Huo Xian’s face was extremely serious, as if he intended to talk all night. Ji Yuluo did not think otherwise. She stepped forward and sat cross-legged, asking, “How do you plan to investigate the Duke of Zhenguo’s mansion?”
Huo Xian bent one leg and rested his wrist on his knee. “We’ll start with what we know. Back then in Yunyang, what enmity did Zhao Yong have with you?”
As soon as he finished speaking, Huo Xian saw Ji Yuluo’s fingers, which had been tapping on her knee, stop. Her straight back visibly tensed. Though her expression remained unchanged, her eyes filled with a chilling intensity, giving the impression that anyone who mentioned Zhao Yong would face death.
This wasn’t the first time Huo Xian noticed that whenever Zhao Yong was mentioned, Ji Yuluo became agitated and gloomy, like someone had touched her reverse scale, and the cold edge in her eyes became as sharp as a blade.
Huo Xian watched her clench her fist tightly. “Zhao Yong and the Duke of Zhenguo’s mansion are closely connected. To investigate the Xiao family, we must first investigate Zhao Yong. Besides, don’t you want to know whether the Xiao family was involved in what happened back then?”
Ji Yuluo’s lips pressed into a thin line. In the long silence, only the candle flame on the small table crackled. Huo Xian waited patiently.
After a long time, Ji Yuluo’s hand relaxed. Her expression remained calm as she said coldly, “He killed my brother.”
Obviously, this brother wasn’t the child still being nursed in the Ji family. Moreover, where would she have a brother? Perhaps she was adopted by another family back then. Huo Xian asked, “When did this happen?”
Ji Yuluo replied, “Seven or eight years ago. That year, Huo Jue was defeated in battle, and the livelihood of Yunyang’s people was in decline. Bandits ran rampant, and officials took advantage of the chaos to loot, blaming the crimes on the bandits. The larger the family, the more likely they were to become a target. Back then, Yunyang’s wealthiest family was the Qiao family.”
Huo Xian was taken aback.
He and Liyang had gone through the records of Yunyang’s cases from the past few years, trying to find any clues. As soon as Ji Yuluo mentioned it, he immediately thought of that case.
After Yunyang’s defeat, there were multiple cases of bandits looting and even exterminating entire families. The Qiao family was one of these cases. What made Huo Xian remember it vividly was that the Qiao family was the wealthiest merchant family in Yunyang, dealing in gold, silver, and jade. They were so wealthy that they were almost as rich as half the city. However, the entire family of dozens of people died in one night. The sheer number of deaths made it more tragic than other similar cases.
Huo Xian remembered that the records mentioned three members of the Qiao family. That family indeed had a son. He couldn’t help but ask gently, “What happened afterward?”
Ji Yuluo wrapped her belt around her fingers, saying, “That night, a group of masked men in black broke in. Qiao Xun and I hid in a cabinet and weren’t discovered. Those men thought no one was in the room and removed their masks. I recognized the leader; he was a county official and a regular customer of the Qiao family’s shop. The next day, the official reported the incident to the prefecture as a bandit raid, and it was quickly closed. Knowing the truth, I took Qiao Xun and reported it to the authorities.”
Huo Xian paused. Whether in the capital or the provinces, officials protecting each other was common. Especially in major cases like this, it wasn’t something a minor official could decide. Looking at the case of the prefecture being slaughtered, the outcome was clear.
Reporting to the authorities was like a death warrant. Those people would never let witnesses live.
Ji Yuluo released her grip, and the belt curved. The area above her collarbone indented slightly with her breath. “At that time, Zhao Yong was in the back courtyard of the government office. He personally killed Qiao Xun.”
Her voice was too calm.
Her eyes lowered, hiding the agitation, leaving only the coldness buried at the bottom of a frigid pool.
Huo Xian’s fingertips brushed over his sleep pants, thinking quietly for a moment.
Huo Jue had died, and his body was personally returned from Yunyang by the Marquis of Xuanping. The Huo family was in deep mourning for the loss of their eldest son. At that time, what was he doing? In any case, he hadn’t been colluding with Zhao Yong then. He was unaware of his movements, but it wasn’t easy for an eunuch to leave the palace, let alone travel to Yunyang. If that were the case, why wouldn’t the late emperor investigate?
No, it wasn’t impossible. Even he, as the “adopted son,” had been kept in the dark about the secret passage. How would the late emperor know?
Both fell silent, lost in their own thoughts.
After a while, Huo Xian came back to his senses, “Was it for money?”
Ji Yuluo said, “That night, the group of men in black used Madam Qiao to coerce Qiao Zhengping and obtained over thirty keys from the Qiao family, even emptying the secret vault of gold bars. If not for money, then for what?”
Huo Xian squinted slightly, “If it was for money, why did Zhao Yong need to go personally? We need to find out where that money was used and how.”
But how to investigate was another problem, as everyone involved except Zhao Yong had been killed by Ji Yuluo.
Ji Yuluo seemed to catch the meaning in Huo Xian’s eyes and couldn’t help frowning. She lifted her gaze slightly, “They deserved to die. Since we know who the culprit is, what’s there to investigate?”
Annoying.
Huo Xian seemed to hear her inner complaint. He leaned against the bedhead with his arms crossed, saying, “You’ve only seen part of it. If we don’t investigate, how will we deal with those who slipped through the net? Don’t you want justice for why the Qiao family died?”
Ji Yuluo tugged at her lips without speaking.
Years ago, the two young children had narrowly escaped death and went to the authorities to seek justice. The word “justice” was deeply ironic to her, and hearing it from someone like Huo Xian made it even more laughable.
Huo Xian was aware of this, so he said no more. “It’s late. We’ll talk about the rest tomorrow. Let’s sleep.”
