Next came the task of dividing responsibilities for various departments and prefectures. The Ministry of War, Ministry of Revenue, Ministry of Justice, and wealthy regions like Hexi, Nan’an Prefecture, and Hongzhou became the focus of contention among different factions. The court officials argued back and forth, citing classics and presenting evidence, with no one willing to yield. The hall soon erupted into chaos.
The Emperor watched coldly without speaking. When the dispute reached its peak, he suddenly grabbed the jade paperweight from his desk and hurled it down from the imperial dais. Seeing his fury, the officials were terrified into silence, prostrating themselves on the ground.
The Crown Prince knelt and pleaded tearfully, “Father, please calm your anger. Your health is of utmost importance!”
The Emperor seemed to tremble with rage. Dong Fang hurriedly said, “Your Majesty, please calm down. I have a suggestion.”
“Speak.”
“The division of responsibilities for various departments, ministries, and prefectures need not be decided immediately. Your Majesty can make the final decision based on the performance of the officials over the next few months. However, two urgent matters require immediate attention. Your Majesty could assign these two tasks first, and the rest can be decided later.”
“What matters?”
“One is the winter imperial examination. Due to Bo’s rebellion and Huan’s invasion, the spring and autumn examinations were not held this year. Now, as we rebuild, we need to recruit more talent. We decided two months ago to hold an additional winter examination to give scholars from various regions a chance to enter officialdom. The other matter is the grand sacrifice at the imperial mausoleum on the winter solstice, which is the most important event at the end of the year and cannot be neglected.”
The Emperor pondered for a moment, his gaze sweeping across the officials in the hall, lingering briefly on Pei Yan. He leaned back on the dragon throne and said wearily, “Very well. The Loyal and Filial Prince has always been reliable in handling affairs. Pei, you will be responsible for the winter examination and the grand sacrifice at the imperial mausoleum. Officials from the Imperial Academy and the Ministry of Rites will be at your disposal.”
Before the officials could respond, the Emperor stood up shakily. “I’m tired. We’ll discuss the rest another day. The court is dismissed.”
Before he could take a step, Wei Zhao hurried into the hall and reported, “Your Majesty, Yue Principality has sent an envoy to prostrate outside the palace gates, begging for forgiveness and submitting a memorial requesting to be reinstated as a vassal state.”
The hall immediately erupted in commotion. Yue Principality had already declared itself an independent state, and now it was willing to become a vassal again, which was truly astonishing. Even the Emperor seemed unable to believe it. Tao, the inner attendant, quickly took the memorial from Wei Zhao’s hand and presented it to the Emperor. After reading it, the Emperor was overjoyed and exclaimed repeatedly, “Good, good, good! Jing Yang of Yue truly understands righteousness. I must reward him generously!”
The position of Prime Minister had been abolished, and now the Emperor had stripped away his power, assigning him to manage the Imperial Academy and the Ministry of Rites. Although Pei Yan had mentally prepared himself for this, he was still caught off guard.
Suppressing the turmoil in his heart, he rushed back to his mansion and strode into the Shen Garden. The anger he had been holding back all day finally exploded. He grabbed a long spear from the weapon rack in the corridor, and the wind from his movements was like a raging flame, causing the trees in the garden to shake violently. He spun faster and faster, his form like a dragon emerging from water. A burst of killing intent shot from his hand, and with a thunderous sound, the spear deeply embedded itself into the trunk of a ginkgo tree.
The maids in the courtyard, including Shu Yun, had already been struggling to breathe due to the fierce wind. When the spear tip thunderously pierced the tree trunk, they retreated hastily, with several maids falling to the ground.
After venting his anger, Pei Yan turned and saw the sorry state of everyone. He couldn’t help but laugh. He leisurely walked into the east pavilion, where Shu Yun came to help him remove his court robes and crown, changing him into casual attire.
Pei Yan looked down at Shu Yun, and suddenly another face appeared before his eyes. In a moment of confusion, he abruptly embraced Shu Yun. Shu Yun let out a startled “Ah!” Pei Yan came to his senses and slowly pushed her away.
As Shu Yun was feeling bewildered, Tong Min’s urgent voice came from outside the pavilion: “My Lord, an urgent report!”
Pei Yan left the pavilion and took the urgent confidential report from Tong Min’s hand. After reading it, he snapped it shut and quickly walked towards the Butterfly Garden.
