This was the first time Shi Buyu had come to Yan Shian’s residence to speak. She didn’t feel much about it—after all, with so many brothers around, which of their rooms hadn’t she entered?

Yan Shian, however, was very reserved. This room was truly the first time a woman had entered—his own mother hadn’t even come in here before. Now he worried that maybe some place wasn’t tidy enough, making Miss Shi uncomfortable.

His eyes glanced sideways at Miss Shi, who didn’t even spare a second look. He didn’t know whether to feel more relieved or more regretful.

Shi Buyu first sent someone to the pharmacy to call the doctor, then sat down in the armchair moved over by his aunt and began to speak.

“Last night…”

Listening to her, the ripples of worries in Yan Shian’s heart gradually faded.

As for the teacher, he was sure the teacher wouldn’t ignore him. Even though he knew Dou Yuancheng and Zhuang Nan considered him a brother, only after this incident did he realize how far they would go when he really got into trouble.

Last time, Yuancheng eyed a jade pendant priced at 400 taels, but Yan Shian couldn’t afford it. Then he somehow raised 5,000 taels—it was a mystery how.

Zhuang Nan was even less well-off—his family were military generals, and he was nowhere near as financially free as Yuancheng, yet he still managed to raise 4,400 taels.

These two had truly exhausted themselves to save his life, even knowing the hope was slim.

As for Qinghuan…

Yan Shian looked up toward the tent’s ceiling. Was she someone who valued talent, or appearance? Or perhaps she was the rare combination of both?

Shi Buyu handed him an account book. “If there ever comes a day of rewarding merits, don’t forget these people.”

“If that day really comes, I won’t forget.” Yan Shian flipped through it. At this moment, those who treated him well truly had good intentions.

“Your turn to speak.” Shi Buyu crossed her legs, listening attentively.

“The initial hiding place was known by Auntie, so I won’t say that. I’ll tell what I heard.” Yan Shian sat up a little. “They are probably in groups of three. I heard which group caught two people; which group had a big haul, caught four, and will get the biggest reward; which group’s members committed suicide; which group had to kill their captives to silence them; which group came back empty-handed. Also…”

Yan Shian paused, swallowing the part about ‘catching an eight-year-old child.’ “From what I heard, at least six teams were doing this. They said they had to catch a few more before the snow closed the roads; otherwise, they wouldn’t survive the winter.”

Shi Buyu pretended not to understand his vague words—sometimes her curiosity wasn’t that strong.

“All going in and out from where?”

“They hadn’t made it explicit before.” Yan Shian said, “When they were sending me over, close to the place, I heard them say: ‘Finally done. Once you’re in here, even if you grow wings, it’s useless.’ After hearing that, I was sure that place was what we were looking for.”

Since they had to find the place but couldn’t let the other side know they’d been exposed, Yan Shian took the chance to act outside the door, injuring himself to pretend he had just woken from unconsciousness. The carriage was rushing wildly, and he had no idea where it had stopped earlier. Even when questioned, those three had no suspicion of him.

“You were rescued there. Whether it’s the Jingzhaoyin or the Imperial Army, they’d want to investigate that area. Luckily, after investigation, they confirmed it and only then dared continue to use it.” Shi Buyu glanced outside at the bright sky. “Next, some people need to sober up.”

A man in a blue robe came in to announce, “The doctor is here.”

They exchanged a glance, and Yan Shian lay back down.

Shi Buyu took a handkerchief, rubbing the redness at the corner of her eye softly, and said in a gentle tone, “Please come in.”

---

That morning in the capital, the cold air was already mixed with clamour.

Yan Shian had been rescued, found in the hot spring village area. It was said that when they saved him, his hair and face were covered in blood. Whether that face, which even the princess cared about, was still intact was unknown.

The three kidnappers who captured him definitely hadn’t escaped; they had been sent to the authorities early on.

Yan family’s steward was pawning treasures at a pawnshop. Upon receiving news, he hurriedly dragged several boxes of valuables back. The pawnshop owner, seeing the treasures, slapped his thigh in regret for acting too slowly—if only he had been faster, once these treasures went into their vault, they wouldn’t be worth the original price anymore!

Although everyone already knew Yan Shian was wealthy, this time they truly witnessed it. Now that he was a successful scholar, having passed the imperial exams, and the family was prosperous, his future was unstoppable.

Amid all these rumours, a drunken man stumbled and crawled to the city guard, clinging to his leg, his soul almost half drained. “Corpses, so many corpses! So many! I just had a drink, and now I woke up sleeping on a mountain of corpses!”

The city guards were about to kick him away but were stunned by his words. They exchanged glances and immediately reported it.

The captain on duty was smarter. After holding the drunk man and questioning him carefully, he personally led men to investigate, while continuing to report up the chain.

Reports escalated, more and more people were sent to investigate, and attention increased. When twenty-two corpses were unearthed at the site, the news couldn’t be suppressed—it spread rapidly throughout the capital.

If this were just an ordinary murder case, it would be gossip for a while and pass. But soon, news emerged that all twenty-two dead were very young, and their deaths were extremely disgraceful. The oldest was no more than twenty; the youngest looked only eleven or twelve.

Fortunately, the cold weather helped preserve some bodies fairly intact. Though faces were scratched, from eyebrows and eyes it was still clear they were all delicate and refined.

Then someone mentioned Yan Shian—he was famous for both talent and looks. Had he not been rescued, would he have ended up the same way?

With that thought, panic spread through the city.

Jingzhaoyin Li Sheng was furious. How could the news spread so fast? But it was truly impossible to investigate thoroughly—too many people knew ever since the drunk man appeared at the city gate. It was impossible to suppress it.

Li Sheng vaguely felt there was a hand manipulating everything behind the scenes, but what was the meaning? Was someone trying to throw the capital into chaos?

But soon, he had no time to ponder. Someone struck the official drum.

Since he had taken office as Jingzhaoyin, this was the first time anyone had struck the capital government’s drum.

He hurriedly summoned people. “Who’s drumming?”

The adviser quickly came in, obviously having checked. “Sir, the one drumming is Master You Fu from the Dali Court.”

Li Sheng sighed upon hearing it was the Dali Court—those people were all as stubborn and difficult as that Zeng Zheng, never yielding even when in the right.

“Why is he drumming at our government? Let him drum at his Dali Court!”

The adviser’s face darkened. “Sir, he is here to plead for his grandnephew.”

“Grandnephew? Who? Does he have any official status?”

“His grandnephew is the youngest of the twenty-two corpses.”

Li Sheng never expected this case would get tied to the Dali Court. That meant big trouble.