In prison, Xu Jingfu sat quietly. When he first arrived, the jailers treated him with the utmost respect, not daring to show any negligence. Although shocked by the swift and decisive actions of Xiao Huaijin, he wasn’t anxious. With Chu Zhao on the outside, and given Emperor Wenxuan’s indecisive nature, even if he couldn’t emerge unscathed, he could at least gradually turn the situation around.

However, recently, the jailers’ attitude toward him had gradually changed. Being the seasoned courtier he was, after years of navigating court politics, Xu Jingfu could discern changes in situations from mere glances. During these days, with no visitors allowed, he had no way of knowing the outside situation. While he could endure, he worried about Xu Pingting and Lady Xu. Xu Pingting had been pampered since birth and had never weathered any storms – he didn’t know how Emperor Wenxuan was dealing with them now.

Though his face remained impassive, Xu Jingfu grew increasingly anxious. Crown Prince Guangyan was incompetent, and their relationship had become strained over the Wutuo incident – he probably wouldn’t dare speak up now. Thinking of this, Xu Jingfu felt contempt; if the court hadn’t been so devoid of talent, he would never have supported a fool like Guangyan. But after all this time, had Chu Zhao not found a solution? Or was Chu Zhao also in trouble?

Xu Jingfu grew restless. The longer he stayed in prison, the worse it became. He didn’t know how far Xiao Jue had progressed, and Emperor Wenxuan… though benevolent, was still an emperor, and in his absence, other officials would advise the emperor differently.

People would continuously try to drag him down; he had to think of other options, but the immediate priority was to see his people first. As Xu Jingfu pondered this, his vision blurred, seeming to catch a glimpse of someone flashing past in the dark corner of the cell. When he looked again, nothing was there.

Outside, snow was falling. The jailers were crouching by the prison door drinking wine, the alcohol temporarily dispelling the cold as their laughing voices gradually quieted down. The torches on the wall cast weak flames silently. Within the firelight came tiny “crackling” sounds, like burning debris. Gradually, these sounds became muffled, and after a long while, at some unknown moment, a scream pierced the night.

“Fire! Fire in the prison!”

“Quick put out the fire!”

The smoke choked people’s throats, and the roaring flames ignited in an instant. Amid the clamor, there were voices of people getting water buckets to douse the fire, and others shouting, accompanied by the clash of swords: “Help! Someone’s breaking into the prison!”

“Minister Xu has been taken!”

…

The carriage stopped at some unknown time, and Xu Jingfu was pushed into a secluded courtyard. It appeared to be a farmhouse in the wilderness, with no other residences in sight. Upon entering, Xu Jingfu began coughing.

He was already advanced in age and couldn’t handle such rough treatment. Half his beard had been singed off, and his clothes were blackened with smoke, making him look particularly disheveled. The room was empty of others, with tea and food arranged rather elegantly on the table, but he didn’t touch any of it.

At any time, it was better to err on the side of caution.

During the journey, he had asked those around him who had broken him out of prison, but no one answered his questions. Xu Jingfu felt uneasy. After sitting for a moment longer, there was movement at the door as someone entered.

Xu Jingfu looked up to see someone wearing a light cyan robe, appearing refined and gentle, who addressed him softly: “Master.”

“Zilan?” Xu Jingfu first felt joy, then furrowed his brow, “What is the meaning of this?”

Chu Zilan closed the door.

“Master doesn’t know, Xiao Huaijin has found the witness from the Mingshui case.”

Xu Jingfu’s heart skipped a beat, though he wasn’t particularly surprised. His people had been searching for the Luo brothers’ whereabouts, and just when they had found a lead, they suddenly vanished without a trace. At that time, Xu Jingfu had already begun to suspect Xiao Jue’s involvement. However, Xiao Jue operated in secrecy, and he had never been able to catch him red-handed. Now that he was imprisoned over the He Rufei incident, Xiao Huaijin would certainly not let this opportunity slip by. The Mingshui case had never been forgotten by Xiao Jue, and it was bound to be reinvestigated sooner or later.

