Chapter 49
“I shouldn’t have… left you with…that person.” Looking at her reddened eyes, Xi Yu’s own eyes welled up with tears first, his vision blurring rapidly. He didn’t explain that he hadn’t known that person harbored such intentions at the time; he only blamed himself for not discovering her good intentions sooner. He awkwardly apologized again and again: “I’m sorry, Xiao Xiao…it was my fault. From now on…I’ll make you happy every day, even…even if one day I’m really gone, I’ll definitely arrange everything for you in advance, and I’ll never let you…”
"Shut up!!" Xi Xiao interrupted him sharply, as if stabbed by something piercing her. Before she could finish speaking, tears that had been welling up for so long finally rolled down her cheeks. Then, her long-suppressed emotions completely broke free, and she accused him in a mournful voice, "Who told you to destroy that Ice Jade Powder on your own?! Who told you to go and die?! Do I need you to do these things for me?!"
As she cried and screamed, as if venting her anger, she repeatedly pounded his arms and chest with her fists. Although the force was not strong, it was full of rage: "Do I need you to grovel on the ground like that, begging that person to spare my life?! In your eyes, am I such a coward who needs you to risk your life for me?!"
She trembled all over, tears streaming down her face. Xi Yu held her tightly in his arms, gently stroking her back with his palm. Hot tears soaked through his clothes. He remained silent, letting her break down in his arms until he finally exhausted all his strength.
As her sobs subsided and she finally fell into a deep sleep on his shoulder, he did not move. He simply held her more securely against his chest, his fingers gently stroking her loose hair. In the silence, he could only hear the sound of their intertwined breaths.
My senior brother will never do it again...
*
Inside the Zichen Palace, the rich scent of agarwood lingered among the carved beams and painted rafters. All the civil and military officials held their breath, heads bowed, trembling with fear, wishing they could bury their heads inside their court robes. In the center of the hall knelt alone an elderly minister with white hair and beard—Xu Fu, the head of the Censorate. His body trembled uncontrollably like a leaf in the autumn wind, cold sweat beading on his forehead, already soaking the cool gold bricks before him.
From the throne, Pei Yun's voice came calmly, revealing no emotion: "Minister Xu, you are my right-hand man, the eyes and ears of the Censorate, and you patrol the world on my behalf, investigating all departments. Now, the blood, tears, and grievances of the common people have piled up on my imperial desk, and yet you tell me that you know nothing about it... What kind of reason is this?"
Xu Fu's aged back hunched over so low it almost touched the ground, his voice hoarse and broken with fear: "Your Majesty... this old minister... this old minister deserves to die! I am guilty of negligence!"
He was filled with fear and knew that this disaster was no small matter.
This matter stemmed from a horrific murder. Li Yong, the son of a merchant, was drinking and reveling with a group of dissolute young men at a restaurant when he spotted Yue Shi, the beautiful sister of Yue Zhuo, the Right Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, dining nearby. Emboldened by lust, he brazenly assaulted her in public. The restaurant manager tried to intervene but was brutally beaten by the man's servants, sustaining serious injuries. Yue Shi, strong-willed, fought back fiercely but was ultimately outmatched and forcibly dragged into a private room. After enduring unspeakable humiliation, she died in despair, having run into a pillar. Realizing the enormity of his crime, Li Yong hastily ordered his men to destroy the body and cover his tracks, attempting to conceal the truth.
However, justice prevailed. Yue Zhuo, having waited for his sister for a long time without her arrival, sensed something amiss and used his official power to investigate. That very night, the truth came to light. Overwhelmed with grief and indignation, he immediately arrested the culprit, Li Yong. Unexpectedly, less than a day later, his superior, Liu Qian, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, intervened, forcibly ordering Li Yong's release and implying that Li Yong had powerful connections and should not be touched.
Yue Zhuo upheld the law and refused to comply, but Liu Qian fabricated charges against him and used torture to imprison him. With no way to seek justice, Yue Zhuo wrote a heart-wrenching petition in prison, using his own blood as ink, accusing officials of protecting each other, corruption, and disregard for human life!
