That night, in order to accommodate the Imperial Concubine, who was unable to travel, the Emperor decided to stay at Longde Hall in the western part of the East Garden. The Crown Prince resided in Ningfu Palace, while the Imperial Guards and Embroidered Uniform Guard sealed off half the garden, making it an impenetrable fortress.
Zhonghua Hall, where Yu Wang stayed, was also heavily guarded.
However, the east route to Hongqing Hall and the south to Chongzhi Hall couldn’t be as securely guarded, and their defenses were more like those of a typical official’s residence.
Chongzhi Hall, also known as the Small South Courtyard, had once been used to imprison an unlucky emperor from a previous dynasty. This emperor had been captured by the Tartars during a northern campaign and mistreated for a year. The Tartars had hoped to ransom him for wealth and land, but after deliberating, the ministers decided it wasn’t worth the cost and installed his younger brother as the new emperor. With the former emperor no longer useful as a hostage, the Tartars released him, hoping to stir up trouble. The new emperor had no choice but to grant his brother the title of Taishang Emperor and confined him to the small courtyard.
The courtyard was cold and desolate, surrounded by high walls. The deposed emperor had resigned himself to living out his days in misery. However, eight years later, when the new emperor fell gravely ill, loyal ministers snuck into the courtyard, knocked down the walls with large beams, and rescued the former emperor, who then reclaimed the throne.
When the emperor experienced his “rebirth,” he ordered a section of the courtyard wall to be left unrepaired, believing it to be fate. That breach in the southern wall, connected to the imperial city, remained to this day.
Fengan Marquis, though outwardly humble, refused to stay in the ill-fated hall and instead occupied Hongqing Hall by himself, sending everyone else to the Small South Courtyard.
Thus, six distinguished officials, along with their servants, and Su Yan, who was included for some reason, found themselves living cramped in Chongzhi Hall.
Not only was there no private kitchen, but they also had to eat communal meals and take turns for the limited hot water to bathe.
During dinner, the top-ranking scholar of the year, Cui Jinping, sat beside Su Yan with his bowl and sighed, “I thought that passing the imperial exam would lead to a swift rise to the top, but now I’m buried in paperwork every day and even caught up in this unforeseen disaster.”
Su Yan swallowed a piece of meat and said nonchalantly, “This is hardly a disaster. Just look at this: meat, vegetables, soup, hot water, and a bed. All we’re missing is a phone and Wi-Fi. I’m already content.”
Cui Jinping didn’t understand what Su Yan meant by a “phone” or “Wi-Fi,” assuming it was some local dialect like how Master Lianzhou kept muttering “hungry, hungry,” so he didn’t dwell on it. Instead, he continued, “Even though you’ve suffered a great injustice today, you remain calm and unflustered. I truly admire you. But why do you think the Emperor asked you to stay? Could he still harbor doubts about your innocence?”
Su Yan glanced at him, then quickly scanned the hall, spotting two familiar faces—his fellow tanhua Yun Xi, and Liu Weiyi, a Shaozhanshi from the Ministry of Ceremonies.
There was also someone he had only heard of but never met: Jia Gongji, Youqiandou Imperial Censor of the Censorate. Su Yan had witnessed this Jia Censor’s scathing verbal prowess while attending to the emperor in the Imperial Study. His words were sharp as knives, capable of cutting down his opponents. He had been the one to lead the charge in filing a memorial accusing the Eastern Palace of harboring immoral conduct, tarnishing the nation’s dignity.
In addition, there were two unfamiliar faces. Neither wore official robes, and Su Yan couldn’t recall their names. However, it was clear from their casual conversation and grumbling that they were acquainted with each other.
Meanwhile, Liu Weiyi and Jia Gongji, who evidently had old grievances, were locked in a verbal sparring match. With their similar ranks as Fourth rank officials, they refused to give way to each other, exchanging pointed remarks back and forth.
Only Yun Xi sat alone in a corner, his posture upright and elegant, resembling a white plum tree blooming in solitude against the winter cold. When Su Yan smiled at him, Yun Xi only gave a slight nod, his expression cool and distant, like a snow-covered lake.
Cui Jinping observed the exchange and whispered to Su Yan, “The tanhua scholar is so arrogant. He looks down on everyone. If he even nodded at you, consider it a rare honor. I’ve personally run into his cold shoulder before and have no interest in dealing with him again.”
Su Yan replied, “Everyone’s temperament is different. A reserved demeanor doesn’t mean a cold heart. Brother Pingshan, please be understanding.”
Cui Jinping frowned slightly. “What kind of friendship do we have? You’ve barely exchanged words with him, and yet you’re taking his side.”
Su Yan chuckled and placated him, “My bad. I should side with you and call him a frosty block of ice with no sense of humanity.”
