Chapter 353: Third Prince Pei Si

Gu Rongjin had tried for a long time, but could not figure out what was special about the utterly ordinary Second Prince.

He was a man who wouldn't draw a second glance in a crowd, yet dressed extravagantly.

"The more unremarkable a person is, the more likely they hide something." Mu Yuanzhi said.

"We shouldn't delay; I'll go investigate him right away."

"He is a prince, you need to be careful." Mu Yuanzhi reminded.

"Don't worry, I'm an expert at covert investigation!"

"Wait, what about the Third Prince? What kind of person is he?" Mu Yuanzhi suddenly called out to Gu Rongjin, asking.

"Third Prince? The Third Prince is much smarter, steady in demeanor, though his temperament isn't great; His Majesty's attitude toward him is average, and he has an eye ailment, wearing an eyepatch over his right eye, possibly due to illness, making him hard to get along with." After saying that, Gu Rongjin paused, then continued: "In that case, this Third Prince is clearly more suspicious."

"Just casually investigate him; anyway, they all live in the palace."

"I'll follow you; my wife's intuition is always spot-on."

Gu Rongjin held a token allowing unrestricted entry to the palace gates, so he could go straight in without needing to report.

By then it had been deep into the night, convenient for his movements.

The Third Prince resided in Changle Palace, where Pei Yunxi used to live.

Changle Palace was originally Mu Yuanzhi's residence, later became Pei Yunxi's, and Pei Yunxi's fate destined to cast a pall over this palace, which is actually inauspicious.

The new emperor had originally planned to rebuild or at least temporarily close it, but the Third Prince insisted on moving in, saying he liked the place.

To reach the Second Prince's palace, one must pass through Changle Palace, so Gu Rongjin decided to first stake out Changle Palace.

Much had changed here; the flowers and plants once grown were completely renewed, both the palace's exterior and interior had been renovated, and Gu Rongjin felt a bit dazed at first glance.

He silently concealed himself at the palace's high point, looking down below.

The guards were lax, and a few palace maids were slacking off chatting.

Gu Rongjin tiptoed to the sleeping quarters; the Third Prince wasn't there, so he wandered to the study and finally found someone.

From his angle he could perfectly spy on what book the person in the study was reading.

This Third Prince's skill must be lacking; he hadn't noticed being spied on from above for so long.

What was he reading?

Gu Rongjin's eyesight was also excellent; he could clearly see the Third Prince, with his back turned, reading the 《Left Capital Annals》!

Nice, you brothers all love reading the 《Left Capital Annals》, right?

Is this your family's inherited text?

This makes the Third Prince seem even more suspicious.

"Who goes there?!"

The Third Prince jerked his head up, but above his head was an intact roof—no person, not even a fly.

Gu Rongjin, having dodged in time, thought the Third Prince wasn't that slow-witted.

Gu Rongjin pondered, then decided to enter openly.

After a quarter hour, he appeared in Changle Palace under the pretense of a visit.

"Heir Apparent Jin, what brings you here at this late hour?" Third Prince Pei Si had already changed into his regular princely attire, dignified and noble; his left eye, uncovered by the eyepatch, examined Gu Rongjin with an inquisitive gaze. He crossed his arms, standing high and low before the main seat, neither letting Gu Rongjin sit nor sitting himself.

Gu Rongjin smiled: "Your Highness also knows that I have been tirelessly investigating cases lately; there are some things I don't understand and wish to discuss with you."

"I'm afraid I can't be of much help to you, Heir Apparent, or perhaps you came here just to reminisce about Changle Palace?" Pei Si asked mockingly.

"Changle Palace indeed has many places worth my nostalgia, after all, it's where my wife once lived." Gu Rongjin nodded in agreement.

"Really? I thought you were missing Pei Yunxi."

Faced with such a blunt provocation, Gu Rongjin merely smiled; he hadn't come to argue, nor did he have any interest in quarreling over this trivial matter with someone he barely knew.

"Your Highness, why beat around the bush?" Gu Rongjin said, "I've come simply to ask whether you keep any dead warriors."

Upon hearing this, Pei Si burst out laughing: "I've heard that Heir Apparent Jin is the head of the previous dynasty's secret agency, but your approach turns out to be so reckless."

His laughter was especially exaggerated, making him look like a villain, Gu Rongjin thought.

Yet his expression and gaze showed no momentary change that could not be concealed.

Either he was innocent, or his psychological fortitude was extremely strong.

Thus Gu Rongjin's probing attempt outright failed.

During the lull in his conversation with Pei Si, he had already scanned every corner of the side hall, but wanting to see more, he proposed to tour Changle Palace.

Gu Rongjin had prepared for rejection, planning to wait until everyone slept to sneak in, but he heard Pei Si say yes, and then generously escorted him around his own sleeping palace.

Either this person really did nothing, or he was so arrogant as to believe he wouldn't capsize.

Since he could look, Gu Rongjin wasn't polite and examined everything.

"Heir Apparent Jin is a prominent figure before the Father Emperor; you wish to inspect this prince's sleeping quarters, the prince naturally has no need to make excuses, lest it arouse the Father Emperor's suspicion, right? Elder brother… no, the collateral commoner serves as a prior lesson." Pei Si laughed.

"What Your Highness says makes sense, after all, it's not just me who suspects you." Gu Rongjin said half-jokingly.

"Oh? Who else?" Pei Si asked.

Gu Rongjin just smiled and said nothing; he had also examined the entire sleeping palace thoroughly and could leave.

Before leaving, he stepped back and glanced at the eyepatch Pei Si had placed on the desk, not meant for replacement; at first glance it seemed unremarkable, just black, but if the light shifted, a faint cross could be seen.

Of course, it might just be a crease.

"Is Heir Apparent Jin curious about this prince's eyepatch?" Pei Si asked.

"Just curious about the material; it's quite good—next time I commission gloves, I could add it as an option." Gu Rongjin said offhand.

Next came infiltrating the Second Prince's sleeping palace.

After dawn, Gu Rongjin returned to his residence; he was utterly exhausted, lying down to sleep for two hours before waking.

Mu Yuanzhi had already prepared a calming and invigorating decoction for him to drink, saying, "You too, don't overdo it; your health matters."

"It's my wife who hurts me." Gu Rongjin cooed, embracing Mu Yuanzhi, "I've been tossing and turning all night; my mind is a bit foggy, but I'm slowly reviewing things in my head."

At this time the steward came and said that Qi Shihuai had captured several suspicious people; upon interrogation, these seemingly unrelated individuals each had a tattoo of a cross‑cross symbol on their arms.

"Cross‑cross?" Gu Rongjin immediately thought of Pei Si's eyepatch!

"Did General Qi say anything else?" Gu Rongjin asked the steward.

The steward shook his head. "General Qi merely entrusted this old servant to convey this much."