The Double

Chapter 189: On the Journey

After the incident in Yanjing City where assassins killed commoners in the streets, the failed capture of the assassins caused quite a stir. However, two days later, another major event occurred in the palace.

Li Pin was speaking with Ji Wan, a young and beautiful new candidate sent by the Ji family. Though Ji Wan was not as striking as Li Pin had been in her youth, she was now at the prime of her life—fresh and tender like a newly sprouted flower bud. Most importantly, she was only sixteen.

If Li Pin had a child, Ji Wan could almost be her daughter. Thus, no matter how elegant and beautiful Li Pin usually appeared, compared to Ji Wan, she seemed like a flower that had already bloomed. Though she tried her best to maintain her appearance and prevent decline, her vibrancy had faded, lacking the freshness of the other. Even if the Hongxiao Emperor doted on her as usual, and Li Pin appeared calm and confident, seemingly unafraid of anyone usurping her position, the unease and suspicion in her heart were known only to herself.

Ji Wan replied to Li Pin in a soft, gentle tone, carefully flattering her while also carrying a hint of the confidence and pride that came with youth. She tried hard to conceal these feelings, but being young and inexperienced, she was no match for someone who had navigated the palace for years. Li Pin saw through her at a glance, though Ji Wan remained completely unaware.

Li Pin smiled, took her hand, and comforted her gently, as if she genuinely cared for this family member. A few days earlier, the Hongxiao Emperor had already mentioned Ji Wan, and Li Pin knew she could no longer avoid it. Sooner or later, she would have to meet Ji Wan, so it was better to do it early and let the emperor see her "gentleness and magnanimity." Occasionally acting coy might be endearing, but doing so frequently would only breed annoyance and impatience. Especially for an emperor who stood above all others—he had no need to compromise himself to please anyone, and there would always be someone ready to take her place.

That was why Li Pin had specifically summoned Ji Wan for a conversation. Though both she and Ji Wan knew what the Ji family was scheming—to cultivate another Li Pin, only younger and potentially capable of bearing children.

Ji Wan was filled with longing for the future life Li Pin described. Li Pin subtly conveyed to Ji Wan how comfortable her own life in the palace was now. As long as Ji Wan could firmly capture the emperor’s heart, she too could enjoy such a life. After all, Ji Wan was young and beautiful, and there were few in the palace as uniquely blessed as she.

With just a few words, Ji Wan was already feeling somewhat carried away. Li Pin watched her with concealed disdain. The Ji family had carefully selected her, never expecting they would choose someone like this. Of course, it might not be that Ji Wan was foolish, but rather that she was new to the palace, while Li Pin had survived there for many years.

Every additional year of experience brought some growth. No matter how young and charming Ji Wan was, she would still have to go through this process step by step.

Just as the two were chatting animatedly, addressing each other as sisters with great familiarity, someone suddenly burst into Li Pin’s bedchamber. Thinking it was the emperor, Li Pin called out, "Your Majesty," but then froze.

Her maids, Hongzhu and Lüwu, had cloths stuffed in their mouths and were pinned to the ground by two tall matrons, unable to move. They shook their heads frantically at her.

"What is going on?"A eunuch entered from outside, his tone icy and indifferent. "Consort Li, His Majesty has learned of your illicit affair with Prince Cheng."

"Wh-what?" Consort Li felt as if struck by lightning, nearly fainting on the spot. Forcing herself to remain composed, she managed a strained smile. "What nonsense are you speaking? There's no such thing!"

"The evidence of your correspondence with His Highness Prince Cheng has been uncovered." The eunuch seemed unwilling to waste another word on her, directly summoning the matrons. "Proceed!"

Before Consort Li could utter another word, the matrons seized her limbs and gagged her mouth. Like Hongzhu and Lüwu before her, she stared in terror and panic at the two palace maids, whose faces were filled with despair. A sudden realization struck Consort Li—the truth had indeed been exposed.

Ji Wan, who had been chatting intimately with Consort Li moments before, was startled by this sudden turn of events and immediately dropped to her knees. When she understood the nature of Consort Li's crime, she was utterly terrified. For a consort in the palace to commit adultery was a capital offense punishable by decapitation. As someone sent into the palace by the Ji family, how could she possibly escape implication?

None would escape!

Ji Wan nearly fainted, watching helplessly as the group escorted Consort Li and the others out of the bedchamber, leaving her behind for the moment. But she knew all too well that even if they overlooked her now, she would eventually be remembered. The crime Consort Li had committed was enough to make her blood run cold.

...

The affair between Consort Li and Prince Cheng was considered a royal scandal, not meant to be publicized, yet it spread throughout Yanjing City overnight.

No one knew who first started the rumors, but suddenly the city was abuzz with the news. Government troops sealed off the Ji residence and arrested everyone in the Ji family. Seeing this, the common people knew the rumors were likely true.

It was said that Consort Liu had been placed under house arrest in the palace. Since Prince Cheng had committed such a grave offense, his birth mother could not escape implication. Next came the hunt for Prince Cheng himself, but whether he had received advance warning or not, while his servants and concubines remained in his mansion, Prince Cheng had vanished.

Or rather, he had already fled.

Yanjing City descended into chaos, with the common people naturally condemning the adulterous pair. Reflecting on the events of the past year, it seemed many incidents revolved around the theme of "illicit affairs." Starting with Ji Shuran's case, then Princess Yongning and Shen Yurong, and now Prince Cheng and Consort Li.

But as the rumors spread among the people, they transformed into tales of Prince Cheng's long-held ambitions of rebellion. His great disrespect was framed as part of a larger plot to usurp the throne. His escape was interpreted as preparation for launching an uprising.

