Detective Di Renjie IV: The Three-Part Tianshu Saga

Synopsis of Detective Di Renjie, Part Four In the second year of the Shengli era, a series of bizarre murders rocks Yizhou in Shu. Several officials die suddenly, their bodies marked with mysterious patterns resembling insects, while rumors of “witchcraft” spread among the people. Acting on an imperial order, Di Renjie sets out to investigate, accompanied by Li Yuanfang and Zeng Tai, and travels deep into the southwest. His examination reveals that the supposed “sorcery” is actually a sophisticated poisoning plot. The case is tied to the “Imperial Genealogy of the Former Dynasty,” a secret involving the royal family, and the clues point to a mysterious organization called “Tianshu.” Before they can catch their breath, another strange case erupts in Luoyang, the divine capital. Candidates sitting for the imperial examinations disappear one after another in the “Ghost Market” south of the city, with the words “Heaven's will shall not return” written in blood at the scenes. Di Renjie investigates in secret and discovers that beneath the Ghost Market lies a terrifying plot to manipulate people and fabricate “Heaven's will.” Officials from the Directorate of Astronomy are involved, and the scheme targets the very foundation of the “Mandate of Heaven” underpinning the empress's rule. When urgent news arrives from the East Sea: an “immortal mountain mirage” has appeared, and both fishing boats and warships are vanishing, Di Renjie realizes that the poisonings in Shu, the scheme in Luoyang, and the weapons hidden beneath the sea's phantom sights are all moves in the same grand game. He heads east to Dengzhou and, amid raging waves, uncovers an overseas military base concealed by a mirage. The mastermind is Tianshu, an organization connecting remnants of the former dynasty with powerful palace eunuchs. Its ambition is to topple both Wu Zhou and the Li Tang dynasty, profiting from the chaos. From the insect-poison mystery in the mountains and rivers of Bashu, to the struggle over Heaven's will in Luoyang's Ghost Market, and finally to the warships hidden behind the mirage over the East Sea, Di Renjie follows the clues through layer upon layer of deception and grand conspiracy to find a glimmer of truth. But when the ultimate mastermind emerges, he faces not only crimes too heinous to imagine, but also the unfathomable depths of power and human nature. This time, can Lord Di hold the line before the storm breaks,