If Heaven had emotions, Heaven too would be in chaos

He had arranged to meet Quan Feitong at a tavern, so he went there first.

After drinking half a pot of wine, Quan Feitong arrived leisurely. He handed him a cup of wine and asked with a smile, “It’s over, what was the result?”

Quan Feitong slowly sat down, his face still wearing an expression of complete indifference. “It’s just that – I was boasting too much. Huang Tianba is finished this time.”

Li Zhaoting said, “Although Gu Cheng and Liao all three had bribed Huang Tianba, Gu De is now facing a death sentence and wouldn’t go to the trouble of testifying against Huang Tianba. Cheng Qizhu is even less likely to speak out and add another charge of bribing court officials to himself. Only in the land seizure case did two bailiffs leak information, but Senior Brother already deflected blame from Lord Huang on the spot. In other cases like mineral tax protection, even Lian Yu couldn’t investigate anything. In the end, if Lian Yu wanted to pursue it, he could only charge Huang Tianba with incompetence at most – dismissal from office at worst, but his life would be spared. How did Senior Brother lose? In fact, you sold a huge favor to Lord Huang Zhongyue.”

“Life preserved, but power lost – ultimately it’s a pyrrhic victory. How can a pyrrhic victory count as winning?”

Quan Feitong sipped his wine noncommittally, staring at Li Zhaoting, the playful gleam in his eyes growing somewhat thicker.

Li Zhaoting’s gaze flickered slightly. After a long moment, he spoke word by word: “No, Senior Brother set up a grand scheme. Not only is it not a pyrrhic victory, but you won completely.”

A flash of surprise appeared in Quan Feitong’s eyes. “Oh, how so? What do you mean by this, Zhaoting? I set up a scheme, but I myself don’t know about it?”

Li Zhaoting tapped lightly on the table. “In this contest, Senior Brother actually wanted Huang Tianba to be investigated.”

Quan Feitong raised an eyebrow. “My, this is getting more and more far-fetched.”

“Senior Brother,” Li Zhaoting drained his cup and smiled slightly, “only when Huang Tianba was investigated would Lord Huang turn against Lian Yu. Actually, there’s something Senior Brother hid from Zhaoting – that impeachment letter from the neighboring county magistrate was Senior Brother’s work, wasn’t it? That person is yours.”

“The more beautifully Lian Yu wins in Minzhou, the more miserable his future defeat will likely be.”

As his words fell, Quan Feitong stroked his forehead and laughed long, his eyes rippling like snow reflecting on water, making them unbearable to look upon directly.

“When did you guess?”

“Just these past two days.”

Quan Feitong threw down his wine cup. “You guessed it all – how boring. I’m leaving first. Li Huaisu isn’t much fun anymore, I’ll go meet with Gu Shuangcheng.”

Hearing this, Li Zhaoting’s expression changed. He bowed low to the ground and said in a low voice, “Please show mercy, Senior Brother. Zhaoting is willing to accept punishment in her place.”

Quan Feitong made two tsk-tsk sounds. “What do you have to worry about! These past days, judging from various things between her and Lian Yu, you can see her heart is no longer with you. You should just forget her. I’ll marry her according to our original agreement and train her properly. She quite suits my taste now.”

Li Zhaoting said, “Didn’t Senior Brother also show mercy to Li Huaisu before?”

Quan Feitong laughed coldly. “I’ve never shown her any mercy, nor does she need my mercy.”

Before leaving, he said lightly, “Zhaoting, I’ve discovered that if you were my opponent, that would be quite a frightening thing. Regarding Gu Shuangcheng’s matter, I’ll give you time to think it over carefully.”

Li Zhaoting’s heart sank, but his face remained impassive, only showing a slight bitter smile. He didn’t rush to leave, but slowly finished the entire pot of wine before walking out of the private room and going downstairs to pay.

From the adjacent private room, two elderly men slowly emerged. One sighed and said, “My lord, who would have thought – there’s a wolf in front, but a tiger behind!”

The other smiled coldly. “Very good indeed!”

There truly are no walls that don’t let wind through. On Suzhen’s journey home, she constantly heard news from Minzhou. In wine shops and tea houses, everyone was discussing this matter.

Lian Yu had dealt with Huang Tianba! This “dealing with” wasn’t as simple as dismissal, but autumn execution after judgment!

She found it very strange – the case of Benefactor Liao alone wouldn’t be enough to condemn Huang Tianba to death. Upon inquiry, she learned that Lian Yu had opened an anonymous complaint box in Minzhou in the court’s name. In just a few days, seeing several major cases overturned and the visiting Lord Gu directly confronting Huang Tianba – no longer fearful as before – the people temporarily lost their fear. Complaint papers fell like snowflakes, filling the entire box.

Huang Tianba had escaped three death row cases, but was still dragged into death row by the people.

Lian Yu had indeed resolved to clean up cruel officials. This made Suzhen feel pleased, but the people’s speculation and discussion about Gu Shuangcheng’s identity – saying she came from the capital region and was the emperor’s new favorite minister, and even saying “he” might actually be a woman – made her want to cut off her ears.

