Xu Qi An was greatly startled, thinking to himself, “When did I ever lie? If we’re talking about deception, it would be my persona at the Cloud Deer Academy.”
Could his persona have collapsed without him realizing it? That didn’t make sense. Moreover, it shouldn’t be Number Five making this accusation. It would be more reasonable for Number One or Number Six to criticize him. How could it be a little girl far away in the Southern Frontier speaking up?
He held the fragment of the Earth Script, pondering without replying. The other members of the Heaven and Earth Society also remained silent, observing how the situation would develop.
Number Three is a liar? What did he lie to us about? How does Number Five know Number Three is a liar? They didn’t have much interaction during their correspondence. This means Number Five must have caught Number Three’s flaw from some past statement… Number Four thought to himself.
Number Three has a good temperament, he’s a kind-hearted person, and he shouldn’t be a liar. Number Five is a foolish woman, it’s unlikely she’s slandering someone, but she’s not very bright, so she might have misunderstood something… Number Two thought to himself.
Why did Number Five say Number Three is a liar… Monk Hengyuan frowned in displeasure.
Number One smiled silently, quietly observing.
At this moment, Daoist Jin Lian was lazily sprawled on the roof ridge sunbathing, her cat eyes comfortably closed.
Number Five didn’t keep everyone waiting for long. She sternly accused Number Three of being insincere: [That friend you mentioned who often picks up money is you, isn’t it? I asked… My information is correct.]
Xu Qi An: “…”
[Five: Well, well, nothing to say now, huh?]
Is Ning also an experienced otaku? Xu Qi An pursed his lips and sighed in relief. Yes, he had lied. However, whether he lied about this or not was inconsequential.
For instance, Song Tingfeng often says, “I have a friend who’s in poor health…”
Everyone knows he’s talking about himself, but does anyone accuse him of lying?
Sure enough, no one in the Earth Script chat group responded to Number Five. Everyone had their thoughts.
I envy Number Three, being able to pick up money every day… I can barely pay the soldiers’ wages… Number Two thought sincerely.
So it was Number Three who picked up money every day. Hmm, this poor monk had suspected it before… If this poor monk could pick up money every day, he could save more widows and orphans… Number Six was extremely envious.
The one picking up silver is Number Three himself. What kind of person could abnormally pick up silver like this? I don’t recall the Confucian system of Cloud Deer Academy having such mystical aspects… Number Four was startled as he thought of a possibility. He quickly sent a message: [Number Three, when did this phenomenon start?]
Xu Qi An hesitated slightly before answering: [About a month ago.]
He deliberately shortened the time to avoid people discovering in the future that his anomaly appeared after the tax silver case was resolved.
…Number Four’s heart pounded violently because he had a guess, a guess so absurd and bold that it sent shivers of electricity through his body.
A little over a month ago, if he remembered correctly, the pure qi soaring to the heavens phenomenon at Cloud Deer Academy also occurred about a month ago. At that time, Number Three hadn’t yet joined the Heaven and Earth Society, and Daoist Jin Lian had solemnly entrusted Number One to investigate within the society.
As everyone knows, Number Three is a student at a Confucian academy, but there’s something extremely unusual about him. Despite not being very strong, he has received an excessive amount of resource allocation and knows many secrets that only the higher-ups of Cloud Deer Academy should know. This is very unreasonable. Number Four, as a former scholar, had long noticed this slight inconsistency. He wasn’t questioning Number Three’s identity as a member of Cloud Deer Academy but rather felt that his treatment was somewhat exaggerated.
But what if Number Three was related to the pure qi soaring to the heavens at Cloud Deer Academy? Wouldn’t it then make sense for him to receive such attention from the academy’s higher-ups?
However, Number Four couldn’t figure out what connection there could be between picking up silver and the pure qi soaring to the heavens.
“It seems I need to find time to return to the capital and visit Chancellor Zhao,” Number Four secretly decided to return to the capital before the New Year.
Thinking of this, feeling he now understood some of Number Three’s secrets, Number Four’s lips curled into a slight smile as he sent a message: [Interesting. I’ve underestimated Number Three before. It seems I need to reassess your value and potential.]
Number Four knows the reason why Number Three frequently picks up silver. And the reason behind this involves some major secrets… Otherwise, Number Four wouldn’t evaluate him like this… Except for Number Five, everyone else sensed something was off from Number Four’s words.
