Qu Boyong stood around his table with Ji Fangluo and An Haoyang, speaking in a hushed tone as he went through the details of the plan. It wasn’t possible for them to meet during the day, Qu Boyong and An Haoyang both being busy with their jobs, so they had no choice but to sacrifice their sleep.
“But isn’t that too dangerous? Even if Haoyang is an Imperial Investigator, his ranking isn’t high enough and he doesn’t have political backing,” Ji Fangluo objected.
“It’s a necessary risk, we need someone on the inside to push it forward,” Qu Boyong replied. “Our men in the Ministry of Justice are ranked too low, and we don’t have anyone else who passed the background check for the Bureau. An Haoyang is our only choice.”
“Don’t worry, Miss Ji. I’ve been there long enough, they wouldn’t find me suspicious,” An Haoyang assured her. He made to continue but suddenly fell silent.
An Haoyang patted at his robes with a frown, retrieving a metal plaque. His expression darkened as he looked at the symbol that had appeared on its surface.
“That’s not good,” An Haoyang muttered.
“What happened?” Qu Boyong demanded sharply.
“The Imperial Investigation Bureau has raised an emergency alarm. All off-duty Investigators are to report immediately to the Bureau,” An Haoyang said grimly.
“What on earth is going on? Was there a security breach?” Boyong asked.
“Young lord, listen,” Ji Fangluo cut in urgently. The three fell silent. There was the sound of rhythmic footsteps and horses in the distance.
“That must be well over seventy men,” Ji Fangluo muttered. “And yet they’re moving in unison without making any extraneous noise, it can’t be the City Guard.”
“It’s not the Bureau or the Ministry of Justice,” An Haoyang muttered. “Listen to that, they’re wearing armor.”
“The Imperial Guard,” Qu Boyong said. “No one would be foolish enough to march soldiers into the capital, it can only be them! Are they headed towards the Zhao household?”
The three of them exchanged looks of confusion.
“Haoyang, hurry up and go to the Bureau first. It’ll get complicated if someone notices you here,” Qu Boyong ordered.
An Haoyang nodded. “Please be careful, young lord. If the situation gets out of hand, you’ll need to get out of here.” The young investigator left on foot, avoiding going through the rooftops until he was a safe distance away. Qu Boyong swiveled his head in the direction of the footsteps, unease twisting inside his stomach.
“Young lord, they’re stopping outside the Zhao household, something must have happened! Did the Grand Duke snap and kill his grandson?” Ji Fangluo asked.
Qu Boyong clenched his jaw, moving towards the door. “Damn it, our plans will all be for nothing if he did! I’ll have to go find out.”
“You can’t,” Ji Fangluo said in alarm. “It wouldn’t be surprising that you didn’t know of what happened later on, but it would definitely be suspicious for you to show up now! Stay here, we’ll find out in due time.”
“But-” Qu Boyong began to protest.
"Young lord, what can you even do if you go right now? Unless you can prove the Grand Duke's guilt in framing the Xiang clan right then and there, it's pointless to risk yourself by intervening," Ji Fangluo said, grabbing him by the arm.
“You’re right,” Boyong said grimly. “We’ll have to wait and see.”
It wasn’t long before his communication talisman received a message from An Haoyang.
“He sent a message while inside the Bureau? Isn’t that dangerous?” Ji Fangluo asked in alarm.
“It must be an emergency,” Boyong said. He read the message, handing it to Ji Fangluo with a severe look on his face. “Thank the heavens, the Grand Duke hasn't been arrested yet. It seems that Zhao Wenyuan will live to see another day. But this means our plans will have to be accelerated, the Grand Duke’s already making his move and the Bureau will be retaliating soon. Here, see for yourself.”
Ji Fangluo read over the message with growing concern. “There are four dead investigators, a fifth one missing, and they suspect there’s a spy within their ranks. That’s extremely disadvantageous for An Haoyang!”
“Haoyang will be alright, it’s the Zhao clan’s situation I’m worried about-they mobilized the Imperial Guards to interfere on Zhao Wenyuan’s behalf, and he’s already been whisked away to the palace. Who knows what will happen from now on? The Grand Duke and the Zhao clan may very well emerge from this in a better position than ever before,” Qu Boyong spat out. “Who knows what that old man has up his sleeve?”
