Chapter 40 Xiao Wang, what am I to my wife?

Two major events have recently occurred in the Xia Dynasty.

The first thing was that Bai Yan, the son of Princess Anping, was granted the title of Prince Xiao, using the imperial surname as his title. Anyone with eyes could see what this meant.

No minister dared to object. Among the Xiao family, the eldest princess controlled the nation's granaries, her father held the nation's financial power, and the Xiao king himself solved the Zuo Huai mystery, arrested remnants of the previous dynasty, and even the most criticized issue of his lifespan seemed to have been resolved.

It can be said that half of the officials imprisoned in the imperial court were dealt with personally by the emperor, while the other half were sent to prison by Prince Xiao.

When the imperial edict was announced at the morning court session, the court officials were completely silent; not a single one stood up to speak.

Ironically, since Bai Yan held no official position and did not need to attend the morning court session, the protagonist of the imperial decree was the last to know about it.

The second thing is to reopen Enko in late July.

Students across the country are thrilled!

After several years of war and reorganization, students have long struggled to find a way out.

Now that it is mid-May, there is plenty of time, and counties far from Kyoto have begun to organize candidates to travel to Kyoto.

Several imperial envoys arrived, and strict investigations were carried out in various places. A large number of officials were dismissed, and forest farms, mines, and other places were put into hard labor. The prisons in various places were overcrowded.

Emperor Xiao Ji finally understood the helplessness of the Emperor of Fengdu: he was short of manpower!

Without consulting his sister and nephew, he took it upon himself to confer the title of king first, fearing that if Bai Yan escaped, no one would help him.

Zhang Pei was still angry because of the marriage arranged by Emperor Huizong of Tang for Zhang Wanying.

Bai Yan was also angry, his face was gloomy. The nephew resembled the uncle, just like Xiao Ji when he was judging cases in the underworld.

Jiang Yuzhi went to attend Ake's funeral. Bai Yan was a little unable to control his temper and did not want to bring his bad mood to his wife. At this moment, he was in the imperial study looking for Xiao Ji to demand an explanation.

Instead of dutifully dividing the memorials in half to help his uncle process them, he sat motionless at the small round table, occasionally taking a sip of the now-cold tea.

Xiao Ji tossed aside the rambling greeting memorial and picked up the next one. "Are you going to throw a tantrum at me too?"

There was no response.

He continued, "From the day you compromised, didn't you accept it?"

Bai Yan scoffed: "What, Uncle, did you go to the underworld to judge cases voluntarily?"

Emperor Huizong gripped the memorial tightly in his hand, saying, "The imperial decree is already known throughout the land."

Bai Yan: "Is that so? Then why should I sacrifice the time I spend with Yu Zhi to help you?"

Xiao Ji: "I am your uncle."

Bai Yan: "When you issued the decree, did you treat me like your nephew? You didn't even tell my mother."

Bai Yan drank the entire pot of tea, which had gone completely cold, but it couldn't extinguish the burning fire in his heart.

Hearing them arguing from outside the door, Eunuch Xu realized that his masters were quarreling and that servants dared not utter a word. He didn't dare either, let alone the other eunuchs. Eunuch Xu quickly brought out a pot of cooling tea and bowed as he withdrew.

Xiao Ji softened his tone, "If you weren't my nephew, would I have had the opportunity to bestow this title upon you? Mingze, you've watched your uncle rise to this position step by step. Now, this country is on the right track, only lacking an heir."

Bai Yan remained silent. He had already figured out what Xiao Yao had said earlier. His wife was a ghost, and she had power and influence in the underworld. She didn't need the help of mortals. She could come and go as she pleased.

It would be better if he passed the exam to become a ghost messenger after his death.

He was never a man with a heart for the world.

Bai Yan's upbringing and his parents' teachings went in completely opposite directions. Before Jiang Yuzhi appeared, he lived aimlessly, waiting to die without purpose. In his spare time, he managed the family business as a way of repaying the kindness of his parents.

He thought he was naturally indifferent.

