In an instant, the princes and princesses turned their heads to look at the Grand Princess. Even Princess Lin’an, who was clinging to Emperor Yuanjing’s arm, couldn’t help but glance over.
The Crown Prince cast a sidelong glance at the Grand Princess.
They all had the same thought: Huaiqing wanted to promote one of her people again.
There were two ways for princes and princesses to expand their influence. First: win over court officials and make them supporters. Second: promote their confidants.
The former was risky due to Emperor Yuanjing’s strong desire for control and his mastery of imperial politics. Even the Crown Prince dared not openly form factions.
The latter was their usual method.
But timing was crucial, and the assembled princes and princesses felt this wasn’t the right moment, given the task’s difficulty.
Emperor Yuanjing narrowed his eyes and smiled, “Who does Huaiqing have in mind?”
The Grand Princess replied, “Xu Qi An, the Bronze Gong from the Night Watchmen’s Office.”
The Second Princess suddenly realized, exclaiming with feigned innocence, “Oh! Isn’t he the Bronze Gong who showed such admiration for his elder sister during the ancestral worship? The elder sister was chatting and laughing with him.”
How malicious!
She was subtly undermining the Grand Princess in front of Emperor Yuanjing.
It was well known that the Grand Princess was yet unwed. Although Emperor Yuanjing had been obsessed with cultivation in recent years and paid little attention to his children’s marriages, it was unseemly for a princess to be seen flirting so openly.
The Grand Princess continued, “Father Emperor should have heard of this man. He’s the nephew of Xu Pingzhi, the Hundred-Household Commander of the Imperial Blade Guards who was implicated in the tax silver case.”
Emperor Yuanjing finally showed interest, “I remember. There was such a person who even created counterfeit silver. If it weren’t for the inconvenience of preserving the fake silver and its enormous salt consumption, I would have had the Directorate of Celestial Observations produce it in large quantities.”
The fake silver’s main ingredient was salt, which was too expensive. After hearing the report from the Directorate’s officials, Emperor Yuanjing abandoned the idea of mass-producing counterfeit silver.
“Not only that, this man performed exceptionally well while serving in Changle County, solving numerous murder cases,” the Grand Princess added fuel to the fire.
Emperor Yuanjing smiled, “If that’s the case, you needn’t go to such trouble, right?”
The Grand Princess lowered her head respectfully, “Father Emperor is perceptive. Just yesterday, Bronze Gong Xu Qi An had a conflict with a Silver Gong in the office and gravely wounded him with a sword. For assaulting a superior, according to the law, he should be cut in half at the waist.”
“He’s currently detained in the dungeon. Your daughter humbly requests Father Emperor to allow him to atone for his crime through meritorious service.”
The Grand Princess didn’t explain the reason for the conflict or defend Xu Qi An, because she knew these details were irrelevant.
Her father wouldn’t care about who was right or wrong; he only cared about who was useful and who could get things done.
As expected, Emperor Yuanjing didn’t hesitate or ponder. He nodded, “Very well. Since Huaiqing is pleading for him, I’ll allow him to atone through merit. He shall assist in the investigation. If the true culprit who damaged the Ancestral Emperor’s Temple isn’t caught within half a month, I’ll have him executed immediately.”
“Thank you, Father Emperor.”
…
As the princes and princesses left the Imperial Study and reunited with their guards, the Grand Princess retrieved her sword from her chief guard.
The Second Princess linked arms with her twin brother, the Crown Prince, and whispered, “Oh my, Huaiqing beat us to it.”
The Crown Prince shook his head, “It may not be a good thing. Even Wei Yuan finds this case challenging. Huaiqing is just making a casual move. If that Bronze Gong solves the case, it’s an unexpected bonus. If he fails, Huaiqing loses nothing – he was already sentenced to death anyway.”
“Hmph, Huaiqing is so cold-hearted,” the Second Princess wrinkled her delicate nose and asked, “Brother, what’s going on with the Eternal Mountain and River Temple?”
As they walked, the Crown Prince looked around and lowered his voice, “This case isn’t simple, otherwise Wei Yuan wouldn’t be so troubled. The secrets behind it are probably known only to Father Emperor.”
