On the seventh day of the third month in the twenty-fifth year of the Jiaqing reign, with the imperial inspection tour fast approaching, the silver seal of the Ministry of War vanished from a heavily guarded storeroom. Only a string of coins of unknown origin remained in its case, throwing the entire court into a state of shock. Emperor Jiaqing flew into a rage, convinced there was a traitor within, and ordered Prince Zhuang, Mian Ke, to solve the case within ten days.
Mian Ke's initial investigation focused on three officials who had handled the seal. Under torture, the clerk Bao Gan confessed to the supposed truth: during last year's autumn hunt at Rehe, the scribe Yu Huiting had neglected his duties and stolen the seal, then used bribes to cover up his crime. The case seemed closed, but the retired statesman Liu Yong spotted a flaw: how could a low-ranking clerk have the nerve to pull off such an elaborate deception? Emperor Jiaqing also sensed something amiss and secretly ordered Li Yunfan, a vice director of the Ministry of Punishments, to investigate. Forged official documents bearing the Ministry of War's seal appeared on Beijing's black market, while rumors spread that the “Dragon Seal” was about to be shipped overseas.
As the clues were pieced together, a secret organization known as the “Fallen Dragon Society” came to light. With discreet help from loyal ministers such as Liu Yong and Wang Jie, Li Yunfan gradually uncovered the shocking plot behind the old Rehe case: the seal's theft had been staged to conceal the smuggling of military weapons through the grain transport system. The mastermind was none other than Prince Rui and his son, in collusion with He Shen's former faction, plotting to stir up trouble upon the emperor's death.
When Li Yunfan led his troops in a raid on the criminals' lair and recovered the Dragon Seal, he discovered that what he had touched was only the tip of the iceberg. The genuine seal was restored to its place, but the bells tolling Emperor Jiaqing's sudden death had already sounded. The new emperor, Min Ning, faced a crisis of corrupt officials and surging undercurrents. On the city wall overlooking Beijing, shrouded in darkness, Li Yunfan gazed at the lights of countless homes, knowing that this mystery of the imperial tiger tally, one that threatened the very foundations of the state, was far from over...
