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Chapter 440: From Where Is The Report From?
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Anyone could hear the meaning and resentment hidden within these two sentences. Yan Xiaoyi stood on the stone steps and stared into Fan Xian's eyes as if he wanted to use his gaze to coldly nail the other person.
He knew that he could not kill Fan Xian in Jingdou, which was a sorrowful reality. After all these years, he still realized, uncomfortably, that even though this pretty boy on the horse in front of him cursed his son in such a sinister manner and threatened him in front of the entire Jingdou—no, it was terrorized him—he still couldn't do anything ahead of time.
He was the son of a hunter while the other person was the son of the Emperor.
Yan Xiaoyi was not like the other elders in the military. He was not from aristocratic families like the Qin and Ye families nor did he descend from the royal family like the Great Prince. Although he had the Eldest Princess as a support, in reality, his rise in the military depended on his own abilities.
His current glory and high position as the Governor of the North had come from him fighting with his life in the North, West, and South.
Under his arrows, there was no one who could go even one round against him, and there was no commander who could stand against his army for three days. He had accomplished countless meritorious deeds.
Thus, he was where he was today.
Even though the Emperor knew clearly that he and the Eldest Princess were overly close, he still trusted him greatly and showed him extraordinary favor. A few years ago, the Emperor had even asked him to take on the responsibility as Commander of the Imperial Army.
What was all of this for? It was because Yan Xiaoyi had a determined and powerful heart.
As a super ace of the ninth-level in the Qing Kingdom military, only Ye Zhong could stand against him, or perhaps also that mysterious figure hidden deep in the Qin family. Thus, throughout Yan Xiaoyi's life, he had never feared anything. He had even occasionally thought that when his troops faced a Great Grandmaster, would the Grandmaster be able to escape his arrow?
Why would he be afraid of a young man? Even this one looked at him from atop a horse below the steps was just a young man who depended on his father's and mother's influence to obtain some recognition. Even if this young man's gaze was so cold and ruthless, but…
Don't come and provoke me!
He stared at Fan Xian. Like the sky shaking arrow on his face, his gaze seemed to be telling Fan Xian that if he wanted to, he could kill him at any time—even if his identity was special. But there are some things that are better not done.
…
…
Fan Xian was not afraid to raise his face. With his eyes slightly narrowed, he dissolved the slight piercing pan and greeted it with a cold smile.
He wasn't sure whether or not the ambush in the valley this time was done by Yan Xiaoyi. Although the Eldest Princess was the most suspicious in this matter, some points of suspicion made him unable to be certain of this judgement. However, he continued to say this because one day Yan Xiaoyi would kill him. Since it was so, he didn't have to think about too many things.
Regardless of whether or not Yan Xiaoyi did it, Fan Xian knew he had to do something shocking to warn those who had secret designs for himself. If they wanted to kill him, they had to decide whether or not they could afford this price.
The 200 great heads in the front of the stone lions outside the Bureau of Military Affairs was the proof.
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…
The people up and down the stone steps outside the Bureau of Military Affairs seemed to have been frozen by a gust of icy air.
Yan Xiaoyi stood proudly on the stone steps while Fan Xian sat straight-backed on his horse. The two people's gazes were perfectly matched. The murderous intent in their eyes made one very uncomfortable. The stench of blood surrounding them and the stench of the heads under the stone lions seemed to be afraid of these two people's matching stares and dispersed away.
Someone coughed gently.
Qin Heng, leading his horse, walked over to the stone steps. In a low voice, he apologized to the Right Deputy of the Bureau of Military Affairs and straightened his body. He gave a slight and warm smile to Yan Xiaoyi and said, "Greetings to the Governor."
His coming was very well-timed and clever. It coincidentally blocked Fan Xian and Yan Xiaoyi's confrontation of gazes and warmed the clash that could happen at any moment.
Yan Xiaoyi pulled back his piercing gaze and calmly said, "Hello, Marquis junior, how has the old master been recently? Having returned to the capital, I'll have to visit the old master at some point."
Qin Heng had long been granted the title of Marquis. The old master that Yan Xiaoyi was talking about was, the old Qin master who had long been ill and stayed at home. With Yan Xiaoyi's position as the Governor of the North, in front of the pillar of the military, he could only refer to himself as a general.
With Qin Heng coming out to ease the tension, Yan Xiaoyi had to give him this face.
But Fan Xian didn't have to. He lowered his head and played with the horse whip in his hand. "You're blocking me and Governor Yan."
…
…
Qin Heng was speechless and stunned. He didn't understand what Fan Xian was thinking. Was he going to challenge Yan Xiaoyi to a duel right in front of the Bureau of Military Affairs? Although everyone knew that Fan Xian and Haitang were equals, and he was the publicly accepted first ace in Qing Kingdom of this younger generation, he was facing Yan Xiaoyi. No one was optimistic about his chances.
Furthermore, these two people's status' were not the same and the location was special. How could they fight without restraint?
Qin Heng slightly tilted his head and said in a lower voice, "You're injured."
Fan Xian's expression was incomparably calm, but Qin Heng's heart began to tremble. After hearing the news of the ambush, everyone in Jingdou had been worried about the situation.
Everyone was scared that Fan Xian would go crazy.
If Director Chen Pingping was an old black dog, then naturally Fan Xian was a little black dog. The little black dog had been poked by someone viciously with a knife. Going crazy, it would bite friend and foe alike. The court full of civil and martial officials were afraid that in Fan Xian's anger, he would go to war and rock the foundations of the entire Qing court.
Fan Xian listened to Qin Heng's words and slowly replied, "I just want to inquire about some questions. If one is treated with propriety, they shall return the virtue. If met with swords, one would return with a knife. Governor Yan, is this not the logic?"
…
…
Fan Xian wanted to ask some questions to his face but did not have the opportunity.
Hearing him speak of knives and swords, the people of the Bureau of Military Affairs thought that Sir Fan junior was about to go crazy. Unconsciously, they made preparations to go into battle. Although the Bureau of Military Affairs were mostly consultant military officials and their martial power was not as strong as that of the Fiver Roads military, they had housed the essence of the Qing army for the past dozens of years. They had just been confusedly bullied by Fan Xian at their door and had endured for a long time, so there would have to be a time for them to retaliate. All of the military officials grasped the hilts of their knives.
Entering the capital, Yan Xiaoyi could only bring 100 personal soldiers. At this moment, these 100 personal soldiers had long been arrayed in the corridor by the side door of the Bureau. They nervously watched the 100 or so First Bureau officials of the Overwatch Council in front of the yamen.
The soldiers who had returned from the North had a look of hardship about their faces. They had long been hammered by Yan Xiaoyi into an invincible army. However, unlike the soldiers of the Qin and Ye families, these personal soldiers all carried bows.
Jingdou forbade crossbows but not bows. This was the self-confidence showed by the martial-orientated royal family.
The two sides stared at each other. The constantly worried leader of the Jingdou garrison, Qin Heng, could not relax. If Fan Xian had used his words earlier to provoke Yan Xiaoyi and issued an invite to a duel, as long as Yan Xiaoyi agreed, even the Emperor would be unable to stop it. The two sides would certainly be stuck in a situation from which there could only be one survivor.
However, as the battle array involved a clash between the Overwatch Council and the military, Qin Heng knew this battle would not happen. There were countless eyes watching this place. Whether it was the Emperor or the officials' system that ran state affairs, neither could simply watch the foundations of Qing Kingdom, which had a leading role in the world, collapse because of the heads in front of the Bureau of Military Affairs.
As expected, a yell and the sound of urgent horse hooves came from the distance.
A group of soldiers from the Imperial Army rode forth in bright armor. The Bureau of Military Affairs was between the Overwatch Council and Royal Palace. The reactions of the Imperial Army seemed to be a bit slow. However, some bright-eyed people knew that this was time the Imperial Army had purposely left to allow Fan Xian to vent some of his anger and resentment.
The Imperial Army symbolized the Emperor's might. No one dared look down on them, at least on the surface.
When the group from the Imperial Army wound their way through and separated the people of the Overwatch Council from the soldiers of the Bureau of Military Affairs, no one expressed any objection. Furthermore, the person leading the soldiers was the Great Prince.
He was once the Commander of the Western Expedition and had close connections with the military. Now, everyone knew that his relationship with Fan Xian was relatively close.
Seeing that he was here to mediate, everyone present let out a breath at the same time and deeply felt that the Emperor was very wise. This choice in person was too perfect.
The Great Prince took his reins and walked to Fan Xian's side. The worry on his face appeared and disappeared immediately. He nodded his head slightly to indicate his understanding. Without saying anything unnecessary, he only said, "Father knows of this matter. Go home and recover."
Fan Xian looked at him with a not-quite-there smile and remained silent, waiting. Naturally, he was going to leave. He couldn't actually go on a killing spree against the Bureau of Military Affairs here. However, the people he was waiting for had not all arrived.
In a moment, three royal eunuchs ran in panting from outside the crowd bringing with them the Emperor's verbal edict. Expressing shock and concern toward the full authority Jiangnan Road imperial envoy's assassination attempt, he carried out a stern scolding of the Jingdou Garrison and secretly reminded and intimidated the people of the Bureau of Military Affairs. Then, he ordered Sir Fan junior to immediately return to his manor to look after his injuries and wait for the court to fully investigate the matter before coming to conclusions.
In another moment, two clearly not very healthy officials also ran over panting. They were Shu the Scholar and Hu the Scholar. These two major officials of the Hall of Governmental Affairs expressed their concern for Fan Xian as well as their incomparable rage toward the attacker.
Shu Wu was an old friend of Fan Xian's, but this was Fan Xian's first time seeing Hu the Scholar's appearance. He found that he was even younger than he had imagined. He was at most 40-something years old.
Sitting on his horse, Fan Xian was silent for a moment and then said to the Great Prince, "You understand me. There is enough face in this first round. For now, I won't go crazy."
The Great Prince nodded and said, "I'll see you off."
