The Golden Hairpin

"Prince Kui Li Zi—no, the demon Pang Xun! Today, I shall offer my broken body to the Great Tang! If the heavens have mercy, may my corpse ascend and bless the Li imperial clan for ten thousand years!"

As rumors swirled through the capital, the weather grew colder, and the winter solstice arrived.

On the solstice, the Great Tang held grand and elaborate ceremonies to worship heaven. This year's ritual archery ceremony followed the usual order: the Emperor shot first, the Empress second, and Prince Kui third. Thus, Li Shubai had changed into formal attire early and departed for Daming Palace.

After seeing him off, Huang Zixiang was wondering what to do alone in the manor when Zhou Ziqin arrived. "Chonggu, today all the major Taoist temples in the capital are holding ceremonies—it's so lively! Come on, let's go see them together!"

After a moment's hesitation, Huang Zixiang changed into men's clothing and went out with him. Zhou Ziqin was still riding that little Xia, and Nafusha had grown familiar with it. Both horses were gentle by nature, nuzzling each other affectionately.

The gloomy, cold weather hinted at impending snow. The major temples in the capital showcased their unique skills during the rituals—some employed handsome young Taoists to chant scriptures, others wielded swords and breathed fire, nearly setting their peachwood swords ablaze, while some clashed cymbals in midair, creating a lively spectacle...

After touring the city and stopping for tea and snacks several times, it was already afternoon.

"Chonggu, where do you want to go next? I'll take you... Oh, right, you're still a low-ranking eunuch, aren't you? Did you get your salary this month?"

Huang Zixiang sighed. "No. Life's hard for me now. Everyone knows I'm a woman, so there's no chance of promotion, and they won't even pay me. I've been freeloading meals at Prince Kui's manor every day."

"I told you—just stick with me! Come be Chengdu's female constable. It's fun and impressive, lets you fulfill your potential, and I'll pay you double what others get. How about it?"

"No need. My parents left me enough to live on for life," she said softly, exhaling onto her chilled hands. "With Prince Kui around, my clan wouldn't dare seize my inheritance."

Zhou Ziqin pondered, then remembered something serious. "By the way, Chonggu, tell me—did Wang Yun really break off the engagement?"

"More or less." Unwilling to dwell on it, she turned and walked aimlessly ahead.

Zhou Ziqin followed, grumbling, "That bastard Wang Yun—where else could he find a woman like you? Beautiful, smart, kind, and willing to dig up graves and examine corpses with me! If he lets you go, will there ever be another like you?"

Huang Zixiang wasn't sure if this counted as praise and could only smile wryly. When she looked up and realized where she was, she froze.

She stood before Guangdefang.

The place where she had first made her name twelve years ago—and also, Yu Xuan's home.

Slowly, she walked to the gate of Yu Xuan's former residence and peered over the low wall.

Nothing remained of the past. The honeysuckle that once covered the walls was gone, leaving only moss on the bare stone. The pomegranate tree in the yard had been cut down, the flagstones covered in dust, and the small ditch clogged with trash. The courtyard was now cluttered with bamboo baskets and straw crates, making her wonder if she had come to the wrong place.Zhou Ziqin stood behind her, puzzled by her prolonged silence in front of the courtyard. He asked, "Are you here to see someone?"

She shook her head slowly. "No, I just came to look."

"What's there to see here?" Zhou Ziqin turned and sat on the well railing nearby, brushing the dust off for her. He took out the oranges he had just bought, peeled one, and handed her half. "They're quite sweet. Here."

Huang Zixia sat beside him, accepted the orange, and ate a segment before murmuring, "This was Yu Xuan's home."

Zhou Ziqin let out an "Oh," his mouth forming a surprised circle. "You still remember this place?"

She nodded. "Yes. It was the first time I helped my father solve a case."

"If..." Zhou Ziqin glanced at the small courtyard, then back at her, hesitating before asking, "Just hypothetically, if you could go back to being twelve and return here, and that case played out again before you... would you warn your father to arrest Yu Xuan's brother and change Yu Xuan's fate?"

"Yes," she answered without hesitation.

Zhou Ziqin blinked in surprise, taken aback by her swift response.

"Even if I wanted to alter Yu Xuan's life and my family's fate, the crime had already been committed. Knowing the truth, how could I deliberately ignore it and tolerate injustice for the sake of the future?" She held the orange, gazing up at the overcast sky threatening snow, and said slowly, "But I would definitely ensure someone kept an eye on his family, so the tragedy wouldn't repeat. At the very least, I'd make sure his mother was cared for, so she wouldn't descend into madness from grief after losing her son and take her own life."

Zhou Ziqin nodded earnestly. "Right, and most importantly, you'd help Yu Xuan properly."

Huang Zixia stared at the sky for a long, long time before exhaling softly. The air was so cold that her breath formed a faint white mist, dissipating into the gloomy sky.

Slowly, yet with absolute clarity, she said, "No. If I could live my life over, I wouldn’t meet him again."

All those beautiful memories, those dreamlike days of her youth, the boy who once smiled at her in the sunset—she would let go of them all.

"But... life doesn’t give second chances, does it?" she murmured, as if to herself, inhaling the crisp air deeply before exhaling, as though expelling the weight in her chest.