Pei Zifang was in the Butterfly Garden, discussing the matter of Yue Principality with Lady Pei. After reading the confidential report, they exchanged a glance, both too shocked to speak.
Seeing that Pei Yan, on the contrary, looked calm, Pei Zifang asked, “Yan’er, what do you think we should do?”
“Jing Yang of Yue killed his father and brother, clearly in collusion with the young Prince of Qingde. The young Prince of Qingde eliminated the Cheng and Zheng Imperial Consorts, and Consort Tan didn’t miscarry either, which shows that they had planned this meticulously beforehand. All of this cannot be unrelated to His Majesty. I’m afraid these two have now allied themselves with the Emperor.”
Lady Pei sneered, “With Yue Principality settled, the young Prince of Qingde’s troops can be deployed northward.”
Pei Zifang sighed, “Our forces in Nan’an Prefecture and Xiang Prefecture cannot compete with the young Prince of Qingde’s 80,000 troops.”
“He won’t come openly,” Lady Pei said. “If he openly controls Nan’an Prefecture and Xiang Prefecture, it would mean he’s making a move against us. He doesn’t want to force Yan’er into rebellion now, nor does he want to bear the name of killing meritorious officials. But the young Prince of Qingde’s troops will certainly move north to maintain a threatening posture over Nan’an Prefecture, preventing us from acting rashly.”
Pei Yan, however, saw some clues in this confidential report. He looked towards the birdcage on the corridor outside the window, which was wrapped in thick felt, a slight smile gradually appearing on his face.
Lady Pei, looking at the peerlessly handsome smile on her son’s face, suddenly felt a bit detached from reality. Many years ago, when he held her hand and emerged from the snow cave, looking at the two figures approaching from the foot of the mountain, he had the same smile that seemed to control everything in the palm of his hand.
“Yu Die, I’ve won. From today on, you’re not allowed to think about the Prince of Ye or Zifang anymore.”
She sighed inwardly, and her tone softened a bit: “Young Master.”
“What instructions does Mother have?”
“If you’ve made a decision, just go ahead and do it.”
Pei Yan was still looking at the birdcage in the corridor and said calmly, “The strength of one bird is too small. We have to wait for another bird to be cornered and come to me voluntarily. Only by joining forces can we break this birdcage.”
Although Wei Zhao had been granted the title of viscount, he still couldn’t attend court or participate in politics. So he led a group of Guangming Si guards to patrol various parts of the imperial palace. When the envoy from the Yue Principality arrived at the Qianqing Gate to prostrate and submit the memorial, he was just arranging the defenses at the Qianqing Gate.
Even though he felt that something was wrong and couldn’t understand why Yue Principality had undergone such a drastic change, he still controlled himself and delivered the memorial to Hongtai Hall, only exchanging a glance with Prince Zhuang as he left the hall.
In the past, the Yue Principality had maintained connections with various factions in the court, and Jing Long of Yue was particularly close to Prince Zhuang. When Gao Ba Wang “accidentally” let Jing Long of Yue escape, it was a show put on by both parties. After Yue Principality established itself as a state, the two sides maintained secret contact, with Prince Zhuang hoping for Yue Principality’s support in his bid for power. But now, with Jing Long dead and Jing Yang in power, who was pulling the strings behind all this?
The more Wei Zhao thought about it, the more uneasy he felt, realizing that every step now was treacherous and he couldn’t afford to be careless. As he was worrying, he noticed the officials leaving the court and stepped aside. Officials from Prince Zhuang’s faction naturally exchanged pleasantries with him, while those from the Purist faction still passed by him rather haughtily.
Wei Zhao wasn’t bothered and maintained a calm expression. Seeing that all the officials had left the Qianqing Gate, he turned to go to Yanhui Hall but saw Grand Scholar Yin Shilin of the Hanlin Academy coming towards him.
Yin Shilin was from Hexi, born into a poor family. At the age of twenty-two, he achieved third place in the imperial examinations, instantly becoming famous. He was rigid and pedantic, but extremely rigorous in his scholarship. Over the years, he had served as the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, a Hanlin scholar in the Hanlin Academy, and a Grand Scholar of the Longtu Pavilion. He was highly esteemed by Dong Fang, Tan Xuan, and others, and was a key figure in the Purist faction.