“Then we’ll have to move forward ahead of plan,” Ji Fangluo replied. “We can’t afford to wait and lose the advantage of surprise.”
“Yes, but it seems that just the measures I had in mind won’t be enough. The intervention of the Imperial Guards will raise Zhao Wenyuan's prestige yet another step, and the Zhao clan will benefit by association. I need to throw that into chaos if we are to proceed. Ji Fangluo, I’ll need your help with this. Starting from tonight, we need to run Zhao Wenyuan’s reputation into the ground,” Qu Boyong said.
“You plan to substantiate your rumors?” Ji Fangluo asked.
Qu Boyong bit down on the twinge of guilt rising into his throat. “It may be unfair to Zhao Wenyuan, but it’s about time to pull him from his perch. If we can’t tie his hands up with this matter, there’s no telling what that guy will do.”
Ji Fangluo hesitated for a moment before nodding. “Understood, young lord. I’ll follow your arrangements.”
----------------------------------------
Inside the Zhao household, the mood was taut enough to cut with a knife. The Imperial Guards had left the Inner Quarters, but they were still surrounding the household, and the Imperial Investigation Bureau could enter on the grounds of conducting an investigation at any moment. Both the Imperial Guards and Imperial Investigation Bureau were treading extremely carefully since they were dealing with the household of Grand Duke Zhao. Not only did the Grand Duke hold a title of nobility, but he also held the powerful seat of Central Secretariat. He wasn't someone they wished to deliberately offend.
The Grand Duke’s rage bounced off the walls of his study. Housekeeper Wang hid his wince as an expensive vase flew past his head, missing it by an inch to shatter against the wall.
“Which goddamn bastard dared to do this?!” The Grand Duke roared, upturning the heavy mahogany desk as though it weighed nothing.
“I-I’m sorry, my lord, we’re working on it right now,” Housekeeper Wang said softly. He glanced at the captain of the Zhao household’s guards, who was pale and shaking.
“You useless pieces of shit! Is it that hard to do something properly?!” The Grand Duke raged on.
“My lord, I’m terribly sorry, but I arranged the guards as previously agreed upon, so we also didn’t see what happened to the investigators,” the captain said in a trembling voice.
“Four dead investigators and one missing! Do you know how much of a mess this leaves us in? Those bastards from the Bureau dare to openly send their watchdogs, and now they blame us! And you, didn't you think to make any preparations for unexpected complications? Did you think I was making a joke when I said I wanted it done quietly?!” The Grand Duke shouted, jabbing a finger at the guard captain, who gulped nervously.
“The man we paid for has gone missing, but I don’t expect we’ll ever find him alive,” Housekeeper Wang said, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration. “But he must have let something slip, how else would the assassin have known when to strike?”
“You bunch of failures! Not only is that little brat Wenyuan still alive and kicking, but the Imperial Guards have also gotten involved. They’re only a single breath away from launching an all-out investigation! It seems that neither of you realizes the severity of the situation, that assassin could’ve learned this information from anyone in this household. Captain, do I pay you to sit around and do nothing? Check the entire household and root out anyone who’s suspicious!” The Grand Duke ordered.
“Understood, my lord! I will do so right away!”
“Fix up that goddamn mess of a guard unit, do you think I don’t know that your men go around flirting with all the serving maids? Find everyone they’ve spoken to and root out the rat!”
The captain bowed deeply. “I sincerely apologize for my negligence! I swear to find the person responsible for the leak at any cost!”
“Don’t just go asking around like a block of wood, this might as well have been Wenyuan’s doing as well. That brat, he may have gotten hold of the information somehow and staged this himself to tie our hands. Figure it out, and look into those employees of his, especially that new one,” the Grand Duke seethed.
The guard captain gulped nervously, bowing lower to hide his expression. “As you wish, my lord.”
“And you, Housekeeper Wang! Start cleaning up the loose ends, we can’t just sit and wait for them to launch an investigation. Destroy everything that can be destroyed and silence everyone who can be silenced.”
