"That's right, I am indeed Benjamin Lee." After introducing himself, the old man seemed to take on an air of otherworldly wisdom—though perhaps that was just the effect of being a fan. "I've been teaching His Highness for a whole year now."

Though in total, there haven't even been two proper lessons... Benjamin Lee silently added.

But this old man has worked hard—so what if I've eaten the Zhu family's food for a few years without much to do?

"Did His Majesty send Your Highness to find me?" Benjamin Lee thought of Boss Zhu's usual stinginess and wondered if perhaps he didn't want to keep supporting an idle man.

"Sir, you're overthinking it! I came to find you myself." James Johnson felt his idol filter starting to crack.

Was this suspicious, paranoid old man—who seemed to have a persecution complex—really the legendary Benjamin Lee, famed for his divine strategies, rivaling Zhuge Liang, the embodiment of justice and wisdom?

Why did he seem more like a frightened bird that's been played with too much?

"You came to find me yourself?" Benjamin Lee looked James Johnson up and down. After being 'kicked in the butt' by Boss Zhu for half his life, it was hard not to suspect this was another one of his tricks.

"Yes, I want to ask you something." James Johnson said, walking to the window and looking outside. Sure enough, his gaze could pass over the rockery and see the lotus pond.

"Your Highness wants to ask if I saw you fall into the water?" Benjamin Lee understood.

"That's right." James Johnson thought, now that's the intelligence I expected.

"Does Your Highness suspect this has something to do with the Prince of Qi?" Benjamin Lee asked again.

"Exactly." James Johnson nodded, turning back to look at Benjamin Lee: "If you saw anything, please be sure to tell me."

"Sorry, it was windy at the time and the window was closed," Benjamin Lee replied crisply. "The Crown Prince already came to ask, and I gave him the same answer."

"Sir, this side is sheltered from the wind, there's no need to close the window," James Johnson said.

"To prevent a draft," Benjamin Lee replied blandly.

"But if the window's closed, how do you read?" James Johnson said, closing the window on tiptoe, making the room instantly darker.

"That was during my lunch break—I was taking a nap," Benjamin Lee said, face unchanged.

"There's not even a bed in here..." James Johnson said helplessly.

"I can sleep sitting, lying on the table, or even standing. Is that any of Your Highness's business?" Benjamin Lee was now convinced this wasn't Boss Zhu's doing, and his attitude became even more perfunctory.

"Your Highness should go ask someone else. My old eyes are failing; it's hard enough to read, let alone look outside."

"Sir, how old are you? You don't look that old," James Johnson seemed to be struggling in vain.

"I'll be sixty-five after the New Year—is that not old enough?" With that, Benjamin Lee ignored him and immersed himself in his book.

"Sixty-five..." James Johnson seemed to think of something, muttered it twice, and stopped pestering him.

...

Night fell. The cold stars were sparse, and all was silent.

'Bang, bang...' At the hour of Xu, the sound of the patrolmen's clappers echoed along West First Street.

The clapper's sound could be clearly heard in Wan'an Palace. Upon hearing this signal, any eunuchs without duties hurried out of the palace. A quarter of an hour later, the palace gates were locked, and no one was allowed in or out.

Outside Wan'an Palace, the patrols of the guards made their rounds. Inside, palace maids took the night shift.

Ethan Brooks was not the only one on night duty. There were two guards at the door, one outside the side room, and one outside the warm chamber, each with their own responsibilities. If the consort was present, the number of maids on duty would double.

The one serving inside was the head of the night-shift maids—only the most favored confidantes could do this job, and doing it well could even lead to promotion to a female official. No wonder Ethan Brooks had begged His Highness not to drive her out.

James Johnson, attended by Ethan Brooks and the others, took a bath, then lay on the bed and let Ethan Brooks help dry his hair.

Ethan Brooks first wrapped a lock of his hair in cotton cloth, gently rubbing up and down to absorb as much moisture as possible.

Then she switched to another piece of cotton cloth to dry another lock.

After all the hair had been dried this way, she used a hollow gilded ball filled with incense and charcoal to thoroughly dry it.

This was a skilled task—done poorly, it could burn the hair or even the scalp. But Ethan Brooks's technique was so deft that James Johnson felt no heat at all, only a pleasant warmth and comfort.

Ah, now this is how it should be... James Johnson finally felt that being a prince wasn't for nothing.

But as soon as he thought of his mother still suffering in the Cold Palace, he sobered up again and silently reviewed the day's gains.

...

The biggest gain, of course, was narrowing down the suspect who pushed him into the water!

Benjamin Lee had helped him narrow it down to his own brothers. He knew his brothers well enough.

First, he could rule out his older brothers—the youngest of them, the fifth, was already fourteen, more than a head taller than him.

As for his younger brothers, only the seventh and eighth were studying in the main hall.

The eighth, though also born of Consort Dading, was only six years old and had just started school.

So the only one who fit the profile was the seventh—also ten years old, Prince of Qi, Henry Johnson—half a year younger than him, and matching the characteristics of the perpetrator!

Plus, his own mother had hit the other boy's mother, so the boy retaliated against him for his mother's sake—the motive made sense.

So what should he do next? James Johnson scratched his head.

When the other maids had left and only Ethan Brooks remained by his side, he finally asked, "Did you find out anything about what I asked you to look into?"