After Long Chi had been demoted to Xuyang, the Eastern Palace had been left empty, though the objects inside were still untouched.
The place was already veiled in a layer of dust.
Long Yang’s brow had remained furrowed ever since he concluded that Weiwei had been abducted by Long Chi.
What did Long Chi want?
Why did he kidnap Weiwei?
The answer was already in his heart, but he refused to believe it.
He made his way over to the writing desk and searched through the objects on top, hoping to find some clues.
Right then, he fixed his eyes upon a piece of drawing paper under a book.
After a pause, he pulled the paper out.
When he saw what was drawn on it, his eyes flashed murderously.
The drawing crumbled to dust in his palm and fell onto the floor.
Long Chi, that b*stard!
When Chu Yi came in, his master’s face was livid with rage, his features shadowed by bone-chilling murderous intent.
“Master?” he called out cautiously.
Long Yang closed his eyes and summoned all the self-control he had to stifle his murderous rage.
Wordlessly, his gaze searched the surroundings before suddenly landing on the floor beside the bookshelf.
A thick layer of dust had settled on the floor in the study as it had not been cleaned for a long time. Moreover, the bookshelf faced the window, so there was more dust there than in other places, which further highlighted the particular series of footprints on the floor.
Judging from the shoe size, all the footprints clearly belonged to a grown man.
However, they were all facing the bookshelf. None of them showed signs of their owner turning and leaving.
Apparently, the man had disappeared after arriving here.
He narrowed his eyes at the thought. “There should be a mechanism on the bookshelf.” He then made a move toward the bookshelf.
Chu Yi then noticed the line of footprints too and quickly followed.
After feeling along the bookshelf for a moment, they soon found the device.
It was hidden on the wall behind the books.
With a touch, the bookshelf automatically divided itself into two, each side moving in opposite directions.
Seeing this, Chu Yi could not help exclaiming, “I can’t believe that Long Chi was cunning enough to install a mechanism in his study!”
Glancing at the pitch-black passage beyond with no end in sight, Long Yang said firmly, “I don’t think he’s the one who built this secret passage.”
Chu Yi immediately understood what he meant.
He was right. Long Chi had not been crown prince for long, and this mechanism was clearly not built overnight. It could have been built by Crown Prince Jianzhang when he was still alive or another former crown prince who used to live here.
“Let’s go in and check it out.” Long Yang started to head inside.
Chu Yi stopped him. “Maybe I should go in to scout the trail first while you stay here. If I find any clues, I’ll report back to you right away.”
Long Yang pushed him away. “No need.”
With that, he walked into the passage.
Chu Yi quickly fetched a candlestick, lit it, and followed him inside.
The secret passage was long but slightly narrow, and it could just barely accommodate two people walking side by side.
The secret passage led straight to the capital suburbs. Despite their rapid walking pace, it still took them an hour to arrive at the exit.
The exit was in a cave, and outside the cave was a clump of brambles that shielded the entrance. No one would have thought that there was a cave behind it, let alone a secret passage.
When Chu Yi followed Long Yang out of the cave and saw the sight before his eyes, he could not help being in awe of the amount of effort that had been put into designing this secret passage.
He had lived in the imperial capital for so long, yet he never knew that such a place existed.
