Chapter 101: The True Purpose Behind the Emperor’s Bestowed Marriage

Prince An already had a good idea what Ye Jingchuan wanted to talk about, so he said, “Minister Ye, please hold on a moment.”

Then, he turned to the dazed-looking Qin Zheng.

“Prime Minister Qin, why don’t you head back for now? If there’s any news about your son, I’ll let you know immediately.”

Qin Zheng snapped out of his trance and looked down at his hands, now dried with blood, a wave of pain crashing through him.

But he knew staying here was pointless.

The guest courtyard had been turned inside out—if they hadn’t found anyone by now, then there simply was no one to find.

Suppressing the tight ache in his chest, he glared coldly at Prince An. “If anything happens to Yun’er, I won’t let the An Prince Manor off the hook!”

With that, he stormed off in fury.

Prince An watched Qin Zheng’s retreating figure and muttered irritably, “If it weren’t for his son insisting on changing clothes in the guest courtyard, none of this would’ve happened. And now he has the nerve to blame me? Bad luck!”

Ye Jingchuan had no time or interest in worrying about Qin Muyun’s life or death.

He pulled Prince An aside to a quiet spot and asked, “Your Highness, what exactly happened?”

Prince An had no idea what had actually gone down in the guest courtyard.

“I arranged for eight top fighters, plus the emperor’s four shadow guards. Capturing Ye Chutang should’ve been a sure thing. But then some ‘Ghost Thief’ showed up and wiped out all our people—mine and the emperor’s. And the number of body parts doesn’t even add up.”

Even if someone had been blown to bits, the count of severed limbs was still way off.

Ye Jingchuan frowned. “The ‘Ghost Thief’ is ruthless and vanishes without a trace. It’s not surprising the remains don’t match up. What I want to know is—how did Your Highness get entangled with the ‘Ghost Thief’? And what do we do now?”

“The Court of Judicial Review and the Capital Magistrate have already taken over the case. Let them investigate. I don’t even know who the ‘Ghost Thief’ is—how could I have provoked him?”

Then, as if remembering something, he added,
“Right—he went to see An Zhen and asked her a very strange question.”

Ye Jingchuan asked, “What was it?”

“He asked her why the emperor was so insistent on bestowing a marriage between Qi Yanzhou and your daughter.”

“Why would the ‘Ghost Thief’ care about that? Could he be one of Prince Chen’s people?”

As soon as those words were out, Prince An’s eyes lit up like he’d been struck with sudden clarity.

“Whether he is or isn’t, he has to be!”

The emperor’s shadow guards had been killed—he needed someone to take the fall. Qi Yanzhou was the perfect scapegoat.

Ye Jingchuan had no objections. He asked again, “You failed to complete the mission the emperor entrusted to you, and now the person is missing too. What are you planning to do?”

“Just blame it on the ‘Ghost Thief’. Even the emperor’s elites couldn’t catch him—what could I possibly do?”

“Minister Ye, the manor’s been destroyed. I’ve got a million things to handle, so I won’t be seeing you out.”

Ye Jingchuan, overwhelmed and disoriented, left without another word.

Prince An suddenly remembered how the ‘Ghost Thief’ always cleaned out valuables whenever he struck and rushed to the stables.

He looked into the secret chamber—completely empty. He nearly fainted.

Losing the valuables was one thing, but if the emperor caught wind of it, he might grow suspicious.

He stomped on the solid floor, feeling slightly relieved. “Thank goodness I stashed the military register underground. If that full ‘three-piece set’ had fallen into the Ghost Thief’s hands, the fate of the An Prince Manor would be completely in his grasp!”

After hesitating for a while, he decided not to move the military register for now.

Leaving the stables, he ordered his steward to prepare a carriage for the palace.

The plan to trap Qi Yanzhou and Ye Chutang had failed, the shadow guards were wiped out—he needed to give the emperor an explanation.

—

The Palace

The emperor had already learned what had happened at the An Prince Manor.

Right now, he hated the Ghost Thief to the bone—but he was also terrified of him.

He feared the Ghost Thief might one day kill him and steal the throne.

He was so shaken that even the threat Qi Yanzhou posed didn’t seem quite as urgent anymore—
Until Prince An said the Ghost Thief might be working for Prince Chen.

“Prince An, are you sure?”

“Your Majesty, I don’t have concrete evidence, but my suspicions aren’t baseless.”

Prince An then told him about the Ghost Thief questioning An Zhen about the imperial marriage.

“Your Majesty, the Ghost Thief has been stealing silver and grain—he’s preparing for war. If he finds out you’re planning to move against Prince Chen’s household, the consequences will be unimaginable!”

The emperor, recalling how the Ghost Thief single-handedly destroyed the entire An Prince Manor in broad daylight, was on edge.

A person capable of slipping in and out of the palace unnoticed—he could take the emperor’s head anytime he wished.

“Prince An, I’m entrusting you with the task of luring the Ghost Thief into a trap. If you fail again, I won’t show any brotherly mercy. You’ll be punished accordingly.”

“I obey, Your Majesty.”

Though Prince An spoke respectfully, inwardly he rolled his eyes hard: Coward!

If Father had chosen me to be emperor back then, the Northern Chen Empire wouldn’t be declining like this!

The emperor gave one more order:
“Keep a close eye on Prince Chen’s manor, the Grand Tutor’s residence, and the Ministry of Rites. The moment you hear any news about those three, report it to me immediately.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

After agreeing, Prince An added, “Your Majesty, the An Prince Manor was burned to the ground. I’d like to rebuild it—but all the silver was stolen.”

The emperor had a rough idea how much that would cost.

He had his personal eunuch fetch two silver notes from the treasury and handed them to Prince An.

“My private vault was also robbed—I can only give you this much.”

“Many thanks, Your Majesty!”

Prince An bowed deeply and left the palace holding the two banknotes—barely enough to cover anything.

On the way home, he cursed nonstop under his breath.

Suddenly, the carriage jolted violently as it passed a quiet alley—the wheel got stuck.

The coachman looked terrified.
“This road’s always been smooth. How did the flagstones suddenly crack?”

Prince An’s heart immediately dropped.

He thought back to when he’d taken guards to the guest courtyard—how the ground had surged beneath their feet like it was alive, blocking their way.

Realizing it was the Ghost Thief again, he shouted, “Go! Now!”

The coachman could hear the urgency in his tone and whipped the reins hard.

The horses neighed in pain and galloped, but the carriage didn’t budge an inch.

Crack! “Hyah!”

The horses, now frantic, pulled with all their might—but the carriage still wouldn’t move.

Then the coachman felt a sharp pain in his back, like being pricked by a needle.

He barely lifted his hand before his eyes rolled back and he collapsed from the carriage.

The curtain suddenly lifted—and a disguised Ye Chutang climbed in.

Prince An had heard his daughter describe the Ghost Thief’s appearance before. The moment he saw the person’s face, he recognized him.

“You… you…”

Ye Chutang pressed a sharp dagger to his trembling lips.

“Shh, quiet. I only have one question. Why does the emperor insist on marrying Ye Chutang to Qi Yanzhou? Give the right answer and you walk free. Give the wrong one… and you’ll be reporting to the underworld.”

Caught between survival and loyalty, Prince An didn’t hesitate for a second.

“The emperor wants to use Prince Chen’s wedding to frame him for treason and conspiracy, and then wipe out the entire Qi family!”