Chapter 434: Undercurrents Stirring

Zhu Qizhen was displeased. "Our Great Ming stretches far and wide, and Jiangnan is the richest of the rich. Even though they've moved inland, I gave them farmland — how could they fail to keep themselves fed and clothed?"

Cao Jixiang said softly, "There are always people who aren't good at farming, and besides…"

"If they don't know how, they can learn — what's so hard about that?" Zhu Qizhen said. "I myself don't know farming or sericulture in ordinary days, yet I learned."

Cao Jixiang dared not press further, and could only lower his head and say, "Yes, I was overthinking it."

Zhu Qizhen frowned slightly, but he wasn't angry with him — after all, the man was loyal and devoted to him.

Empress Qian said gently at his side, "It would be wonderful if we could have the best of both worlds — no harassment from the Japanese pirates, and yet let them follow their hearts and make a living by fishing."

Zhu Qizhen certainly wanted the best of both worlds, to attend to both at once, but Great Ming's coastline was long, and those people called Japanese pirates were in fact more than half pirates disguised as Great Ming's own subjects.

Kill one lot, and they would slip off to surface somewhere else.

Still, Zhu Qizhen only fretted for a moment before nodding and saying, "The Empress speaks reason — we ought to have the best of both worlds."

Although that person's words were unpleasant to hear, there was still some truth in them.

Empress Qian pursed her lips and smiled at the words. She knew the Emperor — he was the sort who, when he loved someone, wanted them to live, and when he hated someone, wanted them dead.

He claimed he wanted to capture that person, but in truth his heart was delighted, so he somewhat agreed with what the person had said.

Empress Qian vaguely felt that being Emperor like this wasn't quite right, yet she couldn't help liking the Emperor's particular favoritism.

Because she was always the one being favored.

The palace was in an uproar for the better part of the night, and only deep into the night did Zhu Qizhen and Empress Qian finally lie down to sleep.

Cao Jixiang and a few others hid themselves in a side hall, feeling grateful toward the Emperor and Empress on one hand, and on the other trembling with that sense of having narrowly escaped death.

But Pan Yun, the one who had done all this, slept very well. She flew out of the palace in one stretch, circled Beijingcheng two and a half times before shaking off the people hot on her tail, got home, and once her energy was utterly spent, washed up and dropped off the moment she lay down — sleep, solid as could be.

Yin Song, upon seeing her return safely and without a tail, turned around and went back to his room to lie down as well.

The senior and junior martial siblings, in unspoken accord, offered no opinion on the matter.

The next day, while Pan Yun was still asleep, Yin Song went into the palace to attend to his duties as if nothing had happened at all, wandering here and there about the palace under the pretext of surveying the new year's feng shui.

What surprised Yin Song was that the palace too seemed as if nothing had happened — everything was just as it had always been.

But after walking a circuit, he still noticed something off.

The palace's defenses had grown tighter. The people of the Imperial Astronomical Bureau had all been gathered together, and the Deputy Director, who was handling the Bureau's affairs in the Director's place, walked up with a notebook in hand to him and the two Directors of Autumn and Winter, asking, "Where were you last night?"

The three answered in unison, "At home."

The Deputy Director: "Can anyone vouch for you?"

The three said together, "Family."

The Deputy Director frowned. "Only family? I'm afraid that can't serve as testimony."

Yin Song asked, "Did something happen in the palace last night?"

The Deputy Director: "Don't ask what you shouldn't be asking. Think again — who can testify on your behalf? The stretch from xu-shi to hai-shi."

The Autumn Director: "In spring, not sleeping at night is just asking for death. Apart from family, there's truly no one who can testify."

The Deputy Director was at a loss for words, and turned his head to look at Yin Song and the Winter Director: "What about you two?"

The two said together, "Same here."

The Deputy Director snapped his notebook shut with a slap, turned and walked off. "Fine. Just remember what you said — if the Embroidered Uniform Guard come looking, come to me."

