Xin Ziyan suddenly understood in that instant, his heart feeling as if ice water flowed through it, freezing him until his entire body trembled.
So it was him!
He stared dazedly at the two people whose gazes met—one with eyes cold as frost in warning, the other with a look both sorrowful and joyful, equally complex and indescribable, like lightning and flint striking, contending without yielding.
In just that instant of silent communication through their eyes, everything had been said.
Yes, besides someone who had also compiled the “Records of Tiansheng,” who also controlled Qingming Academy, who was also a close minister to the Son of Heaven—besides Wei Zhi, who else could more conveniently strike at him?
Besides Wei Zhi, who could emerge from battlefields and enter court halls with countless princes and ministers overturned beneath his hands—who else could so accurately grasp a scholar’s weaknesses and easily topple him to the ground?
Xin Ziyan was clear-headed for only a moment before infinite confusion arose—if he hadn’t cherished talent years ago and given Wei Zhi his token of recommendation, how could Wei Zhi have used Qingming to leap through the dragon gate? Over the years, Wei Zhi had risen steadily and smoothly, yet always addressed him as lifelong teacher. He had believed they had no grievances, only kindness and righteousness between them. For no good reason, why would he strike such a deadly blow at himself?
Carrying this question, he looked toward Ning Yi. However, what shocked his heart was that Ning Yi actually avoided his gaze.
He pressed his lips together, his sight cast downward, burying his face in the hall’s dim light and shadow where no one could see his expression clearly.
“For many years I have regarded you as a pillar of the state, with endless favor and grace, yet you are so conscienceless and betray grace thus—” The Emperor of Tiansheng’s roaring tirade in the hall had exhausted his strength. His gaze looked at Xin Ziyan with disappointment for a long while before he resolutely waved his hand.
Everyone’s hearts tightened.
“Your Majesty!” Ning Yi suddenly rushed forward a step and knocked his head heavily down. “This matter still has suspicious elements. Grand Scholar Xin is loyal to the nation—how could he commit such reckless acts? Did the ‘Records of Tiansheng’ obtained by the River Region scholar truly flow from Grand Scholar Xin’s hands? Your son once heard Grand Scholar Xin say the ‘Decline of Great Cheng’ volume was discarded—yet who found and compiled it into the book? The River Region is thousands of miles from the Imperial Capital—is the shrine truly factual? Are there other hidden circumstances? According to regulations, the ‘History of Great Cheng’s Glory’ and the ‘Book of Disloyal Subjects and Traitors’ should be uniformly collected and destroyed by the compilation office. This wasn’t something Grand Scholar Xin as chief director should personally handle. Now that the books still exist, shouldn’t we first seek out everyone in the compilation office for accountability?”
These words came clear and quick, each sentence striking at vital points. Regardless of whether they belonged to his camp, all eyes flashed—His Majesty’s thunderous fury had come suddenly, and the court officials had been struck by this lightning bolt without time to react. Who would have thought Prince Chu’s mind was so sharp and clear!
“Do you mean that I listen to biased reports and arbitrarily impose crimes on people?” The Emperor of Tiansheng narrowed his eyes, coldly watching Ning Yi.
“Your son dares not!” Ning Yi showed no trace of fear. Supporting himself with his hands on the ground, he stated clearly, “Your son only feels this matter still has suspicious elements and should be investigated slowly and carefully. At this time when the nation faces many troubles, and concerning a first-rank minister of the current dynasty, for the sake of popular stability throughout the realm, now is not the time to suddenly initiate a great prosecution. I hope Your Majesty will clearly investigate.”
The assembled officials’ eyes flashed again in confusion—those four words “investigate slowly and carefully” were truly exquisite.
When a major case first erupted, what was most feared was the Emperor’s immediate fury and resolute disposition. Once it became “investigate slowly and carefully,” there would be much more room for maneuvering.
“Your Majesty, Grand Scholar Xin does have a scholar’s careless and unrestrained habits, and in his conduct there have been absurd and unintentional acts of disrespect, but this subject dares to stake his family and life that Grand Scholar Xin absolutely has no treasonous or disloyal heart toward his sovereign!” Hu Shengshan reacted extremely quickly and immediately knelt beside Xin Ziyan.
“This subject seconds the motion!”
“This subject seconds the motion!”
A small portion of the hall knelt down, while another portion prepared to kneel but were restrained by Ning Yi’s commanding gaze forbidding them to kneel—if those seconding the motion exceeded half, that would create another kind of situation, easily making the Emperor see it as mass opposition and threats, and would also arouse vigilance toward Ning Yi’s formidable power. That would be counterproductive.