She took a detour to a scenic spot, played for two or three days, then headed home.

Entering her home, she expected to see the furious Leng Xue, Xiao Zhou, and Wuqing, but unexpectedly they hadn’t returned yet. Instead, Zhuiming and Tieshou, seeing her return, stared coldly at her for a long moment, then without a word went into their rooms and closed their doors. She was snubbed.

After calling for a long time with no response, she knew what grievances they held in their hearts. With a bitter smile she said, “Fine, I’m leaving. It’s always me coaxing you, but who has ever coaxed me!”

She instructed Uncle Fu to prepare some wine and food, then drank alone in her room.

“It’s so hard to find someone to drink with…”

She shook her head and smiled, not knowing how much she’d drunk. The old wine burned her stomach painfully. Just as she was feeling uncomfortable, Uncle Fu’s excited voice suddenly came from outside: “Young Master, come out quickly! Someone who can drink with you has come!”

“Those two rascals finally have some conscience.”

She wiped her face carelessly and opened the door.

Under the clear sky, only Uncle Fu stood alone, his old face beaming with joy.

Suzhen swayed unsteadily, wondering if she’d heard wrong from drinking too much. “Old man, where is this person? Did I mishear or did you misspeak?”

Uncle Fu cried out, “He’s waiting at the gate, Young Master, hurry out!”

“Who?”

“Marquis Huo.”

Suzhen felt genuinely happy: “This Huo Chang’an is a true friend, but why didn’t you invite him in?”

Uncle Fu looked somewhat confused. “Marquis Huo said he wouldn’t come in. Young Master, did you offend him? Judging by Marquis Huo’s tone, he didn’t seem very happy.”

Suzhen grew even more puzzled. Lifting her skirts, she ran outside.

Under the bright starlight, a simple carriage stopped outside the front courtyard gate. Huo Chang’an stood sideways by the carriage, his clothes fluttering slightly in the wind, covered in travel dust.

Hearing the sound, he turned around.

“I say, Huo Chang’an, since when have you become so down and out, driving your own carriage…”

Suzhen spoke halfway, then suddenly choked.

This person wasn’t Huo Chang’an – Uncle Fu had just mistaken him for Huo Chang’an.

He wore a mask on his face.

Under the mask, his eyes were bloodshot and filled with fatigue, faintly revealing a cold gleam.

“You left without warning, Lian Yu was furious. You know too many people in the capital recognize me, and I couldn’t risk going against his wishes too much, so I had to meet you this way.”

Suzhen swallowed and nodded lightly.

“Why did you return without a word? Are you unhappy? What right do you have to be unhappy!” His voice deepened.

Suzhen could see he was desperately restraining himself from losing his temper.

His hair was disheveled, his dark green robe wrinkled everywhere, and he carried the smell of horses – he must have driven all the way back without grooming himself.

Suzhen’s eyes welled up. This person she’d known since birth, someone who loved cleanliness, had done this much for her…

She wanted to say: Zhaoting, I forgive you. I once hated you and spoke harshly to you that day, but today, seeing you like this, I’ve already forgiven you. Though we can’t be husband and wife, let’s be lifelong confidants.

But the more he worried about her, the less she could implicate him. He still didn’t know she would soon seek to overturn the Feng family’s case. Lian Yu might not spare her, so she had to keep her distance and not let Lian Yu find any fault with him.

She looked at him coldly and finally slowly took out the jade flute from her bosom. “Do you still recognize this? I already know who you are. Leave. There are no more entanglements between us, nor should there be.”

The other party was clearly shaken. Finally, he laughed self-mockingly, staring intently at her. “When did you know it was me?”

“The first time you came, I knew.”

“So you knew all along, watching me perform this play – quite amusing, wasn’t it?”

“Yes.”

The man lowered his head and laughed.

That laughter was hoarse and bitter. This laugh made Suzhen’s heart bitter too, and she almost walked over to him. She bit her lip hard and remained where she was, her feet seemingly rooted to the ground.

For the first time, she experienced an emotion – how painful it was to care deeply about someone but have to pretend coldness toward them. It was like being bitten by a thousand insects, devoured by ten thousand.

She pressed her lips together and turned her head aside. Li Zhaoting continued speaking: “I knew long ago that you had someone in your heart. I told myself again and again that we were impossible, yet I couldn’t let you go. You told everyone you didn’t love me, and I told myself it didn’t matter – it was enough that I loved you. You wouldn’t take cases, so I mocked and provoked you, just wanting you to pull yourself together. I believed that besides seeking justice, you had other aspirations. I didn’t want you to live forever with resentment – you should have your own life and ideals. When you ultimately couldn’t overturn the case, I still told myself it didn’t matter – you had tried your best. Whether you were beautiful or not, clever or not, none of it mattered to me… When you disappeared without a word, I feared you had no one by your side and felt troubled, so I rushed back, planning to comfort you as a friend. I keep forgetting – you don’t love me, and that is what matters most.”

The voice stopped here. Suzhen felt cold all over, trembling as she turned to stare intently at his face, just as he had done to her.