Chapter 152: The Sage's Troubles

Inside a side room of the Hua'e Xianghui Pavilion in Xingqing Palace, the Sage of the Great Tang, Li Longji, sat before a desk with an expressionless face. Beside him sat a woman who appeared to be no more than about thirty years of age, of beautiful appearance—she was precisely the legitimate wife of the Prince of Zhong, Li Heng: Lady Wei.

Lady Wei carefully fed congee to Li Longji, but the latter waved his hand with some impatience. Lady Wei was instantly so frightened that she set the bowl down on the desk, then knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly, her face ashen.

"Go. You need not enter Xingqing Palace again hereafter."

Li Longji said, with a hint of weariness. He knew Lady Wei was exhausted—in truth, he himself was also very tired!

"Many thanks, Sage! Many thanks, Sage!"

Lady Wei's voice carried a tearful tone. She rose to her feet, bowed in greeting, and then withdrew.

This nightmare of nearly a year had finally ended. Lady Wei was desperate to find a place where she could wail and sob. And before today, she had not even dared to cry, afraid of being detected by the Sage's eyes and ears.

She had not even dared to tell her husband Li Heng about that matter!

A year ago, the Guangyun Pool canal outside the suburbs of Chang'an was completed, and a grand completion ceremony was held! Brother Ji felt that from then on, the Grand Canal's goods could enter Guanzhong by water, with Guangyun Pool as the terminus. Guanzhong's supplies would receive an enormous boost, and there would never again be any risk of running out of grain.

It was truly wonderful—at least, it looked that way for now.

Wei Jian, who had overseen the canal's construction, also served as the master of ceremonies, organizing and dispatching on-site a large number of transport boats to Guangyun Pool to carry goods from all across the empire, putting on what could be called a truly unprecedented "Expo of Specialties from Various Prefectures."

The scale was unprecedented and unrepeatable. Setting everything else aside, the "auspicious omens" submitted from various regions alone filled three entire boats.

Wei Jian was particularly happy, but even happier was Brother Ji!

At the time, Brother Ji was as happy as a child, itching to swear brotherhood with Wei Jian. Brother Ji took Wei Jian's arm, and the two boarded a large boat together and began to row on Guangyun Pool.

Also accompanying them was Wei Jian's sister, Lady Wei, who had returned to her maiden home and, having nothing to do, had come along with Wei Jian for the outing.

She was precisely the legitimate wife of the Prince of Zhong, Li Heng!

Brother Ji gave special permission for her to board the boat and join the excursion. Lady Wei was also exceedingly happy at the time, standing by the gunwale and looking all about, just like a young maiden who had not yet been married off.

Abruptly, Brother Ji looked at Lady Wei's back and, for some reason, suddenly felt that her figure was sexy and alluring! Her back in particular was deeply captivating! No force could resist this attraction!

Li Longji had absolutely no idea why he would feel this way at that moment. He had clearly seen this woman many times before, and Lady Wei's looks were not at all in Brother Ji's eyes!

Before, he had never had any thoughts about this woman—none whatsoever!

But on that very day, Brother Ji was excited as if gone mad, unable to restrain himself even for the time it takes to burn half an incense stick!

And so on that day, on that large boat, Li Longji, like a beast in heat, rushed forward and seized Lady Wei, who was leaning against the gunwale admiring the scenery, then took his pleasure with her on the spot, without even entering the cabin.

At the time, Wei Jian stood there with a look of stunned disbelief, unable to speak, and then watched with his own eyes as his sister had her garments stripped away and was violated by the Son of Heaven!

He went to the neighboring cabin, awkward and ashamed! Pretending that nothing had happened at all.

A joyous occasion marred by an event so absurd as to be inconceivable left him not knowing what to say!

Wei Jian's mind was in turmoil, yet he was not overly angry. Because his sister had gone from a prince's consort to an emperor's consort… it seemed acceptable enough! It had not the slightest effect on his power and influence.

Only, his imagination had been plump while the outcome proved bony.

Thereafter, Li Longji had Lady Wei enter the palace to meet him nearly every month, having her attend to his meals in the capacity of a daughter-in-law, the two of them chatting about domestic matters in passing, maintaining a proper distance.

But he simply could not recapture the passion of that day on the boat! Even at the sight of this woman whose looks had already begun to fade, he felt boundless revulsion in his heart!

To the point of being sick enough to want to vomit.

Why had he been intimate with such a woman a year ago, even rushing forward frantically—why?

Brother Ji did not know, and could not figure out what was wrong with him. That scene was so absurd that even he himself found it inconceivable.

Yet Brother Ji was very clear in his heart: now, whether it was the three Yang sisters or any other women, under normal circumstances, they could no longer arouse any excitement in him at all.

Not the slightest feeling.

But the hunger for women that craved satisfaction within his body was utterly impossible to suppress! That sensation was like a python coiling around him, suffocating.

The less he had, the more he wanted; the more he wanted, the less he could perform.

Brother Ji possessed all under heaven—whatever kind of gold, silver, wealth, or women he desired, he could have. Yet now he was both ravenous and no longer interested in women!

