Aside from the one sect member who was killed by Fang Linyuan at the start, there were a total of twenty-four people present, all of whom were captured alive.

The surrounding soldiers quickly tied them up on the spot, waiting for reinforcements to arrive and take them away.

However, the official who was rescued tried to sneak away and, when discovered by the soldiers, even picked up a nearby knife to attempt suicide. Seeing this, Fang Linyuan sensed something was off and immediately ordered that he be tied up as well, with his mouth securely gagged to prevent him from biting his tongue.

Originally, Sun Bai, whom Fang Linyuan had captured, should have received the same treatment. However, Fang Linyuan noticed that Sun Bai had no intention of seeking death and was instead cursing relentlessly, all his insults aimed at the corrupt official Feng Hanxue.

After listening to Sun Bai’s curses for a while, Fang Linyuan began to understand. The "dog official" Sun Bai was referring to was none other than the official tied up like a dumpling beside them.

Sun Bai accused the official of embezzling sixty percent of the disaster relief grain meant for Jiangnan, making him the chief culprit behind the widespread starvation in Suzhou. He recounted how, during the post-disaster winter when water turned to ice, the rice and flour they brought home were mixed with sand and stones.

“If it weren’t for these corrupt officials, how could all eight members of my family have starved to death this winter!” Sun Bai shouted.

As Fang Linyuan sat nearby, repeatedly examining the throwing dart in his hand, he paused slightly upon hearing this.

Then he looked up and asked, “Are you certain that he’s the one who embezzled the grain?”

Sun Bai spat in response. “You’re just trying to cover for him.”

Fang Linyuan remained unmoved. “If you’re sure, then you need to provide evidence, so the court can deal with him.”

Sun Bai merely sneered at Fang Linyuan. “You’re all the same, Birds of a feather flock together (NT: people with similar traits or interests often form groups). You think you’re any better?”

The surrounding soldiers began to grow restless.

“Watch your mouth!”

But Fang Linyuan simply continued to gaze at him calmly.

“I’m certainly not a good person,” he said. “But you talk about the lives of your eight family members—does that mean the lives of this farm family don’t count?”

Sun Bai’s eyes flickered slightly.

Earlier, when Fang Linyuan searched the place, he had found the entire family hiding in the cellar. The cellar was poorly ventilated, and the people inside had been beaten and stabbed. Even though they were rescued hastily, only three of them survived.

The others had already been laid out in the courtyard, covered with cloth taken from the house. The three who were saved were now huddled nearby, clutching the dry food Fang Linyuan had given them.

Seeing Sun Bai avert his gaze, Fang Linyuan continued to watch him quietly and then said, “You wanted to be a hero who rises up with a sword, but before you could even achieve anything, people have already died because of you.”

Sun Bai turned to look at him.

His gaze was as sharp as a blade, filled with a hatred so intense it seemed he wished to tear Fang Linyuan apart. But Fang Linyuan met his eyes, calm and unflinching.

"Your loyal followers, those disciples marked with lotus tattoos, will all die with you."

Sun Bai's eyes began to redden, and his stare at Fang Linyuan grew even more venomous.

He truly wasn't a good man. His entire family of eight starved to death, and he only survived by trading the flesh of his wife and children for food during the harsh winter.

When he rose in rebellion, it was the suffering people of Jiangnan who responded to his call. He knew they followed him with sincere hearts, but he was also aware of the wickedness and frailty of human nature.

Such desperate people could be easily bought with a single bun.

So, while their blood was still hot, he had them mark their bodies with a prominent tattoo, leaving them no way to turn back.

Even just now, when Fang Linyuan's sword was aimed at him, he pulled in front of himself a brother who had fought alongside him, who had once shared a hard, stale biscuit with him to survive, using him as a shield against the blade.

He truly wasn't a good man.

Yet Sun Bai's eyes turned red, and he gave Fang Linyuan a fierce, bitter smile.

"Yes, I got them killed, but without me, would they have survived?" he said.

"How many starved to death in Jiangnan? Corpses piled up outside the city, causing plague, but so what? In one night, they were all dumped into the Suzhou River and washed away. To people like you, we are nothing more than livestock, pigs, and dogs. You can crush a thousand of us underfoot without a second thought, and now you come to accuse me of stepping on others to survive."

Sun Bai stared at him, almost laughing.

"So tell me, how should someone like me behave? If I don't trample others to live, am I supposed to just sit and wait for death?"

Fang Linyuan quietly regarded him.

After a moment, he spoke, "That's why I'm asking you, do you have any evidence of his embezzlement?"

Sun Bai remained silent, staring at him.

"You still have one chance to be a hero, to ensure those people didn't die in vain. The instigator deserves to be executed, and as for the lives you've taken, you'll have to atone for them."