Housekeeper Wang bowed his head. “Understood, my lord.”
The Grand Duke let out an angry huff, having burned through the worst of his rage.
“And one more thing, send word to Lin Yaoguang. Tell him I require his services again,” the Grand Duke ordered. Housekeeper Wang gave him a look of shock.
“Lin Yaoguang? My lord, are you certain? It could be dangerous, especially now that the Imperial Investigation Bureau and the palace have their eyes on us.”
The Grand Duke shot him an icy glare. “Do I need to repeat myself? If we don’t have the guts to make a bold move, we can only sit and wait for death!”
At the murderous look on the Grand Duke’s face, Housekeeper Wang gave up and bowed his head.
“Apologies, my lord. I will do as you command.”
----------------------------------------
Kayla sat in the carriage, glancing out the window as it pulled away from the Imperial Palace. She’d dragged Hu Qing in with her, ignoring his attempt to get on a horse instead. As expected of a high-ranking eunuch who had served the Imperial family for most of his life, Sir Yang deftly read the mood and took a horse, giving Kayla and Hu Qing their privacy.
Along in the carriage, Kayla was finally free to voice her thoughts.
“So, Liang Hongfei, was it?” Kayla asked. Hu Qing stiffened immediately.
Kayla glanced at him, and he stiffened even further. He opened his mouth and then closed it again, evidently unable to think of what to say.
After a long and awkward silence, Hu Qing slumped his shoulders.
"I'm sorry," he said meekly. "I was just hoping that this would never come up, I didn't think the Empress Dowager would recognize me two seconds in."
“Relax, you said it yourself, you’re living as Hu Qing right now. I don’t see any problem with it,” Kayla said, feeling a little bad for him. He had just saved her life after all, and he'd opted to work directly for Kayla even when offered an official position that could have gotten him legitimized in the Liang family, she couldn't muster any actual anger towards him.
Hu Qing visibly sagged with relief. “Sorry, Minister. I mean, the name itself gives a lot away, doesn’t it? And it’s true that I wasn’t allowed to use my given name, I didn’t lie about that!”
“Technically, you didn’t lie about anything.” Kayla comforted him. “I have to say though, that’s some impressive family background you have there. In terms of history and prestige, the Liang clan’s almost on par with the Zhao clan. Are you really alright with giving up on that?”
“Please spare me, Minister!” Hu Qing protested. “I don’t want to get involved with all that political stuff, I’m not cut out for it. In any case, I’ve never even considered usurping my brother’s position, I'm happy so long as I'm getting paid.”
I wonder why he changed his mind in the original timeline, did he end up wanting to take back his seat after all? And isn’t Minister Liang the usurper here?
“That’s fine with me. In any case, I’m the one who dragged you to the palace, so if anyone gives you trouble, just point them my way,” Kayla said.
Hu Qing glanced at Kayla with a doubtful expression.
“I appreciate the thought, Minister. But if there’s really any trouble, it might be better if you just take a step back,” Hu Qing said. Kayla shook her head in exasperation.
“Not that kind of trouble,” Kayla protested. “I mean the political stuff. Or paperwork, or whatever. It’s up to you to handle the fights.”
Hu Qing nodded. “That sounds more like it.” He glanced out the window, lifting the curtain to see where they were.
“Minister, where are we heading to? We’re leaving the city center,” he remarked.
“We’re going to my mother’s house on the outskirts of the city. My grandmother gave me the day off tomorrow, so I’m going there to take a rest.”
Hu Qing raised an eyebrow. “She’s shunting you to the side for the investigation?”
“In exchange for new information,” Kayla explained. “The investigation probably won’t get far away. But this? This is useful. My mother was a magical researcher, I believe this was where she conducted her work. I never had access to this place even while she was still alive, so I’m not about to turn down this chance.”
“Magic research? You mean like creating new talismans?”
“More likely, it was creating entirely new ways of using magic,” Kayla explained. “Everything we have right now is basically just extensions of what we already use, but I believe my mother was working on something beyond that.”
