Chapter 8

Candlelight flickered in the "Quiet Observation" study, casting Gu Linzhi's dark figure across the vast map, covering the frozen northern land circled with cinnabar. The air was thick with the smell of blood, ink, the bitterness of herbs, and... the smell of silently burning iron and fire.

Han Zhenshan's hoarse and tearful "General" was like the thunder of the Waking of Insects, exploding in the dead silence, and the echo still lingered among the bookshelves.

Gu Linzhi slowly turned, the candlelight illuminating his profile, hard as stone. He didn't correct Han Zhenshan's address. Deep within his eyes, as deep as a cold pond, beneath the icy layer, raged with rage and a sorrow as heavy as a mountain. He extended his hands, taking the blood-stained hardcover volume and the heavy, broken blade with a solemnity that bordered on a memorial service.

His fingertips brushed against the dark brown blood stains on the rough cover of the book, and touched the jagged, cold cracks on the broken blade. The wind and snow of the north and the dying screams of his comrades seemed to penetrate fourteen years of time and roared in his ears.

Qing Feng gripped the hilt tightly, his arm wound brimming with blood, his teeth clenched, his eyes bloodshot. Mo Ya stood silently in the shadows, his expression stern and piercing with murderous intent.

Gu Linzhi's gaze fell on the abruptly stopped, blood-stained lines of scrawled blood on the title page—"Behind... there is... Xie..." That surname, like a sudden flash of lightning in the darkness, instantly illuminated the poisonous dragon lurking deep within the bloodbath!

"Old General Han," Gu Linzhi's voice was deep, penetrating Han Zhenshan's sorrowful sobs. "Please stand up." He gestured to Qingfeng to help the almost exhausted old general up, his eyes sweeping over his bloodstained old robe. "Take the old general away. Use the best medicine and the most appropriate people to take care of him. The old general's safety is your life."

"Yes!" Qing Feng responded in a hoarse voice, supporting Han Zhenshan, who kept looking back and staring at the blood-written and broken blade with tears in his eyes, and staggered towards the side room.

The study fell silent again. Gu Linzhi paced to the desk and picked up the black iron talisman. His fingertips caressed the cold python relief, then he gently pressed it against the bloodstained copy of "Border Guard Record (Incomplete)." Authority, finally, rested upon the bloody wound.

"Black Crow."

"I'm here." A figure from the shadows slid out silently.

The cold and grim orders, like a drawn sword, slashed into the dark night of Shengjing: seal the files of the three cases, transcribe the key word "unintentional" in blood and send it to the iron-faced censor Feng Zijing, keep an eye on Shen Ziqing in the Death Penalty Prison, intercept and inspect the grain transport boats in Jiangnan, and lock onto the secret box in the Xie Mansion and "Ghost Hand Zhang"...

The candle flame suddenly jumped, and a tiny spark of light burst out. Outside the window, the distant thunder of the Waking of Insects rolled dully across the sky.

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West of Shengjing City, Xie Mansion, Songhezhai.

The night was deep and all was silent. A single lamp lit the study, the light deliberately dimmed. The crisp scent of agarwood couldn't dispel the sinister and heavy air.

Xie Yong sat at his spacious rosewood desk, fiddling with a smooth white jade ring. His gaze, as calm as a deep, ancient well, lay quietly on the desk. The three-tiered, nested, stainless steel box retrieved from the abandoned well in Changlefang lay quietly. Its interior was pitch black and cold, casting an ominous glow under the dim light. Scattered nearby were several strangely shaped tools of exquisite craftsmanship, gleaming with a cold gleam—thin probes as thin as cow hair, blades as thin as a cicada's wing, knobs with intricate scales... the very tools left behind by "Ghost Hand Zhang."

Xie An stood aside, hands lowered, not daring to breathe. He had just recounted in detail the opening of the box by "Ghost Hand Zhang": how the extraordinary man held his breath, how he tested the mechanism with a special potion, how he manipulated those ingenious tools with incredible angles and strength, finally, after nearly two hours, silently dismantling the three nested self-destruct mechanisms. The whole process was incredibly thrilling; even the slightest mistake could have destroyed the box and killed the person.

