Damn it, I'm in the garbage book I wrote

Chapter 925 Li Zhi's Father and Mother

The roar of the waterwheel workshop at Kunming Pool was still ringing in my ears when the commotion at the palace started again.

Several officials whose families had been caught by Changsun Wuji were now kneeling outside the palace gates, dressed in mourning clothes, their cries as mournful as if their fathers had died. They cried out "loyal and virtuous officials have been wronged" and "treacherous officials are in power," their faces streaked with snot and tears, attracting many onlookers who pointed and whispered among themselves.

When the news reached Kunming Pool, Xia Lin had just wiped the oil off his hands. He chuckled, tossed the dirty cloth into the bucket of water beside him, splashing water high into the air.

"Zhongliang? The silver confiscated from Zhao Deming's warehouse could fill a corner of Kunming Pool! Liu Wenjing's estates and shops are richer than his ancestors for eight generations combined! Now he knows how to cry, where was he before? Damn it, how come these people never get tired of this old trick?"

Sun Jiuzhen stood to the side with her hands at her sides, her voice flat: "The one leading the crying and making a scene is Zhao Deming's elderly mother, who is over seventy years old and was carried here on a door plank. Liu Wenjing's wife banged her head against the Dengwen Drum in front of the Jingzhao Prefecture and was bleeding profusely; she has been taken down by the guards."

"Well done." Xia Lin narrowed his eyes, his brows furrowing. "Tell my son that if anyone dares to cause trouble in front of the palace gates again, treat them as if they were offending the imperial carriage. Whether they're seventy or eighty, throw them all in jail and wait to reunite with their little brats at home!"

His voice carried a fierce edge, causing several Ministry of Works officials nearby to shrink back and dare not breathe.

“Father.” Li Zhi had come looking for him at some point. Hearing Xia Lin’s words, he quickly stepped forward. “Isn’t this going too far… After all, they are all elderly, weak, women and children. If they make a scene, it will damage Mother’s reputation.”

"Reputation?" Xia Lin glanced back at his son. "When your mother issued her self-reproach edict, did her reputation improve? Son, remember this: some doors can't be opened! Today they can use the elderly, women, and children to force your mother to back down, but tomorrow they'll dare to take advantage and push their luck! As for this matter... don't get involved, I'll handle it."

Li Zhi was speechless. He knew his father was right, but the thought of his mother alone in the palace facing that mess made his heart feel like it was being fried in oil.

Seeing his expression, Xia Lin softened her tone and patted his shoulder: "Alright, I know you care about your mother. But your mother... she's still a bit soft-hearted. Don't be fooled by her past as a general leading troops into battle; leading troops and governing a country are two different things. On the battlefield, everyone is an enemy, so there's no need to think about that. But now, things are contradictory, and fighting against each other can't be accomplished with battlefield thinking. That's why I called Xiao Wu and Xiao Jian to your side. Because being too yin leads to ruthlessness, and being too yang leads to barbarity, and neither will work."

Just then, there was another burst of hurried footsteps outside. A eunuch rushed in, stumbling and scrambling, disregarding etiquette, and cried out in a tearful voice, "General Xia! Something terrible has happened! His Majesty... His Majesty has fainted in the palace!"

Xia Lin's face suddenly darkened.

Li Zhi was horrified, his face turning deathly pale. He grabbed the eunuch, exclaiming, "What happened?! Why did Mother faint?!"

"It was...it was anger..." the eunuch gasped. "Just now, several senior officials were banging their heads on the ground in front of the palace, saying that Chancellor Changsun had fabricated charges against loyal officials, causing Old Madam Zhao to vomit blood and faint on the spot...His Majesty's expression changed as he listened, and before the court session even ended, he...he..."

Before he could finish speaking, Xia Lin had already strode out. As he walked, he ripped off his oil-stained work clothes and tossed them to Sun Jiuzhen: "Prepare the horses! Back to the palace!"

He moved with lightning speed, and Li Zhi was stunned for a moment before quickly following him.

The palace was in complete chaos. People from the Imperial Medical Bureau were coming and going, all with grave expressions. Outside the Ganlu Hall, several prime ministers and high-ranking officials who had rushed over upon hearing the news gathered together, whispering among themselves, their expressions varied.

Xia Lin completely ignored them and tried to barge into the palace. The guards at the gate recognized him, but hesitated for a moment before reaching out to stop him: "General Xia, His Majesty has just taken his medicine and needs to rest..."

Xia Lin shoved him away with such force that the guard staggered back several steps. "Get out!"

"Alright..." The guard immediately stepped aside, lowered his head and said nothing more, lest he get himself into trouble.

He lifted the curtain and entered the inner hall, where a strong smell of medicine wafted towards him. Third Sister lay on the phoenix couch, her eyes tightly closed, her face frighteningly pale, a damp towel covering her forehead, and an old imperial physician was carefully administering acupuncture to her.

Bean Sprout was also there. She was sitting by the couch, holding a handkerchief in her hand, gently wiping the cold sweat from Third Sister's temples. When she saw Xia Lin barge in, she raised her eyes, didn't say anything, and just moved aside.

Xia Lin walked to the bedside, looked down at San Niang's pale face, his brows furrowed. He reached out and touched her forehead, finding it cold, but covered in a cold sweat.

"what happened?"

The old physician's hand trembled, but he quickly steadied himself and said in a trembling voice, "Reporting to Commander Xia, His Majesty suffered a sudden attack of anger, coupled with excessive worry in recent days, which depleted his mental energy, causing him to faint. I have already administered acupuncture to stabilize his pulse. He needs to rest and recuperate, and must not get angry again."

