At high noon, the sun blazed overhead, casting a cold, unwelcoming gleam from the towering black gates of the Ministry of Revenue under its harsh light.  

Sui Tan took a deep breath, staring at the imposing gates of the Shangshu Mansion. Clenching her fists for courage, she finally took a step forward—only to halt mid-stride, as if suddenly remembering something, and hurriedly scampered back.  

“Lin Qi,” she said in a hushed, earnest tone as she leaned close to the shadow guard’s ear, “This time, you absolutely must stop me. Don’t let me argue with Madam Sun again.”  

A faint smile played at Lin Qi’s lips as he nodded gently. “Understood.”  

Sui Tan gave a firm nod, mentally steeling herself for the hundredth time:  

This is the only way. There’s no other choice—I have to face it.

It had now been seven days since Sun Cheng, the prime suspect in the case of the female corpse at the hunting grounds, had mysteriously vanished from the Dali Temple prison. Seven days since the “Jade-Faced Judge of Hell” had turned the capital upside down with his dark fury, leaving the entire city on edge.  

The case remained unsolved, and the suspect was still nowhere to be found.  

As someone who considered herself at least partially informed, Sui Tan had expected to uncover something in these seven days. Yet, to her surprise, she had come up empty-handed. After yet another fruitless search, she finally resolved to return to the Shangshu Mansion. This time, no matter how the Sun family treated her, she would hold her temper and dig up even the faintest clue.  

But despite her well-prepared, determined arrival, the first thing she encountered was Minister Sun’s outright refusal to see her.  

The guards of the Shangshu Mansion stood rigid, their eyes fixed straight ahead as they mechanically repeated their master’s stance: “The Shangshu Mansion does not welcome any member of the Qin family.”

Undaunted, Sui Tan pulled Lin Qi into the fray, leveraging the golden-embroidered authority of the Third Prince that his uniform represented. After much reluctance from the Shangshu household, she was finally “invited” inside under the guise of being the Third Prince’s betrothed.  

Head held high, she strode in confidently—prompting a soft chuckle from Lin Qi.  

“Wa—Watch out!”  

The fond amusement in his voice turned to alarm in an instant. Sui Tan reacted just as swiftly, ducking her head the moment his expression shifted.  

Razor-sharp nails grazed past her scalp, severing a lock of her dark hair.  

“You little Qin-family harlot! How dare you show your face here again! Haven’t you ruined my son enough?”  

Madam Sun, her long nails poised like claws, swiped at Sui Tan’s face again after her first failed strike, screeching curses all the while. Sui Tan dodged once more, glaring back defiantly.  

The noblewoman of the Sun family was a far cry from the composed figure she had been during their last encounter. Now, her eyes were bloodshot, her hair disheveled, and her voice shrill enough to pierce eardrums:  

“Speak! Where have you hidden my son?!”  

Sui Tan’s temper flared, but before she could retort, Madam Sun had already collapsed onto the floor, wailing like a slaughtered pig as she beat her thighs and hurled one slander after another.  

“My son! My poor son! What did he ever do to deserve the Qin family’s curse?!”  

“So what if he broke off the engagement? Was it worth teaming up with the Dali Temple Chief to frame him like this? If not for your family, would my son have disappeared without a trace? What sin have we committed?!”  

“And didn’t the Qin family teach their daughters the Three Obediences and Four Virtues?! If you’re jilted, you’re supposed to die for it! Die for the chastity memorial arch! If she’d just died, everything would’ve been settled! If she’d died, my son wouldn’t be in this mess!!”  

Sui Tan’s earlier resolve proved utterly useless. Before she could even get a word in, Madam Sun was already howling to the heavens, pounding her chest and stamping her feet.  

The servants of the Shangshu Mansion followed suit, wiping away crocodile tears as they condemned the Qin family for their treachery—why couldn’t they just die instead of dragging their innocent, kind-hearted (if slightly flawed) young master into this?  

Their words twisted black into white, truth into lies.  

