The Night of Blood in the Capital—no exaggeration at all. Fourteen ministerial households were wiped out overnight, hundreds died, and the entire street reeked of blood.
By the time the Imperial Guards arrived, all they could do was collect the bodies. As for the killers? Maybe they caught a glimpse of a shadow.
Dominic Zhai was dragged out of bed in the middle of the night. After learning the whole story, the usually unbothered Heir Zhai’s face turned dark. He ordered his maid to help him change into court robes—he was heading to the palace to report to the Emperor.
As for whether the timing was right—that was the last thing on Dominic Zhai’s mind. The matter was simply too grave. Such a heinous act was a slap in the face for him as City Defense General.
But before heading to the palace, Dominic Zhai had to make arrangements. By the time he finished giving orders, dawn had broken. Knowing he couldn’t wait any longer, he ditched the carriage, mounted a horse, and raced toward the palace. If he hadn’t started shouting outside the gates, the night patrol guards might have mistaken him for an assassin and killed him on the spot.
The Emperor of Eastlyn, who’d slept with a beauty in his arms, was roused at dawn by palace staff. But by the time he’d changed into his dragon robes and finished washing up, it was nearly time for morning court.
Dominic Zhai was so anxious his lips broke out in blisters. When he saw the Emperor enter with a dark face, Dominic didn’t dare hesitate; he immediately reported every detail.
"You worthless fool!" The Emperor slammed the table and leapt from his throne. "There are murderers sneaking into the Capital, killing my ministers right under my nose—and you, the general in charge of the city’s safety, had no idea! Today they dare to slaughter officials in the Capital; tomorrow, they’ll dare to kill me in the palace!"
"I have failed in my duty. Please punish me, Your Majesty." Dominic Zhai knew how serious the situation was and didn’t dare plead for mercy.
"Punish you? Of course I will! Dominic Zhai, I’m giving you ten days—capture the killers and bring them to justice. If you fail, you’ll go to the Imperial Mausoleum and build it for me!" The Emperor was truly furious—he still hadn’t found the ones who blew up the mausoleum, and now someone was running wild in the Capital. How could he not be enraged?
Dominic Zhai was left speechless and hurriedly agreed. Under the Emperor’s furious glare, he practically crawled out of the palace.
"Damn it, what rotten luck," Dominic muttered outside the palace, kicking the steps hard. When he looked up, he saw Ninth Royal Uncle standing not far away, watching him. Dominic quickly stifled his anger and bowed respectfully.
"No need for formalities," Ninth Royal Uncle replied coolly, then turned and headed toward the inner palace.
As expected, the morning court session was all about last night's massacre. The ministers unanimously demanded the killers be severely punished—they must not be allowed to escape justice. The Imperial City’s defenses had to be tightened, and such an atrocity could never happen again.
There was no helping it—the ones slaughtered last night were all ministers. Every official now feared for their own life, terrified they’d be the next unlucky victim.
The Emperor listened to these unproductive suggestions without comment, and when half the ministers called for Dominic Zhai to be punished, he acted as if he hadn’t heard a word.
With Prince Samuel Zhai backing him, Dominic Zhai’s position wasn’t truly threatened—at worst, he’d lose his post. But the Emperor still wanted to use Prince Samuel’s power to uncover the criminals behind the Capital’s chaos, so for now, Dominic was safe.
After court, the Emperor summoned a few trusted ministers and Felix Fuller to the imperial study. The consensus was clear: those responsible for yesterday’s massacre were almost certainly the same faction that bombed the Imperial Mausoleum—both acts meant to provoke Eastlyn’s authority.
Fourteen officials dead in a single night—this was a direct challenge to Eastlyn.
The ministers then proposed several ways to catch the killers, but the Emperor only listened without saying whether he’d approve any of them. When the meeting ended, he noticed Felix Fuller had stayed silent the whole time and kept him back for a private talk.
"Minister Felix, do you disagree with Lord Xue and the others?"
"Your Majesty, I agree with Lord Xue and the others. However, I have a lingering concern," Felix Fuller replied, his handsome features now hardened and expressionless from years in officialdom.
"What concern?"
"Your Majesty, I have investigated—no suspicious outsiders have entered the city in the past month. The perpetrators of yesterday’s massacre must have been lurking in the Capital, or nearby, for a long time. I can’t say for certain if they are the same group who bombed the mausoleum, but I do know that such a powerful force is hiding in the Imperial City right under our noses. That is extremely dangerous." Felix Fuller spoke with deep concern, clearly thinking of the Emperor’s safety.
Even if Felix hadn’t voiced this worry, the Emperor understood it—and so did the other ministers. They simply refused to bring it up, knowing that whoever took on the investigation would likely become the next target.
Anyone able to hide in the shadows for so long is no ordinary foe. The ministers, now all high-ranking, cared more about avoiding blame than earning merit.
After a moment’s thought, the Emperor said, "Minister Felix, I grant you the authority to mobilize the Commander of the Nine Gates. You must root out this hidden force completely."
"I accept, Your Majesty." Felix Fuller bowed quickly, hiding the gleam in his eyes.
The Commander of the Nine Gates, the City Defense General, and the Imperial Guards—these are the three major military forces protecting the Capital. By giving Felix Fuller command of one, the Emperor was entrusting him with a third of the city’s troops—a sign of utmost trust.
With troops at his command, Felix Fuller would have no trouble getting things done. As he accepted the order, he was already calculating—he would start with the backgrounds of the fourteen dead ministers, unraveling the threads to find the force lurking behind them.
Overnight, every street and alley in the Imperial City was packed with soldiers. The commoners were terrified; faced with interrogations, some even recited their ancestors back eight generations.
Officials feared for their lives—anyone deemed remotely suspicious was thrown straight into jail. Soon, every prison in the Capital was overflowing.
The entire Imperial City was shrouded in unease and dread. In just one day, it seemed to lose all order—officials ignored their duties, obsessed only with catching the killers; commoners abandoned daily life, terrified that one wrong move could doom their whole clan.
Seeing the chaos in the Capital, Serena Feng ordered everyone in Feng Manor to stay inside unless absolutely necessary. If trouble broke out now, even she might not be able to protect them.
Feng Manor shut its gates, but while Serena could keep outsiders at bay, she couldn’t block Prince Nolan. He wandered with her through Feng Manor, finally leading her up to the high pavilion.
Prince Nolan pointed toward the city outskirts and asked, "Are you satisfied with what you see?"
Serena Feng followed his gesture—the direction was where the fourteen ministers’ households had stood. "Was it you?" she asked.
Slaughtering fourteen entire households in one night—what a bold move.
"Who else but me could do it?" Prince Nolan replied—not boasting, just stating a fact.
Serena didn’t confirm or deny, but asked, "Why?"
"The Imperial Menagerie fire."
"Just for that?" Serena Feng looked at Prince Nolan, clearly skeptical.
She didn’t believe Prince Nolan would unleash such carnage over the Menagerie fire alone.
"Partly. And it’s a good chance to borrow the Emperor’s hand and drag out all the rats hiding in the dark." Borrowing a knife to kill, planting blame—every ruthless trick you can imagine.
Serena nodded, understanding. "I knew it—you never struck me as the type to give up power just for a beauty." She deliberately looked Prince Nolan up and down.
Seeing Serena’s "I’ve seen right through you" expression, Prince Nolan couldn’t hold back a laugh. "If I only loved beauty and not power, you wouldn’t look twice at me."
A man can’t spend his life lost in softness—a woman is not a man’s only purpose.