Chapter 63#
Qi Hanzhou’s eyes darkened, the chessboard thrown into chaos—how could one find a countermove in such a game?#
Now the emperor had temporarily suspended the crown prince’s duties, yet the Xu family’s foundation remained intact. The craftsmen’s case had managed to preserve Minister of Works Zhou Bingjun, proving just how crucial a pawn the Xu family was in the sovereign’s eyes.
“The mastermind hides behind the Eastern Palace. Unless the Eastern Palace falls, some things won’t surface.”
Qi Hanzhou looked at Ying Fusheng, a deeper meaning flickering in his eyes. “You want to make the first move. Then where do you strike?”
Ying Fusheng understood Qi Hanzhou’s intent. The Qi family was loyal to imperial authority, but not blindly so.
The crown prince of the Eastern Palace—if someone like that couldn’t even meet the Qi family’s standards for a heir apparent, indulging in corruption, treating the people’s livelihood as a game, privately training assassins—then without toppling him in one fell swoop, the mastermind behind would keep him upright as a shield for all their actions.
“If you want to investigate, isn’t there a perfect opportunity right before us?”
Ying Fusheng hinted meaningfully: “The military pay case.”
At the mention of the military pay case, Qi Hanzhou’s gaze sharpened. He remembered that the crucial link in finding the whereabouts of the military pay had been the fire at the capital’s stables, which exposed the hidden funds and sealed the case against the Court of the Imperial Stud.
Later, under pressure from the court and with no further leads, the case was finally closed.
The difficulty in investigating the military pay case lay in the death of the chief culprit, the Junior Minister of the Court of the Imperial Stud, and the destruction of all related evidence. The Ministry of War’s accounts showed no trace at all. The Qi family—even the Embroidered Uniform Guard—had thoroughly investigated the Ministry of War inside and out when the case first broke, but found nothing.
Now the emergence of the Ministry of Works undoubtedly provided a new line of thought.
When Ying Fusheng had originally used the military pay case, he only wanted to fish the Shen family out of trouble. In his previous life, Shen Yunfei had uncovered it himself to exonerate the Shen family, but back then the Qi family hadn’t found any related traces; otherwise, there would have been some leads in that life.
Whether it was the Junior Minister of the Court of the Imperial Stud covering up for the crown prince in the martial grounds incident or his subsequent suicide, this matter was closely tied to the Eastern Palace. Moreover, it was inseparable from what Qi Hanzhou truly wanted to investigate.
“If that military pay hadn’t been found back then, the end result would have been it leaving the capital,” Ying Fusheng said. “Because Father Emperor returned to the capital, they didn’t dare to expose it, so they couldn’t move the pay in a short time.”
Mixed in with the Court of the Imperial Stud’s carriages dispatched to various regions, the pay could easily slip out of the capital. The Qi family had investigated this point thoroughly, and Qi Hanzhou himself had done plenty of digging privately. He understood what Ying Fusheng was getting at.
How had the Junior Minister of the Court of the Imperial Stud been sure that the task of transporting such a large amount of military pay would fall on him? The Court of the Imperial Stud had the ability to dispatch carriages, but military pay was no small errand. With all the official post stations and travel permits, moving the pay out silently required a reason.
To be so proficient, to destroy the Ministry of War’s account books and documents, meant the mastermind had accomplished many things using the Eastern Palace as a channel.
“Almost all the witnesses are dead,” Qi Hanzhou said.
Ying Fusheng replied, “Isn’t there still one?”
The Minister of War.
This Minister of War had long used illness as an excuse. He’d handed his duties to Shen Changcun before, and now to Hu Buyu. But even after all this time, he hadn’t retired to his hometown.
“I know who you mean,” Qi Hanzhou warned. “The Minister of War is mentally unclear. Asking him now would be a dead end.”
When he heard that the Minister of War was seriously ill and mentally confused, Ying Fusheng’s expression shifted slightly: “When did this happen?”