Xiao Ji, not hearing a reply for a long time, put down the memorial in his hand and decided to take drastic measures, "You're going to accompany Yu Zhi? Who are you to accompany her? I knew her when I was still in the underworld," Bai Yan said, "but I've only heard of her. Anyway, I don't know her. If you didn't have the Map of the State, do you think she would pay attention to you? If I asked her to come to the palace to help me, do you think she would refuse based on our relationship?"

Xiao Ji actually wanted to summon Jiang Yuzhi to the palace to take charge of the Imperial Wardrobe, but he deliberately made his words vague, and he and Jiang Yuzhi were not very familiar with each other.

As expected, Bai Yan fell into the trap. If his uncle wanted to take a wife into the harem, the court officials would be overjoyed to accept it. But if the emperor changed his mind and wanted to open a harem, no matter who it was, once there was one, there would be another.

The lady is clearly different from me; she won't stand idly by and watch the world turn cold. If my uncle tells her that he wants her to be empress and rule the court with him to help the people escape their suffering, she might hesitate for a while, but she will definitely agree in the end.

Whether Jiang Yuzhi and Xiao Ji became a real couple or not, it was not an outcome that Bai Yan could accept.

Bai Yan nearly crushed the porcelain cup in his hand. A metallic, sweet taste rose in his throat, which he swallowed. "Ha, Uncle. I never knew you were this kind of person."

Xiao Ji gave a fake smile, "Is that so? If you stay with me for a while, you'll understand what kind of person I really am."

Bai Yan: "Just wait, Uncle. I accept the decree, but you'd better be careful. There's always someone who can deal with you."

Xiao Ji: "Hehe."

Bai Yan slammed the porcelain cup onto the table and stormed off.

The two parted on bad terms, and only then did Xiao Ji realize that he would have to handle so many memorials all by himself today!

The Grand Secretary's Residence.

Not many people attended A Ke's funeral.

Zhong Yuxiu and Xiao Yao were both present. Zhang Wanying already knew the Princess, and she was now mired in the same predicament as Zhong Yuxiu.

The three people stood in front of Ake's coffin, unable to hide their grief, and lit an incense stick.

The burial clothes made by Jiang Yuzhi were put on Ake by Zhang Wanying herself.

Four women of different ages came together for a funeral.

Zhang Wanying knelt on the soft cushion, a white cloth tied around her waist.

The Zhang family was a prominent family that migrated from Yunshui. Before Xiao Ji's summons, the Zhang family had lived in seclusion for many years. Zhang Wanying had almost no playmates, and the servants around her were all born into the family and were very polite. They would only kneel on the ground and beg her not to do this or that.

Ake was different; she taught Zhang Wanying many things she never dared to imagine.

But now, everything is gone, all because of my own willfulness.

My eyes were swollen from crying so early.

Jiang Yuzhi thought for a moment, then stepped forward. “Miss Zhang, the village lord has passed away, so perhaps people should live well. The older generation says that loyal and righteous people who die can still get a position in the underworld and will surely be reborn into a good family in the next life.”

Zhang Wanying then looked up and saw the shopkeeper who was making funeral clothes for Ake.

"Shopkeeper, I appreciate your kindness, but Ake..." The handkerchief wiped away the tears on her cheeks, "I'm so sorry for her..."

Jiang Yuzhi had said all she needed to say and said no more. Zhong Yuxiu and Xiao Yao were waiting for her outside.

"If Miss Zhang wants to relax and doesn't mind, she can come to my place. Yuxiu and I are happy to accompany her."

"……Thanks."

Having said that, Jiang Yuzhi bowed and left the Grand Secretary's residence.

Waiting for her outside the mansion was Bai Yan, who had just arrived.

Bai Yan was talking to a guard when he saw her come out. He quickly ended the conversation and strode towards her with a gentle smile on his face.

Bai Yan: "Are we going back now?"

Jiang Yuzhi was out of it, just mumbled "Mmm."

Bai Yan: "That was Wen Ling, the second son of the Minister of War. He works in the Imperial Guard. You should have seen him before."

Jiang Yuzhi: "Mmm."

