Emperor Yuanjing knew well that court struggles were like simmering a delicate fish—a slow, gentle flame was needed to produce a satisfying flavor. It was a cycle of supporting one faction while suppressing another, gradually advancing his agenda. During this process, it was necessary to give enemies opportunities to retaliate and vent, slowly wearing down their morale and fighting spirit.
If he, as the ruler of the nation, were to forcefully convict Wei Yuan against popular opinion, it would likely result in a situation similar to when ministers besieged the Wumen Gate after the death of Prince Huai. Wasn’t that siege caused by his own overly aggressive actions?
The subsequent maneuvers and arrangements to gradually alter the nature of the Chuzhou case perfectly aligned with the theory of slow simmering.
Emperor Yuanjing strolled through the palace, looking up at the distant blue sky. Previously, he had to maintain a balance of fortune without letting it leak out. Now, his task was to shake that fortune.
Since the Yan and Kang nations proved so incompetent, he would have to take matters into his own hands.
That day, although they couldn’t define the nature of this battle, different voices finally emerged in court. For perceptive officials skilled at analyzing court dynamics, this was a crucial signal.
Those who needed to choose sides had to make their decision now.
Those who didn’t want to take sides should keep quiet and observe.
Over the next two days, several major and minor court sessions were held. Former members of the Wei faction stood their ground, fiercely debating with the allied Wang faction and the followers of Yuan Xiong and Qin Yuandao.
Emperor Yuanjing, as he had done for decades, sat high on his throne, watching the tigers fight.
The most surprising was Grand Chancellor Wang. This old chancellor, who had been feuding with Wei Yuan for half his life, now stood firmly with the former Wei faction members, doing his utmost to defend Wei Yuan’s posthumous reputation and the nature of this battle.
…
In front of a small courtyard in the northern part of the city, a luxurious carriage slowly pulled up to the street. A middle-aged man in casual attire stepped out, surrounded by his entourage, and knocked on the courtyard door.
A pretty young woman in a simple dress opened the door. Startled by the sight of so many men, she quickly tried to close it.
An attendant blocked the door, reprimanding her, “Don’t be rude. Do you know who stands before you?”
Unable to close the door, the young woman retreated in panic, calling into the house, “Mother, there are guests…”
An elderly woman with silver hair, leaning on a cane, emerged from the house. She eyed the unexpected visitors warily, “Who are you?”
The old woman had once lived in luxury. With just a glance, she could tell from the middle-aged man’s expensive, finely crafted clothing and the jade pendant at his waist that the visitor was no ordinary person.
This made the old woman even more cautious.
Those lackeys from the government had very clear motives—they were just after money, despicable as they were, at least they were straightforward. Besides, now that the family was destitute and living in hardship, even those heartless lackeys didn’t bother coming anymore.
What could this highborn middle-aged man want?
It certainly wasn’t for money.
The middle-aged man stood in the courtyard, his brow furrowing slightly at the clucking hens in the corner and the faint smell of chicken droppings in the air.
“Are you the first wife of Lu Zhennan?” he asked.
Lu Zhennan was the real name of Master Lu.
The old woman suddenly burst into loud wails. Throwing her cane to the ground, she sat down, employing the typical shrewish tactic of playing the victim first, placing herself on the moral high ground—a strategy that never failed.
The old woman was illiterate and uneducated; these were experiences and principles learned from life in the city.
But one sentence from the middle-aged man made the old woman’s cries catch in her throat as if someone had suddenly grabbed an old hen by the neck.
“Do you want to clear Lu Zhennan’s name?”
Clear the name of Lu, who trafficked people and raped innocent women? The old woman neither nodded nor refused, just staring blankly at the middle-aged man.
The middle-aged man smiled, using words that a common city woman could understand:
“The high official who exiled your son is called Wei Yuan, the head of the Night Watchmen’s Office. Now, he’s dead on the battlefield. Some people want to clear the names of those innocent people framed by Wei Yuan, restore their reputations, and bring clarity to the administration.
“If you go to the Wumen Gate after lunch and beat the grievance drum to accuse Wei Yuan of excessive wealth accumulation and slandering good citizens, I can guarantee that your son, who was exiled to the frontier, will return to reunite with you before this year’s Spring Festival.”
The old woman’s eyes suddenly lit up, full of vigor.
Then she became a bit afraid, muttering, “Filing an imperial complaint means getting flogged.”
Great Qi law stipulated that for skipping levels of appeal, one would receive fifty lashes.
If successful, there would be no further consequences. If unsuccessful, the punishment could be exile for two thousand li or even death.
For a woman of her age, fifty lashes meant she’d be reuniting with her dead husband right then and there, the couple reincarnating together.
The middle-aged man sneered, “Don’t worry, we’ll ensure your safety. If you die, wouldn’t all our efforts be in vain?”
He glanced at an attendant beside him.
The attendant tossed down a gold ingot and a petition.
The middle-aged man said, “The petition has already been written for you. If you do this well, not only will your son return, but you’ll also receive fifty taels of gold as a reward afterward, enough for your family to live a life of luxury.”
The old woman gritted her teeth and steeled her heart: “Thank you, sir, for standing up for this humble woman!”
The middle-aged man nodded with satisfaction: “I’ll teach you the process and methods for filing an imperial complaint now…”
…
That day, drum beats resounded outside the Wumen Gate. An old woman, accompanied by her daughter-in-law and young grandson, beat the grievance drum outside the Wumen Gate, accusing Wei Yuan of excessive wealth accumulation and slandering good citizens.
Emperor Yuanjing, who had been lax in governance for twenty-one years, flew into a rage upon hearing this and ordered the Censorate to investigate the matter thoroughly.
