◎She had already determined he was a holy monk, so if he wanted to pierce through this layer of understanding, he would have to say he was returning to secular life.◎

In the autumn of the forty-ninth year of Yuanshao, Wang Deyi’s case finally settled with a sentence of execution by beheading. When the Luoyang Prefecture raided the Wang family, they uncovered embezzled funds exceeding six hundred thousand taels of silver. Under the Emperor’s orders, this silver was allocated to the Ministry of Finance to cover this year’s deficit from the disaster relief silver diverted due to the horse plague.

Throughout this period, Prince Qi paid no attention to Wang Deyi whatsoever, just as he had done with Marquis Boyuan the previous year. Seeing that even their master didn’t care, those in Prince Qi’s faction kept their tails tucked between their legs, not daring to cause trouble at such a critical juncture. Some felt Prince Qi was too heartless—one was his uncle, the other his brother-in-law, and yet he hadn’t lifted a finger for either. If they themselves fell victim to harm in the future, wouldn’t they die without even a burial place?

So some people ran to Prince Wei’s side and were accepted with a smile. However, more people didn’t dare serve two masters, so they compromised by growing closer to Wu Qingchuan—Wu Qingchuan was also part of Prince Qi’s faction now, but he had a reputation.

Throughout history, people with reputations always had to consider saving face to some degree.

But the Emperor was very satisfied with Prince Qi’s attitude. Though he had grown somewhat disgusted with him before, now he even kept him for a meal. Noble Consort Lin also finally rallied her spirits and enjoyed some tender moments with the Emperor—everyone was happy.

The Emperor was very satisfied.

The world was clear and peaceful, his son and consort were obedient, everything was fine.

But on the thirteenth of September, just after Wang Deyi had his head severed, on the fourteenth of September, Yu Qingwu denounced former Minister of War Lin Qi in the Golden Throne Hall for privately raising war horses with intent to rebel.

His words were righteous and severe, his voice like drumbeats. He enumerated Lin Qi’s crimes one by one, imploring the Emperor to investigate this matter immediately.

In the grand hall, the Emperor’s eyes finally opened. Prince Qi, who had been standing leisurely, narrowed his eyes and finally looked toward the Grand Heir beside Yu Qingwu.

The Grand Heir noticed but didn’t look at him, only continued to bow his head respectfully.

But after court was dismissed, the Emperor wore a dark expression. He didn’t rebuke Prince Qi but only kept the Grand Heir alone. Liu Guan, the old eunuch serving before the Emperor, carefully led everyone out. Just as they closed the door, they heard the sound of a teacup shattering inside the hall.

Liu Guan took a deep breath. Even though he couldn’t see inside, his head lowered even further, curving his entire body into a bow.

This time, who knew which residence in Luoyang would go up in flames.

Inside the Golden Throne Hall, the cup had grazed past the Grand Heir’s head without injuring him, but shattered porcelain splattered everywhere. The fine fragments surrounded him—whether kowtowing or prostrating with both hands on the ground to beg for mercy, he would be cut by them.

So the Grand Heir both kowtowed and begged for mercy, placing his entire body among the porcelain shards. Blood flowed across the floor before the Emperor’s anger subsided somewhat.

But he was still furious. “I pitied you for losing your parents at a young age and never blamed you. I personally led your studies, fearing those old pedants would turn you into a little bookworm, making you lose the courage and strategy befitting an Imperial Grand Heir.”

“After you entered the court, I feared Prince Qi would oppress you, so I allowed you to have Yu Qingwu cut off his two arms—Grand Heir, have I not been good enough to you?”

The Grand Heir was terrified and trembling. “Your grandson is overwhelmed with gratitude.”

The Emperor cursed loudly, “If that’s so, why are you having Yu Qingwu cause such trouble? He even dares speak the words ‘intent to rebel’! Is it that I’ve spoiled you too much and whetted your appetite! That’s your uncle! These past two years, you’ve cut off his arms—has he said anything? Has he retaliated against you at all? Now you’re insatiably greedy, deliberately waiting until after Wang Deyi’s death to accuse him of rebellion. What, do you want me to kill him too?”