He was inflexible and strictly adhered to traditional etiquette. He particularly despised court favorites like Wei Zhao and had submitted memorials several times, tearfully begging the Emperor to dismiss the catamites from the palace and advising the Emperor to cultivate virtue. The Emperor, knowing his personality, didn’t get angry but just showed the memorials to Wei Zhao and laughed them off.
When his admonitions failed, Yin Shilin turned his attacks towards Wei Zhao, often embarrassing him in public. Wei Zhao had several confrontations with him, with victories and defeats on both sides. A few days ago at the Prime Minister’s celebratory banquet, Wei Zhao had attended with the Coiled Dragon Sword, forcing Yin Shilin to kowtow in public, which had given him great satisfaction.
Seeing Yin Shilin approaching, Wei Zhao snorted coldly and was about to avoid him when he noticed that Yin Shilin’s steps were unsteady and his face was extremely pale. After a few more steps, Yin Shilin’s body went limp, and he collapsed at Wei Zhao’s feet.
Despite their animosity, Wei Zhao couldn’t ignore this situation in front of the Qianqing Gate. He bent down to help Yin Shilin up, calling out, “Scholar Yin!”
Yin Shilin remained unconscious with his eyes closed. Wei Zhao turned and said, “Quickly, take Scholar Yin to the Juyang Pavilion and summon the imperial physician to examine him.”
As Zong Sheng came over with others, Wei Zhao was about to hand Yin Shilin over to him when he suddenly felt Yin Shilin’s hand pinch his waist. His heart skipped a beat, but he maintained his composure and said, “I’ll do it myself.” He carried Yin Shilin toward the Juyang Pavilion near the Qianqing Gate.
He walked very quickly, leaving Zong Sheng and the others far behind. When there was no one else around, Yin Shilin whispered two words in his ear: “Kui Shen.”
Wei Zhao stumbled, despite trying to maintain his composure. But he quickly regained his senses, carried Yin Shilin to the Juyang Pavilion, put him down without even looking at him, and left abruptly.
Yin Shilin’s residence was at the southernmost end of East Straight Street in the inner city, a small compound with only two courtyards. The black gate and small doors suited his self-proclaimed status as a member of the Purist faction. He preferred tranquility and never accepted bribes or gifts, living solely on his salary. Naturally, he couldn’t afford to keep many servants. His family members stayed in Hexi, so there were only two male servants and an old woman in the kitchen at his residence.
On this day, Yin Shilin returned from the court in a rage, cursing. The servants knew he was furious because he had fainted at the Qianqing Gate and had been carried for a while by the court favorite Wei Zhao, which he considered a great humiliation. No one dared to provoke him, so they all hid in the outer courtyard, not daring to enter.
Late at night, Yin Shilin was still reading by lamplight when a gentle breeze blew through the window cracks, causing the candle flame to flicker slightly.
Yin Shilin put down his book, opened the door, went to the latrine, and came back, then closed the door again. He walked to the inner room and slowly knelt before a figure, saying in a deep voice, “Mu Shi pays respects to the Sect Leader.”
In the darkness, Wei Zhao was thunderstruck and stumbled back two steps, hardly believing his ears. Yin Shilin stood up, lit the candle, glanced at Wei Zhao wearing a human skin mask, and pulled a dagger from his boot, presenting it to Wei Zhao.
Wei Zhao recognized the dagger, his body swaying. His knees weakened, and he knelt before Yin Shilin, exclaiming, “Fifth Uncle!”
Yin Shilin helped Wei Zhao up, slowly removed his human skin mask, gazed at his handsome face, and then slowly embraced him, saying softly, “Wu Xia, you’ve suffered all these years.”
Wei Zhao’s eyes instantly moistened. He only knew that his master had arranged for someone to infiltrate the Hua Dynasty many years ago, and this person knew his true identity. Over the years, he had received intelligence from this person a few times but never knew which official in the court it was. He also knew that he had a Fifth Uncle named Mu Shi, who had disappeared many years ago. He had only heard from Uncle Ping that this Fifth Uncle was not highly skilled in martial arts and was a quiet, introverted young man.
He never imagined that the key figure of the Purist faction, the pedantic Grand Scholar Yin Shilin, who had been at odds with him for years, was his Fifth Uncle, Mu Shi.
Thinking back, it seemed that all these years of deliberately opposing him were actually to protect him.
Before he could speak, Yin Shilin gripped his shoulders and said urgently, “Sect Leader, you must return to Yue Luo quickly. The Emperor already knows your identity!”