Emperor Yuanjing’s personal head eunuch walked over with a feather duster in hand, took the booklet, and respectfully handed it to Emperor Yuanjing.
The Emperor set aside the book he was reading and accepted the booklet, focusing intently as he read.
As he read, his eyebrows raised, and anger began to brew in his eyes.
“A load of nonsense. The people in the Ministry of Justice and the magistrate’s office are becoming more and more useless,” Emperor Yuanjing complained.
He glanced at Eunuch Liu, frightening him into trembling.
Emperor Yuanjing threw the booklet aside, his tone emotionless yet increasingly chilling, “What about the Night Watchmen’s Office?”
Eunuch Liu lowered his head and said in a soft voice, “Your Majesty, it’s, it’s towards the back…”
Emperor Yuanjing raised an eyebrow, picked up the booklet again, and continued reading.
As he read, his tightly knit brows unconsciously relaxed, and the impatience in his expression gradually faded. He became engrossed in reading.
Emperor Yuanjing shifted from his reclining position to sit upright.
His expression became increasingly serious, and his gaze grew sharper.
The two head eunuchs unconsciously slowed their breathing, afraid of disturbing His Majesty and also fearful of incurring his wrath.
By the time Emperor Yuanjing put down the booklet, the ethereal aura he had cultivated over twenty years of Taoist practice had completely vanished, leaving only the majesty and sharpness of a mortal emperor.
Cold sweat had already formed on Eunuch Liu’s forehead.
He had originally thought His Majesty would be pleased, but from the looks of it, it seemed to have had the opposite effect.
“Issue an edict!”
Emperor Yuanjing’s face was as cold as ice, his tone serious: “The Magistrate of Taikang County has neglected his duties, leading to the death and injury of hundreds of grey households around Dahuang Mountain. He is to be stripped of his position, imprisoned, and executed after the autumn harvest next year.”
“Lü Qing, the constable from the magistrate’s office, is to be promoted to Chief Constable of the Six Doors.”
He didn’t mention Xu Qi An because Xu Qi An was already serving a sentence. His performance bonus would be dealt with last; his reward would be his life.
“This slave obeys the command!” Eunuch Liu said with relief as he retreated.
Leaving Jingxin Hall, he returned to his quarters with the young eunuch without a word, letting out a long sigh.
Although he didn’t know why His Majesty’s expression had darkened after reading the latter part, based on His Majesty’s verbal orders, the content towards the end must have been satisfactory. His Majesty’s gloomy mood must be due to other matters.
In Jingxin Hall, Emperor Yuanjing stood by the window, silent for a long time.
“Notify them to lift the lockdown on the inner and outer cities.”
…
Xu Qi An returned to the mansion with a tired body. Dinner time had already passed.
The front hall of the Xu mansion was brightly lit. Xu Pingzhi and Xu Xinnian were waiting there for him to return.
“Nian’er, tell the kitchen to reheat the dishes and bring them up,” Xu Pingzhi said.
Xu Xinnian, with his rosy lips, white teeth, and picturesque handsomeness, left the front hall, leaving only the uncle and nephew.
The candlelight flickered slightly, and Second Uncle Xu’s rugged square face was stern and serious.
Soon after, Xu Xinnian returned. The kitchen maids brought in the dishes, which had been kept warm in the pot, waiting for Xu Qi An’s return.
Looking at his rugged second uncle and handsome younger brother, Xu Qi An felt a moment of disorientation.
In this world, he was alone, without a phone, computer, keyboard warriors, or Japanese educational love films.
Every day, he lived by candlelight or oil lamps, and when using the toilet, he had to grumble as he lifted the hem of his clothes high.
Sometimes in his dreams, he would dream of returning to his previous life, wake up smiling, and then stare blankly at the crisscrossing beams on the ceiling.
“Suddenly, I feel like drinking,” Xu Qi An muttered, taking the wine jug from the kitchen maid.
After the kitchen maids set out the dishes, Xu Pingzhi waved his hand, indicating for them to withdraw.
Xu Qi An gulped down the wine, one mouthful after another. He wasn’t reminiscing about his past life, but suddenly remembered a saying: “Where the heart is at peace, there is home.”
In this world, there were still people waiting for him to come home at night, keeping food warm for him in the kitchen.
No matter how tired, helpless, or lonely he felt outside when he returned here, he understood that he wasn’t alone.
After drinking half a jug of wine, Xu Qi An let out a long sigh: “Sangbo has been blown up. His Majesty has ordered me to thoroughly investigate this case, to atone for my crimes through meritorious service.”
Xu Pingzhi nodded slowly: “I already know, but this matter is not something you can get involved in.”
“I know, I’m only responsible for investigating the case, not for pursuing it,” Xu Qi An said helplessly. “I have to try, don’t I? If I don’t try, I can only run away.”
He had never intended to pay the price for imperial power. If he couldn’t solve the case, escape was inevitable.
“This shouldn’t implicate you, after all, I haven’t committed any major crime,” Xu Qi An said.
The reason he had cursed earlier was that just as he had finally found a home where he felt a sense of belonging, he might have to bid farewell to it shortly.
Xu Qi An’s crime was fighting his superior, which, although punishable by death, was far from warranting guilt by association with his family.
In Great Feng, guilt by association was a very serious crime, and ordinary people didn’t even have the qualifications to be implicated.
