As he stepped into the magnificent, sprawling unfamiliar residence, Wei Xun felt a flicker of recognition. He seemed to have slipped into this place more than twenty days ago.
He had not known who owned this mansion, nor had he had the slightest interest in finding out. Back then, only one thought had filled his heart: steal a rare, beautiful flower and win a smile from her.
Tonight, the residence was anything but peaceful. The body of a guard killed by an arrow lay across the ground. Wei Xun bent to examine it. The arrow's fletching had not the usual three vanes, but a distinctive four, and its shaft was more than four inches longer than an ordinary arrow. The head had sunk deep into the body, showing that the bow's power was far beyond the ordinary.
Wei Xun's heart pounded wildly, almost leaping into his throat.
After they discovered the Rouge Mark, Ruan San had confessed where Hu'er's corpse had come from before Tuoba Sanniang could even roll up her sleeves and put her methods to work. The Prince of Qi's Residence, one of the foremost households among Luoyang's rich and powerful, frequently smuggled the bodies of young, beautiful women out through its back gate. It was also the only place that still employed eunuchs after the Imperial House returned to Chang'an. The proceeds from selling the corpses supplemented the wages of the overseer and gatekeeper. Mangbei Hall never asked many questions when collecting bodies.
Had she been imprisoned here all along? Had that three-finger Rouge Mark on Hu'er's chest been the last signal she sent out?
The mysterious archer was unstoppable. Wherever the archer passed, bodies fell along the path, one after another. Though the guards carried sharp swords and spears, they wore no armor. The Four-Feather Great