Chapter 69: Two-line operation, secret room search
The wind from the paddocks outside Beijing carried the scent of withered grass, rustling against people's faces. Xiao Jin, riding a black steed, had just shot down a fleeing hare with his longbow when Yun Zhi's gentle voice came from behind him, "Your Highness, drink some water and rest."
Yun Zhi hurried forward, water bag in hand. Her plain skirt was dusty, but still looked neat and tidy. She tilted her head slightly and passed the bag to Xiao Jin, her fingertips avoiding his touch. Her eyes held just the right amount of respect and shyness—this was the look she had calculated Xiao Jin would like: docile yet respectful.
Xiao Jin took the water bag, tilted his head back, and took a few gulps. His gaze fell on her hair, which was stained with grass dust, and a strange feeling inexplicably stirred in his heart. During the past few days of the spring search, Yun Zhi's performance had been perfect: she would fix his saddle in the morning, handed him warm dry food at noon, and in the evening she would use the herbs she brought with her to treat his blisters caused by riding and shooting. She was quiet and considerate throughout the whole process, without any trace of overstepping the boundaries or showing any of her previous "stubbornness".
"You're more sensible than the maids in the mansion." Xiao Jin handed the water bag back, his tone tinged with a subtle approval. He had originally wanted to test her, but after a few days, he hadn't found any flaws. He felt that she had truly been smoothed over and completely submitted to him.
Yun Zhi lowered her eyes, her fingers gently stroking the straps of the water bag, her voice softening, "It is a blessing for me to serve the prince. But the prince has been riding and shooting for a long time today, I'm afraid he must be tired. Why don't you return to the tent and rest for a while?"
Her deliberate display of "concern" hit the nail on the head when Xiao Jin was thinking at the moment - after several days of hunting, he was indeed a little tired. He turned his horse's head and ordered the guards behind him: "Pass the order, the hunting will be suspended today and continue tomorrow."
Yun Zhi followed Xiao Jin toward the tent. The wind blew her skirt, and she quietly raised her eyes to the dense forest in the distance—where Liu Zhong's men were hiding. When she had handed him the water, she had already sent the secret message, "Everything is going well, proceed according to plan." She knew that at this moment, Xie Heng should have already begun his actions at Prince Duan's Mansion in the capital.
At this moment, the night deepened in Prince Duan's mansion. Xie Heng, clad in a black nightgown, clung to the wall, flitting through the corridors like a shadow. He clutched a brass key—a replica Liu Zhong had crafted overnight, based on Yun Zhi's rubbings. Yun Zhi's plan required him to infiltrate Xiao Jin's study and retrieve the original secret letter from Prime Minister Shen framing the Yun family, as well as the original copy of the fake "collaboration" letter.
The guard outside the study had been drugged by Liu Zhong's men, allowing Xie Heng to sneak into the room without any problems. He walked to the bookshelf and, following the mechanism Yun Zhi had previously discovered, turned the fifth copy of "The Art of War" from the left in the third row. The bookshelf slowly shifted to the side, revealing the entrance to a dark secret room.
Xie Heng lit the tinder he carried with him, and the faint flame illuminated the passageway to the secret room. The walls on either side of the passageway were engraved with intricate patterns. A closer look revealed a hidden crossbow mechanism—stepping on the wrong tile would trigger the mechanism, sending a thousand arrows piercing one's heart.
Xie Heng held his breath and, following the tile layout Yun Zhi had drawn earlier, moved forward step by step. Each step was taken with great care, the light from the tinderbox trembling slightly in his hand, highlighting the cold sweat on his forehead. He knew that if he made a mistake, not only would he die, but Yun Zhi's revenge plan would also be completely ruined.
Finally, he reached the end of the secret room. It wasn't large, with a stone table in the center, piled with several scrolls of documents. There was also a locked iron box in the corner. Xie Heng quickly walked over to the table and picked up the top scroll—it was a letter from Prime Minister Shen to Xiao Jin, falsely accusing Yun Xiao of "secretly communicating with the enemy and plotting rebellion." It also included so-called "evidence"—a fake letter imitating Yun Xiao's handwriting!