"Let’s go. There’s nothing left to linger over, nothing left to grieve," she said, rising slowly.

Zhou Ziqin watched her with deep concern. "Chonggu, what will you do now?"

Huang Zixia turned to look at him.

"You... broke off your engagement with Wang Yun, and Yu Xuan is gone..." He frowned as he ate the orange, though it was unclear whether it was from the sourness or his worry. "Why not come work with me? Have you considered becoming a female constable?"

Huang Zixia shook her head. "Maybe someday. But for now, I still have something to do."

"Oh? What is it?" He blinked.

"My family’s wrongful conviction was overturned thanks to Prince Kui. Now that such a sinister curse has appeared around him, I must help him uncover the truth behind it."Zhou Ziqin thumped his chest and said, "Exactly! Prince Kui has helped me a lot too. The set of autopsy tools I use was even forged for me at the Ministry of War with his assistance. Count me in on this—no question about it!"

"Wonderful! With your help, we'll surely get to the bottom of this soon," Huang Zixiao nodded, then added, "I suspect someone used vanishing ink to tamper with that talisman, attempting to harm Prince Kui."

"I know about vanishing ink. Didn’t I help you recover the writing from that piece of burnt paper before? It’s a similar principle—I can just mix up another batch."

"No, this time it’s vermilion ink," Huang Zixiao frowned. "The formula for vermilion ink is completely different from black ink. Your spinach juice method won’t work here. Moreover, the perpetrator left no trace on the original paper."

"A master, huh… There must be techniques I don’t know yet!" Zhou Ziqin’s eyes immediately sparkled with excitement. "I have to learn this!"

"And where do you plan to learn it?" she asked.

"Follow me!" He tossed all the oranges from his arms into the small chest on Xiaoxia’s back and dashed toward the West Market with her in tow.

Arriving in front of a mounting and framing shop, Zhou Ziqin pointed to an old man with a goatee inside and asked, "See that old man?"

Huang Zixiao observed the elderly man, hands tucked into his thick cotton coat as he dozed, and nodded.

"He’s the most renowned mounting master in the capital. The spinach juice method I used was something I read about in ancient texts and then refined with his help."

Huang Zixiao was instantly impressed. "You’re planning to study mounting just for this?"

"Of course! In our line of work as coroners, isn’t lifelong learning essential? Don’t you remember? For the case involving Prince Kui’s consort, I had to study orthopedics just to distinguish between Wang Ruo and Jinnu’s hands—not to mention chopping up countless pig trotters at the slaughterhouse."

Zhou Ziqin pulled her into the shop. The old man cracked open an eye to glance at them and asked weakly, "Young Master Zhou, what brings you here again?"

Zhou Ziqin immediately put on an ingratiating smile. "Uncle Yi, since winter is so dull, I’ve come to learn from you again today."

The old man’s face darkened. "Scram! This old man has no time for you. Last time, you pestered me about spinach juice for over half a year—nearly killed me!"

"Don’t be like that… Don’t you want to know how to remove vermilion ink traces?"

"Why bother studying with you? It’s simple—white vinegar dissolves cinnabar pigment!" The old man rolled his eyes at him.

"But white vinegar has a strong smell!" Zhou Ziqin looked eager for knowledge.

The old man threw his head back and laughed proudly. "Hmph… My family’s secret techniques, passed down through generations—why should I tell you?"

"Fine…" Zhou Ziqin sighed and walked up to the counter. "Uncle Yi, let me ask you this—does your family’s method really remove vermilion ink completely, leaving no trace at all?"

"Nonsense! It’ll be as clean as new! The Yi family has run this mounting shop in the capital for generations. Without such skills, how could we have survived here?"

"Really?"

"Really!" The old man jutted out his chin like a fighting rooster."Then..." Quick as a flash, he grabbed a framed painting nearby, shook it open with a flourish, and then took a dish of half-dried vermilion ink, splashing it all over the painting in one swift motion.

Old Man Yi, who had been lounging in his chair, immediately leaped up. He snatched the now vividly red-stained painting, trembling with rage, nearly in tears: "Zhan Ziqian... Zhan Ziqian's 'Resting Horse'..."

Huang Zixiang stepped forward to look at the painting. It was indeed an authentic work by Zhan Ziqian. The horse in the painting, though lying beneath a rocky hill, exuded a dynamic energy, poised as if ready to leap—a true masterpiece. But now, with Zhou Ziqin's splash of vermilion, the horse looked as if it had been wounded, its body drenched in blood, a truly pitiful sight.

"How... how could you grab that one? Huh?" The old man was beside himself with fury, his beard bristling, eyes bulging, as if he wanted to tear Zhou Ziqin apart. "Those other paintings by Scholar Wang or Minister Liu—you could've ruined a hundred of them for all I care! But Zhan Ziqian? You... I'll make you pay for this..."

The old man grabbed a nearby scroll and swung it at Zhou Ziqin's head. Zhou dodged, running circles around a pillar in the shop while shielding his head. "Didn't you say you could clean it up without a trace?"

"My... my method takes at least three days! But the owner is coming to collect it today!" The old man panted, his voice hysterical. "And this is Zhan Ziqian! If even a fingernail-sized piece were damaged, beating you to death a hundred times wouldn't make up for it!"

