Opening the Boxes Reveals a Nest of Schemers

The mountain-guarding disciples stood below the Questioning Dao Platform, clutching gift lists.

Three groups of people had arrived outside the mountain gate.

The first group bore the banner of the Third Prince's estate, delivering spirit stones, medicinal pills, and brocade robes.

The second group hailed from the collateral branches of the Ji clan in the Imperial City, numbering seven families in total.

The third group was the most motley.

Trading firms, pharmacies, former officials, and retainers—even a few wooden crates with no listed origin were mixed in among them.

Li Sanshun took the gift list.

"The bloodline hasn't even been verified yet, but they're already rushing to claim a father."

Ji Jingyao folded up the red invitation.

"The paper crane Bai Chongshan sent back to the Imperial City only stated that the Third Prince's lost heir had been found; it made no mention of the forged verification disk."

"When he sent the good news, the re-examination results hadn't come out yet."

"Therefore, this batch of congratulatory gifts shouldn't be here."

Li Sanshun handed the list to Gu Qinghe.

"Seal the mountain gate. Do not let the gift-bearers in, and don't bring the items into the disciples' living quarters."

The mountain-guarding disciple looked troubled.

"The people from the Third Prince's estate are still waiting for Young Master Li to open the gate; they say they must see the gifts placed into storage with their own eyes."

"Make them wait."

"The envoy also requires your personal signature on the receipt document."

"Make them keep waiting."

Li Sanshun walked down from the Questioning Dao Platform.

Bai Chongshan was still standing among the imperial guards. Two Law Enforcement disciples were guarding him, as they had yet to finish searching his storage bag.

Hearing that the mountain gate had been sealed, Bai Chongshan spoke up.

"The congratulatory gifts sent from the Imperial City represent the dignity of the royal family. By blocking the envoy outside the gate, you are effectively refusing to acknowledge the Ji clan."

"I don't even know who my own father is, so which Ji clan am I supposed to acknowledge?"

Li Sanshun stopped in front of him.

"You're so concerned about these gifts—what's packed inside them?"

"How would I know?"

"You were the one who sent the paper crane, and you were the one who summoned these people."

Bai Chongshan gripped his custody token.

"I only report the results of the blood mirror to the Imperial City."

"The fake results."

"The results verified by the royal verification disk have not yet been revoked."

"Fine, keep carrying that burden."

Li Sanshun pointed to the dismantled verification disk.

"The blood-revealing talisman, the blood-drawing thread, and the residue from the blood-changing pill are all sealed up. Once Du Heng comes to identify the culprit, let's see how many more rounds you can hold out."

Bai Chongshan shut his mouth.

Gu Qinghe summoned twenty Law Enforcement disciples, and the gifts from outside the gate were collectively moved to the front courtyard of Law Enforcement Peak.

Each crate was numbered individually.

The gift-bearer, the origin, the handler, and the style of the seal were all recorded in a ledger.

The three wooden crates sent by the Third Prince's estate were inspected first.

The first crate contained five hundred low-grade spirit stones.

The second crate held ten bottles of Yuan-Nourishing Pills and two bottles of Pulse-Protecting Pills.

The third crate contained a gold-patterned long robe, with the Third Prince's estate jade pendant still hanging from the belt.

Li Sanshun used his scabbard to lift the jade pendant.

"They haven't even worn the clothes, yet they hang the identity on their waist. Are they afraid others won't know who to kill?"

Qi Shouxuan stood by the sealing table.

"The various factions of the royal family have been fighting for years. The Third Prince has no legitimate adult sons; if a lost bloodline truly appeared, there would be no shortage of people eyeing you."

"That's exactly why Bai Chongshan picked this father for me."

Li Sanshun placed the jade pendant back into the crate.

The identity of the Third Prince's direct descendant sounded prestigious, but it was a trap the moment it fell on him.

As soon as he entered the Imperial City, every faction would investigate his background.

Bai Chongshan could use the pretext of "retrieving" him to take him away, or use the royal infighting to eliminate him. Once he was dead, the Old Infant Case would be impossible to pursue further.

What was more troublesome was that the false news had already spread.

Among those sending gifts, it was impossible to tell who was here to offer congratulations, who was here to claim him, and who was here to kill him.

Gu Qinghe added a line to the gift ledger.

"All gifts are to be sealed and may not be used. The envoys delivering the gifts must leave their names and lodging addresses; they are not to leave the jurisdiction of the Tai Xuan Sect without inspection."

The envoy from the Third Prince's estate finally entered the front courtyard.

This man identified himself as Feng Jing, responsible for external affairs in the Imperial City. He brought four attendants and demanded to see Li Sanshun the moment he entered.

"His Highness learned that the lost heir had been found and specifically ordered us to travel day and night to arrive here. The gifts have been delivered; why does Young Master Li refuse to accept them?"

Li Sanshun sat behind the table, flipping through the gift list.

"How long did it take you to get from the Imperial City to the Tai Xuan Sect?"

