Chapter 36: Burning

“Yesterday, Prince Su said, ‘No matter what I want to do, as long as it doesn’t block the way.’”

Zhao Yan looked at Wen Renlin’s thick eyelashes, and gently said, “I don’t know what Prince Su wants, but what I seek has never been about imperial power, just self-preservation. Since there’s no conflict of interest, why be so harsh on me?”

Wen Renlin chuckled at Zhao Yan’s choice of words, and gazed at the red moon painted on the fan, “Does Your Highness really think that I only seek power and status?”

Realizing what he had said, Wen Renlin paused slightly. He wasn’t usually so lax in his determination. Had he been too indulgent with the little princess lately?

Wen Renlin slowly closed the fan, and the smile in his dim eyes faded a bit, “Your Highness doesn’t need to bother with these words; I’m not buying it.”

Seeing his resistance, Zhao Yan opened her mouth but then closed it again.

“Whatever I say, Prince Su won’t be satisfied. I barely slept last night and came down the mountain in the heat to give you this fan, hoping to lighten your mood, but instead, I was unjustly scolded.”

Frowning, Zhao Yan picked up the veil hat from the table and put it on firmly. “I’m leaving.”

Wen Renlin looked at the glaring sunlight outside and said, “Stop.”

Ignoring him, Zhao Yan walked away, but her arm was suddenly grabbed.

Wen Renlin slowly lowered his gaze and pulled her back in front of him. “It’s okay for you to scheme, but don’t let me see it. Your Highness, why are your words so sharp and unreasonable?”

As he spoke, he pointed meaningfully at his own shoulder with the fan, causing the jade pendant on it to make a crisp sound.

Zhao Yan couldn’t help but recall the two bite marks on his shoulder when they were entangled in the pool, feeling a flush on her cheeks.

“Wasn’t Prince Su initially interested in sparing my life because I’m so different from my brother?” Zhao Yan realized that lying to someone like Wen Renlin wasn’t wise, so she stopped hiding her intentions and turned away, saying, “In any case, this is just my temperament. If others harm me repeatedly, I will bite back.”

Wiping off the lipstick, the tiny broken skin on her lower lip became more noticeable.

Wen Renlin remembered last night in the pool, when the little princess’s black hair floated like clouds, forced to open her lips and unable to resist punching his shoulder.

With the darkness in his heart dissipating, Wen Renlin leaned down, pressing the fan against her lips, and asked softly, “Then why didn’t you bite back last night?”

Zhao Yan did feel the urge, but she wasn’t about to jump into a pit just because he provoked her. Calmly, she replied, “If I had bitten back, how could I be sure Prince Su wouldn’t make things difficult for me?”

Wen Renlin showed a faint, surprised expression. “Little Princess is getting smarter.”

Zhao Yan replied softly, “To live up to expectations, I must sharpen my teeth even more…”

Wen Renlin nodded slightly, as if he could see through her thoughts, smiling, “I’ll clean up a bit, then offer myself up for punishment.”

Zhao Yan was taken aback, seeing a hint of suspicion in his eyes.

This time, Wen Renlin was truly in a good mood, with a hint of joy in the corners of his eyes and mouth. He instructed outside the door, “Prepare some food in the kitchen for Her Highness to sharpen her teeth.”

Lunch was still light, but Zhao Yan had a bowl of sweet and refreshing sour plum soup by her side. After lunch, as the sun began to slant, Wen Renlin personally escorted Zhao Yan back to the Yuquan Palace.

The carriage passed through a road shaded by greenery, accompanied by the sound of cicadas. The white sunlight gradually turned into a beautiful golden color, casting a veil of light through the trees in the mountains.

Seeing Wen Renlin resting his elbow against his forehead, Zhao Yan couldn’t help but ask, “Does Prince Su dislike eating meat and spicy food?”

Seeing Wen Renlin slowly open his eyelashes, she continued, propping up her chin, “This isn’t just flattery. I just want to understand Prince Su better so I can make fewer mistakes in the future and avoid not knowing how I died.”

Wen Renlin avoided answering directly, instead pointing at the folding fan on his knee, “As long as Your Highness behaves, you won’t die.”

The carriage stopped at the right moment, and they arrived at the Yuquan Palace.

Zhao Yan reached for the veil hat on the table, but Wen Renlin took it first. He gently placed the veil hat on Zhao Yan’s head, then leaned down slightly, his long fingers skillfully tying the straps, displaying extreme elegance.

Forced to lift her chin, Zhao Yan looked at Wen Renlin’s calm and handsome face up close.

“Do you remember the things I told you in the courtyard?” he asked.

His cool fingertips occasionally brushed against her chin. Zhao Yan cleared her throat and whispered, “I remember.”

“Good. If you behave, I’ll be willing to indulge you,” he said.

Wen Renlin adjusted the angle of the veil hat and smoothed the veil carefully.

Through the veil, his face was blurry and indistinct, but his deep voice came through clearly, “Otherwise, even if Your Highness begs with tears, I will never intervene.”

