Chapter 121

Chapter 121

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A client died in Fengyue Tower, amidst the den of ecstasy, on a bed of beauty, which could be seen as a poetic end: to die under peony flowers, even as a ghost, is romantic.

The cause of death was widely debated. The yamen runners of the Court of Judicial Review guarded Fengyue Tower for seven consecutive days, hoping to catch the murderer. Finally, they secretly took a Hanlin scholar back to the interrogation room.

The case implicated many officers who enjoyed their leisure time in Fengyue Tower. The Court of Judicial Review, lacking the authority for private adjudication, reported to the Emperor, and the case was transferred to the Censorate.

Thirty lashes could cripple a man for life. With many foreign delegations in the capital, it was impossible to let officials drag their injured bodies around, damaging the face of Great Yu. Thus, the two Vice Chancellors proposed a compromise to Emperor Renshou: a one-year salary penalty for all involved.

This punishment was somewhat severe, considering Fengyue Tower had been operating for many years with a renowned reputation. It was one of the wealthiest areas in the Yu capital, and even a death wouldn’t shut it down, partly because of an unspoken understanding among the officials:

The Emperor himself would visit for pleasure.

"When those above act improperly, those below will follow." It's a simple truth, but no one dared to say it out loud.

Emperor Renshou’s mood darkened for several days, harboring a deep grudge against the junior magistrate who brought the matter to light.

Before even punishing the murderer, he blamed the junior magistrate for incompetence. Along with the officers involved in the brothel visit, they were penalized one year's salary and received ten lashes each.

Rong Tang was stunned in the courtyard when he heard this news, unable to utter a word, while Su Huaijing’s face showed a rare expression of murderous gloom.

The sticks of the Court of Judicial Review were barbed and dipped in salt water. Ten lashes would leave even a healthy person bedridden for half a month, yet Mu Jingxu was only granted three days of sick leave.

Su Huaijing asked, "Tang Tang, what do you think of the current state of Great Yu?"

"Not good," Rong Tang replied, pausing before adding, "Very bad."

Throughout history, the decline of prosperous times has always followed a pattern.

Look at Great Yu now, with its vast land and strong people, yet those in power are closed-minded and turn a deaf ear; officials indulge in their own greed, filling their pockets; soldiers lack ambition, fearing death more than valuing life...

And the Emperor spends millions of taels of silver on a single traveling palace, squandering the hard-earned wealth of the people for personal pleasures and greed.

At this rate, within ten years, Great Yu will surely fall.

Even without Su Huaijing in the original storyline, Sheng Chengli would find it difficult to save this illusionary prosperity, as ephemeral as flowers reflected in a mirror or the moon reflected in water.

Su Huaijing spoke, "Father Emperor once said he could only be a ruler who maintains the status quo. As long as the country does not decline under his reign, he would not dishonor our ancestors. When the eldest brother grows into a wise ruler capable of leading alone, he would abdicate in favor of the wiser."

By then, with Sheng Fuzhe for literary matters and Wei Zhun for military affairs, and a wise monarch at the helm, the youth with their fresh and forward-thinking ideas, Great Yu might have a bright future.

But now, looking closely at the country that the late Emperor guarded for twenty-five years, its roots have already begun to rot.

Su Huaijing gazed towards the autumn night stars, silent for a long time, not sharing his plans with Rong Tang.

Rong Tang didn’t press for answers or ask questions, simply accompanying him quietly, along with the system, wherever it might be in the courtyard.

After a while, Su Huaijing smiled, the gloom in his eyes dissipating, softly asking, "Shall we visit elder brother?"

Rong Tang nodded without hesitation, "Yes."

-

Mu Jingxu had his own residence in the capital, located in the southern part of the city, not far from Yong'an Lane. When Rong Tang and Su Huaijing arrived, the last purple-red cloud in the sky had hidden itself under the night.

A carriage was parked at the entrance, its opulence rivaling that of Prince Ningxuan's residence.

