The Traitor Crown Princess (Transmigration) - Chapter 3

Deep in the night, the dew was heavy.

Footsteps echoed in the deserted alley as the night watchman walked by beating his gong, the shadows on the walls gradually disappearing into the corners. Shen Yi, dressed in black casual clothes, hid in a corner, sneaking toward the main gate while the gatekeeping guards were changing shifts.

“Who goes there!” a guard barked, furious. “How dare you trespass into the Shen residence at night!”

Yuan Hua hoisted two jars of fine Nü’er Hong wine, a brilliant smile on his face. “I wouldn’t dare, sirs. I only thought you two were working hard, so I brought some fine wine to reward you. Would you two fine gentlemen do me the honor of tasting it?”

The head guard glanced at his companion, then took the two jars of wine from Yuan Hua with a sense of self-satisfaction. “We’ll accept your wine. Ask what you will.”

Yuan Hua smiled. “May I ask what great crime the Shen family committed to draw the Emperor’s rage?”

The guard’s expression shifted. “This matter cannot be spoken of… however… if you wish to hear it, we might be able to tell you a thing or two.”

Yuan Hua caught the hint and placed a heavy cloth bag into the guard’s hand. “This is for the wine, gentlemen. If it’s not enough, I can add more.”

The guard, satisfied, tucked the bag into his pocket and checked the surroundings. After confirming no one was about, he whispered: “On the surface, the Emperor claims the Shen residence conspired to revolt, but in reality, he holds a grudge against the General Shen of the Shen residence.”

The sharpness in Yuan Hua’s eyes was laid bare. “For what reason?”

The guard shook his head. “How would I know that? Knowing too much will cost me my head. I advise you not to court death.”

Meanwhile, someone else was actively courting death.

Shen Yi climbed the wall of the Shen residence with both hands, using all his strength to scramble upward. But as he turned his head, he saw Ruyu standing on the wall, staring at him in bewilderment.

Shen Yi froze. He had been too nervous earlier and had forgotten that Ruyu knew martial arts; couldn’t he just have brought him inside?

Shen Yi stepped back twice, beckoning to Ruyu and gesturing with his lips: “Bring me in.”

Ruyu nodded, jumped off the wall, grabbed Shen Yi’s arm, and with a light leap, vaulted over the wall, landing steadily on the ground.

The Shen residence was filled with ghostly winds, and with no lights on, it resembled a ghost city. Relying on the faint moonlight, Shen Yi could barely make out the environment in the courtyard.

There were pavilions and water-side buildings with painted beams, massive rockeries, and man-made lakes filled with schools of fat koi. Even though the glory of the General’s residence was gone, one could still glimpse the splendor of its former days.

Ruyu handed Shen Yi a fire starter; after opening the cover and blowing on it hard, a spark ignited.

The two followed the path, searching for the study. Fortunately, Ruyu was familiar with the geomantic layout of the courtyard, and they finally found the study in the southwest corner.

With a “creak,” the study door was pushed open. A cold wind surged out, fluttering their clothes and ink-black hair. Shen Yi entered the room holding the fire starter. The study was large, and most of the books were scattered on the floor, in great disarray. The windows were half-open, occasionally emitting an eerie, mournful sound.

He walked to the desk, the yellow flame licking at the black wick of the candle, and the room was slowly lit by the faint candlelight. Shen Yi walked to the bookshelf to help search, but after a while, his brow furrowed deeply.

Important letters must have been swept away during the confiscation; all that remained were trivial items.

Shen Yi sighed, but suddenly found a square piece of wood in a box. Its surface was smooth and delicate, with no splinters, as if it had been specially carved.

Shen Yi held it in his palm, checking all around, and discovered a small slot in the wall whose shape matched the block of wood perfectly.

He placed the wood inside and pressed it firmly.

Rumble,

Accompanied by a harsh grinding sound, a wall behind the bookshelf began to tremble slowly, revealing a dark, secret passage.

Shen Yi and Ruyu exchanged glances. It seemed General Shen had been hiding secrets he hadn’t spoken of.

But if it were a dead end inside, they wouldn’t be able to get out regardless of how capable they were. If it held the key evidence for the confiscation, they had to get it…

Shen Yi paced back and forth, hesitant, and asked: “Do you have any explosives or anything?”

Ruyu nodded: “Yes, Young Master Shen. If we go inside and can’t get out, we can blow a path open.”

Only then did Shen Yi feel relieved.

The space in the secret passage was not large, but it was damp and dim; only by holding the fire starters together could they barely illuminate the path ahead.

They walked for a while when two forks appeared ahead. The two decided to walk down the right path together. After turning a corner, a row of iron bars appeared in the distance, with traces of blood on the ground, suggesting a fight had occurred.

Shen Yi walked over to take a look. Locked inside was a person. The man was wearing a white martial arts uniform stained with spots of blood. His hands were raised and shackled by two iron chains to the wall, and he was sitting on the ground in a kneeling position. He had no hair, a white beard on his chin, and withered yellow straw beneath him.

There was a small iron window on the wall, and the corners were covered in cobwebs; it seemed no one had been here for a long time.

Shen Yi and Ruyu exchanged glances. He might know something.

“Bang”

Ruyu split the iron chains. The chains fell to the ground with a “clang.” Shen Yi opened the iron door and walked over to the old man: “Old sir? Old sir?”

The old man still made no sound.

Ruyu pressed his fingers to the old man’s wrist, his brow furrowing deeply: “No pulse; he has passed away.”