Bai Yan: "The shop has been relatively quiet lately. How about we go to the estate for a few days? The fruit my mother planted is almost ripe."

Jiang Yuzhi: "Mmm."

Xiao Yao, who was watching, burst out laughing. When did her son become so talkative? He hadn't stopped talking since he walked from the door to the carriage. And now he remembered that his mother still had a fruit-growing estate.

Not only did his uncle and mother not help him, but one threatened him and the other mocked him. Bai Yan clutched his chest and let out a low groan of unbearable pain.

Jiang Yuzhi finally turned her attention to Bai Yan, turned her steps towards the car, reached out to support him, and asked with concern, "What's wrong? Does it hurt again? Will shaking hands make you feel better? Or do you want a hug?"

Bai Yan's eyes were tightly closed, most of his body leaning against Jiang Yuzhi, his teeth clenched, and after a long while he finally managed to squeeze out a single word from his throat, "Hug..."

Zhong Yuxiu was dumbfounded. This scene seemed so familiar. She was writing the later volumes of the novel, and one of the volumes that were taken away seemed to contain a similar passage.

Xiao Yao couldn't bear to watch. It was as if she was seeing her son for the first time today. He was never like this when he was upset. His acting was too fake. Only Yu Zhi would believe it.

Fearing that if she stayed any longer, she would be unable to hold back and expose him, she whispered to Zhong Yuxiu that she wanted to go back to the orphanage first.

Since meeting Xiao Yao, Zhong Yuxiu has become very dependent on her. More importantly, the eldest princess is Xiao Ji's sister, which makes her feel very safe!

The two boarded their carriage.

Jiang Yuzhi's hand slipped under Bai Yan's arm, tightly hugging his back and gently patting it. The carriage blocked the prying eyes of passersby.

Are you feeling better?

"……No."

"It still hurts?"

"Um...cough cough cough."

"Shall we get in the carriage first? Let's go home and show Ah Ting what's going on."

"Okay, I want to rest for a while. Cough cough. If I still feel unwell when I get home, I'll trouble Ah Ting again."

"Uh-huh."

Bai Yan rested his head on Jiang Yuzhi's lap the entire time, covering his eyes with one hand.

Seeing that he was indeed in great discomfort, Jiang Yuzhi specifically instructed the coachman to slow down to avoid a bumpy ride.

He wondered if he was tired from going to the palace every day. Logically speaking, the map of the land and grain was almost fully restored and becoming more and more complete. It was already able to attract the scattered residual power on its own.

Jiang Yuzhi could feel that in the dead of night, there would always be a faint trace of residual energy knocking on her window.

At first, it was a bit of a shock, but I got used to it.

As long as the residual energy is not trapped in a mortal body, it is gradually flowing back.

In other words, the Sheji Tu should no longer need to absorb Bai Yan's life force to maintain its operation, and Bai Yan has indeed not been ill for a long time.

Jiang Yuzhi raised her hand and rubbed Bai Yan's temples.

The person's earlobes, which were so red they looked like they were about to bleed, were concealed by the arm covering their eyes, leaving no trace of their identity.

Jiang Yuzhi: "Should we talk to your uncle and ask him to take a day off tomorrow?"

Bai Yan: "My uncle won't agree."

Jiang Yuzhi got annoyed at this point and didn't pay attention to her strength. "Why can't you let someone rest when they're sick?"

Bai Yan: "Hiss—"

Jiang Yuzhi was about to withdraw her hand when Bai Yan grabbed it in time. "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry. Let His Highness go and talk to him."

Bai Yan: "I don't want to put my mother in a difficult position. She feels sorry for my younger brother and she also feels sorry for me."

Jiang Yuzhi: "Then I'll go and say that we at least once lived together in the underworld. You've just been made a king, so there should be a banquet to express your gratitude, and then you should be given an official position and take office. You should be resting during this time."

Bai Yan: "Then I'll have to trouble Yu Zhi."

Sure enough, his uncle and wife had a much better relationship than he had imagined.

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Author's note: The thank-you banquet and stuff are all made up.