Fan Xian pulled on his reins and turned in circles on Tianhe Avenue. Lifting it, he pointed it directly at the military personnel on the stone steps of the Bureau of Military Affairs, waved it, and didn't say anything more.
The people of the Bureau of Military Affairs felt that this distant whip had landed on their faces.
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…
Returning to the Fan manor, the Great Prince asked about some of the specific circumstances while in the valley. He was silent for a moment and then left the manor. Fan Xian knew he had to rush back to the palace to receive the Emperor's storm-like inquiries. However, he didn't want to warn him too much because he still had a lot of misgivings.
The Palace sent three royal doctors from the Imperial Academy of Medicine to the Fan manor, but Fan Xian did not use them. He only allowed brothers from the Third Bureau to apply medicine and tend to his wounds. The remaining poison would completely be gone in a few days. As for that wretched wound on his back, it was unclear how many days it would need to heal.
Not until he was lying in his warm bed in his own home did Fan Xian's body and mind finally completely relax. Immediately, he felt a difficult to resist exhaustion. Although his back was on fire from the pain, he still hugged his pillow and fell into a deep sleep.
When he woke, the day was already dark. A serving girl went out and brought back a rice porridge kept warm with hot water. The person who had stayed by Fan Xian's bed the entire time accepted the rice porridge and helped Fan Xian sit up. Digging out a spoonful, they blew on it carefully, and slowly fed it to him.
Fan Xian had a bite and pressed together his rather dry lips. Gazing at his father beside him, who was currently carefully spooning up the porridge, he found that in just a year apart, his father had more white hair and his wrinkles were deeper. For some reason, he momentarily felt a twist in his heart.
"I've made you worry."
Fan Jian didn't say anything. He only fed him a few more mouthfuls before putting the bowl of porridge on the table. He then calmly said, "That year, when you wanted to enter the Overwatch Council, I had told you that one day there would be problems. However, since the problem had already appeared, there is no need to talk about this anymore."
Fan Xian was silent for a moment before saying, "There are many things I don't understand."
Fan Jian warmly said, "Tell me about them."
Fan Xian told his father all of the questions he had in his heart when he was beside the destroyed carriage in the valley. He hoped that this father of his, who appeared to be of little significance in the court but who actually had very strong foundations and well-practiced tricks and was someone that the Emperor was unable to force to resign, would be able to give him some hints.
"Since you have determined that it was the military who acted," Fan Jian said, "then we can analyze it. Other than the royal defenses in Jingdou, Qing Kingdom has five roads of border soldiers and seven roads of provincial soldiers. With the border soldiers as the most powerful, Ye family's Dingzhou is one and the Qing family is another. The border guards in Cangzhou are under the control of Yan Xiaoyi, and there was another at the border of the Nanzhao Kingdom. In reality, the strength of the provincial soldiers could be ignored and not calculated. However, it was like this. In reality, the border soldiers of the five roads were not divided so clearly. Students and old friends of the Ye and Qin families scattered throughout the military. They all had a certain influence in various aspects."
Fan Xian paused slightly and then continued, "When the Great Prince had gone on the Western Expedition back then, the great army was actually pulled together from among the border soldiers from the five roads. After the battle was over, they would return to their various places.
Fan Xian was silent for a moment. "This was also the Emperor's idea."
"Correct. Because of the Western Expedition, these generals were promoted to important positions and essentially became the hands and feet of the royal family, so they could not be directed by the Ye and Qin families. Thus, the border guards of the five roads were not controlled by any single family."
Very strangely, faced with such a major matter as Fan Xian being targeted for assassination, the father and son were not overly emotional or angry. They only coldly analyzed the situation.
"As for the Jingdou defenses, within a radius of 40 li outside of the capital, it is all under the jurisdiction of the Jingdou garrison. The garrison has about 20,000 people. Inside, there is Qing Kingdom's strongest Imperial Army, 10,000 people. There are also 13 city gate officials. Although they seem unremarkable, they are directly ordered by the Emperor's edict to manage the jurisdiction of opening and closing the Jingdou city gates and is also an important yamen. The Palace also has first-rate guards. Although, according to the traditions of the court, the Commander of the Imperial Army also manages the Internal Guards, in reality, only Commander Gong Dian truly did so. At other times, the Internal Guards are all managed by that eunuch in the Palace."
Eunuch? Naturally, it was Eunuch Hong. Fan Xian suddenly heard something strange in his father's words. Only Gong Dian truly managed both the Imperial Army and the Internal Guards?
He suddenly raised his head and said in surprise, "Gong Dian…is so trusted by the Emperor?"
Fan Xian's first interaction with the power of the Palace's defenses was that strike against Gong Dian at the door of the Qing Temple. He knew clearly Gong Dian. He also knew that a big reason for the incidence at the Hanging Temple was because the Emperor wanted to chase the Ye family's power out of Jingdou and have Gong Dian chased down from the position of Commander of the Imperial Army. However, according to what his father had said, the Emperor's trust in Gong Dian, or it could be said the Ye family, was truly very terrifying. Why did the Emperor forcefully push the Ye family to the side of the Second Prince and to the side of the Eldest Princess?
Fan Xian faintly felt that he seemed to have grasped something important, but he still did not understand and couldn't help his head hurting.
Fan Jian quietly said, "Don't think about it too complicatedly. Although the Emperor is very calculating, he wouldn't interfere in the power of the Jingdou defenses. As for why he wanted to chase the Ye family out, I think…I can guess a little bit."
Fan Xian furrowed his brows and said, "Father, what is the reason?"
Fan Jian smiled and gently helped him lie down. Slowly, he said, "Don't forget, your mother is also surnamed Ye…that year, when she first entered Jingdou she had once fought with Ye Zhong. Wu Zhu has also battled with Ye Liuyun. Even though there is no connection between your family and theirs, the Emperor would still probably worry about some things. During the Hanging Temple incident, the Emperor did not trust you as much as he does now, but he was already preparing to place you in an important position. Naturally, he had to take precautions against certain matters."
Fan Xian was shocked. Shortly after, he took in a cold breath. As the Emperor, one's schemes were indeed…however, this kind of life, what meaning was there in it? Only, he had not thought that no matter how incredible his father was, there was still a time when he would guess wrong.
"The Ye family and I have little feeling between us," Fan Xian said, but he remembered that girl with eyes as bright as jewels.
"There isn't any now, but it doesn't mean there won't be in the future." Fan Jian raised his eyebrow. "What I am interested in is why the Emperor would take such precautions against you."
Fan Xian was silent for a long time before he quietly said, "Father, do you think the incident this time…was arranged by the Emperor?"
To be in the outskirts of Jingdou and mobilize the military to kill, and to be able to move the city-guarding crossbows…In the end, as the Commissioner of the Overwatch Council, one who controlled all the intelligence reports in the world, he had absolutely no preparation at all. Every time he thought about this matter, Fan Xian felt that behind the ambush in the valley, there wasn't just the Eldest Princess' craziness, there was something hidden deeper. In his list of suspects, the Emperor was in the first position. As for who was in the second…
"It's not the Emperor." Fan Jian suddenly said faintly, "At this time, he doesn't even have the time to love you and favor you, how could he try to kill you…unless…he is going to die."
Fan Xian was silent and asked, "To be able to make the Jingdou garrison and the Overwatch Council lose effect at the same time…other than the Emperor, who has this power? The Eldest Princess with Yan Xiaoyi?"
He shook his head. Yet, Fan Jian smiled slightly and answered with another question, "You should be guessing at something, otherwise, when you came back from the Bureau of Military Affairs, why didn't you go into your own garden to have a look?"
Chapter 441: The Old Grandfather Who Planted Pak Choi
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
"Impossible."
Fan Xian lay on the bed, shaking his head as he spoke. He immediately began to cough. It seemed that even his internal injuries knew he couldn't completely believe his judgment. Under such raging emotions, it was difficult to not have a reaction.
However, Fan Xian still did not think it was possible. Ever since he was young, he had followed Sir Fei and learned rudimentary biology and poisons. He had learned about the rules of the Overwatch Council as well as the structure of its departments. He learned how the Overwatch Council handled matters and tricks to killing people. Ever since a young age, his life had been tightly tied with the Overwatch Council, who the people and officials of the Qing Kingdom were the most afraid of.
In other people's eyes, he was just a child. At most, he was a child with some genius traits. However, he knew that the Fan An Zhi in Danzhou's spirit was already relatively mature, so he understood early that in his future he would certainly be tied closely to the Overwatch Council.
The appearance of the Commissioner token after he entered the capital made Fan Xian understand even more clearly the hard work of those elders in the Overwatch Council. The other party wanted to hand the Overwatch Council to him. Or, it could be said to be returned to him. Even more accurately, it was to return it to the woman from long ago.
Up to now, Fan Xian had immeasurable wealth, a reputation known to all under heaven, and a very high position. Perhaps all of this was because of his experience as a person of two lives, the poetry and lyrics of countless talents before him, and his determined spirit he had trained as child. He knew that all of these were just external objects and difficult to tie to himself. He could lose them at any moment.
He had managed to keep all of these until now as he was dependent on the power of the Overwatch Council.
No matter from which direction one approached it, the Overwatch Council was the foundation and root of Fan Xian's existence in this world.
The ambush in the valley was not the same as the assassination at the Hanging Temple. The heavy injury he took after the Hanging Temple was a complete accident. The Shadow's appearance was completely under the control of Chen Pingping. If his Tyrannical way had not been coincidentally bottlenecked, thus happening to break his Meridians, he likely wouldn't have taken such a heavy injury.
However, the ambush in the snowy valley was just to kill him. Once it had started, it was impossible for it to be drawn back.
If it was truly as his father had said and what he guessed. This foundation suddenly relaxed, and Fan Xian would be able to withdraw dejectedly at any time.
As for this guess, no matter whether it was logically or emotionally, Fan Xian was not willing to accept it and would also not accept it.
"Impossible."
Fan Xian repeated the word again in a heavy tone.