She was able to create a magical time-loop and forcibly drag my soul over, none of the magic Wenyuan had read about came even remotely close. Most of the existing research was limited by cultural traditions and followed extremely conservative lines of inquiry, the Imperial Princess’ work is on a completely different level.
Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!
“But why would she bother with something like that?” Hu Qing looked at her quizzically.
Right, I keep forgetting that Ancient China didn’t really have much enthusiasm for scientific inquiry.
“For the sake of inquiry itself, I suppose,” Kayla replied. “In any case, the contents of her research were probably enough to cause significant changes to society, so I want to know exactly what I’m dealing with.”
A frown flashed over Hu Qing’s face as he seemed to realize the situation. Anything that could cause significant changes to the status quo was certain to be faced with a strong backlash. Even if the Imperial Princess had kept out of politics, anything she did would still have wide-reaching implications.
“What kind of changes?” Hu Qing asked.
“That’s what I want to find out,” Kayla sighed. “I’ll be straightforward with you. Both of my parents passed away from illness at a relatively young age, even though they had always been in good health. I don’t think that was a coincidence. Depending on what I can learn about what happened back then, it could completely upturn the current political landscape.”
“So you suspect the Grand Duke? Or someone else?”
Kayla shook her head. “He’s the one I suspect the most, but things are rarely that simple.”
“Got it. So we're going to the villa to dig up dirt on him.”
“I sure hope so, but if it ends up just being a normal house, then I’ll also be at a loss for what to do,” Kayla said drily.
"I wouldn't cross out that possibility so quickly," Hu Qing replied. "You should really be more careful in dealing with the palace, the security detail in charge of the Zhao household is pitifully small. There haven't been more than four or five Investigators in the area since the time we first met, or I wouldn't have been able to hop around so easily either."
"So it wasn't just tonight?" Kayla asked in surprise. "I thought she had just reduced the security as a temporary measure because she knew the Grand Duke was going to make a move or something like that."
“No, it must have been like that for at least a week or so. You probably know this, but for a household of this size and significance, even a surveillance detail would have at least eight or nine people," Hu Qing said.
Kayla shook her head in frustration. "I know that, but I didn't think that she would...I mean, I'm useful to her, aren't I? Does it even make sense to throw me out there as bait?"
"With his skills, Qu Boyong should've been able to notice," Hu Qing said. "He didn't tell you?"
Kayla groaned, burying her face into her hands as something clicked together in her head. Fuck.
"Then it seems like your instincts are quite sharp. You were right to be suspicious of him," Hu Qing muttered.
The carriage pulled to a stop, Sir Yang dismounting from his horse to open the door for them.
“Minister, Mister Hu, we’ve arrived,” Sir Yang said politely.
“Thank you, Sir Yang.” Kayla got out of the carriage and approached the villa. It was an elegant building, three stories high, surrounded by an artistically crafted garden. Even at night, its tasteful design was evident at first glance. Just from the pleasing arrangements of the plants and its calming, natural beauty, Kayla could tell it was designed by the Imperial Princess herself.
Neither she nor Wenyuan had ever been here, but somehow it felt so familiar that it was almost like coming home. Kayla instinctively knew how the rooms would be arranged inside as she entered the villa. She came to a stop inside the first room, glancing around in wonder.
This place feels just like mother’s quarters, Wenyuan said in delight, his outrage and fear temporarily forgotten. The Imperial Princess’ quarters in the Zhao household had been completely rearranged after her death on the orders of the Grand Duke, and due to Wenyuan’s reticent personality, he rarely ventured to ask for permission to visit his mother’s old rooms in the Imperial Palace, even though they had been maintained.
“We’ve taken care to keep this place clean, but we’ve left everything as it was,” Sir Yang said softly. “I sent word for the servants to prepare rooms for yourself and Mister Hu, and then to take their leave for the time being.” Kayla nodded mutely. From the decorations to the furniture, everything seemed to exude the effortless elegance of the Imperial Princess.
“Wow, this place is really nice,” Hu Qing said cheerfully. Sir Yang gave him a look of rebuke, but Hu Qing’s words were enough to shake Kayla out of her moment of wonder. She had more important things on hand.
This is a chance I gained after having my life put at risk, if I don’t make good use of it, I’ll have let it happen for nothing. But this place looks so normal, did she even do any research here?