This news spread rapidly among the officials in the capital, causing undercurrents in the political arena.
The old woman was immediately taken away by a censor from the Censorate. She was brought to an interrogation room in the Censorate, trembling and keeping her head low.
Common folk had an innate fear of government offices.
“Are you Madam Lu née Li?” came the stern voice of the chief interrogator from behind the desk.
“This humble woman is,” the old woman answered tremulously.
“Raise your head,” that authoritative voice said again.
The old woman slowly lifted her head and saw the face of the official sitting behind the large desk. She almost cried out in surprise—this official was none other than the middle-aged man who had visited her home not long ago and taught her how to file an imperial complaint.
“I am Yuan Xiong. Tell me your grievances truthfully.”
“Everything… everything this humble woman wants to say is written in the petition.”
“That’s not enough. We need more details. I’ll ask, and you answer. Do not conceal anything, understand?”
“Yes…”
“Did your husband, Lu Zhennan, ever traffic people, abduct innocent families, children, or adult men?”
“Absolutely not. My husband was a small merchant dealing in fabrics, and an honest and hardworking citizen. How could he traffic people?”
“Then why did the slave trader organization’s Dao Ye insist that Lu Zhennan was a leader in their organization?”
“This humble woman doesn’t know. I’ve never even heard of this person. Besides, my husband was already dead by then. They’re just slandering him with their words, taking advantage of the fact that the dead can’t speak.”
“Oh, so they’re framing him.” Yuan Xiong nodded, then asked, “What happened to your family after Lu’s property was confiscated?”
“Those Night Watchmen came to our home every few days to cause trouble, demanding money.”
“Oh, extortion and bullying of civilians. What else?”
“They also harassed my daughter-in-law.”
“Oh, so they defiled your daughter-in-law, raping innocent women.”
…
Soon after, Yuan Xiong brought the interrogation results to report to Emperor Yuanjing in the palace.
Emperor Yuanjing immediately summoned his ministers and held a small court session in the Imperial Study.
“Bang!” Emperor Yuanjing slammed the table hard, his face contorted with imperial rage:
“The Night Watchmen accumulate excessive wealth, oppress good citizens, and after tearing families apart, they still refuse to let go, sucking them dry to the bone, defiling innocent women… The scourge of petty officials has long been a chronic problem, but I never imagined that the Night Watchmen, who should be monitoring other officials, would have rotted to this extent. I am deeply pained. I am extremely disappointed in Wei Yuan.
“I treated him as a national hero, yet he turned out to be a traitor to the nation.”
Left Censor-in-Chief Liu Hong stepped forward urgently, saying, “Your Majesty, this matter concerns Lord Wei. Such a major case should be jointly investigated by the Three Judicial Offices. We cannot rely solely on Yuan Xiong’s words.”
He was Wei Yuan’s confidant, and in this case, he should have recused himself. All members of the Wei faction should have recused themselves, excluded by Emperor Yuanjing from interfering with this case.
Emperor Yuanjing sneered, “Joint investigation by the Three Judicial Offices? Can you produce any results? When you investigated the Crown Prince in the Imperial Consort Fu case, what did you uncover? You’re all just a bunch of buck-passers.”
The ministers were momentarily speechless.
Grand Chancellor Wang stepped forward and said solemnly, “Your Majesty, this is a major case. It’s not proper procedure. Please allow a joint investigation by the Three Judicial Offices.”
Vice Minister of War Qin Yuandao immediately stood up to refute, saying:
“During the imperial examination, from the highest-ranking Golden Gong to the lowest-ranking Copper Gong in the Night Watchmen’s Office, many were imprisoned for corruption and bribery. This corrupt atmosphere has persisted for a long time. Now that Wei Yuan is dead, these corrupt and unjust scoundrels have lost their protection. I believe this is the perfect opportunity to thoroughly investigate the Night Watchmen and root out this chronic illness.”
Emperor Yuanjing, however, no longer looked at him, instead fixing his gaze on Yuan Xiong, saying:
“Beloved Official Yuan, I now entrust the Night Watchmen’s Office to you. Investigate it thoroughly, and be sure to root out all corruption. Return to me a clean and honest Night Watchmen’s Office.”
Yuan Xiong was overjoyed but didn’t let his emotions show on his face. He loudly responded, “Yes, Your Majesty!”
…
As the ministers dispersed, the Minister of War hurried after Grand Chancellor Wang, speaking in a low voice, “Grand Chancellor, what should we do now?”
It was clear that His Majesty intended to use this to tarnish Lord Wei’s reputation. When all the “darkness” of the Night Watchmen’s Office comes to light, how clean could Wei Yuan, as the leader of the Night Watchmen, possibly remain?
By then, any talk of loyalty, valor, or a dukedom would be out of the question.
Grand Chancellor Wang answered indirectly, “Have you noticed that more and more people are staying silent?”
The Minister of War’s face changed.
Grand Chancellor Wang said calmly, “Keep an eye on your people. In officialdom, people move on quickly when someone falls from power—a truth that has held for thousands of years.”
The old man turned back to look at the imperial palace, his face full of weariness.
…
Yuan Xiong left the palace in his carriage, but he neither returned to the Censorate nor rushed to the Night Watchmen’s Office to make a strong first impression in his new position.
“Those most familiar with the Night Watchmen are still the Night Watchmen themselves. To get things done quickly, we’ll need that person’s help.”
Yuan Xiong narrowed his eyes, his fingers quietly tapping on his knee.
The carriage wheels rumbled as he left the imperial city, traveling for half an hour within the inner city before arriving at a mansion.
The Zhu Mansion!!