Of course, I’ll know them too in the future… he silently added in his heart. At the same time, the image of the female National Preceptor’s immaculate face floated in his mind, filling him with resentment.
“Lin’an!” the Grand Princess suddenly called out, stopping the siblings.
The Crown Prince and Second Princess turned back together. Princess Lin’an snapped back fiercely, “What!” while tightening her grip on her elder brother’s arm.
The Grand Princess approached, sword in hand, saying, “Nothing much…”
Just as the siblings relaxed, she suddenly struck the Second Princess’s perky bottom with her sword.
Amid the sharp pain, the Second Princess’s face first turned pale, then a few seconds later she burst into tears, pointing at the Grand Princess and screaming, “Huaiqing, I’ll kill you!”
The royal siblings hypocritically came over to mediate, acting as peacemakers.
The Crown Prince put on a stern face and said gravely, “Huaiqing, you’ve gone too far.”
“I was merely testing Lin’an’s martial arts skills. If Lin’an is dissatisfied, she’s welcome to test me in return,” the Grand Princess turned gracefully, her dark hair swirling beautifully.
The Second Princess, staring at her retreating figure, cried out, “I’m going to tell on you! I’ll report this to Father Emperor!”
The Crown Prince sighed, “Another day, perhaps. Father Emperor has no time to deal with this right now.”
If conflict or fighting broke out among the princes, Emperor Yuanjing would certainly intervene and punish them severely.
But when it came to squabbles among the princesses, everyone tended to adopt a conciliatory attitude.
Mainly because most princes had martial arts training, and their fights could result in injuries. Among the princesses, only the Grand Princess practiced martial arts. When other princesses fought, the more refined ones would slap faces, while the hot-tempered ones would resort to hair-pulling and biting.
To avoid tarnishing the royal family’s image, they preferred to settle such matters privately.
Princess Lin’an gritted her teeth, muttering curses, “Just wait, and I’ll take everything from you.”
…
The next morning, at dawn.
Wei Yuan, who had just finished his morning meditation, received an oral edict from the palace.
“This humble servant brings Your Excellency the Emperor’s oral edict. Lord Wei, please retrieve that Bronze Gong from the dungeon,” the small eunuch who delivered the edict said respectfully.
“His Majesty barely touched his breakfast this morning and seems very troubled. He hopes Lord Wei can solve the case soon.”
After sending the eunuch away, Wei Yuan smiled.
Yang Yan, who had come to have breakfast with his adoptive father, sighed in relief and said, “It seems Father won’t need to go to the trouble of saving him now.”
Nangong Qianrou scoffed, mocking Yang Yan for being a muscle-head who had trained his body at the expense of his brain:
“Do you think why Father said those words to the Grand Princess last night?”
Yang Yan thought for a moment before finally catching on.
Yesterday, the Grand Princess had sent people to investigate the conflict between Xu Qi An and Zhu Chengzhu, showing her interest in him.
Last night, Father had deliberately hinted to the Grand Princess. With the tacit understanding between clever people, the Grand Princess had seized the opportunity to recommend Xu Qi An to His Majesty, allowing him to atone for his crimes through meritorious service.
This way, Xu Qi An could legitimately escape punishment, and no one could say anything about it.
Yang Yan had always known that his adoptive father would save Xu Qi An. Putting him in the dungeon and sentencing him to be cut in half at the waist in seven days was all for the show, to appease the others in the office.
The more power one had, the less one could act on impulse.
He frowned, “But what if Xu Qi An doesn’t solve the case in half a month?”
Wei Yuan smiled, “Then he’ll have no choice but to die, and then enter the jianghu. Xu Qi An will transform from an overt piece to a covert one.”
Father values him so highly… Nangong Qianrou and Yang Yan straightened their expressions.
Wei Yuan seemed to remember something and smiled with narrowed eyes, “Send word to Li Yuchun that His Majesty has specially permitted Xu Qi An to atone through merit, and that Li Yuchun is to be reinstated to his original position.”
After a pause, Wei Yuan’s expression became somewhat ambiguous, “Make it grand.”
…
Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao, led by a jailer, came to the dungeon with joyful faces to release their colleague.