He was the Commissioner of the Overwatch Council. After two years of Chen Pingping's purposeful release of his hold and his help, he had long placed his people into the eight bureaus. The Qinian Unit had become a special department. There was himself in the First Bureau, the Fourth Bureau of Yan Bingyun, the Third Bureau had Fei Jie, the Fifth Bureau had no intentions and now had Jing Ge, and the Sixth Bureau had the Shadow.
Thinking back and forth, Fan Xian now was no longer the isolated person he was in the beginning. All of the resources of the Overwatch Council had long been solidly grasped in his hands. He could not understand. Even if there was a traitor in the Council, it would still be impossible to keep him completely in the dark and cooperate with his enemies.
Unless it was him. The person he had thought of in the valley.
But, he had always been so kind to him. That pair of hands that were always on the lamb wool blanket were always so steady. That thin and sickly body appeared so dependable. No matter where he was, he always felt that he was his biggest support, allowing him to do anything without a glimmer of fear.
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…
"There has never been anything impossible in this world," Fan Jian said coldly. "Back then, your mother was comparable to you now. She also had the Overwatch Council in her left hand, the palace treasury in her right, and Lao Wu behind her. Furthermore, she also had us. With the Quanzhou Navy to the South, how was she compared to you now? But, in the end?"
Fan Xian fell silent. He faintly felt that the snowy valley incident might have some connection to the incident from many years ago.
"If empress' father's head was chopped off by my own hand…" Fan Jian lowered his head to look at his long and slender fingers. He smiled slightly. "But…who knows whether or not the heads that should have fallen have all fallen?"
This was the first time Fan Xian had learned of this matter and was very shocked. He looked at his father for a while and couldn't speak. It was not until today that he heard that the empress' father had been personally killed by his father.
He understood what his father meant. The year that Jingdou ran red with blood was a great act of retaliation on the collapsed Ye family. At the time, the Ye family had strong foundations. After being overthrown in one night, although the Emperor had been on a Western Expedition, an unknown number of powerful and noble families in Jingdou had joined in this matter. There were some that had escaped capture, so it wouldn't be surprising for some to be the main culprits.
Fan Xian broke the silence. Revealing a determined expression on his face, he warmly said, "Father, there is no need to say more. I trust the Director."
Fan Jian sighed.
Fan Xian continued warmly, "What you said, he has actually also said it to me before…I have also long thought about the matter back then. I found that before I entered Jingdou, there was an unusual coldness between you and Director Chen. You two were completely not like how you are now. I understand that you both are cautious in your hearts, however, just as I trust you unconditionally, I also trust him unconditionally."
He coughed gently and continued, "Suspicions against your comrades is a very terrifying thing. Perhaps someone has purposely hidden something all this time just to make you and Director Chen suspect each other."
"I won't be like this," Fan Xian said in a heavier tone. "I trust my own feelings. Only feelings will not lie to you."
His gazed out of the window.
After a long time, Fan Jian smiled and said comfortingly, "Looks like you still have some confidence in human nature…in this, you are very similar to your mother."
Fan Xian also smiled and said, "Only toward a few special people."
Following this, Fan Jian calmly asked, "How are you planning to deal with this matter?"
"I'll first wait to see the results of the Emperor's handling." Fan Xian was silent for a moment and then continued, "I'm afraid that nothing will be found in the investigation. The other party has made such a large investment, naturally, they would have thought of a way to deal with the aftermath."
He smiled mockingly. "Sometimes, I don't know where the Emperor's confidence comes from. Even the military is starting to be disturbed by someone. Is he still as completely unworried as before?"
"Something will always be found in the investigation." Fan Jian gazed at his son and knew the youth had not let the blood get to his head. Smiling with approval, he said, "All of the city-guarding crossbows are numbered."
"I'm afraid that even these city-guarding crossbows were moved from elsewhere. It'll be bad if the wrong person is investigated."
"You're right." A strange smile rose to the corner of Fan Jian's lips. "Under the Emperor's age, the case was investigated very quickly. By the afternoon, there was already news. There are five city-guarding crossbows in the valley. They've just been produced by the palace treasury. They should have been sent toward the direction of Dingzhou. For some reason, they were behind on the delivery time. Coincidentally, they appeared on your way back to the capital."
"Dingzhou?" Fan Xian furrowed his brows. "The Ye family is going to be a scapegoat again? Can the Emperor bring himself to be so cruel?"
"Of course, the Emperor's knows about the strangeness in this matter," Fan Jian said. "However, what if the Ye family did this on purpose?"
"That's why there needs to be other evidence," Fan Xian said quietly. "That survivor I sent to the Bureau of Military Affairs, is he of any value?"
"He is." Fan Jian smiled strangely again. "This trick of yours is the same as back when you defeated the Second Prince, delivering the witness to the other party's yamen."
Fan Jian's expression was calm. "However, one trick shouldn't be used twice. At least, the Bureau of Military Affairs did not fall for your trick this time."
"Oh?" Fan Xian furrowed his brows. "How did they handle it?"
Fan Jian smiled slightly and said, "They treated that survivor like an old ancestor, deathly afraid that he would die from blood loss leaving them unable to answer the Emperor's questions. Immediately after, they used this matter as an excuse to say that this must be investigated by the Overwatch Council. As the military side needs to avoid suspicion, thus they sent the person to the Overwatch Council."
Fan Xian was slightly startled.
Fan Jian continued to smile. "The person was left by you to the Bureau of Military Affairs, so the Overwatch Council refused to accept him. Thus, they had him dragged back to the Bureau. Those crude military people in the Bureau have really learned to be shameless. They actually dragged him back to the Overwatch Council."
The generally stern looking Minister of Revenue smiled and shook his head. "This afternoon, the two departments have been setting themselves against each other over this survivor. You give it to me, and I'll give it to you, as if this person was a hot yam. No one is willing to accept it."
Although he had been ambushed and was feeling very gloomy, hearing these words from his father, Fan Xian still couldn't resist smiling. He seemed to be able to see in front of his eyes Tianhe Avenue this afternoon. At the center of the Qing court's power, the two yamen dragging the man back and forth like a dead pig. That soldier had probably never in his life thought he would receive such treatment.
"How was it dealt with in the end?"
"In the end, the Palace spoke and the Overwatch Council took him into prison."
Fan Xian sighed. "Who would have thought so many things would happen in Jingdou this afternoon while I slept."
Fan Jian silently looked at his son. A moment later, he slowly said, "After the night that Jingdou ran red with blood, your ambush by the military was the biggest thing to happen…furthermore, you came back alive. Who knows how many people will no longer be able to sit easily in their manors, and who knows how many people won't be able to sleep tonight."
Fan Xian was silent.
"You're truly going to act?"
"I won't act personally," Fan Xian said quietly. "I am going to make them hurt to their very core."
Fan Jian nodded his head and said, "You can handle it yourself, just…don't offend the entire military."
"I know the limits."
Fan Jian rose and left his bedroom. In the end, he said, "You have to live."
…
…
This night, there were countless people who sat in silent rooms with uneasy minds.
The news of Fan Xian being attacked by an assassin had long spread throughout the entirety of Jingdou. The routine court conference had abruptly stopped because of this sudden event. According to the private discussions of the court officials, when the Emperor heard this news, he had appeared relatively calm. He had immediately ordered the Commander of the Imperial Army, the Great Prince, out of the Palace to patrol and then ordered Shu the Scholar and Wu the Scholar to represent the Emperor in asking after Fan Xian.
However, according to Eunuch Yao in the Palace, after the Emperor had returned to the royal study, he had shattered a porcelain teacup in his hand and was silent for a long time.
Everyone knew the Emperor was sunken into a rage, however, not everyone was afraid. Those who had organized the snowy valley incident and those who had secretly helped were each plotting in their manors with their own ulterior motives and unease.
Since these people dared to kill on the outskirts of Jingdou, they had preparations for receiving the Emperor's anger and Overwatch Council's revenge. However, they had not thought that after mobilizing such power and such meticulous planning that Fan Xian still did not die.
"Unbelievable! He still didn't die!"
The Crown Prince in the Eastern Palace gritted his teeth as he spoke. With one hand, he grasped the embroidered cloth on the footstool beside him and scrunched the soft cloth into countless ugly flowers.
The empress' brows were lightly outlined. She sat coldly and nobly across from him. In a cold voice, she said, "Be aware of your identity and your words. Fan Xian is a major official of this court. If he doesn't die, as the heir, you should be happy. How could you be so disappointed?"
The Crown Prince laughed. "This is the Eastern Palace. Besides, everyone knows that between myself and Fan Xian, only one can survive. Everyone probably thinks that I arranged the snowy valley incident. Since it is so, why should I pretend to have compassion?"
The empress looked at him silently and then said, "Don't worry, the Emperor will not suspect you because we don't have this power to start with."
The Crown Prince was silent until he came to his senses. Among the powers in the court, his was the weakest. One reason for this was because his fight against the Second Prince all these years. Additionally, he had lost the Eldest Princess, this powerful aide. Another reason was that of Fan Xian's existence.
He smiled bitterly. "Who would have thought it would one day become a good thing? Mother is right, I don't have the power to mobilize the army to kill."
"However…" A glimmer of anger flashed through the Crown Prince's eyes, "if Fan Xian had died, that would have been good."
Fan Xian, what a man. During the family property case against the Ming family in Jiangnan, he insisted on arguing that the heir had no heaven given right to inherit. Do you think what you are thinking is not clear to me? Not clear to the empress dowager? The empress dowager had already begun to grow angry…the Crown Prince smiled coldly, grateful in his heart for that unknown power. The bold attempt to kill Fan Xian openly under such circumstances had helped many in Jingdou do what they did not dare.
…
…
Many people were guessing this night as to just which power was so presumptuous as to risk universal condemnation to kill a favored official in the outskirts near Jingdou.
Everyone's gazes were directed toward the Eldest Princess because it seemed like only this noble had the craziness, daring, and power.
"It's a great pity it didn't succeed this time." In a quiet manor in Jingdou, the Qing Kingdom's most powerful, as well as most beautiful woman, was lying lazily on a low couch. At the foot of the couch was a fire with heat rising from it.