“Last year. The emperor learned of it and ordered it not to be made public,” Qi Hanzhou said. “He was someone who served the emperor in his early years, a trusted aide promoted by His Majesty.”
They moved fast… Ying Fusheng remembered meeting the Minister of War once. At that time, he could still enter the palace with the Minister of Works to see the emperor. Hu Buyu hadn’t died, but the mastermind’s hand had already reached the Minister of War.
“So that’s why they wanted to kill Hu Buyu back then,” Qi Hanzhou said.
The military pay case involved more than just the soldiers on the northern border—there were even deeper implications.
Tied to the mastermind, reopening the case now was a good thing, but it was a cold case where all leads were severed.
“The Minister of War is indeed out of the game…” Ying Fusheng looked at Qi Hanzhou. “But who says this piece, long since taken off the board, can’t be used?”
…
That year, during the winter month, because of the River Slope and the Ministry of Works’ major case, even the New Year’s Eve palace banquet was kept simple.
Even so, the eldest prince didn’t give up his chance to trample the Xu family. One minor clash after another erupted in the court. Even though the crown prince didn’t appear, the emperor’s attitude toward the Xu family fluctuated, causing some hidden friction within the crown prince’s faction.
After the Ministry of Works case, the Xu family vanished from sight. Grand Secretary Xu stayed idle at home. The Ministry of Works saw a significant influx of new officials. At year’s end, a snow disaster struck Jiangnan. The Xu family retreated to advance, first submitting an effective relief plan to mitigate the crisis.
The crown prince remained silent for half a year. The Xu family completed their tasks without seeking credit. Even the crown prince’s thirteenth birthday passed without fanfare.
The emperor kept the Xu family for civil governance. With this retreat-to-advance tactic, the Xu family cooperated at every turn, and the civil officials submitted one good policy after another, barely maintaining the Xu family’s position in the court.
The major event in the court recently was the military pay case.
When the Ministry of Works case was settled, Vice Minister of War Hu Buyu didn’t hesitate to bring up the military pay case again. It was fraught with suspicion, involved all six ministries, and deserved a retrial!
As an old case, it had a broad reach. The emperor had campaigned for years, and the military pay case had implicated military officials. Now that it was being reopened, the Xu family—rarely—cooperated fully. The Ministry of Works also submitted all the evidence to help uncover the truth of the case.
In the Eastern Palace, the broken vases in the bedchamber had been cleared away by the servants. When discrepancies were found in the accounts, some of the Eastern Palace personnel had been dealt with for offenses. The emperor also removed some guards, making the Eastern Palace much quieter than before.
The crown prince sat with a dark expression.
What kind of crown prince was he now? Unable to attend court, without authority.
His Eastern Palace powers had been stripped. The Ministry of Works could barely protect itself. Even from his maternal grandfather’s side, there was no news.
“Her Majesty says you need to rest and recover,” a palace maid said cautiously as she approached.
The crown prince glared, sweeping his hand and knocking the medicinal tonic flying: “I’m not sick!”
“Did Mother say nothing? What about the Xu family? Did Grandfather not send any word to Mother?”
About what he should do now. Was he supposed to just sit here in the Eastern Palace and watch? Wait until he was fifteen to re-enter court? Two whole years of absence—by then, the court’s influence would belong to his eldest brother.
The palace maid fell silent. The crown prince looked at her with disappointment, then shouted, “Get out!”
Half a year had passed since the incident. His mother, the empress, spent her days in Kunning Palace going over old accounts. Didn’t she realize that those accounts had already been settled with Father Emperor? The real issue now was how to regain his authority.
The more he thought, the more panicked the crown prince grew.
Just then, someone entered the bedchamber.
The person wore ordinary palace servant attire, but when they lifted their eyes, their sharp gaze made the crown prince freeze. He looked as if he’d found a lifeline and hurried over: “It’s you!! Shuangyue is dead. What does that person say? What should I do now?”
After so long, that person had finally contacted him again.