"What's in the box?" Xie Yong's voice was flat and calm, and no emotion could be heard.

Xie An's throat rolled, and his voice carried a barely perceptible dryness and... disbelief: "My lord, there are no account books or keepsakes in the box, only... a piece of plain paper." He held up a neatly folded piece of plain white paper with slightly worn edges in both hands and carefully placed it on the desk.

Xie Yong's eyes fell on the paper. He stretched out his bony fingers and slowly unfolded it.

There was only one line of words on the paper.

The ink is dripping, the brush tip is as sharp as a knife, and there is a cold murderous intent that can penetrate through the back of the paper and rushes towards you!

"The wind and snow in the north are cold, yet the loyal bones are still unresolved. Fourteen years of blood debt, now is the time to demand repayment!"

The signature was not a name, but a mark outlined in cinnabar, which was extremely simple but revealed an endless sharpness - a broken sword!

"boom--!"

It was as if thunder exploded in Xie Yong's head! His calm eyes suddenly narrowed! The knuckles on his white jade ring turned pale from the instantaneous force! A chill, like the tongue of a venomous snake, instantly shot up his spine and into his head!

The North! Loyal Bones! Blood Debt! Life Demand!

And there is the mark of the broken sword!

All the clues and guesses were like shattered mirrors at this moment, severely struck by the message filled with the bloody smell of revenge, and instantly pieced together an answer that made him shiver and unbelievable!

Gu Linzhi...Gu Linzhi!

He is not after power or to overthrow his political enemies!

He is doing this for... the Jingbei Army!

For the 30,000 souls who died in the wind, snow and "molded food"!

For... revenge!

Xie Yong suddenly closed his eyes. The tragic defeat in the northern border fourteen years ago, the report of the cut-off food supply route, the faint suspicion of military embezzlement in the court that was quickly suppressed... the scene flashed before his eyes like a revolving lantern! Those bloody fragments that he had deliberately forgotten, buried deep in the dust of his memory, were now fiercely revealed by this piece of plain paper!

He should have thought of it earlier! Gu Linzhi rose to prominence after the defeat of the Northern Frontier Army. His methods are brutal and unfathomable, yet he remains completely secretive about the Northern Frontier's past! He promoted Shen Ziqing and thoroughly investigated the floods in Jiangnan... How could all this serve the country and its people? It was clearly using Jiangnan as bait and Shen Ziqing as a line to uncover the true culprit behind the "Jingbei Military Ration" case! And to cover up his involvement in the military rations transfer, that mad dog Shen Ziqing dared to breach the dikes and dams in Jiangnan, handing the evidence to Gu Linzhi!

The Changlefang secret box... wasn't any evidence at all! It was a decoy carefully laid by Gu Linzhi! It was a declaration of war... thrown to Xie Yong!

"Good...good Gu Linzhi! Good...revenge!" Xie Yong's eyes snapped open. The deep calmness in them was no longer there, but now swirling with shock, a fury of being deceived, and a trace of fear, even he himself refused to acknowledge, evoked by the mark of the broken blade...a bloody terror from fourteen years ago! He had painstakingly cultivated the belief that Gu Linzhi was merely a power-hungry political enemy, but he had never imagined that he was actually a lone wolf from the North, lurking for fourteen years, seeking revenge only...!

"Master..." Xie An felt even colder in his heart when he saw Xie Yong's suddenly changed expression.

Xie Yong ignored Xie An. He stared intently at the words and the broken knife mark, his chest heaving violently as he forced himself to suppress his turbulent emotions. Beyond shock and fury, there was a deeper calculation and cold murderous intent. He couldn't let his anger cloud his mind! Gu Linzhi had bared his fangs, revealing his ultimate goal! This game of chess was far from over!

"Chen Bingzhi's sudden death, the assassination of the Prime Minister's residence... Gu Linzhi will never let this go." Xie Yong's voice returned to its usual slow and steady tone, yet it carried a chilling chill. "His next move will undoubtedly be to use the 'old files' thrown out by Chen Bingzhi to stir up even greater disturbances in the court, targeting those who handled military rations back then, and ultimately... me!"

Xie An's heart trembled: "Master, then we..."