Zhao Yan, assisted by the Liu Ying, got off the carriage and returned to the Guanyun Hall. She sat for a long time in the twilight shining through the windows before slowly coming back to herself. When she opened her eyes again, her gaze was clear. She picked up a brush and inked the details from the register and deeds.

At the hour of the dog, the splendid lights of the Yuquan Palace adorned the mountains, resembling a fairyland.

In the Listening hall, Liu Ji looked surprised at the freshly inked register in front of her and asked, “Where did you get this? It’s more detailed than what’s recorded by the government.”

Zhao Yan gently shook the paper fan and paused before saying, “You don’t need to know that. I’ve already instructed Gu Xing to investigate the buyer of the deed. But there’s something off about this register. Please take a look.”

“All the missing people are listed here?”

“Most of them, I’d say. With limited time, I only remembered this much.”

Liu Ji carefully scanned through the list and then furrowed her bold brows, “The days these children and young girls went missing are peculiar.”

As she spoke, she hopped on one leg to grab a red brush, then sat back beside the table and circled a few dates for Zhao Yan to see, “Every time there’s a surge in disappearances, it’s either at the beginning or the end of the month, while the mid-months are calm… Don’t you find that strange, Your Highness?”

Zhao Yan’s fanning slowed down as she pondered, “Unless something special happens around the mid-months, preventing them from committing crimes.”

Yes, according to the intelligence Gu Xing had gathered from his surveillance, it seemed that young Prince Yong would slip out of the city quietly around the time of the mid-months and return after several days.

There must be a connection between these two events.

“Do they abide by the lunar calendar for their abductions, avoiding activities during the mid-months?” she wondered aloud.

Realizing something, Liu Ji bounced into the inner room and rummaged through the cabinets, coming out with a half-old, yellowed book.

Zhao Yan helped her up, curious. “What book is this?”

“The ‘Record of Yin and Yang Harmony’.”

Seeing Zhao Yan’s confusion, Liu Ji, for once, felt a bit awkward. She cleared her throat with a light cough, “It’s… about **.”

Zhao Yan was stunned, then slowly widened her eyes.

“Why would you bring such a book to the Yuquan Palace?”

“It was given to me by one of the maids before… Well, I also have an interest in studying it.”

Liu Ji admitted openly, rubbing her slightly reddened earlobes. “This book says that during the mid-months, men’s yang energy is at its peak. If a couple wants to conceive, those days are suitable for intercourse…”

Seeing Zhao Yan leaning in, Liu Ji hastily closed the small yellow book.

“Your Highness is a girl, it’s not suitable for you to read these things. If the Crown Prince finds out, he’ll come out and scold me harshly.”

As soon as she finished speaking, both she and Zhao Yan froze.

Wouldn’t it be a good thing if the Prince really stood there and scolded them?

Seeing Liu Ji looking regretful, Zhao Yan couldn’t help but smile, “You’re a girl too, why are you reading it?”

“I…,” Liu Ji avoided eye contact, muttering, “I don’t count.”

With this playful banter, Zhao Yan’s mind became clearer. Returning to the topic, she said, “So, your implication is that during the mid-months when yang energy is strong, those abducted young girls are taken for procreation, hence the lack of crimes during that time?”

No, it doesn’t make sense.

Young girls who have not yet reached adulthood are not suitable for procreation. If they were taken for such purposes, they should target adult women. And what about the boys under four years old?

Unless their purpose is not for procreation, but for…

“Yin replenishing Yang.”

Liu Ji timely picked up the conversation, “This book says that the breath of a virgin is pure and most suitable for replenishing yang. This explains why young children go missing: the Great Mystery Dao teaches that humans have five visceral energies, with the heart’s yang being the strongest. The blood in a child’s heart is considered pure yang energy, rumored to have the effect of reversing yin and yang…”

With just a few words, they wove a chilling speculation.

Zhao Yan finally understood why Wen Renlin forbade her from meddling in this matter, and why, despite finding many clues to the disappearances, Prince Su’s Mansion had yet to close the cases—

Because this case involved the morality of the Shenguang Sect, and at the pinnacle of the Shenguang Sect stood the current Emperor. If it became known to the world that people were sacrificing lives in the name of seeking immortality and enlightenment, laying bare the truth of the case, it would undoubtedly be a slap in the Emperor’s face.

Perhaps Wen Renlin was considering this. Or perhaps he had other motives.

But Zhao Yan couldn’t wait. If Prince Yong was truly the mastermind behind this, if Father wanted to maintain peace, if Prince Su’s intentions were unpredictable… who else in Xuan could handle the Yong Prince’s Mansion?

On this scorching summer night, she suddenly felt chilled to the bone.

Putting down the paper fan, Zhao Yan asked in a deep voice, “Liu Ji, when is the day with the strongest yang energy this month?”

Liu Ji counted on her fingers and said, “The 11th to the 13th, these three days.”

There were less than five days left. Zhao Yan’s heart sank.

