# 108: The Forest Dweller (IX)

◎Retrospection◎

After parting ways with Ye Liuchun that day, Qu You privately discussed a few things with Zhou Tan and sent people to investigate the trusted advisor of Song Shiyan from years ago. To her surprise, this person’s identity was extremely secretive—aside from the Crown Prince himself, very few had access to him.

He had always moved alone within the Crown Prince’s residence, his face hidden behind a mask. After leaving the residence, he disappeared into the crowd, adopting an unknown identity that made him impossible to trace.

Qu You investigated for several days but found nothing beyond the name “Jing An.”

She even personally visited the Ministry of Justice, hoping to find relevant criminal cases or records. However, this advisor likely used “Jing An” as an alias, so naturally, she found nothing.

Frustrated, Qu You set aside her books and went to the back hall of the Ministry of Justice to drink tea. Li Hongyu was dozing behind a screen, startled awake by her arrival. Initially overjoyed to greet her casually, he quickly realized she wasn’t his usual “brother” but Lady Zhou, wife of Zhou Tan. Embarrassed, he jumped up, stammering, “My lady, forgive my rudeness!”

Qu You found his reaction amusing and smiled. “No need to be formal, Xiao Li. Treat me as you always have.”

“How could I,” Li Hongyu said, pouring her tea with exaggerated politeness. “May I ask what brings you here today?”

Qu You, still troubled, mentioned her search for the Crown Prince’s advisor. She didn’t expect much since he wouldn’t know the full context. Surprisingly, Li Hongyu fell unusually silent, finally speaking with great seriousness: “Speaking of this...”

He glanced quickly at the main door to ensure it was tightly shut before continuing in a hushed tone. “Lady, do you remember the case where the former Crown Prince killed Su Huai Xu, the father of our current chancellor?”

Qu You’s eyelids twitched. “Of course I remember.”

She wondered why Li Hongyu suddenly brought this up.

“Aren’t you looking for the Crown Prince’s trusted advisor? I think I should remember him. Before the Su case, I was drinking at Fanlou and must have seen them together.”

Qu You’s heart raced. “And then?”

“I was drunk that night,” Li Hongyu admitted sheepishly, scratching his head. “While wandering around looking for a place to relieve myself, I accidentally stumbled somewhere and overheard someone say, ‘Doesn’t His Highness want to know what he said before he died?’ The Crown Prince replied, ‘Just nonsense,’ and the other person said, ‘But it seems he isn’t dead.’ At the time, I was too drunk to understand, thought nothing of it, and left. I passed out somewhere else and woke up at home. My brother told me there had been a murder at Fanlou—that Su Huai Xu had died there.”

Leaning closer, he whispered conspiratorially, “Later, I kept replaying it in my mind. The Su case pinned the blame on some unknown pawn, and everyone felt something was off. But I knew the truth—the Crown Prince and his advisor must have killed Su Huai Xu! I overheard them after the murder while they were discussing their next steps. Their words were confusing—one moment saying he was dead, the next saying maybe not... Hmm, I think the Crown Prince’s advisor isn’t very bright. If you can’t find him, he’s probably already dead somewhere...”

Qu You sucked in a sharp breath, staring at the babbling Li Hongyu.

Perhaps... this was sheer luck and cleverness masquerading as foolishness.

When Song Shiyan drew his sword to kill at Fanlou, his sole focus was to prevent any leaks. He never anticipated that after dismissing everyone Su Huai Xu and he had brought along, no one would be guarding that floor of Fanlou!

In his panic after the murder, Song Shiyan focused solely on conversing with his advisor, failing to hear sounds outside.

Thus, the drunken Li Hongyu accidentally overheard fragments of their conversation before stumbling away and passing out elsewhere. By the time Song Shiyan realized he needed to check the floor, Li Hongyu was long gone, fast asleep, and overlooked entirely.

Unaware of the truth, Li Hongyu assumed he had witnessed the Crown Prince committing murder and kept silent ever since. Only after Song Shiyan’s death did he dare share this with Qu You.

But Qu You understood the meaning behind those words.

The Crown Prince and his advisor were indeed discussing strategies after Su Huai Xu’s death. However, when the advisor asked, “Doesn’t His Highness want to know what he said before dying?” the “he” referred not to Su Huai Xu but to Aguli.

Song Shiyan dared not trust Aguli’s words and likely killed her immediately after murdering Su Huai Xu.

Hence his dismissive response: “Just nonsense.”

When the advisor then said, “It seems he isn’t dead,” the “he” referred neither to Su Huai Xu nor Aguli.

This “he” was the child Aguli had taken—the legitimate son of the Empress!

Qu You and Zhou Tan had speculated about such a person earlier. If someone existed who could make Li Yuanjun willingly become bait, who could they be?

Now, everything clicked.

