61. Falsification
◎A woman from a noble family actually wanted to interfere in government affairs and sow discord◎
Chapter 61
Jiang Qiuye looked at his eyes, like a black panther in the dark night. For some reason, she lowered her head guiltily. She smelled the bloody smell that filled her nostrils. She raised her head again, mustered up the courage to gently hold his hand, and said nervously, "Husband, would you like to take a bath?"
Ji Ci's expression was still tense. After a moment, he nodded and followed her back to the bedroom. On the way, he ran into Tian Qu, who told him to dispose of Governor Gao's body and bring his head back to Shengjing.
Jiang Qiuye called for water, helped Ji Ci take off his bright red clothes, then helped him into the bathtub to wash his hair and scrub his back.
"Aren't you afraid?" His indifferent voice sounded particularly empty in the clean room.
She ran her slender fingers through his hair and looked at Ji Ci, who was soaking in the tub with his eyes closed. She didn't answer directly, but said softly, "My husband, I heard everything you said with Governor Gao."
Seeing that he didn't say anything, I knew he was in a bad mood, but I still wanted to ask, "I heard Anyang say that she usually disguises herself as a man when she goes out of the palace, and Shengjing has never had any cases of looting since the implementation of the new policy. In such a situation, how could Anyang be..."
"It's His Majesty." Ji Ci answered with his eyes closed, "You must have guessed it."
"Yeah." Jiang Qiuye nodded with a complicated expression, but his back was turned so no one could see.
"The Great Jin suffered greatly from war and rested for three years, spending most of its wealth on the military in preparation for the Northern Expedition. Famine was widespread, and to ease the burden on the people, taxes were reduced. While life improved for the people, the treasury had no extra money for royal expenses. You saw in the palace that construction was underway at the Jinhe Palace. Where do you think the money came from?"
"Could it be... that this was purchased through looting? But for the sake of the royal family's reputation, it's too..."
Ji Ci, still with his eyes closed, said, "Plunder is only a part of the emperor's purse. The rest is taken from various dark places. As far as I know, a lot of it is obtained by selling official positions to wealthy businessmen. These are things that cannot be put on the surface."
Jiang Qiuye hadn't expected that the emperor and the Prince of Qi, who clearly had the same mother and father, could be so different. In this war-torn era, he still wanted to enjoy the extravagance of the royal family and continue the old tradition of competing for wealth.
"Husband, didn't you try to stop His Majesty?"
"All I can do is advise him. He is the emperor. If I do more, I will exceed my authority."
She looked at him wearily, silent for a moment, then asked suspiciously, "Since this robbery ring belongs to the emperor, why did he let my husband investigate the case, even going so far as to use Princess Anyang? Anyang...but her daughter is involved in the marriage with Di Hu."
Ji Ci opened his eyes and remained silent. Jiang Qiuye knew he was in a bad mood, so she waited quietly. Finally, he spoke, lowering his eyes and saying sarcastically, "During my absence from Shengjing, the former commander of the Zhang family army, Zhou Chenghu, was impeached. He was dismissed from his command on the grounds that he drowned a child in a dispute in the downtown area. That army is now in the hands of Huo Yong, the eldest son of the Huo family. And there is more than one Princess of Jin, Anyang."
"How could this be? General Zhou Chenghu is an honest man. Why would he argue with others and drown a child? This must be a slander."
"The emperor only wants to accuse him of military power; what he truly desires is to place it in the hands of a trusted relative. Do you know how I learned of Magistrate Liu's plundering and buying before I went to Huaixi this time?"
Jiang Qiuye shook her head, and after realizing that he couldn't see, she said, "I don't know."
"I dug this out from Huo Heng and the old man of the Huo family. Although there haven't been any kidnappings in Shengjing in recent years, it was discovered that Huo Heng had abducted women, and all those under fourteen disappeared. Therefore, the entire Huo family, including Empress Huo, are part of a plundering ring. They helped the emperor fill his treasury, so naturally, he trusted them immensely. This time, the military power was taken back into Huo Yong's hands. While Old Man Huo and Huo Heng fell, the entire Huo family didn't. Instead, they gained real military power."
"...No wonder I didn't see a single wrong expression on the Empress's face when I met her. The Huo family is clearly her maternal family. She sacrificed the pawns to save the chariot, abandoning the current head of the Huo family and Young Master Huo, yet she preserved the Huo family's glory...really impressive."
Jiang Qiuye lowered her eyes and looked at Ji Ci who was suddenly at a loss. The truth of all this was laid out in front of her, and she was not mentally prepared at all.
The emperor never trusted Ji Ci, even though Ji Ci devoted his life to the Jin Dynasty and even though he cleared all obstacles for the emperor to ascend the throne, he was ultimately just using him.
Now the situation in the Jin Dynasty is unstable, and the Northern Expedition is inevitable. He can still use Ji Ci, but after everything is settled, it will be like the cunning rabbit dies, the running dog is cooked, the birds are all gone, and the good bows are put away.
Suddenly, Jiang Qiuye felt not only distressed but also a bit of panic. The emperor had always been most wary of someone whose achievements overshadowed his own, especially since Ji Ci had been so successful in battle, had implemented new policies, and established the "New Laws of the Great Jin," earning him the love of the people. If Ji Ci truly met an unjust end, how could she, as the Princess of a County, be any better off? How could he possibly protect her?
She bit her thumb nail tightly and looked at Ji Ci who had his back to her. She had been busy for so long before marrying him. It would be a lie to say that she didn't feel disappointed.
unless......
Unless Ji Ci rebels and becomes emperor himself!
But would this person who talks about the ways of sages and gentlemen all day long rebel?
