Ye Zhi tried to carry the person on her shoulder. Hmm, heavier than expected, but barely manageable. She resignedly carried the person she had tied up, listening closely and watching all around as she moved toward the place she had just entered.

A quarter of an hour later, she handed the person over to the three black-clad men waiting, and together they headed in the direction of the South City Gate.

The south and north city gates are open at night, allowing free passage.

The direction of the South City Gate is closer to the riverbank, and it only takes two hours to reach the place where the boat departs.

It was already deep into the night, and there were few people on the street. The dogs were all comfortably nestled in their dens, only a faint meow could be heard in the distance. A carriage with two people riding horses alongside hurriedly raced toward the outskirts of the city.

The three men in black were ordinary, straightforward individuals who had never taken on such business before and hadn’t thought of pulling any tricks.

Thus, Ye Zhi managed things much more smoothly. When they arrived at the dock, seeing Zhao Yi being carried into a separate cabin on the boat, she checked the quality of the lock before feeling reassured.

An hour later.

The sky was a shade of azure blue, and in the east, a multicolored cloud resembling arrows of gold shot into the sky as the sun struggled through layers of clouds, gradually revealing its face.

The day had dawned.

Ye Zhi, dressed in black, removed her black mask, revealing a disguised face that obscured her true appearance. As the boat sailed further away, all that could be seen was a faint silhouette, and in another quarter of an hour, even that would be indiscernible.

Finally, it was completed.

After relaxing for a moment, Ye Zhi immediately composed herself, hid in a secluded spot, changed into men’s clothing, and silently returned to the capital, heading back to Qingyi Garden. Ming Yan had been anxiously awaiting in the garden for some time, and as soon as her mistress returned, she immediately assisted with cleaning up. The black nightclothes were stored away under the bed.

That afternoon, news of the disappearance of Zhao Yi, the princely heir of Marquis Yongqing Mansion, spread through the streets and alleys.

If it were an ordinary disappearance, it wouldn’t be an issue. However, traces of sedatives were found in the princely heir’s room, which undoubtedly linked the incident to a criminal case, suggesting it was likely an act of revenge by enemies. Upon learning this, Mrs. Zhao of Zhao Mansion cried out loudly on the spot and eventually fainted. The first thing she did upon waking was to urge her husband to search through all their official connections, mobilize a large number of soldiers, and thoroughly investigate.

Marquis Yongqing, deeply loving his son and having a close relationship with the Emperor, immediately sought assistance from Emperor Jingping.

Emperor Jingping, considering the past friendship, promptly instructed the Investigation Factory to take over the case. The princely heir had been drugged and silently abducted from his room. So, it was neither a minor issue nor a massively significant one.

Shen Chen, being busy with numerous affairs, had seen the Investigation Factory grow substantially and couldn’t possibly handle everything personally.

Such a minor task of finding a person was entrusted to Qin Yin, who was to search for anyone who had recently purchased sedatives in the capital, or whether anyone left the city overnight. Otherwise, they would search the city for clues, eventually leading to some trace.

By noon the next day, Qin Yin led dozens of members of the Investigation Factory, all uniformly dressed in Flying Fish Robes, black hats, decorated sashes, and equipped with Yanyue Blades. They stormed into the Ye Mansion, directly heading to Qingyi Garden to take Ye Zhi away.

This was Ye Zhi’s first time officially encountering members of the Investigation Factory; each had a serious demeanor, resembling an unstoppable force of a formidable army.

The Yanyue Blades at their waists emitted a fierce chill. How many people had these blades killed to leave such a chilling aura?

She knew that most people in the Investigation Factory were remnants of the Six Gates.

Ye Zhi remained calm and unhurried.