"Alright... who's the owner? At worst, I'll throw my weight around and make him wait three more days."

"Pah! You, a little second-generation brat, think you can bully people with your status? The owner is a prince!"

"...Fine, I'll kneel at his doorstep with a bramble stick and beg for forgiveness." Zhou Ziqin, shameless as ever, shrugged it off. "By the way, which prince?"

"Prince Zhao!"

"Should've said so earlier! Prince Zhao and I go way back. I'll go talk to him right now and ask for a delay," Zhou Ziqin said, turning to leave but pausing to ask, "So it'll be fixed in three days? I'll come back to see the results then—"

"Get out!" The old man's fury flared, and he hurled another scroll at him.

Clutching the lump on his head, Zhou Ziqin slunk out of the framing shop.

Huang Zixiang followed, sighing in exasperation. "Ziqin, you really must stop being so reckless."

"Hey, I was just trying to help the prince," Zhou Ziqin said, still cheerful despite the bump on his head. "See? Now we know how to remove vermilion ink—isn't that solving a big problem for you?"

"Impossible," Huang Zixiang shook her head. "There's no way they'd risk spending three days tampering with that talisman. If Prince Kui were to check it within a day or two, wouldn't that ruin everything?"

"...So I got beaten for nothing?" Zhou Ziqin grumbled, aggrieved.

Lost in thought, Huang Zixiang looked up and realized they had arrived at Lü's Incense and Candle Shop.

It was the winter solstice, and the shop was bustling with customers. Seeing Zhang Xingying's elder brother and sister-in-law too busy to even turn around, they decided not to interrupt and left after a brief glance."Speaking of which... although Dicui's fate was unfortunate, at least there were some bright spots in her life," Zhou Ziqin sighed. "Her father, and the Zhang Xingying family she encountered, all genuinely cared for her."

Huang Zixia didn't respond, only turning to glance at the incense and candle shop behind them.

Amid the endless stream of people passing the shop's entrance, she spotted a familiar petite figure standing motionless under the tree across from the shop.

Her eyes widened in surprise, and she turned to make her way toward that small figure.

However, the bustling crowd blocked her path, the jostling throng pushing her back a couple of steps instead. By the time she steadied herself and looked again, the person had vanished.

She searched anxiously through the crowd but found nothing.

Zhou Ziqin asked, "What are you looking at?"

"Dicui... I saw a woman by the incense shop who looked just like Dicui!" she whispered.

"What? No way, really?" Zhou Ziqin stood on tiptoe, scanning the area. Eventually giving up, he said dejectedly, "I don't see her. You must have been mistaken."

"Perhaps..." was all she could say.

After all, Dicui was still a wanted fugitive—how could she dare return to the capital?

As dusk approached, Zhou Ziqin accompanied Huang Zixia back toward Yongjia Ward. Before reaching Prince Kui's residence, scattered snowflakes had begun to fall gently. With fewer people in this area, they urged their horses forward until they reached the prince's gates.

Before she could dismount, someone who had been waiting at the entrance hurried down the steps, stamping his feet. "Ah, Miss Huang! You're finally back!"

It was the palace eunuch Lu Yunzhong, always noisy and speaking rapidly: "His Highness sent word from the palace—there's a banquet at Daming Palace tonight! Last year with all the palace chaos, Prince Zhao got drunk and slept inside the palace gates, only discovered near dawn, and fell seriously ill! Now it's snowing again, so the palace has ordered all households to send attendants in case the princes overindulge and cause another incident!"

Huang Zixia dismounted, brushing snowflakes from her clothes under the eaves. "His Highness wants me to attend at the palace?"

"Exactly! Quickly change into your old eunuch's robes... oh, and the newly tailored fox fur cloak—His Highness said you should wear it." Without waiting for a reply, he thrust the garments at her.

Huang Zixia smiled wryly as she sent Zhou Ziqin on his way. By the time she changed and donned the fur cloak, a carriage was already waiting at the gate. Lu Yunzhong practically pushed her inside.

Glancing at the sky, Huang Zixia remarked, "It's still early. The banquet has likely just begun—it won't end before midnight."

"We must go now regardless! What if His Highness needs assistance?"

The carriage pressed on through wind and snow toward Daming Palace. Fortunately, Yongjia Ward wasn't far, and soon the towering palace walls came into view.

Tonight's banquet was indeed held at Qifeng Pavilion as the emperor had planned, while Xiangluan Pavilion hosted musical performances. Huang Zixia alighted at Wangxian Gate as the scattered snow ceased. Grateful for the reprieve, she followed a eunuch bearing red silk palace lanterns across Longshou Canal, through Zhaoxun Gate, past the Eastern Court, and along the lengthy Dragon Tail Walkway, step by step ascending the fifty-foot-high Qifeng Pavilion.The Hanyuan Hall stood majestic and magnificent at the center, with the Qifeng and Xiangluan Pavilions extending east and west like phoenix wings guarding the imperial court. After renovations, the Hanyuan Hall and its twin towers appeared breathtakingly beautiful under the brilliant lights, resembling celestial palaces.

