li Weiyang smiled faintly, unconcerned: “That day after the dance, I personally saw a sachet fall from Chu Yun’s body. Originally there was nothing to hide about this, yet she seemed very nervous and immediately concealed the sachet. At first I didn’t pay particular attention, until my personal maid mentioned to me that on Miss Chu Yun’s sachet was a very beautiful sun emblem. I suddenly remembered that this emblem should belong to the Yuexi imperial family. For Chu Yun to embroider this sachet, it must have been to give to a certain member of the imperial family. But if Chu Yun were involved with an imperial prince, spreading the word would just be a romantic affair, a beautiful thing. Yet she had always presented herself as a pure performer, never revealing her secret lover to anyone. There’s only one possibility—her status is too low, and climbing up to attach herself to him would greatly damage his reputation. Then who this person is becomes quite obvious, doesn’t it?”

From the first day Li Weiyang arrived in the capital, she had carefully studied the Yuexi imperial family members, including Empress Pei and her most beloved son, Crown Prince Yongwen. If the Dali crown prince appeared overly mediocre from everyone’s excessive protection, then this Yuexi crown prince had taken a completely different path. Empress Pei was very indulgent toward her daughters, but her discipline of the crown prince was extremely strict. When Crown Prince Yongwen was five years old, he went hunting with the emperor. The first time he shot five arrows, he hit one eagle and four rabbits, while other children his age couldn’t even draw a bow. If it were only this, Crown Prince Yongwen would just be a warrior. But when he grew to eight years old, whether classics, histories, philosophers, or various schools of thought, there was nothing he wasn’t proficient in, nothing he didn’t master. Not only was his speech elegant and clear, he was diligent to a degree ordinary people couldn’t reach. According to legend, his calligraphy encompassed all eight scripts, like iron painting and silver hooks, beautiful beyond description.

Not only that, this crown prince’s demands on himself were harsh to a degree ordinary people couldn’t achieve. Besides the crown princess and the concubines the emperor personally bestowed on him, his residence had never taken in a single beautiful concubine, nor had he ever left any stain on his reputation. There are no perfect people in this world. The more perfect Crown Prince Yongwen appeared, the more Li Weiyang felt he was disguising himself well. People who practice extreme self-restraint have correspondingly stronger desires for rebellion. He didn’t collect beautiful concubines or get close to women—not because he didn’t like beauties, nor because he was devoted to the crown princess, but because his desire for the throne had surpassed everything. Or rather, his care for his own perfect image had reached a nearly twisted degree.

Now, from Chu Yun, she vaguely saw the clues. On one hand, he sculpted an image of being diligent in government affairs and uninterested in women, while on the other hand he was involved with the famous courtesan Chu Yun. If this news got out, the pure reputation he had displayed all these years would be ruined in one fell swoop. People would all think this crown prince was just a hypocrite, and they would become suspicious of his other behaviors too. Therefore, the crown prince absolutely wouldn’t let anyone know this secret. But the more secretly someone does something, the easier it is to be discovered. He was a very clever person, so he chose to meet in broad daylight. Then he only needed to disguise himself, and who would think that the one swaggering onto Chu Yun’s boat at night would be Crown Prince Yongwen, who never frequented pleasure quarters?

Precisely because of this, to protect her most beloved son, Empress Pei certainly wouldn’t allow rumors to arise. So when she learned Yuan Yu’s death was connected to Chu Yun, she would immediately investigate Chu Yun’s background and couldn’t possibly fail to discover the crown prince’s relationship with her… In this way, she absolutely wouldn’t let Chu Yun appear before the public again—this was why Chu Yun vanished without a trace after the incident, as if she had evaporated from the world. Of course, another possibility couldn’t be ruled out: Crown Prince Yongwen, to cover his tracks, had quietly sent Chu Yun out of the capital right under Empress Pei’s nose… Whichever it was, Chu Yun wouldn’t appear in public again, much less testify about what happened at the time.

“Li Weiyang, from the moment you made your move, you knew about the crown prince and Chu Yun’s relationship, and you deliberately schemed to trap me, because you knew Empress Pei would definitely not pursue this matter further to cover up the crown prince’s secret!”

Li Weiyang said indifferently, “That’s right.” Yuan Yu had to die, if only for Crown Prince Yongwen’s honor.

Yuan Yu slumped down. After a long while, he murmured, “You truly are a woman with a vicious heart. He wasn’t wrong about you at all.”

Li Weiyang smiled and said, “He? Oh, you mean Jiang Nan?”

Yuan Yu suddenly raised his head and stared at her: “You know he’s also in the capital?”

Li Weiyang’s gaze became completely emotionless: “Yes, I personally saw him appear by your side. Prince Yan, what a fine thing you’ve done!”

Yuan Yu was startled: “I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

Li Weiyang smiled as she stroked the brocade tassels on her sleeve, saying slowly, “You killed my mother, killed my grandmother, killed my trusted confidants… Have you forgotten all of this?”