Even Lin Qi couldn’t help but silently judge the sheer audacity of their claims. He dreaded to imagine how Sui Tan—never one to mince words—would react to such provocations.  

Glancing sideways, he saw her staring rigidly at them, her lips pressed into a tight line. She didn’t move, her expression solemn, as if carefully weighing her next words.  

“Enough.”

She shouted suddenly, and before Lin Qi could retract his worried gaze, she grabbed his wrist and strode briskly outside, head lowered.  

“Miss?”  

Lin Qi followed instinctively but couldn’t hide his confusion.  

Sui Tan didn’t pause in her steps, only tilting her head slightly toward him.  

Perhaps mindful of the many ears within the Shangshu Mansion, she leaned in as close as possible, her lips nearly brushing his ear.  

A delicate, feminine fragrance enveloped him.  

“The Shangshu Mansion probably doesn’t know Sun Cheng’s whereabouts either. Otherwise, given Madam Sun’s doting nature, she wouldn’t be acting like this.”  

Her delicate brows furrowed slightly as she calmly analyzed the situation, unaware that her sole listener was momentarily dazed.  

In her haste, she hadn’t noticed just how close they were.  

The warmth of her breath against his ear instantly stained it crimson.  

Lin Qi flustered, wanting to retreat but unwilling to pull away, could only stand frozen in place, his face burning.  

Only after speaking did Sui Tan notice something amiss. She lifted her gaze slightly and was met with the sight of his ear, red as if dipped in blood.  

She blinked in surprise, then a mischievous glint flashed in her eyes.  

Without a care for the bustling courtyard of the Shangshu Mansion, she stretched onto her tiptoes, looped an arm around his neck, and pulled his already scarlet ear even closer to her lips.  

“Lin Qi,” she whispered, her breath sweet as orchids:  

“You—”  

“Meow~”  

An abrupt cat cry shattered the intimate moment between them. Sui Tan paused, turning toward the sound.  

A pure white snowball of a cat darted out from under a tree, leaping nimbly onto the high wall of the Shangshu Mansion in a few bounds.  

Its inky black eyes fixed unblinkingly on them, as if studying them with curiosity—or perhaps, like a human, scrutinizing something.  

At the sight, Sui Tan immediately straightened, her playful demeanor vanishing as she released him and stood properly.  

Lin Qi quickly shook his head, dispelling the heat in his cheeks, and followed her gaze. His expression grew serious as he took in the snow-white cat, its fur almost glaringly bright.  

An inexplicable sense of familiarity washed over him again. His brows knitted tightly as he murmured thoughtfully,  

“Are snow-white cats trending in the capital lately? Why do we keep running into them everywhere these days?”  

“Because it’s been following us.”  

As she spoke, Sui Tan suddenly raised her hand, pointing directly at the cat perched high on the wall, staring down at them.  

A brilliant golden light flashed. With a sharp, pained “meow,” the eerie black eyes of the snow-white cat quickly lost their chilling intensity.  

But before the effect fully faded, the cat abruptly jerked its head away and bolted.  

“After it!”  

The cat’s reaction confirmed their suspicions. Sui Tan leaped nimbly, effortlessly throwing herself into Lin Qi’s arms.  

Lin Qi adjusted his hold around her waist and, with a few swift movements, gave chase to the panicked feline.  

The snow-white cat seemed intimately familiar with the city’s layout. Small in size, it darted effortlessly across rooftops and through the capital’s winding alleys, moving so swiftly that even Lin Qi’s exceptional lightness skill couldn’t close the gap entirely.  

They chased it relentlessly, following the cat all the way out of the city, where it led them straight into the outskirts.  

“There’s someone ahead.”  

After another quarter-hour of pursuit, Sui Tan, nestled in Lin Qi’s arms, suddenly whispered a warning.  

By now, they had reached a patch of wild woods on the city’s outskirts. The snow-white cat continued to weave through the trees with uncanny agility, heading deeper into the distance.