Su Yan, dressed in court attire, walked with measured steps across Jinshui Bridge and exited through Meridian Gate. From a distance, he spotted Su Xiaobei waiting by the carriage, gnawing on dry rations.
His eyes lit up, and he lifted his robes as he sprinted toward him. “Quick! Let me drink a few gulps!” He snatched the water jug full of tea from Xiaobei’s hands and gulped it down furiously.
Su Xiaobei yelped in alarm: “Slow down, my lord! You’ll choke—!”
Su Yan downed half the jug in one breath, wiped his mouth with his sleeve, and let out a long sigh: “Talked for two whole hours… nearly died of thirst.”
Today’s court session had been especially long— a full three hours before it was dismissed.
Which meant that Su Yan alone had taken up two-thirds of the court’s time…
He really could talk.
Su Xiaobei looked at him with admiration.
“My lord… so it was a success?”
Su Yan replied: “We’ll talk about court later—right now, there’s something more urgent. Get in the carriage. We’re heading straight to the Shuntian Prefecture Office.”
Su Xiaobei didn’t ask questions. He climbed onto the driver’s seat to prepare, and Su Yan ducked into the carriage with the water jug.
Just as the carriage began to move, the door was suddenly flung open— a figure leapt up nimbly and landed inside.
The carriage barely shook, but the instant Su Yan saw who it was, he choked on the water and sprayed it all over his face.
“Seeing this Wangye makes you that emotional?” Yu Wang laughed teasingly and took out a handkerchief to wipe his face.
Su Yan squinted at the handkerchief, finding it suspiciously familiar.
“That’s mine—”
Yu Wang immediately tucked it back into his robes.
“A gift is a gift. Who takes back a gift?”
“I never gave it to you… forget it.” Su Yan didn’t bother arguing. Instead, he changed the subject: “Where’d you come from, anyway?”
He didn’t remember seeing Yu Wang at court today— but that wasn’t strange. Yu Wang always came and went as he pleased, showing up when he felt like it.
Yu Wang said: “Royal Mother summoned me to the palace today to keep her company. That’s why I missed the session—only just heard about Wei Que’s impeachment of you. So I came to find you. What do you plan to do about it?”
Su Yan knew Yu Wang had always looked down on the Wei family, though for the Empress Dowager’s sake, he had never been outright hostile. Yu Wang had stayed neutral in the power struggle between the Crown Prince and the Second Prince. But after the Void Sect planted Fuyin in his residence, provoked conflict with the Emperor, and even tried to manipulate him into regicide—only to drag Han Ben down with them in the end— Yu Wang had completely snapped.
Now that he knew the Wei family had been used as pawns by the Void Sect, they were nothing more than expendable trash in his eyes.
At least in this matter, Yu Wang was clearly on his side. So Su Yan didn’t hide anything. He said plainly: “Someone’s advising the Wei family behind the scenes. That person is definitely connected to both the Seven Kill Camp and the Void Sect. Otherwise, how could they have known about Jinghong Zhui’s origins?”
Yu Wang appreciated the directness. He deliberately darkened his expression and said: “So your leech of a guard really was a leftover from the Hidden Sword Sect. You helped him hide his identity and even kept it from me. Now that it’s all out in the open, let’s see who can save you!”
Su Yan wasn’t the least bit afraid. He rolled his eyes.
“Ah Zhui defected from the sect ages ago. He was the one who uncovered Fuyin’s underground tunnel. Most of our intelligence on the Seven Kill Camp came from him. If you ask me, his merits outweigh his crimes—by more than half.”
Yu Wang snorted: “If that’s the case, then why didn’t you say so openly at court? Why drag things out?”
“Because the timing and momentum weren’t right. ‘Heaven’s timing, Earth’s advantage, and unity of people—without all three, even victory brings disaster.’ Sunzi had a point.”
After standing for hours at court, Su Yan’s waist and legs were sore. He flopped down onto the seat cushion like a boneless snake.
In the eyes of the stiff, etiquette-obsessed scholars, this posture was disgraceful. But Yu Wang liked how relaxed and unguarded he was—proof, to him, that Su Yan saw him as a true friend.
He smiled and said, “Go on, I’m listening.”
Su Yan explained: “Wei Que used Ah Zhui’s background to attack me. If I denied it or tried to defend him right away, I’d fall into their rhythm and be led by the nose. But if I ignore it, the courtiers will interpret it one of two ways— either Su Twelve is guilty and afraid to answer, or Su Twelve thinks Wei Que’s barking isn’t worth a response. That ambiguity is better than getting into a shouting match and confirming everyone’s suspicions.”
Yu Wang thought it over and nodded.
“Makes sense. Sometimes, silence is the stronger retort.”
