"If it were simply that the emperor didn't want him found, that explanation wouldn't hold up."
Xue Pingyuan nodded in agreement. "You're right. If His Majesty didn't want to find the Second Prince, he wouldn't have ordered the Imperial Secret Guards to hunt him down, much less kept searching for years. As recently as two months ago, he was still urging them on, as though he wouldn't rest until he found him."
Viewed that way, the Second Prince's disappearance seemed to have nothing to do with the Fourth Prince. But examining it closely could reveal clues once more.
For instance, how had the Second Prince evaded the emperor's watchful eyes?
In this matter, it seemed that finding the Second Prince would fully expose the Fourth Prince lurking behind the scenes.
Once he understood this, Xue Pingyuan immediately turned his gaze to Shen Yangge. "Then do you know where the Second Prince is hiding?"
Shen Yangge shook his head. "I had already passed out, so I have no memory of the route they took when they abducted me. His Highness should know, though."
After all, Chu Xuanzhen had appeared out of nowhere and saved his life.
"I already sent men to search the place. They found no clues."
Xue Pingyuan said, "How could there be no clues... Your Highness, should we send men to search it again?"
Chu Xuanzhen replied, "They dug three feet into the ground and found nothing suspicious."
With that, Xue Pingyuan understood what he meant. The place where the Second Prince, missing for years, had hidden offered no clues as to how he had remained concealed for so long. That was a chilling thought.
After all, anyone would leave some trace of having lived somewhere, and those traces could be painstakingly unearthed to uncover information.
Shen Yangge