Prince Bei Jing of the Red Chamber, starting from saving Qin Keqing

Wang Xifeng's carriage had barely left the gates of the Prince's Mansion when dusk had completely fallen, and the mansion gradually returned to tranquility.

Shui Rong had already taken off her outer robe and was preparing to return to her inner room to rest. After days of hard work and the mental strain of treating Wang Xifeng's health last night, she felt a bit tired in her shoulders.

But before he could lie down for even a moment, he heard a commotion of people and horses moving around outside the mansion. The crisp sound of armor plates clashing, the deep sound of horses' hooves rolling over the bluestone slabs, mixed with the low shouts of the guards, created a huge disturbance that kept him from having a moment's peace.

He frowned slightly, got up, put on a dark blue satin outer robe, casually tied a jade belt, and stepped out of the inner room, heading towards the gate of the mansion.

The lanterns under the eaves swayed gently in the night breeze, adding a touch of coldness to his noble aura.

"What's going on?" Shui Rong spoke, his voice not loud, but carrying an inherent authority that instantly quelled the surrounding chaos. "How could so many soldiers be mobilized in the heart of the capital?"

Upon hearing the commotion, Zhao Zhong, who was guarding the inner side of the mansion gate, immediately stepped forward, bowed, and replied with a grave expression: "Your Majesty, another case of a missing child has occurred. This time... this time, the abducted child is Lord Zhou's eldest daughter. Lord Li Yanling was furious upon learning of this and immediately went to the palace to report to His Majesty. His Majesty issued an imperial edict, not only increasing the number of soldiers on guard inside and outside the capital but also ordering all officers and soldiers to be fully armored and on high alert to prevent any unforeseen events."

Upon hearing this, Shui Rong slowly nodded, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.

His fingertips unconsciously traced the hem of his robe as he said in a deep voice, "Lord Zhou's daughter... wasn't Zhen Yinglian from the Dream of the Red Chamber also abducted in the same way?"

When the topic turned to abducted children, his tone became tinged with sorrow and hatred. He had always deeply abhorred human traffickers, who preyed on young children, destroying countless families. "Is that all Li Yanling did?" he pressed, his tone inquisitive.

"My lord, in addition to that, I have also heard that when King Zhongshun left the city last time, it was not to inspect the border defenses, but actually to investigate the case of the missing child." Zhao Zhong lowered his voice and added carefully, afraid of missing any details.

Upon hearing this, a look of understanding flashed in Shui Rong's eyes, and a cold smile curled at the corner of her lips: "So that's why... after the carriage incident that day, he didn't take a single penny of any other power, but insisted on taking away my part of the patrol and investigation power around the capital.

He knew perfectly well that Prince Zhongshun was always ambitious and eager for glory, and that he must be trying to take credit for such an important case.

After a moment's thought, Shui Rong raised his eyes and ordered, "Go and call Old Wu over. Tell him to bring five hundred private soldiers and immediately go to Lord Li's residence to await orders and assist in the investigation of this case."

He paused, then added sternly, "Tell Lao Wu that this is the capital, not Liaodong, where he's stationed year-round. Everything must be done according to Li Yanling's arrangements. Lord Li is a veteran general, experienced in many affairs, and knows his place. Tell Lao Wu to be extremely careful with his words and actions, and not to be greedy for merit or act rashly, lest he ruin everything. Understand?"

"Your servant obeys!" Zhao Zhong bowed and accepted the order without the slightest negligence, then quickly turned around to arrange the matters.

The sounds of guards moving about and the clanging of armor plates outside the mansion continued to disturb people's peace of mind.

Shui Rong stood under the eaves, gazing at the flickering lights in the night, feeling no sleepiness whatsoever.

He turned and went back to his study. On the desk were the documents he hadn't finished reading yesterday, and the files from the Imperial Clan Court and the memorials from the Hanlin Academy were piled up to the side. After Wang Xifeng left, he forced himself to finish most of them despite his fatigue, and now the bloodshot eyes were even more obvious.

He pulled up a grand chair and sat down, casually picking up a book to read, but his mind couldn't settle down. One moment he saw Wang Xifeng's staggering figure as she left, the next he saw the tragic scene of a child being abducted, or the determined look on Prince Zhongshun's face.

As the candlelight flickered, the speed at which the pages were turned gradually slowed down. The exhaustion of the past few days and the weariness of her mind eventually overwhelmed her forced wakefulness. Before she knew it, Shui Rong had fallen into a deep sleep on the table, still clutching the unfinished book in her hand, her breathing gradually becoming even.