This caused Brother Ji great anguish, yet he could not figure out where the problem lay. So Brother Ji felt that even a woman like Lady Wei would do, if only she could help him recover the passion of that day on the boat!

If she could restore even a little bit of it, what did it matter to grant the title of Noble Consort?

Now when he was with the Duchess of Guo, Yang Yuyao, they mainly played polo and rode horses at a gallop, getting genuine physical exercise; with the Duchess of Han, they played the zither and composed music; with the Duchess of Qin, they cooked and ate together.

These three restless women each had their own male favorites, and Brother Ji knew of them all and understood them all.

After all, when Brother Ji was with them, he no longer had that feeling. He had now lost interest in the bodies of these three women; it was more an emotional exchange, like family.

And that one time with Lady Wei on the boat was the most recent!

It had been nearly a year now—Heaven knew how he had gotten through this year!

Today, Brother Ji had finally had enough of this woman. He never wanted to see Lady Wei again, and no longer expected her to give him any pleasant surprise.

After Lady Wei left, Li Longji came to the Qinzhengwubenlou, a foul breath still lodged in his chest. Frustration, disappointment, vexation—his emotions were manifold.

The night was deep. Gao Lishi had gone to dispatch Li Linfu over some small matter, and who knew how the two of them had handled it. Li Longji's mind was in a jumble, itching to kill a few ministers to vent his resentment!

Just then, familiar footsteps came from outside. Li Longji did his best to recover his facial expression, striving to control his emotions. Then he sat on the bed-couch, picked up a book in a show of propriety, and began to read.

"Sire, the matter of the Right Chancellor has been settled."

Gao Lishi entered the study, came to Li Longji's side, crossed his hands in a salute, and spoke.

"Speak. How did it go?"

Li Longji raised an eyebrow and spoke without lifting his head. His mind was entirely not on Gao Lishi before him.

"Reporting to the Sage, Xing Shu's crimes are heinous. We searched his residence and found a great many rare treasures—the quantity is astonishing, enough to fill a large boat.

The Right Chancellor's words are indeed not false. This is highly unlikely to be Xing Shu's rightful estate; rather, it is very likely the very one from back then that deceived the sovereign."

Gao Lishi chose his words carefully as he spoke. As for Zheng Shuqing, who had gone to "confiscate the estate," he did not mention him at all.

Li Longji, in handling government affairs now, no longer cared much about the process. He wanted only results. If he did not care, Gao Lishi would not report them—when there was a result, he would state the result directly.

"Mm. Exterminate Xing Shu's entire family. The women shall be enslaved; all males shall be put to death, charged with treason."

Li Longji said casually, as if he could not even be bothered to conduct a trial.

The crime of deceiving the sovereign deserved death—what was there to ask?

The Great Tang had already defeated Tibet four years ago and destroyed the Latter Eastern Turkic Khaganate. Now the four seas were unified, and the Great Tang was invincible under heaven. Li Longji felt there was nothing he could not do.

A mere Xing clan—so what if they're exterminated? What could they even do?

Gao Lishi was taken aback; this case actually had some peculiarities internally. Zheng Shuqing could have acted at any time, yet chose to make his move precisely now. It was said that Xing Shu's son Xing Zai was still at the Jingzhao Prefecture yamen, and this matter was very likely triggered by that.

Was there truly no need to interrogate further?

"Sage, Xing Shu's son Xing Zai is still at the Jingzhao Prefecture yamen. Should we question him?"

Gao Lishi still felt this matter was far too coincidental. How could there be such a coincidence? Was there an unseen hand manipulating things behind the scenes?

"No need to ask. Ge Nu has already made this an ironclad case—let him be. Send Xing Zai to the Court of Judicature as well; carry out the execution tomorrow.

Have Yang Shenjin carefully inventory this batch of treasures. The people of the Xing clan truly deserve death a thousand times over. I should have killed them back then."

Li Longji turned over, turning his back to Gao Lishi, and waved his hand with some weariness.

Many matters, so long as Li Linfu was involved, would ultimately end up much the same. His taking down the Xing clan was nothing more than dog eat dog—someone helping dispose of those who had deceived the sovereign while also filling the inner treasury, so what was wrong with that?

If there were more people like that, killing a few more would be ideal!

Fang Chongyong had Zhang Guangsheng memorize so many "vivid and impassioned" words of accusation, yet in the end not a single one was used—Brother Ji simply and cleanly sentenced Xing Shu's entire family to immediate execution, sending them on their way without the slightest mercy.

This suffices to show that even a wise man's thousand deliberations will have one lapse.

The night grew deeper. Gao Lishi extinguished the candle and slowly withdrew from the study, so as not to disturb Li Longji's sleep. Brother Ji had not had a proper night's sleep in over a year.

……

In a certain study within Li Linfu's residence in Pingkuang Ward, a tea stove was slowly brewing tea, and the fragrance of tea permeated the air all around. Zheng Shuqing sat before Li Linfu like a schoolchild, so restrained that he did not even dare to breathe loudly.

Before long, the tea was ready. Li Linfu poured a bowl for Zheng Shuqing and one for himself.