"Found it!" Xie Heng's heart began to beat wildly. He carefully put away the fake letter and opened the iron box in the corner - there were more secret letters inside, all of which were correspondence between Prime Minister Shen and Xiao Jin. One of them actually recorded in detail how they bribed the Yun family's housekeeper, forged the deployment map, and how they let Shen Qingyue pretend to approach Yun Xiao and steal military secrets!
Xie Heng's hands were shaking with excitement. He put away the secret letters one by one and was about to turn around and leave when he accidentally touched a copper paperweight on the stone table.
With a light "click" sound, there was a sudden movement in the wall of the secret room. The crossbow mechanisms on both sides of the passage were instantly activated, and the sound of arrows breaking through the air was particularly harsh in the secret room!
"Not good!" Xie Heng's face suddenly changed, and he immediately threw himself to the corner, dodging the incoming crossbow bolt. The tinderbox fell to the ground, knocked over by the arrow, and the secret room was instantly plunged into darkness.
The crossbow continued to fire. Xie Heng leaned against the wall, holding his breath, and groped for the direction of the passage in the darkness. He knew he had to leave here as soon as possible, otherwise if the guards were alerted, not only would he be unable to leave, but the evidence he had worked so hard to find would also be destroyed!
At that moment, inside the tent in the enclosure, Yun Zhi was treating Xiao Jin's hand wound—a wound he'd accidentally rubbed against the bowstring during his daytime archery practice. She dipped a cotton swab in herbal juice and gently applied it to the wound, her movements as gentle as if she were protecting a treasure.
"Your Highness, the wound will scab over tomorrow, but you can't pull the bow hard in the next few days." Yun Zhi's voice was filled with concern, but her eyes were devoid of warmth.
Xiao Jin looked at her lowered head, feeling a growing sense of strangeness. He suddenly reached out, grasped her chin, and forced her to look up. "Why have you been so submissive to me these past few days? Have you truly figured it out, or... do you have some other motive?"
Yun Zhi's heart skipped a beat, and she immediately put on a panicked expression, tears welling up in her eyes. "Your Highness... I simply wish to serve you well, with no other motives... I know my status is humble, and I dare not ask for anything. I only beg Your Highness to let me stay by your side, even if it's just to serve as a servant..."
Her tears fell on the back of Xiao Jin's hand, and the warm touch instantly dispelled Xiao Jin's doubts. He let go of her hand, and his tone softened: "Forget it, I know you have no other thoughts. Serve me well, and I will not treat you unfairly."
Yun Zhi quickly wiped away her tears and bowed, "Thank you, Your Highness, for your grace." She lowered her head, hiding the cold light in her eyes. "Xiao Jin, you were fooled by my disguise after all. When Xie Heng gets the evidence, and I make everything public, you'll know how ridiculous your trust today was."
At this moment, in the palace's secret room, Xie Heng finally found the entrance. He dodged the last round of crossbow bolts and stumbled out of the room. Just as he was about to close the bookshelf, he heard hurried footsteps outside—it was Shen Qingyue's people! They had been alarmed!
Xie Heng's heart instantly rose to his throat. He knew it was too late to leave through the main entrance. He looked toward the back window of the study, gritted his teeth, and leaped out. Outside the window was the palace's back garden. The night was thick, and he disappeared like a shadow among the flowers.
But he didn't know that the tinder he had just dropped was picked up by a patrolling guard. The guard took the tinder and quickly ran to Shen Qingyue's courtyard, saying in a hurried voice: "Miss! There is movement in the study's secret room, someone has sneaked in!"
Shen Qingyue was sitting at her dressing table. Upon hearing this, the comb in her hand dropped to the ground with a "clack". She stood up suddenly, her eyes filled with panic and cruelty: "Quick! Seal off all exits of the palace and conduct a thorough search! We must catch him and never let him take anything from the secret room away!"
A thrilling search quietly unfolded in Prince Duan's mansion. Xie Heng, armed with evidence that could subvert the Shen family, fended off the guards in the mansion's back garden. He knew he had to deliver the evidence quickly, or else, not only would he die, but Yun Zhi's revenge plan would also be thwarted.
The wind still blew in the enclosure. Yun Zhi stood outside the tent, gazing towards the capital, her heart filled with worry. She didn't know whether Xie Heng had successfully obtained the evidence, nor did she know what the situation was like at the palace. She could only pray in her heart, praying for Xie Heng's safety, and praying for the plan to go smoothly—this was her only chance for revenge, and she couldn't lose.
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