Huang Zixiang removed her fox-fur cloak and entered the Qifeng Pavilion through a side door. She spotted Prince Kui’s seat positioned just below the emperor’s. Moving silently along the wall, she went unnoticed as everyone in the hall was engrossed in the performances at the Xiangluan Pavilion. Only when she settled lightly behind Li Shubai did he turn to glance at her, frowning slightly as he whispered, "Didn’t I tell you to dress warmer?"

Taking the wine flask from a palace maid, she knelt beside him to pour his drink and murmured, "I did. It’s warm inside, so I took it off."

He accepted the cup and discreetly brushed the back of her hand with his own, nodding only after confirming she wasn’t too cold.

Huang Zixiang rose to stand behind him, joining the others in watching the dance across the way.

The Xiangluan Pavilion, dusted with sparse snowflakes, stood a hundred paces away, brilliantly illuminated. Its soaring eaves and arches framed the ethereal voices of the singers, their melodies perfectly audible at this distance. Inside, thousands of candles cast golden light upon the resplendent murals and jewel-encrusted walls.

Every door and window of the Xiangluan Pavilion had been removed. Amidst this fairy-tale setting, accompanied by celestial music, a hundred dancers moved in unison, their swirling sleeves evoking a spring breeze over Chang’an, coaxing peonies into radiant bloom—a dazzling spectacle of prosperity.

Huang Zixiang watched absently, thinking the performance, despite its grandeur, paled in comparison to Lan Dai’s choreography for The Feather Garment Dance . Her gaze swept the hall, landing on Prince E Li Run and Prince Zhao Li Rui seated opposite Prince Kui, who were also turned toward the spectacle.

Her eyes lingered on Li Run, and she frowned slightly. Like Li Shubai and Li Rui, he wore purple brocade, yet his robes seemed oddly muted under the lights. The fabric, however, appeared identical.

Shifting to Li Rui, she noticed his plain white inner robe, while Li Run’s dark undergarment peeked from his collar and cuffs, dulling the purple’s brilliance and even dimming the vermilion mark between his brows.

Her attention returned to Li Shubai. Clad in the same plain white underrobe, he stood out like pristine snow against dawn’s glow, eclipsing every noble in the hall.

A faint smile touched her lips before she refocused on the dance. The snow had ceased entirely, and the performance reached its crescendo—swift strings, fluttering skirts, even the candle flames swaying as if caught in the dancers’ whirlwind.

With the final beat, the music ended. The performers bowed gracefully as candles were extinguished one by one, leaving only a few palace lanterns hanging under the eaves.

Doors and windows of the Qifeng Pavilion closed successively, warmth and wine soon enveloping the hall in springlike comfort. The imperial relatives and high ministers, flushed with drink and merriment, raised their cups in toast to the emperor’s longevity, filling the space with harmonious revelry.Huang Zixiang stood behind Li Shubai, observing the people before her with detachment. Though she hadn't eaten dinner, she'd consumed enough tea and snacks with Zhou Ziqin in the afternoon to feel no hunger at all. She was merely waiting for the banquet to conclude so she could return early. Her gaze swept across the guests in the pavilion, noticing that after several rounds of drinks, most were already tipsy—except for Prince E, Li Run, who appeared distracted. Amidst the toasts and socializing, he often lapsed into absentmindedness, his expression noticeably off.

Li Shubai also noticed his unusual behavior and raised his cup in a toast to him. Li Run saw the gesture and mechanically lifted his own cup in return, but his gaze was unfocused, and he struggled to finish the drink.

Amid the clamor, Huang Zixiang faintly heard the sound of the second watch outside. Li Run finished the cup of wine in his hand, stood up, and slowly walked out.

The attendants from the Prince of E's residence had also arrived and were standing behind him. They hurried forward to support him, but he raised his hand to signal that they need not follow, proceeding alone toward the door. Huang Zixiang assumed he was going to freshen up and turned her attention back to Li Shubai.

Li Shubai had a high tolerance for alcohol. Though he had drunk the most after the emperor, he still appeared completely unaffected. The emperor, however, was already somewhat intoxicated, his eyelids drooping slightly, yet he still beckoned Li Shubai over to speak: "Fourth Brother, I heard the matter of the seventy-two pagodas has been resolved?"

"Yes, everything was settled yesterday. Merchants and wealthy families from various prefectures and counties competed fiercely to build the pagodas for welcoming the Buddha’s relics. The Ministry of Works held an auction on-site, and it was quite lively."

"Excellent! Fourth Brother, the court needs talents like you!" The emperor patted his arm in approval, then suddenly darkened his expression. "But have you considered this? These seventy-two pagodas, seventy-two great acts of merit—by handling it this way, they no longer belong to Us! The merit is now attributed to those merchants who built the pagodas! It was Our decree to welcome the Buddha’s relics to the capital, so how is the merit being divided among them?"

"Your Majesty, you are drunk," Li Shubai replied calmly. "This realm is Your Majesty’s realm. The Buddha’s relics will be enshrined in the palace’s Buddhist hall for Your Majesty’s worship. Your Majesty’s grace extends to all the people—the merit of the people is Your Majesty’s merit. Even if a few grains slip through the fingers, they still gather into the court’s grand pagoda for the sake of the common people. How can there be any division of merit?"