"Sacrificing pawns to save the chariot is no longer effective." Xie Yong's fingertips pounded heavily on the desk, making a dull sound. His gaze was like a poisoned ice cone. "If Gu Linzhi wants to open up the old case, I will let him do it! But... what he uncovers may not be the 'truth' he wants!"

He suddenly looked at Xie An, his eyes sharp as a knife: "Do three things immediately!"

"First, we must use our deepest 'nail' in the Ministry of Justice and the Dali Temple to 'sort out' all the files, corpse compartments, and evidence from the Chen Bingzhi's sudden death, the Changlefang sinking case, and the assassination of the Prime Minister's residence... no matter how obvious or hidden! Especially Chen Bingzhi's corpse compartment and the bowl of ginseng soup residue. We must make sure they are 'perfectly linked' to... Gu Linzhi's 'silencing'!"

"Secondly," Xie Yong's lips curled up in a cold and cruel arc, "have the 'Moyuan Guards' go 'visit' the families of Zhang Xian, Li Mao, and others. Tell them what they should and shouldn't say if they want to protect their families. Especially... the 'truth' about the last three batches of military rations in the winter of the eleventh year of Tianyou!"

"Third," Xie Yong's gaze fell back on the plain paper and the broken knife mark on the desk. His tone suddenly turned stern, with a determination to do whatever it takes. "Use all our forces in the palace! Keep a close watch on His Majesty! Especially... after Gu Linzhi's audience, any movements of His Majesty! Any decree! Also, send more people to keep a close eye on Han Zhenshan! We must see him alive, or... dead... dead! We must not let this old man fall into Gu Linzhi's hands again!"

Xie An was horrified! His master was planning... a full-scale counterattack! Not only was he tampering with the files, framing Gu Linzhi and silencing him, he was also trying to coerce the families of the officials implicated in the case into recanting their confessions. He was also closely monitoring the emperor, and even going so far as to kill Han Zhenshan, the key witness! This was a situation of no return!

"Yes! I will do it right away!" Xie An did not dare to hesitate at all. He bowed and responded, then quickly retreated.

Xie Yong was the only one left in the study. He slowly leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, and rubbed his throbbing temples with his fingers. The cold handwriting on the plain paper and the mark of the broken sword were etched into his mind like a brand.

The north is cold and snowy... the loyal bones are still not at peace...

Gu Linzhi... who are you? !

What is your connection with the Jingbei Army...whose bones were buried in the snow and deliberately forgotten by the imperial court?!

A name that had been deliberately ignored and forgotten for a long time suddenly crossed Xie Yong's chaotic thoughts like a ghost.

Gu Han!

Fourteen years ago, the son of Gu Chengyuan, the commander-in-chief of the Jingbei Army! The Major General who was rumored to have disappeared in the chaos, his body completely unresolved! Gu Chengyuan… Gu Linzhi… both had the surname Gu!

Could it be...?!

An absurd yet horrifying thought instantly wrapped around Xie Yong's heart like a poison ivy! He suddenly opened his eyes, his pupils shrinking! If Gu Linzhi was really Gu Han... then these fourteen years of forbearance, this overwhelming hatred, this desperate revenge... everything made sense!

"Someone come here!" Xie Yong's voice carried a barely perceptible hint of urgency and fear.

A gray figure appeared silently at the door.

"Use Shadow, investigate at all costs! Find out everything about Gu Linzhi from the defeat of the Northern Border Army fourteen years ago until his rise to power in Shengjing! Especially... his relationship with Gu Chengyuan, the commander-in-chief of the Jingbei Army! And that Gu Han... I must find him alive, or dead... or his body! No! Even if I have to dig three feet underground, I will find any clues about Gu Han!"

"Yes!" The gray shadow accepted the order and disappeared silently.

Xie Yong slumped in his chair, feeling an unprecedented chill wash over him. If his suspicions were true... then Gu Linzhi was no longer a simple political enemy, but a vengeful ghost returned from hell... a life-seeking ghost!

Inside Songhezhai, the fragrance of agarwood remained as clear as ever, but it could no longer dispel the pervasive scent of blood and murderous intent emanating from the northern border. The thunder had passed, and a true storm was about to sweep across Shengjing!