The first possibility could be quickly ruled out. If the Su family knew it was the Fifth Princess, they would not have been so rash as to send just one assassin to steal from the side hall, no matter how urgent.
So only the second possibility remained.
They could not confirm whether the body was the Fifth Princess, so they sent an assassin to investigate. Little did they know the assassin would trigger the mechanism and cause a fire.
The fire in the mechanism burned the entire side hall but left an escape route for the assassin. There was only one explanation: this assassin was deliberately allowed to escape. The only person who could order Tang Wei to leave an escape route and have the guards let the assassin go was the current Emperor.
Had this assassin seen the princess’s face to confirm her identity? I believed he must have. Otherwise, letting the assassin escape would serve no purpose. So, did the Emperor let the assassin escape to report back to the Su family?
An Jin exhaled. “Correct. The information the Su family received about the side hall was likely deliberately leaked by the Emperor.”
The assassin confirmed that the body in the side hall was indeed the Fifth Princess. The Su family would now know their conspiracy was exposed, and the Emperor’s retaliation was inevitable.
“Why would His Majesty do this? Isn’t he afraid the Su family might make a desperate last stand?”
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“No matter how powerful the Su family is, this is Qi Kingdom’s territory. They cannot outmaneuver the current Emperor,” An Jin opened a military strategy book and pointed to a line for me to see.
Retreat is the best strategy.
I understood. “You mean, the Emperor wants to force the Su family to flee?”
“Exactly. The Su family are Western Liang’s secret agents. Once they flee, they must return to Western Liang to report to Yan.”
“But isn’t this like releasing a tiger back to the mountains?”
“His Majesty certainly has a purpose,” An Jin closed the book, lightly tapping his knuckles on the table. “His entire plan might also involve the Secret Department. I just haven’t received his imperial decree yet.”
The Emperor was indeed not an easy character to deal with.
I suddenly felt an ominous premonition. “What do you think he’ll make the Secret Department do?”
“I don’t know,” An Jin turned away, his expression slightly cold.
I had a strong feeling that An Jin actually did know, but he chose not to reveal it.
He chose not to speak, and I stopped asking, silently preparing myself. During this process, an unprecedented clarity emerged in my mind. Some previously overlooked details and forgotten clues gradually emerged from the fog.
Given what we currently knew, there was still a significant doubt.
If the Emperor’s goal was to have the Su family send an assassin to confirm the Fifth Princess and force them to flee, why go to the trouble of having the Tang family design the mechanism? Now it seemed the mechanism, apart from causing a fire, served no other purpose in the plan.
Wait… the fire?
Could the Emperor be using this assassin to destroy the Fifth Princess’s body? That would indeed be killing two birds with one stone.
No, this still didn’t make sense. If the Emperor wanted to destroy the Fifth Princess’s body, he could do so anytime. Unless he was wary of something and didn’t want to destroy the body himself, instead using the assassin to achieve his goal.
There were three things the Emperor might fear: Western Liang, Southern Rui, and the Secret Department.
Western Liang was clearly impossible, and Southern Rui didn’t even know about this. The only remaining option was the Secret Department. Could the Emperor be worried that destroying the Fifth Princess’s body might offend An Jin?
But that didn’t make sense either. Although we secretly sympathized, on the surface, the Fifth Princess had no connection to An Jin. This concern had no basis.
Besides, spending so much time and manpower to have the Tang Sect design these mechanisms seems quite suspicious.
His Majesty the Qi Emperor’s style of doing things is very clear; every decision he makes seeks to achieve the most goals through the simplest method. I have never figured out the answer to this question. The thick fog in my heart has mostly dissipated, leaving only a few blurry spots that still need a crucial wind to completely disperse.
The atmosphere in the An residence has gradually become different from before. Everyone’s face carries an indescribable solemnity, as if a mountain flood is imminent, and everyone is preparing to weather this invisible flood together. Even Yuan Xiang and Xiao Huang seem to sense this atmosphere, no longer causing mischief, but crouching in the courtyard and vigilantly looking around, crying out neurotically at the slightest disturbance.
The old eunuch seems to have noticed it too. With his leg injury just barely healed, he struggles to get out of bed and move around. Although his eye condition has not improved, he has begun practicing adapting to a blind person’s life, seemingly not wanting to burden others because of himself. Probably due to this injury, he has become even thinner, with a yellowish complexion, looking very weak.
Only Que’er still maintains her lively and carefree smile, which gives me some peace of mind.
Compared to the solemnity of the An residence, the atmosphere in my family home is much more cheerful.
Miao Yin has been married for only two months but has already been diagnosed as pregnant, and my parents and elder brother are overjoyed. The previous mother-in-law and daughter-in-law tension has completely disappeared. Now, my mother makes nourishing soup for Miao Yin every day.
My younger sister’s matchmaking has not been going smoothly, which is inevitably discouraging. I took her to the Matchmaker’s Temple to draw a fortune stick, which indicated that the fate is near, but the marriage is still far, and she needs to wait patiently. Frustrated, she pulled Xiao Huang off Yuan Xiang’s head and plucked a few of his hairs.
Not long after, it was the eighth day of the ninth month, my birthday. An Jin took me to Cui Lake, where mandarin ducks nestled together, and the green waves and willows intoxicated the flowing light. I paddled a light boat, with An Jin sitting across from me. An Jin gazed at me deeply, seeming to want to say something but hesitating.
The small boat spun in the middle of the lake. As I paddled, I nervously glanced at An Jin’s face. “Do you have something to tell me?”
An Jin helplessly pointed at the oar in my hand: “A Yao, let me paddle. With the way you’re rowing, we’d take three months to reach the shore.”
I was speechless and had to return the wooden oar to him.
“A Yao,” An Jin paddled with both hands, a smile at the corner of his mouth. “Do you remember what you told me? We’ll have two children in the future, one son and one daughter.”
“Of course I remember.”
He pondered for a moment, then suddenly spoke: “I want to leave for a while to do something. While I’m gone, our family might encounter some troubles.” He paused, seemingly seeking my opinion.
I stared at him and asked, “You will come back, right?”
He smiled brightly. “I will definitely come back. So you must take care of yourself and your family, no matter what happens. When I return, we’ll have two children and live happily ever after.”
I thought for a moment and said seriously, “Then you must come back soon. If you’re late, I’ll marry the young master from the Lin family across the street.”
An Jin’s face darkened, his previous gentle mood instantly vanishing.
“Then the sugar cake seller’s young master.”
“He’s a lecherous man, unreliable.” He frowned and unconsciously threw his hand.
I was stunned. “Zhuo Yi, you’ve thrown our oar.”