Seeing that everyone had more or less finished chatting, Xu Qi An narrowed his eyes and used his finger as a pen to send a message: [Heh, I have a question. Number Five, how did you know it was me picking up silver?]
Given Number Five’s intelligence, it’s unlikely she was bluffing. This means she knows why he’s picking up silver, or at least understands some inside information.
This was precisely what Xu Qi An was eager to know. He had always been very concerned about his strange luck.
[Five: I can’t say. I promised… someone else not to reveal it to anyone, not even you.]
Number Five refused promptly and decisively.
[Three: Equal Exchange.]
[Five: No exchange. One must have integrity.]
This foolish girl, do you believe I’ll blacklist you, take advantage of you once in the future, and then not take responsibility… Xu Qi An complained internally.
On second thought, Daoist Jin Lian, the operator, was still recovering from injuries and couldn’t enable private chat functions. Now wasn’t the right time to inquire.
In the future, when private chats become possible, he would have a good talk with this foolish girl from the Southern Frontier about life and ideals. There was still a lot of room for maneuvering.
…
In the Imperial Study, a small court session was in progress.
Emperor Yuanjing, dressed in Daoist robes, sat at the head of the table, listening to the report from Prefect Chen Hanguang. He showed no anger or joy, remaining impassive about the rolling heads at the vegetable market.
“What are your thoughts on the positions of Minister of War and Censor-in-chief of the Ministry of Revenue, my dear ministers?” Emperor Yuanjing asked seemingly casually.
Immediately, ministers stepped forward to recommend their people. Emperor Yuanjing watched expressionlessly as the officials argued fiercely, almost ready to beat each other’s brains out for the two vacant positions of great power.
Even the two powerful figures, Wei Yuan and Prime Minister Wang Zhenwen, couldn’t avoid getting involved.
Seeing the conflict escalating, with some hot-tempered ministers already rolling up their sleeves, Emperor Yuanjing tapped the table, intervening at the right moment.
“Minister Shang, you are the Minister of Personnel. What suggestions do you have?”
Shang Xian stepped forward. As he bowed his head, he glanced at Prime Minister Wang Wenzheng from the corner of his eye. Seeing the latter shake his head imperceptibly, he then said:
“This humble servant is fearful and has no candidates at the moment. I request Your Majesty’s guidance.”
Emperor Yuanjing nodded with satisfaction: “We shall discuss this matter further.”
As expected… The ministers slowly exhaled in their hearts, glaring at each other resentfully.
At this moment, Wei Yuan stepped forward and spoke in a clear voice: “Your Majesty, your humble servant has a petition.”
After Emperor Yuanjing nodded, Wei Yuan said: “Bronze Gong Xu Qi An has rendered great service in the Princess Pingyang case. I request Your Majesty to reward him.”
He had already submitted the corresponding memorial to the inner court yesterday.
Emperor Yuanjing was aware of the case details and knew about the merits of Bronze Gong Xu Qi An in it. Whether it was reopening the Princess Pingyang case, discovering the whereabouts of Monk Henghui, or finding Princess Pingyang’s body, Bronze Gong had made indispensable contributions.
But Emperor Yuanjing still hesitated. He didn’t like that Bronze Gong, for no particular reason. This young man gave him a very discordant, very uncomfortable feeling.
He despised him from the bottom of his heart.
The day he saw him in the Imperial City, watching him leave the ground with one sword strike, scaring the Spirit Dragon from approaching even half a step. At that moment, Emperor Yuanjing couldn’t control the disgust in his heart.
Just as Wei Yuan was about to speak, Minister Sun from the Ministry of Justice suddenly shouted: “Your Majesty, your humble servant has a report.”
He strode forward, bowed, and said righteously: “Your humble servant was ordered to investigate the Sangbo case and has been working tirelessly day and night, not daring to slack off for a moment. After my investigation, I found that the Chief Justice of the Court of Judicature and Revision, Chang Yan, colluded with the demon race, cooperating from within to blow up Sangbo. I request Your Majesty to dismiss this scoundrel and hand him over to me for a thorough investigation.”
Chief Justice Chang Yan narrowed his eyes and looked at Minister Sun.
He was a core member of the Qi faction. Due to the gunpowder incident, another core member of the Qi faction, the Minister of Works, had already walked a tightrope once.
The Minister of Works snorted coldly and stepped forward: “Your Majesty, the Ministry of Justice is making false accusations and framing Lord Chang arbitrarily. I believe the Minister of Rites is equally suspicious.”