Ji Yuluo, still troubled and distracted, responded coldly and pulled up the quilt to lie down. She stared at the top of the bed canopy, seemingly in a daze.
The long conversation nearly made them forget they were in bed. Ji Yuluo also forgot there was only one quilt. Huo Xian watched her for a while, then blew out the candle and lifted the other side of the quilt.
As the long night wore on, light rain began to fall outside the window. The sound of rain was clear and soothing, leading to sleep. By early morning, the rain grew heavy, accompanied by thunder and lightning, brightening the window intermittently.
Huo Xian, a light sleeper, opened his eyes to a dim, almost light sky.
Not used to sharing a bed, Huo Xian raised his hand to pinch his nose.
Amid the rumbling thunder, it was surprising that the usually alert person next to him made no movement. He turned his head and saw only the back of Ji Yuluo’s head and a sliver of skin below her collar. As he was about to look away, he paused, “Ji Yuluo.”
No response.
Huo Xian reached out to touch the back of her neck, finding her skin burning hot, like touching a furnace. He immediately sat up, turning her to lie flat, and lightly patted her face, “Wake up.”
“Don’t bother me.” The woman frowned, irritably swatting his hand away and turning her back to him again.
Huo Xian got up, draped on a robe, and opened the door. He intended to instruct Nanyue to fetch a doctor, but as soon as the door opened, he found himself face-to-face with a girl dressed as a heroine. She held a sword and peered over his shoulder into the room.
Nanyue hurriedly said, “This person was brought by that girl called Hong Shuang. She refuses to leave. What does the master wish to instruct?”
Huo Xian said, “She has a fever, likely from a cold. Go get a doctor.”
Nanyue took a moment to understand who “she” referred to, while Chaolu took the opportunity to slip inside.
For two consecutive days, Ji Yuluo had first danced in a belly-exposing dress in the freezing wind and then soaked in cold water to avoid Xiao Yuanjing. She had also entered a secret passage, all of which took a toll on her body. Even iron could not withstand such strain.
The doctor checked her pulse, diagnosing it as a cold, not serious. After prescribing medicine, Nanyue sent him off.
By then, the sky had fully brightened, but the rain had not stopped.
Huo Xian ordered the maid to brew the medicine and stood by the bed, watching for a while. The little girl called Chaolu was fussing over Ji Yuluo, her face full of worry. She glared at Huo Xian, but seemed somewhat intimidated by him, and turned back to say, “How could Miss be sick? She never gets sick, except when she’s injured!”
Huo Xian shifted his gaze away from Ji Yuluo, “Does your miss often get injured?”
Chaolu huffed but didn’t respond.
Nanyue asked from behind the screen, “Master, are we still going to the garrison?”
“Yes,” Huo Xian glanced around the room. The maids and servants were busy, and after a quick look at Ji Yuluo, he finished dressing and stepped out.
–
Seven or eight years ago, Liyang likely knew more about the court’s affairs than Huo Xian.
Emperor Chenghe had personally placed him beside Zhao Yong, and within a few years, passed away, leaving nothing behind except a useful Liyang in the Jinyiwei.
When Huo Xian asked about the events of those years, Liyang thought for a moment before speaking, “The late emperor wanted to break free from the control of the Directorate of Ceremonial, and he sought every opportunity to abolish the Eastern Depot, but to no avail. He definitely didn’t know about the secret passage, otherwise he would have implicated the Duke of Zhenguo. Back then, the late emperor still trusted the Duke and even wanted to rely on him to overthrow Zhao Yong.”
As his words fell, Liyang’s expression suddenly changed.
When Emperor Chenghe ascended the throne, he was still in good health, but later he suddenly became ill, as if a mountain of pain had descended upon him. When did it start? It was precisely when he revealed his true intentions to Xiao Cheng!
Zhao Yong had always preferred timid, incompetent, and obedient emperors. When Crown Prince Huaijin died, the Eastern Palace was left vacant, and Emperor Xianzhen never established a successor until his death. Just like Zhao Yong later chose Emperor Shun’an, back then he also picked the obscure and low-ranking sixth prince, who was the late emperor.
The late emperor feigned foolishness and incompetence in front of him, but he couldn’t maintain the pretense and hastily tried to erode the power of the eunuch faction, which led to a backlash because he had chosen the wrong person!
Huo Xian pieced together the story from Liyang’s words and asked, “After Huo Jue’s defeat, Zhao Yong personally went to Yunyang. It would take at least twenty days to make the round trip from the capital at full speed. Do you remember this?”
Twenty days was too long. Zhao Yong had never taken such a long leave before. Just as Liyang was about to shake his head, he suddenly stopped, “During that time, Zhao Yong fell seriously ill and didn’t serve at court for almost a month. It was then that the late emperor took the opportunity to relieve Zhao Yong of his duties. Could it have been that time?”
Huo Xian pondered deeply, tapping the table, “Huo Jue’s defeat… things were chaotic then. Why did he rush to Yunyang at that time? What else happened then?”
Xuan Prefecture lost two cities, and there were too many affairs in the court at that time.
First, troops were dispatched to retake the cities, and weapons and provisions had to be prepared. Refugees from Xuan Prefecture flooded into the capital, bringing with them a plague, adding insult to injury. Disaster relief funds were being allocated continuously. On the other hand, Yunyang’s mess had to be cleaned up, and post-disaster reconstruction was necessary. Military inspectors were overseeing the situation, but the issue of the treasury’s silver required the Ministry of Revenue officials to audit—
The treasury’s silver…
Huo Xian suddenly raised his head, “Who was sent to audit the treasury’s silver back then?”
