Mei Heting remained silent, deep in thought.

Unlike easily hidden or discarded weapons like daggers or clubs, an axe is heavy and conspicuous, making it difficult to wield for stabbing, unless it was a spur-of-the-moment act of murder.

However, it was unlikely that Hua Daren would suddenly argue with a servant chopping wood in his own study and be killed with a weapon at hand.

He left the others outside, lifted his robe, and stepped closer to Hua Daren’s corpse.

At the same time, he observed that the surrounding blue bricks did not bear any footprints.

From above, Hua Miaoxin’s body resembled a tree that had been chopped down at the waist, the stench of blood strong and foul, only the bottom of the abdomen barely still connected by a layer of skin.

The two blood-red eyes were wide open, staring, the face contorted and twisted.

Mei Heting’s gaze shifted to the bloodstain next to the deceased’s hand.

He suddenly took out a handkerchief, bent down, and pried open the stiff hand.

On the ground beneath the deceased’s palm lay a small seal character written in blood.

The strokes were rounded and ornate, unlike any known seal script. It took Mei Heting a moment to recognize it.

“To collect.” The word “to collect debts.”

In an instant, his mind raced, and his chest tightened.

Without thinking, he wiped away the seal character.

“Even the esteemed young minister of the Supreme Court is engaging in acts of destroying evidence? Aren’t you afraid of ending up in prison?”

A voice suddenly rang out behind him.

Mei Heting turned around.

A handsome young man leaned against the doorframe, dressed in a brand-new sea green court robe, perfectly tailored to showcase his tall and vibrant physique, with a feathered dagger hanging at his waist.

Mei Heting averted his gaze.

He meticulously wiped the blood from his fingers with a handkerchief, waiting for his heartbeat to gradually slow and the waves of his emotions to calm before he stood up.

In a dismissive tone, he replied, “Mei did not congratulate you on your recent appointment as the Commander of the Nine Gates; after all, that is merely a matter of the Ministry of Justice, which does not fall under your jurisdiction.”

“I didn’t congratulate Prince Mei either; today, it’s just Prince Mei,” the newly appointed Commander of the Nine Gates shot back, emphasizing his point.

He thrust a metaphorical knife straight into the heart, then lifted his chin to glance at the bloodstain that had lost its characters.

“Do you recognize the ‘Peach Blossom Small Seal’?”

“The small seal script created by Empress Dowager Roujia,” Mei Heting replied, his brows furrowing. “The strokes begin round and taper to a point, resembling peach blossoms, hence the name ‘Peach Blossom Small Seal.'”

He also knew that this seal script had only circulated in the imperial harem of the Jinming Dynasty, taught personally by the gentle Empress Dowager to the palace maidens.

Among those who learned it best was her only daughter, Princess Zhaole.

Since the day he had dreamed of the Cuiwei Palace, he had investigated.

It was during the Empress Dowager’s illness that the Astronomical Station claimed that a wood spirit was harming the Emperor; the one who met a tragic end was indeed this Hua Daren before him.

“Ah, doing your homework, I see.” Conversations between men can sometimes be straightforward, a single glance and a few words, and it was clear that he had already connected this case to the Princess.

Back then, a person cut down trees, and today, an axe is used to cut down a person.

Peach blossoms, small seals.

The implication was too obvious.

Yan Huai leaned against the door, as if merely observing casually. “You don’t really think that the Princess would resort to such a clumsy method for revenge, do you? Or that someone, unable to bear the humiliation of being divorced, would try to find something to retaliate?”

Mei Heting was not one to easily lose his temper; he remained unruffled.

He lightly released the handkerchief, allowing one end to rest in the deceased’s palm, and called in his subordinates to conduct the next steps of the investigation and to question the deceased’s family and servants.

After giving his orders, he walked out of the study with a calm demeanor.

As he passed by Yan Huai, his expression was indifferent, but deep down, he felt a surge of anger with nowhere to vent.

With his back turned to Yan Huai, he suddenly said, “You should take care of your own affairs, Young Master! What does it have to do with me?”

Anyone can pour salt into a wound.

Yan Huai smiled; he understood what he meant.

Currently, the Emperor and the Gra.d Princess were putting on an act of indifference to one another, while the Grand Princess still firmly held the military power of the northern camp in the capital.

As for him, he was a close minister to the Emperor and a trusted aide, having served on the frontier for many years, also wielding military power.

What Mei Heting implied was that even if the Grand Princess had no Prince Consort, if he wanted to be with his sister, it would stir chaos in military affairs and raise doubts among the officials.

Whether the Duke of England would be willing to marry his only son to such a hot potato was one thing; the Censorate would not agree, the Ministry of War would not agree, and the old Confucian officials who despised the Grand Princess’s conduct would also not want her to endanger yet another promising young man.

Ultimately, the Emperor would have no choice but to yield to the pressure from all sides and would not agree.

Yan Huai clicked his tongue: their own backyard was ablaze, and they still did not forget to block others’ paths.

It was indeed tragic, but it was also ruthlessly calculated.

He intentionally provoked him, folding his arms and following Mei Heting out of the Hua residence.

With no one around, a mischievous smile crept across his lips.

“Let me say something straightforward: I, young master, have achieved military merit ten times over, trading achievements for a marriage contract. What do you think? It’s all quite trivial!”

Mei Heting remained unmoved, but his eyes suddenly sharpened. “Do you know, Young Master Yan, that you are fearless of death, having fought in nearly a hundred battles in the southern border over the past seven years, leading from the front, and claiming countless enemy heads?