If it had ended there, the matter might still have been suppressed by those in power. Unexpectedly, the next morning, amidst the bustling crowds, an elderly woman, grieving the loss of several children and walking with faltering steps, stumbled to the front of the Jingzhao Prefecture government office. She forcefully struck the grievance drum, tearfully recounting the tragic deaths of her daughter and the unjust imprisonment of her son, Yue Zhuo. Her voice was hoarse and desperate, moving all who heard it. Under the watchful eyes of the public, the truth of the case was fully exposed, and public anger instantly boiled over.
Seeing the gravity of the situation, the prefect rushed to report it, only to receive a cold reply of "ignoring it." Ultimately, the elderly woman, grieving the loss of her children, was falsely accused of "unreasonable harassment" and imprisoned. Already frail and elderly, the woman suffered the pain of losing her son and daughter, coupled with imprisonment, and soon died in prison, filled with resentment.
This move ignited long-suppressed public anger, with countless people flocking to government offices at all levels to cry out for justice. Some even dared to linger outside the imperial city, their cries reaching the ears of the emperor, eventually alarming him.
Xu Fu knew that this matter could no longer be concealed, so he could only kowtow repeatedly in an attempt to save himself: "This old minister is muddle-headed and incompetent. Liu Qian and Minister of War Hu Wangshou colluded and manipulated things, deceiving this old minister as well. This old minister has failed the Emperor's grace and deserves to die!"
He shifted all the blame onto Liu Qian and Hu Wangshou. Hu Wangshou's newly acquired concubine, Li Yingying, was the elder sister of the murderer Li Yong. The Li family, originally small merchants, had used this connection to rise in status and become powerful figures in the village. Hu Wangshou, in turn, manipulated the Li family, enriching them and turning them into his personal moneybags. He thought he could maintain his absolute power as usual, but he never expected that the death of the old woman would be the final straw, igniting public resentment and causing countless long-standing injustices to surface, becoming impossible to quell.
He quickly calculated in his mind how he could extricate himself from this quagmire.
However, before he could fully consider his options, the emotionless voice from the throne drifted over again, "I have recently heard that there seems to be good news in the Xu family. It is said that the third young lady of the Xu family is engaged to the second young master of the Hu family and they are exchanging betrothal gifts. It seems they are a good match."
Xu Fu abruptly raised his head, a mixture of panic and shrewdness flashing in his cloudy old eyes. He waved his hands repeatedly in denial, his tone urgent: "Your Majesty, which murderer dared to spread such lies before you? Absolutely not! Absolutely not! My family recently held a flower-viewing banquet, inviting some familiar ladies and their children to attend. My daughter has never even met that young master of the Hu family, and my wife has only met Madam Hu a few times; they are not even nodding acquaintances. Your Majesty, please understand! You must not believe such slander!"
Hu Wangshou had been thoroughly investigated because of Li Yong's case, which subsequently implicated him in the serious crime of embezzling military supplies. Anyone who got involved with him now would be saddled with a stain of infamy. Xu Fu was both shocked and furious, secretly cursing his ignorant and foolish wife for almost causing the death of his entire family!
Pei Yun seemed to have mentioned it casually, smiling faintly as he heard it, his tone softening slightly, as if he had truly believed the rumor: "That's probably just idle gossip from palace servants; Minister Xu, you don't need to take it to heart." He changed the subject, lightly tapping his fingertips on the dragon desk, and sighed: "But now, corruption is rampant in the court, and public resentment is boiling over. I am deeply worried. If this continues, I fear I will become the incompetent and foolish ruler who brings about the downfall of the country in the eyes of the people. Minister Xu, as the head of the oversight, you must... share my burdens."