In this day and night, too many things had happened—so many that they had not even had a chance to properly coordinate with each other. Zheng Shuqing had only relayed the news to Li Linfu, and the latter had had no time to give him feedback; nor did he know what the other party was thinking.

Li Linfu had always kept his emotions hidden, so what he was truly thinking now—whether annoyed or pleased—was genuinely difficult to fathom.

"Tomorrow, the Sage will likely announce the execution of the Xing clan members. You need not concern yourself with this matter; I, as Chancellor, will handle it myself."

Li Linfu pushed the tea bowl in front of Zheng Shuqing and said with a smile.

"Yes, yes, this subordinate will follow the Right Chancellor's arrangements."

Zheng Shuqing said with nods and bows, his attitude exceedingly humble.

"These past few years, you have worked hard. Being the Mayor of Jingzhao has been no easy task—I, as Chancellor, am well aware of that.

It is just that there is temporarily no vacant position in the court, so I had to let you endure the slight for now."

Li Linfu chuckled, his expression amiable and approachable, showing not the slightest trace of the famed Right Chancellor of the Great Tang.

"Not hard at all, not hard at all. These are all things I ought to have done.

I only wonder, how does the Right Chancellor plan to make arrangements? The annihilation of the Xing clan will have enormous repercussions..."

Zheng Shuqing asked without betraying any emotion.

"No rush, no rush. I, as Chancellor, have already prepared contingency plans. There are also better arrangements for you, but now is not yet the time.

This year's imperial examinations are about to begin. After the examinations, the situation will become clear."

Li Linfu waved his hand gently, his expression calm.

Zheng Shuqing had the feeling that the other party seemed to be waiting for him to speak, yet was not prompting him on what he should say!

So then, what exactly did Li Linfu want to hear?

Zheng Shuqing's mind was in some disarray for the moment.

"Tell me the details of tonight. You did well—so well that my contingency plans weren't even needed.

But it was also fortunate that you found the treasures in advance. Otherwise, if the Longwu Army had failed to find the treasures, and the Xing clan people had turned the tables on me, it would have been quite difficult to manage the situation."

Li Linfu sighed with emotion.

He had indeed given Zheng Shuqing a difficult task.

This success was largely thanks to Fang Chongyong's formidable execution ability—one could say he had, despite having no power of his own, forcibly "borrowed" power from the common folk. His decisiveness in action was truly rare in this world.

If the problem had not been resolved tonight, and it had dragged on until tomorrow's morning court session, Xing Shu—that ruthless old fox—would have used his faction's power to pressure Jingzhao Prefecture, and the situation would have become passive.

Fang Chongyong's strike this time was fast, precise, and ruthless—he shattered Xing Shu in one fell swoop, and not even the gods could have saved him.

Yet these intricate maneuvers—how could he have accomplished them on his own! Zheng Shuqing knew full well that this could not be hidden from Li Linfu, who knew him so well.

"To reply to the Right Chancellor: the success this time was thanks to a certain person."

Zheng Shuqing lowered his voice and continued, "He is Fang Chongyong, the Inspector of Shazhou, who returned to the capital this time to report on his duties."

Hearing this, Li Linfu smiled with satisfaction and said, "You've finally spoken an honest word to me. Tell it all—what exactly was the process?"

Hearing Li Linfu say this, Zheng Shuqing finally breathed a sigh of relief, and then began describing to the Right Chancellor of the Great Tang before him how they had gone to Huaizhen Ward next to Chongye Ward, how they had deceived the ward warden into gathering manpower, how they had promised rewards to the able-bodied men, how they had entered Chongye Ward, and finally how they had taken control of the Xing clan's residence and found the treasures.

He told everything that could be told. Some of the more sensitive parts—such as how Fang Chongyong had killed people, how he had threatened the Xing clan members, and so forth—were glossed over with a few perfunctory strokes.

After he finished speaking, Li Linfu immediately fell into deep thought.

In his view, although Fang Chongyong fared well in the border garrisons and was quite formidable, that was the extent of it. After returning to Chang'an, without someone to promote him, he could not possibly accomplish much.

Yet now it seemed he had underestimated this person's abilities.

Tonight's scheme amounted to a double insurance. Even if Zheng Shuqing's search had turned up nothing, Li Linfu would have found a way to plant evidence—it would just have been more troublesome and not as cleanly executed. Setting up this trap was not difficult, but to plan and execute it within such a brief window of time could be called lightning-fast!

Xing Shu was no novice in officialdom. If he had been given time to prepare, he certainly could have fought back and forth, and would not have been knocked out by a single punch from Zheng Shuqing!

Li Linfu felt that he needed to reassess Fang Chongyong's true capabilities.

"Let it be this way: go back first, and keep a low profile for now. Someone may seek revenge against you over Xing Shu's matter—just act with caution."

Li Linfu said with a slight frown.

He did not know what new tricks his political enemies might play, but those people's revenge would certainly come!

A chapter that has been brewing for a long time, far-reaching in impact, tightly logical—I can't adjust it anymore.

(End of this chapter)