To achieve the crime of “implicating X clan,” one needed to meet the following points: First, treason. Second, causing significant damage to the country. Third, causing significant damage to the royal family. Fourth, siding with the wrong faction!
Xu Pingzhi fell under the second category, losing tax silver, causing significant damage to the national treasury. But this wasn’t the norm.
Those who could achieve the above four accomplishments were usually the dignitaries in the court. Those nobles were the ones who would frequently face the execution of their entire families.
Therefore, “guilt by association” was also jokingly referred to as a privilege of the powerful.
For someone like Xu Qi An, at most, he would be a death row prisoner. If he ran away, he would be a fugitive, unable to implicate his uncle and aunt.
Second Uncle Xu nodded with satisfaction: “It’s good that you understand. You’ve always been stubborn since childhood.”
That was the old me, the current me has changed drastically… Xu Qi An shook his head: “I’m not stupid.”
Second Young Master Xu also breathed a sigh of relief and said: “If it doesn’t work out, you can go to Yun Province.”
Yun Province?
Xu Qi An was stunned.
He knew about Yun Province. It was plagued by bandits and also called the Bandit Province. Number Two was also in Yun Province.
Second Young Master Xu said: “The bandit problem there is serious, and the court’s influence is the weakest. Even if you’re wanted, it would be very safe to escape there.”
“If you’re ruthless enough, you can directly become a bandit, which can both hone your martial arts and give you power. Many wanted criminals by the court and desperate fugitives from the jianghu like to gather in Yun Province.”
That makes sense. Compared to other regions, hiding in Yun Province would be safer. The more chaotic a place, the safer it is… Wait a minute!
A flash of inspiration struck Xu Qi An’s mind.
If I were Centurion Zhou, where would I escape to?
Colluding with the demon race, blowing up Sangbo, and perfectly achieving the serious crimes of “executing the entire family” and “implicating three generations of the clan.”
Nowhere would be safe because the court wouldn’t let him go.
So where should he hide?
Two choices: either leave Great Feng or hide in Yun Province!
Yes, Yun Province.
Xu Qi An suddenly became excited. Just as he was about to pat his younger brother’s shoulder, he heard his second uncle angrily slap the table: “You’re not allowed to go to Yun Province.”
The two brothers were startled.
“Why not?” Xu Qi An was surprised by his second uncle’s reaction.
“What would you do in Yun Province? Become a bandit?” Second Uncle Xu asked angrily. “The court suppresses bandits every year. What if they send the new officials to Yun Province to suppress bandits in the future? Have you forgotten the promise you two made that day?”
What promise… Oh, fighting on the same side… Xu Qi An and Xu Xinnian lowered their heads in shame.
They had indeed forgotten.
Unexpectedly, their second uncle still remembered it, showing he had truly taken it to heart.
“I understand, I understand. I won’t go to Yun Province then. I’ll go to the Western Regions,” Xu Qi An said.
The Western Region beauties are both beautiful and passionate!
After dinner, Xu Qi An saw Xu Lingyue walk in with a steaming bowl of milk, her red lips pursed, her eyes gentle:
“Big brother, drink a bowl of milk to nourish yourself.”
“Lingyue bought it herself from the street, it’s fresh milk from this afternoon,” Second Uncle Xu added, genuinely smiling as he saw the increasingly harmonious relationship between the cousins:
“Lingyin drank two big bowls and got scolded by her sister.”
Xu Qi An took the milk and sniffed it, nearly vomiting… The milk was both fishy and gamey.
The fresh milk of this era was like this, without any messy additives, pure and original, at most heated for sterilization.
But it didn’t taste good.
Although it wasn’t tasty, it was indeed something only nobles could drink daily, even though the taste wasn’t very popular.
But it was indeed nourishing. For noble children, milk was a daily necessity.
Maybe I could try to improve the milk… and then make a fortune with a secret recipe… Well, I don’t know how to remove this smell, the teachers at school didn’t teach that… Xu Qi An sighed, and under his sister’s eager gaze, he downed it in one gulp.
The feelings run deep.
Holding the still-warm bowl, Xu Qi An suddenly recalled some memories from the past.
When he was in middle school, his parents ordered milk for him, the kind in glass bottles, delivered to their doorstep still warm every morning.
Xu Qi An didn’t drink it himself but carried it in his pocket to give to his crush. He thought this was love, but when he grew up, he found out that the girl had someone else’s Terun Su in her mouth.
He then realized he was just a simp.
…
At some point, a bitter rain began to fall outside, soaking the withered branches and the stone slabs in the courtyard.
After a satisfying meal, Xu Qi An held an oil-paper umbrella as he returned to his small courtyard.
He lit an oil lamp and opened the window. The sky had completely darkened, with only a stubborn candlelight shining through, and the sound of rain pattering.
The world was quiet, so quiet that one could settle their thoughts and ponder many things.
“A cup of wine in the spring breeze of peach and plum blossoms, ten years of lamp in the night rain of the jianghu!”
When the poet Huang Tingjian wrote this poem, he probably had the same feelings as him, both thinking of some people in their hearts.
Perhaps, it was also on such a quiet, cold, and rainy night.
After an unknown amount of time, Xu Qi An trimmed the lamp twice before he could break free from his melancholic mood.
One can’t always be immersed in their world; there are still many things to be done.
Xu Qi An sat by the table, took out the small jade mirror, and inputted the information: “Heh, something’s happened in the capital again.”