Within the imperial palace, there were twelve directorates, four offices, and eight bureaus, collectively known as the Twenty-Four Offices of the Inner Court.
Among these, the Directorate of Ceremonial ranked first, overseen by the Chief Eunuch, who held nearly all the power of the Inner Court in his hands.
Emperor Ning, devoted to his cultivation, had not attended court or handled state affairs for many years.
Even the memorials from the outer court officials had to be reviewed and approved by the Directorate of Ceremonial.
Because the Chief Eunuch managed everything so efficiently, Emperor Ning granted him a building and named it "Jiefan" (解烦), meaning "to dispel worries," in recognition of the Directorate's contributions.
At noon, Wu Xiu respectfully bowed and retreated from the shadow of the building.
Only when the sunlight fell on him did the red python embroidered on his robe regain its vividness.
He let out a slow breath, straightened up, and strode toward the pigeon house.
Along the way, all the eunuchs knelt and saluted from afar upon seeing his python robe, but Wu Xiu didn’t even glance at them.
Arriving at the pigeon house, he dismissed the young eunuch cleaning the pigeon cages and sat at a desk to write a note.
After carefully reviewing it to ensure the handwriting and meaning were correct, he rolled it into a thin bamboo tube.
Wu Xiu approached the cage labeled "Luocheng" and took out a pigeon.
He meticulously tied the bamboo tube to the pigeon's leg and released it into the sky outside.
Watching the pigeon fly away, he seemed lost in thought.
A young eunuch hurried over and said, "Father, His Majesty summons you. It seems the Taoist priest from Huangshan, Disciple Zi, has arrived with his senior disciple, Zhang Li."
Wu Xiu nodded.
"Understood."
He watched the pigeon circle the imperial city before flying south.
"How free the birds in the sky are," he murmured.
The young eunuch quickly laughed nervously, "Father, why envy a bird? When you rise to power, you’ll be second only to the Emperor, far freer than any bird."
Wu Xiu glanced at him, his calm gaze sending a shiver down the young eunuch’s spine.
"Father, I misspoke."
"Next time you make such a mistake, you’ll be sent to the Firewood Bureau to chop wood," Wu Xiu said as he lifted his robe and stepped over the threshold, heading swiftly toward the Renshou Palace in the Western Garden.
Meanwhile, the gray pigeon flew out of the vast Forbidden City, past the capital region, through clouds and plains, over rivers and mountains.
On the first night, it rested at a pigeon station in Hebi.
On the second day, it flew straight south, finally arriving at a small courtyard in Luocheng on the third morning.
In the courtyard, a black-clad spy stood before a sand table depicting the terrain of the Liu family’s estate and ancestral graves.
Seeing the pigeon circling above, Yun Yang raised his hand with a handful of corn, and the pigeon landed in his palm.
"Jiao Tu! A letter from the capital," Yun Yang called out.
Jiao Tu responded from inside, "Open it quickly and see what the Chief Eunuch has to say."
Yun Yang broke the seal and took out the letter.
"It’s Wu Xiu relaying the message again. I recognize his handwriting... He says we can decide whether to send the Jiefan Guards to exhume the body for inspection."
Jiao Tu leaned against the doorframe.
"This is such a headache. If something goes wrong, we’ll be the scapegoats. What should we do? Should we proceed?"
"The Chief Eunuch didn’t stop us, which means he wants us to act. If we succeed, it’ll be a great achievement. If we fail... at the very least, we’ll be exiled to Lingnan," Yun Yang mused in the courtyard.
Jiao Tu rolled his eyes.
"There are at least eight hundred prisoners in Lingnan that we’ve sent there. If we end up there, do you think we’ll have a good time?"
"What’s there to fear? We’re both officials," Yun Yang said.
"There are dozens of officials we’ve exiled to Lingnan!"
"But their families are still in our hands. They won’t dare cause trouble. With our relationship with the Chief Eunuch, even if we’re exiled, we won’t suffer... Wait, why are we talking as if we’re definitely going to be exiled? We’re not going to fail this time. The Liu family is just waiting to be raided and punished!" Yun Yang said cheerfully.
Jiao Tu tilted her head to look at the note.
"What else did the Chief Eunuch say?"
Yun Yang looked down at the note again, and his expression changed.
"Wu Xiu wants us to hand over information about the masked man from the Liu estate!"
"What? Lin Chaoqing must have complained! These people from the Judicial Office are always complaining!" Jiao Tu said angrily. "... But if Chen Ji could become a spy, he could still help us achieve merit. Let’s just transfer him to our team."
Yun Yang shook his head.
"No... What kind of person do you think Chen Ji is?"
Jiao Tu thought for a moment. "... When he’s thinking and not speaking, he seems quite capable."
"That’s not what I mean!" Yun Yang frowned.
"That night at the Zhou estate, he killed the Zhou family’s steward to save his own life. I could tell he wasn’t experienced then; there was hesitation in his eyes. But now, just a few days later, he can calmly watch me hang someone in the inner prison."
Yun Yang looked at Jiao Tu seriously.