After arranging the private soldiers' journey, Zhao Zhong carefully inspected the security inside and outside the Prince's Mansion, confirming that the secret guards and attendants were all performing their duties, and only then did he feel a little relieved.

He strolled toward the study, intending to report to Shui Rong that everything was arranged properly, but found that the candle in the study was still lit, and his own prince was fast asleep on the desk, his hair at his temples slightly disheveled, and there was still a hint of weariness between his brows.

Zhao Zhong tiptoed in, and upon seeing the scene, he couldn't help but sigh softly, muttering to himself, "My lord, sleeping like this on the table, how can he not catch a cold?"

He had followed the old prince and princess for more than ten years, watching Shui Rong grow up. He was no longer just a simple master and servant, but had become more like a family member to him.

He dared not disturb Shui Rong, so he quietly retreated outside the door and summoned two old women who had watched Shui Rong grow up since childhood. These two old women were loyal and upright women who had stayed by the side of the old princess before her death, and were respected by everyone in the mansion.

"Please, both of you gentlemen, carefully help the Prince back to his inner room to rest, and don't wake him," Zhao Zhong instructed in a low voice.

He was always cautious. Although there were many maids in the mansion, people's hearts were hidden behind their faces. No one knew what they were thinking, whether they were good or bad. Only these two old women were trustworthy to him.

The two maids nodded in agreement and tiptoed into the study. They carefully helped Shui Rong up, supporting him on either side with gentle movements, as if afraid of disturbing the sleeping prince.

Shui Rong was fast asleep. Even when helped up, she only unconsciously furrowed her brow and did not wake up. After Shui Rong was settled on the couch in the inner room and covered with a light quilt, the two nannies quietly withdrew, nodded to Zhao Zhong, and then left quietly.

Zhao Zhong carefully inspected the doors and windows of the inner room, arranged for two guards to lie in ambush outside the door to ensure that the prince could sleep peacefully, and then returned to his own residence with peace of mind and quietly went to sleep.

The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, a series of light footsteps could be heard outside the Prince's Mansion.

Zhao Zhong had already gotten up. Hearing the commotion, he hurriedly went out to greet them. He saw that it was Li Fuquan, the chief eunuch of the palace, followed by two junior eunuchs. He quickly bowed and said, "This servant Zhao Zhong greets Eunuch Li."

Li Fuquan waved his hand, a somewhat formulaic smile on his face, and said in a low voice, "Steward Zhao, there's no need for such formality. Please inform His Majesty after the Prince wakes up that His Majesty has issued an edict ordering the Prince to go to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to see the Emperor immediately."

At this point, he paused deliberately, lowered his voice even further, and whispered a few words into Zhao Zhong's ear. The volume was so low that even the guards standing nearby couldn't hear it, let alone Shui Rong, who had just been awakened by the noise in the inner room.

As Shui Rong walked out wearing his outer robe, he happened to hear Zhao Zhong respectfully reply, "This servant has remembered. Respectfully seeing you off, Eunuch."

He frowned slightly and stepped forward to ask, "My brother ordered me to go to the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Is there anything else you have to say?" Although he hadn't heard the contents of Li Fuquan's last whisper, he had noticed something amiss.

Zhao Zhong turned around, his expression calm, and replied slowly, "Your Majesty, His Majesty has decreed that you bring those two items with you when you enter the palace."

Upon hearing this, Shui Rong smiled helplessly and shook his head—he already had a pretty good idea of ​​what it was about; it was nothing more than those glass silk stockings and menstrual pads.

"Understood. Go and prepare. I will enter the palace immediately after I have finished washing up."

"Yes, Master." Zhao Zhong bowed and replied, but was about to turn around when Shui Rong called him back.

"Wait a minute." Shui Rong seemed to suddenly remember something and added, "Bring along those little gadgets I developed a few days ago as well."

"Yes, sir." Zhao Zhong replied, though he had some doubts, he did not ask any further questions and quickly turned to prepare the items needed to enter the palace.

Shui Rong stood under the eaves, gazing at the pale dawn breaking on the horizon. A thoughtful look flashed in his eyes. It was unlikely that he would be summoned so casually over the matter of the missing child. Could it be that envoys from Jiaozhi and other countries were arriving soon? Judging by the dates, the time for their tribute mission was fast approaching.