Seeing her thoughts, Liu Ji fell silent for a while before speaking, “Initially, when Zhao Yan finally reached the point of being able to assist with state affairs, she had quite a few capable people under her command. But even so, she still lost her life. Now, Your Highness only has Gu Xing’s two hundred guards from the Eastern Palace and one hundred guards who are meant for protection but are actually for surveillance…”

Zhao Yan understood Liu Ji’s meaning: she had too few people she could mobilize. If she reported to the Emperor, it would likely result in delaying and pacifying the situation.

“To move against the Jinyun Villa, I might not need to act personally.”

Zhao Yan raised her eyes, illuminated by the warm yellow candlelight, and said softly, “There are people in the court who are more eager than us to rescue those children.”

Liu Ji was stunned for a moment before she regained her composure. “Your Highness means Cen Meng, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of War?”

…

Younger sister Cen Yu had been missing for twenty days.

Cen Meng’s eyes were red, his beard unkempt, as he wandered the streets and alleys. Because he had asked too many people along the way, his throat was hoarse and he couldn’t speak. He could only anxiously gesture with his sister’s portrait.

Even his colleagues said that a fourteen-year-old girl like his spirited sister would likely be sold to some unknown place. Even if she were found, she would likely not be the same anymore. It would be better to accept fate.

He was so angry that he didn’t care about past friendships, and he swung his fist mercilessly at the other person’s face.

That was his own sister!

Their parents had died early, leaving only his younger sister in swaddling clothes to depend on him. He carefully fed and raised his sister, braving storms together, anyone could give up, but as her brother, he couldn’t!

Because of the fight with his colleagues, Cen Meng was suspended from his job for half a month. He took advantage of this “long vacation” to travel back and forth, searching for his sister’s whereabouts. But after so many days, several horses had died, he had become thin and dark, and even the small boats buying thin horses in Yangzhou he had searched for, almost losing his life in the process, but still hadn’t heard any news about his sister.

If only he had taught his sister some self-defense moves, or hadn’t argued with her that day, none of this would have happened.

After several days and nights without sleep, Cen Meng fell off his horse.

When he woke up again, he found himself lying in an inn, with a letter on the table, accompanied by a map marked with the location of the Jinyun Villa.

After reading the contents of the letter, Cen Meng was both shocked and suspicious.

He had always believed that his sister had been abducted, so he had only searched within the scope of brothels and those who bought concubines and maids. He never imagined that there would be people in this world who would kidnap so many children and young girls for the ridiculous reason of “replenishing yin and yang.”

Cen Meng had also doubted the identity of the person who delivered the letter, but his sister had been missing for too long for him to hesitate. Because of this glimmer of hope, it could very well be his sister’s only chance!

With this in mind, Cen Meng immediately informed the equally distressed He Yushi and Hu Zhushi from the Dali Temple. They hastily rallied nearly a hundred officials and guards, and rushed towards the eerie Jinyun Villa.

However, when they arrived at the mountain overnight, all they saw were fires burning throughout the villa. He Yushi couldn’t bear the blow of shattered hope and almost fainted, while the people gathered around became chaotic.

“There’s crying.”

Cen Meng raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet, then his red eyes brightened, and he dismounted, saying, “There are children crying inside! Hurry and rescue them!”

Thick smoke billowed into the sky, like a ghostly shadow hovering halfway up the distant mountain.

Zhao Yan came out of the Guanyun Hall, frowning. “What’s going on?”

Gu Xing returned panting, reporting, “They went up the mountain to search for people, but by the time they arrived, Jinyun Villa was already on fire.”

Zhao Yan sneered, “They want to burn both the people and the villa to ashes, destroying all evidence.”

With scarce water in the mountains, once the fire started, it would spread throughout the entire mountain. The few people Cen Meng brought along were simply not enough to put out the fire!

Would they just watch as Zhao Yuanyu escaped and all the evidence was destroyed?

Zhao Yan stood at the gate of the Palace, overlooking it all. In the cool summer night breeze, she looked ethereal in her apricot-colored silk gown.

Her eyes reflected the red flames from the distant mountains, her gaze calm. She took a deep breath and ordered, “Prepare the horses and bring all available personnel to Jinyun Villa!”

In the Wang Mansion, at the Western Mountain Villa.

Wen Renlin stood in his study with his hands behind his back, practicing calligraphy. The faint red glow of the distant mountain fire reflected on the window paper.

Cai Tian hurried in and reported in a deep voice, “Jinyun Villa is on fire; it seems they are trying to escape.”

Wen Renlin’s pen paused, and without any fluctuation in his tone, he said, “Didn’t Cen Meng go to rescue people?”

“But the evidence…”

“If it’s burned, it’s burned. Zhao Yuanyu is just a pawn, I can still make use of him.”

“Yes.”

Thinking of something, Cai Tian lowered his voice, “The Crown Prince has also rushed over there.”

The folding fan fell to the ground.

Wen Renlin’s pen paused, and the top-grade jade pen in his hand broke into two pieces.

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