“In the final years of Jinming, you captured two sons of the barbarian king, forcing the other side to retreat and release prisoners of the Great Jin; in the second year of the Yuanqing era, you led the Chengbai Army to conquer three cities in Miaojing; in the early Yongchun era, you attacked Nanzhao, slaughtered the city, and buried tens of thousands.”

He recited his battle achievements as if they were treasured memories.

When he spoke of the city slaughter and the pitiful soldiers, his voice suddenly turned somber.

Yan Huai innocently nodded, “I almost forgot, the reason the slaughter of the city stirred public outrage was that it was you, Lord Mei, who wrote to the Emperor, advocating for my position as Marshal against the dissenting voices.”

With genuine curiosity, he looked at the young man, a promising student of the imperial tutor, who was still concealed beneath layers of mystery.

“I still can’t understand how someone like you, a refined gentleman of Confucian ideals, can agree with the military philosophy of stopping violence with violence?”

Anyone who saw that innocent face would find it hard to connect him with the infamous general who was known as the God of Death, capable of mercilessly slaughtering enemies.

Only Mei Heting saw through it all; gazing into those pitch-black eyes, he could see to the core.

“Zihai, Chengbai, the only military figure you revere in your life is the God of Death, Bai Qi. Am I wrong?”

On the surface, Yan Huai laughed, but deep down, a tempest raged, as if someone had opened his chest and exposed his innermost thoughts.

He harbored ambitions of conquering lands and achieving victories in battle, and he believed that stopping war with war would inevitably lead to casualties.

However, he had never dared to speak this thought to his sister, fearing she would view him as a bloodthirsty person and distance herself from him.

But thinking back, he and Mei Heting had only met once before heading to the frontier.

A chill unexpectedly crept down Yan Huai’s back.

The morning breeze blew past Mei Heting’s immaculate crimson robe as he shook his sleeves and lowered his eyelids.

“There’s no need to speculate. The only reason I protected your reputation back then was to stabilize the situation in the southern border; it was a matter of broader strategy.”

With that said, he turned to head back to the office, needing to report and catch up on the many official documents that had piled up during his short leave.

Lu Chunfeng, the chief scribe, was not much help, and he couldn’t even guess how many documents had accumulated.

Yan Huai, staring at his retreating figure, suddenly grasped the hilt of his dagger and recalled his purpose—Hua Miao Xin’s death was tied to a conspiracy against his sister.

He momentarily suppressed his shock and shouted after him, “When will the case be solved?”

“It’s already solved.”

Mei Heting didn’t turn back, and his voice faded into the early summer breeze.

Yan Huai was taken aback by those two words and suddenly cursed in frustration, letting out a rough remark typical of the barracks.

Upon returning to the office, Mei Heting continued to handle official business as usual, but his mind drifted far away.

The various people he encountered today, the knowing glances he received, the veiled mockery and scrutiny, all served to remind him that the title of Prince Consort, which he had held for seven years, no longer belonged to him.

He refused to accept it.

But everyone else had already decided that he and the Grand Princess had no further ties.

The colleagues at the Dali Temple, perhaps regretting the loss of their food benefits or feeling sympathy for Mei Shaoqing’s new widower status, cast glances filled with unspoken sorrow towards him, hesitating to speak.

When Lu Chunfeng once again used the excuse of reviewing documents to approach him, looking at him with a pained expression, Mei Heting awkwardly raised a hand to pat Lu’s shoulder.

“Thank you, my colleagues, for your concern; I truly appreciate it.”

“Eh?” Lu Chunfeng almost swatted his hand away, sighing heavily. “It’s not that I’m saying this, but you… we’ve all heard the rumors, and you shouldn’t have… how could you reject such a good consort just because the Grand Princess has no children?”

“What?” Mei Heting’s expression turned momentarily confused.

Amidst the surrounding noise, he heard someone speak up.

Li Pingshi immediately leaned over, looking distressed.

“My lord, your judgment in cases is unmatched, and I hold you in the highest regard. But forgive me for being rude, I’ve actually met the Princess’s daughter once, and I don’t understand…

“Isn’t Mei Xiangzi(Baoya) lovely?”

“How can you be so dissatisfied with such a precious daughter?

“Don’t your two young masters count as dragons among men?

“Aren’t the meals at the Grand Princess’s residence delicious?

“You—ah.”

Mei Heting was caught in a fog of confusion by his barrage of questions, his mind buzzing. “What are you all talking about? What do you mean I don’t want the consort? It’s clear that…”

She doesn’t want me anymore.

Lu Chunfeng sighed, “My lord, don’t pretend. The rumors are flying all over. The other day, the old lady in the palace was in a panic, and it turned out it wasn’t her health that was troubling her but rather she was begging Princess Zhaole to have a child.

“If it weren’t for your dissatisfaction with the Princess having no children, why would such a noble person behave so shamefully? And not long after, it was reported that the Princess dismissed her Prince Consort. Tell me honestly, who dismissed whom? I’ve taken meals at the Princess’s residence for years; I still have a sense of justice!”

It was typical of the Dali Temple people; their reasoning was thorough and logical.

Mei Heting’s breath tightened, gripping Lu Chunfeng’s collar. “When did these rumors start?”

Lu Chunfeng, startled, noticed that Mei’s eyes were red, as if he wanted to eat someone.

He thought to himself, could it be that he had upset Mei just by speaking a few heartfelt words?

Feeling a twinge of regret, he hesitated for a moment and softened his tone. “Um, my lord, please don’t be anxious; it was a slip of the tongue on my part.”

“I’m asking you when the rumors began!”