Chapter 368: Unnamed A New Shadow
The morning court had barely begun when hurried footsteps echoed through the Hall of Supreme Harmony.
The ministers exchanged puzzled glances as Prince Liang strode inside, his usually composed expression replaced by visible concern.
He stopped before the dragon throne and bowed deeply.
"Your Majesty."
The Emperor looked up from the memorials in his hands.
"Rise, Liang. What has happened?"
Prince Liang stood.
"There is... another problem."
The hall fell silent.
The Emperor slowly set aside the scroll.
"What problem?"
Prince Liang took a slow breath.
"The palace is in chaos."
Several ministers frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"The guards have been reporting the same incident since dawn."
Prince Liang continued, "A hooded man has been seen throughout the palace."
The ministers immediately began whispering.
"The eastern gardens..."
"The imperial library..."
"The lotus pavilion..."
"The western corridor..."
Prince Liang nodded.
"Yes. He has appeared in all of those places."
Minister Xu frowned.
"Then why hasn’t he been arrested?"
Prince Liang’s expression darkened.
"Because no one has managed to catch him."
Silence.
Captain Zhao stepped forward.
"We surrounded him three different times."
"Each time..."
"He disappeared before our eyes."
A murmur swept across the court.
One minister laughed nervously.
"Perhaps your guards imagined it."
Captain Zhao’s face hardened.
"More than eighty guards witnessed it."
"They all described the same man."
The laughter instantly disappeared.
The Emperor leaned back on the throne.
His fingers lightly tapped the armrest.
"So..."
He spoke quietly.
"A new problem has appeared."
Prince Liang nodded.
"Yes, Brother."
The Emperor closed his eyes briefly before rubbing his forehead.
"We have not even uncovered the person behind the strange sleepwalking incidents..."
"Nor the dark rituals."
"And now..."
He sighed.
"A mysterious hooded man is wandering inside the palace."
The ministers remained silent.
No one dared interrupt.
After several moments the Emperor opened his eyes.
"They are moving faster than we are."
Those simple words made everyone’s heart sink.
Whoever stood behind these events was always one step ahead.
---
Minister Han stepped forward cautiously.
"Your Majesty..."
"There is something I wish to report."
The Emperor nodded.
"Speak."
Minister Han lowered his head.
"Some officials have begun suspecting..."
He hesitated.
"...Minister Shen."
The court erupted.
"What?"
"Impossible!"
"Minister Shen has served the court faithfully for decades!"
Minister Shen himself looked utterly shocked.
"What nonsense is this?"
Minister Han quickly raised both hands.
"I am only reporting what is being whispered throughout the capital."
The Emperor’s gaze became cold.
"Why would they suspect Minister Shen?"
Minister Han answered carefully.
"The rumors claim that because the hooded man was first seen near the Ministry of Rites..."
"And because Minister Shen oversees several palace ceremonies..."
"People believe he may be involved."
Minister Shen stepped forward immediately.
"Your Majesty!"
"I have never met any hooded man."
"My family has served the imperial family for three generations."
"I would never betray the throne."
The Emperor studied the elderly minister for several moments.
"I know."
Minister Shen looked up in surprise.
The Emperor continued calmly.
"Rumors are not evidence."
"I will not condemn a loyal minister based on whispers."
Minister Shen bowed deeply.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
---
Prince Liang crossed his arms.
"This feels deliberate."
The Emperor looked toward him.
"You think someone started these rumors?"
Prince Liang nodded.
"First the palace becomes frightened."
"Then suspicion falls upon an innocent minister."
"The true culprit remains hidden while we fight among ourselves."
Several experienced ministers slowly nodded.
It was a familiar strategy.
Create fear.
Spread doubt.
Destroy trust.
---
The Emperor rose from the throne.
His voice echoed across the hall.
"Listen carefully."
"The hooded man is to be investigated."
"But no one is to accuse any official without evidence."
"If I discover anyone spreading false rumors for personal gain..."
"They will answer to me."
Every minister bowed.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
---
As the court was dismissed, Prince Liang remained behind.
The hall gradually emptied until only the two brothers stood beneath the towering pillars.
Prince Liang spoke quietly.
"Brother..."
"I have a feeling."
The Emperor looked toward him.
"This hooded man..."
"...may not be the mastermind."
The Emperor’s eyes narrowed.
"No."
"I think he is a messenger."
"A distraction."
"Or perhaps someone sent to test our defenses."
The Emperor walked toward the open doors overlooking the palace.
