"But—" Wang Daxia bit his lip, not daring to look at Wei Caiwei. "It was me who insisted on bringing Ding Wu to watch the dragon boat race. It's my fault. I have to find him and return him intact to Doctor Wei."
If anything happened to Ding Wu, she probably wouldn't forgive me.
Lu Ying said, "Normally you're quite clever, so why are you so foolish today? We can't alert the enemy now and let them guess our intentions. Otherwise, how can we lure out the messenger? I won't return immediately either. I'll just send a pigeon post to the guards at the imperial prison, telling them to be vigilant. I'll pretend I haven't figured it out and search along the moat, inspecting every ice bowl bucket to create confusion. You just focus on your task—win the dragon boat race. Understood?"
Wang Daxia nodded. He thought to himself that although this superior officer usually seemed fierce, she was willing to protect him when it mattered. He had to prove himself worthy.
Lu Ying secretly released a carrier pigeon. Then she began a conspicuous search, lifting the lids of every ice bucket and even pots of mung bean soup to check if anyone was hiding inside. When passersby tried to gather and watch, they were all scared away by Lu Ying's shout: "Embroidered Uniform Guard conducting official business! All idlers disperse immediately, or you'll be treated as accomplices!"
For a time, the Embroidered Uniform Guard created quite a commotion along both banks of the moat, drawing the attention of the various commanders from the Twenty-Four Guards in the viewing stands.
By now, the preliminary rounds of the dragon boat races had reached the third heat. The noise from the banks affected the atmosphere of the races on the river, making everything feel more tense.
Wang Daxia returned to prepare for the finals. Lu Bing sent someone to ask what had happened.
Wang Daxia wrote a note and passed it to Lu Bing. After reading it, Lu Bing told the other commanders, "We've received intelligence that enemy spies have come to the dragon boat races. We're currently apprehending them. Rest assured, with the Embroidered Uniform Guard here, they're just making a small fuss and won't cause any real trouble."
Lu Ying was deliberately ordering her subordinates to stir up trouble along the banks—actually a strategy of "besieging Wei to rescue Zhao." The real trap had already been set at the Embroidered Uniform Guard Prison.
Jiangmi Lane, Imperial Guard Office.
It was the Dragon Boat Festival, and the office was on holiday. Only those on guard duty remained. The weather was so hot that the hounds lay in the shade under trees, panting with their long tongues out.
The heatwave also swept through the underground prison cells. Ding Rukui was so hot he couldn't even read anymore. He sat in meditation on a cool mat, seeking tranquility to naturally cool himself.
When lunchtime arrived...
Other death row prisoners only ate two meals a day, but Ding Rukui received preferential treatment with three daily meals. Today's lunch featured seasonal zongzi and rice wine.
The kitchen cook placed the heated zongzi in a food container, and the prison guard came to collect it.
Masked Wu, who oversaw firearms in the storage room, had already eaten lunch in the cafeteria. Carrying a bamboo cricket cage, he said to the guard, "I bought an iron-jawed cricket from a Shandong man. Want to take a look?"
Masked Wu's face had been half-blown off by a firearm explosion, so he wore a mask year-round. During meals, he would find a corner to sit with his back to everyone, facing the wall to eat. After finishing, he would put his mask back on. Over time, everyone called him Masked Wu.
Cricket fighting was wildly popular in the Ming Dynasty, from the royal family down to commoners. The cricket's chirping immediately caught the guard's attention. He set down the food container and leaned in to look at the cricket cage.
While the guard's attention was fully on the iron-jawed cricket, Masked Wu secretly opened the food container and swapped the zongzi inside.Today's lunch was served later than usual. The jailer brought in a food box, set out zongzi and rice wine, then cleared away the leftover breakfast.
Ding Rukui politely thanked him as always. The jailer looked somewhat apologetic. "You must be hungry. It's a bit late—something held me up."
Ding Rukui quickly replied, "It's fine. I was too focused on the heat to notice my hunger."
The jailer fanned himself with his hand. "This year is truly strange. It's already this hot during the Dragon Boat Festival—what will it be like during the dog days of summer?"
After the jailer left with the food box, he passed through three iron doors, locking each one behind him. No one except Lu Bing's trusted aides could approach this area.
Having been imprisoned for ten years, Ding Rukui still maintained the habit of washing his hands before meals. Today's meal consisted of three large zongzi. He unwrapped the first one—a red bean zongzi—and found a small note stuck to the beans that read: "I have Ding Wu. You die, or he dies."
Ding Rukui shuddered and quickly glanced around. The guard on duty, having eaten his fill of watermelon, was lying down for a nap, too lethargic to move as even the slightest motion would make him sweat. He seemed completely unaware of Ding Rukui's reaction.
To be cautious, Ding Rukui moved his chair to face away from the guard and opened the second zongzi. The note inside read: "Swallow it."
From this salted egg yolk zongzi, he discovered a small golden seal the size of a thumb, engraved with the character "Wu." It was the very seal he had personally made for his son, Ding Wu, who always wore it on a string around his neck, keeping it close and never parting with it.
His son was in trouble.
Someone was using his son to threaten him, forcing him to swallow the gold and commit suicide.
The cell was constantly guarded beyond three layers of iron doors, making hanging oneself or banging against the walls impossible. All utensils were made of wood or bamboo, with no sharp objects available.