The Grand Heir remained prostrate on the ground. Only after the Emperor finished his tirade did he say, “Your grandson is not accusing Prince Qi Uncle, but former Minister of War Lin Qi.”

Emperor: “I’m not a fool!”

Grand Heir: “Imperial Grandfather, your grandson is not a fool either. Other matters might be overlooked, but privately raising war horses cannot be overlooked. Today, regardless of who has privately raised war horses or private soldiers, they should be executed—there can be no leniency.”

These words struck at the Emperor’s heart. His gaze fixed intently on the Grand Heir. “Is the evidence conclusive?”

Grand Heir: “The evidence is conclusive.”

The Emperor’s heart surged with conflicting emotions.

Other matters could be lightly passed over, but the two words “troops and horses” were the foundation of the nation—truly, no one could touch them regardless of who they were.

He finally stepped away from the four words “factional strife and succession struggle,” walking down the steps one by one to look at the Grand Heir kneeling on the ground, narrowing his eyes. “How did you discover this?”

Grand Heir: “Yu Qingwu, working on the horse plague matter, organized the Court of Imperial Stud’s account books from the past twenty years and discovered many discrepancies in the numbers…”

Hearing this, the Emperor glanced at him sideways for a moment, then withdrew his gaze, not knowing what he was thinking.

The Grand Heir hadn’t raised his head, only continued with lowered head and indignation, “We initially thought they were just falsifying accounts to embezzle silver. Who knew Lin Qi would be so audacious as to secretly hoard war horses.”

“Since your grandson discovered this matter, I cannot fail to inform you. Regardless of what the truth ultimately is, we cannot allow Lin Qi to act recklessly. Once trouble breaks out, it will be too late for regrets.”

The Emperor’s expression became unpredictable. Who knew what he was thinking. Finally, he sighed. “Stand up.”

He said, “If the evidence is conclusive, Lin Qi does indeed deserve death.”

——

At the Court of Imperial Stud, Yu Qingwu had been waiting for news. Only after word came from the palace that His Majesty had severely rebuked Prince Qi did he breathe a sigh of relief.

This step had ultimately been the right gamble.

His Majesty would not allow anyone to touch military power.

He stood up, about to leave, when he saw Gonglin coming over and grabbing him, refusing to let go, saying indignantly, “Junior Minister Yu, when you accused Lin Qi in court, why didn’t you tell me beforehand?”

Yu Qingwu smiled. “You don’t attend court anyway. Even if I told you, you wouldn’t see it.”

Gonglin flew into a rage. “It was a matter of life and death! If His Majesty had become angry, you’d be done for!”

Yu Qingwu said solemnly, “His Majesty is just. I was merely exposing a traitorous minister—how would I lose my life? You’d better speak less recklessly.”

Gonglin held back his anger. “Fine! I won’t speak!”

He stormed off angrily.

He stormed back angrily. He patted his chest. “Don’t always take me for a wastrel. I’ve already reformed—I haven’t gambled for silver anymore, and I haven’t gotten into any fights!”

Yu Qingwu found this amusing. “You should be saying this to your fiancée.”

Gonglin said proudly, “You think I haven’t?”

In any case, he felt he had reformed and become a useful person. “Next time you have something going on, you must tell me. I’ve been at the Court of Imperial Stud for almost half a year now, and I want to contribute too.”

He wasn’t a fool—he could see who was just idling their days away and who truly cared about the common people.

Yu Qingwu was a good person. No matter how outsiders slandered him, Gonglin felt he was worth befriending. He said, “Last time when those Imperial Academy people cursed you, I heard them on my way home and even beat them up for you.”

“Since I’ve done this much for you, you shouldn’t fail to appreciate it, right?”

Yu Qingwu nodded with amusement. “All right, I appreciate it. Next time something comes up, I’ll definitely tell you.”

Only then did Gonglin leave happily.

When Yu Qingwu returned to the residence, Lan Shanjun was standing at the door waiting for him.

He smiled. “Shanjun, you’re waiting for me.”

His tone was certain.

Lan Shanjun examined him carefully from head to toe. “You weren’t punished, were you?”

