Chapter 651

Your Majesty saw Xie Yuan warmly coming to greet him and asked, "Sir, did you come especially to greet me?"

Xie Yuan thought he couldn't come in person, fearing you'd run off halfway and play in the city, and that before finishing the document you still had work left undone. Thinking this, he still had to keep this guy in check, giving Your Majesty a proper salute, and also asked whether his trip to Ink Ford went smoothly.

Your Majesty gleefully pulled out his soul painting, saying, "Not just smooth—it can be said to be perfectly perfect. Look, it's already hung on the Ink Ford City Wall."

Xie Yuan took it, glanced at it, and quickly closed it. Great, the painting is handled by Grand Tutor Xu, nothing to do with him.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty."

"It's fine—please have Mr. Xie deliver this painting to Xie Tu, so he can copy it for the newspaper; I want to promote this properly to deter those reckless forces reaching out at us."

"As you command."

"Then let's go; we'll head back and discuss what to do about Wusun."

Your Majesty followed Xie Yuan down the mountain; he behaved well all the way, but upon reaching the entrance of Vermilion Bird Avenue, this guy finally got out and went inside. Your Majesty packed a bunch of candied haws, giant squid, and grilled fish bites before agreeing to leave. Facing Xie Yuan's speechless look, Your Majesty confidently said he was delivering these to Weini and White Marsh.

Xie Yuan opened his mouth and finally advised, "... Then let's hurry; if we delay any longer, you'll eat it all yourself."

Your Majesty: ……

Hmph!

"Your Majesty said there are no survivors? Then what clues were found? Who exactly is sabotaging our relations with the Western Regions at this time?"

"They gave a rough account; it's the people of Jing Province. The leader lost family in the Northern Border; slaughtering the village wasn't their mission—they decided on their own out of personal vengeance, just to vent anger. If they weren't so impulsive, with the Marquis of Pacifying the North's strength, they could have already escaped from Falling Cloud Peak."

Several ministers weren't surprised to hear it was Jing Province.

Your Majesty raised his head and asked, "What do you all think we should do about this? Tomorrow's the holiday for New Year's."

He first looked toward the Grand Marshal, and Dong Fu stepped forward to say, "... No survivors, but do we have testimonies? We can just lay out the facts to Wusun; Wusun still has a survivor, right?"

Your Majesty flipped through the documents on his desk, after a while took out a stack of paper, and Dong Fu solemnly received it—result……

Several pages of blank fine xuan paper, each with a big bloody handprint at the bottom……

"Your Majesty, what is this?"

"Your Majesty, embarrassed, said, 'Ah, the situation didn't allow for a written statement; the handprints are complete enough, aren't they? You write it yourself, however you like! This is leaving blank space, giving us more room to play.'"

Dong Fu: ……

He looked at Your Majesty's Mr., Xie Yuan, with a serious expression, staring at the paperweight on Your Majesty's desk……

Your Majesty kept urging there, "Write a few more copies; I'll send one to Si Pang… and one to the King of Jing, to ask what they intend, so they give me an explanation!" What a ready-made handle!

Dong Fu hadn't expressed his stance yet, when Your Majesty changed his mind again: "Wait! These Jing Province people entered the Northern Border using the Gold Clan's identity; the goods and their lists are genuine."

He thought of a good idea; this excuse can be used repeatedly.

He has plenty of those bloody handprints!

"'Also write a testimony for the Prince of Wide Mausoleum, accusing the Gold Clan. Send it together with the material evidence to probe the Second's attitude!' Your Majesty thought himself clever, using the chance to chat with the Second, wanting to know the Prince of Wide Mausoleum's latest stance."

"The more he thought, the more brilliant it seemed, 'Chancellor, what do you think?'"

"'Let's test the Prince of Wide Mausoleum's current stance; I think it's feasible.'"

Having received Xie Yuan's affirmation, Your Majesty grew even more pleased. 'Alright, let's do that. The carriages and goods have been searched; I've already had the Magistrate of Ink Ford County take the items to look after the survivors of Elm Village. We can confirm our two thousand knives are still in the Northern Border; once Zhang Tu returns, let him lead a team to search around Peace and Health. When found, take the contract and bring the knives, plus that Wusun survivor, and go together on another trip to Wusun. My business—no one better think of ruining it!'

All the ministers: ……

That's true. You could chase someone who ran that far and kill them! The ministers stand here, their souls drifting in midair, their minds filled with only one question: 'How did you manage to catch up to the assassin who was almost out of the Northern Border?'

No one dared ask that question for the time being.

Especially those from Everlasting Peace, they dare not speak of Your Majesty's martial prowess.

They don't dare, but Xie Tu does.

That evening, Xie Yuan delivered Your Majesty's soul painting to his nephew and conveyed His Majesty's original words in full. Xie Tu was accustomed to such tasks, but his composure vanished as he unfolded the painting.

"'I don't know if Your Majesty said, what scene is this?'"

Xie Yuan, hindered by family ties, reluctantly guessed for him. '... I heard the attacker was intercepted at Falling Cloud Peak; maybe the painting shows the Falling Cloud Peak scenery?' A vast plain with some trees and such?

Xie Tu felt this uncertainty made it hard for him to imagine how to embellish it, so before the palace banquet even began the next day, he went early to the palace.

The king received him in the Orchid Terrace Hall; Xie Tu unfolded the painting and asked the king for guidance, … "Your subject is dull and slow; I have studied it for a long time but still don't know how to refine it. I hope Your Majesty will describe it in more detail; a verbal description will suffice."

The king took one look and instantly puffed up like a pufferfish. "You have it upside down."

Xie Tu: …