The three assented together. Once the Deputy Director was gone, the three of them turned to look at the Spring Director at once.

Yin Song asked with a smile, "How were the stars last night?"

"Get lost," the Autumn Director said, dragging him aside, and asked the Spring Director directly, "Were you observing the stars in the palace last night?"

The Spring Director swept a glance at them and said nothing.

The Autumn Director took that as his answer, and pressed on: "What happened last night?"

The Spring Director didn't answer and turned to leave, but Yin Song and the Winter Director each grabbed one of his arms and held him in place.

The Autumn Director circled around in front of the Spring Director and pressed him: "Out with it. Last autumn when the Emperor received the battle report from the Luchuan campaign, he flew into a terrible rage — but I tipped you off in advance so you'd get the news before casting your divination."

The Spring Director: "…This time the Emperor may not necessarily call for divination."

The Winter Director: "Better safe than sorry. You seem to know everything, and it was the middle of the night — the Emperor certainly wouldn't have summoned you. You ought to think of us."

Yin Song: "Exactly. We've helped you plenty before."

The Autumn Director: "Neither in life nor in office can one be ungrateful…"

"Fine, fine, keep going and what kind of person does that make me?" The Spring Director paused, then said: "An assassin broke into the palace last night."

"An assassin?" Yin Song's face was disbelief. "Who would have the nerve to break into the palace to assassinate the Emperor?"

"I saw it with my own eyes — how could it be false?" the Spring Director said. "That person's Wu Gong was extremely high. I suspect the other party may have already entered the Martial Dao. I only chased for a little over a li before being left behind. Though at the Northern Garrison's end, there were two who chased her for quite a while."

The Spring Director paused, then lowered his voice: "I suspect she's a woman."

Yin Song's brow twitched. "You could tell?"

"No, I divined it," the Spring Director said. "When I saw her, something felt off. I cast a divination, and sure enough, she's a woman."

For people like them, sometimes what they relied on was a feeling — not that the other party's disguise had any flaw.

Yin Song indicated he understood, and only asked, "Did you tell the Northern Garrison?"

The Spring Director shot him a glance and said, "I'm not stupid. Those undying old fossils at the Northern Garrison have always looked down on us. Even if I told them, they wouldn't believe me — why would I bother saying anything?"

Yin Song's heart eased, and he was thoroughly relieved, though his face showed nothing. Seeing he had no further questions, the Autumn Director took over and pressed on: "Which female senior from the jianghu is out there unaligned?"

The Winter Director shook his head: "Can't think of anyone."

"Are you certain the other party has already entered the Martial Dao? That's no small cultivation — she'd have to be fifty or sixty at least, wouldn't she?"

The Spring Director: "Not that old. Judging by her build, only between twenty and thirty."

"Impossible. For a martial artist to enter the Dao is harder than for us — even the most gifted figures have never entered the Martial Dao before thirty-five, and a woman at that? Even less possible."

The Spring Director sneered: "Martial training depends on innate bone structure — what does that have to do with being male or female? Judging by her build, I just feel she's not that old. You doubt my eye?"

The Winter Director: "I'm not doubting your eye — I'm reasoning by common sense."

"No doubt. Then let me tell you now—she's not even thirty years old. Believe it or not?"

Winter Official: "…You're being irrational. The age keeps shrinking."

Spring Official: "So you still don't trust my eye for people."

Seeing the two were about to start arguing again, Yin Song and the Autumn Official turned and walked straight out.

!. Read

Yin Song turned his head and said: "Those fellows at the Northern Garrison have always been insufferably arrogant. Someone entered and left the palace right under their noses—they've been slapped in the face that hard, so they definitely won't let the person off. They'll be snatching people up everywhere like mad dogs from now on. Tell me, do you think they can catch the person? Let's make a wager."

Yin Song cut in: "I bet they can't."

Autumn Official: "You're that sure?"

Yin Song nodded.

Autumn Official thought for a moment, then said: "Then I'll bet they can catch them. How much?"