Yu Qingwu shook his head. “No. His Majesty is a dignified person toward his officials.”

Throughout the Emperor’s decades sitting on the dragon throne, those he chose not to use were directly executed—he had never punished anyone before killing them.

Thinking of it this way, on the surface he actually seemed like a merciful and benevolent person.

Yu Qingwu sat down, consoling her gently, “Shanjun, don’t worry. Things are still under control.”

After he temporarily assumed the position of Minister of the Court of Imperial Stud, he could examine the account books from previous years. As long as he investigated deeply, he would discover the Court of Imperial Stud had always maintained false accounts. He had felt something was wrong at the time.

Old Master Su had been at the Court of Imperial Stud for many years. If these false accounts had existed for years, he must have known. But knowing yet not speaking meant he understood these accounts couldn’t be mentioned.

Yu Qingwu hadn’t slept all night then. Not because he was angry at learning this silver was diverted to the Emperor, but because the deeper he investigated, the more he realized that after the horse plague, Old Master Su’s resolute death might have been because his heart was filled with self-reproach.

“The account books were falsified by Wang Deyi, and the money was given to the Emperor. The old master had been turning a blind eye all along, until there was no money left in the accounts and the horse plague came quickly and urgently. At that moment, his heart must have condemned himself…”

Hearing this, Lan Shanjun remained silent for a long while before saying, “Even in his death remonstrance, the old master couldn’t speak of His Majesty’s wrongdoing. You took this risk, yet didn’t dare mention the existence of this silver—you could only speak of Lin Qi privately raising war horses—”

The Emperor knew they had discovered it, but the Emperor wasn’t afraid. He only feared these horses would truly trample through Luoyang.

Yu Qingwu took a sip of tea and explained, “Prince Qi actually hoped I would expose these false accounts. As long as I exposed them, His Majesty would certainly be enraged, and the Grand Heir and I would be defeated and injured, perhaps even losing our lives.”

He smiled slightly. “To this end, he even sent someone to provoke me once, hoping I would make Wang Deyi’s false accounts public as well.”

But he hadn’t chosen to expose them.

He wasn’t someone who couldn’t tolerate a grain of sand in his eyes. Perhaps he once was. But since Yingying’s death, he had understood that justice between heaven and earth wasn’t something he could achieve by taking a sword to the Lin family’s door.

He also knew what he was doing. But precisely because he knew what he was doing and what he had become, the older he grew, the more he waded through these murky waters in the court, the more he discovered he had strayed one hundred and eight thousand miles from the pure and lofty aspirations of the crane from his youth.

He thought, if Shanjun weren’t here, dying like the old master in the end would be something he’d accept willingly. He was willing to use his head to stir up tremendous waves, and willing to use this life to compensate for these years of turning a blind eye.

But because Shanjun was here, he wanted to live to a hundred years old.

Human greed is cultivated day by day. Just like his feelings toward Shanjun—could he still maintain a pure heart and few desires now?

He lowered his head, not daring to think further.

Sometimes the way she looked at him made him feel as if Shanjun saw him as a tonsured holy monk. She could offer him fruits as offerings, but because of that single word “monk,” she had never thought of letting him onto the bed.

This was his fault. He didn’t know when he had given her this mistaken impression. But by the time he realized it, it was already too late. She had already determined he was a holy monk, so if he wanted to pierce through this layer of understanding, he would have to say he was returning to secular life.

So he wondered: When would he be able to return to secular life? Would he have the possibility of returning to secular life in this lifetime?

He was lost in his own thoughts while Lan Shanjun was still immersed in his words. First, she shook her head. “In my opinion, His Majesty is the greatest corrupt official and incompetent ruler in the world.”

The more she understood this court and the current confrontation, the more she understood what Yu Qingwu had faced in Luoyang back then.

She couldn’t help but ask, “Do you regret it?”

Yu Qingwu shook his head without hesitation.

No matter what she was asking about, he had no regrets.

But Lan Shanjun suddenly said, “Next time Wu Qingchuan hits you, hit him back. Don’t wait to be beaten, and don’t just shield your face—he doesn’t deserve to hit you.”

