Chapter Ten: The Scapegoat Princess Sentenced to Death (10)

After some explanation, the remaining three eunuchs finally gave up their hesitations and firmly committed to discussing with Zhang Huai how to escape the Prince Lu residence. The conclusion of their discussion was that the four of them must split up immediately.

One was to return to the Fengxiang Palace to retrieve their identity tallies and official seals. To return to the capital to deliver the imperial decree, one didn't strictly need eunuch attire—that could be replaced with money later—but without an identity tally, they could not travel along the official roads or stay at post stations. They might even be detained at checkpoints, unable to prove their identities; the tally served as a high-level travel permit. Without the official seal, they would not be able to enter the Imperial Palace upon reaching the capital; they wouldn't even make it past the first gate, let alone deliver the decree.

Before being summoned, they had no idea such a crisis would occur, so they hadn't brought these items with them. Naturally, someone had to sneak back to retrieve them. Of course, it would be even better if they could bring back their eunuch uniforms and other necessities as well. This was the most critical task for their escape, so Zhang Huai decided to handle it himself; he didn't trust anyone else with such an important matter.

As for the other three, Zhang Huai arranged for one to stay behind to keep watch and cover their tracks. Another was tasked with taking half of their remaining silver to find a kitchen procurement officer—someone who likely didn't know about the Prince’s plight but might be familiar with the hidden paths out of the residence—to inquire about a way to slip out. The final eunuch was assigned to loiter near the Undying Hall to monitor the movement of people in and out. When the monks and Taoists invited by Steward Dong arrived to treat the Prince, that would be their best opportunity to escape; if they missed it, leaving would be impossible.

Meanwhile, Ding Shui’s plan to find the Prince’s confidants and use them to locate the remains of the original owner’s associates was not going well. After searching the entire residence, Ding Shui could not find any of the Prince’s confidants—at least, none of those who appeared in the original owner's memories. In the end, she had to settle for invading the mind of a high-ranking guard captain.

When Ding Shui tried to find out where the Prince's confidants had gone, she was left speechless. The situation was as grim as the court of Emperor Wu of Han in his final years, plagued by a "swine plague" of purges: those who helped the Crown Prince were killed, and those who helped Emperor Wu oppose the Crown Prince were later executed as well. Here, the confidants who helped the original owner oppose the Prince had been killed by the Prince, while those who helped the Prince commit his evils had been executed by the Emperor Guangwu. It was truly a case where the primary culprit remained unscathed, while everyone else was wiped out. No wonder the original owner didn't recognize many people in the residence; the staff had been replaced so thoroughly. It was a miserable fate: if they didn't obey the Prince, they were killed by him, and if they did, they were executed by his father afterward.

In short, they were destined to die either way. Both father and son were truly wicked.

"Where am I supposed to find them now? Peering into the Prince's memories is useless; he wouldn't concern himself with such trivial matters, nor would he know. It seems unlikely I'll get direct information. I have no choice but to use the original owner's memories to exhaustively check the memories of those in the residence who weren't killed. Maybe there will be some clues."

Many of the Prince’s confidants, including the former residence steward, had been executed by the Emperor’s men, but that didn't mean everyone in the Prince’s residence had been replaced. There were still many survivors. After all, the Prince was still alive, so the entire residence didn't need to be buried with him. Some minor figures—those deemed unimportant—were still alive: the chamber pot cleaners, the gardeners, the kitchen staff, and the handymen. Who held the information and who didn't, Ding Shui couldn't tell. She could only use the brute-force method of checking them one by one.

And so, Ding Shui diligently searched for the old staff based on the original owner’s memories, examining them one by one in hopes of finding a lead. While she was busy, the Prince’s residence was in a state of chaos. News about the Prince spread rapidly; after all, Steward Dong only forbade spreading the news outside the residence, but talking to colleagues didn't count as "outside," did it? Everyone was part of the residence, after all.

"Have you heard? His Highness the Prince is possessed by evil spirits; his entire body is covered in ghost-face sores."
"Isn't he haunted by the vengeful spirit of the Princess?"
"That's not what I heard. I heard the Prince turned into a pig because someone cursed him with black magic."
"Don't talk nonsense, how could he turn into a pig?"
"Alas, I wish we could find a way to make a mistake and be reassigned, or even sent to work on the residence's farm. Serving in this house feels so dangerous."
"It's over. The Prince is truly in trouble. I just tried to go out to buy some things, but several exits are blocked. They said no one is allowed to leave. I tried to plead with them, and they nearly killed me on the spot."
"Pleading is useless. They were only transferred here less than a month ago. Without silver, no one cares about you!"

"Forget it, I'm not in a hurry anyway."
"Let me tell you, the Prince is definitely possessed. I can't say who told me, but she serves inside the Undying Hall. The Prince first rolled on the ground in pain, tearing his clothes and clawing at his body. Then, blue, purple, and black spots suddenly covered him. Immediately after, his tongue swelled up, blocking his mouth so he couldn't speak, and both his hands turned into pig trotters. One was even larger than the other. Steward Dong and Physician Wang were both there. Physician Wang tried to use acupuncture on the Prince, but the Prince slapped him. That’s right, the Prince’s tongue and hands only changed after he hit the physician."
"Could it have been Physician Wang's doing?"
"Give it a rest, how could Physician Wang have such power?"
"Could the Prince be possessed by a demon? A wild boar demon? Didn't the Prince often use the heart blood of tigers and leopards when refining pills? Tigers and leopards are hard to hunt, so sometimes he used the heart blood of wild boars as a temporary substitute, didn't he?"
"I think that's true..."
"No wonder they sent people to invite monks and Taoists."
"It’s over, it’s over! I just noticed a pig is missing from the kitchen—a pig that had just been slaughtered. Could these two things be related?"
"What? A pig went missing from the kitchen?"
"Should we tell Steward Dong?"
"How could there be such a coincidence? A pig goes missing, and at the same time, the Prince's hands turn into pig trotters. There must be a connection! Tell Steward Dong quickly, or we’ll never be able to clear our names if we're investigated."
"Then who's going?"
"Whoever found out goes. We aren't from the kitchen."