Chapter 194

"What exactly do those letters say?" Huo Yunsheng's face was ashen, the carriage jolted violently, his body swayed with it, yet he felt no discomfort from the bumps, his mind filled only with the possible catastrophe they might bring.

"The letter says, Sir, these past years you have taken advantage of military procurement to line your own pockets, embezzling vast sums of army provisions; it also claims you secretly colluded with Northern Yan spies, betraying military secrets..." The messenger's voice trembled, not daring to meet Huo Yunsheng's gaze.

"Nonsense! Utter rubbish!" Huo Yunsheng roared, slamming his fist against the carriage wall with a dull thud.

If these charges were proven, he would be doomed forever.

"But, but the letters also bear your personal signature and private seal..." the messenger added weakly, his voice as faint as a mosquito.

"The innocent will clear themselves." Huo Yunsheng knew he and Wang Shouyi had been political rivals for years, but he never expected Wang to use such clumsy means to invert right and wrong; he realized Wang Shouren was trying to kill him.

"Sir, what should we do now?" the messenger asked cautiously.

Huo Yunsheng remained silent for a long time, then suddenly laughed:

"I ought to go see this old friend of many years..."

Inside the great prison. Wang Shouren was covered in wounds, his eyes dull, sitting on a tattered straw mat in the cell; the jailer roughly flung the door open, and Huo Yunsheng walked in at a leisurely pace.

Wang Shouren slowly lifted his head, saw the visitor, a flash of surprise crossed his face, then was replaced by deep resentment.

"Lord Wang, how have you been?" Huo Yunsheng asked with a false smile.

Wang Shouren turned his head away, ignoring him.

Huo Yunsheng wasn't annoyed; he simply sat down beside Wang Shouren on the broken wooden plank bed and said slowly:

"Lord Wang, we've fought for so many years; I never imagined we'd meet like this."

"Victors reign, losers are bandits—no need for more words." Wang Shouren said coldly.

"That may be true, but Lord Wang, you've lost rather miserably, tsk tsk..." Huo Yunsheng shook his head and sighed.

"Huo Yunsheng, don't get too pleased! Even if I die, I won't let you have it easy!" Wang Shouren said through gritted teeth.

"Oh? Is that so?" Huo Yunsheng raised an eyebrow, his tone teasing, "Lord Wang, do you have any other tricks? Go ahead, let's hear them."

Wang Shouren remained silent; he knew saying anything now would be pointless. Huo Yunsheng's visit certainly wasn't just to mock him.

"Since Lord Wang won't speak, I'll say it plainly." Huo Yunsheng wiped the smile from his face, "Those letters, they were forged by you, right?"

Wang Shouren's heart jolted, but his expression stayed calm: "What letters? What are you talking about, Sir Huo? I don't understand."

"Playing dumb?" Huo Yunsheng snorted coldly, "You think your little tricks can fool anyone? The signatures and seals on those letters are clearly fake!"

Wang Shouren's face twitched slightly, but he held firm: "Where's the evidence? Without evidence, it's just slander!"

Huo Yunsheng clapped his hands; the black-clad attendant behind him stepped forward and placed a stack of papers before Wang Shouren.

"This is the evidence!" Huo Yunsheng said coldly, "The paper's material is completely different from what you use in your study, and the ink is clearly fresh. Lord Wang, what else do you have to say?"

Wang Shouren's face turned ashen; he knew he had lost his last resort.

"Besides... the position of chancellor that you hold will most likely be taken by me. You used to enjoy endless glory, now you're a lowly prisoner; watching your old friend replace you in office must make you delighted, right?"

Huo Yunsheng curled the corner of his mouth, speaking sarcastically.

"Huo Yunsheng, you... you won't die well!"

Wang Shouren bellowed, his final move also ending in defeat. He had hoped to impeach Huo Yunsheng to offset his crimes, perhaps avoid part of the punishment, and even pull Huo Yunsheng out of trouble—two birds with one stone.

He never expected that his scheming would backfire, costing Qingqing her life.

"Thank you for your kind words, Lord Wang." Huo Yunsheng rose, brushed off his sleeves as if shaking away dirt, "But my fate is tough; I'm afraid I'll disappoint you."

Having said that, Huo Yunsheng turned and left.

Leaving the great prison, Huo Yunsheng exhaled deeply; the heavy stone in his heart finally settled.

He glanced back at the gloomy cell, a confident smile curling his lips. Wang Shouren, you think you can topple me? You're too naïve!

These past two days, Jiang Xiaomu finally enjoyed two days of leisure.

The Empress, mindful that he had consecutively handled the Bincheng rebellion and the chancellor's revolt, specially granted him a three-day holiday.

Having finally obtained some free time, Jiang Xiaomu decided to spend this rare holiday accompanying Jiang Xiaoyu more, since since arriving in Jingcheng he had been tangled in various affairs, greatly reducing his time with his sister.

"Xiao Yu, brother will take you out to have fun these two days; I'll satisfy whatever you want to eat or buy."

"Wow! Brother, I'm so happy! We haven't gone out like this in ages!"

Seeing Jiang Xiaoyu excitedly cheering, Jiang Xiaomu felt pleased as well.

On Liuli Street, heads crowded together, the cries of various small vendors rose and fell, the dazzling array of goods left people dazzled.

This is the liveliest market in Jingcheng; Jiang Xiaoyu has always loved bustling places like this.

"Brother, look at this! This little rabbit is so adorable!" Jiang Xiaoyu pointed at a dough figurine stall, her eyes sparkling.

Jiang Xiaomu smiled and ruffled her head: "If you like it, buy it."

"Mm!" Jiang Xiaoyu happily ran over, bought a pink dough rabbit, played with it delicately in her hands, her face full of happy smiles.

Watching his sister's innocent, carefree demeanor, Jiang Xiaomu felt warm inside.

"Brother, what are you thinking?" Jiang Xiaoyu noticed Jiang Xiaomu wasn't speaking and asked concernedly.

"Nothing, just feel... it's really nice like this." Jiang Xiaomu smiled, reaching to tuck a stray lock of his sister's hair behind her ear.

"Mm, I feel the same!" Jiang Xiaoyu nodded vigorously, then leaned close to Jiang Xiaomu's ear mysteriously, "Brother, I've found a great place!"

"Oh? What kind of place?" Jiang Xiaomu asked with interest.

Jiang Xiaoyu pulled Jiang Xiaomu through the bustling crowd to a quiet little lane.

Deep in the lane stood an unremarkable little shop, its signboard reading "Qizhen Pavilion."

"This is it!" Jiang Xiaoyu pointed at the shop, "I've heard they have many rare treasures; let's go in and have a look!"

Jiang Xiaomu eyed the dilapidated storefront, feeling doubtful, but seeing his sister's eager gaze he nodded: "Alright, let's go in and see."

Inside the shop the light was dim, a faint musty smell lingered.

The shelves held some antique calligraphy and paintings, porcelain and jade ware, but most were covered in thick dust, looking as if they hadn't been tended for ages.

An old man with white hair sat dozing behind the counter; hearing someone enter, he slowly opened his eyes, his cloudy gaze sweeping over Jiang Xiaomu and Jiang Xiaoyu, and asked in a neutral tone:

"What would you two like to buy?"