Compared to the tranquil brightness of Chunhe Garden, where the cool breeze drifted gently,
Tingyu Pavilion seemed far more elegant and quiet.
The deep autumn air was crisp. Fallen leaves and petals lay scattered across the stone path, while many flowers on either side still bloomed in dazzling rivalry.
Chen Yunfan wore a pure white long robe, its sash loose, his hair hanging freely as he slowly practiced with his longsword.
Amid that lightness lurked a faint, razor-sharp killing intent.
Naturally, he had no idea that Chen Yi was plotting to grow closer to him.
He only knew that Shuzhou was about to undergo a tremendous upheaval.
Thus, he had shut his doors to visitors, intending to go out later so that no one would notice what he had done.
—He had presented Lü Jiunan's corpse, along with the evidence of Zhu Hao, Shuzhou's Deputy Commander, to Tang Zixin, the Shuzhou Surveillance Commissioner.
First, he did not trust the Provincial Administration or the Prefectural Yamen. Second, if he sent the items straight to the Capital Prefecture, it would be difficult to explain where he had gotten the information.
After turning it over and over in his mind,
Tang Zixin had become his best choice.
By having the Surveillance Commissioner's Office send the man and the evidence to the Capital Prefecture, no matter how His Majesty investigated and ruled afterward, he would not become the target of public criticism.
Though the Surveillance Commissioner's Office would take more than half the credit, based on Chen Yunfan's earlier deductions, his own share would not be small.
He refused to believe that the White Tiger Guard, having given him such a grand gift, would abandon their entire scheme because of one Surveillance Commissioner's Office.
If his deduction was wrong, that would naturally be even