Secret Investigation and Deepening Conspiracy

William Wang Jinling’s two answers left the Emperor very satisfied. His gaze toward William softened noticeably.

This time, William made it clear to the Emperor that the Cui–Wang marriage alliance was not his doing—he had no desire for it at all.

But now that the marriage is a fact, the Wang Clan will not break it off. Marriage is marriage, the clan is the clan. The Wang Clan will never violate ancestral rules for the sake of a single woman.

As for the last question—

William did not answer directly. He only said that upon hearing news of Serena and Ninth Royal Uncle’s accident, he was deeply grieved. If the Emperor was willing, he asked to be allowed some time to recover before considering entering court.

Though this was a bit of a stalling tactic, the current situation simply wasn’t suitable for entering court—and he truly wasn’t in the mood.

Serena and Ninth Royal Uncle really were missing, their fate unknown. Even though William believed they wouldn’t die so easily, without definite news, he still couldn’t be at ease.

Not crying didn’t mean he wasn’t grieving. The situation had already happened; no amount of sorrow would help. Rather than wallowing in pain, it was better to do what needed to be done.

William didn’t reject outright, and at the right moment showed his concern for Serena. The Emperor, who had only half trusted him before, now trusted him much more.

With the answers he wanted, the Emperor didn’t press further. The topic shifted to William’s recent trip to Southlyn. Though he’d traveled hard all the way, he showed no sign of fatigue, choosing a few happy stories to share that pleased the Emperor greatly—who then rewarded him with generous gifts.

Unlike most, who would be overjoyed at imperial rewards, William accepted them with calm indifference and quietly withdrew.

After William left, the hall fell silent. After a long pause, the Emperor finally spoke: “In your opinion, can we trust what William said?”

From behind the screen, Felix Fuller, dressed in official robes, stepped out. He was about to bow, but the Emperor waved it off, so Felix rose smoothly.

“In reply to Your Majesty, William has no reason to lie. He’s not foolish—he knows that working with the Cui Clan brings no real benefit.”

The Wang Clan isn’t the Cui Clan. Even after a change of dynasty, the Wang Clan would still be a great house, still ranking above the Cui Clan. Their situation wouldn’t really change. Unless he’s lost his mind, William would never take that risk.

It’s just not worth it.

The Emperor nodded in agreement: “You’re right. As long as the Wang Clan isn’t foolish, they won’t take that risk. They’re already at the peak of wealth and status—there’s nowhere left to go.”

Hearing William’s explanation, the Emperor was already convinced. He just needed someone else to confirm it—there are always things even an emperor can’t see.

“Riches are won through risk, but the Wang Clan is already as rich as it gets. The Cui Clan’s promises are just empty words, and things won’t get any better than they are now. I really don’t understand why those Wang elders agreed to the Cui Clan’s proposal.” The Emperor didn’t believe the Wang Clan was unaware of the Cui Clan’s ambitions.

Felix said with a hint of mockery, “If my guess is right, those Wang elders just wanted an extra layer of protection and didn’t want to offend the Cui Clan. After all, it’s only a daughter—sacrificing one daughter to give the Wang Clan another escape route, why wouldn’t they?”

In other words, those Wang elders are just fence-sitters—they don’t care whether the Cui Clan wins or loses.

If the Cui Clan wins, they have the marriage connection, so the Wang Clan won’t lose anything. If the Cui Clan loses, they only lose a daughter—it doesn’t hurt their foundation.

Sacrifice one daughter, and they get to sit back and watch—it’s a good deal.

“Old foxes,” the Emperor muttered, secretly cursing the Wang Clan’s opportunism, which he deeply despised.

Felix hurried to reassure him: “Please don’t be angry, Your Majesty. The Wang–Cui marriage doesn’t change the big picture. As long as the Grand Heir stands firm, it’s just a family alliance—nothing more.”

Even so, the Emperor was still unhappy. And when the Emperor is displeased, those who make him unhappy won’t have an easy time either.

“Go find out if the Wang Clan has any suitable daughters left. Since Prince Chase’s princess consort can’t bear children, have the Wang Clan send a girl to his manor as a side-consort.” It just so happened that a Wang daughter, with her noble birth, could suppress Princess Yara.

“Uh...” Felix dared not answer.

Making a Wang daughter a side-consort? That was a slap in the face for the Wang Clan.

The Wang Clan had never sent a daughter to be a concubine, though they never refused sending daughters to the palace.

“What? The Eastlyn imperial bloodline isn’t good enough for a Wang daughter?” The Emperor snorted in displeasure.

Felix wouldn’t dare say no—he quickly nodded, though privately he thought: Actually, it’s true. The Wang Clan would never be happy about marrying a daughter into the imperial clan, let alone as a side-consort.

‘Side-consort’ sounds nice, but in the end it’s still just a concubine—a plaything with no real status.

To treat a Wang daughter as a plaything—only the Emperor could come up with that.

Still, under normal circumstances it would never happen. But now, with the Wang–Cui marriage angering the Emperor, if he demands a Wang daughter as a side-consort for Prince Chase, the Wang Clan won’t dare refuse—even if they have to send someone of high status.

With William’s guarantee, and a chance to slap the Wang Clan in the face, the Emperor put the matter aside for now and asked Felix about Ninth Royal Uncle.

“You went in person—did you find anything?” Officially, the Emperor had sent others to investigate Ninth Royal Uncle’s case, but secretly, Felix had gone himself.

This was too important to entrust to anyone else—the Emperor wouldn’t rest easy.

“In reply to Your Majesty, I searched the whole mountain, even the cliff base, but found nothing suspicious. On the surface, it really does look like an assassination targeting Ninth Royal Uncle.” Then the marriage was used to pressure Eastlyn into giving up the thunder-blast grenade.

Felix didn’t say that last part aloud, but the Emperor understood.

Felix’s words held something back—the Emperor noticed and asked, “So you did find something? Speak, I won’t blame you.”

Leaning back on the dragon throne, the Emperor looked relaxed—a sign of how much he trusted Felix.

“Yes.” With the Emperor’s reassurance, Felix didn’t hesitate: “Your Majesty, I discovered that the people who ambushed Ninth Royal Uncle are the same ones who bombed the Imperial Mausoleum.”

“Oh?” The Emperor was startled, leaning forward—clearly he took this seriously.

“I checked the force and depth of the explosion, and the fragments of the thunder-blast grenade left at the scene—it’s definitely the same group.” As he spoke, Felix presented a memorial.

“Your Majesty, I’ve written out every suspicious point in detail.”

The Emperor took the memorial and read it carefully. Felix stood silently, and aside from the occasional sound of turning pages, the hall was utterly silent...

The more the Emperor read, the heavier his expression became. He’d thought the bombing of the Imperial Mausoleum was just his Third Royal Brother’s doing; with the Third Prince dead, he’d stopped asking questions. But Felix’s memorial made it clear this was a massive conspiracy.

A hidden hand was plotting over the whole continent.

“The Former-Dynasty Lan clan.” The Emperor bit out the words, each one landing on his heart like a heavy blow...

For the four emperors, the names Lan and Phoenixfield are like curses—a constant reminder of how their thrones were won...