Chapter 97: Encountering a Clear Day Chapter 76: Is He Pitiable or Terrifying

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Protagonist:

Shaowei

Liu Qi

The red fruit rolled into the grass bush and settled quietly, and the night fell again like a curtain drawn back into place.

In the dense night, Chang'an Palace City lay like a crouching giant beast, the palace lanterns hanging everywhere flickering in the night wind like the bright hairs of a giant beast trembling as it breathes.

Accompanied by a slow, light sound, the tall hall doors of Weiyang Palace were pushed open halfway from outside by two inner attendants.

Winter month was approaching, and cold earth qi began to seep upward from beneath the floor tiles. Ren Emperor had been coughing frequently lately; whenever the wind rose at night, the hall doors were always closed.

This hall door was opened now for Zhu Zhi, who had hurried into the palace.

Zhu Zhi had just entered the city at dusk, returned to his residence to clean up and change clothes, and dared not rest a moment before forcing himself to come for an audience.

He had washed the dust from his body, but could not conceal the strange, heavy medicinal stench emanating from his severed arm.

He wore a cloak to cover the empty sleeve, but while walking he had not yet recovered his former agile and imposing bearing.

He moved through the hall with an unsettled mind, immediately knelt to pay his respects, and dared not lift his head to look at the sovereign above.

Ren Emperor sat on the low couch at the upper seat, draped in a dark brocade wide robe, half his face hidden in the lamplight.

Crown Prince Liu Cheng stood beside his sovereign father attending and listening in silence; at the lower seat stood Guo Shi with bowed head.

Zhu Zhi felt the emperor's gaze press down upon him, accompanied by a slow, hoarse voice: "Zhu Zhi, you made a trip to the South, and truly stirred up quite a commotion."

A great commotion, returning empty-handed.

"Yes, yes, it is this subject's failure in duty! I beg Your Highness to punish me!"

Zhu Zhi lowered his head even further, but his voice could not help carrying urgency: "But that rebel's son Ling Congnan is indeed still alive, and has now fled to Wuling Commandery! That day in Yundang Mountain I was only one step from slaying him, but unexpectedly was ambushed in the mountains by the Commandery Prince of Wuling with men... Every word I speak is true. I beg Your Highness to see clearly; my heart of serving Your Highness and the Court by removing worries and eliminating threats contains not the slightest falsehood!"

Ren Emperor was unmoved: "I hear, however, that you hurried from Nan Commandery to Wuling. If so, you must have learned early that Congnan was not dead, yet did not inform Me, but chose to act on your own."

Ren Emperor's hoarse voice was not sharp, but made Zhu Zhi feel as if a mountain pressed down upon him. He had not yet managed to reply when he heard the voice continue:

"Greedy for merit and rash, afraid of startling the snake? Or are you deliberately waiting for the right moment, seizing this opportunity to rush there, intending to use this pretext and charge to conveniently remove that son of Mine placed in Wuling? In the calamity at Xian Tai Gong back then, he has always believed it was you who forced his elder brother into rebellion... Is it that you wish to remove a threat for Me, or to use Me to remove a thorn in your own heart?"

As Zhu Zhi's expression trembled, another question came from above: "Concealing it from Me, using My blade, to kill My son—is that it?"

"This subject dares not!" Zhu Zhi suddenly kowtowed, shouting loudly: "This subject, though eager for merit, has never thought to deceive Your Highness! This subject long ago sent men on fast horses to deliver a secret letter to the Capital, but I do not know if something went wrong midway... or whether the Commandery Prince of Wuling had men intercept it!"

This was a lie, a lie prepared on the journey back to the Capital. Right now he had to push all the blame onto that damned little ghost: "That night in Yundang Mountain, this subject personally exchanged blows with the Commandery Prince of Wuling and would not mistake him! In this subject's view, his leg ailment is a disguise; in truth he deliberately concealed it from Your Highness! Truly his intentions are sinister and cannot be guarded against!"

"Where is the evidence? Did you find Ling Congnan's whereabouts or verify knife wounds?" Ren Emperor leaned forward slightly, his voice growing cold: "Execute first, report later; framing failed, and you hurt yourself instead? Yet you dare, without any evidence, to go to Liu Qi's door and publicly proclaim Ling Congnan is still alive... Do you know that with the war against the Xiongnu suffering consecutive defeats, not a single mistake can be afforded, and most of the soldiers charging into battle at the front are Ling Ke's old troops!"

A great roar sounded in Zhu Zhi's mind, and he suddenly raised his head, facing the emperor's dark eyes.

Only at this moment did he slowly realize where he truly erred, or rather where the greatest error lay: not in the murderous intent and entanglement toward Liu Qi, not in greed for merit and executing first before reporting... but in publicly proclaiming the news that Ling Congnan was still alive.

That child was a banner; even if alive, he could only be killed in secret, not publicly executed.