With that, he turned to the trembling Feng Hanxue and said, "Everyone should repay their own debts, don't you agree?"

A long silence followed, so long that Sun Bai began to shiver like a leaf. Finally, Fang Linyuan heard Sun Bai's voice.

"Can you promise they'll be punished?" Sun Bai asked through gritted teeth, nodding angrily toward Feng Hanxue. "All of them?"

Fang Linyuan looked at him.

"I can't promise that. All I can guarantee is that if you tell the truth, and hold nothing back, I'll do everything in my power to seek justice."

Sun Bai stared at Fang Linyuan for a moment, then turned to look at Feng Hanxue, a grin spreading across his face.

He knew he wouldn't survive. Once he set foot on this path, he was destined to fight his way through blood and fire.

Unless he was the last one standing, he was already a dead man walking.

As he laughed, tears began to fall, and his expression became grim.

He spoke in Suzhou dialect, which Fang Linyuan could barely make out, but not clearly.

"Die together? That's fine with me," he seemed to say. "I'll go to hell with them."

*

Fang Linyuan's emotions were complex, weighed down by the gravity of the situation, even though he had witnessed countless deaths.

He knew Sun Bai wasn't a good man; a virtuous person could never become a tyrant.

But some people's wickedness is born from desperation. These common folks seemed destined to drift along with the tide, too weak to change their fate. In the face of injustice, picking up a weapon or not both led to a dead end.

Who wouldn't want to live a peaceful life?

Even Sun Bai once had the chance to be an honest, prosperous farmer in a time of peace and prosperity.

But when dark clouds cover the sun, no one can meet a good end.

At that moment, the sound of horses’ hooves echoed from afar. Looking up, Fang Linyuan saw the flicker of torches, like stars spreading across the sky.

He had already made up his mind.

The case in Jiangnan was bound to involve many people, and he needed to find a way to gain the emperor's permission to participate in the investigation.

He knew it would be difficult, but he felt there needed to be an answer—

Not just for the wrongfully dead in front of him and in his ears, but also for himself.

He couldn't close his eyes to the cries of the suffering.

The torches drew closer, and as Fang Linyuan looked up, he saw dozens of sleek black horses. The riders weren’t dressed as brocade guards, but wore dark green round-collared robes that, in the firelight, resembled snakes slithering out of a dense forest.

The Eastern Depot?

Fang Linyuan was slightly taken aback. He looked up and saw a stranger leading the group.

The man appeared to be in his thirties or forties, with a pale, beardless face and slanted eyes that exuded a sinister charm. Even as he rode, his posture was straight and proud. When his horse came to a slow halt, he looked down at everyone with an air of superiority, like a crane with soft feathers but sharp talons.

Why wasn't it Lin Zizhuo?

Fang Linyuan's expression grew wary, and then he saw the man dismount gracefully. Before greeting him, the man took his time to straighten his robes.

"This servant is Shi Shen, Chief of the Eastern Depot, here to pay respects to General Fang."

Shi Shen—one of Zhao Chu's men!

Fang Linyuan was momentarily stunned, his eyes widening slightly. He looked at Shi Shen, who straightened up with elegant composure, smiling faintly with an inscrutable expression.

"Lord Lin of the brocade guard is occupied with urgent matters, so His Majesty has specially ordered me to assist General Fang in taking these rebels into custody in the Eastern Depot’s dungeon," Shi Shen said.

Fang Linyuan's first instinct was to glance around. The night was vast and dark, with only the small courtyard behind him illuminated, like the closest star in the boundless sky.

Of course, what was he thinking? There was no way Zhao Chu would be here.

Realizing that the person in front of him was Zhao Qian's man, Fang Linyuan finally felt some relief. He nodded toward Shi Shen, then noticed Shi Shen turn his head and give a subtle glance to the two officials nearby.

The two officials immediately grabbed the trembling Feng Hanxue. Though he was a court official rescued from the rebels, under the Eastern Depot’s control, he was treated even worse than the rebels. The officials roughly shoved the cloth back into his mouth, ensuring he couldn’t bite his tongue.

Fang Linyuan turned to look at Shi Shen and saw a faint smile in his tilted eyes as he nodded slightly.

"His Majesty has decreed that this case be fully entrusted to the Eastern Depot. General, you may return home and rest. Once the case is resolved, His Majesty will summon you." Shi Shen's tone was calm and assured. "You can trust the Eastern Depot to handle this matter."

Even though Shi Shen said nothing more, Fang Linyuan clearly understood the underlying message.

Zhao Chu must have already been aware of the deeper connections in the Shenglian Sect case. Sending someone here today was specifically to deal with Feng Hanxue.

What was there to worry about now? With Zhao Chu, that cunning old fox, keeping an eye on him, Feng Hanxue would do well to start reciting prayers for the dead in the Eastern Depot’s dungeon.