Yuan Yu laughed harshly and said, “You’re truly talking complete nonsense. What do those people in your family have to do with me? I was in Yuexi at that time!”

At that time? Thinking no one knew, yet these words proved he already knew when the Li family members met their deaths. Li Weiyang sneered and said, “Yes, you were in Yuexi, but in this matter, you, Jiang Nan, and Empress Pei must all be knowing participants. Even if you weren’t the mastermind, you were an accomplice.”

Yuan Yu looked at Li Weiyang’s face. The fear in his heart grew larger and larger, turning into a black hole that devoured his courage bit by bit. He hoped he had some dignity, so that even in death, he would suffer less humiliation… But facing Li Weiyang, he didn’t even dare speak words of seeking death. The more he wanted to die, the less that person would let him die. He was still very clear about this in his heart, because Li Weiyang was someone who would exact revenge for the smallest grievance—she absolutely wouldn’t spare him!

Seeing his terror, Li Weiyang said in a soft voice, “Wen Xiaolou, what do you think we should do with him?”

From the darkness emerged a young and handsome man. He stared at Yuan Yu in the cage, his face wearing a cold smile: “What he did to Xiao Man was outrageous. I think… naturally the more brutal the method of death, the more suitable for him.”

Yuan Yu looked at Wen Xiaolou in shock. Li Weiyang shook her head and said, “Yuan Yu, you probably don’t recognize this young master anymore… That night it was he who pulled you ashore!”

Yuan Yu’s face was full of horror. This meant those ice-cold hands… were this man’s!

“Yuan Yu, when you had those beasts defile Xiao Man, did you ever think you would also fall to being slaughtered at will one day?” Wen Xiaolou approached the bars, his gaze coldly fixed on Yuan Yu. Seeing those eyes, Yuan Yu instinctively stepped back. Then he lunged toward the other side, reaching out his hand to Princess Yongning: “Yongning, spare me! I beg you, spare me! I’ll never dare again!”

His hand desperately reached out, trying to grab Princess Yongning’s ankle. In the past, Yongning’s elaborate coiffure, always groomed without a hair out of place, was now somewhat disheveled, her dark hair brushing against her bloodless face like a withering flower. She took a deep breath, hardened her heart, and stepped back. Just then, Yuan Yu’s hand was suddenly stepped on. He screamed in pain as Wen Xiaolou applied force—in the prison cell one could almost hear the sound of bones cracking! Yuan Yu felt piercing pain, but finally remembered who Xiao Man was. He cursed angrily, “That woman was just a lowly actress! Li Weiyang, are you really going to kill me for her sake?! What is an actress! A cheap woman! Cheap woman!” His angry curses continued without end, especially clear in the dungeon. Wen Xiaolou trembled with rage all over, almost wishing he could kill Yuan Yu with one sword strike. Just then, Li Weiyang stopped him.

Wen Xiaolou whipped his head around: “You want to spare him?!”

Li Weiyang’s sigh was as light as clouds and smoke: “You almost fell for his scheme, yet you still don’t realize it?”

Wen Xiaolou froze, then looked toward Yuan Yu and saw a trace of desperate expression flash across his face. If Li Weiyang hadn’t stopped Wen Xiaolou just now, he would already no longer need to face this kind of fear…

Wen Xiaolou suddenly understood. Yuan Yu had deliberately provoked him just now, intending to die quickly and painlessly… He gritted his teeth. Before Xiao Man died, she had suffered so much torment—yet he still wanted a quick death? How could there be such an easy thing in this world! He sneered and said, “Yuan Yu, flaying, drowning, suffocation, being torn apart by five horses, bisection, boiling—which do you prefer? Or perhaps we’ll try every single one.”

Yuan Yu stared at them in terror and screamed, “Yongning, are you just going to watch me die?”

Princess Yongning turned her face away and said coldly, “Everything is your own doing—you have only yourself to blame!”

Li Weiyang laughed lightly: “What, Young Master Wen has thought for so long and only came up with these old tricks?”

Wen Xiaolou looked toward Li Weiyang and saw ripples of light moving in her eyes, like meteors streaking across the pitch-black sky, with such brilliant radiance… He smiled slightly and said, “Then according to your meaning, what should we do?”

Li Weiyang’s smile was very light, very gentle, but to Yuan Yu it gave a bone-chilling feeling…

Ten days later, the Guo family’s carriage drove into the marketplace. This was a very luxurious and comfortable carriage with two curtains, both of transparent gauze, allowing one to dimly see the scenery outside while remaining unseen by those outside. The carriage passed through the marketplace all the way. Pedestrians who passed by recognized the Guo family crest on the carriage and all respectfully moved aside.