His gaze swept across the endless rooftops.
Somewhere...
Someone was watching.
Someone was patiently moving pieces across an invisible chessboard.
He clenched his hands behind his back.
"No matter who you are..."
"I will find you."
Far beyond the palace walls, hidden beneath the shade of an ancient pine tree, a lone hooded figure watched the imperial city from a distant hill.
A faint smile appeared beneath the shadow of his hood.
"The game has begun."
With that, he turned and vanished into the forest, leaving only the whispering wind behind.
Shadows Behind the Conspiracy
The Imperial Palace had fallen into silence.
Moonlight spilled through the carved windows of the Emperor’s study, illuminating stacks of memorials, maps, and sealed reports. A single candle flickered beside him.
The Emperor had dismissed everyone.
Even the eunuchs waited outside.
He sat alone, rereading every report from the past several months.
The mysterious sleepwalking incidents.
The Empress’s near drowning.
The strange whispers heard by palace servants.
The missing palace records.
The forged memorials.
The intercepted letters.
The accusation against Minister Shen.
None of it made sense.
Unless...
He spread several documents across the desk.
One report described the Empress wandering toward the lake in the middle of the night.
Another reported guards seeing a hooded figure disappear into the darkness.
A third described strange sounds and unexplained occurrences that terrified even experienced palace guards.
The Emperor slowly connected each piece.
"No..."
He murmured.
"This cannot be a coincidence."
He picked up the report about Minister Shen.
Months earlier, secret letters had supposedly proven that Minister Shen had exchanged messages with the neighboring kingdom. The evidence had appeared overwhelming.
Yet something had always bothered him.
The handwriting looked convincing.
The seals appeared genuine.
But the timing...
It was too perfect.
Every accusation had surfaced just when Minister Shen was preparing reforms that threatened several powerful officials.
The Emperor narrowed his eyes.
"If Shen truly intended to betray the Empire, why would he leave so much evidence behind?"
He rose from his chair and walked toward the map hanging on the wall.
"The letters were discovered..."
"...after the palace disturbances began."
He looked back toward the reports.
"The hooded man."
Every major incident had one thing in common.
Someone had seen a hooded figure shortly before it happened.
The Emperor remembered the frightened testimony of several servants.
They all described the same appearance.
A tall figure dressed in black.
Face completely hidden.
Appearing and disappearing without explanation.
Many had dismissed the servants’ words as superstition.
He had not.
The Emperor folded his arms.
"If someone can create fear..."
"...people stop questioning the truth."
He recalled how easily rumors of ghosts had spread through the palace.
Servants blamed spirits.
Officials blamed curses.
No one searched for the person hiding behind them.
His expression darkened.
"What if the supernatural events were never the true objective?"
"What if they were merely a distraction?"
He returned to the desk and placed Minister Shen’s file beside the reports about the Empress.
The pattern became clearer.
First, chaos.
Then fear.
Then a political accusation.
The real target had never been the palace alone.
Someone was using terror to weaken the court from within.
The Emperor spoke quietly to himself.
"The hooded man creates confusion."
"While everyone looks toward ghosts..."
"...someone plants evidence."
He stared at the forged correspondence with the neighboring kingdom.
"Minister Shen was framed."
The realization settled heavily upon him.
If Shen had been falsely accused...
Then someone powerful possessed access to confidential documents, official seals, and palace intelligence.
That meant the conspiracy reached far beyond a single assassin.
It stretched into the highest levels of government.
The Emperor’s eyes became cold.
"This is treason."
He rang the small bronze bell on his desk.
Moments later, his trusted shadow guard entered and knelt.
"Your Majesty."
The Emperor spoke in a calm but commanding voice.
"Reopen the investigation into Minister Shen."
The guard looked surprised but remained silent.
"Quietly."
"No one is to know."
"Especially those who handled the original evidence."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Examine every letter again."
"Verify the ink, the paper, the seals, and every witness."
The guard bowed deeply.
"It will be done."
The Emperor continued,
"And search for every report concerning the hooded man. I want every sighting, no matter how insignificant."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
After the guard departed, the Emperor looked once more toward the moonlit courtyard.
"If my deduction is correct..."
"...then the enemy has been manipulating both fear and politics."
He closed Minister Shen’s file with determination.
"I will uncover the truth."
"No matter who stands behind the hood."
Outside the study, the palace remained peaceful.
But hidden somewhere within the darkness...
The true mastermind was still watching.
Unaware that the Emperor had finally begun to see through the illusion.