The Golden Hairpin

The princess's residence was in complete chaos.

Upon discovering that his most beloved daughter had died in the bustling streets, the emperor was furious. The imperial physicians on duty that day were the first to suffer—three of them were dragged away and flogged for their failure to save the princess. By the time she arrived, two had already been beaten to death.

Hearing this, Huang Zixiang couldn't help but stand inside the princess's residence with Zhou Ziqin, sighing softly.

"But by the time we found her, the princess was already dead. No matter how skilled the physicians were, there was no bringing her back..." Zhou Ziqin's face was filled with fear, his voice trembling. "Chonggu, what do we do? If the emperor vents his anger on others, I'm afraid many will suffer!"

Huang Zixiang watched as the physicians were carried out, frowning as she whispered, "Worry about ourselves first. The emperor personally ordered us to handle this case, yet before we could solve it, the princess was killed. Do you think the emperor will spare us?"

Zhou Ziqin's face turned even paler, sweat beading on his forehead. "Chonggu, we need to seek Prince Kui's help..."

"Where is he now? Where would you even find him?" Huang Zixiang asked helplessly.

Zhou Ziqin's expression grew even more despondent. "Then... what do we do?"

"Atone for our failures with merit," Huang Zixiang had just finished speaking when someone stormed out from inside, roaring furiously, "Who in the princess's residence accompanied Tongchang when she left? All of them—bury them with her! Let them serve Tongchang in the afterlife!"

This was the voice of a father consumed by rage—the current emperor, Li Cui.

The eunuchs and maids waiting outside the princess's residence, already trembling with fear, were struck by this thunderbolt of news. They immediately burst into wails, with Chui Zhu and others collapsing to the ground, their faces deathly pale.

Zhou Ziqin, hearing this, grew frantic and cried out recklessly, "Your Majesty, the princess's attendants are innocent! I beg Your Majesty to reconsider!"

The emperor's gaze fell upon him. His reason had nearly been burned away by fury, and for a moment, he didn’t even recognize who Zhou Ziqin was. "Anyone else who speaks out will be dragged away too!"

"Your Majesty, this humble servant has something to say!" Huang Zixiang quickly knelt and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, if the princess were aware, she would surely not wish for Your Majesty to act in such anger and do something you might regret later. Please take care of your imperial health, lest the princess feel uneasy in the afterlife."

"Yang Chonggu!" The emperor glared at her, bellowing, "I ordered you to investigate these suspicious cases in the princess's residence, yet you've made no progress, delaying the matter until Tongchang... Tongchang... a princess of our great Tang dynasty, was killed in the streets by villains!"

At this point, his voice choked, and he nearly lost his breath.

Imperial Consort Guo emerged from the inner chamber, weeping as she rushed to his side, patting his chest to help him breathe. Her voice was hoarse and broken: "Your Majesty... Your Majesty, my only daughter... is gone just like that! The murderer... the murderer must be torn limb from limb, his bones ground to dust!"

Huang Zixiang said, "This humble servant will surely capture the true culprit of this case. Therefore, I beseech Your Majesty to spare the lives of those in the princess's residence so that I may question them one by one, in hopes of solving the case swiftly and apprehending the murderer!"

The emperor slammed his fist against a pillar, his gaze sweeping over the eunuchs and maids before him with hatred. "As the princess's attendants, they failed to protect their mistress. Every one of them deserves death!"Huang Zixiang lowered her eyes and said, "The princess was kind-hearted and deeply benevolent to those around her. If she knew, she would surely not wish to see Your Majesty slaughter so many in her name today."

The eunuchs and palace maids of the princess's residence immediately knelt on the ground, kowtowing repeatedly like pounding garlic, pleading for mercy.

The emperor felt blood surging to his head, dizzy and disoriented. Leaning against a pillar, his gaze turned toward the inner hall, but all he could see were the heavy drapes hanging before Tongchang Princess's resting place.

Inside lay his first child. Back when he was still the Prince of Yun, uncertain of his future, unable to see tomorrow, with everyone around him doubting him—only this daughter had nestled softly in his arms, seeing him as her sole refuge. When her tiny arms wrapped around his neck, her bright eyes would always gaze up at him with such trust that even when Consort Guo tried to take her, she refused to let go.

She didn’t speak until she was four or five, and her first words were "de huo" (to survive). Before he could even grasp what she meant, the procession to welcome his ascension to the throne had already arrived at his doorstep. He believed this daughter was a treasure bestowed upon him by heaven, and he cherished her beyond measure. In turn, she steadfastly believed her father was her strongest shield.

Yet now, someone had stolen his most precious treasure, leaving him alone in boundless grief, staring at his daughter’s cold corpse.

The emperor slowly shook off Consort Guo’s hand, his eyes burning with hatred as he glared at her.

Consort Guo froze for a moment before realizing—he must be blaming her for their daughter’s death, believing that if she hadn’t summoned the princess to the palace in her scheme to overthrow Empress Wang, their daughter wouldn’t have perished in the chaos on the streets.

Furious and heartbroken, she turned away, covering her face to stifle her sobs.

