Chapter 60
The night was as dark as ink, and Shen Yanzhi's figure blended into it, as if he had never appeared.
The huge waves of shock in his heart slowly settled on the way back to the study, turning into a bottomless cold pool.
He was wrong, so wrong.
He thought he was a high-ranking chess player, overlooking the disturbance in the inner courtyard of the palace and able to decide life and death with a flick of his hand.
But it was not until tonight, when he pierced through the thin layer of window paper, that he realized that he and everyone in the mansion might just be pieces on someone else's chessboard.
And the woman who was pushed into a desperate situation by him and thought to be a discarded piece was the chess player who truly understood the overall situation.
"Draining the firewood from under the cauldron, killing with a borrowed knife, a self-torture trick..."
Song Qingyuan's cold and mocking muttering to himself is still ringing in my ears.
Every word was like a slap in the face, burning him.
The house arrest order he issued became her umbrella of protection; the rumors of his "serious illness" that spread throughout the house became the smoke that she used to confuse her opponents; even his own anger and suspicion became the east wind that she could use in her plan.
An unprecedented sense of frustration surged into my heart, but following closely on the heels of it was an even stronger, almost thrilling excitement.
He had never seen such a woman before. She was in a cage, but she could turn the cage into the strongest fortress and wait calmly for the prey to knock on the door.
"Someone come here." He returned to the study, his voice calm, without any trace of emotion.
A dark figure appeared behind him like a ghost and knelt on one knee: "Prince."
"Lin Feng, go check three things." Shen Yanzhi didn't look back, his eyes fixed on the bowl of cold ginseng soup on the desk, "First, the details of everyone around Wen Yue, especially those newly promoted after she entered the mansion. Find out their families and pasts, and don't let a single detail go unpunished.
Second, thoroughly investigate all spice shops in Beijing, especially those that can get the cassia bark, and find out who has purchased it in large quantities in the past six months.
Thirdly," he paused and lowered his voice even more, "go to the woodshed and secretly transfer Caiwei to the villa outside the city, and find the best doctor to treat her.
Remember, you have to do it secretly, and leave a condemned prisoner with a similar figure in the woodshed."
"Your Highness, what about Caiwei's confession..." Lin Feng hesitated. That confession was the cornerstone of this case. If it was overturned, the entire case would have to be re-opened.
"That confession is for those who should see it." Shen Yanzhi's fingertips tapped lightly on the cold rosewood table, making a clattering sound, as if sounding the prelude to an upcoming drama. "Since she wants this king to see this flawless confession, this king will let her see it.
You just need to tell Caiwei that her master is fine, and let her rest and recover without worrying or saying anything."
"I understand." Lin Feng accepted the order and his figure disappeared into the darkness again.
Silence returned to the study. Shen Yanzhi walked to the window and looked toward Hibiscus Garden. The bright moon in the night sky was cold and lonely, just like the woman holding her lover under the lamp.
He suddenly wanted to know where her next move would be.
At this moment, in Hibiscus Garden, Song Qingyuan had just finished playing chess with herself. She put the chess pieces back into the box one by one, her movements neither hurried nor slow.
"Master, are you...really sure?" Xiao Tao walked in with a bowl of almost untouched bird's nest porridge, her face full of worry.
In the past few days, she followed Song Qingyuan's instructions and acted out the scene of her master being "seriously ill and dying" to the fullest, but the more realistic it was, the more panicked she felt.
"Xiaotao, do you know what is the most important thing in playing chess?" Song Qingyuan did not answer directly, but asked an irrelevant question.
Xiaotao shook her head blankly.
"It's calculating the route."
Song Qingyuan placed the last chess piece into the box and closed the lid. "When masters play chess, they often calculate the changes in the next ten or even dozens of moves before making a move.
You have to not only calculate your own moves, but also how your opponent will move, and how you will respond after he makes this move."
She looked up at Xiao Tao with a hint of a smile in her eyes: "Spreading the news of my serious illness is the first step. What will my opponent do when he sees me like this?"
Xiao Tao thought for a moment and said uncertainly, "...will they think you're dying and let down their guard?"
"That's half right." Song Qingyuan nodded approvingly, "She will let down her guard, but that alone is not enough.
A dying person, before dying, always feels a little unwilling to accept his fate, always wanting to drag someone down with him, or to leave behind something that can redress his past, right?"
Xiao Tao was confused, but still nodded vigorously.
"So," Song Qingyuan took out an ordinary silver hairpin from a secret compartment in the dressing table. The hairpin had a small orchid carved on the head. "Tomorrow morning, take this and go find a way to see Madam Wen."
"To see Madam Wen?" Xiao Tao was startled. "Master, she is..."
"I know who she is." Song Qingyuan put the silver hairpin into Xiaotao's hand, held her cold hand, and whispered, "You don't have to say anything. When you see her, give her this hairpin and then cry. The more sadly you cry, the better.
If she asks you what this means, tell her that this is my personal hairpin. I know my time is running out, and I only ask her to say a few good words to the prince, so that after my death I can have a thin coffin and keep my body intact. If she asks anything else, just say you know nothing and just run back crying.
"Master, this... isn't this begging for mercy from her?" Xiao Tao was anxious.
"Yes and no." Song Qingyuan's smile hid a hint of cunning. "This is a risky move, but also a brilliant one. Just do as I say. Remember, your fear and tears are your best weapons. Go ahead, act well, and we can all survive."
Xiao Tao held the cold silver hairpin in her pocket, her heart in turmoil, but looking at her master's eyes as calm as water, she felt an inexplicable courage for some reason.
The next morning, Wen Yue was in his own yard, listening to the servants report the latest "miserable situation" in Furong Garden, with a smug smile on his face.
"I heard he was coughing up blood for half the night last night. The porridge I sent this morning was brought back untouched?"
"Yes, aunt. I heard that the small kitchen in Furong Garden is about to go out of business. I'm afraid that the Song family will not survive this winter." A maid smiled flatteringly.
Wen Yue contentedly picked up the scissors, snipped off a chrysanthemum in full bloom, and held it to her nose, sniffing gently. "What a shame! She's also a beauty, why are you so stubborn and insist on competing with me?"
At this moment, a little maid ran in in a panic, "Auntie, Xiao Tao from Furong Garden is outside asking to see you, crying like a tearful person, saying that she has something important to hand over to you personally."
Wen Yue's eyes rolled, and she understood. Was she... unable to hold on any longer and begging for mercy? She waved her hand, "Let her in."
When Xiao Tao was brought in, her whole body was shaking like a fallen leaf in the autumn wind. When she saw Wen Yue, she fell to her knees with a thud. She couldn't utter a word, but just kowtowed continuously and raised the silver hairpin in her hand high above her head.
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