The killing of old had ended; now the sovereign valued the stability of the realm, and Ling Family Army's old troops were locked in fierce battle with the Xiongnu. If they heard Ling Congnan had not died and was being hunted to extinction by the Court, that a majestic emperor could not tolerate even one surviving child, it would surely arouse anger and self-endangerment, and once exploited by those with ill intent...

He understood!

Zhu Zhi suddenly realized that if he wanted to go to Liu Qi's door to verify his injuries, he would need a pretext... Liu Qi had deliberately been injured, provoking and luring him, indirectly causing him to reveal Ling Congnan's survival before others—making him touch the emperor's reverse scale and fall into this dire situation!

He had been repeatedly provoked by the other, his only thought to eliminate him, seeing only the identity of Ling Congnan as a rebel remnant, never considering the distant war, the people's hearts, the emperor's heart... thereby misjudging this situation.

That sinister little ghost deserving death ten thousand times!

Amid shock in his heart, he heard the sovereign finally say: "I note you are already seriously injured and will temporarily not inflict punishment. Return the Embroidered Uniform Command Token, go back to heal your wounds and reflect."

Zhu Zhi felt his qi and blood surge chaotically, all rushing to the top of his head.

He opened and closed his mouth, trying to speak again, but Guo Shi had already stepped before him: "Zhu Zhi, quickly thank Your Highness for Your magnanimous grace."

Meeting Guo Shi's restraining and advising gaze, Zhu Zhi knew he could not have any more impulsive words or actions; nothing would help, and he could only desperately suppress his emotions, stiffly taking out the Commander of the Fine Clothes Guard's token.

Afterward, Zhu Zhi was almost only able to rise with the support of an inner attendant.

Guo Shi had other errands to attend to, and the two exited the hall door one after the other.

Zhu Zhi exited and saw a Fine Clothes Guard waiting outside—a very young face, a subordinate he had once targeted, Leng Qi.

He Pingchun bowed with clasped hands to Zhu Zhi without expression, then, led by an inner attendant, stepped into the hall interior.

Cold light flashed in Zhu Zhi's eyes; he turned to stare, but Guo Shi grabbed him and led him down the stone steps.

Reaching a place with no one around, Zhu Zhi lowered his voice and said to Guo Shi in a sinister tone: "... You cannot sit by and watch He Pingchun take my position! Don't forget our relationship!"

Guo Shi smiled and nodded: "Naturally I cannot forget; you and I are of the same relationship of pouring out our liver and brains for Your Highness."

These hypocritical words made Zhu Zhi snort coldly. He was about to speak when Guo Shi spoke again: "Rest assured, this He Pingchun is too young; his methods cannot compare to half of yours. He is merely a temporary substitute for one or two."

Guo Shi raised his hand and lightly patted Zhu Zhi's intact arm: "The Commander of the Fine Clothes Guard is unlike other positions; not just anyone can handle it. You, Zhu Zhi, are Your Highness's best blade; Your Highness has long been accustomed to using you and would not bear to discard you lightly. For now, let Your Highness vent His anger. You should heal your injuries as soon as possible—that is the proper thing. As long as the green mountains remain..."

Guo Shi finished speaking, looked back, and saw Crown Prince Liu Cheng had also come out.

Zhu Zhi left with a gloomy face.

When Guo Shi turned back, looking at Zhu Zhi's back, he finally frowned and clicked his tongue softly: "How did he become so wretched..."

He had long expected this mad dog to go mad in the South, but it was one thing for the mad dog not to bite those he should bite; how had he instead come back and had a claw chopped off? Now he had even lost the position of Zongling of the Fine Clothes Guard.

His men often sent letters back, clearly unable to catch any suspicious evidence...

It is not that Your Highness suspects Zhu Zhi of framing; there truly is no evidence. Comparing the times given in Zhu Zhi's and the Fine Clothes Guard's accounts, that Sixth Prince even has an alibi, while Zhu Zhi claims the Sixth Prince set an ambush in the mountains in advance. Yet in Tang Jia's letter of complaint, this Sixth Prince was drunk and disorderly, injuring people.

Your Highness has also had people investigate; the hunters who entered the mountains that night insist it was punishment from the Mountain God, swearing they saw the Mountain God. Naturally this cannot be fully believed, yet coincidentally there are some savage tribes gathered in that mountain range, which the Court cannot suppress, control, or clarify. Who can say that those who clashed with Zhu Zhi that night were not those people?

In short, there was not a shred of actual evidence, let alone the counter-evidence that the Fine Clothes Guard rushed into the Commandery Prince's Mansion to verify injuries and found nothing.

A few days ago, Tang Jia's memorial had already arrived, full of lamentations crying out injustice for that pitiful child.

And that pitiful child had also sent many "family letters" to Your Highness over the years; Your Highness had never replied with a single word, but he knew Your Highness had read every one.

He had privately glanced at those letters a few times; between the lines stood a candid yet obsessive pitiful child who deeply believed in his Sovereign Father—his Sovereign Father had been deceived, and he wanted to awaken his Sovereign Father.

Truly pitiful.

But ultimately, is she pitiful or frightening?