Fang Linyuan smiled knowingly and nodded to Shi Shen. "I'll leave it to you then, Master Shi."

Nearby, the Eastern Depot’s officials were already rounding up the members of the Shenglian Sect scattered around the courtyard. Most of them had been shot in the legs and couldn’t move, so they were constrained and loaded onto the prison carts.

"Then I shall take my leave," Shi Shen said slowly, bowing to Fang Linyuan.

Fang Linyuan returned the bow.

As he watched the Eastern Depot members mount their horses and the prison carts begin to move, Fang Linyuan turned to look at Sun Bai in one of the carts. He reminded him, "Don’t forget what I said. Speak the truth, and justice will be served for the people of Jiangnan."

While focused on Sun Bai’s reaction, Fang Linyuan didn’t notice Shi Shen, who had just mounted his horse, bowing slightly in the direction of some distant point in the night.

The proud and shadowy collaborator would only show such a gesture when facing his master.

*

The pigeons from the Eastern Depot arrived at Huaiyu Pavilion fifteen minutes before Fang Linyuan.

The Eastern Depot could extract secrets from even the dead, let alone from someone full of hatred like Sun Bai or someone as cowardly as Feng Hanxue. With these two safely locked in the Eastern Depot’s dungeon, it wouldn’t take a night before they confessed everything, pointing directly to the Jiangnan faction's officials in the capital.

As for material evidence...

Any flow of silver leaves traces, and Zhao Chu had long been prepared. The financial transactions, expenditures, and various private enterprises of the implicated individuals had already been under the Eastern Depot's surveillance.

The advantage of Emperor Hongyou's reliance on the Eastern Depot was now evident. After all, the idle personnel of the Eastern Depot, still maintained by Emperor Hongyou, had ample time to handle matters for Zhao Qian.

Zhao Chu placed the note into the flickering flame of a silver candle. As the fire danced, he heard a voice from outside: "The Marquis has arrived."

The last bit of ash fell onto the redwood table, and Zhao Chu gently brushed his sleeve over it, scattering it completely.

Fang Linyuan's footsteps followed.

Zhao Chu's sleeve settled as well.

As the soft silk flew, the flickering candlelight briefly illuminated his hand, revealing a faint red mark on his palm and a slender cut on his fingertip, likely from a sharp object.

It looked like he had accidentally cut himself while urgently throwing a hidden weapon.

But in an instant, the soft red silk sleeve was pressed down by his other hand, covering the mark completely.

*

By the time Fang Linyuan returned home, it was already the latter half of the night.

The lights in Huaiyu Pavilion were still burning.

Indeed, it made sense. Being able to promptly send Shi Shen to apprehend people tonight indicated that Zhao Chu had no intention of resting either. Thinking of Sun Bai's furious accusations and Feng Hanxue's terror-driven desire for death, Fang Linyuan didn’t hesitate and walked straight into Huaiyu Pavilion.

The maidservants guarding the entrance were dozing off, but upon seeing Fang Linyuan, they quickly rose to greet him.

Fang Linyuan just shook his head and said, "No need, I'll go in myself. You can rest."

The maid quickly went inside to announce his arrival. She didn’t leave until she had pushed open the door and ushered him in, then closed the door behind him.

As soon as he entered the bedroom, Fang Linyuan saw Zhao Chu sitting on the soft couch.

His hair was draped over his shoulders, and he wore a red silk robe over his nightclothes, sitting calmly under the lamp while flipping through a book. While the city outside was sleepless, with the Eastern Depot’s prison carts rumbling through the capital's streets and even the citizens peeking out their windows to witness the commotion, Zhao Chu alone remained serene, as if nothing had happened.

Yet, this calmest person was the one controlling the situation.

Fang Linyuan couldn’t help but admire Zhao Chu. He sat down opposite him and asked, "Did you already know that the people from the Sacred Lotus Sect were hiding outside the city?"

Zhao Chu set down the book, and without responding right away, he first picked up an empty jade cup from the side.

As he poured tea into the cup, he replied, "How do you know?"

"Shi Shen was the one who came out of the city earlier, so I guessed you sent him," Fang Linyuan said. "For him to arrive so promptly, you must have been prepared in advance."

Zhao Chu placed the jade cup in front of Fang Linyuan and said, "Not exactly."

After all, the incident tonight did catch him somewhat off guard.

Fang Linyuan nodded at this and took the cup. "Then, is what Sun Bai said about the Suzhou Prefect Feng Hanxue embezzling disaster relief funds true?"

The tea in the cup was warm to the touch, neither too hot nor too cold, as if it had been prepared in anticipation of his arrival. Fang Linyuan downed the tea in one gulp and then heard Zhao Chu say, "He's just a pawn."