Mu Jingxu's residence was quiet and modest, with only a few servants. As Rong Tang stepped inside, he noticed that most of those bustling around the courtyard were people brought by Ke Hongxue.

Rong Tang asked Su Huaijing, "Are they living together now?"

Su Huaijing's eyes lifted slightly, his emotions unreadable, as he led Rong Tang into the courtyard.

Inside the house, the lights were on, and the furnishings, though simple, exuded a discreet luxury, obviously beyond what the salary of the junior magistrate of the Court of Judicial Review could afford.

As the two entered, they encountered Ke Hongxue coming out to change the water.

Ke Hongxue paused briefly, then smiled naturally, "The senior just fell asleep. Had I known you were coming, I would have asked him to wait a bit longer."

Rong Tang glanced down, unable to bear the sight, and averted his eyes.

The water in the copper basin was dyed a pale red, and the bloodstains on the soaked towel were patchy, varying in intensity, indicating it had been changed many times.

Su Huaijing's expression darkened instantly, his grip on Rong Tang's hand unconsciously tightening.

He quickly relaxed his grip, but his overflowing emotions couldn't be hidden. After a moment, he asked, "Is there an empty room in the residence? Tang Tang and I will stay here tonight."

"One room or two?" Ke Hongxue asked in a subdued voice, careful not to wake someone who had just fallen asleep.

Su Huaijing: "Two."

Both Ke Hongxue and Rong Tang were surprised for a moment, exchanging glances before looking away.

Vice Director Ke instructed someone to clean the room, while Su Huaijing stood at the door for a while before leaving the front of Mu Jingxu's house.

Rong Tang asked him, "Aren’t you going in to check?"

"It might wake him up." Su Huaijing's voice was soft, steady, with an undertone of panic he didn’t realize he had.

Rong Tang squeezed his hand, silently keeping him company.

Anything said would seem irrelevant, detached from personal concern.

Mu Jingxu’s body was frail, prone to fainting from the cold, suffering pain when exposed to dampness in the dungeon, much like Rong Tang, unable to endure the slightest hardship.

Even more so, in the previous lives, he had died even earlier than Rong Tang.

And at that time, there wasn’t this inexplicable punishment from the Emperor.

Having witnessed the end, Rong Tang was even more panicked than Su Huaijing.

Unable to sleep, tossing and turning at night, he put on his clothes and got up. Seeing that Su Huaijing’s room was pitch-dark, he didn’t disturb him and slowly walked to Mu Jingxu's door.

There, he saw Ke Hongxue standing in the courtyard, his red attire still elegant, but with some indistinct dark red stains under the night sky.

Rong Tang lowered his head, noticing Ke Hongxue's sleeve trembling imperceptibly at his side, his hand clenched into a fist, still occasionally revealing a shadow due to uncontrollable shaking.

He stood firm like a pine tree, yet appeared as frightened and vulnerable as if a gust of wind could knock him down.

Approaching him, Ke Hongxue came back to his senses, blinked his dry eyes, and upon recognizing the visitor, habitually curved his lips into a smile, "You and Xiao Su are really something, not sleeping in the middle of the night. Both of you sneaking around like this, aren’t you afraid it will ruin your reputations?"

Rong Tang was momentarily stunned, instinctively glancing back. Faint light seeped through the window edges, the whole courtyard silent, even the usual chirps and buzzes of the autumn night were absent.

Ke Hongxue noticed his confusion, "I drugged him to make him sleep, afraid of disturbing the senior."

He didn’t say who had administered the drug, and Rong Tang didn’t ask further. It could have been either Ke Hongxue or Su Huaijing.

Rong Tang softly suggested, "Let's go back and sleep for a while."

Ke Hongxue shook his head, "No need, I’ve taken leave. I don’t have to give lectures for the next few days. It’s Su Huaijing who has to attend court tomorrow. I’ll swap with him in a bit."

Rong Tang asked, "How long have you been without sleep?"

