When Secretary Sun arrived at the Imperial Study, the spacious and luxurious space contained only three people: Emperor Yuanjing seated on the imperial throne, the cunning Prime Minister Wang, and the Grand Eunuch with slightly graying temples.
Secretary Sun habitually glanced at his elder brother, the Prime Minister, and noticed his solemn expression and deep gaze. This surprised Sun, who had initially thought this was just an ordinary small court meeting.
What scheme is Wei Yuan up to now… He instantly turned to scrutinize the Grand Eunuch, but this exceptionally talented high-ranking eunuch had a gentle demeanor and was deeply reserved, making it impossible to discern his inner thoughts.
Secretary Sun had a foreboding feeling. After paying his respects, he silently took his designated position.
Time passed minute by minute as officials gradually arrived, bowing and taking their places. Emperor Yuanjing kept his eyes closed in meditation the entire time, only opening them when he heard the voice of the Minister of Works.
Emperor Yuanjing opened his eyes and looked down at his assembled ministers. Only those of the highest ranks were qualified to attend these small court meetings.
“Minister Wei, please inform the other ministers,” said the Emperor.
Wei Yuan stepped forward and said, “Last night, the night watchmen discovered a residence in the inner city that was harboring catamites and private courtesans. Those women were originally from respectable families, and the young boys were children from ordinary households. They had been abducted by human traffickers and imprisoned here, forced to serve customers who came to the residence for pleasure at night…”
“The night watchmen took swift action last night, raiding this den of criminals and arresting thirteen customers, ten of whom held official positions and three who were prominent merchants in the capital. Additionally, the night watchmen retrieved forty skeletons from the well in the backyard, all of whom were victims from respectable families.”
Wei Yuan’s words caused a great uproar in the Imperial Study. The ministers began discussing loudly, disregarding the rules of silence during court meetings.
Human trafficking, harboring private courtesans, and trading power for sex… any single one of these crimes could spell doom for the involved officials, especially during the period of official evaluations. It would be impossible to cover up.
But Wei Yuan wasn’t finished. He dropped another bombshell: “According to the investigation, the owner of the private residence has connections with the witches of the Wushen Cult. The ghost-raising incantations carved in the well serve as evidence. The residence owner confessed that he was working for Minister Liu of the Ministry of Works. The private residence served both as a pleasure house for networking and as a secret base for communicating with the Wushen Cult.”
The ministers were in an uproar.
If they had maintained some semblance of decorum before, now the Imperial Study resembled a chaotic marketplace. Some berated Wei Yuan for slandering and false accusations, while others proposed beheading Wei Yuan.
The Grand Eunuch standing beside Emperor Yuanjing called for silence three times but failed to quell the chaos.
Forming factions, human trafficking, forcing respectable women into prostitution – all these fell within the realm of criminal offenses. But colluding with the Wushen Cult was different; it was high treason.
According to Great Feng law, those guilty of treason would have their entire clan exterminated, to the ninth degree of kinship.
“Bang!” Emperor Yuanjing slammed the table. The Imperial Study fell silent instantly. His sharp gaze swept across the ministers, finally landing on Prime Minister Wang Zhenwen.
“What does Minister Wang think?” he asked.
The Prime Minister stepped forward and said gravely, “This matter should be thoroughly investigated without leniency.”
This statement seemed like an attempt to mediate, but Secretary Sun of the Ministry of Justice keenly sensed that his elder brother was leaning towards Wei Yuan’s side. He immediately understood the Prime Minister’s intention.
Supporting the Minister of Works would at most mean owing a huge favor and diminishing Wei Yuan’s standing.
Supporting Wei Yuan meant that if the allegations were proven true, the Minister of Works would be finished. The Qi faction would lose a leader.
In the Sangbo case, the Wang faction had attempted to implicate the Minister of Works to deal a heavy blow to the Qi faction. Although it failed, this was indeed an opportunity.
Emperor Yuanjing looked at Wei Yuan. “Where is the suspect?”
Wei Yuan shook his head and sighed, “The suspect was killed by a curse last night. There’s no way to interrogate him now.”
Emperor Yuanjing frowned.
The Imperial Study suddenly fell into dead silence. The ministers looked at Wei Yuan with strange expressions, as if saying: Why did you even bother mentioning this if there’s no proof?
Prime Minister Wang Zhenwen, known for his composure, turned his head and also frowned at Wei Yuan.