The Emperor of Tiansheng’s great fury had passed. At this moment, looking at the silent and grief-stricken Xin Ziyan, looking at the small portion of court officials who had knelt down, thinking of Ning Yi’s phrase “for the sake of popular stability throughout the realm,” and then recalling Xin Ziyan’s position as leader among scholars, his eyes finally revealed a trace of hesitation.
“This subject seconds the motion!”
That sudden voice startled everyone into straightening up to look—the one who had spoken in agreement was Feng Zhiwei.
“This subject seconds the motion!” Feng Zhiwei knocked her head once, and under Hu Shengshan and Xin Ziyan’s burning gazes, her expression remained unchanged as she declared clearly, “Just as Prince Chu said, this matter is extremely suspicious. The ‘Records of Tiansheng’ has not yet been published in the Imperial Capital—how could it travel thousands of miles to reach the River Region? The ‘Decline of Great Cheng’ took three months to compile. This subject personally witnessed Grand Scholar Xin discard it—how could it appear again? Though our dynasty does not have shrines to the living, throughout Great Cheng’s history, famous ministers and generals who blessed their hometown elders all had shrines built for them in various localities. That fellow townspeople love and take pride in outstanding local figures is natural sentiment, different from those with ulterior motives who seek fame to gain popular support. I ask Your Majesty to distinguish between them. Your Majesty once ordered the uniform destruction of the ‘History of Great Cheng’s Glory’ and ‘Denunciation of Disloyal Subjects and Traitors,’ yet some still remain. This is not Grand Scholar Xin’s fault alone. As deputy director, this subject also cannot escape blame. I ask Your Majesty to punish us together.”
Hearing these words, the assembled officials in the hall found that everything echoed Prince Chu’s statements—magnificent and beautiful, sincere and earnest. They all nodded repeatedly.
Xin Ziyan, Hu Shengshan, and Ning Yi, however, turned deathly pale.
This was truly a plea that appeared protective but actually added fuel to the fire!
Every word was vicious!
One phrase “not yet published in the Imperial Capital” confirmed Xin Ziyan’s “unauthorized distribution.” One phrase “took three months to compile” suggested to the Emperor of Tiansheng that Xin Ziyan “spared no expense of three months to compile history for Great Cheng.” One phrase “our dynasty does not have them, Great Cheng had them in endless succession” subtly aligned Xin Ziyan’s thinking toward “remnant Great Cheng tendencies.” Saying explicitly “different from those with ulterior motives seeking popular support” actually meant “the same.” That final phrase “Your Majesty clearly ordered destruction, yet some still remain” was truly the last pot of fierce oil, poured onto the Emperor of Tiansheng’s blazing fire that she had stoked step by step to burn bright!
The depth of her thoughts, the cleverness of her words, her precision in grasping the sovereign’s emotions and anger—all reached the pinnacle.
Xin Ziyan’s body began trembling slightly, his face deathly pale, yet he only stared at Feng Zhiwei without saying a word. He too was a subject who had attended the Emperor of Tiansheng for many years and understood the Emperor’s character clearly. The more he defended himself under great fury, the angrier the Emperor of Tiansheng would become. But as long as Prince Chu and others tactfully suppressed the Emperor’s anger, once that burst of rage passed, there would still be great room for maneuvering.
Now, watching that room for maneuvering being destroyed by this person’s hand.
What kind of hatred required such a fight to the death?
In the hall, the Emperor of Tiansheng’s complexion grew colder inch by inch.
“Your Majesty.” At the moment when he was about to change expression again, when everyone was silent as cicadas in winter, Ning Yi actually spoke again.
He had been kneeling beside Feng Zhiwei but hadn’t looked at her even once. Seeing that when he spoke the Emperor of Tiansheng’s expression grew several degrees colder, his own expression remained unchanged. He only said calmly, “Just as Grand Scholar Wei said, this matter is highly suspicious. The chief and deputy directors of the ‘Records of Tiansheng’ plus various clerks number no less than several dozen. Among them, the collection, compilation, organization, and destruction of books each have separate processes—by no means could Grand Scholar Xin alone oversee everything. To truly make Grand Scholar Xin bear full responsibility would likely fail to satisfy hearts throughout the realm and would not accord with our dynasty’s founding principle of clear rewards and punishments, neither excessive nor insufficient. Your son believes that since in this case, the collection, compilation, organization, destruction, and even final publication stages all had problems, then all personnel who participated in compiling the ‘Records of Tiansheng’ should be thoroughly investigated together. Who bears primary guilt, who was coerced into following—each disposed of accordingly. This would also display our Emperor’s great impartiality and wisdom.” Having finished, he knocked his head.
