032 The Death of Wang Chaochao in the Imperial Court

From the look in Ziyu's eyes, Li Bai caught a trace of hidden affection. His heart trembled; had it not been for Ziyu saving him that day, who knew where he would be now? In his eyes, Ziyu was a proud and aloof woman—noble, cold, and beautiful. Yet deep down, he did not believe her to be a bad person. So he spoke up, “I believe you. If you can help us find the murderer, I will be forever grateful!”

“Brother Bai, she...” Chen Yage was about to say something malicious, but Li Bai interrupted her, “Another person means more strength, and more strength brings more hope!”

Love is just like that: lose once, and you spend a lifetime losing, unless one day you stop loving—perhaps then you become the winner.

Chen Yage no longer argued and lowered her head, lost in thought.

“Have you found any clues so far?” Ziyu asked.

Li Bai replied, “Just now, Yage and I swam across to the other bank and saw someone in red. Then we blacked out, knowing nothing more. When we woke, only Yueji was there.”

“Yueji?” Ziyu asked with a meaningful look.

Li Bai nodded, “She said she was sent by the Young Master to see if we were dead. But I think, after Yage and I fell into the water, it must have been Yueji who saved us.”

Yueji fell silent at Li Bai’s words. Ziye clearly cared deeply about Chen Yage—how could he wish her dead? Was Yueji lying? Was she not sent by her brother but following them instead? But then why save them?

Chen Yage, noticing Li Bai’s eyes fixed on Ziyu, grew displeased. “Why did your brother send you to help us? Doesn’t he want us dead?”

Ziyu replied, “If you want to know, ask him yourself. I only carry out his orders, not play matchmaker.”

Chen Yage’s eyes widened. She could not believe Ziye could be interested in her. She recalled how, on that day, he’d called her a wild girl—no figure, no looks, no manners. How could he like her? Unless he simply wished to embarrass her.

Suddenly, Ziyu said, “I think I have a way to find the murderer.”

“What way?” Chen Yage was the first to ask.

“Tonight, we investigate the Moon Lake again.”

“What?” Chen Yage exclaimed in surprise.

“And it will be the two of you,” Ziyu added.

“So you mean...” Li Bai seemed to understand. He pondered for a moment, then said, “Let’s do that. Yage, tonight we’ll return to Moon Lake and see what secrets it hides.”

For some reason, whenever Chen Yage was with Li Bai, her mind seemed to falter. She still didn’t understand the silent exchanges between Li Bai and Ziyu, so she asked, “I admit my intelligence is rather low. Your conversation is too profound for me. Could you explain in detail?”

Li Bai smiled, gently leading Chen Yage along as they walked. “If all this is done by human hands, if someone is deliberately playing tricks, then tonight, the two of us will lure that person out. Ziyu will hide in the shadows, waiting for the mysterious figure to appear, and we’ll capture them together.”

“But what if there really is a ghost?”

“Do you believe in ghosts?”

“Ah, I never expected someone who usually acts so fearless to be such a coward at heart!” Ziyu mocked coldly, provoking Chen Yage to glare at her.

“When did I say I was afraid? I’m only worried you’ll be so scared you won’t even be able to cry!”

Ziyu found this amusing and didn’t argue further, simply shaking her head and striding ahead.

Though Chen Yage was indignant, she couldn’t help but recall how she always made a fool of herself before Li Bai. This thought filled her with mixed feelings—anger and frustration! Of course, she didn’t blame Li Bai. There wasn’t enough time to love him, let alone hate him.

When they returned to Dujuan’s house, Wang Chaotian was still there, and Chaoyun’s body remained as well. Chen Yage, feeling downcast, walked to the corpse, knelt, and tidied Chaoyun’s slightly disheveled clothing. By chance, she noticed Chaoyun’s left hand tightly clenched, as if grasping something. Out of curiosity, Chen Yage pried open her hand, and a piece of flawless jade slipped out. Li Bai too examined it curiously. It was a jade pendant, smooth and translucent—clearly no ordinary ornament.

“This must be the pendant Chaoyun tore from her murderer,” Li Bai said solemnly, his gaze deep as he stared at the jade piece.

“If we find the owner of this pendant, won’t we have our killer?” Chen Yage said happily.

“Let me see it—after all, I know more people in Peach Blossom Valley than you two.”

Li Bai handed the pendant to Ziyu, who scrutinized it carefully for a long while, then shook her head. “This pendant is worth a fortune. Not just anyone could own it. There are few people of high status here. As long as we don’t give up, we’ll find the real murderer.”

Just as the three of them were engrossed in examining the pendant, Wang Chaotian appeared out of nowhere, wielding a knife and swinging it straight at Chen Yage’s back. Unaware, Chen Yage stood defenseless, but Li Bai reacted swiftly, striking Wang Chaotian’s wrist and pulling Chen Yage safely into his arms.

Wang Chaotian’s knife clattered to the ground, but he immediately drew a dagger from his waist and, like a madman, lunged at Chen Yage. Li Bai flipped in the air, both feet kicking Wang Chaotian in the chest. Somehow, Wang Chaotian’s own dagger plunged into his chest. Blood gushed out, staining his coarse linen clothes a deep red. Chen Yage, Li Bai, and Ziyu were all stunned.

Li Bai was the first to recover and rushed to Wang Chaotian, but he died before he could utter a word, his eyes wide open in death.

Li Bai was filled with regret and anger. He remembered clearly that he hadn’t used excessive force—how could this have happened? How had the dagger ended up in Wang Chaotian’s chest?

Chen Yage saw the remorse in Li Bai’s eyes and tried to comfort him. “Brother Bai, it’s not your fault. I’ll take responsibility for everything.”

Ziyu stood to the side, uncertain what to say. After a long hesitation she finally spoke, “I’ll tell my brother the truth.”

“Are you trying to add insult to injury?” Chen Yage demanded angrily.

“Yage, don’t make things difficult for Miss Ziyu. I killed him—whatever punishment comes, I accept it without complaint,” Li Bai said.

“No, Brother Bai, it was because of me... because of me... I won’t let you suffer punishment on my account!”

Seeing the two argue endlessly, Ziyu interrupted, “Are you two done? Wang Chaotian died by accident. Right now, you should focus on finding Chaoyun’s killer!”

“But…” Li Bai hesitated.

Love in the Tang Dynasty: Poet Immortal, Please Stay! 032—The Death of Wang Chaotian.