“Witness testimony alone isn’t enough to convict.”

Chu Zilan sighed: “Many court officials are eager to kick a man when he’s down.”

Xu Jingfu could only laugh coldly.

Having held his position for so many years, he naturally understood that sometimes victory and defeat could be determined in an instant. In the past, when he suppressed Xiao Zhongwu’s old faction, he had also seized the opportunity of the Mingshui case. Now the tables had turned, and with his current predicament, his opponents would certainly show no mercy.

“Are you suggesting that the Xu family can’t recover from this?” Xu Jingfu looked at Chu Zhao, his tone carrying a hint of displeasure. “During my days in prison, is this the solution you came up with? A prison break during a fire?” At this point, Xu Jingfu became angry, “Don’t you realize that this action will only make His Majesty favor Xiao Huaijin more? You’re not helping at all.”

“Master,” Chu Zilan stood beside him, shaking his head, “Your student had no other options.”

Xu Jingfu took a deep breath, “You’ve always been clever, why choose such a foolish method this time? What was your purpose in breaking me out of prison, to save my life? While my life might be saved, the Xu family cannot be preserved, and then there’s Pingting and my wife… you…”

He grew increasingly agitated as he thought about it, but now he couldn’t return, and staying away would only lead people to say that he, Xu Jingfu, had fled due to guilt.

“Master,” Chu Zilan said gently, “Even without the prison break, the Xu family couldn’t be saved. Xiao Huaijin won’t allow the Xu family any chance of recovery, and the Fourth Prince has also made his move.”

“But you’ve made a terrible move! You might protect me for now, but can you protect me forever?” Xu Jingfu glared at the young man before him in frustration, “You’ve always been steady in your actions, I’ve never worried about you before, how could this time…” His words suddenly stopped.

The person before him was his future son-in-law, his student, someone he had watched grow up, always by his side, from studies to entering official service. He was intelligent, gentle in temperament, and well-mannered, truly a scholar of talent. In Xu Jingfu’s heart, he greatly admired him, and having no son of his own, he had groomed Chu Zhao as his successor.

The room fell silent for a moment.

“You did this deliberately?” Xu Jingfu slowly asked, his gaze as fierce as a snake’s.

Chu Zhao smiled slightly: “Master, it has come to this point. This was the only best course of action.”

Xu Jingfu’s hands trembled.

“I know Master is unwilling and still thinks of making a comeback, but Master has been in prison and doesn’t know that the outside situation has completely changed.” Chu Zhao’s voice remained gentle as he continued unhurriedly: “Your student has met with His Highness the Crown Prince, and this was also the Crown Prince’s intention.”

“That fool Guangyan,” Xu Jingfu sneered, “How could he possibly think of sacrificing the chariot to save the commander? I think it was you,” he stared at Chu Zhao’s face, “You suggested it, didn’t you? Well well, Chu Zilan, you’ve been by my side for so long, yet I never realized I was nurturing a viper in my midst.”

“Isn’t this all learned from Master?” Chu Zhao remained unperturbed, speaking softly: “Master taught well.”

Xu Jingfu, after years of navigating political waters, experienced for the first time the feeling of being angered to the point of coughing blood. Even during his intense confrontations with Xiao Zhongwu, he had never felt such fury.

Xu Jingfu understood Chu Zhao’s intentions. The prison break was likely a ruse, meant to create the appearance that he had colluded with others and fled due to guilt. Then his student would make his move, sacrificing personal relationships for righteousness, both demonstrating Chu Zhao’s loyalty to the country and clearing any suspicion of collusion with him, while also eliminating him as a crucial threat – Xu Jingfu still held many pieces of evidence from Chu Zhao’s past that could destroy him.

More importantly, with Xu Jingfu’s death, the former Xu faction would seek protection, and if Chu Zhao could emerge unscathed from this case, all the connections Xu Jingfu had built would become Chu Zhao’s.

Having no son of his own, he had appreciated Chu Zhao’s character and talent, wanting to groom him as his own, never expecting Chu Zhao to hide such deep schemes, just like… taking advantage of a childless family.

