Book 15: Chapter 16
Leaving off a Jade Hairpin. A Suave Man’s Depiction.
I had recovered back to my usual self for seven days by this point. I had been through a hundred painful days and finally enjoyed seven good days. I had an urge to cry whenever I recalled the one hundred days of bullying that I suffered. Thus, I lazed in bed, refused to see anyone besides the people delivering my food by demand, and spent my time catching up on missed releases of Black and White Reflection, to make up for lost time. The seven days of bliss almost erased all the misery I was subjected to for a hundred days. I almost forgot the sight of Uncle Jiyi fleeing into the secret passage. I vaguely remembered Zero beating up a bald block. I thought Zero picked up some weird fetish while working for the imperial court. Of course, all was well once I woke up. Alas, my vacation was nearly over.
Uncle Huang and Boss were both looking forward to my return and borrowing my genius. It was tough carrying everything. Specifically, Uncle Huang told me, “If you don’t return to classes, you’ll be expelled,” and Boss told me, “Get your lazy bum back to the academy.”
Tsunderes.
I was pretty sure something else happened in the capital while I was cooped up in my room because there was a line of people looking to lick Song Ou’s boots glossy every day. He should’ve been happy to have received the greatest privileges in his life, yet he tried hard to create a righteous character as if to avoid some sort of imminent omen he foresaw, checking everyone who wanted to join him. As a result, he was the busiest person at the office; he looked so gaunt when I saw him that I thought I saw a ghost. On the other hand, Zha Pi, who’d been setting traps with his right hand and embezzling with his left hand, had visibly gained weight.
There were no more security concerns after the White Princes’ debacle. Had it not been for Gongsun Chu’s rich experience going up against the three offices, the White Princes wouldn’t have had their way from the beginning.ｂｅ𝚍ｎｏ𝚟𝚎ｌ.𝚌𝚘ｍ
I told Gongsun Chu that I’d summon him with a letter when I needed him. I didn’t see a reason to worry about my career anymore since he had the looks, brains, experience, and competence.
Zero came to bid me farewell before he had to leave to deal with a problem at the southern border. Among my friends from back in the day, he was the only person left who supported me after I sought employment under the imperial court, but he had to leave, too.
Sad.
Even Boss had been so busy outside lately that I barely saw her. Last time, she came back just to change before heading out again. I think she was involved in discussions on how to approach the White Princes going forward. She packed some luggage, probably to stay in the palace for a few days, and then left after a few words. Logically speaking, she should’ve focused on organising the office since we had to leave the capital soon, yet she didn’t seem to care that Song Ou was slowly seizing control.
The day following the day they withdrew their troops, the White Princes sent letters of apologies to His Majesty; Cold Mountain Temple was among them. They unanimously swore that they mobilised their forces because they received reports that a dangerous enemy was closing in on the capital, so they had to take action before they had time to notify His Majesty. They claimed to be ignorant to the fact that they were being used as part of the perpetrators’ plot.
Mount Lu Sword Sanctuary mentioned they fought the dangerous foe, but the foe escaped them and went for the imperial palace. Mount Lu Sword Sanctuary’s sincerity and testimony had Emperor Yuansheng gluing his brows together.
Emperor Yuansheng was furious when he read Cold Mountain Temple’s letter. Uncle Jiyi blamed Xun Feng for everything, and he offered to step down for failing in his duty as a mentor. He further claimed that Uncle Huang was either framing him for Elder Yu’s death, or there was some misunderstanding. Therefore, he was willing to visit the capital in person for His Majesty to judge him. When Yi Ya arrived at Cold Mountain Temple, the monks of Cold Mountain Temple had handcuffed themselves, gathering a huge audience all around Suzhou. Yi Ya apprehended all of them, but he couldn’t just extradite all of them back to the capital on account of their reputation. Plus, it wasn’t the order he was given, so he resorted to locking them up in Suzhou until he received further instructions.
Uncle Huang didn’t have evidence to prove that Uncle Jiyi was the culprit in Elder Yu’s death. Tiangou’s testimony alone wasn’t sufficient to incriminate him. Uncle Jiyi really did plan well. If nothing else, he could’ve escaped from Suzhou’s prison whenever he wanted at his skill level.
I yawned as I stepped out of my room for the first time in days.
The imperial court had a lot on its plate, but how much could I have done as one man?
You want me to take one of your sons on as my pupil? Ha! I just escaped hell, and you want to push me into a pit of lava?
Sixth was losing his touch. Who in their right mind would work with the imperial court? Mount Daluo? Come on. How was a sect of generational thugs, I mean heroes, supposed to fit in to the imperial court? We couldn’t even do a proper job of supporting a Prince. What were we supposed to do? Commit arson, extortion, and intimidation? Besides, how could we go against our own kind and help the wealthy imperial family bully we good men in the martial world? Wouldn’t we be the imperial court’s legitimate lap dog, then? People in the martial world would mock us for eternity. This matter required more deliberation.
Shiniang told me to pick a Prince to support. She never specified we had to become a part of his faction. I could say we were supporting a Prince… As for being a mentor… yeah, forget it. Every single one of them was trouble in their own way. If one of them had a short circuit and copied Orange Prince, myself and everyone related to me would’ve been executed.
I arrived at Eight Deities. Boss and I had wanted to expand Liu Shan Men. Since the imperial court was going to give us troops, we had to recruit members ourselves. I happened to have an ingenious idea.
“Good to see everyone here.”