Shen Yi sighed: “Forget it, let’s go.”

Just as they reached the door, a coughing sound came from behind them.

“Cough, cough… so you’ve come?”

Shen Yi turned around to see the old man’s gaze fixed directly on him. The old man looked emaciated, though his spirit seemed surprisingly strong.

Shen Yi: “Hmm… why were you locked up here?”

The old man gave a self-deprecating laugh: “It’s funny you lot lock this old man in here, and then ask me why I’m locked up? Isn’t that contradictory?”

Shen Yi bumped Ruyu with his arm. Ruyu said: “We aren’t from the Shen residence; the Shen residence has been confiscated. We came here to investigate the cause of the confiscation.”

The old man froze, then burst into sudden, loud laughter: “Hahaha, confiscation… General Shen has met his end today. Truly, it is retribution.”

His gaze landed on Shen Yi, a sneer appearing: “This is the third young master of the Shen family, right? And you still dare to lie to this old man.”

Shen Yi felt his skin crawl from his words. He didn’t want to stay in the secret passage for too long, so he kept it brief and proposed a compromise: “None of that matters… Old sir, do you know the reason the Shen residence was confiscated? If you know, we can make a deal: you tell me the reason, and I will let you go. How about that?”

The old man snorted coldly: “How can I believe you? If I tell you and you don’t let me go, wouldn’t I be the one losing out?”

Shen Yi pondered: “How about I unlock one of your hands? We’ll unlock the other after you tell us. Think clearly other than the two of us, no one will ever come here again; you’ll probably starve to death here.”

The old man narrowed his eyes dangerously, but eventually agreed: “Fine, come quickly and unlock me.”

Shen Yi looked to Ruyu, who drew his sword and cleaved the iron chain on the old man’s left hand. The old man rotated his wrist, sighing with emotion: “It’s been so long since I’ve moved.”

Shen Yi: “You can speak now.”

The old man remained silent, gripped his right-hand chain, and pulled hard. The chain snapped with a sound, and he grabbed Shen Yi by the throat. Sensing things going awry, Ruyu rushed over with his sword, only to be struck away by the old man’s hand, crashing heavily to the ground, losing consciousness.

Shen Yi felt his breathing become difficult, his hands trying to pry away the old man’s fingers.

The old man: “Your Shen family caused me such misery.”

Suddenly, the old man caught a glimpse of a splash of red on Shen Yi’s neck a faint red lotus birthmark, its petals lifelike and vivid. He suddenly laughed, his laughter sinister and terrifying: “Truly, Heaven is helping me.”

Just as Shen Yi was about to suffocate, the old man suddenly released his grip. Taking advantage of the gap to gulp in fresh air, Shen Yi felt the old man quickly move behind him and strike a palm against his back.

Shen Yi felt a warm current surge into his body, gathering in his lower abdomen at the dantian; the excruciating pain in his neck disappeared, and his body became light, feeling even better than if he had slept well.

But not long after, Shen Yi felt a burning sensation rise in his lower abdomen, and his entire body felt uncomfortable.

The old man withdrew his hand at this moment. Without the support of that power, Shen Yi collapsed to the ground, clutching his lower abdomen and asking: “What have you done to me?”

The old man stroked his beard, revealing a sinister smile: “You’ll know soon enough. Don’t disappoint me.”

With that, the old man stood up and walked out, ignoring the unconscious Ruyu and heading straight out of the cell.

Shen Yi held on despite the discomfort and walked over to Ruyu, shaking him awake.

Ruyu’s expression changed drastically: “Young Master Shen, are you alright? Where is that person?”

Shen Yi: “I don’t know where he went. He struck my back with his palm just now, and I feel so uncomfortable.”

Ruyu stood up: “Let me check you.”

He grasped Shen Yi’s wrist to investigate carefully, his sword-like brows furrowing as he muttered to himself: “Strange…”

Shen Yi looked puzzled: “What’s wrong with me?”

Ruyu: “The true qi in your body is more than five times that of an average martial artist. Not only can you use true qi to fend off enemies, you can also self-heal, and your light-body technique is second to none.”

Shen Yi widened his eyes: “That powerful? But that makes no sense—why would he give me his true qi and say ‘don’t disappoint me’?”

Ruyu shook his head: “I don’t know. The important thing now is to leave here first and investigate later.”

Shen Yi: “Hmm, let’s go quickly.”

The two returned the way they came, and to their surprise, they exited the secret passage without encountering any obstructions.

Shen Yi retrieved the small block from the wall, and the wall returned to normal.

The two went first to the original host’s bedroom, retrieved the private funds from beneath the floor tiles, and then used their light-body technique to leave the Shen residence.

Back at the Yuan mansion, Ruyu told Yuan Hua what had just happened. Yuan Hua fanned himself, pondering: “Strange, how have I never heard that there was such a person in the Shen residence? I have to investigate… By the way, tomorrow is the day for selecting the Crown Princess. I’ve already prepared your clothes, and my cousin has already gone to the Yan Kingdom to seek refuge with relatives.

“As for your prisoner status, I’ve already arranged for a dead body to replace you; I specifically had it mauled by a tiger. Those two yamen runners can neither speak nor write, so they pose no threat to us. Furthermore, because of your physical constitution, you were raised in your grandmother’s countryside home since you were a child, so no one can identify you as the third son of the Shen family. Go ahead and vie for the Crown Princess position.”

Shen Yi nodded in agreement.

Although he didn’t know the old man’s background, he was certain of one thing: it was related to the confiscation of the Shen residence.