“Not just that. I deliberately broke their momentum so they wouldn’t gain the upper hand in one go. I had to seize the pacing for myself. Today, I was reporting back to the Emperor—I was the one impeaching the Wei family. As long as His Majesty didn’t interrupt me, then Wei Yan and Wei Que had no choice but to sit there and listen to everything I had to say.”
“…So you berated the Wei family for two whole hours, forcing a marquis, a count, and the entire court to listen start to finish— even making my royal brother sit there hungry the whole time?”
Yu Wang burst into laughter. “Good job!”
Su Yan sighed: “I didn’t have much choice. This came out of nowhere. I needed time to think through a plan— and I had to get someone to confirm Ah Zhui’s situation, to make sure we didn’t fall into their trap. I had the Embroidered Uniform Guard carrying the evidence box send a message to Shen Qi— hoping he’d catch my meaning and ensure nothing happened to Ah Zhui.”
Yu Wang’s laughter faded. His expression turned a bit strange: “You… sent Shen Qi to save Jinghong Zhui?”
Su Yan gave him a look like, “What’s wrong with that?”
“Shen Qi is the only one who knows the full story. And he’s on the same boat as me. Who else would I send?”
“You’re not afraid those two will end up fighting over jealousy—” Under Su Yan’s deathly glare, Yu Wang instantly changed his wording: “—I mean, get into a clash! A clash where each tries to use the chance to get rid of the other?”
“What get rid of who?” Su Yan slapped the chair hard. “With the enemy at our gates, personal grudges have to be put aside first. If you chop my rudder and I burn your sails, then before the enemy even fires a single shot, our own ship will capsize in our hands, and we’ll all be finished together! Such a simple truth—I don’t believe the two of them can’t see through it.”
Yu Wang was left speechless, though his heart felt sour. Shen Qi had flatly refused his attempt at alliance back then, but if he now teamed up with Jinghong Zhui, that meant he wasn’t unwilling to join forces altogether—only unwilling to choose him as an ally. Was it because Shen Qi looked down on him, or because he didn’t want to entangle himself with the royal family? Only Shen Qi himself knew the answer.
With a subtle dissatisfaction gnawing at him, Yu Wang asked, “Then where are you headed?”
Su Yan said, “The Shuntian Prefecture office. I had Ah Zhui protecting the petitioner earlier, and he himself also has a grievance to submit. If things went smoothly, he should still be in the main hall of the prefecture. If not… then it’s very likely he’s already been targeted by the Seven Kill Camp and the Void Sect.”
The situation was urgent. Su Xiaobei drove the carriage at top speed, and in less than half an hour they reached the prefecture office.
Su Yan had Yu Wang wait in the carriage. Dressed in official robes, he entered easily. The presiding officer today was the Assistant Prefect, surnamed Mao, about forty years old, of equivalent rank to Su Yan, a Shaoqing of Dali Temple. They saluted as equals, and Su Yan explained his purpose.
“Many people indeed came today to submit grievances. They were even beating the grievance drum outside the gates, all accusing…” Assistant Prefect Mao let out a troubled sigh, “the two Marquises of the Wei family. Each case is a bloody affair, a major case. The Prefect was so vexed by these petitions that he had me temporarily preside over court, while he busied himself behind the scenes—trying to sound out the Wei family’s stance first.”
Su Yan immediately caught the undertone—this deputy was quietly smearing his superior. Otherwise, why say this aloud? The implication: Our leader is useless. As Prefect of the capital, he’s timid, incompetent, and afraid of taking responsibility. The moment a tricky case involving imperial relatives landed on his desk, he shoved me out to take the heat. He’s probably already gone to tip off the accused Wei family, too.
Sure enough, Assistant Prefect Mao promptly asked: “Lord Su, you’ve just come from court—may I ask, what’s the wind direction, what’s the weather like?”
He was probing for the stance of the court officials, and the emperor’s attitude. Su Yan, amused at how skilled this man was at speaking in veiled terms, replied with a laugh: “The wind is ever changing, the weather… neither stormy nor clear.”
Assistant Prefect Mao froze, thinking: This Su Yan looks no more than seventeen or eighteen, yet he talks slicker than I do.
Leaning forward slightly, Su Yan said with sincere earnestness: “Lord Mao, we’re both deputies. There are some truths we can share openly. When a chief officer refuses to shoulder responsibility for a thorny matter, we deputies not only do the work, we also have to be ready to take the blame. This is the same in every office and bureau.”
Assistant Prefect Mao nodded heavily, feeling the sting. “Lord Su, do you have any good strategies to teach me?”
Su Yan set down his teacup. “What strategy could beat the word—procedure. As long as every duty is carried out according to regulation, according to procedure, there’s no mistake. And if there is a mistake, it’s not ours. The prefecture receives a grievance, the law prescribes a process—then follow that process step by step. If you meet resistance and truly cannot proceed, just submit the report—ah, memorial—upward, and let the higher-ups give directions. That way the responsibility is entirely theirs. Far better than currying favor with either the plaintiffs or the accused, only to end up distrusted by both sides.”