Li Yunrui's eyes were slightly narrowed, and the pupils were filled with laziness. She gazed at the Second Prince sitting below her and smiled slightly. "However, this matter has nothing to do with me. I am not stupid to this extent. There are plenty of simple ways to defeat Fan Xian."
The Second Prince started. When he heard the news of the snowy valley attack, he had thought it was the Eldest Princess who had done it. Thinking it over and over, only she had such courage to dare not consider the Emperor's mood. He even faintly suspected that perhaps this incident had received the implicit consent of the empress dowager.
Unexpectedly, he heard the Eldest Princess very directly deny it.
"Of course, I am also very grateful to that person." Li Yunrui smiled slightly. The 30-something-year-old woman did not have the slightest appearance of a flower wilting. On the contrary, her charm was incomparably demonstrated. Every time she narrowed her eyes, every turn of her wrists, a natural sense of style shone through. She sighed. "If I could kill that son-in-law of mine, that would be good. The snowy valley attack was simple, rough, and direct. It had a military style…I like it."
Her words suddenly paused. The Second Prince didn't know what he should say. The room was filled with speechless sighing.
After a long time, the Eldest Princess slowly shook her head and said, "Even this could not kill him…is it because his luck is good or something else?"
The Second Prince and the Eldest Princess looked at each other and saw the unease and self-ridicule in each other's eyes. Fan Xian was truly a strange creature, a strange creature with incredible luck. Or, perhaps, although everyone thought highly of him, they still underestimated his power. The details of the snowy valley attack had long reached the desks of these nobles. For Fan Xian to not only come back alive under these circumstances but to also have completely killed the other party and even brought back a survivor incomparably shocked all of the powers.
There was even a faint glimmer of fear.
The Eldest Princess did not feel fear. She only lightly thought that if, only if, there hadn't been the Niulan Street incident back then, how miraculous this world would be.
…
…
"Continue to have good relationships with the Eastern Palace." The Eldest Princess lectured the Second Prince like he was her child. "We need his name to persuade the empress dowager."
The Second Prince nodded. He finally couldn't resist the strong confusion in his heart and asked, "Just who made the move? It can't be that Director Chen has suddenly gone crazy, right?"
"The numbers of the five city-guarding crossbows have already been checked." The Crown Prince glanced at the Second Prince with ridicule. "They belong to your concubine's family."
The Second Prince resolutely shook his head. "The Ye family's power is far away in Dingzhou. Even if the 200 soldiers carried out the surprise attack overnight, they still couldn't completely avoid alerting the Jingdou garrison and Overwatch Council. As for those five city-guarding crossbows, that's even more absurd."
"In court, it never matters whether or not it is absurd," the Eldest Princess said with ridicule. "The Emperor and Overwatch Council want to vent their anger. Under the circumstances, if they don't find an outlet, the Ye family will certainly become the target."
After the Second Prince thought for a while, he calmly said, "Aunt, please take action."
Although the Ye family was far away in Dingzhou and had suffered repeated suppression because of the Hanging Temple incident, they were still, after all, a powerful figure in the military. Now, they had also become one family with the Second Prince. In the current dangerous situation, the Second Prince didn't wish for the Ye family to be attacked because of Fan Xian being attacked. Even if it was for the sake of later matters, the Ye family had to be saved.
"I am not an immortal," the Eldest Princess said calmly. "How can the words of some woman in the Palace calm the anger of the Son of Heaven?"
She calmly looked at the Second Prince and said, "Putting aside the Ye family, you should also be prepared. I understand this Emperor brother of mine. This time he is certain to be very angry. If, in the end, he can't find the origin of the matter, perhaps his grace will rain down over a large area and make everyone unhappy."
The Second Prince lowered his head. He knew that many people were going to run into misfortune. However, he was not very worried. The matter had nothing to do with him. He still persisted in asking, "Who exactly is it? This matter is very urgent, so don't hide it from me."
The Eldest Princess' gaze remained calm but a pretty and mocking smile pulled up the corners of her mouth.
"Everyone knows that Fan Xian and myself are not of the same path because I want to protect you, while Fan Xian had shown his cards in Jiangnan and wants to put the Third Prince on the throne." The Eldest Princess smiled slightly. "But you and I both know that we are not responsible for the snowy valley incident, so this matter is very clear."
"Why do they not defeat the Third Prince and only want to kill Fan Xian?"
"This means that this attack had nothing to do with that chair."
"It is only connected to Fan Xian himself."
"The only matter connected to Fan Xian, other than that chair, that is enough to make a major military figure take action is that woman from back then."
"Why would that major military figure want to kill Fan Xian because of her?"
"It must be because he knew that if Fan Xian one day took the throne, or if he helped the Third Prince to the throne…once he knew of some matter, he would be sure to doom their entire clan for her. Thus, the major military figure must have been connected to her death."
There was no need for a painstaking investigation. The Eldest Princess only had to slowly speak each sentence, as if she were talking of domestic trivia and thus edged very close to the original truth of the matter.
"But…the night that Jingdou ran red with blood?" The Second Prince furrowed his brows. "Those involved in the Ye family matter, haven't they all died?"
The Eldest Princess smiled sweetly and a moment later said, "The empress dowager and the empress, have they died?"
A fanaticism suddenly appeared between her brows. "If I haven't gone crazy, since that major military figure has been able to live honorably until now, then the death of that woman was probably not this simple…oh, I'm more and more admiring of him, even more admiring than when I was little."
The corners of the Second Prince's mouth went dry. He knew who his aunt was admiring of, furthermore, he felt incomparable shock deep in his heart toward his aunt's analysis. If the truth of the matter was actually like this, then it could only be said that his aunt's heart was scarily agile and clever.
However, he was unable to confirm this. A moment later, he furrowed his brows and said, "However…according to the news, on Fan Xian's way back to Jingdou, that son of the Governor once fired an arrow at him."
The Eldest Princess smiled lightly. "As you know, although that major military figure hides in his manor all day, his hands are extended outside. Yan Xiaoyi's son has always been hidden under his hand. It seems like this time…this major figure is also afraid the Emperor will actually find him out and want to forcefully drag us under."
The Second Prince sighed and said, "So it seems that everyone wants Fan Xian dead. I really don't know how father will deal with this."
"I need to thank your father," the Eldest Princess smiled and said. "He turned Fan Xian into a solitary official, and, at the same time, unknowingly pushed everyone to our side, such as the Ye family and that major military figure from today. God, one by one my things were taken by him to give to that son-in-law of mine, then one by one he returns even better things to me. This world, how is it so cute?"
The palace treasury, the Cui Family, the Ming family, even her own daughter…the Eldest Princess slowly clenched her fist tight. Although her face maintained a slight and warm smile, her tone revealed a glimmer of ridicule.
"I have always respected him, but I also know that he has a fatal weakness."
The Second Prince did not dare comment.
"He is too suspicious." The Eldest Princess smiled slightly. "Those who are paranoid are certain to lose."
Without question, when it came to judgements in political situations and traps in fame and profit, the Eldest Princess had an intelligence that others would find difficult to strive for. As for the matter of the snowy valley attack, she had only guessed the superficial part. As for the deepest reason, probably no one knew except for one person.
Even the major military figure who had organized the attack didn't know.
There was a large and silent manor in Jingdou. It took up a full half of the street and was impossibly spacious and luxurious, and all within the regulation of rites. It was built according to the position of a royal count. Inside and outside the courtyard, there were a variety of trees and wildlife. In this dark night, it was like the scraggly hair of giants, piercing toward the alone and lonely sky.
An elderly man wearing a cotton robe was watering his vegetable garden in front of his side garden. The old man wore a pair of cotton shoes, the heels of which had already been rubbed thin. Wearing cotton robes and cotton shoes, simple and plain, this was a habit formed by countless years of living and traveling in the military.
He liked to grow vegetables. Particularly after he was old and rarely went to the department to be work, he liked, even more, to spend time in the little vegetable garden at home. His sons and grandsons all knew he had this hobby and had gotten a great number of rare and strange vegetable seeds for him.
However, he didn't plant them. He only planted pak choi and turnip, the two vegetables most commonly eaten in the military. He was not the same as that muddled King Jing. He didn't use the vegetable garden to bury his sorrows, he was just used to it—used to planting vegetables, and used to being simple and straightforward.
Chapter 442: Who Can Resist?
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The old man put the wooden trowel on a rock beside the vegetable bed, then, holding his back, slowly sat down. It appeared to take some effort.
It had just snowed. The weather was cold, and the vegetable garden was full of leftover snow and mud. How could there be vegetables growing, and what need was there to water them? However, tonight, he had unconsciously picked up the wooden trowel and used clean water to water the ground as if he wanted to wash something away.
The old man was very old. After Xiao En and Zhuang Mohan died, he became the only one left in the world who had personally witnessed the founding ceremony of Qing Kingdom. Fifty years had passed. The deep wrinkles and those more and more apparent yellow spots told a story of his history and the country's history.
An old official of three dynasties? More than that. How many Emperors had he served? The old man couldn't quite remember clearly anymore, however, when the previous Emperor took the throne, he had, without question, chose the correct path. Thus, he had obtained an irreplaceable position in the military for his clan.
The current Emperor, without question, was the one he admired the most out of all the rulers he had experienced through all these years. Three expeditions North, taking from the South and going on campaigns to the West…although he had long guarded Jingdou as a powerful military official, stabilizing the rear for the Emperor, the sons of the clan in the military followed the Emperor out. Some slept forever in foreign lands, and some returned home.
Qing Kingdom had been forged with spears, knives, bows, and on horseback. The old man had also spent his entire life among these weapons. He had killed countless people in his life and wiped out numerous clans all around Qing Kingdom. Tens of millions of people could die in front of him without his expression changing. This kind of history could not be washed clean with a few trowels of clean water.
In this long history, who knew how many good and famous generals, wise Emperors and Grandmasters gave off their own special light. However, the person that the old man had the deepest impression was actually a very young and beautiful woman.
