Xu Qi An inwardly grumbled after asking his question, “The biggest problem with the Imperial Daily Records is that your handwriting is too damn messy…”
Xu Er Lang took a sip to moisten his throat and explained, “The Recorder of Imperial Daily Activities is usually held by a first-rank scholar, truly one of the Emperor’s close courtiers, the most prestigious among the prestigious.”
“With the imperial examinations held every three years, the Recorder changes at most every three years, some not even lasting a year. While reviewing these records in the Hanlin Academy, I discovered something very strange.”
He deliberately created suspense, but seeing his elder brother glance at him askance, he quickly coughed and abandoned the idea of keeping him in suspense, saying:
“The records for the 10th and 11th years of the Yuanjing era don’t have the Recorder’s name noted. This is highly unusual.”
Xu Qi An pondered for a moment and asked, “Could it be an oversight in the records, forgetting to sign the name?”
Xu Er Lang shook his head, “The Recorder is an official of the Hanlin Academy. We’re responsible for compiling books and histories. How could such an oversight occur? Brother, you underestimate our Hanlin Academy.”
“Besides, all previous Recorders have signed their names. Why would only the 10th and 11th years of Yuanjing be missing? It’s too strange. I suspect it was the same person for both years.”
The records for the 10th and 11th years of Yuanjing had no signature, so the identity of the Recorder was unknown… If this wasn’t an oversight, why erase the name?
If there was a problem with the records, they should have modified the content, not erased the Recorder’s name.
Xu Qi An’s thoughts raced as he analyzed, “Could it be that the records were problematic, and the copy you transcribed was modified later? And that Recorder, because he recorded this content and knew certain information, was silenced and his name erased?”
Xu Er Lang shook his head, “No, according to your theory, even if they silenced him, there’s no need to erase the name. The real problem is with the records, not the Recorder’s signature. They would only need to modify the records.”
“You’re right,” Xu Qi An nodded. The priorities couldn’t be confused; the truly important thing was the content of the records. If they modified the content, whether the Recorder was dismissed or silenced, there was no need to erase the name.
“Then, the problem lies with the Recorder himself,” Xu Qi An concluded.
“Is this Recorder connected to Emperor Yuanjing’s secret?” Xu Er Lang lowered his voice. It was late, but his eyes were bright and alert, showing his excitement.
“I don’t know if he’s related to Emperor Yuanjing, but I recall something…” Xu Qi An rubbed his brow, unexpectedly discovering another matter related to the Cultivators.
If the problem was with the Recorder himself, and his name disappeared on its own, this familiar operation was identical to Su Su’s father’s case and the Cultivators’ method of obscuring Heaven’s will.
Su Hang’s case showed traces of Cultivator manipulation, and this Recorder’s name was similarly erased… There must be a connection between the two.
Something earth-shattering must have happened in the imperial court back then.
“Why do I feel like I’m overlooking something? Right, when I left Jian Prefecture, I asked the Deputy Chief of the Da Li Temple and Constable Chen from the Ministry of Justice to check Su Hang’s files…”
Xu Qi An was startled. If not for Er Lang’s records making him reexamine this matter, he would have almost forgotten about Su Hang’s files.
With his Fifth-rank Hua Jin cultivation, his memory shouldn’t be this poor.
It seems I need to keep a diary regularly to avoid automatically forgetting hard-earned clues, Xu Qi An thought.
“How do we investigate this Recorder? What’s the most effective and quickest way?” Xu Qi An asked.
“Naturally, by inquiring with senior officials,” Xu Ci Jiu replied without hesitation.
If it’s a case of obscuring Heaven’s will, no one would remember… Xu Qi An shook his head, “Is there a better way?”
“We could check the Ministry of Personnel. Their archives contain dossiers of all officials, including all information on capital officials for the past 600 years since the founding of the dynasty,” Xu Er Lang said.
He then shook his head, “But these are confidential. Brother, your current position is very sensitive. The Ministry of Personnel wouldn’t dare grant you access.”
Unless he was no longer involved.
If Emperor Yuanjing found out, being dismissed would be merciful; he might even be framed and imprisoned.
“Isn’t the Minister of Personnel from the Wang faction? Your future father-in-law could help me,” Xu Qi An teased.
“Brother, please don’t speak nonsense. Miss Wang and I have a pure relationship. Besides, even if we were close, Prime Minister Wang has never acknowledged me, he doesn’t even know I exist,” Xu Er Lang waved his hand, rejecting his brother’s impractical suggestion.
“What use are you then?” Xu Qi An criticized his younger brother. “If you had seduced Miss Wang earlier and made it a fait accompli, there wouldn’t be so much trouble. I could check the files at the Ministry of Personnel tomorrow. Er Lang, you’re not as good as your elder brother in this regard. If it were me, Miss Wang would already be an old friend.”
Xu Er Lang scoffed, “Besides sleeping with courtesans from the Imperial Entertainment Bureau, which respectable lady has elder brother slept with?”
Xu Qi An’s face immediately froze.
The elder brother mocked the younger, and the younger retorted. It was a draw.