Assistant Prefect Mao’s eyes lit up. “Well said! Lord Su, wise beyond your years, steady indeed.”
“Not at all—it’s all ground out by experience.” Su Yan made a gesture of grinding ink, and the two men laughed together.
With the atmosphere now friendly, Su Yan asked about the plaintiffs that day. He found none matching Jinghong Zhui’s description, nor any related case, so he took his leave.
As Assistant Prefect Mao escorted him out, he thought silently: So young, yet not rash, sharp-minded and measured—no wonder he has the emperor’s favor… ahem, mostly it’s because he was born with that face! Otherwise, I too once ranked seventh at the palace examination—why didn’t His Majesty take notice of me?
Once Su Yan stepped out of the prefecture gates, his expression darkened. Climbing into the carriage, he told Yu Wang: “Something’s happened to Jinghong Zhui!”
“How so?”
“He promised me he’d go to Shuntian Prefecture to submit his grievance. A promise from him—he would fulfill it no matter what, unless…” Su Yan frowned deeply with worry. “I also asked the guards at the gate—said they hadn’t seen any Embroidered Uniform Guard come or go. I fear Shen Qi’s side failed to link up with him, and something went wrong in between.”
Yu Wang wanted nothing to do with Jinghong Zhui or Shen Qi, but seeing Su Yan’s anxious face, he sighed and said: “Change your clothes first. I’ll take you around the area—maybe we’ll find a clue.”
—
And the clue was in an alley not far from the prefecture.
Su Yan inhaled sharply at the patches of blood still not cleaned from the ground. Yu Wang circled around, even leaping to the rooftops for inspection, then came back to report: “Two masters fought here, using swords. That great gash on the roof tiles—that’s sword qi. And look, fresh blood and slash marks all over these walls—this was clearly a group skirmish, with no small number involved.”
A grim premonition seized Su Yan. He turned back at once.
Yu Wang caught up. “Where to?”
“The Northern Surveillance Bureau.”
As they left the alley, they ran into a squad of Embroidered Uniform Guard returning empty-handed after failing to catch the Seven Kill Camp leader. Su Yan raised his eyes to the mounted commander, whose face looked pale. His gaze slid from the man’s blade at his left waist to the long sword at his right side—its design utterly unlike weapons of the Central Plains. Startled, he exclaimed: “That’s Ah Zhui’s sword!”
Shen Qi, seeing him together with Yu Wang, already looked displeased. Hearing these words, he let out a cold laugh. “Nonsense. This is my sword.”
Su Yan was torn between laughter and tears. “Don’t joke around, Qilang—this really is Ah Zhui’s sword. Its name is Oath.”
Shen Qi’s face darkened, his voice cold: “This is my sword. Its name is Three Hundred Gold.”
Su Yan: “…”
Yu Wang raised a brow, leaned close to Su Yan’s ear, and whispered, “Two men fighting over one sword? Just say who it belongs to—why are you looking guilty?”
Su Yan muttered, “I’m not guilty, I’m uneasy. Ah Zhui is a swordsman—where the sword is, he is.”
He silently slapped several thick layers of skin onto his own face to steady his nerves, then asked Shen Qi, “Where is Ah Zhui?”
Shen Qi’s eyes flickered. He replied, “Too many people, too many ears. Not the place to talk. Let’s go home first.”
He swung off his horse and walked toward Su Yan’s carriage.
Yu Wang reached out to block him. “You were riding your horse just fine—what are you squeezing into the carriage for? The carriage is small, only enough for two. You came on horseback, go back on horseback.”
Shen Qi fixed his gaze on Su Yan, placed a hand over the wound at his side, and said nothing.
Su Yan thought his wound was acting up again. He hurried forward to support him, saying to Yu Wang: “His injury hasn’t healed, it’s not suitable for him to ride. If Your Highness minds the crowding, why don’t you two take the carriage and I ride the horse?”
“No need!” Yu Wang and Shen Qi refused in unison.
They glared at each other like fighting cocks for several seconds, then each grabbed one of Su Yan’s arms—left and right—and hauled him into the carriage.
Inside, the three of them never managed to agree on seating arrangements. All the way back, amid all kinds of subtle little maneuvers, it was nothing but shoving, squeezing, pushing, and pulling.
At the Su residence gates, before the carriage even stopped, Su Yan couldn’t wait for the steps. He leapt down in a rush, gulping several deep breaths of fresh air.
A cloud of dread pressed heavily over his heart. He had no energy left to quarrel with two dogs snapping over scraps. Striding quickly into the main hall, he poured himself a cup of cold tea, downed it in one gulp, slammed the cup on the table, and barked: “What the h*ll is going on? Speak!”
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