“Back then, to show off my ‘status’, I secretly took a piece of fabric from the Empress’s palace…” At this point, the Imperial Brother-in-law glanced at the yellow silk.
Xu Qi An understood now. So that’s where Huang Xiao Rou got the yellow silk from.
However, there should be many consorts in the palace with such fabric. A single piece of cloth would hardly serve as evidence… As Xu Qi An pondered this, he suddenly heard Princess Huai Qing say calmly:
“If Master Xu could pinpoint the Imperial Brother-in-law based on the autopsy results and following clues, how much easier would it be for the mastermind who already knew the inside story?
“If Mother Empress hadn’t admitted it, then naturally, evidence would have helped Master Xu trace it back to the Imperial Brother-in-law. Besides, with our uncle’s iron will, one night in prison and he’d confess everything.”
A cold curve appeared at the corners of Huai Qing’s mouth.
She had a point. I’ve fallen into a pattern of thinking, Xu Qi An realized. For such a dissolute noble, there were probably many more weaknesses to exploit. The crux of the matter wasn’t how many secrets he had, but the Empress’s choice…
Although he was a hopeless case, he was still her only brother. If Second Brother was constantly bullying men and women, and political enemies used him to attack me, would I save Second Brother?
In Xu Qi An’s mind, he imagined Xu Xin Nian leading a group of followers, surrounding a respectable woman, with Second Brother approaching with a lecherous grin…
“What a beautiful scene, it gives me goosebumps. Hmm, with Second Brother’s looks, he wouldn’t need to use force. There’d be plenty of respectable women craving his body…” Xu Qi An mused to himself.
“I want to see the Empress, I want to see the Empress…” The Imperial Brother-in-law lunged excitedly towards Huai Qing, like a child who had made a mistake but desperately wanted someone to cover for him:
“If His Majesty wants to depose the Empress, so be it. She doesn’t love His Majesty anyway, the position of Empress means nothing to her. But Huai Qing, I’m your only uncle.”
“Silence!” Huai Qing, rarely angered, spoke sharply: “How dare you slander Father Emperor and Mother Empress’s feelings!”
What a truly remarkable individual! Rather than calling him bold, it would be more accurate to describe him as foolish. He acts without considering the consequences, always expecting others to clean up his mess… He’s just like a hot-blooded youth with an immature mind.
In my era, he’d be called a man-child, lacking the harsh lessons of society… Xu Qi An clicked his tongue inwardly.
Most crucially, while the idea of cuckolding the Emperor was thrilling, this Imperial Brother-in-law was uniquely audacious enough to actually do it.
Whether the Empress was deposed or the Imperial Brother-in-law received due punishment, it was all the Emperor’s family business, not much of Xu Qi An’s concern.
So his attitude was quite relaxed, at most feeling a bit sorry for Huai Qing. But given Huai Qing’s disgust for her uncle, even if the Imperial Brother-in-law was beheaded, his first wife probably wouldn’t be heartbroken.
Suddenly, a thought flashed through Xu Qi An’s mind. The Empress, being the Imperial Brother-in-law’s sister, couldn’t really do anything to him, but how could Duke Wei tolerate such an unreliable ally?
Even if the two families were old friends, with Duke Wei’s skills, disciplining a dissolute young noble and making him behave should be effortless.
“Does Duke Wei know about this?” Xu Qi An asked.
Hearing this, Huai Qing immediately looked at him, lost in thought.
“Wei Yuan?” The Imperial Brother-in-law, who had been panicked and helpless a moment ago, suddenly turned vicious and angry, sneering, “Yes, this must all be Wei Yuan’s plot. It must be him.
“He caused my father’s death, and now he wants to harm me. He’s a heartless beast. He deserves to die without descendants.”
In Xu Qi An’s small head, a big question flashed. Before entering the mansion, Huai Qing had told him that the Wei family and the Shang Guan family were old friends.
But judging from the Imperial Brother-in-law’s attitude, this was far from a friendship; it seemed more like a bitter feud.
Thinking of this, Xu Qi An immediately looked at Huai Qing. She was frowning, seemingly equally unaware of the inside story and confused by her uncle’s words.
Xu Qi An cleared his throat and proactively questioned, “What do you mean? Why would Wei Yuan want to harm you?”
The Imperial Brother-in-law glanced at him and laughed coldly: “I dare to speak, but do you dare to listen? Do you know what Wei Yuan did back then…”
“Slap!”
Halfway through his sentence, Xu Qi An slapped him, interrupting the Imperial Brother-in-law.
“Enough, I don’t want to hear it. Now I just want to take you back to the Constabulary office,” Xu Qi An said while turning his head to look at Huai Qing, seeking her opinion.
Princess Huai Qing said, “Take him away.”
“Huai Qing, Huai Qing, you can’t do this to me… I’m the only son of the Shang Guan family, your Mother Empress won’t agree with you doing this…”
The Imperial Brother-in-law was carried out of the mansion by Xu Qi An. Following Huai Qing’s orders, he was handed over to several guards who would escort him to the Constabulary office.
Xu Qi An mounted his horse. The Princess, who had just entered her carriage, opened the window and said in a cool voice, “Master Xu, why don’t you ride with me?”
