[Family intrigue] [A double life] [A whirlpool of political schemes] [The mystery of one's origins] [A reversal of the game]
A half-inch of peacock-blue thread hidden in the crack in my mother's skull matches the other half, caught on the gold cloud-patterned clasp of the sash at my legitimate elder sister's waist!
As I knelt in the snow embroidering my sister's wedding dress, the Ninth Prince slipped a secret guard's token into my bloodstained inner garment. “Shen Zhiyi, how much longer are you going to keep pretending?”
Everyone laughs at the Shen family's illegitimate daughter, thinking her lower than dirt. But they don't know:
- Three chests of fake account books I burned are hidden in the secret passage beneath the Eastern Palace.
- The tribute my stepmother kneels to lick is a poisoned corpse I examined last night.
- The imperial pardon token granted by the emperor himself bears my birth father's name.
On my wedding night, I lifted my veil and pressed a dagger to the Ninth Prince's heart.
In a secret room lit by flickering candlelight, the birthmarks on seven female corpses formed a treasure map, while the red cord around his wrist...
was tied to the longevity lock I wore when I was switched at birth!
“How did you become the leader of the secret guards and still manage to deceive your own husband?” He gripped my throat and pressed me against the imperial bed, but shielded the military tally I had hidden beneath me.
Later, the history books recorded: Emperor Jinghe suspended court for three days, all to bring back his secret-guard wife, who had blown up the palace and run away.
