Song Qingshu brought Zhao Min and Bing Xue'er back to Shangjing City. Because of the uproar over the rebellion and defection case, the entire city seemed steeped in an atmosphere of grim tension, even the air carrying a murderous chill.
Since the two women had already met, Song Qingshu simply brought Bing Xue'er to stay at Prince Ruyang's Mansion's Shangjing stronghold—the Little South Tower. Upon entering the courtyard, Bing Xue'er soon noticed the pavilion where Zhao Min often played the zither. On the pillars on either side were two lines of poetry: "The starry river fades pale and colorless; the jade mirror floats alone in the empty sky."
Song Qingshu had seen them before but had not paid much attention. Bing Xue'er, however, being a woman herself, vaguely sensed Zhao Min's feelings. The elegant handwriting clearly belonged to a woman, most likely Zhao Min herself. She had never expected that the ever-commanding Princess Shaomin also harbored such vulnerability and confusion within her heart.
As she was lost in thought, Song Qingshu said, "I learned from Yelü Qi that after you and Qingqing were thrown into prison, the relevant items were all kept by Yelü Yange, the on-duty magistrate of the Gongfen Army Commander. I went to the Gongfen Army Commander's compound before and only found Qingqing's Golden Snake Sword and your Silver Bell Golden Lock. Your Cold Moon Treasure Saber, however, was nowhere to be found. Now that we know the Cold Moon Treasure Saber is the Yuan Saber, perhaps we can follow this clue to find the mastermind behind it all."
"Exactly." Zhao Min strongly agreed. "And I've always had a feeling that Murong Jingyue must be involved somehow. A man like him could never resist the temptation of the Mandarin Duck Sabers' invincibility."
Bing Xue'er had always wanted