These rumors spread with such conviction that the populace grew panicked, and the court officials became apprehensive.

In the residence of the Right Prime Minister, Li Zhongnan fumed, "That brat Hongxiao is forcing Prince Cheng to act prematurely!"

"Father," Li Lian said, "wasn't Prince Cheng already planning to move early?"

"There's a difference between thorough preparation and being forced into sudden action." The speaker was Li Xian, his expression dark and brooding. Compared to his formerly humble and smiling demeanor, though his appearance remained unchanged, he seemed like a completely different person. He continued, "It appears the emperor has been prepared for some time. The matter with Consort Li was merely a pretext.""He had long known about the affair between Li Pin and Prince Cheng, yet kept her close while feigning ignorance—all for this very moment, to righteously condemn Prince Cheng. That young man is deeply cunning; I underestimated him!" Li Zhongnan said bitterly.

"Father, we should consider what to do now," Li Xian said. "Prince Cheng has escaped, and his plans have slightly shifted. If we remain in Yanjing City, the emperor may soon move against us. It's time to prepare."

"No need to rush," Li Zhongnan calmed down and replied. "The emperor doesn't dare act against us yet. With so many of our people in court, he won't make a move without certainty. I think we should first find a way to contact Prince Cheng. He's outside Yanjing City and still needs us as his eyes."

Li Xian's expression turned peculiar.

Noticing this, Li Zhongnan patted his shoulder. "Xian'er, don't worry. I haven't forgotten about Princess Yongning. Although I'm assisting Prince Cheng this time, I won't let him achieve his desires so easily. Our Li family must hold a pivotal position in this great affair!"

Li Xian smiled and said, "I leave it all to you, Father."

...

Outside Yanjing City, a carriage was speeding along.

The carriage appeared utterly ordinary, like those commonly used by travelers. Inside sat two women and one man. Both women were dressed as peasant wives, while the man resembled a merchant, with a cloth wrapped around his head.

The older woman and the man seemed to be a married couple. They flanked the younger woman, trapping her in the middle.

The one seated in the middle was Jiang Li.

Listening to the conversation between the carriage driver and the man, Jiang Li felt her heart grow cold. The carriage had already traveled hundreds of miles beyond Yanjing City—even if her family came searching, they would never catch up in time.

That day, Tong'er had taken a knife for Jiang Li, and Bai Xue pushed her out of the carriage. Jiang Li turned and fled into the crowd. Thinking the assailants were after her, she hoped blending in would confuse them. But as soon as she entered the crowd, someone grabbed her hand. At that moment, Jiang Li understood: these killers disguised as ordinary people had caused such a scene on the street, killing many innocent civilians—all of it was a decoy. Their true goal was to capture her. From the very beginning, she had been under their watch, never escaping their sight.

But who had leaked her whereabouts? Only then could they lie in wait on this essential route, clearly arranged in advance. Aside from the Ye family, only the Jiang family would have known she was going to the Ye family that day. Although the Ye family seemed more suspicious, Jiang Li almost immediately thought of one person: the third branch of the Jiang family.

The third branch of the Jiang family had long been bribed by the Right Prime Minister—essentially, they were Prince Cheng's people. Because of Princess Yongning, Prince Cheng would ultimately vent his anger on her. Trading her life for the third branch's future was a very profitable deal for Yang Shi and Jiang Yuanxing.

Yang Shi had always been shrewd.After being abducted, she managed to pass through the city gates in her current state. At that time, the city gates had not yet been sealed, allowing them to pass through easily. The man had forced Jiang Li to swallow a pill, causing red blotches to rapidly spread across her face. She began coughing incessantly, unable to speak or move. The woman dressed Jiang Li in peasant clothes and covered her face with a veil, though parts of the red blotches remained visible. When passing through the gates, they told the guards they were a married couple, and Jiang Li was their ill younger sister. Ordinary people would naturally avoid such a coughing, frightening-looking patient, and since their travel documents were in order, they were permitted to pass.

Thus, Jiang Li was taken out of Yanjing City, heading south.

Four days had passed since she was taken. Jiang Li had no idea what the current situation in Yanjing City was like. She imagined her uncle and Jiang Yuanbai must be frantic with worry, probably searching the entire city for her. Unfortunately, they did not know this was a long-planned conspiracy—from the very beginning, the abductors had intended to take her out of the city.

Jiang Li was deeply anxious herself, but she was powerless to do anything. She could not even move and had to be fed by the woman. Only at night, when she was locked in a room, did she have a brief moment of freedom. Even then, she could not speak, and any movement was weak and feeble, her body limp and soft—they had drugged her food.

Unable to speak, she could not ask the two who had kidnapped her. But after much thought, Jiang Li concluded it could only be Prince Cheng. Although she had many enemies, after the incidents involving Princess Yongning and Shen Yurong, no one but Prince Cheng would dare to kidnap her from Yanjing City with such elaborate planning.

Prince Cheng had spared her life instead of killing her immediately, likely not only to avenge Princess Yongning and torment her but also to use her as leverage against Jiang Yuanbai. If Jiang Yuanbai refrained from interfering during Prince Cheng's uprising, his chances of success would increase significantly. Now, Jiang Yuanbai only had one son, Jiang Bingji, and with Jiang Youyao having gone mad, Jiang Li was his only remaining daughter. He might indeed yield for her sake, though Jiang Li believed the hope was slim.

After traveling for a while, it was nearly noon, and the carriage stopped in front of an inn.

(End of Chapter)