When these words emerged, the assembled officials were stunned again—just moments ago he had been working to minimize the situation, trying to calm His Majesty’s anger. In the blink of an eye, his tone completely changed, actually dragging and pulling everyone in to make a great disturbance. What was happening with His Highness?
However, a trace of a smile appeared at the corner of Hu Shengshan’s mouth—His Highness was truly wise. Seeing that His Majesty at this moment appeared calm on the surface but his anger actually could not tolerate further provocation, continued pleading would only be counterproductive. So he simply stopped pleading altogether and, following Wei Zhi’s tone, distributed the pile of crimes heavily placed on Xin Ziyan’s head across the entire compilation office, dragging everyone down together. With many people came many relationships, threads tangling like vines—by then it could easily become a tangled mess of a case.
It appeared to be relentless pursuit unto death but was actually dispersing targets and confusing the matter.
His eyes rolled once, and he immediately lifted his robe and knelt down too. “Not so! Your Highness’s words—this old subject is the first who dares not second!”
The entire hall of assembled officials instantly displayed expressions of stupefaction.
What was happening today?
Everyone knew Old Hu and Old Xin were both Prince Chu’s faction, always mutually supportive and obedient to orders. Today in the golden hall, how were they one by one singing opposing tunes?
“Oh?” Ning Yi glanced sideways at Hu Shengshan.
“The ‘Records of Tiansheng’ compilation roster was enormous. Though Lord Xin certainly presided over this grand ceremony as literary leader, during that time various directors from Qingming, various scholars from the Hanlin Academy, and various academicians all participated. This old subject also had my name listed then, and so did Grand Scholar Wei.” Hu Shengshan paused, his eye corner sweeping past Feng Zhiwei. “In the early period of collecting books from throughout the realm and initial compilation affairs, Grand Scholar Wei as deputy director also contributed greatly. According to Your Highness’s reasoning, among the five grand academicians of the Cabinet, two would be guilty. This old subject as chief minister and director naturally dares not shirk responsibility, but Grand Scholar Wei is absolutely unconnected to this matter. I ask Your Highness not to treat all cases identically.” As he spoke, he moved forward on his knees and removed his cap to plead guilty.
Ning Yi fell silent for a moment.
Hu Shengshan’s eyes, flashing with keen light, stared at him intently.
Feng Zhiwei, kneeling between the three men, remained motionless, the corner of her lips pulling into a smile.
To quickly topple Xin Ziyan, she had fabricated a pile of deadly charges like an old woman throwing wild punches, seeking quick success. Though this strike was most forceful, it also made it easy for others to disperse the target. Originally, all these civil and military officials had been shocked by this sudden storm of accusations. As long as they couldn’t react in time and the Emperor of Tiansheng furiously issued an edict, everything would become settled. Who would have thought Ning Yi was indeed more clearheaded than she imagined? In the blink of an eye, he had grasped this only weakness and counterattacked against her.
And Old Hu, truly worthy of being an old political fox who had weathered court storms, immediately seized the opportunity to squeeze her—using a method exactly like hers. Appearing protective but actually sowing discord, one phrase “early period of collecting books throughout the realm and initial compilation affairs” implied that during the three months of compiling “The Decline of Great Cheng,” she had also participated.
After a long moment, she heard Ning Yi say flatly, “How can Grand Scholar Wei be treated identically? He only participated in early compilation. Later he served as envoy to Nanhai and fought on the grasslands. In the compilation office, he was merely listed in name. However…”
He paused again.
Hu Shengshan and Xin Ziyan looked at him with burning gazes.
Ning Yi lowered his eyes. His long lashes concealed the surging undercurrents in his gaze—those eyes churned with all manner of past events, reflecting a path strewn with flowers that in the blink of an eye fell to the ground, waiting only for him to take one light step to trample them into mud forevermore.
How many matters lay hidden deep in his heart, yet he had never wished to open them someday. Once that inch of heavenly light was lifted by fate’s finger, what followed would be irretrievable thunderbolts of love and hate.
Her shadow on the gold brick floor was close at hand yet far as the horizon’s end.
Yet ultimately he didn’t stop his hand. Slowly, he drew a document from his sleeve, stamped with the Justice Ministry’s wax seal. He extracted one sheet and said quietly, “Your Majesty, before coming to court this morning, your son commanded various Justice Ministry officials to organize accumulated case files from past years. Among them is a record from the thirteenth year of Changxi, when the Justice Ministry, while pursuing the fugitive murderer Jiang Xiao, received orders to search Qingming Academy. Your son has brought it. I ask Your Majesty to examine it.”