The Minister of Rites immediately stepped forward and cried out: “Your humble servant is wronged.”
Wei Yuan sighed, feeling somewhat disappointed. Sure enough, he heard Emperor Yuanjing say: “The Sangbo case has not yet concluded. Order Bronze Gong Xu Qi An to continue investigating this case. Half a month has already passed. If he cannot uncover the truth, I will still execute him.”
“Your Majesty!” Wei Yuan’s eyebrows twitched as he bowed and said: “Even if Xu Qi An fails in the investigation, he still has merits in the Princess Pingyang case. How can it be the death penalty?”
The ministers couldn’t help but look at Wei Yuan, their eyes filled with various emotions – some gloating, some surprised, some pleased.
Minister Sun of the Ministry of Justice, as a member of Prime Minister Wang’s faction, openly attacked the Chief Justice while also secretly firing a cold arrow at Wei Yuan. As long as the disputes over the Sangbo case continued, Bronze Gong, as the main investigator from the Night Watchmen’s Office, couldn’t stay uninvolved. He would be dragged back in.
Similarly, the Chief Justice would also be under suspicion. If the case wasn’t solved, he wouldn’t be able to remove this hat. Usually, it wouldn’t matter much, but during the period of imperial examination of officials, such a major stain could easily be magnified.
At that time, if he falls within the Eight Legal Penalties, he could be kicked out with his belongings rolled up. At the very least, he would be forced down from his position as a minister.
However, the Minister of Rites, also from Wang’s faction, was implicated as well. Trading two for one at most, is not a bad deal.
Is Wei Yuan being overly concerned about a mere Bronze Gong? The ministers keenly picked up on this point.
Thus, they became increasingly supportive of the Ministry of Justice’s Minister Sun’s actions. Although civil officials fought fiercely among themselves, Wei Yuan, as the number one enemy of the civil official group, was all willing to do anything that could make Wei Yuan lose his composure.
“I’m tired. You may withdraw,” Emperor Yuanjing waved his hand.
The ministers bowed in unison and orderly withdrew from the Imperial Study. The officials left in clear divisions, and as soon as they stepped out of the Meridian Gate, the atmosphere changed dramatically.
The tense atmosphere disappeared, as if they had just finished performing a grand play and were finally relieved to reach the end.
Those who were hostile remained hostile, just not as exaggerated as they had been in the Imperial Study.
Prime Minister Wang, with graying hair and stern features, wearing a crimson robe and wearing a faint smile, approached Wei Yuan. “Lord Wei seems quite concerned about that little Bronze Gong. Establishing great merit out of nothing is indeed a rare talent.”
Wei Yuan smiled gently and said: “It’s a pity he doesn’t know how to conduct himself and has offended those he shouldn’t have.”
Prime Minister Wang was taken aback, “What do you mean by that, Lord Wei? We should nurture talent for the sake of the country and should protect them from perishing midway. If Lord Wei can’t protect him, let me do it on your behalf.”
Wei Yuan looked at him deeply, his expression still gentle, showing no signs of joy or anger: “There’s no need to trouble the Prime Minister.”
…
Wei Yuan returned to his office by carriage and ordered his staff: “Have Xu Qi An come to see me.”
At that time, Xu Qi An was at the martial arts training ground, crossing swords with Zhu Guangxiao and Song Tingfeng, honing his sword skills.
“Old Song, haven’t you been to the Courtesans’ House recently? Your breath seems much longer than usual,” Xu Qi An teased while fending off the combined attack of his two colleagues.
“He’s been feeding most of his monthly salary to the women in the Courtesans’ House, showing no restraint,” Zhu Guangxiao said in a deep voice. “Ning Yan, the him of today is the you of tomorrow. You should take this as a warning.”
Among the three young men, the hardworking Zhu Guangxiao was the most restrained, not because of abstinence, but because he wanted to save money to marry a wife.
Xu Qi An and Song Tingfeng were the most fond of indulgence, the former keen on freeloading, the latter living a dissipated life.
After reaching the Essence Refining realm, warriors don’t need to practice abstinence, but they still need to exercise restraint. A thousand-mile dike can be breached by an ant hole, and a body tempered through a hundred battles can be depleted by a woman’s embrace.
At this moment, a black-robed clerk hurried over, stopping at the edge of the training ground and calling out, “Lord Xu, Lord Wei summons you.”