Every time he thought of her, the old man's heart would begin to tremble. No matter how extraordinary a person, they could only try to change the direction of history. However, this woman, it seemed from the very beginning, was preparing to flip over Qing Kingdom's foundations and continue to turn the entire world upside down.
The old man never knew whether or not those attempts had a chance of success. He only acutely felt that if any of the situations at the time had developed further, the entire nobility class of Qing Kingdom would be wiped away by an unseen current. And, as everyone knew, the nobility class of Qing Kingdom provided the military with the most powerful human resources.
He was afraid of these disturbances. These disturbances looked as if it could make Qing Kingdom powerful but would change it to something unlike itself.
The old man was a military man, a military man loyal to Qing Kingdom. For him, extending Qing Kingdom's existence was an order from the highest power, so he had participated in some secrets and had kept this secret until now.
That woman…or perhaps it was better to say that beautiful demon woman died…
Is this very good? At least Qing Kingdom was still powerful and this Qing Kingdom was still the Qing Kingdom of the past without any changes. To exchange one person's death for the peace of an entire country, the old man had never felt regret for the choice back then.
The old man sat silently on the rock on the ground. Looking at the muddied water in the vegetable garden, he didn't say anything for a long time. He had already heard of the incident this afternoon in front of the Bureau of Military Affairs, 200 heads…
The Emperor had treated him well. He served 30 years as the head of the Bureau of Military Affairs, which was a rare honor never seen before in history.
However, this leading figure in the military was still the same as many years ago, seeing himself as a normal member of the military and considering the other men in the military to be his brothers. With his growing age, he began to see them as his descendants.
Although his face was cold, his heart was kind. This old man's might in the military was not something a normal person could compare to.
Those 200 good men were the old man's most trusted squad of his private army. He had long kept them in Xiao Mountain, secretly training them. Originally, they were for the purpose of attacking Northern Qi. However, now he had to use them ahead of time in a plot to kill an imperial envoy of the court.
The old man generally did not pay attention to the politics in the court, however, this time, he had to pay attention. Regardless of whether it was for the continued existence of his clan or for the future of Qing Kingdom he believed in, he had to kill that young man.
Unexpectedly, he did not kill him.
The old man coughed. He didn't know whether it was because the coldness of the rock beneath had seeped into his cotton coat or because a chill had welled up in his heart.
Two hundred people.
The old man's face appeared very old and had a faint additional glimmer of sorrow. Those were all his juniors. They should have been Qing Kingdom's wonderful future, but they had died just like this. And, they received no peace after death. Their names would never be recorded. They would be remembered in history books to be cursed by others. They had become the first rebel Qing Kingdom troops in dozens of years.
The old man's heart was sore and cold.
…
…
The Emperor was too fickle and made one's heart turn cold. Having the young man stay in Jingdou and giving him more power every day, this kind of trend had no end to it. Even if that young man couldn't be touched while the Emperor was alive, but what about in the future? After he and the Emperor had both died, would that young man not bring up old debts?
He had participated in the shocking murder case that killed Ye Qingmei, could he count on the fact that her son would not dig up this old debt?
Ever since a few years ago, when that young man in Danzhou was summoned to Jingdou by the Emperor, a glimmer of coldness had appeared in the old man's heart. Other than Chen Pingping and Fan Jian, no one knew that the old man had long known of Fan Xian's past.
However, the old man was silent, even more silent that he had been in the past. Thus, in the past few years, the Qin family had been strangely quiet in court.
Because that young man was of the Emperor's flesh and blood, it was impossible for the old man to act ahead of time. He only watched to see what arrangements the Emperor would make for him.
In the beginning, the old man was very at ease because that young man seemed to be a hedonistic child. He spent all day with King Jing's heir loitering in brothels, competing and being jealous, and wrestling at night. He didn't demonstrate anything special.
Following that, the old man became slightly worried because the young man was going to marry princess Chen and was preparing to take over the palace treasury. Furthermore, he made 300 poems in one night in front of the palace and shocked the world. However, he immediately relaxed again because how could the mere palace treasury be considered important in the eyes of a leading military figure? No matter how powerful wealth was, it still couldn't stand against knives and spears. No matter how shocking poetry was, it couldn't stop the thundering of horses' hooves.
However, gradually, the development of events made the old man watching coldly from the side become wary because of the spring examination incident. It was not until that moment did he know that the Emperor had actually secretly allowed the young man to have the Commissioner token of the Overwatch Council.
As the most powerful figure in the military, over these years, he had worked countless times with the Overwatch Council. Of course, he knew the terrifying power of Chen Pingping and the Overwatch Council, so he felt a glimmer of unease. Thus, he chose to show his attitude for the first time. He spoke to the Emperor and had Fan Xian go on a diplomatic trip to Northern Qi.
He knew that this diplomatic trip would not be as easy as it appeared on the surface because there was Xiao En and many other difficulties. After the old man spoke, he once again became silent. He secretly prayed that the young man would stay forever in Northern Qi. It would have been best if he never came back.
However, the development of matters disappointed him once again. Fan Xian returned fine to Qing Kingdom and had even more power and reputation.
…
…
The old man again fell into silence. He quietly and steadily watched that young man, watched as he fought joyfully in Jingdou against the Second Prince. He watched the Imperial College, the Hanging Temple, and the Palace. He found that this young man was, as he expected, ruthless, clever, relentless, and vengeful.
Powerful.
The old man felt a glimmer of fear. Although Fan Xian was still not enough to make him scared, every time he thought of that woman back then and of the fact that Fan Xian was her son—every time Fan Xian seemed to be walking exactly the same path as that woman using a very short amount of time to obtain a great deal of power and when he was even more ruthless and vicious than that woman—he felt a slight fear. Adding to the fact that he didn't know just what the Emperor was thinking, he began to try and find a moderate solution in his silence.
He was gambling on the fact that Fan Xian would never know of the Qin family's connection to what happened back then.
The old man chose to retreat, not asking and not acknowledging. When the Emperor became angry because of Fan Xian's matter and ordered the court beating of the Imperial Censorate, the old man directly decided to say he was ill and stopped going to court. He also stopped watching over matters in the Bureau of Military Affairs. He only stayed quietly at home, growing old.
As the Emperor supported Fan Xian, the old man retreated. He retreated to the very end to avoid that old matter from the past being dug out by someone.
The old man knew that the Emperor had this ruthlessness in him.
This was not him holding a grudge against the Emperor, rather, this was him showing himself staying within his bounds to the Emperor. Also, he didn't want to have to interact with Fan Xian in court. However, on the other side, the old man arranged for his son to befriend Fan Xian and also invited Fan Xian to the manor for a chat, watching him at a close distance for a long time.
…
…
If matters had developed like this, perhaps the old man would still have considered Fan Xian as a junior worthy of treating with respect and the door of the Qin family would have been forever open for Fan Xian. However, plans never come as violently or caught one off-guard as change did.
The Ming family had the support of the old man. The Qin family were all in the military. If they needed silver, it was much more inconvenient for them than those major officials in court. Thus, many years ago, when the Eldest Princess sent someone to respectfully bring 10 percent of the shares to the Qin manor, the old man nodded his head reservedly. He had always thought the Eldest Princess was a rarely seen clever person in the royal family.
Even if Fan Xian investigated Jiangnan, the Qin family was not afraid. They only had 10 percent of the shares of the wealthy Jiangnan merchants. How could the Emperor punish a long loyal powerful military family because of such a small matter?
Then there was the East Sea island matter.
Privately moving troops and massacring the island, these were shocking matters. As the head of the Bureau of Military Affairs, of course, the old man was one of the few people in court who knew of this matter.
Thus, the old man once again became silent and sank into thought.
Admiral of the Jiaozhou Navy, Chang Kun.
Just like when Deng Zi Yue of the Overwatch Council reported to Fan Xian when he was in Jiangnan, this first-level admiral had a good relationship to the Ye family but was actually born to the Qin family.
The old man had not given Chang Kun any instructions. The Qin family did not interfere with Chang Kun's actions. It should have been the Eldest Princess' intention. After all, everyone had too much interest tied up in Jiangnan.
However, the old man knew that the Emperor knew clearly that Chang Kun was one of the Qin family.
Chang Kun had already died, and the Jiaozhou Navy had been purged. Although the old man still had some generals in the Jiaozhou Navy and his nephew was already going to take over the post of admiral, he still did not understand just what the Emperor was thinking. Why would he still allow his family to control the Jiaozhou Navy?
The Jiaozhou case had been investigated by Fan Xian.
…
…
Even though it was so, it was not enough to have the old man make up his mind to carry out a lightning strike against Fan Xian. He knew that if he assassinated an imperial official, a prince in reality, and if it got out after the fact, the Emperor would probably grant him a cup of poisoned wine and his clan would certainly be wiped out.
The last straw that truly broke down the old man's defenses around his heart was a piece of news from the Overwatch Council.
The Qing Kingdom military and Overwatch Council worked together for dozens of years, and each had pervaded a bit into the other, particularly in the way the Overwatch Council hired officials. Their first picks were unsuccessful examinees and retired generals. After dozens of years, countless retired military generals became powerful figures in the Overwatch Council.
As the leading figure in the military, the old man would not be so stupid as to pass up this opportunity. He had long arranged for people of his choice to enter the Overwatch Council.
Naturally, the Overwatch Council also had spies in the military. This was something both sides were aware of but neither would expose. The Emperor tacit allowed his two hands to watch each other.
It was the old man's most useful person in the Overwatch Council that brought a strange message to the Qin manor.
There was a power above that of the eight bureaus in the Overwatch Council that was investigating matters that happened 20 years ago. However, the things being investigated seemed to be wholly unrelated to the situation of Jingdou's change in defenses, the supply logistics from the Western Expedition back then, as well as the situation of the royal defenses for the Palace. There was even some trivial matters regarding moving of grains. All these loose pieces did not make a united whole.