Only then did Cui Jinping’s irritation turn to amusement.
On the other side of the hall, Jia Gongji’s sharp criticisms gradually shifted focus to the Crown Prince. He began to berate the Ministry of Ceremonies for failing in its duty to educate the Crown Prince, accusing Liu Weiyi, as a lecturing Scholar, of neglecting his responsibilities. As a result, the crown prince had grown into a lazy, misbehaving youth lacking the virtues expected of a future ruler.
Su Yan set down his chopsticks and approached Jia Gongji with a genial smile. “My lords, please calm down. The hall is surrounded by Embroidered Uniform Guard. If your words about the Crown Prince reach their ears and get reported to His Majesty, none of us will escape unscathed.”
Liu Weiyi now felt somewhat uneasy in Su Yan’s presence.
It all stemmed from the gongshi examination day. At the time, he had followed an implicit suggestion from Cheng Sheng Gonggong, assuming the Crown Prince had taken offense at Su Yan. Acting on this belief, he attempted to abuse his power and cross Su Yan’s name off the list of successful candidates. If not for the Emperor’s sudden appearance, the plan would have succeeded.
Who could have guessed that the Crown Prince’s mood was as fickle as the weather in June—changing instantly. Now, he treats Su Yan like the apple of his eye. Liu Weiyi, unsure of how to react, could only sigh at the unpredictable nature of imperial favor, hoping that none of this gets exposed. If Su Yan decides to use the Crown Prince to punish him, Cheng Sheng would probably turn on him as well.
Nervous and uneasy, Liu Weiyi immediately tried to flatter Su Yan after his comment, saying, “It is indeed Su Shidu’s foresight that I must thank for the reminder.”
As an official responsible for expressing opinions, Imperial Censor Jia is like a master of verbal sparring. He sneered at Liu Weiyi’s cowardice, “One is borrowing power, and the other is fierce in appearance but weak in reality. Quite a fitting pair, you could put on a new play titled The Dog-Slaying Tale.”
Knowing he couldn’t outargue Jia Gongji, Liu Weiyi had a flash of inspiration and diverted the topic, “Enough with the insults! It seems you have some grudge against Su Shidu. After all, he was beaten with 50 strokes of the cane because of you. Could it be that you were behind the incident at Fu Tower, framing him?”
Jia Gongji, enraged, retorted, “How dare you accuse me of murder? I could say the same about you! Your own son was squeezed out of a plum position in the Ministry of Revenue by Ye Donglou. Are you not the one harboring hatred, resorting to poison and framing others?”
The two hurled accusations at each other, their argument escalating into a physical altercation. Jia Gongji pinned Liu Weiyi to the ground. Hearing the commotion, several Embroidered Uniform Guard guards rushed in to separate them and sent them back to their rooms.
The two unfamiliar officials, sensing the tension, also quietly took their leave.
Cui Jinping shook his head and said, “Never provoke a censor. Do you not know the famous saying of the late emperor?”
“What is it?” Su Yan asked curiously.
“The late emperor was once performing an opera in the palace when he suddenly heard the loud voice of the Patrol Censor. He asked, ‘Who is causing such a ruckus?’ Then, realizing who it was, the emperor quickly stopped and said, ‘I fear the censors!'”
Su Yan wanted to laugh but held it in, waving his hand, “I’ll take my leave now. See you later.”
“Wait,” Cui Jinping called after him. “Brother Yu found a pot of alcohol in the kitchen and wanted to share a drink with you—let’s get drunk together!”
In his haste to leave, Cui Jinping grabbed Su Yan by the sleeve, pulling him off balance, almost causing him to bump into Yun Xi, who was passing by.
Su Yan let out a small “Ah!” but soon felt a hand at his waist, steadying him.
The hand quickly withdrew, as if stung by a bee. It belonged to Yun Xi, who was always cold as ice.
“My apologies,” Cui Jinping hurriedly said.
“No harm.”
Su Yan cupped his hands in gratitude, “Thank you for your help, Lord Yun.”
Yun Xi gave a slight nod and, with a cool voice, said, “Be careful,” before walking away.
Cui Jinping, surprised, said, “He actually spoke to a stranger! Qinghe, you’re truly a social marvel.”
Su Yan laughed, “Where did that come from? I didn’t expect it either. Let’s drink another day. I need to rest and bathe—today was exhausting.”
***
Wu Ming had been lying in ambush all day along the route that Fengan Marquis Wei Jun would take on his return to his estate.
Throughout the day, enduring the scorching sun and mosquito bites, he hadn’t moved an inch. Even though the servants of the marquis’s household passed by several times, none of them noticed that an assassin lay just a few feet away, ready to strike.
When it came time to kill, he was more tenacious than a camel in the desert and more cunning and cautious than a hunting jackal. He was like a scorpion poised to deliver a lethal sting, his hatred ready to pour out in a deadly strike.