Fang Linyuan couldn't help but ask, "Is this matter far-reaching?"

Zhao Chu looked at him without immediately answering.

But Fang Linyuan could figure it out on his own. He nodded, deep in thought, and said, "The amount of money for disaster relief is no small sum. If he took it, it was probably to buy his way to a higher position."

Zhao Chu let out a soft hum of agreement.

Fang Linyuan's expression grew even more serious.

"I know that nothing is ever completely clean, but for them to embezzle so blatantly—are they really not afraid of being exposed?" he said. "It's fortunate that the Sacred Lotus Sect captured Feng Hanxue and even brought him all the way to the capital. Otherwise, if this case were quietly buried, it would only be seen as a rebellion by a group of traitors. How would we ever uncover the people behind Feng Hanxue?"

At this point, Fang Linyuan paused slightly.

He recalled today's conversation with Sun Bai, who mentioned that people in the capital were trying to buy Feng Hanxue's life with money. Their journey to the capital was specifically to deliver Feng Hanxue.

Fang Linyuan froze for a moment, then turned to Zhao Qian, probing, "Could it be that the Sacred Lotus Sect's arrival in the capital was also orchestrated by you?"

Zhao Chu paused.

Before he could respond, Fang Linyuan saw the look on his face and immediately, his eyes lit up.

For the first time, he looked at Zhao Chu with such an expression.

"Could it be that everything was part of your plan?" Fang Linyuan leaned over the redwood table between them, his body tilting forward, almost entirely over Zhao Chu.

Under Fang Linyuan's gaze, Zhao Chu uncomfortably averted his eyes.

"Sit properly," he said. "Be careful not to fall."

But Fang Linyuan couldn’t be bothered with that. "From Sun Bai's escape with Feng Hanxue, was this all part of your scheme? It makes sense. If today’s events weren’t under your control, how could Shi Shen have arrived so quickly?"

At this, Fang Linyuan suddenly thought of something and paused. "Ah, did I disrupt your plan by acting impulsively today?"

But Zhao Qian, sitting upright with his gaze lowered, responded in a tone softened by the night.

"No, you did very well today," he said.

"You don’t have to comfort me," Fang Linyuan replied. "I really had no idea about the truth..."

"I'm not comforting you," Zhao Chu said. "Even without knowing, didn’t you still hand them over to the Eastern Depot unharmed?"

Fang Linyuan noticed that Zhao Chu finally raised his eyes to look at him.

"Even in the capital, they might still face the risk of being silenced. If you hadn't taken action, I would have had to make further plans to ensure they were sent to the Eastern Depot's prison," Zhao Chu said.

Fang Linyuan blinked, feeling a bit embarrassed for the first time by Zhao Qian's praise.

He gave Zhao Chu a sheepish smile.

Zhao Qian’s throat rolled lightly.

In front of him, Fang Linyuan looked relaxed and smiling. Yet, in his mind, he could still hear Wu Xinghai's anguished voice from earlier when he had risen from his bed and taken out his night gear.

"Your Highness, how can you be hindered by emotions after carefully planning every step until now?"

Emotions? Zhao Chu didn’t know what emotions were. They were invisible and intangible. All he knew at that moment was that he couldn't let Fang Linyuan lose his life.

For that reason, he had usually carried only three concealed darts in his sleeve, but today he had brought five. He had even injured himself while shooting down arrows aimed at Fang Linyuan.

What was it all for? He had never felt such fear for others' lives before.

But now, looking into Fang Linyuan's bright, calm eyes, illuminated by the lamp, Zhao Chu seemed to find the answer.

Actually, there wasn’t much of a reason.

"Your Highness, why is the Marquis of Anping so important to you?"

Why ask for an answer? Knowing that Fang Linyuan was important was enough.

Even though this important person was as scorching as the sun beside him, any closer and he would melt Zhao Chu's bones and blood, making his heart race and swell, blocking his throat.

It was indeed very hot.

Zhao Chu slightly raised his hand and, amid the pounding of his heart, tapped Fang Linyuan’s shoulder, just half a foot away from him, and said softly, "Sit properly."

"Oh…" Fang Linyuan complied and sat back down, muttering, "I’m steady. I won’t fall."

It wasn't that he repeatedly worried about Fang Linyuan overturning the table; it was that a small sun close to him would quickly burn him to the core.

Zhao Chu didn’t respond. He picked up the cup from the table and took a couple of sips.

But the cup was already empty; only his throat rolled twice under the cover of the jade cup.

He wasn’t sure what he was using to quench his thirst.

 

--

The author has something to say:

Zhao Chu: He’s so close, it’s burning...

Fang Linyuan (concerned): Drink less tea at night, you might not be able to sleep.

 

Translator : DarNan