Inside the luxurious Eastern Pace, draped in golden curtains and illuminated by the flickering light of dragon-carved nterns, Fourth Prince Xuan Li sat at the head of a jade-inid table. A grotesque smile stretched across his face, his long, bony fingers tapping the rim of his wine cup. His eyes, dark and bottomless, gleamed with wicked amusement as he listened to the trembling eunuch who had just finished delivering the news.

  "Your Highness," the eunuch swallowed hard, kneeling on the cool marble floor. "The bodies of the Fifth and Sixth Princes were found floating in the Bei River at dawn. The search team confirmed their identities. They have perished."

  A low chuckle bubbled from Xuan Li’s throat, but it soon grew into ughter—loud, unrestrained, and vile. His wine spilled onto the table as he spped his palm against the polished surface, his entire body trembling in delight.

  "Ahhh! Hahaha! Those two idiots! Dying like worthless rats in a gutter? What a fitting end!" He leaned forward, eyes narrowing. "Tell me… how horrible did their corpses look? Were the fish already feasting on their flesh? Did their bodies bloat like swine carcasses?"

  The eunuch hesitated. "T-Their injuries were severe. His Highness Xuan Qing’s eyes were... terribly damaged. His Highness Xuan Heng’s body was nearly unrecognizable from deep wounds. But they were indeed found lifeless in the river."

  Xuan Li exhaled a satisfied sigh, reclining back into his silk-lined seat as he swirled the wine in his cup. "Oh, what a beautiful sight it must have been! To think that those two pathetic fools once stood in my way. What a joke! Did they scream? Did they cry? Hah, I wish I had been there to see their despairing faces before their worthless lives were snuffed out!"

  A concubine seated beside him giggled nervously, pcing a peeled grape on his lips. "Your Highness is truly unrivaled in wisdom. It was only a matter of time before those useless princes were eliminated. Now, nothing stands between you and the throne."

  Xuan Li sucked the grape from her fingers, licking the tips slowly before biting down. "Mmm… sweet," he mused, staring at her with a lecherous grin. "Just like the taste of victory."

  He turned to the eunuch again. "Inform my most loyal spies—watch for any whispers of rebellion. Anyone who dares to mourn those wretched princes will be dealt with accordingly."

  The eunuch bowed, hiding his disgust beneath a composed expression. "Yes, Your Highness."

  As the eunuch left, Xuan Li chuckled again, licking the wine off his fingers. The game was almost over. Soon, he would be the st prince standing.

  At the far bordernds of the empire, where jagged mountains loomed like silent sentinels, two figures stumbled forward. Their robes were tattered, their faces pale and haggard, their bodies barely clinging to life.

  Xuan Heng, the Sixth Prince, gritted his teeth as he supported his older brother, Xuan Qing, who could barely walk. The Fifth Prince’s eyes were wrapped in bloodstained bandages, his once sharp gaze now repced by painful darkness.

  "Just… a little further," Xuan Heng muttered, forcing himself to move despite the searing pain in his ribs. "We can’t stop now. The capital will be swarming with assassins. We need to disappear."

  Xuan Qing’s voice was barely above a whisper. "I… I can’t see anything. Heng… if I become a burden, leave me behind."

  "Shut up." Xuan Heng tightened his grip on his brother’s arm. "We survive together, or we die together. No other choice."

  They had barely escaped the assassination attempt. Their carriage had been ambushed in the dead of night, and their guards had fought desperately, buying them time to jump into the raging river. The assassins had left them for dead, assuming the currents had swallowed them whole.

  But they had survived.

  Barely.

  Now, they were on the run, their wounds festering, their bodies on the brink of colpse.

  As they reached a small trading outpost, Xuan Heng spotted a familiar face—the leader of a merchant caravan that had helped him once before. Without hesitation, he approached and dropped two gold ingots into the merchant’s hands.

  "Two weeks ago, you told me where my Second Brother traveled to," Xuan Heng whispered, his voice urgent. "I need you to help us again. We need safe passage out of here."

  The merchant, a gruff but kind-hearted man named Luo Feng, looked at them in shock. "You two… the whole empire thinks you’re dead! The rivers have already been searched for your bodies!"

  "Exactly why we need to leave," Xuan Heng said, his grip on his sword tightening. "You said my Second Brother is somewhere in the Northern Frontier. If we can reach him, we might stand a chance."

  Luo Feng studied them for a long moment. Their condition was terrible. Xuan Qing couldn’t see and was on the verge of colpse. Xuan Heng’s body was riddled with wounds, and exhaustion was written all over his face.

  A lesser man would have abandoned them.

  But Luo Feng was no lesser man.

  With a sigh, he tucked the gold away and nodded. "I’ll help. But it won’t be easy. If the assassins find out you’re alive, you won’t make it out of this province. We need a disguise."

  Xuan Heng nodded, his body on the edge of colpse but his mind sharp. "Then we disguise ourselves as commoners… and we disappear into the night."

  Luo Feng signaled to his men. "Get these two new clothes. And prepare the carts. We leave before sunrise."

  As they followed Luo Feng’s men toward the hidden carts, Xuan Heng gnced at his injured brother, determination burning in his weary eyes.

  "Just hold on, Qing. We’re not done yet."

  And so, under the cover of darkness, the two fallen princes vanished—heading toward an uncertain future, where enemies lurked at every turn.

  But even as they ran, one thing was certain.

  They would never forget the name of the man who tried to kill them.

  Fourth Prince Xuan Li.

  And one day… they would return.