The Minister of Works’ lips curled into a cold smile as he stepped forward, exclaiming, “Your Majesty, I’ve been wronged. Wei Yuan is slandering me. I beg Your Majesty to make a fair judgment.”
Emperor Yuanjing’s face darkened. “Wei Yuan, what do you have to say?”
Wei Yuan remained calm and said in a clear voice, “I request Your Majesty to summon Constable Xu Qi An.”
Constable Xu Qi An… Upon hearing this name, the ministers’ expressions became peculiar. Given the previous incident with Zhou Chixiong, summoning Xu Qi An at this critical moment made the ministers realize there was more to come, and that Wei Yuan had an ace up his sleeve.
Especially the members of the Wang faction, who experienced a mild PTSD reaction to the phrase “summon Xu Qi An.”
The Minister of Works’ expression changed slightly, but he quickly composed himself, maintaining his calm demeanor.
Emperor Yuanjing was silent for a few seconds before saying, “Summon him.”
About fifteen minutes later, Xu Qi An, wearing a black robe, carrying a bronze gong, and with a cape on his back, entered the Imperial Study. The black and gold long saber at his waist had been confiscated.
Accompanying him were Chu Caiwei and two white-robed officials from the Astronomical Bureau.
“Greetings to Your Majesty,” Xu Qi An bowed.
Emperor Yuanjing looked at the young constable impassively. Wei Yuan turned his head and smiled, “Tell His Majesty about your findings.”
Xu Qi An immediately recounted how he had planned to use the silver awarded by the Emperor to purchase a property, but discovered a haunted house. Then, through empathy, he uncovered the private residence… He told the whole story in detail.
As the Minister of Works listened, his expression grew increasingly grim, and his heart slowly sank.
The person has already been killed, and the night watchmen were furious about it last night… They have no evidence and are trying to bluff me… The Minister of Works stabilized his emotions and inwardly sneered.
I’ve been in officialdom for half my life and weathered countless storms. Such a small trick is nothing.
After Xu Qi An finished speaking, he noticed that Emperor Yuanjing remained expressionless and unmoved. So he added, “The female ghost has been contained in Miss Chu Caiwei’s feng shui plate from the Astronomical Bureau. If Your Majesty wishes to verify, you can choose someone you trust to empathize with the ghost.”
After saying this, he thought darkly to himself: Make sure to choose a man for empathy.
Emperor Yuanjing pondered for a moment, then looked at the Grand Eunuch beside him. If there was anyone present whom he trusted the most, it would naturally be this close attendant who had served him since childhood.
“I am willing to lay down my life for Your Majesty,” the Grand Eunuch said, bowing deeply.
“Don’t worry, sir. It’s not dangerous,” Xu Qi An said, seeing the Grand Eunuch’s apprehension and thinking he might not understand what empathy entailed.
At most, you’ll experience being taken by a man from a first-person perspective, but don’t worry, it’s just like watching a movie. You won’t feel any specific sensations.
Xu Qi An thought this was a blessing for a eunuch who had missed out on such experiences. Unable to sleep with women, being with a man could be seen as compensating for that missed opportunity.
Chu Caiwei took out her feng shui plate and approached the Grand Eunuch. The plate emitted a clear light, and the taiji fish began to rotate, releasing a wisp of black mist.
She gently guided the black mist towards the Grand Eunuch’s brow. He instinctively leaned back, trying to avoid it. The next moment, the black mist invaded his primordial spirit.
Chu Caiwei placed her jade finger on his brow, helping him merge with the female ghost. Without this assistance, the Grand Eunuch’s primordial spirit might have been assimilated by the vengeful spirit, unable to distinguish his own identity.
Emperor Yuanjing and the ministers in the study observed the Grand Eunuch, watching as his expression alternated between fear, ferocity, despair, and pain.
The process lasted for about fifteen minutes. Chu Caiwei withdrew her jade finger, simultaneously extracting the black mist and returning it to the feng shui plate.
The Grand Eunuch let out a whimper and opened his eyes. He fell to his knees, weeping, “Your Majesty, Your Majesty, you must seek justice for this servant…”
As he cried, he suddenly realized that he was a man, or at least used to be. All the experiences he had just felt were the ghost’s memories, not his own.
Upon this realization, the Grand Eunuch wiped away his tears. His expression gradually returned to normal, though his tone remained somewhat sorrowful. “Your Majesty, this servant has seen it all.”
Emperor Yuanjing nodded. “Speak.”