Ke Hongxue replied, "It doesn’t matter."

Rong Tang said, "Su Huaijing and I can take turns to watch over."

Ke Hongxue laughed, "Forget it, Young Master. If there’s one more patient, aren’t you afraid your beloved will think of a way to kill the Emperor at court tomorrow?"

Rong Tang frowned, wanting to persuade further, but Ke Hongxue said, "Go back, he asked for two rooms to prevent you from worrying. The night is deep and the dew is heavy, be careful not to catch a cold."

Rong Tang suddenly felt an indescribable sense of profound helplessness.

It wasn’t that the Mu residence lacked servants, nor could they not hire doctors and attendants, but for them, outsiders were never as attentive as themselves. They needed to watch Mu Jingxu awaken, take medicine, and fall asleep again to feel at ease.

In this courtyard, the patient was never just one.

Rong Tang furrowed his brows, asking one more question before leaving, "How was the suspect at Fengyue Tower dealt with?"

"Just a spy from Eastern Mountain. He was half-flayed and fed to the dogs," Ke Hongxue said coldly.

Rong Tang was slightly startled, somewhat surprised.

Mu Jingxu had been punished with the stick in the morning, and by night, the murderer had already been dealt with. The efficiency was astonishing.

Perhaps noticing his obvious expression, Ke Hongxue smiled lightly, his eyes curving playfully, "Did the Young Master think I was just a Vice Director in the court, uninvolved in politics and with clean sleeves?"

"It was just being cautious due to the arrival of the diplomatic mission in the capital; not proper to convict directly. The senior is overly strict with rules."

"Seeking revenge yet worried about antagonizing the other nation and causing suffering to the border people, he clearly identified the murderer but still waited for the so-called 'imperial decree' before taking action."

"As a result, he brought punishment upon himself."

Ke Hongxue's eyes darkened, a hint of harshness in his expression, "Half-flayed skin can still leave a man alive. Dressed in prison garb, who knows if he was really punished? It’s just a pity..."

He paused, again inviting Rong Tang to return to his quarters, then slowly headed towards the house after a moment.

His murmured words went unheard: "It's just a pity, why couldn’t Sheng Xuyan’s skin also be flayed?"

The Emperor, named Sheng Xuyan, was harboring malicious intentions, an act of great treason.

Rong Tang returned to his room, lying on the bed in a daze for a long time. As sleep finally approached, the outside was as dark as thick ink, but a neighbor's rooster crowed, heralding the dawn.

The door opened, and Su Huaijing entered the room, damp with dew, gently taking off his robe and lying down on the bed, cuddling with Rong Tang for a brief rest before waking up again.

His hand was held, the gaps between his fingers slowly opened, and another person's fingers interlaced with his.

Rong Tang almost shivered from the cold.

This was the first time he felt an extreme cold from Su Huaijing’s body; also the first time Su Huaijing climbed into his bed without warming his hands and feet.

Rong Tang, with his eyes closed, felt a dull ache in his heart. Silently, he rolled into his embrace, exceptionally and rarely warming the villain.

They stayed at Mu Jingxu's house for three days.

The next morning, Mu Jingxu awoke, his face pale as paper, yet his demeanor was calm, as if he had never been punished.

Holding a case file, he casually chatted with Su Huaijing. Ke Hongxue came in with medicine, his temple throbbing, irritably snatching the paper from his hand.

On the day Mu Jingxu's sick leave ended, the capital of Yu was filled with celebration. Golden lanterns made of gold foil floated on the Jinfen River, each one praying for the Emperor’s blessing.

The city gates were wide open, welcoming guests from all directions. The Emperor of Great Yu’s three-day Wanshou Festival finally began.

Rong Tang left the Mu residence, watching Mu Jingxu, expressionless in white robes, being carried by Ke Hongxue onto the imperial carriage for the palace, spots of fresh blood seeping through the back of the robe, thinking to himself:

What birthday does the damned Emperor deserve? Better dead.