At that moment, Xu Qi An was relieving his bloated bladder, one hand against the wall, the other holding himself. He was startled by the sudden entrance of his colleagues and the jailer, causing his hand to shake…
“Damn it…” Xu Qi An cursed as he wiped his hand on his prison uniform.
“Ning Yan, Ning Yan, you don’t have to die!” Song Tingfeng exclaimed with a big laugh as the jailer took out the key to open the cell door.
“His Majesty has allowed you to atone for your crime through meritorious service.”
His Majesty?
Xu Qi An was stunned, his first thought being: “Holy crap, is Number One His Majesty?!”
He quickly dismissed this notion and casually patted Song Tingfeng’s shoulder, asking in a deep voice, “What’s going on?”
Eager to share the good news, Song Tingfeng didn’t notice he was being set up and explained the situation to Xu Qi An in detail.
An explosion in Sangbo… the Eternal Mountain and River Temple collapsed… Xu Qi An’s pupils contracted slightly as he instantly recalled the strange cry for help he’d heard during the ancestral worship.
It seemed his previous guess wasn’t wrong.
That cry for help wasn’t directed at him; he’d just heard it due to some special circumstance.
So, who was the cry for help from Sangbo meant for?
“What about the divine sword enshrined in the temple?” Xu Qi An asked after pondering for a while.
Song Tingfeng shook his head, indicating he didn’t know much, then added, “Because of your situation, the boss was dismissed. After you were thrown in the dungeon, he went to Haoqi Tower and cursed out the office, publicly slapping Lord Wei’s face…”
That’s something Spring Brother would do… Xu Qi An felt touched.
After retrieving his uniform, badge, and sword from the jailer and learning that his cousin had taken the jade mirror, Xu Qi An breathed a sigh of relief.
As expected, Wei Yuan hadn’t intended to kill him. Even without His Majesty’s special pardon, Papa Wei would surely have found a reasonable excuse to save him.
Leaving the dungeon, the two headed towards the office exit. As they approached the main gate, they suddenly heard the sound of gongs.
Li Yuchun, escorted by several Bronze Gongs, entered the office. The lead Bronze Gong was beating an ordinary gong while shouting:
“Silver Gong Li reinstated to his original position…”
Clerks and night watchmen came out to watch, pointing and whispering about Li Yuchun.
Spring Brother’s face was red with embarrassment as he hurried along with his head down.
Not far away, the three junior colleagues exchanged glances. Xu Qi An suggested, “The boss has been reinstated, which is cause for celebration. We’d better not disturb him.”
Too embarrassing… Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao nodded, reaching a consensus.
Spring Brother has been set up by Wei Yuan. Yesterday you publicly slapped his face, today he’s beating gongs and drums to slap yours… Xu Qi An decided that in the future, he shouldn’t offend Wei Yuan lightly.
People who’ve lost a good chicken usually aren’t very magnanimous.
Reeking all over and eager to share the good news at home, Xu Qi An didn’t linger at the office. He mounted his beloved mare and galloped home.
More than half an hour later, he arrived at the Xu residence.
Old Zhang, the gatekeeper, almost wept with joy. Xu Qi An tossed him the reins and entered the courtyard, intending to first report the good news to his family.
At this hour, the family had already eaten breakfast. Second Uncle had left for his duties, leaving Xu Xinnian alone at home, keeping Mother company in the back hall.
Seeing Xu Qi An return, Aunt’s beautiful eyes lit up for a moment before she suppressed her joy, giving her nephew a habitual look of disdain.
Xu Xinnian exclaimed with delight, “The Grand Princess acted so quickly?”
Xu Qi An was stunned for a moment, suddenly understanding. No wonder Emperor Yuanjing knew about a small figure like him; it didn’t make sense otherwise.
The Grand Princess had recommended him to Emperor Yuanjing… Well, it’s also possible that Wei Yuan seized the opportunity to create a chance for him to atone through merit.
“Don’t be too optimistic yet, something’s happened…” Xu Qi An glanced at his aunt and paused. “We’ll talk about it later… Ah, I’ve caused Aunt so much worry these past two days. I’m truly ashamed. I heard from Cijiu that Aunt couldn’t sleep all night because of me.”