Oh my, this isn’t proper. How can a lone man and woman share a carriage? I haven’t even ridden in the same carriage with my sister or aunt… Xu Qi An quickly dismounted and climbed into the luxurious carriage made of golden silk nanmu wood.
The coachman cracked his whip, and the two stallions neighed as they set off, swiftly yet steadily leaving the street outside the Shang Guan ancestral home and heading towards the Imperial City.
Inside the carriage, soft wool carpets were laid out. At the far end was a couch covered with a blue qilin cotton pad. There were two large chairs and a fixed tea table.
The Princess took out tea leaves from the wooden cabinet under the tea table, lit smokeless beast gold charcoal, and while brewing tea, she said, “Does Master Xu have any suggestions?”
This is like an ancient version of a luxury car… This carriage alone is probably worth thousands of taels of silver… Xu Qi An marveled inwardly. Hearing her question, he pondered and said:
“I assume Your Highness already has an idea in mind?”
Huai Qing nodded slowly: “I’ve never liked my uncle. This matter started because of him, so it should end with him.”
The subtext was: I’m prepared to hand over my uncle.
“But even so, the Empress still bears the guilt of covering up for him,” Xu Qi An frowned.
This could be a major or minor issue. If Emperor Yuan Jing was magnanimous and forgave her, then a small punishment would suffice, without the need to depose the Empress. Conversely, Emperor Yuan Jing could use this as an excuse to depose her, with sufficient grounds for the crime.
Based on Xu Qi An’s understanding of Emperor Yuan Jing, this emperor had a strong sense of possession and desire for power. Such people were deep thinkers, but equally intolerant of any deception.
“Who said Mother Empress covered it up? After learning about the Consort Fu case, the Imperial Brother-in-law realized his misdeeds were about to be exposed, so he sent someone to beg Mother Empress. Mother Empress, considering their blood ties, although despising the Imperial Brother-in-law for causing such chaos in the palace, still chose to take the blame for him.”
Princess Huai Qing’s expression and tone were as steady as an old dog, her face seemingly saying, “That’s right, this is the truth.”
This… Xu Qi An sighed and said, “The Princess makes a valid point.”
Damn, if I married a woman like this, it would be hard to even think about cheating or having an affair.
“I’m quite curious about what my uncle was about to say before you interrupted him. Why did Master Xu cut him off?” the Princess asked lightly.
Xu Qi An calmly examined Huai Qing’s beautifully sculpted features and said, “What was the Imperial Brother-in-law about to say? This humble official doesn’t know. If Your Highness wishes to know, I can interrogate him for you later.”
He had deliberately interrupted the Imperial Brother-in-law earlier because the matter involved Wei Yuan.
For Xu Qi An, there were two things he needed to be cautious about. First was palace secrets, which went without saying.
Second was secrets concerning Wei Yuan. Wei Yuan was both his superior and his backer. If he wanted to continue his career in the capital, he had to maintain a good relationship with Wei Yuan.
Therefore, there were certain secrets about Wei Yuan that he shouldn’t know.
Unless Wei Yuan told him personally.
Huai Qing smiled and changed the subject: “Master Xu needn’t worry about the Empress’s matter. Duke Wei will handle it. What you need to do is find the mastermind behind this. Does Master Xu have any thoughts?”
Xu Qi An frowned, staring at the purple clay teapot licked by blue-red flames at the bottom, and remained silent for a long time.
…
At the Constabulary office, in the Hao Qi Tower.
A black-robed clerk entered the tea room and respectfully said, “Duke Wei, Princess Huai Qing’s guards have brought the Imperial Brother-in-law to the office. He’s clamoring to see you.”
Wei Yuan, looking down at a report, didn’t even raise his head. He said calmly, “A dying man, no need to see him. Go inform the Nan Gong Golden Gong to give the Imperial Brother-in-law a warm welcome.”
After the black-robed clerk left, Wei Yuan closed the report and slowly walked to the observation deck, his deep and weathered gaze looking towards the Imperial Palace in the distance.
…
Upon returning to the palace, Huai Qing went straight to the Phoenix Perch Palace.
Xu Qi An planned to continue investigating the people on the list. He called for a young eunuch to assist him.
Following the list, step by step, when he reached the last person, he hit a snag.
That person was a palace maid from the Jing Xiu Palace.
“Sister Lang Er is serving the Noble Consort. Master Xu, please come back later,” the eunuch guarding the door stopped Xu Qi An.
Xu Qi An glanced at the sky and said pleasantly, “Then when would be a good time for me to return?”
The eunuch replied indifferently, “Who knows? Come back tomorrow.”
“The case is urgent, we can’t delay like this. I just need a brief understanding, it’s only a matter of one question,” Xu Qi An took out a five-tael silver note, “Please, sir, be accommodating.”
The doorkeeper eunuch took the money, turned around and went inside, and didn’t come back.
“This is outrageous!” The young eunuch was furious and said indignantly, “Master Xu, that dog is playing you!”
“What would happen if I just barged in?” Xu Qi An asked expressionlessly.
“Oh no, you can’t!” The young eunuch quickly stopped him, advising, “Trespassing into a consort’s chambers is a serious crime.”
Xu Qi An nodded and turned to leave.
The young eunuch jogged to keep up, saying, “Might as well forget it. It’s getting late, sir. You should head back.”
“No, I’m going to report this expense to Princess Lin An,” Xu Qi An replied.