After a long silence, the brothers acted as if nothing had happened and continued their discussion.
Xu Qi An pondered, “We must find a way to visit the Ministry of Personnel. It’s crucial. Er Lang, help your brother check the previous emperor’s daily records.”
The daily records of past emperors were important sources for writing history, and the Hanlin Academy was responsible for compiling histories. It would be easy for Xu Er Lang to check these records.
Xu Ci Jiu didn’t ask why, he just nodded.
How to enter the Ministry of Personnel? Even Duke Wei couldn’t manage this unless there was a legitimate reason. Even Duke Wei had no right to investigate files at the Ministry of Personnel… And I have no connections there. Well, I barely have one, but I’ve already released his nephew, so I can’t blackmail him anymore.
Xu Qi An rubbed his brow, looking worried.
“By the way, do you know about Xu Prefecture?” Xu Qi An collected himself and changed the subject, not forgetting about the first-generation Supervising Censor. He sought information from his knowledgeable younger brother.
Xu Xin Nian furrowed his brow, pondered for a long while, then shook his head, “I’ve never heard of it. When I have time, I’ll look into it for you, brother. Each dynasty tends to change prefecture names.”
“Also, common people have different names for prefectures. For example, Jian Prefecture is also known as Wu Prefecture, because the Martial Arts Alliance has a strong presence there, overshadowing the local government. So it was initially jokingly called Wu Prefecture, and the name gradually stuck.”
“It’s easier to trace the names of larger prefectures as they change, but for smaller ones, there are so many, it takes a long time to research.”
If Jian Prefecture is also known as Wu Prefecture, could Xu Prefecture be an alias for another prefecture? Xu Qi An pondered, then said, “Thank you for your help, Er Lang.”
…
The next day, Xu Er Lang rode to the Hanlin Academy. Strictly speaking, being a Hanlin Bachelor wasn’t an official position, but a period of study and work experience.
After becoming a Hanlin Bachelor, Xu Er Lang still had to continue his studies under the guidance of Hanlin Academy scholars. During this time, he would participate in some compilation work, assist scholars in annotating books, draft edicts for the emperor, and explain classics to the emperor and royal children.
Due to Xu Qi An’s influence, Xu Er Lang’s prospects had been greatly affected. Drafting edicts and explaining classics to the emperor were out of his reach.
Also because of Xu Qi An, he was thriving in the Hanlin Academy and was treated with courtesy.
The officials of the Hanlin Academy were among the most prestigious and held themselves in high regard. They greatly admired Xu Qi An’s actions, and by extension, were very polite to Xu Er Lang.
After listening to Hanlin Academy Grand Scholar Ma Xiu Wen’s lecture, Xu Xin Nian entered the archives and began to check the previous emperor’s daily records.
The emperor’s daily records weren’t confidential; they were a type of reference material that anyone in the Hanlin Academy could access, as they would eventually be written into historical books.
And historical books were meant to be read by people.
Compared to Emperor Yuanjing, whose reign was destined to be more controversial than meritorious in future historical records, the previous emperor’s life was rather unremarkable. He was neither incompetent nor particularly capable. During his 49-year reign, he only launched two foreign wars.
Even those were forced by excessive pressure from the southern and northern barbarians.
As he flipped through the pages, Xu Er Lang came across a conversation that took place in the 28th year of Zhen De, between the previous emperor and the Ren Zong Daoist Patriarch of that generation.
The previous emperor said, “Since ancient times, those who receive the Mandate of Heaven cannot last forever. Can the Daoist methods of longevity solve this ultimate limitation?”
The Ren Zong Daoist Patriarch replied, “Changshou is possible, but eternal existence is not.”
The previous emperor then asked, “I’ve heard that the Venerable Dao transformed one qi into the Three Pure Ones, the beginning of the three sects. Are these three one person, or three separate individuals?”
The conversation ended there.
“Huh? Why does it end here?” Xu Er Lang muttered, continuing to flip through the pages.
It was said that two hundred years ago when Confucianism was at its peak, emperors couldn’t view the Imperial Daily Records, let alone modify them. It wasn’t until the establishment of the Imperial College and the withdrawal of Yun Lu Academy scholars from the court that imperial power surpassed everything else.
Since then, emperors could review and modify the Daily Records.
Of course, scholars from the Imperial College weren’t entirely without integrity. They would argue with the emperor based on reason and preserve the true content to a certain extent.
Xu Er Lang didn’t pay attention to this detail and continued reading, taking notes as he went.
Before he knew it, it was time for lunch.
Xu Er Lang left the archives and went to the dining hall. While eating, he overheard several Professors of the Five Classics discussing:
“Today’s court session was truly spectacular.”
“Left Censor-in-Chief Yuan Xiong impeached Prime Minister Wang for accepting bribes. Vice Minister of War Qin Yuan Dao impeached Prime Minister Wang for embezzling military funds. Several Supervising Secretaries from the Six Offices of Scrutiny also submitted memorials of impeachment. It seems like they coordinated.”