The emperor nodded, pondering his words, and a faint smile appeared. "Fourth Brother speaks wisely. This realm is indeed Ours. The common people are but ants scurrying for Our sake—why should it matter..."

Before he could finish, a piercing scream suddenly came from outside the tightly shut pavilion doors.

Everyone in the Qifeng Pavilion froze, unsure of what had happened. Outside, chaos erupted—someone shouted, "Prince of E!"

Another voice cried, "Quick, go help!"

A servant rushed into the hall, knelt before the emperor, and urgently reported, "Your Majesty, Prince of E... he is at the Xiangluan Pavilion..."

Li Shubai glanced at the emperor, who was still half-drunk and bewildered. He said, "This subject will go see."

He immediately stood and strode outside.

Huang Zixiang hurried after him. By the time she reached the entrance, Li Shubai was already standing by the railing of the Qifeng Pavilion, gazing toward the Xiangluan Pavilion opposite.

Disregarding the biting wind, eunuchs and guards flung open the doors and windows of the Qifeng Pavilion. Everyone saw Prince of E, Li Run, standing atop the railing at the back of the Xiangluan Pavilion.

From a distance of a hundred paces, his face was deathly pale, the crimson cinnabar mark between his brows barely visible. Yet his figure was unmistakably that of Prince of E, Li Run.

At some point, he had climbed onto the railing of the Xiangluan Pavilion and stood motionless in the cold wind. The icy gusts swept up scattered snowflakes from the ground, dotting his purple robes and clinging to his hair.

Gasps of shock erupted in the Qifeng Pavilion, and someone shouted, "Prince of E, you must not!"

"Your Highness, you’ve had too much to drink—please be careful!"Li Run paid no heed to the commotion around him, his gaze fixed solely on the chaotic crowd.

Li Shubai turned and noticed Wang Yun beside him, asking, "Who else is at the Xiangluan Pavilion?"

Wang Yun frowned and replied, "No one. After the performances ended, all the attendants came over here. The place is empty now."

Li Shubai frowned in turn. "How can such a grand hall be left unattended?"

"Most of the guards are stationed below. Only a few dozen came up. Since His Majesty and the high-ranking officials are all gathered here, naturally everyone is focused on this side, leaving the empty hall unattended." As Wang Yun spoke, he glanced at Huang Zixia with a complicated expression, as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.

Huang Zixia felt slightly awkward, unsure of how to react, when Li Run suddenly shouted from the opposite side, "Don’t any of you come closer! Take one more step, and I’ll jump!"

The guards who had been rushing toward him immediately halted in their tracks.

Li Run stood on the railing behind the Xiangluan Pavilion, raising his hand to point at Li Shubai. His voice trembled slightly but was unmistakably clear. "Fourth Brother... no! Prince Kui, Li Zi—you’ve schemed relentlessly, corrupting the court! Today, my death, Li Run’s death, is because you’ve driven me to despair with your threats!"

Li Shubai listened to his furious accusations but remained motionless in the night wind, his gaze fixed on Li Run.

The wind carried scattered snowflakes that clung to Li Shubai’s hair and skin, cold as needles, melting into a bone-chilling frost that seeped into his body.

A thousand icy tendrils pierced his marrow, freezing him in place for an instant.

Li Run’s words instantly reminded everyone of the rumors circulating in the capital. All eyes turned to Li Shubai.

Standing behind him, Huang Zixia clearly saw his face turn ashen in an instant, along with the despair and fury in his eyes. Her heart clenched involuntarily, a cold dread spreading through her chest—

Who would have thought the first fatal blow would come from Prince E, Li Run?

From this young prince who always wore a gentle, distant smile, from Li Shubai’s closest seventh brother, from the very Li Run who had entrusted them with investigating his mother’s murder just days ago.

Li Shubai stood outside the Qifeng Pavilion, looking at Li Run in the Xiangluan Pavilion opposite. His voice remained steady, though his breath was slightly uneven. "Seventh Brother, I don’t know how I’ve offended you to make you suspect me like this. Come down first, and I’ll explain everything to you later."

"Explain? Hahaha..." Li Run threw his head back in laughter, his demeanor bordering on madness. "Prince Kui, do you think I don’t know who you really are? Ever since the campaign against Pang Xun, you’ve become a completely different person! You’re not Prince Kui, Li Zi—you’re a demon possessed by Pang Xun’s ghost! If I don’t die today and fall into your hands, my fate will be worse than death!"

Li Shubai gripped the railing, his fingers tightening unconsciously, the veins on the back of his hand bulging from the force. He shouted at Li Run, "No matter what, calm down first, Fourth Brother! Get down from there—now!""Prince Kui Li Zi—no, the demon Pang Xun! Today, I shall offer my broken body to the Great Tang! If the heavens have eyes, I will transcend through corpse liberation and protect the Li imperial lineage for ten thousand years!" As he spoke, he pulled out a thick stack of white papers from his robes, each bearing identical black characters, though from a distance, it was impossible to discern what was written.

He scattered all the papers into the air, and the night wind carried them away like a blizzard of snowflakes.

"Everything you once gave me, I shall burn before your eyes today, as an offering to the bond we once shared!"