However, because of all these years of caution, the old man sensed a glimmer of danger. When he read the file, he couldn't help but furrow his brows. If someone carefully stitched all these loose pieces together, they would probably gradually find the truth of the Taiping Courtyard murder case, that bloody truth. The dishonorable role that the Qin family, who had been guarding Jingdou and was responsible for stabilizing the rear for the Emperor who had gone personally on an expedition, played would also be revealed to the world.
A careful and clever investigation meant he was terrified of someone being alerted. It probably wouldn't be long before they tore through the layers of lies and touched upon the true history.
Who was investigating the events of that past? Who had the power to be above the eight bureaus in the Council?
Based on the report from the person in the Overwatch Council and the old man's own judgement, both of them pointed that power toward to the Qinian Unit that Fan Xian personally led.
The last straw came crashing down. The old man gave out the order to kill Fan Xian.
He had the confidence he could temporarily hide the truth of the attack from the world and from the Emperor, but he absolutely did not want to face a Fan Xian that would crazily seek vengeance for that woman once he learned the truth. So, he chose the simplest, roughest, and more direct path…kill.
Perhaps he miscalculated Fan Xian's interest in revenge.
However, this mistake could not be changed.
…
…
Hearing about the news of the failure, about the news of the 200 tragic deaths, the old Qin Master suddenly aged a dozen years. He rubbed his tree bark like face and gradually calmed down.
Twenty years of faint worry and a glimmer of fear for that woman's spirit forced him, under pressure, to make the most direct decision.
After the failure, this old military man, who had fought on battlefields for half a century and who had once stood proudly without retreat in court, finally felt there was a slight problem.
It was not just Fan Xian who was able to mobilize such power to investigate the clues of 20 years ago and to also be above the Overwatch Council, there was also Chen Pingping, that old black dog.
Having Chang Kun massacre that island, it looked like it was for the Jiangnan matter. In reality, it was a very roundabout way of pulling the old Qin family into this mess. This was the Eldest Princess, that crazy woman's, favorite trick.
The old Qin Master sat on the big rock and coughed. He had finally thought through the entire process of this matter. It had nothing to do with Fan Xian, the Emperor, or the Eastern Palace. There were only two people who, for different reasons, both wanted to bring the old Qin family into this matter: Chen Pingping of the Overwatch Council and Li Yunrui, the Eldest Princess.
The two people who were the best in Qing Kingdom, or even the world, at plotting and scheming for different reasons but for the same goal, cleverly planned for over half a year and finally reached the result they wanted.
Faced with the unintentional cooperation of these two people, even for a major figure like the old Qin Master, what could he do?
…
…
"Father, it's cold outside. Let's go back to your room."
The second son of the Qin family, the current head of the Jingdou garrison, Qin Heng, came to stand behind his father. He placed a large coat on his father's body and respectfully asked for instructions.
The old Qin Master turned his head to glance at his son. A sudden grievance rose in his heart. He was already so old, yet his son was only 30-something years old. Once he died, would he be able to protect the Qin family's dignity and position?
"If only my eldest hadn't died."
The old Qin Master thought forlornly, remembering his impetuous eldest son. If his personality had not been so rash, he wouldn't have been killed by an officer in the army during a mutiny. If his son was still alive, would he himself still have to work so hard?
Chapter 443: There Are Dogs Under Heaven, Who Will Chase Them Away?
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The old Qin Master sat quietly on the big rock, and then he smiled. Elders' smiles always appeared so calm and warm, like they had long lost their intense moods and only had a calm that came with understanding the matters of the world.
He wore the cotton coat as well as the large jacket. He appeared a little swollen. However, the old man's body was strangely tall and sturdy, so he did not appear burdened.
"Don't worry too much."
The old man placed his hands behind his back and stood in front of the snowy and wet vegetable patch. He slightly raised his head and used that pair of already muddied eyes to look at the winter moon that peaked occasionally out from behind the night clouds. A long unseen glimmer of aggressiveness rose on his old face.
It was only last night when Qin Heng learned about the setup in the snowy valley. Full of shock, he didn't understand why his father suddenly decided to act against Fan Xian. As the heir of the Qin family, logically speaking, he should not allow, under any circumstances, the clan to make such a difficult enemy as Fan Xian for no reason. However, he did not object.
He believed that this father must have had his reasons. Furthermore, he was a son, a son of a military family. He was used to the military's attitude and welcomed his father's order. In the Qin family, the old man was the marshal, and everyone else was a subordinate officer.
As for orders, there was only acceptance. There was no need for explanation.
Qin Heng was also a clever man. He knew why his father was not worried after the failure of the snowy valley incident. an Xian had too many enemies in the court. It seemed that any faction could have tried to kill him before he returned to the capital. The Qin family was the least likely power to act of all of them.
Even Qin Heng didn't understand why his father wanted to kill Fan Xian, much less the people in the court responsible for investigating this matter. Furthermore, they were the Qin family. Even if, in the end, the Emperor suspected something, under the circumstances and without a shred of evidence, it would be impossible for him to accuse them of any crime.
"Of the five military pavilions of the court. Us, the Qin family, has taken one and the Ye family has taken another," the old man slowly said. "If you were the Emperor, would you allow this to happen?"
Qin Heng was silent. He lowered his head and looked at the mud before his feet.
The old man quietly said, "But the Emperor allows it because the Emperor has great ambitions. He has quietly waited a dozen years for the bald guy to the North and that idiot in the East to die…or to age. Thus, he allows our family and the Ye family to temporarily stay because when he takes over the world in the future, he'll need soldiers to attack."
The old man smiled slightly. "Back in the day, I was also said to be a famous general, but now I am old. Naturally, the first of the famous generals is that Shang Shanhu from Northern Qi. Qing Kingdom still has the Great Prince and Xiaoyi. Although Ye Zhong is much younger than me, after long years of being responsible for the Jingdou garrison, he had long lost his severity from the past. However, no one has thought the most powerful leading general is not anyone else, it's actually the Emperor."
Qin Heng remained silent but in his heart, he vehemently agreed with this. He was also a man of the military. Just like the hearts of all those in the military, he had long felt fear and worship toward the Emperor that lived deep in the Palace. Although the Emperor had not led soldiers for a dozen years, history had long proven the fact with three expeditions North and smashing the Wei Kingdom that traversed horizontally all across the land. Although he had never united the world, the words "able to command soldier's like a god" could indeed be applied to the Emperor.
"For the Ye family to be able to exist until today…" the old man slowly closed his eyes, "it's because of Ye Liuyun, that old fellow. Although the Qin family doesn't have a Ye Liuyun, we are still able to survive until now. Why is that?"
Qin Heng lowered his head and said, "Because father is here."
This was an extremely sincere praise. The old Qin Master was silent for a little while and didn't object to this. His students were spread out among the court and in the military. If Ye Liuyun used his extraordinary martial talents to protect the lives of the Ye family, then the Qin family was under his protection and lived happily in Qing Kingdom.
"I am loyal to the Emperor…loyal to Qing Kingdom," the old Qin Master slowly said. "I have never done anything unworthy of the Emperor, so the Emperor will never treat me badly."
Qin Heng's heart stuttered, thinking, Attempting to kill the imperial envoy Fan Xian today during the day in the snowy valley…that person was the Emperor's illegitimate child. Does this not count as doing something unworthy? However, he would never dare ask this question.
The old Qin Master gazed evenly in front of him. An aggressiveness that came from spending 50 years in the military rose. "You don't understand why I would choose this time to act. I don't want to tell you about the matters that happened in the past, I only want to teach you when it is time to act."
"When no one thinks you will strike, that's when you strike." The old Qin Master turned his head to glance at his son. "When it's a time anyone can strike, you should strike."
"This water is already muddied, so it won't matter if we are added to it. No one knows what is beneath the muddy water, so we are safe."
"Although the Emperor is wise, he still lives deep in the Palace. It is impossible for him to have firsthand news of many matters," the old Qin Master said calmly. "Right now, in this world, there are only two people who are able to guess or know about my connection to the valley incident."
"What is miraculous, is that neither of these two people will tell the Emperor. So although the mission failed this time, as long as no one is brought to the surface, this is still a success."
Qin Heng had resisted for a long time, but he finally couldn't resist anymore and asked in a low voice, "Why won't those two people tell the Emperor?"
"Because the old cripple has been silent from the beginning." A mocking smile rose to the corners of his lips. "No matter for what reason he was silent, the attack on the valley this time had the cooperation of the Overwatch Council. If he now makes this clear, how will he explain it in front of the Emperor?"
Qin Heng understood, yet he still did not understand. Why would the Director be silent? Did he also want Fan Xian to die? This made absolutely no sense. He was silent for a moment and then said, "But…if the Director pulled out the person we buried in there, could he not tell the Emperor of his guesses?"
"Guesses," the old man said coldly. "You also know this is a guess. Why should the Emperor believe his guess? Furthermore, the person is not so easy to pull out!"
"What about the other person?"
A glimmer of color appeared on the old Qin Master's pale face as if the battles he had not participated in a long time has made his entire person younger. He laughed quietly and mockingly. "Under the court controlled by the Emperor, the only people I am fearful of are the previous Prime Minister Lin and Director Chen. Prime Minister Lin was forced to retire by the Emperor, and Chen Pingping has other thoughts to occupy him…as for the Eldest Princess…"
The old man spoke with a trace of mockery, "If the Eldest Princess wants to make trouble, the Qin family will have problems. Will Yan Xiaoyi be able to stand outside of the matter?"
Qin Heng suddenly raised his head. He had also only found out last night about the matter of Yan Xiaoyi's son hiding among his subordinates. Furthermore, judging from his father's expression, he understood that Yan Xiaoyi's son's attack on Fan Xian before the valley and his luring of Fan Xian and his group into the valley was all single-handedly planned by this old man.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help developing a glimmer of fear for his father. Although the old man had not concerned himself with matters for many years, once he struck, it was indeed very powerful.
"The Qin family has always stood on the Emperor's side and maintained a central position in court matters," the old Qin Master said indifferently. "Now, both sides are dragging us under water. We may as well go down. Naturally, I will also drag them down. Everyone can huddle into a group. We'll see how things go in the future."
The old man sighed.