Yin Song said tentatively: "Ten taels?"

Autumn Official was surprised: "Have you come into money? Or have you gone mad from being broke?"

Yin Song: "…Then how much do you say?"

Autumn Official held up one finger.

Yin Song frowned slightly: "One tael?"

Autumn Official said with a solemn face: "One wen."

Yin Song's face went blank.

Autumn Official: "You're the one who said it. What makes a wager fun is the process, not the money. Didn't you always used to wager just one wen?"

"That was before."

Autumn Official: "You being this generous all of a sudden gives me a feeling—do you know her? Are you sure she won't be caught?"

Yin Song: "I trust Spring Official's eye for people. A martial artist under thirty, man or woman—the Brocade Guard won't find it easy to catch her."

Autumn Official figured that made sense too.

The atmosphere in the palace was somewhat tense. The Emperor didn't publicize it, but the matter of someone breaking into the palace at night was still fermenting and surging beneath the surface.

Wang Zhen hadn't slept all night. The moment he opened his weary eyes, he received this bolt from the blue.

He sat on the edge of the bed for a long while without speaking.

The young eunuch kneeling on the ground couldn't help raising his head to steal a glance at him.

Only then did Wang Zhen, his face darkening, ask in a hoarse voice: "Who was attending His Majesty at the time?"

The young eunuch said in a trembling voice: "It was Eunuch Cao who had people attending at His Majesty's side."

"Cao Jixiang~" Wang Zhen replied in an ambiguous tone, then rose and said: "Help me change. Send someone to summon everyone from last night to the Eastern Depot; interrogate them and get the whole story clear."

The young eunuch said quietly: "But His Majesty said this matter must not be spread. Eunuch Cao is still attending at His Majesty's side right now…"

Wang Zhen turned and looked at him expressionlessly. The young eunuch trembled and immediately lowered his head: "I'll go at once."

Only then did Wang Zhen finish dressing and go to see the Emperor.

The two tacitly didn't bring up yesterday's matter, and naturally didn't mention the assassin entering the palace either.

Wang Zhen went about his usual routine of attending the Emperor at meals, reviewing memorials, and participating in state affairs, until a Brocade Guard strode in, leaned close to the Emperor's ear, and spoke in a low voice.

Only then did Zhu Qizhen put down his brush and raise his head, his eyes frosty. "Mr. Wang, you had the Eastern Depot take Cao Banban?"

Wang Zhen looked up in surprise and hurriedly bowed: "How could that be? I merely had someone summon him for questioning. Someone below must have gotten the wrong idea."

Wang Zhen said with a solemn face: "Your Majesty, those men of the jianghu talk of freedom, but in everything they do they use their martial skills to break the law, denying everyone but themselves their freedom.

If such matters are not curbed, in time they will commit even more outrageous acts."

"Especially since the men of the jianghu set making a name for themselves as their goal. Today that thief broke into the palace to make a name; tomorrow some other sect will want to make a name by breaking into the palace. If this goes on, won't the palace become their martial arts training ground?" Wang Zhen cupped his hands and said in a deep voice: "I beg Your Majesty to permit the Eastern Depot and the Northern Garrison to coordinate on this case and bring this treasonous criminal to justice."

Zhu Qizhen fell into thought. Though he was still angry at Wang Zhen, he had to admit what he said was correct.

This matter truly could not set a precedent.

Zhu Qizhen thought for a long while, then said: "I have already handed this matter to the Northern Garrison. You turn Cao Jixiang and the others over to the Northern Garrison for questioning."

Wang Zhen's heart tightened; he was deeply regretful, but still obediently lowered his head and said: "Yes. I will deliver them personally."

Zhu Qizhen felt considerably better. Though he knew that obedient look was feigned, he still couldn't help feeling pleased. If only everyone could be as obedient as him—even if resentful, they'd have to keep it bottled up.

Pity that so many people in this world never learn to know when to stop, much less learn to read the room.

(End of chapter)