The flame from his firestarter flickered to life, casting one last glance at Li Shubai. The bright light illuminated his twisted and eerie smile as he shrieked, "The Great Tang shall fall, the rivers and mountains shall crumble, the court and the people shall be thrown into chaos—all because of Prince Kui!"

With the final utterance of "Prince Kui," his body arched backward, and he toppled over the railing of the tower, vanishing into the night sky.

Only the firestarter remained, falling to the ground and igniting a roaring blaze, engulfing everything in flames.

Above the Xiangluan Pavilion, Prince E Li Run was no more.

Li Shubai immediately sprinted toward the Xiangluan Pavilion.

Wang Yun, who had been reassigned to the Imperial Guards, barked orders to his men: "Hurry to the base of the Xiangluan Pavilion!" Though he left the rest unsaid, everyone understood—both the Qifeng and Xiangluan Pavilions stood atop platforms five zhang high, and Prince E's leap left no chance of survival. The Imperial Guards could only retrieve his corpse.

Huang Zixiang followed closely behind Li Shubai, dashing through the thin snow toward the scene. Li Shubai moved swiftly, overtaking the soldiers ahead and charging straight to the Xiangluan Pavilion.

The pavilion was bathed in flames. Black oil had been poured on the ground beforehand, causing the fire to erupt violently and spread with terrifying speed. Everything Li Shubai had once gifted him was reduced to ashes in the inferno—all except the golden sandalwood prayer beads, a gift from the Uyghur King Haiqing, which Li Shubai had passed on to Li Run. The hard wood resisted the flames, still glowing fiercely amidst the fire.

When Huang Zixiang reached the Xiangluan Pavilion, she saw Li Shubai standing motionless before the blaze.

She stepped to the railing and peered down, frowning slightly at the sight of the search below. Turning back to Li Shubai, who stood stricken with grief, staring blankly at the golden beads in the fire, she approached him and whispered, "My lord, please restrain your sorrow. There is deception at play."

Li Shubai and Li Run had been closest, and this sudden calamity overwhelmed even his usual composure and decisiveness. At Huang Zixiang's words, he shuddered slightly in the cold wind, snapping back to reality, and slowly turned to look at her.

She said quietly, "Below... there is no body of Prince E Li Run."

Li Shubai's lashes trembled. He immediately turned and strode to the railing, looking down.

A thin layer of snow covered the railing, bearing only two footprints—nothing else. Leaning over, they saw the vast open space beneath the Xiangluan Pavilion, where the Imperial Guards scoured the stone-paved ground. Yet there was no trace of a body—not even a single drop of blood.

Li Shubai withdrew his gaze and locked eyes with Huang Zixiang.

Both recalled the words Li Run had spoken as he jumped—

"If the heavens have eyes, I will transcend through corpse liberation and protect the Li imperial lineage for ten thousand years!"Descending the long Dragon Tail Way, the Hanyuan Hall was surrounded by vast open grounds paved with large, polished bluestone slabs. To emphasize the grandeur of the Daming Palace, nothing was placed here except for the stone lanterns lining the path.

Yet, in this completely unobstructed space, none of the hundred or so witnesses saw Prince E, Li Run, land after his leap from the Xiangluan Pavilion.

From the pavilion to the ground—a height of fifty feet—he seemed to vanish midair, soundless and traceless, like a speck of dust dissolving into mist.

Huang Zixiang followed behind Li Shubai as they hurried down the Dragon Tail Way. At the base of the Xiangluan Pavilion, they found a crowd in chaos.

Scattered everywhere were the slips of paper Li Run had thrown, some trampled into the muddy snow, others picked up and examined. Some recognized the handwriting but quickly discarded the slips, not daring to read them aloud.

Huang Zixiang bent down, picked up one, and held it up to the flickering torchlight.

The narrow slip bore twelve hastily scrawled characters:

The Great Tang shall fall. Court and country in turmoil. Disaster rises from Prince Kui.

These were the same words they had seen carved into the sandalwood table in Prince E’s residence by Consort Chen.

Li Run had copied them countless times and now scattered them throughout the palace.

Her heart pounded violently, her hands trembling. She turned to Li Shubai standing behind her—his gaze fixed on the slip, his expression grim.

She tucked the slip into her sleeve, helpless as the wind carried the others across the Daming Palace.

Someone nearby muttered, "Could it be… Prince E sacrificed himself for the empire, and the founding emperors truly spirited him away to immortality?"

Another quickly elbowed him into silence.

Wang Yun approached Li Shubai, his eyes flickering briefly over Huang Zixiang before stiffly reporting, "Your Highness, we found no trace of Prince E."

Li Shubai scanned the surroundings. "Where were the Imperial Guards stationed here?"

"None were posted here tonight," Wang Yun admitted, frowning. "By regulation, there should be guards, but this platform stands fifty feet high with no access points. No one could climb up or down, so guarding the base was deemed pointless. The rule has been ignored for decades. Tonight, all guards were stationed at the Dragon Tail Way and other entrances."

Li Shubai surveyed the area again. "You were the first to arrive?"

"Yes. When I led the men here, the thin snow on the ground was untouched—no footprints, no sign of Prince E."

The guards behind Wang Yun confirmed this, insisting the snow had been pristine.

