Nightfall

At a moment like this, there weren’t many people who could be as calm as Shangguan Yangyu, to accurately find the critical points in this complicated world. However, there were still others who could.

Chao Xiaoshu’s house was on the second street of Eastern City’s Spring Breeze Pavillion.

He held the child in his arms and sat beside his father. He talked softly and dipped the tip of his chopstick into the alcohol and placed it to the mouth of the child. Before the child could lick at it curiously, Linzi grabbed it hurriedly and glared at him.

Today was the Old Lord Chao’s birthday. There was no huge banquet at the Chao Mansion and only a few close friends were invited. All the brothers from the Fish-dragon Gang then had taken leave from their posts and brought their gifts over early.

Thinking about the enthronement of the new Emperor and the undercurrents surging in Chang’an City, the elders must have something to talk about during the banquet. After kowtowing to the Old Lord Chao, they quietly waited for instructions. However, Chao Xiaoshu didn’t say much at the banquet and it was a joyous scene.

At this moment, the steward from the Chao Mansion entered and said a few words. The guests at the banquet were slightly shocked but Chao Xiaoshu had no reaction as he asked nonchalantly, “What did Her Highness send?”

The steward took out the gift list as he reported it again, not daring to leave anything out.

Among the gifts that Li Yu had sent to the Chao Mansion, a large portion of them was for the Old Lord Chao. There was the boxwood cane, a Shoushan Rock, a lake crab from the Great Lake, Nine-river double-distilled wine from the county of Hebei, cosmetics from Chenjinji Cosmetics Store for Mrs Chao and finally, countless toys for the child.

Hearing the steward’s voice, Chao Xiaoshu raised his eyebrows slightly. He didn’t expect Her Highness to send these household gifts to them and after keeping silence for a while, he said, “Let’s continue eating.”

Hence, everyone continued to eat and drink.

When the banquet was over, Old Lord Chao when to the backyard to enjoy some opera. Mrs Chao carried the child to rest while all those working for the steward were asked to leave the drawing room. Only the brothers from the Fish-dragon Gang remained.

Chao Xiaoshu carried the teacups shakily and said, “You guys are no longer the men from the Jianghu world like in the past. You all should keep a lower profile, especially Chen VII. For the next few days, ignore the arrangements of the Bodyguard office. Even if Xu Chongshan suspects you, do not bother. Qi IV, placate our brothers from the gang.”

It had been a long while since he had bothered with the things in the Fish-dragon Gang. However, his words were like the imperial edict to them. Chang Siwei and the rest seemed to have left the Fish-dragon Gang on the surface and were working in the imperial court. However, they would not reject his arrangements and they didn’t even question him.

The only one who would question him was Chen VII. This was because he was the brains of the Fish-dragon Gang.

“What should I do about Fifth brother?” Chen VII looked at the middle-aged man who was silent and said, “Her Highness’ response is very appropriate and we can only accept it. But Fifth Brother controls the Valiant Cavalry Battalion now, and the palace would definitely not allow him to continue being silent. They would need him to take a clear stance.”

Chao Xiaoshu put down the teacup and said, “Many of our brothers are working in the imperial court now. Since that is the case, they would need to share worries with the imperial court and follow what the law of our Tang Empire says.”

The drawing room was silent. Even though everyone admitted that Chao Xiaoshu was right, things were no longer like in the past and when it came to many things, everyone was still clueless.

Chen VII looked at the elders and said with his brows furrowed, “I understand what everyone is worried about but I do not think that there is any cause for worry. There can’t be anything wrong with the Edict as it would be too easily exposed. One must know that when His Majesty passed away, at least tens of thousands of people from Helan City could vouch for it.”

Liu V kept silent all this while. He had the highest ranking now and his position was the most crucial. Only now did he look at Chao Xiaoshu with a solemn expression and asked, “Big brother, did His Majesty tell you who he would hand over the throne to?”

Chao Xiaoshu shook his head and thought about the true big brother of the Fish-dragon Gang. Thinking back to how that friend of his would be someone he would never see again, he could not help but had a smear of fatigue between his brows.

“Everyone, do not do anything during this period.” He said.

Qi IV had a headache as he asked, “Are we supposed to wait like this?”

Chao Xiaoshu said, “What we need to do is wait.”

“Wait for what?”

“Wait for Her Majesty and Master Huang Yang to return to Chang’an.”

“What if they do not return?”

“That means there is a problem.”

The horse hooves flew as the grass that was soaked in water was kicked up in patches.

Over ten Tang cavalry soldiers rode into the Northern Military Camp. Whether it was the riders or the war-horses, they seemed especially tired with rainwater and mud on them. They looked extremely disheveled.

The Commandant of the Northern Military Camp compared the documents and welcomed riding arrivals into the Military camp as quickly as he could. He then asked some soldiers to arrange for hot water, food and drinks for the guests.

The leader of the arriving soldiers said to the general, “I want to meet the head general, we can talk about the rest later.”

The Commandant was shocked upon hearing this. He thought to himself that they had rushed over from the Gushan Commandery to the Northern Military Camp and must be incredibly tired. However, he wanted to meet the head general before even resting. What on earth happened?