Mother would never be so careless as to leave things out here in the open, if there was anything, it would be on the second or third floor, Wenyuan remarked.
“I’d like to take a look around,” Kayla said to Sir Yang.
“Understood, Minister. I’ll light up the lamps on the second floor.”
“No need, I’ve got one,” Hu Qing said. He reached into his robes and pulled out a small magical device. It activated, exuding a bright blue light. “Shall we, Minister?”
Kayla nodded, letting Sir Yang lead them up the staircase. The second floor had a few bookshelves that Kayla was determined to check out later, but not much else that suggested traces of magic.
“Shall we see the third floor as well?” Kayla asked. Sir Yang bowed his head and led them up another flight of stairs. To her disappointment, the third floor looked much the same as the first two floors. Just as she was about to give up and call it a night, Kayla sensed a faint thrum of magic. It wasn’t just low-level magic like the magical talismans she’d procured from the market, but high-tier magic, expertly packaged to be as inconspicuous as possible.
Wenyuan, do you sense that?
It’s not just a single device, Wenyuan pointed out. They’re everywhere! The third floor’s full of them! Look, even the books and the paintings are like that!
Kayla barely managed to keep herself from smiling broadly. Looks like we didn’t come here for nothing.
“Please feel free to go for now, Sir Yang. I’d like to just take a look around here,” Kayla said. Sir Yang hesitated for a moment before bowing.
“Then I’ll take my leave, Minister.”
Kayla waited until his footsteps had receded down the staircase before going around to take a closer look.
“Everything here is imbued with magic,” Hu Qing said in wonder.
“Where the hell do I even start with all this?” Kayla muttered to herself.
“Look at these books, Minister. There’s some hefty magic on them to hide its actual contents.”
Kayla perked up at the information. “Wait, really? How did you know?”
“I doubt your mother needed six copies of The Analects, especially since they were all the same version,” Hu Qing said. “A lot of nobles use stuff like this to hide their dirty secrets in plain sight, but it seems your mother didn’t really care about being inconspicuous. No one would dare to carelessly sift through the Imperial Princess’ possessions, and she’s got some high-tier spells on them.”
“You’re amazing,” Kayla said. She took out one of the copies of The Analects, flipping through it with interest. “I never would’ve even noticed it.”
Is this how the Grand Duke hides his evidence?
“It’s surprisingly common. If you walk into the room of someone you know isn’t a man who likes reading, and he has the full Han Histories on his bookshelf, it usually means he’s hiding a lot of records,” Hu Qing said. He reached over Kayla’s head and pulled down another stack of books from the top shelves. “And look here, four copies of Mencius and three copies of A New Account of Tales of the World. Was your mother really someone who liked collecting several copies of the same edition?”
Kayla quickly looked through them. Looking closely, there was high-tier magic on almost every single page.
“How on earth do we deactivate this?”
“That’s the thing, we can’t,” Hu Qing replied. “I’ve dealt with plenty of these before, but they’re usually custom-made spells that can’t be deactivated without a specific key, and that key tends to only be in the hands of one or two people. If you can't steal it, you have to get it out of them some other way.”
“Damn it,” Kayla grumbled.
Wenyuan, where would your mother hide the key?
I don’t know, Wenyuan replied. She never told me much about her research.
If only I could nullify these. Maybe I can take these back with me and pretend to “find the key” later.
We could also try finding a magic appraiser.
“Ask Sir Yang for me if we’re allowed to take anything from the villa,” Kayla said. Hu Qing nodded and left, returning a moment later with a sympathetic expression.
“No?” Kayla asked in disappointment. Hu Qing shook his head.
“This villa can only be accessed with the Empress Dowager’s express permission, and nothing can be removed without her permission as well.”
Fuck, seriously? It’s right in front of me and I can’t use it! I got this opportunity after nearly dying, who knows if I’ll get another chance?
“Hu Qing, now that you work for me, you’re bound to customer confidentiality, right?” Kayla asked.
“Of course. Just like I can’t tell you anything about my previous employer, I can’t tell anyone about your matters.”