Jiang Qiuye stared at him for a long time, walked forward and hugged his shoulders from behind, gently moved her pancreas over his shoulders, gently stroked his solid chest, and then moved down little by little, she bit his earlobe gently with her face, Ji Ci closed his eyes, and his breathing became heavier.
After a moment, she whispered softly in his ear, tentatively saying, "My dear, you are so good and so loyal, yet His Majesty treats you like this. Why don't you just rebel and become the emperor yourself? Ye'er will swear to follow you until death."
Ji Ci opened his eyes, suddenly pulled her hand away, turned his head and looked at her in disbelief, as if he was meeting her for the first time, this vicious and cruel woman.
Jiang Qiuye felt a pang of fear in her heart as he stared at her. She took a small step back, clenched her fists, walked in front of him, looked her in the eyes, and said, "Husband, the emperor will take action against you one day. He is just using you now. From ancient times to the present, there are many examples of meritorious officials and generals who died tragically because of fear. The royal family has no family affection. He is unkind to you, so why do you..."
"Shut up!" Ji Ci roared angrily, "You, a woman from the imperial family, actually want to interfere in the affairs of the court and sow discord. You even say such outrageous words. If it were anyone else, they would be dead by now! Get out!"
Jiang Qiuye's body stiffened, and he felt increasingly unconvinced. He couldn't understand why he was so useless and weak.
The emperor bullied him, but he was allowed to do whatever he wanted.
She said indignantly, "Brother Jian Xi, I feel sorry for you. You toil all day long, wholeheartedly serving the country and the people. You even took the blame for the emperor's crimes and were punished for nothing. And the current emperor is not a wise ruler either. To save the royal family's reputation, he even sold his own people and his own daughter, not to mention the corruption that has spread to various places by selling official positions. If it weren't for you, the entire Great Jin would have been destroyed by the Li Kingdom long ago."
"And yet the emperor still favors his relatives without any discrimination. Even his sons, one is a fool, one is a lecher, and the rest are just children. How can they inherit this great cause in the future? Brother Jian Xi, didn't you say that your aspiration was to achieve unification, stabilize the Western Regions, and restore the former prosperity of the Great Jin Dynasty? Now that he is so wary and suspicious of you, how can you ever have the chance to restore that prosperity?"
"Brother Jian Xi, the knife is hanging on your neck now. When the emperor strikes, it will be too late! I'm doing this for your own good!"
Ji Ci looked at her steadily for a long time, and gradually began to laugh. His laughter made her feel scared. He couldn't help laughing, with mockery in his eyes. He slapped the water with his hands, splashing some of it to the ground. Finally, he raised his wet hands to wipe his face before finally stopping.
The look in his eyes grew colder as he looked at her. "For my own good? You're afraid that if I die one day, you'll be implicated, right? You used every trick in the book to finally become my love, but in the end, it was all in vain. I thought your scheming had stopped there, but I didn't expect your appetite to be so big. What? You want to be the queen?"
Jiang Qiuye didn't expect that he could see through her thoughts in an instant. She bit her lip and suddenly didn't know how to respond.
He tore off this false face and laid it out in front of her. She felt ashamed and angry.
Ji Ci looked at her pale face steadily, curled his lips and sneered: "I'm sorry to disappoint you. I will never be an emperor, let alone rebel. I don't need you to serve here, please leave."
"Brother Jian Xi." Jiang Qiuye felt a chill in his heart and took two steps forward, only to see that his eyes were closed again.
He just said coldly: "Get out."
Seeing his cold attitude, Jiang Qiuye also knew that he was in a low mood today, so she didn't dare to provoke him anymore and quietly left the purification room.
It was indeed not possible to rush into making him rebel, but to proceed step by step. Today, she was too abrupt and her thoughts were seen through at a glance, leaving her at a loss as to how to deal with it.
Only after the purification room became quiet did Ji Ci slowly open his eyes.
How could he not know what she said, but he would never become emperor.
He was deeply disappointed. He wasn't a fool. This little princess of his was full of scheming. Those enchanting peach blossom eyes were filled with all sorts of emotions: dependence, trust, worry, panic, but not love. Especially after he rejected her proposal, the unwillingness in her eyes really stung him.
Jiang Qiuye returned to bed and waited for a long time before he came out calmly. She wanted to help him dry his hair but he refused. She could only watch him finish everything and return to the bed. He didn't say another word to her, just gave her a look and closed his eyes.
Jiang Qiuye lay back in the quilt, then leaned forward and hugged his waist. Although he was indifferent, he did not push her away, and she secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
However, the following days passed in a state of indifference between the two of them. It wasn't exactly indifferent; they still shared the same bed, cuddled each other to sleep, and ate together. But it wasn't indifferent; Ji Ci never took the initiative to talk to her again. She would ask a question, and he would answer it. And no matter how she teased him, he remained completely silent.
County Magistrate Liu and his entourage were first escorted back to Shengjing for trial by their subordinates. Also on the way were the head of Governor Gao, Princess Anyang, and the group of girls.
After three more days in Huaixi, Ji Ci finally let Jiang Qiuye pack up and return to Shengjing. The journey was long, and she had assumed that even if he was angry, his anger would subside in a few days. However, she had misjudged his mood. Ten days had passed since the journey, and Ji Ci's attitude towards her remained lukewarm, perhaps even closer to the cold side.
As they spent the past few days together, Jiang Qiuye had a strong suspicion that with their current indifferent relationship, even if he became emperor, she would probably just be a queen who had fallen out of favor and been banished to the cold palace.
Ten days later, they arrived in Pingnan County. Ji Ci asked Tian Qu and the guards to stay in Pingnan to protect Jiang Qiuye. He only took a few secret guards and took a detour to Jinshui. It took another two days, and he didn't say when he would return.
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