If all of this truly was that child's scheming, how could it not make one feel afraid?

"…Middle Attendant, did Ling Congnan truly not die?" Crown Prince Liu Cheng asked Guo Shi in a low voice.

He had studied with Ling Congnan since childhood and knew him well.

"Your Highness must remember, true or false doesn't matter; even if he is still alive, we cannot admit he is alive… so this time it can only be Zhu Zhi going mad and mistaking the person, thus taking upon himself the crime of falsely accusing the Sixth Prince." Guo Shi said this, sighed, and spoke in a low voice: "Who told him his methods were inferior to others?"

Liu Cheng had long received Guo Shi's guidance and often accompanied the sovereign at his side, so he understood these twists and turns to some extent. His expression now showed slight surprise, and he couldn't help but ask nervously: "Middle Attendant means… all of this was the Sixth Brother's scheming?"

Guo Shi shook his head: "Matters without evidence are merely such a hypothesis… but if it were true, wouldn't it be terribly frightening?"

Liu Cheng gripped his hanging sleeve: "But… would Imperial Uncle not think of such a hypothesis?"

"Your Majesty naturally thinks of everything," Guo Shi said softly, "but Your Majesty is different from us; we are all outsiders, while Your Majesty and him are father and son. What outsiders see as frightening, a father might see as ability, or like father, like son."

Your Majesty is not entirely intolerant of capable children. The disaster of the Deposed Crown Prince back then was a general trend; the Ling Family's power was too great… Your Majesty originally only wanted to suppress the Ling Family and weaken Crown Prince Gu's power.

Times change. If there were a child without power or influence who understood how to trust and value his father, who could guarantee the imperial heart would remain unwavering?

After all, four years have passed in a flash. Your Majesty's Dragon Body fluctuates between good and bad, and the realm is not stable… This is the realm Your Majesty and the Former Emperor conquered together. While Your Majesty cherishes the throne, he also values this realm.

And changing the Crown Prince again would likewise shake the situation and people's hearts. Unless absolutely necessary, Your Majesty would not release that dangerous signal.

Therefore, Guo Shi earnestly advised the youth beside him: "Your Highness must firmly grasp the Sovereign Father's heart."

Liu Cheng's handsome brows and eyes were full of bewilderment.

Guo Shi walked a stretch of road with him, patiently guiding and comforting him.

Upon reaching the crossroads, Guo Shi stopped, only to see the youth had taken the wrong path. He quickly called out to remind him: "Your Highness, going this way will be a detour."

Liu Cheng turned around and hedged: "Recently, palace attendants say there is a ghost crying on that road…"

Guo Shi sighed: "You are the Dragon Son, the heir. Which evil ghost dares block your path? If there is truly someone so tactless, Your Highness only needs to swing your sword and cut them down!"

Liu Cheng had no choice but to muster his courage, bring the inner attendant, and return via the road rumored to be haunted. Along the way they walked very fast, especially when passing by Cangchi, almost running.

The inner attendant followed with a small run holding a lamp, the glazed palace lantern reflecting on the water all the way.

A similar palace lantern was held in the hand of a girl also running, and she was running across a small bridge built over the water.

Ming Dan, wearing a fox fur cloak, looked around all the way and secretly came to a side gate behind Xian Tai Gong.

This side gate was closed year-round, but the youths studying Daoism in Xian Tai Gong occasionally sneaked out from here. The Taoist in charge of the keys, if given some benefits, was willing to make things convenient.

Among the youths, Ming Dan had the highest status. She never needed to ask for the keys herself; someone would handle it and beg on her behalf, then present the retrieved keys to her and swear an oath to keep it secret for her.

Today was the appointed day of the month. Ming Dan used the key to open the side gate and indeed saw a shadow crouching by the wall corner waiting. The shadow, hearing the noise, hurriedly stood up. Illuminated by the palace lantern, a man's face of twenty or thirty years appeared. His face full of complaint: "Why are you only coming now? I froze to death!"

"I have to wait until all the lights are extinguished before I dare come out!" Ming Dan's tone was not good either. She took out a money bag and threw it over, turning around to go back and close the gate.

"Wait!" The man propped one hand against the gate and grabbed her arm with the other, pulling her back: "Why is there only this little bit of weight? Do you take me for a street beggar?"

Ming Dan struggled: "This is all I have, only this is left!"

"The Lu Hou Fu sends you silver and clothes every month. Don't think you can fool me!"

"Don't I need silver for socializing? What I've given you is already plenty!"

"Then next time demand more from the Feng Family!"

The man forcibly pulled off the Red Gold Cloud Pattern Bracelet from her wrist and extended one finger to poke heavily at the cloak on her shoulder:

"I see your temper has grown lately, quite different from when you used to beg others… Don't forget, if not for me delivering news to you in the Capital, if not for my mother risking her life to pave the way for you, you couldn't have become this noble daughter of the Hou Mansion! The benefits you gain now, I deserve to take half! If you dare be ungrateful and don't know good from bad, don't blame me for stripping off this fake fox skin of yours!"