Pei Yan had been seriously poisoned and remained in a coma, the news kept tightly under wraps.
Empress Gu claimed that Pei Yan had gone on a secret tour among the people to observe their lives.
Many did not believe this reason.
The realm was not yet stable, the Emperor was gravely ill, and the Useless Crown Prince and his partisans had not yet been executed.
Replacements had not yet been found for the key positions left vacant in the Court.
So many matters required Pei Yan's personal attention; how could he possibly leave the Capital at a time like this?
No matter how hard they thought, it seemed impossible that Pei Yan would go on a tour at this moment.
Those in the know were silenced, and no one dared to leak the secret.
A few well-informed individuals had, however, caught wind of some rumors.
But they couldn't be sure if his fate truly hung in the balance or if... he was staging another grand play, hoping to bait the fish hiding in deep waters.