Though Yu Qingwu didn’t understand why she suddenly brought up Wu Qingchuan, because she said this, he felt as if he had fallen into a honey jar, his entire body sticky with syrup that could be pulled into countless threads to wind around her.

In the entire world, only she told him to go hit Wu Qingchuan.

No, that wasn’t right… Before, she had even told him to kill Wu Qingchuan to avenge his elder brother.

Shanjun had always spoken candidly, voicing the most fearful and uneasy thoughts from deep in his heart. But when she spoke so righteously, he dared to think about it righteously as well, and thus didn’t feel he was wrong in any way.

Yu Qingwu sat in his chair, holding date cake to eat. He chewed slowly, savoring this sweetness.

Seeing her looking worried, he couldn’t help but raise his eyes to comfort her. “As long as His Majesty fears war horses in his heart, he’ll order a thorough investigation. Taking this opportunity, we can check the number of horses, horse-raising officials, and how many horse-raisers there are… Only with a thorough investigation can we better prescribe the right medicine.”

But Lan Shanjun was no longer worried about this. Her brows furrowed as she thought again of the Grand Heir’s consort.

She had been constantly worried about the Grand Heir’s consort’s death.

Because of her status, the Grand Heir initially wouldn’t let her enter the palace. So even knowing the Grand Heir’s consort would ultimately die of sudden illness, she couldn’t get close and could only gradually work toward entering the palace.

It wasn’t until after Old Lady Shou’s death that the Grand Heir was moved and finally allowed her to enter the palace to teach A’Man sword techniques, and only then did the two become familiar.

But she only knew the Grand Heir’s consort died of sudden illness—she didn’t know what that sudden illness was.

She could only speculate that if it wasn’t due to illness, it must be because Prince Qi and others had struck.

If it was sudden illness, she could only keep close watch over the Grand Heir’s consort in the summer of the fifty-first year of Yuanshao. She had also invited the Grand Heir’s consort to practice sword techniques with the young princess, and under the pretext that sword practice might damage one’s qi, she took her pulse daily to prevent any chronic accumulated illnesses.

But if the Grand Heir’s consort’s death was due to power struggles by Prince Qi and others, then the events of summer in the fifty-first year of Yuanshao could happen at any time now, or might still occur in summer of the fifty-first year of Yuanshao, or even the fifty-second, fifty-third, fifty-seventh years, and so on.

The unpredictable variables made Lan Shanjun dare not act rashly.

She could only hint euphemistically to the Grand Heir’s consort about Prince Qi’s ruthlessness. “I once heard the old lady say that Prince Qi is a person with sinister methods. You and the Grand Heir should still be very careful. He can’t directly deal with the Grand Heir, but he might deal with you. You are to the Grand Heir like hands and feet. If something happens to you, the Grand Heir will certainly be too grief-stricken to function.”

Based on the idle gossip from her previous life, the Grand Heir had probably been rejected by His Majesty because excessive grief had ruined his health.

But hearing this, the Grand Heir’s consort just smiled. “That’s certainly true, but there’s always someone committing crimes for a thousand days, but no one guarding against thieves for a thousand days.”

The palace was full of open strife and veiled struggles—the Grand Heir’s consort understood all these principles. She was naturally on guard.

She had checked and rechecked the people in the Eastern Palace before daring to use them. Especially those around A’Li and A’Man.

She said, “Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing.”

Lan Shanjun couldn’t say much more. She couldn’t keep telling the Grand Heir and his wife, “Prince Qi is ruthless and has been repeatedly defeated, so he might take desperate measures and kill the Grand Heir’s consort.”

Before the Grand Heir’s consort, she too was like a minister. When ministers speak, they should have reason and evidence, and cannot speculate wildly. Otherwise, if they believed you today, they wouldn’t dare believe you another day.

So she could only continue watching vigilantly, constantly thinking about this matter in her mind. However, from Yu Qingwu’s earlier statement that “Prince Qi actually hoped I would expose these false accounts,” she thought of another possibility.

