AUBTN -Chapter 56 Secret Letter from Jiangnan

Eastern Depot, Zhaoyu Prison.

Inside the dark, damp interrogation chamber, the charcoal fire blazed brightly.

Shen Jue casually flipped through the secret report in his hands, his long fingers lingering on a line of text for a while.

“Master, news has arrived from Jiangnan.”

A loyal attendant knelt on the ground, his voice barely audible. “Last month, three official salt ships vanished from the canal without a trace. Fifty sailors were on board—neither living nor dead could be found. The locals are spreading rumors… saying that… water ghosts demand lives, using them as sacrifices for the river.”

“Water ghosts?”

Shen Jue sneered and tossed the report into the brazier.

Flames instantly consumed the paper, casting an even more sinister glow on his handsome yet eerie face.

“Where in this world are there ghosts and gods? Only those with ghosts in their hearts.”

He stood up.

“Check the last docking points of those missing ships.”

“Master, we’ve already investigated—they were all in Su City. Moreover…” The attendant paused.

“Our people discovered that before entering the capital, Miss Jiang… had stayed in Su City for over half a month.”

A cold glint flashed in Shen Jue’s eyes.

Jiang Ruyi?

Meanwhile, Northern Patrol Office.

Lu Yan frowned over a massive map of Jiangnan.

“Commander, though Prince Ning is dead, many of the loyal killers he raised are still at large in the martial world. Intelligence reports that recently, salt guild activities around Su City have been unusually frequent, with large sums of unclear funds flowing in.”

The adjutant pointed to Su City on the map. “Additionally, someone spotted what seems to be remnants of Prince Ning’s old followers operating within the salt guild.”

Lu Yan’s fingers slammed heavily on the table.

“Salt taxes are the foundation of the state! Prince Ning’s remnants are trying to cut off Da Wei’s financial lifeline and destabilize the nation!”

He suddenly raised his head, his gaze sharp.

“Immediately mobilize the troops and be ready to march south at any time!”

No one knew that both Lu Yan and Shen Jue had received the secret report at the same time!

Meanwhile, in the palace, the atmosphere was peaceful.

In the imperial kitchen, the aroma was intoxicating.

“Su Sister, this… this ‘milk tea,’ can we really drink it?”

The head chef stared in disbelief as Su Hewan poured milk into the tea, added a spoonful of honey, and finally stirred in chewy tapioca pearls she had cooked.

“Don’t worry. The Emperor is still growing. Drinking this is better than those bitter medicinal soups.”

Su Hewan shook the bamboo cylinder in her hands with practiced precision, her expression focused.

【Ancient Milk Tea Reproduction 2.0!】

On the stage, Yu Qing was directing a group of young eunuchs in rehearsal.

“You there! Your expression is too stiff! Were you struck by lightning or had a stroke? I want the feeling of ‘I love you, but we cannot be together’—do you understand the feeling of heartbreak?!”

Yu Qing held a rolled-up script, commanding the young eunuchs and palace maids with the air of a true director.

The Empress Dowager sat on the high platform, grinning widely.

“This girl is full of tricks. This ‘Prequel to Zhen Huan’… in all the decades I’ve watched plays, I’ve never seen it performed like this.”

The young emperor sat nearby, holding the milk tea freshly made by Su Hewan, leaving a ring of milk at the corners of his mouth, his eyes glued to the stage with rapt attention.

“Grandmother, compared to Sister Yu, that Song Zhaoyuan is indeed more boring,” the young emperor mumbled, sucking on a pearl.

The Empress Dowager glanced at him. “Some things that look flashy do not withstand scrutiny; some things that look messy conceal great wisdom.”

Yu Qing was performing with full energy when a sudden chill ran down her back.

Turning around, she saw Lu Yan and Shen Jue standing silently at the foot of the stage.

Both of their faces were darker than the bottom of a pot.

On the carriage ride back, the atmosphere was oppressively tense.

Yu Qing curled up in the corner, sneaking a glance at Lu Yan, who had his eyes closed in quiet repose.

【Has this dog man eaten poison today? His face looks like someone owes him eight million taels of silver.】

A vein throbbed sharply on Lu Yan’s temple.

He suddenly opened his eyes, his gaze burning as it fixed on Yu Qing.

“Things in the capital have been unsettled lately, especially… over in Jiangnan.”

His voice was low, carrying a hint of fatigue that was barely noticeable.

“If you’re fine, don’t make trouble in the palace. Those two women… they’re not as simple as you think.”

Yu Qing froze for a moment, then straightened her back.

“I’m not as simple as you think either! I’m—”

“I know. You’re a top student from the performing arts department,” Lu Yan interrupted helplessly, rubbing his brow.

“In short, be careful with everything.”

In the other carriage, the atmosphere was even heavier.

Shen Jue kept stroking the jade pendant in his hand.

Su Hewan sat quietly beside him, holding a book, but hadn’t turned a single page.

【Historical records indicate that in the early years of the new emperor’s reign, a major peasant uprising broke out in Jiangnan, caused by rampant private salt trade and officials oppressing the people. If we follow the timeline, it should be this month.】

【Shen Jue… what is he worried about? Is it that so-called fiancée, or the situation in Jiangnan?】

【He treasures that jade pendant so much… could it be that he actually has feelings for that fiancée?】

Suddenly, Shen Jue reached out and snatched the book from Su Hewan’s hands.

“Stop reading. Put the book down.”

Su Hewan: “…”

Shen Jue tossed the book aside and leaned closer.

“Our family doesn’t believe in ghosts or reincarnation. But this jade pendant…”

He paused, his gaze growing deep and unreadable.

“If anyone dares to use the Shen family’s blood feud for their own schemes, our family will make them regret coming into this world.”

Su Hewan felt a shiver in her heart.

She understood.

He was explaining to her.

Even if Jiang Ruyi held the token, even if it was a relic from his mother, if there was trouble, he would wield his blade without hesitation.

Suppressing the corner of her mouth from curling into a smile, Su Hewan feigned calm and said, “Why are you telling me this, Chief?”

Shen Jue, however, suddenly looked at her with a half-smile, half-serious expression!

At midnight, a sudden thunderclap broke the silence.

An autumn rain poured down without warning, draping the entire capital in a grim, oppressive veil.

Su Hewan and Yu Qing had just fallen asleep when a series of urgent knocks woke them.

“Sir! Someone’s here from the palace! The Emperor demands your presence!”

The gates of the Jinyiwei and the Eastern Depot opened almost simultaneously.

Shen Jue and Lu Yan met on the official road!

The four exchanged no words, cloaked in raincoats, and headed straight for the imperial palace.

Inside the Imperial Study, the lamps burned brightly.

The young emperor, wearing only his underclothes and barefoot, stood before the imperial desk, his face pale.

Seeing Shen Jue and Lu Yan enter, he seemed to see saviors and rushed forward.

“Minister Shen! Minister Lu!”

“Your Majesty, what happened?”

Lu Yan caught the young emperor and glanced around, his eyes finally resting on the wooden box on the imperial desk, smeared with mud and blood.

Eunuch Li knelt nearby, trembling like a sieve. “This… this was delivered at the risk of life by the Prefect of Sucheng, an eight-hundred-li emergency…”

Shen Jue strode forward and flung open the wooden box.

A strong stench of blood hit them!

Inside the box lay a piece of white cloth soaked in fresh blood, torn from the lining of an official robe.

With trembling fingers, four large characters had been written in blood, shocking to behold:

“Jiang Family, save me.”