“Heh, Prime Minister Wang has thoroughly angered His Majesty due to the Garrison North King’s city massacre case. This clearly shows that His Majesty is targeting Prime Minister Wang, forcing him to resign.”
“Wei Yuan must be overjoyed. He and Prime Minister Wang have always had conflicting political views.”
“Today is just the beginning. The killing blow is yet to come. Prime Minister Wang is in a precarious situation. Let’s see how he counterattacks.”
“Unless he can unite the court officials, but the Wang faction can’t cover the sky with one hand in the court.”
Xu Er Lang frowned, feeling inexplicably irritated.
He first thought of Wang Si Mu, then realized that party strife was intense during the year of the Imperial Inspection, and it remained intense for the half year following it.
Party strife after party strife, endlessly.
How many were truly working for the people and the court?
The one responsible for this situation was none other than the Son of Heaven, obsessed with cultivating the Dao.
…
The next day, as expected, the situation escalated.
Left Censor-in-Chief Yuan Xiong submitted another memorial impeaching Prime Minister Wang, detailing six major crimes of corruption and listing twelve involved officials from the Wang faction.
Vice Minister of War Qin Yuan Dao continued to impeach Prime Minister Wang for embezzling military funds, also providing a list of names.
Emperor Yuanjing “flew into a rage” and ordered a thorough investigation.
This storm arose without warning, swift and fierce, like a sword in the hands of a swordsman.
The Wang faction was caught off guard, and undercurrents surged through the official circles.
Xu Er Lang took a half-day leave and rode his horse to the Wang residence to visit Miss Wang Si Mu.
The doorkeeper at the Wang residence was familiar with Xu Er Lang by now. He said, “Please wait a moment,” and dashed inside. After a while, he returned at a trot and said:
“Lord Xu, please follow me.”
Xu Er Lang was led to the reception hall, where he met the graceful and gentle Miss Wang.
She was still as beautiful and lively as ever, but there was a deep worry in her brow.
After Wang Si Mu dismissed the servants in the hall, Xu Er Lang said in a low voice, “I’ve heard about the court affairs these past two days. I’m afraid it’s not just a simple warning. His Majesty is getting serious.”
“Er Lang is indeed perceptive,” Wang Si Mu forced a smile and said:
“Father spent all night in his study yesterday. I knew things were dire.”
“The Prime Minister is experienced and shrewd. He must have a countermeasure,” Xu Er Lang comforted her.
Wang Si Mu shook her head with a bitter smile: “This crisis has come too swiftly. There’s no time to prepare. A batch of officials was imprisoned today. Tomorrow, it might be my father. His Majesty won’t give my father a chance to react.”
“I heard Father say that His Majesty summoned Vice Minister of War Qin Yuan Dao and Left Censor-in-Chief Yuan Xiong the day before yesterday. They came prepared.”
“In the Chu Prefecture massacre case, Father and Wei Yuan united the officials to force His Majesty to issue an edict of self-blame. Now, His Majesty is retaliating.”
Xu Er Lang was silent for a moment, then asked, “Why doesn’t the Prime Minister ally with Duke Wei?”
Wang Si Mu shook her head: “Duke Wei and my father have conflicting political views and have always been at odds. We’d be thankful if he doesn’t kick us while we’re down.”
Xu Er Lang was at a loss for words. This wasn’t like the Chu Prefecture case where all officials united against imperial power.
For other officials, including Wei Yuan, the fall of the Wang faction was a welcome event. It meant more positions would become available.
These were tangible benefits that they could see.
Expanding their influence while the Wang faction fell would give them more say in affairs and allow them to do more.
“Unless my father can quickly unite the various factions, there’s only a glimmer of hope. But for the other factions, waiting for His Majesty to suppress my father is their greatest benefit,” Wang Si Mu sighed and said softly:
“Er Lang, what should we do?”
Xu Er Lang opened his mouth but had no answer.
…
At Hao Qi Tower.
Nan Gong Qian Rou sat beside the tea table, the cold-mannered beauty now wearing a smile: “Adoptive Father, even if the Wang faction doesn’t fall this time, they’ll suffer heavy losses. From now on, no one will be able to stand in your way.”
Wang Zhen Wen and her adoptive father had conflicting political views. He had been obstructing her adoptive father’s promotion of new policies for years. Finally, this stumbling block was about to be removed.
“Wang Zhen Wen was never the one blocking my way,” Wei Yuan said, looking down at a geomantic map:
“But it’s good that they’re falling. With the Wang faction gone, I’ll have at least five years…”
He suddenly stopped speaking. After a long while, he sighed softly: “The autumn harvest is in two months. My battlefield is no longer in the court. Let them be.”
Adoptive Father plans to regain military power… Nan Gong Qian Rou’s spirits lifted.
She then realized something was amiss. Attacking the Wu Shen Sect after the autumn harvest was a plan her adoptive father had long decided on. But his words implied that he wouldn’t be in court for a long time to come.
This meant that the attack on the Wu Shen Sect wasn’t a small operation. Was her adoptive father planning a prolonged war?
A question flashed through Nan Gong Qian Rou’s mind.
What was the reason?