“Excellent. Let me ask you this, can you tell if Sir Yang is a magic user?” Kayla asked.
Hu Qing shook his head. “I didn’t sense anything from him, but it’s hard to tell if he’s not actively doing anything.”
“Damn it,” Kayla grumbled.
“Do you need me to distract him for you?” Hu Qing asked. Kayla gave him a look of surprise.
“Can you do that?”
“I’ll say you wanted a flower from the garden or something, I’ll get him far away enough that he wouldn’t be able to sense moderate amounts of magic even if he was a magic user,” Hu Qing said. Kayla smiled and made to agree.
Kayla! What if the Empress Dowager realizes the magic was nullified?! Wenyuan hastily stopped her in alarm.
They won’t be able to tell whether it was nullified or deactivated. As long as we insist that we deactivated it, no one can prove otherwise. Do you think they even know how your mother made these? If the Empress Dowager could deactivate the spell and still left these here, that means these are fine to open. If they actually contain something confidential, then that means the Empress Dowager can’t deactivate it anyways.
That’s a bit of a gamble, isn’t it?
We can’t let this chance go, we need something that we can use. A weapon that belongs to us, do you understand? We can’t just rely on the Empress Dowager and the Emperor, just look at the Li Sanjin case, if we hadn’t managed to scrounge up a card to play, we would’ve been done for. It’s the same with tonight, we only got lucky because Hu Qing happened to get here in time. Now that I'm actually in this position, I can understand why Xianchun got so angry when I told him to prioritize pleasing the Emperor over building up his own power base, the Imperial Palace really is unreliable to a ridiculous degree.
But still, what do you think happens if grandmother learns of your nullification magic? Will she think of it as a good thing or will she begin to see us as a threat?
Kayla hesitated. You make a pretty good point.
She glanced at the books again, a thought occurring to her. Isn’t it possible to only temporarily nullify something?
Are you kidding me? Do you think this is like one of those lightning devices from your world that you can just turn on and off?
It’s electricity, not lightning. We don’t have something that cool.
The point is that it's not something that– Wenyuan stopped for a moment. Actually, is it possible? There aren't exactly any writings on this.
We won’t know unless we try, but I think I can do it. I don’t really understand how magic works in the slightest, but things tend to work out anyways.
“Alright then, please do that,” Kayla said to Hu Qing, who was still patiently waiting for a reply.
Hu Qing gave her a grin and headed off, leaving Kayla alone. She waited until she saw Hu Qing follow Sir Yang into the garden before hastily making to nullify the magic on one of the books as a test run. She had expected some degree of difficulty, but to her surprise, the nullification magic simply bent to her will, removing the magic on the pages without destroying it completely.
I did not expect that to work so well, Kayla thought in amazement. She hastily flipped the book open, thumbing through the pages. Her smile faded as she took in its contents, slowing down to read it carefully.
Holy shit, Wenyuan. Kayla gulped nervously as she flipped to the next page. Just what the hell was your mother involved in?
She glanced at the pile of books before her, foregoing caution to temporary nullify the magic on all of them at once. Kayla frantically flipped through them, her breathing growing increasingly panicked.
Grandmother must not have been able to access these. If she had, the situation would be completely different from what it is today.
We would probably be dead, Kayla thought grimly. Your mother held on to this information silently for a reason. But this basically confirms it, your parents didn’t die of natural causes.
She’d expected some details on the Imperial Princess’ research, but the late princess was evidently much more dangerous than Kayla and Wenyuan could have imagined.
The books were filled with evidence, covering multiple cases and implicating what Kayla estimated to be over half the current court. The common thread throughout was that every single case was tied to the Grand Duke in some way.
One of the books was completely filled with details of the death of Zhao Kangyu, Wenyuan’s father. It was clear that the Imperial Princess didn’t believe her husband died of an epidemic, especially when she’d overseen his treatment herself. Kayla didn’t have time to look through the book fully, but she was almost certain that the end results pointed to the Grand Duke. Another thick tome seemed to be full of accounting records. Between the books in front of her and the various other bookshelves that Kayla hadn’t even gotten started on yet, it was enough to guarantee the extermination of not just the Zhao clan, but a large number of the prominent clans in the country.