Guo Cheng rode his horse beside the carriage. Seeing Li Weiyang lift the curtain, he couldn’t help but bend slightly and smile: “We’ll arrive at the bookshop very soon.”

Just going to buy two books and get some fresh air, yet Madam Guo had to send her son and guards to personally escort her. If she hadn’t repeatedly prevented it, Madam Guo would have accompanied her too, fearing Li Weiyang might come to any harm. Looking at Guo Cheng’s handsome face, Li Weiyang shook her head gently. Madam Guo’s loving heart as a mother—she really couldn’t bear to refuse. And as for this third brother, it seemed that from the day of that banquet, he had been very curious about her, always finding some excuse every few days to observe her, obviously still very wary of her.

Just then, a commotion arose in the crowd. Guo Cheng reined in his horse and asked a guard beside him, “What’s happening up ahead?”

The guard rode forward. After a while, he returned to report, “Third Young Master, up ahead there’s someone performing in the street.”

“Oh?!” All along this road there were many street performers, but none had caused such a commotion. The crowd was all surging in that direction. Guo Cheng was somewhat surprised. Then he asked, “Jia’er, it’s very chaotic up ahead. Should we take a detour?”

Li Weiyang lifted the carriage curtain, her face showing interest: “Chaotic? What could be chaotic right under the emperor’s feet?”

Guo Cheng smiled and said, “Someone is performing up ahead, attracting many people to watch.”

Li Weiyang glanced over and revealed an ambiguous smile: “I haven’t been out in a long time. I didn’t know it was so lively outside.” In her manner of speaking, she seemed very interested.

Guo Cheng thought for a moment and said, “Then let’s have the driver stop up ahead for a bit, take a look, then continue.”

Li Weiyang smiled faintly: “In that case, thank you, Third Brother.” Guo Cheng raised an eyebrow at her, always feeling something wasn’t quite right.

The crowd was three layers deep inside and outside, packed tightly together.

An ugly-faced person was performing. His face was covered in scars, his eyelids couldn’t open, he had no ears, his mouth was just a thin slit that could never open, and around his neck was tied a long iron chain. He moved his bent legs unsteadily, shaking his head, making various strange movements on a wooden frame a full three meters high. Children who saw this scene immediately became excited and shouted loudly, while other onlookers laughed uproariously.

“This performer is so interesting!”

“Yes, look how ugly he is! He doesn’t even have hands! Right, his mouth is so scary—he can’t speak, can he!”

“Ah! Look, his movements are so strange! It’s like he’s calling for help!”

“What calling for help—he’s just a monster, captured from the forest by a beast tamer! He seems to be a wild man!”

People whispered among themselves. Just then, Li Weiyang saw Wen Xiaolou. He was standing in the crowd, watching the person twisting and calling for help high on the wooden frame, his expression seeming to smile yet not smile. Suddenly, his gaze met Li Weiyang’s, and he nodded at her, as if in thanks. Finally, he merely smiled faintly and disappeared into the crowd.

“I heard he’s a wild man the beast tamer captured in the forest, born unable to speak, with no hands so he can’t write either. So the beast tamer forces him to make various movements, exhibiting him like a monster, performing to make a living.” Guo Cheng looked at Li Weiyang’s calm profile and said softly.

Li Weiyang sighed and said, “How pitiful.”

Guo Cheng smiled faintly: “Yes, clearly calling for help, yet no one understands.” Even if they understood, who would care about anything done by a monster that seemed human yet not human?

At this moment, the beast tamer’s basket had already reached in front of Li Weiyang. She glanced at Zhao Yue and nodded slightly. Zhao Yue tossed in a silver ingot, and the beast tamer immediately beamed with joy, thanking them repeatedly.

Li Weiyang just looked very calmly at the “monster” on the frame and said slowly, “He’s not a monster, just a performer.” A performer Yuan Yu had once mentioned, one of the lowly entertainers, and moreover a performer called a monster, destined to spend the rest of his life being mocked and tortured like this. Thinking of this, Li Weiyang’s face revealed a very faint trace of mockery. Then she turned her head and said, “Let’s go.”

Guo Cheng raised his head again, glanced at the monster wailing for help, and curved his lips. Li Weiyang usually wasn’t interested in anything—why did she suddenly stop here? Could this performer have something strange about him? However, no matter how he looked, he couldn’t see any problem. It was just a beast tamer bringing an ugly monster he’d caught from the forest to perform, like a performing monkey. Such scenes could often be seen…

He stopped thinking about it and quickly caught up with Li Weiyang.

At this moment, not far away on the second floor of a wine shop, a young man stood with his hands behind his back. His gaze had originally been casually scanning the crowd, but suddenly he discovered Li Weiyang’s departing figure. Then his gaze froze, and a shocked expression flashed through his eyes…

Li Weiyang, you actually came to Yuexi! Jiang Nan gripped the railing tightly, his face revealing an extremely vicious expression in an instant.