"What nonsense about Pan Shufei of Southern Qi, or Pan Yuer! How could a ghost from centuries ago take away my beloved princess?" The emperor stood before the hall, his roar hoarse yet still carrying a chilling, murderous rage. "Investigate! Find out for me! Who is behind this sorcery? Who is spreading these lies? Who... killed my Linghui!"

Everyone knelt before him, not daring to make a sound.

The emperor’s voice echoed through the deathly silent hall, growing only more sorrowful with each reverberation.

He suddenly turned, his eyes locking onto where Tongchang Princess lay. His chest heaved violently, grief and fury burning through him like tangible flames, threatening to consume the entire princess’s residence and slaughter everyone present to accompany his daughter in death.

He stared at where his daughter rested. Time seemed to stretch endlessly before the scorching rage gradually cooled, replaced by sorrow that seeped into his bones like quicksilver, numbing his entire being. The fire was extinguished by the cold, and he suddenly understood—the soft warmth he once held in his arms was gone; the laughter that once called him "Father" was gone; the tiny hands that once tugged at his sleeves, begging for attention, were gone; the adoring eyes that always looked up at him were gone.

The daughter he had cherished for twenty years—willful, proud, and stubborn—was gone.

"Yang Chonggu, even if you have to turn the entire capital upside down..." The emperor slowly raised a hand to block the tears welling in his eyes, but he couldn’t stop the tremor in his voice or the shaking of his body. He spoke with agonizing slowness, as though afraid that if he loosened his breath even slightly, he would collapse into uncontrollable sobs."Before the princess's funeral, you must give me an answer. I want... to see the murderer crushed to ashes before her spirit!"

Huang Zixiang remained silent, kneeling to kowtow solemnly before replying, "Understood."

"That was close..."

With the princess's body lying in the main hall, Zhou Ziqin wiped his sweat as soon as they stepped outside, muttering under his breath, "Where is Prince Kui? I'm terrified without him here..."

Huang Zixiang noticed the silent figure of the princess's consort, Wei Baoheng, standing outside the hall and signaled Zhou Ziqin to be quiet. She approached Wei Baoheng and bowed in greeting.

Wei Baoheng weakly gestured for her to rise. His eyes brimmed with tears, and though he struggled to hold them back, they streamed down uncontrollably.

"It's all... all my fault," he murmured, his voice hollow. "Prince Kui and you both warned me... told me to watch over the princess... But when she wanted to leave, I couldn't stop her..."

Huang Zixiang felt a pang of sorrow, unsure of what to say. She could only offer, "Please accept my condolences, Consort Wei."

He nodded, choking on his words, unable to speak further.

Seeing him in such a state, Huang Zixiang could only offer a few more words of comfort before leaving the princess's residence with Zhou Ziqin.

Once outside the Sixteen Princes' Residence where the princess's mansion stood, both Huang Zixiang and Zhou Ziqin froze in shock.

Li Shubai's carriage was waiting for them. And standing beside it was none other than Zhang Xingying.

Huang Zixiang and Zhou Ziqin exchanged bewildered glances. She recovered first, nodding at Zhang Xingying before hurrying to the carriage to bow. "Your Highness."

Li Shubai was reviewing documents inside the carriage without even lifting his gaze. "How long is your deadline?"

"Before the funeral."

"Good. The Emperor is being lenient with you." Finally, he glanced at her and closed the document in his hand. "When the princess died, Lü Dicui was in prison—clearly incapable of committing the crime."

"And these three murders are likely the work of a single killer, following the pattern of that painting," Huang Zixiang mused. "So, the possibility of Dicui being the culprit for the first two cases is slim."

"That Zhang Xingying—" Li Shubai's gaze shifted to the window. "Lurking outside the Dali Temple like that—what kind of behavior is that? Tell him to go home and wait patiently, or better yet, transfer him from the Capital Defense Office to assist you in the investigation. He can at least run errands for you."

Huang Zixiang looked at him in surprise. "Your Highness means... you're pardoning Zhang Xingying?"

Li Shubai narrowed his eyes slightly. "Naturally. The way you've been sneaking around to meet him privately is irritating to anyone who sees it."

"Thank you, Your Highness..." Huang Zixiang lowered her head guiltily before quickly adding, "Then I'll take Zhang Xingying to the Dali Temple first to see if Dicui has any new testimony."

He gave a slight nod, motioning for her to board the carriage, then called through the window to Zhou Ziqin, "Ziqin, you and Zhang Xingying go ahead to the Dali Temple. We'll join you shortly."

The carriage headed south, toward Prince E's mansion. Huang Zixiang knew where he was taking her and asked quietly, "Your Highness also thinks this is the third defacement from that painting?"

"Death beneath the phoenix... the Nine Phoenix Hairpin was the phoenix that swooped down to claim a life, wasn't it?" He glanced at her sideways before unrolling the scroll again, his gaze lingering on the three defaced sections.

The one struck by lightning and burned to death was Wei Ximin at the Jianfu Temple.The one who died in the tightly locked iron cage was Sun Laizi, trapped in his prison.

The one who died from a phoenix's swooping peck at the heart was Princess Tongchang, stabbed to death by the Nine Phoenix Hairpin.

Li Shubai looked up at her and asked, "What do you think?"

Huang Zixiao nodded and said, "One or two could still be called coincidence. But when it reaches this level of coincidence, it would be unreasonable not to seek out Prince E."