“The Master says, wait for the right moment.”
The disguised assassin said, “Third Prince has no interest in factional struggles. No prince in court can rival the eldest prince. Your actions at River Slope—your self-willed decisions—caused the Master a lot of trouble. Now the military pay case has been reopened by the Ministry of War. The Xu family is investigating too.”
Using the Ministry of Works and the Xu family as a channel, they had managed to accomplish many things covertly. If the military pay case really led the court to find something, it would be very troublesome for them. Previously, with Shuangyue still alive, they could control these matters. But the River Slope incident was too sudden. Hu Buyu, as expected of someone who could handle major affairs in Anlong, used key evidence to keep reigniting cases that should have been settled.
“So I’m supposed to just stay here in the Eastern Palace?!” The crown prince wanted to say more.
At this, the assassin’s tone turned severe: “Your Highness must not forget the Sixth Prince.”
The Xu family didn’t only have him as a prince to support. There was also the Second Prince… and the Sixth Prince.
The crown prince’s face turned deathly pale. He didn’t dare gamble on this.
He knew very well what happened to the Ning family. Consort Ning was still locked away in madness. The Xu family hadn’t completely fallen yet. With his maternal grandfather’s ability, supporting another prince wouldn’t be hard. For now, he could only solidify his position in the Xu family’s eyes.
“What do I need to do?” the crown prince asked.
Seeing the threat had hit home, the assassin said, “Your Highness must maintain the status quo and stabilize the Xu family. The urgent task is to cover up the military pay case.”
…
At the Minister of War’s official residence on South Street in the capital.
Just after nightfall, the capital was silent.
With the military pay case being reexamined recently, the Ministry of War’s accounts were being dug up one after another. The residence of former Vice Minister Shen Changcun was frequently visited by officials, let alone the Minister of War’s. Many officials had submitted visiting cards to the mansion, but all were refused on grounds of the minister’s illness. The entire compound seemed somewhat empty.
In the minister’s bedchamber, the elderly Minister of War lay in a deep sleep. A figure in night clothes slipped in silently, then headed for the minister’s study. Inside, they found a hidden compartment and placed a prepared document inside.
After placing it, they cast a glance at the distant compound and tossed out a fire starter.
Suddenly, the minister’s residence erupted in noise. A cry of “Fire!” rang out. The figure in black looked outward and saw flames blazing in the side rooms of the compound. The previously silent mansion was instantly ablaze with lights as servants scrambled with buckets to fight the fire.
“There’s someone! On the roof!”
This commotion alerted others in the residence to the intruder’s escape.
“Assassin!!!”
“Someone broke into the minister’s residence! Check on the minister!”
Voices rose and fell. At the same time, nearby officials’ residences caught wind of the disturbance. Officials who came out to investigate saw a figure in a python robe moving swiftly—the Embroidered Uniform Guard had already moved in and surrounded the minister’s residence entirely.
It wasn’t yet fully night, and this commotion made the officials restless.
They sent servants to inquire. The disturbance at the minister’s residence was too great, and a crowd had gathered at the front gate.
At the Xu residence, the assassin, now disguised as a Xu family servant, had just returned from the Eastern Palace and was about to report the details to that person.
Before he could hand over the secret letter to the messenger, he heard noises from outside the Xu residence, as if something had happened.
A hidden agent hurried over to report: “Something’s wrong, sir. Something happened at the Minister of War’s residence.”
“They say the minister is severely injured and unconscious, barely lucid.”
The assassin frowned. Wasn’t the minister’s incident last year?
“The Embroidered Uniform Guard was led by Commander Qi himself. They say someone broke into the residence at night to set fires and destroy evidence.”
The hidden agent said, “Rumor has it that Commander Qi looked grim when he came out and went straight to the palace to see His Majesty! It seems the evidence they found was related to the military pay case…”
The assassin’s face changed abruptly.
A piece they had long abandoned, ready to let die—why, all of a sudden, would such evidence be found?!