Qin Heng was thinking to himself that all of these major figures in the court and the military all have their own thoughts, if everyone did huddle together, then…wouldn't the Emperor become cut off from everyone else?
"What did you see in front of the Bureau of Military Affairs today?"
Although the old man had already learned of the situation from his spy network, he still wanted to hear it again from his son's mouth. Qin Heng recounted the scenario. He placed emphasis on Fan Xian's mood and the tragic bloody man, who was the sole survivor from the valley. Both of his arms had been broken, one eye was blind, and he was covered in heavy injuries. He was on his last breath, however, he didn't die.
"That is a good soldier from my army. He cannot suffer the Overwatch Council's humiliations." The old man spoke coldly.
Qin Heng knew that the group responsible for the killing in the valley was a private army his family secretly trained in Xiao Mountain. They couldn't be found in the military registers at all. Even though Fan Xian chopped off 200 heads, the Qin family did not have to worry about anything. He hesitantly said, "That general is a strong-willed person…"
What he meant was that since that person would not sell out the Qin family, why run the risk of a spy being exposed to silence him?
"Those people in my army can only live standing up; they cannot live on their knees," the old man faintly said. "To allow him to die honorably is the only compensation I can make at this time."
Qin Heng was silent. A piece of the winter moon shone down with a silver light, reflecting off the accumulated snow in the Qin manor and glowing like gems.
The old man coughed and walked toward the manor. In the end, he said to his son, "When you do things in the future, you have to decider quicker and prepare more."
Qin Heng lowered his head. He knew that his father was talking about the end of the killing today in the valley. When he had led the Jingdou garrison into the valley, he had been stopped by Fan Xian's carefully planned escape. He had absolutely no way for him to carry out the final risky attempt. He laughed self-mockingly, thinking, Having someone like Fan Xian, this extremely clever person who trusted no one, what was he to do?
…
…
The next morning, by the Qing Chengzi manor's back door, just like every other morning, a man selling vegetables came. The man respectfully moved the vegetables in and, smelling the air in the manor, he didn't dare to say anything. He carefully chatted a little with the manager in the manor and then quickly retreated.
From the little alley, he cut through to the main street. The man selling vegetables raised his head and glanced at Qing Chengzi manor's blackboard. Rubbing his nose, he thought to himself that the Yan family was truly too subdued. Everyone on the street knew that this manor had been gifted by the Emperor to Sir Yan. Presently, Sir Yan had been granted the title of a third-level Count, even Sir Yan junior had a noble position, yet this board was still not changed.
The vegetable seller left. The vegetable basket was still left alone on the empty ground beside the Yan manor kitchen.
The manager saw that there was no one around and extended his hand to weigh the vegetable basket as if to see what the weight was like today, whether or not that vegetable seller embezzled a few pounds.
The weight was very full, so the manager began to smile satisfactorily. He placed his hands in the pockets of his winter jacket to prevent being frozen by the chilly wind on this winter day. However, no one realized that he had already pulled a thin strip of bamboo from the very top of the vegetable basket.
Arriving in the study, the already retired head of the Fourth Bureau, Yan Ruohai, was up early as usual. He had already brushed and washed and was copying out a calming essay.
The manager respectfully brought him tea and then, intentionally or not, he left the short bamboo strip beside the teacup.
Yan Ruohai picked up the bamboo strip. With furrowed brows, he used his finger to gently snap it in the middle and removed a very small piece of white cloth. He then read the words on it and sank into thought.
His finger tapped on the surface of the table. He tapped for a long time like his mind had wandered.
After a long time, the current head of the Fourth Bureau and the future Commissioner of the Overwatch Council, Yan Bingyun, pushed open the study door and entered. He then turned and very gently closed the door.
He sat across from his father and accepted that white slip of cloth. Looking at the content on it, his usually cold as frost brows also couldn't help but furrow together.
…
…
"That survivor…the Bureau of Military Affairs does not dare to accept him. The two sides fought the case for a long time. They both know that it was a very thorny issue. No one dared to put him in their own yamen. They're afraid that he would suddenly die and the Commissioner would go crazy."
Yan Bingyun worriedly said, "Even if I can think of a way to kill that person to silence him, but…what if Sir Fan junior finds out?"
Yan Ruohai sighed and said, "Since the old man has come to our door, this matter has to be done eventually."
Yan Bingyun looked at his father and also sighed, "If, in the future, the Commissioner knew that we clearly knew about the attack in the valley ahead of time yet did not do anything about it, would he take apart our house and have the two of us beheaded?"
Yan Ruohai started and looked at his son. He sighed again. His sigh was full of helplessness. "What can be done? We can't not do what Director Chen has ordered. If Sir Fan junior wants to kill us…we can only suggest that he first break that wheelchair before anything else."
Yan Bingyun's always cold face couldn't help but reveal a glimmer of worry. A moment later, he said, "When did you move from the military to the Overwatch Council?"
"About 30 years ago." Yan Bingyun thought about past matters and furrowed his brow. "Although I was not famous in the military, I was the old Qin Master's personal soldier in secret. However, buried in the camp, there was never a use for me."
Yan Bingyun shook his head and sighed. "No wonder the old man trusts you so much. However, for you to have stayed in the Overwatch Council and to have made it to where you are today, I'm sure that the old man is very proud in his heart of his arrangement."
Yan Ruohai sighed for the third time and a not-quite-there smile appeared on his face. "However, the problem is…before I entered the military, I was already a secret spy of the Overwatch Council. It could only be said…the old Qin Master's luck was not very good."
Yan Bingyun lowered his head and said, "The Director indeed had everything in his grasp and calculated everything. However, I don't understand. It was something clearly preventable, so why did he insist on watching these things happen?"
…
…
In the Chen Garden on the outskirts of Jingdou, Chen Pingping sat in his wheelchair and yawned. Toward Fei Jie beside him, whose face was full of anger, he said, "Why are you so anxious? Are you here to kill me so early in the morning? He is your most loved disciple, is he not my most loved heir?"
The faint fire burned in Fei Jie's eyes and he icily said, "What exactly do you want to do? Fan Xian almost died!"
Chen Pingping mumbled something. Using his very unique and slightly sharp voice, he said, "Why? Of course it was for this truth, this already established truth…everyone says I am the Emperor's dog, but in reality, that old man is truly the Emperor's most loyal dog…without some real blood being sprayed out, how could the dog owner be willing to hit the dog?"
Chen Pingping clapped his hands and licked his slightly dry lips. "I've always been curious, if I chase all of the Emperor's dogs into the yard to bark randomly there, cutting him off from the others, what can he do?"
Chapter 444: When One Is In A Temple, One Has No Choice
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
"What do we do?" That strange expression in Fei Jie's eyes became stronger. His messy hair was like a burning flame. "Who knows what we should do. Only, Director, I must remind you, even if you hide yourself deeper, you've already implicated so many people. If anything goes wrong in the future, the Emperor is sure to suspect you."
Chen Pingping gently patted his knee that was like frozen wood. He stretched out two fingers and slightly bent one. "The situation you describe…if the Emperor wins, only then is it possible for him to suspect me. I have never denied this point because the reality is that although I know 99 percent of the secrets in this world, there is still that 1 percent I can't touch."
"For example, the Emperor's heart."
"Thus, I have chosen to sever it, otherwise it is not enough to convince him, not enough to let that child continue living on happily after the matter."
Severance needed to use blood and fire, it needed to use the truest aura of death to sever. Fei Jie was an old person who had come through that past, and he had long been in an elevated position in the Overwatch Council. Without question, he was the most knowledgeable person about Chen Pingping's true thoughts in this world. Although Fei Jie was still confused about the Director's final goal, he immediately understood the word "sever."
After many years, the killing in the valley would be like a layer of paper as well as a piece of cloth, a piece of black cloth. It would hide Chen Pingping's heart, shielding a young man from the suspicious gaze of the person on the dragon chair.
"What if the Emperor fails?" This was the problem Fei Jie was most worried about. After all, the Emperor was Fan Xian's old man. If he won, then at least the presently seemingly loyal Fan Xian would not have too big a problem. However, once the Eldest Princess' side won, if Fan Xian wanted to die, he probably wouldn't be able to die in a good way.
"Don't underestimate Fan Xian." Chen Pingping bent back the last finger. His not very large right hand clenched into a hard fist. "Fan Xian is just like this fist. He has strength, and his five fingers are all pulled into the palm like strokes of foreshadowing. I'm not exactly sure of what this child is thinking of in his heart, but I can faintly guess."
"When fingers are left outside, they are easily chopped off by others. It's much safer to have them clenched into a fist. At any time, it could spring out and suddenly strike someone." Chen Pingping laughed sharply. "If we old men don't die, how could the Eldest Princess, that crazy woman, easily control the world? Why has Fan Xian sent both his brother and sister to Northern Qi and have also done so many things in secret with them? Is it not to prepare for all this? He can hide his thoughts from other people, does he think he can hide it from me?"
These words were true. Fan Xian still relied on the Overwatch Council resources to secretly transfer his power to the North. As a senior in the Overwatch Council, how could Chen Pingping not guess it?
Chen Pingping lowered his head slightly and pulled up the lamb wool blanket on his knee. "This child actually thinks further ahead than anyone else in court. His escape is also set up more solidly than anyone else. I dare to bet that even if he cannot stay in the South Kingdom anymore in the future, this world will still have him. The foundation in Northern Qi is still there. You think about it yourself."
Fei Jie opened wide his mouth and couldn't say anything for a moment. After a long while, he faintly sighed, "This is treason."
Chen Pingping smiled mockingly. "The country will no longer be a country.
What treason is there? Besides, for that child, there is truly nothing to regret in leaving this country."
Fei Jie understood how the Director felt in his heart, but he still couldn't help but shake his head. "Has Fan Xian already grasped the secret of the palace treasury?"
"I'm not sure," Chen Pingping lowered his head and said. "However, he stayed in Jiangnan for a year. If that kid wasn't thinking of ways to bring the industrial arts of the palace treasury into his hands, I don't believe it."