Xu Jingfu suddenly felt a wave of nausea.

“Chu Zilan,” Xu Jingfu called out his name, “I believe I treated you without fault. If it weren’t for me saving you back then, you would have died in some courtyard of the Shi Jinbo residence. All these years, I protected you, helped you enter officialdom, arranged everything for you, yet you repay kindness with enmity, you… ungrateful, treacherous villain!”

“Ungrateful? Repaying kindness with enmity?” Chu Zilan laughed, looking at Xu Jingfu and speaking gently, “Master indeed treated me very well, but how much of that goodness was genuine and how much was manipulation, Master knows in his heart. There’s no need to speak with such sincerity, or I might start believing it myself if said too often.”

Years ago at the Xu residence, Xu Jingfu had given him a pair of boots, rescuing Chu Zilan from Madam Chu’s control. After that, at least openly, the three legitimate brothers and Madam Chu didn’t dare to be too arbitrary, and he managed to preserve his life. For a time, Chu Zilan was truly grateful to Xu Jingfu.

Until he gradually grew up and was arranged by Xu Jingfu to become an official, which seemed like a good thing – a teacher wholeheartedly arranging his student’s future, something few in the world would do.

But from his first day as an official, he truly became Xu Jingfu’s pawn.

Xu Jingfu’s students were spread throughout Great Wei, and every student who became an official was his pawn. Chu Zilan was no different from the other pawns. He carried out murders, and false accusations, and garnered support for Xu Jingfu… he did everything. While Xu Jingfu remained in the background, he stood at the forefront, becoming a target for numerous hidden arrows.

Once, he accidentally overheard Xu Jingfu speaking to a servant.

“Fourth Young Master Chu’s attendance at the banquet might be dangerous. Master, should we…”

“Young people need to grow through danger,” his teacher smiled and said, “If he’s not willing to risk his life, what was the point of nurturing him all these years?”

Later, Chu Zilan understood – he was just a dog raised by Xu Jingfu. Whoever Xu Jingfu wanted him to bite, he would bite. The bitten ones hated the dog, not the one who kept it.

Did Xu Jingfu not know there would be danger in Jiyang? Of course, he knew. Even when he was in Rundu, Xu Jingfu still guarded against him. When Xu Pingting fell in love with him, Xu Jingfu could arbitrarily arrange his marriage. Chu Zilan knew clearly that if one day Xu Pingting stopped loving him or even came to hate him, Xu Jingfu would abandon him without hesitation.

“You play the role of benevolent teacher, I play the role of student. After playing these roles for so long, Master has forgotten why you chose me as your student in the first place.”

Xu Jingfu stared at him intently, angry: “…It was because I pitied you then!”

“Was that the case?” The young man smiled, “Wasn’t it because Master saw that I had nothing and would be easy to control, that you took me in?”

A pitiful person bullied by his stepmother and legitimate brothers at home, who could die at any moment; someone who had nothing and no one to rely on, who would repay a small kindness a hundredfold, who would desperately climb up when given the chance.

He was perfectly suited to be a pawn.

And perfectly suited to be used, because he had no other choice.

That kind, gentle teacher was just a facade he had created. The calculations and schemes were hidden in those soft boots, just waiting for time to pass, for the nails to slowly emerge from the boots, imperceptibly making one bleed.

But at that time, hadn’t he also been calculating?

Knowing he was going to Minister Xu’s residence for the banquet, knowing that the clothes Madam Chu made for him were as thin as paper, he still wore them.

When Chu Linfeng took him to social occasions, could he not find a moment to change his boots, or at least remove the nails inside?

In the vast Xu residence, how did he happen to encounter Xu Jingfu?

He was a child raised in a brothel and had seen women use every trick to gain men’s favor. Pity was the instinct of all-powerful people; using others’ sympathy and compassion was the survival skill he had learned in those years.

Every opportunity was hard to come by, every opportunity had to be firmly grasped.

He grasped it, and thus finally changed his fate, although the path of this fate wasn’t very bright, at least it allowed him to survive these many years.