The Emperor of Tiansheng stared at him suspiciously, not knowing what purpose this document served at this time. After a long moment, he ordered an attendant to pass it up. Taking it in hand, he quickly flipped through a few pages, casually raising his hand to toss it onto the imperial desk. Suddenly remembering something, he took it back, opened to a certain page, carefully examined it for a few moments, and gradually frowned in silent contemplation.
Hu Shengshan had been nervously watching the Emperor of Tiansheng’s expression. He didn’t know what Prince Chu had produced, but it certainly benefited Xin Ziyan. His face couldn’t help but show some relieved expression.
Feng Zhiwei’s gaze flashed.
She knew what Ning Yi had produced.
That year, Ning Yi had used capturing criminals as a pretext to direct Justice Ministry officials to search Qingming Academy, intending to undermine her foundation at Qingming. At that time, she had schemed to frame that Justice Ministry official into mistakenly searching the rooms of Xin Ziyan and the imperial princes and princesses. In Xin Ziyan’s room, she had planted the “History of Great Cheng’s Glory” and “Denunciation of Disloyal Subjects and Traitors.” The Justice Ministry’s routine practice was to record all search affairs in meticulous detail—presumably everything was recorded in black and white. Calculating by time, Xin Ziyan hadn’t been at Qingming then. All affairs had been presided over by her. Though she had known Xin Ziyan privately possessed the “History of Great Cheng’s Glory” and “Denunciation of Disloyal Subjects and Traitors,” she hadn’t immediately destroyed them, hadn’t reminded Xin Ziyan to handle them, and hadn’t reported to the Emperor. Yet today, five years later, this matter was dragged out. Such thinking, falling into the naturally suspicious Emperor of Tiansheng’s eyes, would inevitably make him think it over several times.
Though Ning Yi said not a word, truly at this moment, silence was more eloquent than sound. Though Xin Ziyan was guilty of private possession, as deputy director who had discovered the prohibited books earliest yet didn’t raise alarm—that too was a crime.
Feng Zhiwei’s eyes stared at the floor. The gold bricks were clean and bright, reflecting shadowy figures. Everyone was like a shadow floating on the ground—visible but untouchable, illusory and cold… All this time, all this time, he had carefully kept all evidence unfavorable to her. If she didn’t move, he didn’t move. Once she moved, he wasn’t flustered either. However thunderous her strike, his counterattack was equally forceful.
If she had lurked and prepared for a long time, had he prepared even longer than she?
Ning Yi never looked at her, as if afraid that one more glance would make his actions hesitate. Slowly, he drew several more letters from his sleeve and, saying nothing, had an attendant silently pass them up.
Those below craned their necks but couldn’t see what they were. Feng Zhiwei’s eyes were sharp—she felt those seemed like some lesson books from when she had been a director at Qingming Academy, and some looked like correspondence.
She pressed her lips together—ordinarily she was very careful about correspondence with others, rarely willing to put brush to paper. When some people sought connections or requested calligraphy or poetry, she ignored them. But before the thirteenth year of Changxi, when she was a student at Qingming Academy and later became a director, at that time she had no worries on her mind, only an ambition and resentment to stand out from the crowd. If some writings weren’t careful and were intentionally preserved by someone and taken to force strained interpretations, it wasn’t impossible.
Written words were things whose meanings had always varied, depending only on how they were interpreted.
When the items were passed up, the Emperor of Tiansheng flipped through them carelessly and frowned. Ning Yi’s series of actions had disrupted the Emperor’s originally firm and unwavering determination to thoroughly prosecute Xin Ziyan. For a moment, he too hesitated somewhat.
Below, whispered discussions arose. However, Hu Shengshan and Xin Ziyan had already understood Ning Yi’s meaning, their eyes bursting with delight.
If Wei Zhi remained outside the matter, then he himself would forever be meat on her chopping board. No one knew when this important minister with tremendous influence over the Son of Heaven would deliver another devastating blow. Now His Highness had pulled the rug from under the pot, directly implicating Wei Zhi as equally guilty. Once he entered prison with no one secretly causing trouble, His Highness would always have opportunities to make His Majesty relent.
His Highness truly had far-reaching vision and profound thoughts!
The great hall was completely silent. The Emperor of Tiansheng sat dazed, supporting himself on the desk without speaking. His aged mind was somewhat confused at this moment. Today’s debates in court all sounded reasonable individually, yet all seemed ambiguous. Moreover, what had clearly been a very simple matter had ultimately implicated Wei Zhi as well—how had that happened?
Looking at those things in his hand, he hesitated, then said in a heavy voice, “Wei Zhi, you—”
Feng Zhiwei’s eyes looked at the floor. The corner of her lips gradually revealed a smile that was almost enigmatic. Slowly, she prostrated herself.
“This subject is guilty.”