But his target never appeared.
Wei Jun had been under house arrest for two months and was so afraid of another assassination attempt that he had nearly turned his estate into a fortress. Wu Ming, ever since leaving Su Yan’s home, had been looking for an opportunity to strike. Today, during the Dragon Boat Festival, Wei Jun finally left for the Eastern Garden.
Wu Ming had learned that the archery event in the Eastern Garden was an annual tradition. Officials would depart in the early morning and return by late afternoon. But by now, it was evening, and still, no carriages or escorts had appeared.
Sneaking into Wei Jun’s residence, Wu Ming overheard a servant reporting to the steward: “The marquis has been ordered by His Majesty to stay at the Eastern Garden for the night. I was sent back to deliver the message.”
Wu Ming followed the servant to a secluded corner, where he captured and interrogated him. The servant revealed that Wei Jun was staying in the Hongqing Hall, so Wu Ming decided to sneak into the Eastern Garden that very night to kill his enemy.
The walls of the imperial city couldn’t stop Wu Ming and his climbing gear, and even less so the Eastern Garden, which had a gap in its southern wall.
By the time the hour of Hai arrived, Wu Ming was dressed in black and masked, sneaking into the Eastern Garden without alerting a single guard.
He scoured the Hongqing Hall for Wei Jun’s room and eventually found a lit window. Poking a small hole in the paper window, he peered inside.
It was that old traitor Wei Jun! Wu Ming carefully poked a hole in the paper window and peered inside.
He saw Wei Jun engaged in a secretive discussion across the table with a middle-aged man of dusky complexion and a sinister expression.
The man wore a feiyu robe and carried a xiuchun blade at his waist, marking him as a leader of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.
Not knowing what devious schemes this scoundrel was plotting with the court’s lackeys, Wu Ming strained his ears to listen closely.
Wei Jun frowned and reproached, “Lord Feng, your actions have been far too reckless. Framing someone for murder is a brilliant move, but how could it end up implicating the Niang Niang and nearly jeopardizing the imperial heir? Were it not for the protection of my family’s ancestors, ensuring the successful birth of the prince, you’d never atone for this failure, no matter how many lives you had!”
Feng Que sneered coldly, “Well, isn’t that something. I was just about to commend you, Marquis. Extraordinary people indeed do extraordinary things—sacrificing the safety of Imperial Concubine Wei and the imperial heir just to eliminate a mere Crown Prince’s Shidu.”
“What are you saying? You’re claiming it wasn’t you?”
“Which seems to confirm it wasn’t you, either, Marquis. How curious.”
Wei Jun exclaimed in agitation, “Of course it wasn’t me! Childbirth is already like stepping one foot into the gates of death, and premature labor or complications make it even riskier. Everyone in my household has been burning incense and praying for my niece’s safe delivery. How could I possibly have staged a corpse to frighten her?”
Feng Que replied leisurely, “The Imperial Concubine has shown me great kindness, so naturally, I wouldn’t do such a thing either.”
“Then who could it be? And for what purpose?”
“Since the Imperial Concubine has safely given birth, no matter who the culprit behind this case is or what their intentions are, it only works to our advantage. In fact, we could even ride the momentum of their efforts.”
“Are you saying…”
Feng Que’s smile was cold and sinister. “I believe the killer will strike again tonight, assassinating the Crown Prince’s Shidu, Su Yan, in his chamber. What do you think, Marquis?”
Wei Jun was overjoyed. “Yes! Yes! Let’s see who dares to humiliate me after this! I heard the Eastern Palace favored him, though I didn’t believe it before. But seeing the Crown Prince so desperate to take his place today, tsk tsk, if he dies tragically, who knows how heartbroken the Crown Prince will be! Hahaha…”
Feng Que continued, “Everything is already arranged at the little southern courtyard.”
Wu Ming felt a jolt of shock.
These two planned to kill Su Yan, and it seemed the young official’s life was hanging by a thread!
He had originally planned to wait until the Embroidered Uniform Guard leader left, then assassinate Wei Jun—it would have been a sure success.
But if he did that, there would be no time to save Lord Su.
On one hand, revenge was within his grasp. On the other, repayment of a life-saving debt was urgent. Which should he choose?
Wu Ming hesitated for only a moment before making his decision: he would save Su Yan first.
After all, the dead cannot be revived, but opportunities for revenge would still come with time and effort.
Without delay, he retreated under the cover of night, swiftly darting across rooftops like a nimble bat, soaring over the tall walls of the southern courtyard.
Can’t wait until next week to see more? Want to show your support? Come to my Patreon where you can get 5 or more chapters of The Reincarnation of a Powerful Minister right away ! Or go donate at Paypal or Ko-fi to show your appreciation! :)
