Five Cities Military Command, brightly lit throughout.

The Interior Minister’s sworn daughter, the chief’s sworn younger sister, had disappeared. Aside from a few keeping watch, everyone else had gone out on night patrol to search.

Even those few remaining guards would come out from time to time to see if any brothers had brought back good news.

After all, the chief treated them quite well on ordinary days.

When it was Six Jin’s turn to check outside, he saw someone lying on the ground several zhang away.

Six Jin ran over and reached out to brush aside the person’s blood-soaked black hair. His eyes instantly went straight.

This, this, this—wasn’t this the chief’s sworn younger sister?

She’d come to their Five Cities Military Command a few times.

“Someone come! Come quickly…Found her…Found her…”

Hearing the shouts, the few men inside the office all ran out. Looking at the scene, they immediately fell into chaos.

“Quick, quick, go find Third Master and Young Master Pei.”

“Finding Young Master Pei is useless—you need to go to the Pei residence to find his father.”

“What are you standing there for? Carry her inside first…”

“Be gentle, gentle—her head’s still bleeding!”

“It’s over, it’s over—this injury isn’t light!”

…

On a winter night, the cold and length seemed endless.

Dong Xiao pushed open the study door. Inside, a shadow guard knelt while Prince Han sat in the grand tutor’s chair, his face full of murderous intent.

“Your Highness, what happened?”

“This incompetent fool was discovered by Zhu Yuanmo.”

“More failure than success.”

Dong Xiao walked before the shadow guard and said coldly, “Go outside and receive your punishment. I need to speak with the Prince.”

The shadow guard quickly withdrew.

Dong Xiao sat down beside Zhao Yanjin.

“The person has been released. Couldn’t force anything out of her. Her attitude was extremely arrogant—not like Master Xie Daozhi’s sworn daughter but like his actual daughter.”

He sneered coldly. “She even brought up the Grand Prince, saying her relationship with him was extraordinary, warning me to be careful or I’d regret it.”

One more arrogant than the next!

Zhao Yanjin said angrily, “That little bastard came to my door, showing me absolutely no respect, even saying I should take care of myself.”

Dong Xiao frowned. “The Grand Prince is usually refined and courteous. Such behavior is extremely rare, let alone clashing with Your Highness over a woman.”

Zhao Yanjin said, “That Yan Sanhe is most likely a woman he’s keeping outside. Right now he’s infatuated with her.”

“No wonder we couldn’t investigate this woman’s identity.”

Dong Xiao sneered. “With the Grand Prince, this great Buddha, protecting her, even a skinny horse from Yangzhou could be passed off as Master Xie Daozhi’s sworn daughter.”

Zhao Yanjin had done this sort of thing himself.

Some women couldn’t be brought to the surface and could only be secretly kept outside, publicly claimed as someone’s newly recognized sworn daughter.

The purpose was to deceive people.

Usually, such women had very low status—either from the countryside or entertainers and courtesans, their speech and behavior unruly.

But sometimes men found this quite appealing.

Novel!

This also explained why this Yan Sanhe constantly went out and mixed with men—most likely spoiled by that little bastard.

“Wasted all that effort.”

Zhao Yanjin sighed with frustration. “And stirred up a whole mess of trouble.”

“The effort wasn’t wasted. At least it made Your Highness recognize one thing.”

Dong Xiao looked at Zhao Yanjin. “The Crown Prince is weak and easy to bully, but the Grand Prince is not. For the sake of one woman, he dared to turn on Your Highness. In the future, if he gains power, I’m afraid…”

Zhao Yanjin had called Dong Xiao back urgently precisely for this reason.

In this world, aside from his own father, no one else had ever dared speak to him like this. This little bastard turning hostile and disowning people—he was ruthless.

Actually, Zhao Yanjin had always known the Grand Prince was formidable. Otherwise, with the Crown Prince’s cowardly manner, he would have been brought down long ago.