Huang Zixiang looked up at the Xiangluan Pavilion, now illuminated. The fifty-foot-high walls were smooth, dusted with fine snow, showing no signs of disturbance.

The Emperor arrived, standing where Li Run had jumped, peering down below.Li Shubai's gaze met his squarely. The distant lanterns illuminated the emperor's sinister expression, the flickering flames distorting his features, making him appear momentarily like a terrifying deity overlooking the entire palace.

The third watch drum reverberated through all of Chang'an.

The winter solstice night had passed, and by early dawn, all carriages had departed from Daming Palace.

Inside their carriage, Li Shubai and Huang Zixiao sat under the swaying light of a glass lantern, its glow unsteady with the motion of the vehicle.

Huang Zixiao leaned against the carriage wall, watching Li Shubai. The only sound was the faint, mechanical jingle of the carriage's golden bells, amidst the deep silence of Chang'an at night. She felt she should say something to break the quiet, yet couldn't find the words, so she simply gazed at Li Shubai as the lantern cast heavy shadows upon them both.

"What comes will come, with no place to hide. Isn't that so?" Li Shubai's voice finally broke the silence, still carrying that icy, almost indifferent tone—low and calm. "Yet I never imagined he would be the first to deal me this fatal blow."

"I think... perhaps this wasn't Prince E's true intention," Huang Zixiao said slowly, retrieving the note from her sleeve and examining it carefully. "Not long ago, Prince E asked Your Highness to investigate the matter of Consort Chen. If he had already planned to strike against you, why would he have mentioned it then, alerting us and allowing us to prepare?"

Li Shubai nodded silently. "Yes, we likely share the same thought—that Seventh Brother may have fallen under soul-stealing sorcery, like Yu Xuan. But... who would dare use Prince E as a blade against me?"

Huang Zixiao looked at him but said nothing.

Neither spoke further. Both already knew the answer in their hearts—one they neither wished nor could voice aloud.

The glass lantern swayed gently, its flame flickering between brightness and shadow.

The dim lights from the city's wards outside cast a hazy glow through the window. Li Shubai shifted the topic. "And where exactly did Seventh Brother go? We saw him jump from the tower with our own eyes—how did he vanish midair?"

Huang Zixiao murmured, "There must be some mechanism at play—we just don't know it yet."

"At that moment, we truly saw him standing on the railing, didn't we?"

"Yes, he was truly on the railing." Huang Zixiao pressed her hairpin, tracing the coiled grass pattern on its head before pulling the jade pin from its silver casing. She slowly drew a concave shape on her robe—like a phoenix spreading its wings, mirroring the layout of Hanyuan Hall's flanking towers, Qifeng Pavilion and Xiangluan Pavilion, forming a "concave" character together with the main hall.

Touching the tip of her pin to the outermost point on the left, she frowned, recalling the scene. "Both Qifeng Pavilion and Xiangluan Pavilion stand atop fifty-foot-high platforms, with railings encircling the entire Xiangluan Pavilion. He was on the railing farthest from us, at the back—that was the first inconsistency I noticed about his... suicide."Li Shubai nodded. "If he truly intended to denounce me before leaping to his death, then logically, he should have chosen the railing near the Qifeng Pavilion. That spot directly faces the Qifeng Pavilion, and as he fell, all of us would have witnessed his plunge from high above, thereby intensifying the crowd's hatred and horror toward me. He shouldn't have chosen the rear railing, where one leap would make him vanish from sight."

"Exactly. Unless... there was some reason forcing him to stage this act at the rear railing. Or perhaps, there was something about the rear railing that could be tampered with."

"There was no tampering," Li Shubai slowly shook his head. "When Prince E fell, we immediately rushed over. The thin layer of snow on the railing bore only one mark—the footprint left by Seventh Brother. There were no other traces."

Huang Zixiao nodded silently, using the hairpin in her hand to mark a second point on her robe. "The second anomaly is the fire that erupted beside the Xiangluan Pavilion, right before his death."

Li Shubai exhaled deeply, leaning back against the carriage wall. "Burning all my belongings before his death was a dramatic way to emphasize the severing of ties."

"I don't believe Prince E, in his grief and indignation, would have cared to stage such a tragic performance at that moment. Unless... it aided his disappearance."

Before Li Shubai's eyes, the image of the golden sandalwood prayer beads spitting flames in the fire resurfaced. Li Run had a quiet temperament and was deeply devoted to Buddhism, so when Li Shubai acquired the beads, he immediately thought of his seventh brother and gifted them to him. Yet now, Li Run had refused to leave even those behind, consigning them to the flames.

He fell into a brief daze before murmuring, "Moreover, those items had to be incinerated quickly. That's why he doused the ground with oil, ensuring everything turned to ash in an instant."

"And the third hypothesis—another possibility is that Prince E did die. The moment he leaped from the pavilion was the moment of his death. But someone, to uphold the notion of 'ascension through bodily dissolution,' hid his corpse. The person capable of this would have been near the Xiangluan Pavilion at the time—or perhaps, they deliberately redirected the guards stationed below the high platform to the front of the Hanyuan Hall."

Wang Yun. The man responsible for mobilizing and deploying the Imperial Guards that night.

His name surfaced in both their minds simultaneously.