If Fan Xian was present at this moment, he would certainly be prostrate on the ground with admiration for the old cripple. All his thoughts had been completely guessed by the other party.
"If there really is great unrest in the future and Fan Xian directly threw in his lot with Northern Qi," Chen Pingping sighed, "even if the Qing court is very unhappy, could the Eldest Princess along with the Ye and Qin families alone be able to wipe out Northern Qi? As one falls, another rise. The fate of the nation changes. I'm afraid the big picture is going to collapse."
Fei Jie shook his head. "It's only the palace treasury. Even if Fan Xian has the power to control half of the industrial arts, he can only help the Northern Qi court earn a bit of money. It won't change anything."
"It won't change anything?" Chen Pingping huffed through his nose. "In this world, there is nothing more important than money. Back then, the Mistress said this…only, the Mistress was not as greedy and ruthless as Fan Xian."
"Would Fan Xian really do this?" Fei Jie sighed. "After all, he is one of the Qing people. I don't believe he would go help an enemy country."
He continued, "Then he might as well choose to stand with the Emperor and help the Emperor properly sort out the court. To go to a foreign country as a guest official, even in such a country as Northern Qi, one is nothing more than a favored official without freedom. What benefit is there?"
"It is very strange." Chen Pingping smiled slightly. "Although I have never spoken openly to him about it, and I trust that Fan Jian has also not said anything, Fan Xian seems to have had a long-hidden preoccupation regarding the Emperor. This child can endure, to the point that I have only recently realized. Since there is a preoccupation, then it makes sense that he has long been searching for a path of retreat…it was so for Fan Ruoruo and Fan Sizhe. If, earlier in the year, Minister Fan had truly quit his post, I think Fan Xian would have directly arranged for him to retire to Danzhou."
"Danzhou is a good location. It only takes a few days to take a boat to Dongyi, and there is no way for the Qing Navy to stop them. From Dongyi, it is even closer to Northern Qi."
Fei Jie shook his head. "That thinking is too unlikely. No matter how clever Fan Xian is, he is still nothing more than an almost 20-year-old young man. How could he calculate things so far into the future? Besides, like I said earlier, Northern Qi is a foreign country. What confidence does he have that he can obtain the trust of Northern Qi's royal family? Is it not good that his old man is the Emperor? Why would he insist on being someone else's official?"
"This is only my guess." Chen Pingping blinked his slightly tired eyes. "Who knows how the future will develop? However, as for whether or not Northern Qi will accept a runaway official from the South Kingdom, I think Fan Xian has some idea of this in his heart. At least, for the next few years, he doesn't have to think about this problem. Don't forget that village girl named Haitang. Fan Xian spent a lot of effort to trick this girl, whose appearance is not startling at all, onto his side. To say that this kid doesn't have any kind of scheming ideas, I won't believe it.
Would Fan Xian, who was far away in Jingdou recovering, feel very wronged?
"As for the Northern Qi royal family…" Chen Pingping furrowed his brows. "The empress dowager won't be able to hold on for much longer. Ku He has not said anything at all, and the most powerful younger generation in her maternal family has already thrown in their lot with the little Emperor. In another few years, the little Emperor in Northern Qi will have all the power in his hands. And, for some reason, that little Emperor really trusts Fan Xian. To relinquish control over so much silver…I don't understand, I don't understand."
How rare, for there to be things that even Chen Pingping could not understand.
"In any case, there are all things in the future." Chen Pingping coughed and a comforted expression appeared on his face. "Perhaps, no, not perhaps, at that time, I will be long dead, so what's the point worrying about so much? I am just very gratified that Fan Xian did not disappoint my upbringing."
"In the courtyard, I once said some things to him. I wanted him to put his goals higher."
"He's done well. Although he often has problems in the details, his preparations in constructing the big picture are done well." Chen Pingping's expectations for Fan Xian had been met. "Making trouble here and there in Jingdou is only the matter of one country. Now, his heart is already thinking about the world. By this point alone, he is one step above Li Yunrui. He is beginning to come near our great Emperor."
Fei Jie thought for a while and said, "You've confused me again today. I only wanted to ask about the killing in the valley, I didn't think we would start talking about the world."
Chen Pingping smiled and said, "I think, at this time, it's best for you to go to the Fan manor to have a look at your disciple's injuries."
Fei Jie shook his head and prepared to leave.
Chen Pingping suddenly said, "Tell him, he can't leave, at least while I'm still alive."
…
…
Fan Xian was not thinking of leaving. Those preparation were just a last resort escape, just in case. Moving between the three large workshops in North Ming and Hangzhou, and facing great danger, Seventh Ye allowed him to quietly copy a thick palace treasury file. He had no plans to take this right now and cast in his lot with Northern Qi.
He wasn't that stupid. Although he didn't know why the little Emperor in Northern Qi liked him so much, he knew that his roots were in Qing Kingdom. If he was able to live so freely in Qing Kingdom, only an idiot would join a never-ending fight across the country. However, he had to have an escape ready.
Besides, in Qing Kingdom's Jingdou and rural areas there were still many enemies and foes. If he didn't clean up these people didn't help the Third Prince onto the throne, and didn't ensure Qing Kingdom was still peaceful and calm, how could he be willingly let go?
It was similar to how Chen Pingping was not satisfied. Although under the old man's teaching Fan Xian had learned to look at the big picture, in his heart, he was still not satisfied.
In reality, if Fan Xian wanted to let go, it was very simple. He just had to wait for Uncle Wu Zhu to recover and come back, then he and Uncle Wu Zhu could leave on their own. They would head west from Quanzhou on a boat and go see the sights, find some of those extremely mysterious but also extremely stupid magicians to have a fight, and meet some foreign girls, that would be extremely joyous.
Even the Emperor, Ye Liuyun, Sigu Jian, Ku He…the three great powers under heaven probably wouldn't dare stop them lightly. Even the military couldn't hold down this master and servant pair at some location.
However, stopping was often not because of their feet, but because of some tie on their hearts. Fan Xian was someone who had a wife and concubines, as well as father, grandmother, brothers and sisters, friends, subordinates, trusted aides…
When one is on the jianghu, one has no choice. In reality, when one is in a temple, one also often has no choice.
Unable to easily pull himself out and leave, Fan Xian chose to stay. He valiantly expanded his power and prepared his escape. At any moment, he was ready to fight to the death in this dangerous court with those who dared harm his power.
When he was lying in bed and heard his teacher relating Chen Pingping's final words, although his heart was shocked at the old cripple's eyes that were bright like torches, his face was calm. The corners of his lips twitched up, and he mockingly said, "Is the old man muddled, saying all this nonsense? Where can I go?"
Fei Jie glanced at his proudest disciple and found that this kid's words seemed to be coming from his heart. He also felt that Director Chen seemed to have made this overly complicated. He treated everyone under heaven as if they were an old fox like him. Although he was the poison Great Grandmaster, he was very lacking in some ways compared to Chen Pingping. In some ways, he wasn't even as good as Fan Xian, so he didn't see, at all, that the little fox's smile was actually very sweet.
"Let me look at your injury."
Fan Xian shook his head and smiled. "Teacher, if I can't even heal such a small wound, wouldn't that be losing you all your face?"
He suddenly remembered something and took out a leather enveloped from beside him and handed it to Fei Jie. Fei Jie took it in his hand and asked, "What is this?"
Fan Xian was silent for a moment then said, "I looked in Hangzhou for half a year and found a few medicines. They seemed to be able to counteract the aggressiveness in the Iced Smoke. It might allow Wan'er to be able to have children. However, I don't really trust myself, so I wanted to ask teacher to have a look for me."
Fei Jie was silent. He thought to himself that this kid had just barely survived in the valley. At this moment, Jingdou was a chaotic mess and no one knew what the Palace and the Overwatch Council were going to do. Who would have thought this kid actually had the leisure to remember to help his wife develop a medicine. Of course, Fei Jie knew that Lin Wan'er would be unable to have children after using Iced Smoke, he had long felt embarrassed to see Fan Xian. Seeing that he had spoken openly, he couldn't help but feel awkward.
Fan Xian smiled warmly. "Teacher, don't think too much into it. You worked hard to cure Wan'er's tuberculosis, and I am endlessly grateful for that. Actually, I don't mind that much, however, Wan'er wants a child very much, so I'll have to trouble you to worry some more."
Fei Jie sighed and agreed. He had suddenly realized a fact. He had originally planned to go to Chen Garden to have an accounting with Director Chen and get justice for Fan Xian. However, in the end, he had been convinced by the Director to come to the Fan manor to be a scout. In the end, he hadn't said anything in Fan Xian's bedroom and had been instructed by Fan Xian to make a medicine.
Hurrying back and forth, he hadn't managed to do nothing all day. Fei Jie felt a bit angry. He stared into Fan Xian's eyes and said, "I can't be bothered to guess at what you and that old devil is thinking of. If you two have anything to say, it's best to say it face to face."
Fan Xian chuckled and said, "I'm going to Chen Garden tomorrow."
"You're still injured," Fei Jie said worriedly. "Furthermore, after you were attacked, the Emperor was angry, but the investigation has not made any progress…talk is flying around Jingdou and it's not very calm. I don't think it's appropriate for you to be leaving your manor and Jingdou at this time.
Fan Xian calmly said, "Teacher, relax. I'll never give anyone the opportunity to harm me again."
…
…
The next day, still outside the Chen Garden, that wooden door opened slowly. The countless Overwatch Council killers and various traps hidden outside the Chen Garden didn't feel a glimmer of wariness about the visitor.
Perhaps it was because that the young official who came was also sitting in a wheelchair.
Fan Xian sat in the wheelchair and slightly tilted his body, avoiding the pain from the injury on his back. He allowed the old servant to push him down the stone steps.
Chen Pingping also sat in a wheelchair with a lamb wool blanket on his knees.
Fan Xian slightly turned his head and looked with great amusement at the old cripple. The old cripple also looked with great amusement at the appearance of Fan Xian in a wheelchair. Then, the two people smiled at the same time.