The legitimate son of the Empress, Li Yuanjun’s cousin, and the rightful heir to the throne.

Aguli’s child hadn’t died. Knowing this, Aguli desperately wanted to meet Song Shiyan to convey the message. This person must have discovered his true identity long ago and gained the trust of both Li Yuanjun and Li Weixin.

Then came ten years of meticulous planning.

He harbored deep hatred for Aguli and Song Shiyan. First, he orchestrated Li Yuanjun’s marriage to Song Shiyan, enabling her to administer undetectable chronic drugs—a necessity given the strict scrutiny of royal diets. Any suspicion might lead to investigations.

Thus, Song Shiyan’s temperament grew increasingly erratic, unnoticed even by himself.

According to the plan, Song Shiyan would gradually descend into madness, conveniently eliminating his brothers along the way.

His reluctance to directly involve Li Wei to testify before Emperor De stemmed from limited leverage—he avoided taking risks without certainty.

So he waited patiently—for Song Chang’s death, Song Shiyan’s ascension, and the alienation of court and army due to his tyranny. Then, with minimal effort, he’d eliminate Song Shiyan, use Li Wei to confirm his identity, and claim the throne as the sole legitimate heir.

But he never expected Zhou Tan to possess an imperial decree designating an alternate heir!

With generals like Yan Fu and executors like Zhou Tan, all his plans crumbled. Even though he sensed Song Shixuan’s existence early on, he could do nothing but watch him ascend the throne.

Yet Song Shixuan was young.

If he could eliminate the emperor’s closest allies—Zhou Tan among the civil officials and Yan Fu among the military—the young emperor’s reign would be unstable.

Sowing discord, targeting the heart—emperors are naturally suspicious.

That day after the flogging at the East Gate, Qu You told Zhou Tan that Luo Jiangting resembled A’Luo.

She expected him to be surprised, but Zhou Tan paused, offering a faint smile. “I know.”

“In fact... the moment His Majesty saw her, he knew she was sent by someone—he just didn’t know who. After Li Yuanjun abducted you to Ting Mountain and you guessed there was someone behind her, His Majesty realized it must be this person who sent Luo Jiangting.”

Qu You straightened, the carriage swaying. “Ah, so you and His Majesty...”

“You guessed correctly,” Zhou Tan murmured. “It was never meant to be hidden from you. Even Shen’s accusations today were orchestrated through Su Chaoci’s deliberate words before court. After much deliberation, we decided that creating distrust between sovereign and minister might lure this person out.”

Qu You gaped, laughing wryly. “Your grand performance is quite... conventional.”

Zhou Tan embraced her, whispering, “As long as it works.”

She initially thought Zhou Tan’s reforms were part of his and the emperor’s scheme, only realizing later that the reforms served multiple purposes.

They spent two days in stubborn silence until the day before Consort Ting summoned her.

Zhou Tan plucked a string of the guqin, saying, “She wants to force me to collude with Xiaoyan, making me act recklessly. The only thing that could make me reckless is you... I suspect she’ll seek you soon. If summoned, don’t go—it’s dangerous.”

Qu You retorted, “The stage is set; how can the actors not perform? Besides, how dangerous can it be? At worst, she’ll starve me to threaten you—but she won’t dare kill me.”

Zhou Tan closed his eyes. “We can’t take risks.”

Qu You plucked a string of the guqin. “Take your own advice first, then expect me to obey.”

Zhou Tan rose, pinning a rose-gold hairpin onto her. Its tip was razor-sharp, akin to a dagger.

Qu You examined herself in the bronze mirror, then glanced at the guqin reflected in it. “Will you play Short and Clear for me?”

Zhou Tan embraced her, biting her neck lightly. “Tomorrow, I’ll play it in the morning.”

“You watched as your husband and Zi Qian grew estranged, even arguing in the study with reckless words, and finally couldn’t bear it, right?” Qu You looked at Bai Ying across from her, her voice bitter. “If I were you, I wouldn’t have been able to endure it either—after all these years...”

Before she could finish, the footsteps heard earlier reached their door. Bai Ying opened it silently. In the dim light, Qu You recognized the woman in the black cloak as the long-missing Li Yuanjun.

Her hair was disheveled and damp, her cheek scarred—likely from the recent explosion. Even escaping through the sealed tunnel hadn’t spared her.

Li Yuanjun seemed panicked, grabbing Bai Ying’s arm. “Brother, they’re here!”

Her gaze shifted to Qu You, filled with complex emotions. Clenching her teeth, she said, “Lady Zhou... you injured yourself deliberately, leaving a trail of blood from the carriage to lead them here so quickly. I hadn’t finished... Brother, you shouldn’t have come!”

Bai Ying turned around. To her surprise, he showed no sign of panic despite hearing everything.

“If I dared to come, I must have contingency plans. Being discovered doesn’t matter now. Anyway... I’ve played my part long enough.”