Just before heading back, he had received a letter. After opening and reading it, Eunuch Zhao could not help being weighed down with worries.
These princes and imperial grandsons-not one of them is an easy lamp to keep burning, Eunuch Zhao thought. Even Prince Lu, who seemed so quiet and unobtrusive... this time, beating the grass startled the snake. Once the grass was parted, quite a few hidden hands came to light.
The Imperial City Office had a hand in establishing Gray Crane. A Hundred-Household Officer supported its founding to make his work easier, so it had always been on the list of groups the Imperial City Office trusted relatively well. We even made use of it from time to time.
Who would have thought it belonged to Prince Lu all along?
What a pity... Jiang Yi is dead. I'll have to find someone else in Prince Dai's Residence...
As he pondered, the ox cart reached the Imperial Palace and stopped outside. Eunuch Zhao stepped down, straightened his robes and cap, and headed toward the main gate. Apart from the emperor, empress, and empress dowager, who could enjoy the privilege of riding into the Imperial Palace?
At the gate of the Imperial City, eight saber-bearing guards stood like nails driven into the ground. They all knew Eunuch Zhao, and greeted him respectfully as he approached.
Eunuch Zhao nodded casually and was about to enter when someone shouted behind him, "Eunuch Zhao! Eunuch Zhao!"
He turned and recognized the man calling to him. He was someone Eunuch Zhao had sent out, responsible all along for maintaining contact with the Hundred-Household Officer planted in Prince Lu's Residence.
Why had he suddenly come again? Had something else happened with Prince Lu?
An ominous feeling immediately rose in Eunuch Zhao. Once the Hundred-Household Officer