He then glanced at the three white-robed officials from the Astronomical Bureau, including Chu Caiwei. Seeing the clear qi flowing in their eyes, he felt reassured and turned his gaze back to the Grand Eunuch.
“This servant saw that she was abducted and brought to the capital. Every day, she was forced to serve customers who came for pleasure… No, the customers didn’t pay any silver.”
The ministers exchanged glances. It seemed that Wei Yuan’s words were not false. This was indeed a private residence involved in human trafficking and forced prostitution.
“Later, she served a customer named Tamraha, who took a liking to her and made her his favorite.”
Tamraha… This was a foreign name.
Emperor Yuanjing narrowed his eyes and glanced at the Minister of Works, then nodded. “What happened next?”
“One night, she accidentally overheard a secret conversation. She heard words like ‘cannons’ and ‘machinery,’ so she was cruelly murdered and her body was thrown into the well. This servant saw that the person having the secret conversation with Tamraha was…”
At this point, the Grand Eunuch turned his head and pointed at the Minister of Works, his voice shrill as he said, “It was Minister Liu.”
Emperor Yuanjing’s face instantly turned ashen.
The Imperial Study erupted into chaos. The tide had turned, and the ministers redirected their attacks towards the Minister of Works. The Chief Minister of the Court of Judicial Review was particularly vehement, lamenting with strong words and denouncing Minister Liu as unfilial.
Amidst the wave of condemnation, the Minister of Works turned ashen, looking like a lifeless puppet.
…
After leaving the palace, Xu Qi An rode alongside Wei Yuan’s carriage.
“Lord Wei, the Minister of Works is one of the leaders of the Qi faction. With him in our grasp, we could uproot the entire Qi faction,” Xu Qi An said in a low voice.
From inside the carriage came Wei Yuan’s amused chuckle. “Now is not the time to uproot the Qi faction. Without the Qi faction, the greatest beneficiary would not be us.”
Xu Qi An, whose political acumen was at the silver level, didn’t dwell on this topic. Instead, he probed, “Does this count as atoning for my crimes through meritorious service?”
Wei Yuan made an affirmative sound and said, “The Ministry of Justice will no longer pursue you. As for the other night watchmen, it depends on His Majesty’s wishes. Later, I will submit a memorial to the palace.”
Hmm, I’ll leave these matters for Wei Yuan to handle… My promotion to Silver Gong should be almost certain… I should go home first to reassure my uncle and Aunt.
Xu Qi An immediately asked for leave, bid farewell to Wei Yuan, and patted his mare’s rump, rushing towards the outer city.
The second Uncle was on duty and not at home. Only Aunt and the two younger sisters were in the residence.
Aunt sat on a chair in the front hall, drinking tea and nibbling on snacks, occasionally feeding a bite to the little one playing with wooden toys.
She wore a dark green gauze robe, her hair elegantly styled and adorned with beautiful golden hairpins. Her beautiful face was exquisitely made up.
Seeing her troublesome nephew return, Aunt’s expression changed slightly. She spoke hurriedly in a low voice:
“Why did you come back? Your Second Uncle said there are secret agents from the Ministry of Justice nearby. Get out quickly.”
“Big brother, big brother…” Xu Lingyin cheerfully came to greet him but came to an abrupt stop in front of him. Her small body swayed as she raised her little face:
“Did you bring anything good to eat?”
“No,” Xu Qi An coldly shattered his young sister’s eager expectations.
“Oh.”
Xu Lingyin was also a practical girl. She immediately discarded her big brother and went off to play by herself, swaying her little bottom as she walked away.
Xu Qi An didn’t want to deal with his aunt. He walked to the side table and reached for some pastries, but his hand was swatted away by the beautiful woman, who glared at him. “I’m talking to you.”
Xu Qi An said nonchalantly, “The matter has been resolved. I came back to let you know.”
Hearing that the issue had been settled, Aunt’s face showed a trace of a smile, which she quickly suppressed. She reproached him, “Always causing trouble. Can’t you let the family have some peace for a while?”
Since the tax silver case, there has been no end to the troubles, with incidents occurring every few days. Aunt had gone from being worried and scared at first to becoming somewhat accustomed to it now.
This was not a good thing.
Xu Qi An ignored his aunt’s nagging and said, “I’ve already chosen a residence. I want to take Lingyin and Lingyin to see it. Would you like to come, Aunt?”
Hearing that he had chosen a residence, her beautiful eyes immediately lit up. She said with restraint, “I have nothing else to do anyway, so I might as well go with you to take a look.”