The young general from the Gushan Commandery was Hua Shanyue.

This man had a strong backing and had the full support of the princess. He was young but was already the army chief in three states. The army under his command was stationed in the Gushan Commandery and whether it was position or power, he was one to watch out for. Since he asked to see the head general as soon as possible, the Northern Military Camp had no reason to stop him.

In the General’s Mansion, head general Xu Chi looked at the gloomy skies outside the window. He kept silent for a long time before turning around. He looked at Hua Shanyue and said, “You left before the rain stopped?”

Hua Shanyue replied respectfully, “Yes, uncle.”

Xu Chi said, “Young people are always this impatient. You know military things are important and must be handled cautiously. As the commander of the army from three states, you left your camp alone and it is already a breach of military law. If you had met with any accidents along the way, besides the grief your parents would suffer, how would you explain it to the imperial court?”

Hua Shanyue suppressed his exhaustion and said, “This is an urgent matter, so I rushed over.”

Head General Xu Chi was always low-key and composed. Hence when he heard that this was an urgent matter, his expression remained unchanged and he kept silent for a long time again before saying slowly, “Did you know that I had no intentions to meet you?”

Hua Shanyue knew the head general must have guessed why he was here as he laughed and said, “But uncle still chose to meet me in the end. This means that you are willing to hear what I have to say.”

Xu Chi said, “I know what you are about to say or should I say, it is what Her Highness… or what His Majesty is about to say to me. However, I still advise you not to say it.”

Hua Shanyue was slightly shocked as he asked, “Why?”

Xu Chi said, “Because those words are bound to be disrespectful. I… do not want to bind you with my own hands.”

Hua Shanyue said, “If uncle will hear my words and still think that I am disrespectful. Then forget about binding me, even if you chop my head off, I will have no complaints.”

Xu Chi quietly looked him in the eye and said, “The supply of hay from the Northern Military Camp to Helan City had left the city the moment the heavy rain stopped. Do you think what you are about to say still has meaning?”

Hua Shanyue said sincerely, “Head general has some misunderstanding with His Majesty and Her Highness. No one had the intention to cut the supply of hay to Helan City. Even more so, no one would be shameless to play any cheap tricks on the soldiers of the Tang Army. Her Highness’ request to you is simple, she only hopes that you slow down when taking any action in the future.”

Xu Chi brows slowly stirred as his voice got cold. He asked, “Why slower?”

Hua Shanyue didn’t retreat from the gaze as he said, “Uncle, you have always been known for being composed. This was why the previous emperor had entrusted the Northern Military Camp to you. Now that the new emperor has been enthroned, it is not stable. The later Her Majesty returns to Chang’an, the more stable the Tang Empire will be. Since that is the case, why not go slower?”

Xu Chi said with a heavy voice, “His Majesty is still in Helan City, do you want me to ignore everything?”

Hua Shanyue said, “There will come a day when His Majesty returns to Chang’an. Chang’an City cannot afford another turmoil.”

“What a childish remark.” Xu Chi said expressionlessly, “If that is the case, it is hard for Her Highness to convince me. On the contrary, I will start doubting her intentions.”

Hua Shanyue said, “The Edict was revealed in front of so many civil and military officials. If there was a problem, I believe someone from Chang’an City would have informed uncle secretly. But since up till now, no one, including anyone from Her Majesty has informed you, your suspicions are meaningless.”

There was a sudden disturbance outside the General’s Mansion. An urgent military incident had happened. Hua Shanyue said, “Uncle, go handle it first, we will continue this discussion later.”

After a while, Xu Chi had handled the military affair and returned to the mansion. Looking at Hua Shanyue who was reading a book by the bookshelf and was lost in his own world, he said, “There has been some movement in the Golden Palace.”

Hua Shanyue didn’t expect that the head general would inform him of the emergency military incident. He furrowed his brows and said, “I rushed over from Gushan Commandery and changed four batches of horses along the way. I know better than anyone else that the road after a rain is incredibly tough. It is even tougher in the Wilderness. The convoy can barely make it past but how would a large number of cavalry do so? The grassland cavalry is slightly lighter and under such weather conditions, it is more favorable for the Tang cavalry. If that is the case, uncle should be more careful.”

“In any case, you just want to persuade me to reach Helan City at a slower pace.”

Head general Xu Chi looked at him and said, “Do not use a possible ambush by the Golden Palace to influence my judgment. My cavalry will never be ambushed by others. Her Highness is a smart person; she knows I will only listen to His Majesty and follow the law of the Tang Empire. To convince me, you must have other means.”

Hua Shanyue took out several files that were wrapped tightly in some oilcloth and placed them lightly on the table.

“According to Her Highness’ intentions, these things wouldn’t be necessary to convince uncle. That would be the best result. Because once these leak out, they will leave a huge smudge on the reputation of the Tang Empire and the previous Emperor.”

Hearing his serious words, Xu Chi’s expression turned solemn as well. He walked behind the table and slowly opened up these files. As he read on, his gaze turned colder and colder.