"We traveled by flying ship; it took two hours."

"Who gave you the news?"

"The estate received a royal transmission."

"Whose seal was on the transmission?"

Feng Jing took out a piece of Grey Feather Talisman Paper.

The paper stated that the blood verification was complete and the Third Prince's lost heir had returned to the clan. At the bottom was a private family-search seal, as well as Bai Chongshan's official seal.

The time of transmission was exactly before the re-examination had begun.

Li Sanshun sealed the talisman paper into an evidence bag.

"Go back and tell the Third Prince that a fake talisman was discovered in the blood verification disk. My relationship with him has yet to be determined."

Feng Jing was stunned for a moment.

"The Imperial City has already posted notices to all the branches, and even the Imperial Clan Court has prepared the new genealogy."

"Who told you to move so fast?"

"Retrieving a direct-line heir is a major event; how could we delay it?"

"It couldn't be delayed, so you didn't even check if it was true or false?"

Feng Jing looked at the sealed gift crates in the courtyard.

"If Young Master Li does not believe it, you may return to the Imperial City with me to re-verify with the ancestral temple's blood vessels."

"Trying to take someone away again?"

Gu Qinghe placed the Major Case Order on the table.

"Bai Chongshan is suspected of forging the blood verification results. Until the case is cleared, Li Sanshun will not leave the Tai Xuan Sect. If Envoy Feng wishes to cooperate, he should first disclose whom he contacted after receiving the transmission."

Feng Jing refused to disclose royal internal affairs, leaving only the Imperial City transmission before retreating to the Reception Courtyard to wait.

The inspection of the remaining gift crates lasted until nightfall.

The items sent by the seven collateral branches of the Ji clan varied. Some sent spirit stones, some sent weapons, and one family even sent a copy of their genealogy, forcibly writing Li Sanshun's name into the Third Prince's branch.

The remaining twenty-plus congratulatory gifts were even more chaotic.

Nine of them had no signatures.

Gu Qinghe ordered someone to open the first nameless wooden box.

Inside the box was only a piece of century-old warm jade.

The second contained three Detoxification Pills.

The third was empty, with a Spirit-Peering Talisman stuck to the bottom. Once the lid was opened, the talisman's patterns would record the aura of the person who opened it.

The Law Enforcement disciple removed the Spirit-Peering Talisman and placed it into an evidence bag.

"Someone is using the gifts to confirm whether Li Sanshun is still staying on Law Enforcement Peak."

Problems were discovered in the subsequent gifts as well.

A belt was lined with Breath-Tracking Incense.

A pill bottle contained a Message-Transmitting Insect Egg.

Another congratulatory note was coated with Spirit-Drawing Powder; as long as Li Sanshun opened it by hand, he could be tracked for three days.

Li Sanshun looked at the table full of items.

"What Bai Chongshan sent wasn't a congratulatory message; it was a hit list."

Once the news reached the Imperial City, everyone hiding near the Tai Xuan Sect had moved.

Some were confirming his identity.

Some were scouting his residence.

And others were waiting to strike.

The final nameless congratulatory note was very thin, with no seal on the outside. Gu Qinghe opened it with silver tweezers; there were only eight characters on the paper.

Old pulse returns to the furnace, Ding fire welcomes the master.

A few specks of black debris were stuck to the corner of the paper.

Li Sanshun leaned in and took a sniff.

[Detected iron filings from a Ding-Character Furnace.]

[Mixed with blood rust and Earth Fire ash.]

[Residual aura matches the half-piece of the Blood Token.]

He took the half-piece of the Blood Token out of his storage bag.

This item had come from the stone chamber beneath the North Mountain Herb Garden, and the broken edge was stained with the same black specks. At the time, they had only determined that the iron filings had been scorched by Earth Fire, but the source had never been found.

Gu Qinghe placed the congratulatory note and the Blood Token side by side.

The grain of the iron filings and the scent of the blood rust matched perfectly.

"The Ding-Character Furnace is not in the Imperial City." Qi Shouxuan opened the sect's old records. "Twenty-one years ago, there was only one furnace in the Tai Xuan Sect designated with the Ding character."

"Where is it?"

"The West Mountain Old Mine."

Gu Qinghe's hand stopped on the page.

As soon as the words "West Mountain" were spoken, she took off her personal storage bag and pulled out a blackened identity tag from the very bottom.

Two characters were carved on the face of the tag.

Zhou Huai.

The life-fire on the identity tag had already been extinguished.

Li Sanshun looked up at her.

Gu Qinghe placed the identity tag next to the half-piece of the Blood Token.

"Zhou Huai died a long time ago. I never told you about this."

Li Sanshun picked up the identity tag.

"You hid the news of his death—who were you trying to make believe he was still alive?"

Gu Qinghe flipped the identity tag over, revealing a newly added scratch on the back.

"If you want to know what's hidden in the Ding-Character Furnace, come with me to the residence Zhou Huai left behind tonight."