"Jiao Tu, he’s a vengeful person. He won’t forget how we treated him initially. The Chief Eunuch likes clever and ruthless people like him. If he ever rises above us, we’re done for."
Jiao Tu thought for a moment.
"Then should we kill him? The Liu family case doesn’t need him anymore. But if the Chief Eunuch finds out, he’ll investigate. Whether it’s Xuan She or Jin Zhu investigating, we won’t be able to hide it."
Yun Yang shook his head.
"That’s why we can’t do it ourselves. We need to use someone else’s hand to kill him."
"What should we do now?"
"You take the royal command flag to mobilize the Jiefan Guards. I’ll find someone else to do the deed. Success or failure will be decided today."
The morning in Luocheng was crisp and clear.
It was the ninth day of the ninth month, an auspicious day for travel, weddings, prayers, healing, and killing.
...
At the Taiping Medical Hall, the three brothers leaned against the entrance, watching the bustling street.
The Double Ninth Festival was approaching, and wealthy families had invited Buddhist statues to parade through the streets to ward off evil spirits.
Rich merchants were handing out "Double Ninth cakes" door to door.
Taverns displayed signs for chrysanthemum wine, while vendors roamed the streets selling sachets, offering a free sprig of dogwood with each purchase.
Chen Ji sighed, "The Double Ninth Festival is so lively."
In his former hometown, the festive atmosphere had faded.
Firecrackers were banned during the Spring Festival, and the Dragon Boat Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival had become commercialized.
Wait, Chen Ji suddenly asked, "How did the Double Ninth Festival come about?"
Liu Quxing casually replied, "You don’t know? During the Eastern Han Dynasty, a plague demon terrorized Runan in Yuzhou. A man named Huan Jing sought out the immortal Fei Changfang for help. Fei Changfang gave Huan Jing a jug of chrysanthemum wine and a sprig of dogwood, instructing him to take his family to high ground on the ninth day of the ninth month to avoid disaster. After the ninth, Huan Jing and his family returned to find their livestock dead, but they had survived."
Chen Ji was stunned.
In his hometown, the origin of the Double Ninth Festival was the same—the same Eastern Han Dynasty, the same Fei Changfang and Huan Jing.
If the same moon and sun hung in the sky, he could accept that.
But even the legends were identical.
He couldn’t help but wonder: Why? What was the connection between these two worlds?
As he pondered, he saw Chunhua from Wanxing Garden approaching with two strong servants, carrying four food boxes.
She Dengke’s eyes lit up.
"Chunhua, what brings you here?"
Chunhua, wearing a light green dress embroidered with a golden chrysanthemum, smiled and said, "It’s the Double Ninth Festival. My mistress sent me to deliver some pastries to the medical hall."
Liu Quxing quickly took the boxes from the servants.
"Chunhua, you’re too kind. The last time we had Wanxing Garden’s pastries was during the Lantern Festival. I still remember them."
Chunhua then turned to Chen Ji with a smile.
"My mistress has some free time today and would like to invite the doctors from your medical hall for tea and conversation. What do you think?"
She Dengke quickly said, "Great!"
But at that moment, Chen Ji noticed Wu Yun, the black cat, panting on the roof across the street.
Wu Yun meowed, and only Chen Ji understood: "Someone told Consort Jing that you’re the masked man from the Liu estate. She plans to kill you!"
Chen Ji’s heart sank, and a sense of impending danger washed over him.
Who had revealed his identity to Consort Jing? It had to be Yun Yang and Jiao Tu, as they were the only ones who knew his true identity.
Was it because the Liu family case was about to catch a big fish, and they no longer needed him, planning to burn bridges after crossing the river?
Chen Ji calmly turned to Chunhua and asked with a smile, "Chunhua, why is Consort Jing inviting us?"
Chunhua explained, "Thanks to your help in identifying that cup, my mistress didn’t have to keep using it. She’s been wanting to thank you, but she’s been busy until today."
But Chen Ji wasn’t really asking Chunhua; he was asking Wu Yun: Why does Consort Jing want to kill me?
Wu Yun meowed again: "Consort Jing is from the Liu family. Liu Shiyu is the only son of her elder sister. A few days ago, she left the palace to attend the funeral of the Liu family’s patriarch."
So the powerful figure in the palace connected to the Jing Dynasty’s military intelligence wasn’t Consort Yun—it was Consort Jing!
But if Consort Jing was that powerful figure, why had she wanted to kill him earlier? Didn’t she know he was a spy for the Jing Dynasty?
Strange, very strange!
Chunhua waved her hand in front of Chen Ji’s face.
"Chen Ji? What are you thinking about?"
Chen Ji snapped out of it and smiled at Chunhua.
"Sorry, today’s the Double Ninth Festival, and our master has allowed us to go home to celebrate. Please convey my apologies to Consort Jing. I’ll definitely visit next time."
Without waiting for their reactions, he turned and left.
Consort Jing’s revenge wouldn’t end here.
If she failed this time, she’d try again.
Chen Ji didn’t know if he could escape next time, but he knew he only needed one chance to take his revenge.
He muttered softly, "I wonder if there’s still time..."
(End of Chapter)