Fuck, how the hell did she even do this? Magic? Connections? Was she the Empress Dowager’s spymaster or something like that? But I don't think the palace has any of this information.
Kayla’s head swam with the implications of this information. Shit, how the fuck do I deal with all this? This is enough to get a shit ton of people and their families killed. It’s enough to get us killed too! The Zhao clan is just as screwed as everyone else. She rubbed at her temples, her headache returning.
From the corner of her eye, she saw movement in the garden as Sir Yang headed back with Hu Qing in tow, the younger man dragging his feet to buy her more time. Kayla pushed down a rush of frustration and released her nullification magic, allowing the spells to seep back onto the pages.
Damn it! I swear to god, I am getting that man out of my hair tomorrow, one way or another. I need to go through all this and figure out how to deal with it.
Kayla placed the books back onto their shelves, straining a little to replace the ones Hu Qing had removed from the top shelf before heading back down to the first floor, where Sir Yang politely escorted Kayla and Hu Qing to their rooms for the night.
Kayla sat in stunned silence at the foot of the bed for a while, her brain uselessly turning in circles without coming to any useful conclusion. She slumped sideways onto the bed. The soft covers and the firm bed beneath reminded Kayla of her exhaustion. Within moments, she fell into a deep sleep and did not wake until morning.
----------------------------------------
Even if Kayla hadn’t been much of a morning person, Wenyuan’s muscle memory was conditioned to get up early enough for the convening of the court and still be functional, enabling her to wake up at the crack of dawn. The only downside to this was that Kayla always ended up waking up early and being unable to fall back asleep, which coupled with the late hours she kept, led to a state of chronic lack of sleep. Despite the hectic events of the previous night, Kayla was fully awake by the time the sun had risen past the horizon.
She got dressed and wandered into the garden, hoping the greenery would ease her mind a little.
Kayla had been in stress-activated hyper-concentration mode since the moment she’d woken up but still had yet to find an answer to any of her questions.
We need to get Sir Yang enough of a distance away so we can check out the rest of the evidence, Wenyuan grumbled. But it also wouldn’t do to offend someone who serves grandmother so closely.
Forget that for a moment, let’s focus on the major issues here at hand. First of all, why did the Empress Dowager send us here? It’s definitely not just the investigation, she could’ve sent us anywhere to keep us out of the way. Is she hoping we find something here? Maybe she was betting on us having a way to deactivate the magic on the books.
You’re being a little paranoid, Wenyuan objected.
No, I’m absolutely not. Listen, Wenyuan. She was lying to us about the plaque. In fact, that’s my second question. What the hell does the plaque do?
The golden plaque definitely did serve a symbolic function as an acknowledgment of Wenyuan’s lineage, but that couldn’t be the only thing. If the Empress Dowager had wanted to use it to raise Wenyuan’s de facto status to be on par with the Imperial Princes, it should have been gifted in public, rather than at midnight in the courtyard of the Zhao household.
And why did it activate so suddenly like that? It didn’t even have any protective function or anything. Did they give it to me to trap the Grand Duke?
What are you talking about?
Think about it. The Imperial Guard didn’t come over to save us.
But surely grandmother wouldn’t– Kayla winced at Wenyuan's tumultuous emotions. He had grown up with the affection of his grandmother, it would probably be difficult for him to accept the fact that even if he was the Empress Dowager's grandson, he was still first and foremost one of her pieces on the chessboard.
Okay, let’s not discuss this for now. There’s still another issue we need to consider. Why did the Empress Dowager give us nullification talismans?
What? Wenyuan sounded increasingly confused at Kayla’s train of thought.
If it were for our safety, she could’ve given us anything. A nullification talisman is rare and expensive, sure, but it’s far from being the best choice or the most useful one. Wouldn’t a shield or a poison-immunity spell be much more suitable? In what situation would a nullification spell be more useful than those?
It’s probably useful in some way, I just don’t know what, Wenyuan said weakly. What are you trying to get at?
Kayla pulled out the nullification talisman, looking at it pensively. Maybe we weren’t careful enough. Did she notice something?