Chapter 72
Chapter 72
“Will that truly work?” Su Qinghe’s brows drew together. Worry lingered on his refined face; he could not shake the feeling that the matter would not end so simply.
He raised his eyes gently to Shen Yuan’s face. “Brother Shen, do you know why the Second Prince suddenly sought me out?”
Shen Yuan paused, then slowly shook his head. “No.”
“You and the Second Prince don’t appear to have a very good relationship.” Su Qinghe spoke tentatively, secretly watching Shen Yuan’s expression. “Did some misunderstanding arise while you were in Yizhou?”
A misunderstanding…
Shen Yuan lowered his eyes, his thoughts unreadable. Only after a long while did he ask softly, almost to himself, “Does my relationship with His Highness truly look that bad?”
He could feel that Xie Chengze had begun distancing himself after the day Shen Yuan persuaded him to surrender the gunpowder formula. Apart from official business, Xie Chengze barely interacted with him at all.
Even on the road back from Yizhou, Xie Chengze had preferred to suffer an aching back in the carriage rather than ask Shen Yuan for a single favor.
It was not as though Shen Yuan had never tried to make peace. But after yielding time and again only to meet a heart of stone, he too could feel hurt. He too could sulk.
Moreover, countless eyes at court were watching him now. It truly would not be wise to appear too close to Xie Chengze and bring mortal danger down upon him.
Thus, Shen Yuan could only allow the distance between them to grow.
Beside him, Su Qinghe considered his words for a moment, then said in a delicate tone, “The Second Prince… does seem to dislike you quite a bit. And you were too aggressive just now. You pressed him at every turn. The Second Prince is imperial nobility – how could he tolerate such provocation from another?”
“That is because you don’t understand…” Shen Yuan defended Xie Chengze instinctively, only to pause and shake his head. “It is a long story and not something outsiders should know. In any event, the Second Prince is an exceptionally good man and will not hold this against me. He merely behaves in strange ways that ordinary people sometimes find difficult to understand. If he offended you just now, I apologize on his behalf.”
Outsider…
An exceptionally good man…
Apologizing on his behalf…
Su Qinghe pressed his lips together lightly, his heart turning sour.
Every word Shen Yuan spoke excluded Su Qinghe. Not only had he never asked what Su Qinghe endured inside the hall, he even brushed aside the Second Prince’s actions and tried to use his own bond with the prince to settle the conflict, as though the humiliation Su Qinghe suffered in Chenghuan Hall could simply be erased.
Big Brother Shen had never acted like this before. He had always been attentive to Su Qinghe’s feelings and would never let him suffer a grievance. He had never defended the Second Prince at every turn as he did now.
Yet Su Qinghe, who could neither reject nor hate Shen Yuan despite all this, was probably the more ridiculous one.
“I understand.” His voice trembled faintly. “Once I return home, I will immediately claim illness and stop going out.”
Shen Yuan noticed nothing amiss. He merely assumed that being forced into marriage today had shaken Su Qinghe so badly that his emotions were unstable. He escorted him all the way beyond the palace gates before turning back inside.
Once seated in the carriage, Su Qinghe slowly lowered his head and discovered countless deep crescent marks gouged into his palm.
“Young Master!” His servant caught sight of them and immediately ached for him. “Lord Shen too! He actually defended that useless Second Prince just now without caring how you were bullied!”
Everyone in the Su family knew that the Second Prince was ambitious beyond his abilities and unworthy of his station. Not long ago, he had even made His Majesty send delicacies from the Imperial Kitchens all the way to distant Yizhou in a grand, extravagantly wasteful procession. Had he not benefited from Lord Shen resolving Yizhou’s floods, the scholars of the Hanlin Academy would have denounced him long ago!
From the family head to the clansmen, from the servants to the coachmen, not a single person in the entire Su household respected the Second Prince!
“Jingmo, watch your words.” Su Qinghe shook his head. “Big Brother Shen merely wished to avoid further trouble. I have neither authority nor influence. I truly should not make an enemy of the Second Prince.”
“This servant understands. I simply ache for you, Young Master, and am angry that Lord Shen did not take your side.” Jingmo sighed. “Of all people, why did you have to fall in love with…”
“Jingmo!” Su Qinghe’s tone sharpened. Only then did Jingmo duck his head and slap his own mouth. “I understand, Young Master. This servant will say no more.”