Xu Jingfu used him, and he used Xu Jingfu. In the end, he and Xu Jingfu were the same kind of person from the beginning.

Only those boots were a pity, he thought regretfully, they had truly kept him warm for many years.

The lamplight in the room swayed slowly, the wind outside blew fiercely, and the windows blocked the wind that howled like ghosts. The warm candlelight seemed only to make the room colder.

Xu Jingfu looked at him, and as he looked, he suddenly began laughing softly, saying: “Chu Zilan… well done… you are truly formidable…”

“Master,” Chu Zilan looked at him, his eyes still gentle, “Just like you, your sympathy for me was real, and your desire to use me was also real. My gratitude to you is real, and my wish to kill you is also real.” He stepped back, his features becoming completely clear in the lamplight, clearly a gentle, handsome face untouched by worldly matters, yet he had tasted all the sins of the mortal world, carrying a kind of cold compassion, “All the schemes your student learned were from you. It’s just that… the student has surpassed the master.”

“Well said, the student surpassing the master.” Xu Jingfu burst into laughter, though it was particularly tragic, and he asked: “Those outside are all your men… when do you plan to kill me?”

Chu Zhao remained silent.

“Such decisiveness and ruthlessness, truly worthy of being my student!” he suddenly spoke, “What about Pingting? What will you do with her?”

This old official who had been fierce in the political arena all his life finally revealed a moment of elderly fragility. He looked at Chu Zhao, his eyes almost pleading, “She truly loves you… if you have any conscience left, don’t hurt her!”

“I won’t harm her,” After a long while, Chu Zhao finally spoke, “As long as she behaves.”

The lamp in the room flared up, and voices came from outside, “Fourth Young Master! The pursuit troops are almost here!”

Chu Zhao looked at Xu Jingfu.

Xu Jingfu quietly returned his gaze, his eyes filled with unwillingness, anger, and hatred, finally sinking into helplessness.

He had grown old. When he fought at Mingshui, and when he dealt with Xiao Zhongwu, he should have anticipated this day would come.

Chu Zhao slowly knelt before Xu Jingfu, bowing deeply.

“Your student will inherit Master’s will. May Master journey well.”

He stood up and left without looking back. Several guard-like figures rushed in, and the sound of overturning tables and chairs came from the room, accompanied by low screams of agony.

Chu Zhao stood quietly, the wind lifting the hem of his robe, making his figure appear particularly thin as if he might return with the wind at any moment. For an instant, he thought of many years ago, when he was about eleven or twelve, going to Xu Jingfu’s residence to celebrate his birthday. All of Xu Jingfu’s students were older than him, many already officials, bringing gifts of gold, jade, and jewels. Only he, after much hesitation, shyly produced a painting from behind his back.

The painting was of a pine tree he had drawn, taking him several days and nights, drawn with particular care. He had no money and didn’t want to ask Chu Linfeng for any, so after much consideration, this was the only presentable thing he could offer.

Crane-boned and pine-sinewed, the green pine and cypress, at that moment, that was truly what he thought.

But that was already such a long, long time ago.

Soon, two guards walked out from inside, one’s sword at his waist already stained bright red with blood, dripping onto the accumulated snow below, like blooming plum blossoms.

Chu Zhao took the sword from his hand, the sword was heavy, and even the man holding it found it burdensome, not knowing how that seemingly frail and small girl had wielded it so skillfully.

He looked at the sword, gripped the handle in reverse, and suddenly thrust it toward his chest.

“Squelch—”

The sword tip entered flesh, bringing a clear sensation of pain, seemingly also awakening him somewhat from his daze. The guard at his side exclaimed in shock: “Fourth Young Master!”

He wearily waved his hand, pulling the sword back out and throwing it to the ground, one hand covering his wound as blood instantly filled his palm, staining his robes red.

The next moment, the sound of troops suddenly arrived from outside. He walked forward two steps before finally losing strength and falling to his knees.

“Fourth Young Master! Fourth Young Master!”

The last thing he saw was the bright torches and the surge of arriving troops.