If Prince Qi truly killed the Grand Heir’s consort, then based on how he had schemed against Yu Qingwu and the Grand Heir this time, could it be that the Grand Heir’s consort’s death was also meant to make the Grand Heir defy the Emperor?

In her previous life, the Grand Heir might not have been rejected by the Emperor due to excessive grief, but because he had defied the Emperor.

The more she thought about it, the more this seemed possible. Just as she was about to tell Yu Qingwu, she looked up and saw Yu Qingwu staring fixedly at her.

The look in his eyes was as soft as morning dew, moist and glistening, as if hoping to be gathered and made into morning dew tea to drink.

Her heart paused. She always felt there was something strange about this expression, and this expression directed at her made her suddenly feel somewhat uneasy.

She was someone who liked to investigate carefully. Just as she was about to probe the meaning of this, she saw that as soon as she looked at him, he was like startled dew—his eyelashes gently lowered, hiding his emotions.

His entire being became like an old monk entering meditation.

Lan Shanjun felt puzzled but also suppressed her questions. She could ask Yu Qingwu, but she couldn’t question an old monk.

Even as close as she and Yu Qingwu were, there should still be boundaries.

So she shifted her thoughts and asked aloud, “Do you still remember what I told you before about Prince Qi possibly targeting the Grand Heir’s consort?”

Yu Qingwu nodded. “I remember.”

He asked, “Do you still have this speculation?”

Lan Shanjun nodded. She said, “I’ve thought about it for a long time—I keep thinking that from what I’ve seen of the Grand Heir and his wife, no matter which one loses the other, they couldn’t survive.”

“If Prince Qi killed the Grand Heir’s consort, what would the Grand Heir do?”

Yu Qingwu: “He would suffer for a period, but would still have to continue living for the sake of the Imperial Grandson and Princess.”

Lan Shanjun nodded slowly. “Then what do you think… if the Grand Heir’s consort’s death was framed on the Emperor by Prince Qi, what would the Grand Heir do?”

Yu Qingwu suddenly shot to his feet.

He said, “He might very well say things that disrespect Imperial grace in His Majesty’s presence.”

Lan Shanjun: “If that happens, wouldn’t the Grand Heir be rejected by His Majesty?”

Yu Qingwu nodded gravely. “Yes.”

He looked at Shanjun. “If Prince Qi’s scheme succeeds, everything we’ve done these past two years will be in vain.”

The more he thought about it, the more terrified he became. Lan Shanjun’s train of thought, however, grew clearer. “If Prince Qi wants to frame someone, what I’ve thought about most is that he would use His Majesty’s people to kill the Grand Heir’s consort.”

For Prince Qi, this was actually a risky move. But once it succeeded, it could defeat the enemy with one strike.

She didn’t know if her thinking was correct. Such baseless speculation—probably only Yu Qingwu would be willing to help investigate.

She pondered, “Yu Qingwu, can you investigate whether there are any of His Majesty’s pawns hidden beside the Grand Heir and Grand Heir’s consort who might murder the Grand Heir’s consort?”

But Yu Qingwu looked troubled. “I’m afraid it will be very difficult. If there are any, the Grand Heir and his wife should be on guard and wouldn’t let anyone succeed. If there aren’t any… then it means we haven’t found them.”

Lan Shanjun sat there quietly. “I see…”

She said, “If I told the Grand Heir, would he investigate the people around him?”

Yu Qingwu: “He should.”

But whether they could find anyone was another matter entirely.

Lan Shanjun sighed softly. “This is truly difficult.”

She deeply regretted not inquiring more about the Grand Heir’s consort’s death back then. Even knowing a few small details would be better than groping blindly now.

Why had she been so indifferent to this matter back then?

Lan Shanjun carefully recalled those years and realized at that time she had been busy feuding with the Duchess of Songguo, without a single thought spared for outside matters.

What had they been feuding about?

She had actually forgotten that too. Back then, her mind had been like a confused mess.

She slapped her head in frustration. Just as her hand was about to strike her forehead, she saw Yu Qingwu raise his head and spread his hand to shield her forehead.

He said, “Shanjun, everyone has their own fate. You must not blame yourself.”