Xu Fu felt a chill in his heart, knowing this was an ultimatum. He slammed his head heavily against the cold, hard gold brick, making a dull thud. His voice was hoarse yet resonant, filled with a desperate resolve: "This old minister... would gladly die for Your Majesty! I will surely purge the treacherous officials and restore order to the court!"
As the court bell rang to signal the end of the session, the officials dispersed like a receding tide. Xu Fu walked alone, staggering at the back. His colleagues, who usually treated him like a brother and were close to him, now kept their distance ahead, whispering among themselves, and not one of them turned to look at him.
He gave a bitter smile, shook his head, and knew perfectly well that in this embezzlement case, he had become a sharp blade in the Emperor's hand, destined to be dealt with and then discarded like worn-out shoes. Even if the Emperor didn't utter a word of reprisal, the colleagues he had implicated and the intricate network of forces behind them would never let him go. His final fate would likely be to be skinned alive and utterly mutilated.
Outside the hall, the sun was rising higher, and the bright sunlight shone down, but he felt no warmth at all. It only made his staggering, hunched shadow on the ground appear even more lonely and desolate.
The Emperor's move... truly killed two birds with one stone, and was extremely ruthless!
*
Inside Zhaoyang Palace, all was quiet except for the faint crackling of the slowly burning sandalwood incense. Pei Yun leaned against the dressing table where Xi Xiao used to sit, a white jade hairpin she had left behind between his fingers. The hairpin was warm and smooth, with a plum blossom carved at the end, just like its former owner—cool and elegant, yet unable to conceal her beauty. He unconsciously stroked the cool petals, his eyes deep and unreadable.
The beaded curtain rustled softly, and An Qi's figure appeared silently outside. Through the sparse beads, he reported in a low voice, as if afraid of disturbing the tense atmosphere in the hall: "Your Majesty, the former servants of the Qin family have confessed that on that day, Young Master Qin escorted the coffin to the ancestral tombs in Qianyi first. There was another carriage carrying all of Grand Secretary Qin's books and manuscripts, claiming that they were to be transported to Kaiyuan Temple for cremation and offering. Following this lead, I have confirmed that the young lady and Young Master Xi Yu... left midway in that carriage, and the two then changed their route, heading towards Yiling."
He paused briefly before continuing, "We also received a report from Yiling Prefecture that a person from out of town recently purchased property, and the description of his appearance... closely matches that of Miss Yunwu. As for Elder Qin... as soon as I arrived at the Taoist temple, I 'invited' him to return. After seeing his grandfather, Young Master Qin did not insist any further and recounted the whole story in detail, which... is consistent with the findings of our investigation."
Pei Yun listened quietly, his face calm. He slowly opened a wooden box on the dressing table and carefully placed the white jade hairpin into the velvet-lined box, his movements gentle as if handling a fragile treasure.
With a soft "click," the lid closed.
“There’s no need to investigate any further.” His voice was completely flat, so calm it was unsettling. “She will… come back in the future.”
Upon hearing this, An Qi felt a chill run down his spine. He dared not ask any more questions, immediately lowered his head, and respectfully replied, "Yes." Then, his figure silently retreated outside the hall and disappeared into the shadows of the corridor.
Silence returned to the hall, with only the lingering fragrance of sandalwood incense still curling and swirling, like an unyielding sorrow. Pei Yun wearily closed her eyes and sank back into the rocking chair that still held a trace of her scent.
His brows were furrowed, and even in his hazy, light sleep, he seemed unable to find a moment of peace. His sleeping face appeared unusually heavy, as if he were being pressed down by an invisible boulder, unable to find relief.
Suddenly, a draft, seemingly from nowhere, rushed in through the slightly ajar window, carrying the chill of winter. It abruptly stirred the low-hanging curtains, and though the wind was not strong, it just happened to lift the few sheets of Xuan paper that had not been properly pressed down on the table. The paper rustled and fluttered down.
The very files that recorded the misdeeds of merchant Li Yongping and the whereabouts of his daughter Yue were now scattered on the cold, smooth gold bricks.
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