Wang Yun was in charge of the Left and Right Imperial Guards defending the Daming Palace that night. When Prince E Li Run jumped from the Xiangluan Pavilion, Wang Yun was the first to lead the search for his body behind the pavilion. It was also he who deemed the fifty-foot-high platform impossible to breach, stationing troops only at the Dragon-Tail Path and other entry points. After the music and dance ceased at the Xiangluan Pavilion, all guards were withdrawn, allowing Prince E Li Run to enter alone and leading to the tragedy.

Having laid out the three anomalies, Huang Zixiao tucked the jade hairpin back into the silver one in her hair, calmly meeting his gaze without another word.

After a long silence, Li Shubai finally said, "So now, the greatest question before me isn't Seventh Brother's death, nor how he vanished or where he went afterward. Rather, it's how I should respond to the person behind him."Huang Zixiao nodded slightly, her eyes holding two bright points of light under the glazed lamp, gazing at him unwaveringly.

He pushed open the carriage window, listening intently to the sound of hoofbeats behind them, then closed it again and turned slowly to look at her. "You can still leave now," he said.

"No, it's too late," she replied with a gentle shake of her head. "Even if I go, my heart will stay with you. Wherever I go, it will be the same."

His reflection was clear and distinct in her eyes, pure and unclouded.

Li Shubai gazed back at her, seeing the clear light in her eyes and his own unmistakable image reflected there.

At this point, any further words would be superfluous.

The lamplight refracted through the glazed glass, casting rippling, wave-like patterns that shimmered faintly around them. In this moment, everything outside ceased to exist—at least they were together, and this brief tranquility kept all the impending storms at bay.

The Kuiwang Residence was now before them.

They got off the carriage and stood at the entrance of the mansion, waiting for the imperial carriage behind them to arrive.

The one who came was Xu Fenghan, the most trusted eunuch by the emperor's side. He personally delivered the emperor's verbal decree—Prince Kui had worked hard today, and to prevent him from suffering any fright in the cold night, he was permitted to rest at home for ten days. Matters at court could be delegated to others for the time being, with arrangements to be made later.

With a single sentence, all of Li Shubai's authority was stripped away.

Yet Li Shubai remained utterly composed. He ordered Jing Heng to accompany Xu Fenghan in the flower hall for conversation and sent someone to the study to gather the documents delivered by various ministries. After sealing them, they were stored at the gatehouse, ready to be returned to the respective ministries first thing the next morning. Xu Fenghan, having received his reward, glanced at the pile of official documents in the gatehouse and inwardly gasped, though he dared not say anything. He promptly boarded his carriage and departed.

Huang Zixiang accompanied him through nine gates back to the Jingyu Hall.

Before the hall, the verdant pines and cypresses peeked through the thin snow, their faint green hues appearing even more elegant under the lamplight.

Huang Zixiang gently squeezed his hand and said, "It might not be a bad thing. At least you can rest for a while."

He held her hand, pausing for a long moment before replying, "Yes, it's just like returning to four years ago."

Huang Zixiang studied his expression and smiled faintly. "I don't believe that."

He also smiled, the heavy oppression of the night finally easing slightly. "It's still the same net, and I'm still the same fish caught in it. The only difference is that this fish has grown fatter, and its scales have hardened."

So, whether the fisherman would haul in this fish or the fish would overturn the boat remained to be seen.

Huang Zixiang's current identity was still that of a minor eunuch in the prince's mansion.

However, since everyone now knew that Yang Chonggu had become the young lady Huang, it was no longer appropriate for her to live next to the eunuchs. Thus, she had moved to a courtyard not far from the Jingyu Hall.

By the time she returned to her residence, it was already the fifth watch. The night-shift maid, Changyi, saw her and quickly fetched water for her to wash up, saying, "Yesterday was the winter solstice, and the mansion distributed money and goods. But since you're still classified as a low-ranking eunuch by mansion rules, what you received was even less than mine. Tomorrow, you should hurry and ask Eunuch Jing Yi about it. The New Year's goods will be distributed soon—don't end up with the smallest share again!"

Huang Zixiang shook her head with a smile. "We'll see. I'm alone in the mansion—what use do I have for New Year's goods?"

Besides, who knew if there would even be another New Year to celebrate.

Seeing how exhausted she seemed, Changyi didn't press further and simply escorted her to her room to rest.

Huang Zixiang felt utterly drained, yet once she lay down, sleep eluded her. She stared blankly at the gradually brightening sky outside, countless illusions flashing before her eyes.

Prince E, Li Run's ethereal, immortal-like face, with a crimson cinnabar dot between his brows.

The words chaotically carved along the edge of the sandalwood table, later copied onto slips of paper.

The slips scattered in the wind, mingling with sporadic snowflakes to fill the entire Daming Palace.

Prince E stood on the railing, turned around, and leaned back, vanishing into the night sky.

Unravelable clues, an untraceable truth—what exactly had been lost in that great fire?

Huang Zixiang pressed her throbbing temples, lying stiffly on the bed as she watched the sky outside grow brighter. She let out a long sigh.

Even if what was coming would come, she couldn't just sit and wait for death. She couldn't allow those pervasive mysteries to engulf and drown her.