Feeling fortunate, I tried to persuade Mother, but she was stubborn and wouldn’t listen. I could only subtly express Mother’s dissatisfaction to Miao Yin and ask her to be more careful. Miao Yin was smart and quickly understood, not only learning housework but also occasionally appearing submissive in front of her mother-in-law and eldest brother. Their relationship gradually improved. If Miao Yin could become pregnant in the future, Mother would surely forget all her dissatisfaction.
We had An Jin, the eldest brother had Miao Yin, Si Tian had Tang Wei, and even Yuan Xiang had a child. In the atmosphere of couples flying together, the younger sister also began to actively participate in matchmaking, and the two families seemed to be heading towards a harmonious and happy family path.
However—the words “however” and “but” are like a large ink spot on a beautiful scroll, dark clouds drifting across a bright sky, mud floating in a clear stream.
A fire broke out in the palace of Emperor Ji, burning down a side hall. This burned-down side hall was precisely where the coffin of Princess Nan Rui was placed.
My back chilled in waves. An Jin was right; in His Majesty’s eyes, rather than letting the Fifth Princess become a threat to the Qi Kingdom, it would be better to make her completely disappear from this world. The Su family’s people would sneak into the side hall at night, definitely because they had heard that the Fifth Princess’s coffin might be hidden there. Where did they get this information? The mechanism in the side hall burned the entire palace but failed to trap a single assassin, instead letting him escape – this was inexplicable.
There were still many doubts and suspicious points about the entire incident. I sensed something, but my thoughts were half a beat slow, struggling to untangle the details. An Jin apparently had a clear understanding of the entire sequence of events.
“Your feeling is correct,” An Jin nodded, his eyes encouraging. “Don’t miss any clues, think about what might be hidden here. The Su family, His Majesty, the side hall, that assassin. Don’t rush, take it step by step, start by thinking about how the Su family got their information.”