Two days ago, his son Ding Wu had visited him through the iron door. Father and son had clasped hands tightly, providing an opportunity to pass an object. Thus, if Ding Rukui swallowed the gold and died, outsiders would assume he had obtained the small seal during his son's visit and committed suicide, without suspecting tampering with the zongzi.
What a cunning scheme!
It must be the work of Yan Shifan, renowned for his devilish cleverness!
Had he seen through the act of feigning critical illness that day?
Ding Rukui hid the small golden seal in his pillow, slowly ate the zongzi, chewed and swallowed the notes, washing them down with rice wine. He finished all three large zongzi, leaving only a few yellow-green leaves sticky with glutinous rice.
His son Ding Wu was his only family in this world.
Without a doubt, he would sacrifice himself for his son. It was he who had implicated his son, who originally had a bright future but was stripped of the qualification to take the imperial exams, now working as a minor clerk in Tieling.
Now, his son's life hung by a thread.
However, Ding Rukui had been severely betrayed by Yan Song and Yan Shifan ten years ago. He had developed paranoia and no longer trusted anyone.
Even when Wei Caiwei recognized him under the moonlight and later in prison urged him to swallow flamingo flower stamens to feign critical illness, deceiving Yan Shifan, and then meticulously nursed him back to health, he did not believe she was Wei Nanshan's adopted daughter until Ding Wu personally confirmed it.
This small golden seal indeed belonged to Ding Wu, but how could I know whether Ding Wu is in Yan Shifan's hands or if he has already been harmed?
If my son is already dead and I swallow the gold to kill myself, who will avenge him in the future?However, if, by any chance, Ding Wu was truly in Yan Shifan's hands, if I didn't die, my son would certainly be in grave danger.
What should I do? Ding Rukui sank deeply into inner conflict...
Meanwhile, on the moat, the competition had reached the finals. Wang Daxia still sat in the front row of the dragon boat, his forehead tied with the iconic red cloth strip, remaining that single spot of red among ten thousand men.
The young man's flamboyant recklessness, dazzling handsomeness, and arrogant demeanor appeared quite punchable from the opponents' perspective, yet it greatly boosted the morale of his own team.
However, Wang Daxia's expression during the finals had lost the frivolity from the preliminary rounds, becoming noticeably more composed. Holding the paddle, he resembled a warrior heading to the battlefield with his weapon.
The disqualified commander of the Flagbearer Guard remarked sourly, "Well, if it isn't Wang Daxia, one of the Four Pests of the North City? Lord Lu truly knows how to train people. In just one month, he's managed to carve talent from rotten wood."
It seemed Wang Daxia's reputation as a profligate was "widely celebrated," as even the Flagbearer Guard commander knew of the Four Pests' notoriety.
Lu Bing's mind was in turmoil, worrying about Ding Wu's situation and who the Embroidered Uniform Guard's mole might be, yet his face remained as steady as an old dog's. He modestly replied, "Oranges grown south of the Huai River are sweet; those north of the Huai become bitter. He was always an uncut gem, just needing a little polishing."
A bronze gong sounded, and the six dragon boats in the finals shot forward like sharp swords.
Wei Caiwei wasn't watching the race. To maintain their act, she darted through the crowd like a panicked rabbit, vainly searching for Ding Wu until she collapsed from exhaustion, "fainting."
Lu Ying scooped up the "unconscious" Wei Caiwei and extravagantly bought out all the ice buckets from the shaved ice vendors. Bucket after bucket of ice was carried into the temporary tent to cool down the "heatstroken" Wei Caiwei.
The coldly handsome Commander Lu publicly carrying a weak, beautiful woman dressed as a widow into the tent caused another sensation!
Though the Embroidered Uniform Guard strictly forbade onlookers, they couldn't stop the buzzing gossip. People watched from the corners of their eyes as buckets of ice were delivered to the tent, wishing their gazes could bore holes through the fabric to see what was happening inside.
Rumors bubbled up like waves:
The untold story of Lord Lu's illegitimate son and the young widow.
Illegitimate sons will be illegitimate sons—no sense of propriety!
The young widow's collapse might not be from heatstroke; she's probably carrying a little illegitimate child.
Judging by Commander Lu's concern, it must be his bastard!
Commander Lu carrying the young widow into the tent right in front of Lord Lu—he's forcing his father to let him marry her!
The gossip worsened with each retelling, transforming from heatstroke to a secret pregnancy, naturally reaching the ears of the twenty-four commanders in the viewing stands. Their looks toward Lu Bing couldn't hide gleeful smirks: You Embroidered Uniform Guard win every year, but even if you win today, you've lost all face! Haha!
Lu Bing: That's enough now, you're all laying it on too thick!
A gong rang out—the Embroidered Uniform Guard won by over two lengths, taking first place again!
The scene erupted in cheers, though most were just stirring up excitement.
The twenty-three other commanders stood to congratulate Lu Bing, "Congratulations! First place again!"
They congratulated him every year, but this time their smiles were genuine, their congratulations heartfelt—congratulating Lord Lu on soon becoming a grandfather!As dusk fell, Masked Wu handed over the warehouse keys and headed home, while the disguised Lu Ying and others quietly trailed behind him...
Author's Note: Great Xia: Rumors are terrifying, return my Caiwei! Today Zhou updated punctually, seeking praise!
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