His young master was such a coward!
…
As expected, an invitation from Chenghuan Hall arrived at the Su Residence the next day.
Su Qinghe announced that he had caught a cold. No more invitations came, but precious medicinal tonics arrived at the Su Residence every day instead.
Chenghuan Hall’s attitude was forceful enough that Su Qinghe could not refuse them. After seven troubled days, another invitation arrived, asking after his illness and whether he was well enough to enter the palace for a conversation.
Su Qinghe hesitated repeatedly and sought Shen Yuan’s advice. Afterward, he declined the invitation on the grounds that his illness had worsened.
He expected the master of Chenghuan Hall to fly into a rage. Instead, no more invitations arrived, nor did medicinal tonics continue appearing at the Su Residence every day. It seemed the prince had given up.
Only then did Su Qinghe breathe a sigh of relief.
Meanwhile, at Chenghuan Hall, Xie Chengze wore a miserable little face and was deeply unhappy.
Because he had to work the morning shift again.
Shen Yuan had uncovered the mastermind behind the assassination. Every clue pointed to Minister of Revenue Yang Qinghui’s involvement in the Yizhou corruption case, while the Yizhou affair itself was plainly only the tip of the iceberg. Many more corruption cases had to lie behind it. Shen Yuan therefore submitted a memorial to His Majesty requesting a thorough investigation into corruption within the Ministry of Revenue.
But Yang Qinghui’s influence at court was already deeply entrenched. The moment the memorial appeared, numerous officials defended him and cried injustice on his behalf. Yang Qinghui himself loudly proclaimed his innocence, recounting how diligently he had served two successive sovereigns, only to be excluded and slandered by a petty villain. Instead of receiving His Majesty’s trust, he had been branded with a false charge. His indignant grief made the civil and military officials fear for their own kind, filling their hearts with unease.
His Majesty plainly intended to purge the court. Would their own day come in the future?
If they stood by while the Minister of Revenue suffered today and allowed that great tree to fall, those who depended on him – and those who feared they would be next – would be uprooted one by one. At best, they would never rise again. At worst, not one head among their nine generations would remain attached to a neck.
They had to force Emperor Jian to treat the matter lightly.
The court dissolved into noisy argument, giving Emperor Jian such a headache that he could no longer manage it. So he dragged Xie Chengze out of Chenghuan Hall, where the prince had been curled up sleeping.
Xie Chengze could only curse and grumble his way to court.
That morning, every minister was already in place. The Crown Prince and Fourth Prince had arrived as well. Shen Yuan stood in the hall wearing purple official robes, the sheer righteousness around him seeming to clear an empty space. No one dared approach him.
At the appointed hour, Emperor Jian emerged from behind the rear curtain and seated himself on the dragon throne. Yet he remained silent and did not announce the opening of court for a long time.
The ministers began glancing sideways and exchanging looks.
Why had court not begun?
What were they waiting for?
An official was gently nudged forward by his colleague. He stepped out slowly and asked tentatively, “Your Majesty, the hour has arrived. Will court not begin?”
Emperor Jian lifted his eyelids and gave him an irritated look. “What is the hurry? Can you not see that my Chengze has yet to arrive?”
The Second Prince?
The officials suddenly understood. After the Second Prince’s half-year absence from the capital, they had grown accustomed to him missing court. Hearing that he was to attend again after so long left them strangely dazed.
Still…
They had heard that the Second Prince’s arms and legs were wounded in the attack. Yet he was still coming to court. He truly remained as conscientious and dutiful as ever!
The officials were marveling inwardly when limping footsteps sounded at the entrance. Along with them came a familiar stream of chatter. In the silent, echoing hall, every word carried with exceptional clarity.
“Court is bitter, court is tiring; court just makes me want to sleep. Court is vexing, court is hard; court just makes me want to leave the palace and play. My arms are empty, my purse is empty; single and wretched, I toil away. My work means nothing, my career means nothing; the more I think, the more I want to lose my mind! Alas and alack! I open my eyes and the dream is shattered – endless affairs of state await!”
His tone twisted in plaintive lament, half song and half sob.
The officials: …
The officials: !!!
Second Prince, well said!