Hearing this, Aunt exploded. She shot a fierce glare at her loose-lipped son and raised her snow-white, delicate chin: “Hmph~~”
Xu Xinnian continued, “Father went to the Directorate of Celestial Observations yesterday to ask the White-Robed Mages for help, but he received some bad news.”
He hesitated for a moment, “The Director is ill.”
“What?” Xu Qi An questioned, “The Director is ill?”
A first-rank mage, sick!
And a mage from a cultivation system that started with healing and saving lives.
Old detective Xu Qi An immediately began to speculate. Could it be related to the anomaly in Sangbo? Surely the esteemed Director hadn’t locked himself in the Eight Trigrams Platform, watching the mortal world, and caught a cold from the wind.
“The specifics are unknown,” Xu Xinnian said. “I’m going to the Imperial Blade Guards camp now to find Father and put his mind at ease.”
If Mother, who usually just grumbled at her elder cousin, was so worried she couldn’t sleep all night, one can imagine how distressed Father must be.
“Good!” Xu Qi An said, “I’ll go see Lingyu and Ling’er first, then I have something to do and need to return to the office.”
We can discuss the Sangbo matter later; there’s no rush.
“Oh, by the way, I left that mirror in the study. Elder Brother can retrieve it yourself later. The monk you asked me to find has left, saying he found a lead on his junior disciple,” Xu Xinnian added.
I knew it, how could Number One possibly be the Emperor? Number One doesn’t even know about this… My Papa Wei and the Grand Princess are more reliable.
Xu Qi An went to the back courtyard and saw Xu Ling’er sitting dejectedly under the eaves, looking small and alone.
No one was playing with her, and no one had the mood to pay attention to her.
Even the silly child knew that her elder brother was in trouble. She wasn’t in the mood to play with the little goose anymore, hanging her head and scribbling on the ground with a tree branch.
“Oh, whose silly child is this?” Xu Qi An stood at a distance, smiling.
Xu Ling’er suddenly looked up, staring at him blankly for a few seconds before her little face broke into a radiant smile.
“Big Brother!”
She sprang to her feet, taking small steps with her arms outstretched, rushing towards Xu Qi An.
Xu Qi An also moved forward, but just as Xu Ling’er’s face was beaming with joy, he sidestepped and embraced the sister behind her.
Xu Ling’er, who had missed her target, turned back in confusion.
“Wuwuwu… Big Brother…”
Xu Lingyu wrapped her arms tightly around Xu Qi An’s waist, burying her soft body in her cousin’s embrace, sobbing uncontrollably.
His sister’s waist was slender enough to encircle with one hand, her hair exuding a faint fragrance, and her body carrying a subtle scent of rouge and powder.
Xu Qi An patted her back, comforting her, “It’s alright now, Big Brother is back.”
Xu Lingyu didn’t care, she twisted her slender waist slightly and cried even harder.
The last time Big Brother was locked up in the Ministry of Justice, Xu Lingyu was already very upset, but that was due to a conflict with the office and, ultimately a personal grudge.
This time, however, the night watchman who came to deliver the news had said that Big Brother would be cut in half at the waist in the vegetable market in seven days.
The nature of the situation was completely different.
Of course, Xu Lingyu’s deep concern was also related to the rapidly improving relationship with her cousin over this period.
“Ah, the little sisters of this era are indeed good, soft, and adorable,” Xu Qi An sighed inwardly as he embraced his sister’s delicate form.
In his previous life, he didn’t have a sister, but he had a cousin who didn’t know how to act cute or coy, who didn’t know how to cry and show weakness, who would only give you a cold, disdainful laugh: “Heh, idiot.”
“Big Brother, Big Brother…” Xu Ling’er jumped up and down on the spot, saying happily, “I’m going to tell Mother, she doesn’t know you’re back yet.”
Xu Qi An wanted to tell her that he had walked in through the door, not climbed over the wall. But after thinking for a moment, he felt there was no need to explain.
He nodded, “Go ahead!”
“Oh, right,” he called out to Xu Ling’er, “You’re so happy, is it because you can eat three bowls of rice tonight?”
Xu Ling’er was greatly surprised, not expecting her Big Brother to know what she was thinking. Big Brother was so amazing.
She ran away, frightened.