But formidable to this extent—Zhao Yanjin was seeing it for the first time. In the future, when the little bastard gained power and authority, it wouldn’t be just “I’m afraid”—it would be only a dead end for him.

“Your Highness, the Grand Prince used one Xie Zhifei to connect the Xie family, the Zhu family, and they even have designs on Old Imperial Physician Shen…”

Dong Xiao said in a deep voice, “Just the Zhu family alone has pinned the malevolent star label on Your Highness. The current situation is very unfavorable for Your Highness.”

Zhao Yanjin felt the hair on his back stand up at his words.

Indeed unfavorable.

His Majesty still hadn’t clearly stated whether he would be allowed to accompany the campaign.

Court affairs were contentious, and human hearts unfathomable.

Who could guarantee His Majesty would continue favoring him?

Dong Xiao leaned forward and said in a low voice, “Your Highness, it’s time to make a move.”

…

The next day, morning court.

His Majesty had just settled on the dragon throne when Interior Minister Xie Daozhi stepped forward and submitted a memorial impeaching Prince Han Zhao Yanjin for forming factions at court and maintaining close ties with several military generals in the capital.

Hearing this, all the officials lowered their heads, thinking privately that something terrible was happening.

His Majesty’s greatest hatred in life was factional collusion—that was the first point.

Second, Xie Daozhi was someone who always got along with everyone, preferring to wrong himself rather than offend anyone. For him to impeach someone so publicly before all civil and military officials was like the sun rising in the west.

Third, the person he impeached was Prince Han, which meant this old fox who never took sides had now clearly positioned himself beside the Crown Prince.

The Emperor on the dragon throne ordered a eunuch to collect the memorial and left his seat without a word.

Overnight, the winds and clouds of the capital changed. How many of the powerful and noble in the capital couldn’t sleep through the night?

The second day, morning court.

Left Censor-in-Chief Yuan Ping of the Censorate submitted a memorial impeaching the Grand Prince for improper character, indulging in female beauty, not only hiding the courtesan from the Bureau of Music within his residence but also keeping mistresses outside.

Yuan Ping was someone Prince Han had personally promoted. Impeaching the Grand Prince for indulging in female beauty before his wedding—the intent was quite obvious.

That day, His Majesty still ordered the eunuch to collect the memorial and still left his seat without a word.

The third day, still morning court.

The number of those submitting impeachment memorials reached seven.

Three of them usually walked quite close to Xie Daozhi.

The other four were all Prince Han’s people.

These seven even pointed at each other’s noses and cursed in the court hall, no different from marketplace shrews.

That day, His Majesty flew into a rage, smashing his teacup before all officials and storming off.

A quarter-hour later, the Commander of the Imperial Guards was summoned to the imperial study.

Facing His Majesty’s icy expression, Feng Changxiu impartially confessed everything.

“Your Majesty, three days ago, the Imperial Guards received a report from Pei Xiao, son of Pei Yu, that Master Xie Daozhi’s sworn daughter had disappeared in broad daylight. Pei Yu claimed Prince Han’s residence was responsible.

The same day, Yang of the Southern Judicial Office also received a report from Prince Han’s heir, claiming the Grand Prince falsely accused his father of abducting Master Xie Daozhi’s sworn daughter, requesting Yang restore his father’s innocence.

At the fifth watch, Master Xie’s sworn daughter, covered in blood, was thrown at the entrance of the Five Cities Military Command.”

Feng Changxiu stole a glance at the Emperor’s expression.

“Those are the causes and effects. Master Xie’s sworn daughter suffered severe head injuries and has yet to awaken. This subject speculates that recent court affairs are likely related to this incident.”

The old Emperor’s expression was gloomy.

“Have your Imperial Guards determined who did it?”

A Grand Prince on one side.

Prince Han on the other.

Would the Imperial Guards dare investigate?

Feng Changxiu quickly knelt on both knees. “This subject is useless—the true culprit has yet to be found.”

The old Emperor remained gloomily silent for a long time before sighing meaningfully:

“Over one woman, it’s come to this!”