Xia Lin fell silent, his gaze falling on the furrowed brows of the Third Sister. At this moment, only the soft breathing of a few people could be heard in the hall, and even Li Zhi dared not shout.

About an hour later, Third Sister's eyelashes fluttered a few times, and she slowly opened her eyes. Her gaze was initially somewhat unfocused, but when she saw who was standing in front of the bed, she was first taken aback, then a complex expression flashed across her face, and she turned her face away.

"You..." Her voice was weak and hoarse, "What are you doing here..."

Xia Lin didn't respond to that, but Li Zhi turned his head and waved to the old imperial physician and the palace servants standing in the hall: "Get out."

The palace servants, as if granted a pardon, filed out with their heads bowed. Bean Sprout also stood up, glanced at Xia Lin, and then silently led Li Zhi out, closing the palace door behind them.

Only the two of them remained in the inner sanctuary.

Xia Lin dragged an embroidered stool to sit on the edge of the couch, looked at Third Sister's stubborn yet fragile profile, and suddenly sighed.

"Why are you so hard on yourself?" His voice wasn't loud, but it lacked its usual fiery edge. "Those old bastards were clearly trying to use a self-inflicted injury to force you to give in, and you actually took it to heart?"

Third Sister pursed her lips and remained silent, but her eyes were slightly red.

“I know it’s tough for you.” Xia Lin reached out and grasped San Niang’s hand. “Sitting in that position, who wouldn’t want to be known as a benevolent ruler? But being a benevolent ruler isn’t easy. If you’re benevolent to them, who’s benevolent to the people below who are forced to sell their children? Emperor Hongbao was benevolent, but he also killed thousands or tens of thousands of people when he handled several major cases.”

Third Sister remained silent, but her expression was extremely aggrieved.

"Tuoba Jing's movie is rubbish!" Xia Lin continued, "Let's not show it again, okay?"

“…Okay.” Third Sister finally managed to squeeze out a single word through gritted teeth, her voice choked with emotion.

"Alright, alright, I won't let go, I won't let go." Xia Lin gently held San Niang's hand and coaxed her, "And Changsun Wuji is also a mad dog. I really didn't expect him to be this crazy. He's really going all out to kill us, but then I thought, at this critical juncture, we really need to use a mad dog like him to bite people! You just need to hold the leash in your hand. Who cares how awful his barking is? Once he's bitten everyone he needs to bite, whether we stew him or let him go is up to you, isn't it?"

His words were crude, and Third Sister frowned as she listened, but somehow, the anger that had been building up inside her seemed to ease a little.

Yes, how could she forget that this man was never a gentleman who followed the rules? He could pull her up from the depths of despair in the most unconventional ways, and he could also force her to see the truths she didn't want to face in the most drastic ways. "I...I just..." Her voice lowered, filled with undisguised exhaustion, "I just feel...very tired."

Xia Lin looked at the dark circles under her eyes, paused, and then suddenly stood up: "Wait."

He didn't say what he was waiting for, turned around and left the inner hall. A little while later, he came back with a bowl containing steaming chicken porridge.

"Drink it while it's hot." He shoved the bowl into Third Sister's hands: "The ingredients in the palace aren't all there, so this will have to do. The chicken in the Northeast is really good; the ones here are far inferior."

Third Sister held the bowl of ordinary chicken porridge, looking at the finely shredded chicken and bright green scallions inside. The rising steam made her eyes sting.

She lowered her head and ate in small bites. The porridge was cooked to perfection, the rice grains were soft and tender, the shredded chicken was fresh and juicy, and the warmth slid down her throat, seemingly dispelling much of her fatigue.

Xia Lin sat beside him and watched without saying a word.

After finishing the bowl of porridge, Third Sister felt a bit stronger and her spirits improved considerably. She placed the empty bowl on the low table beside her, leaned against the cushion, and looked at Xia Lin: "You...aren't angry anymore?"

"Why would I be angry?" Xia Lin snorted. "Angry at you? I would have died of anger eight hundred times over by now."

Third Sister was momentarily speechless at his words, yet inexplicably wanted to laugh. She lowered her eyes, her fingers unconsciously twisting the edge of the brocade quilt: "Then... the matter of the border troops' rotation..."

“It’s a routine drill, it was all planned in advance.” Xia Lin interrupted her: “Wait a minute, I specifically asked Xiao Wu to draft the order for me? She would definitely tell our son, and our son didn’t tell you?”

"No," Third Sister said, surprised, then gave a bitter smile. "Is he really hoping I'll abdicate?"

“No, my son isn’t that kind of person. Bring him in and give him a beating first.”

With that, Xia Lin went out to grab her son.

Watching his retreating figure, San Niang's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down. It turned out that he had planned that scene all along. The tense atmosphere of the past few days was more of a show for others, not to frighten her, but to frighten Changsun Wuji...

After a while, Li Zhi was brought back by Xia Lin. His son looked aggrieved and kept rambling on about why he didn't tell his mother about it. He said he was afraid she would take advantage of his father's favor and then really anger him, and then they would actually surround Chang'an.

"Take her out and give her a beating." Third Sister waved her hand. "Is your mother really such an unreasonable person?"

"Go back home." Xia Lin kicked her son's butt: "You're to copy yesterday's editorial assignment a hundred times. Tell Xiao Wu to take the punishment too."

The son quickly ran away, and after a long while, the third aunt spoke softly, her voice tinged with dependence: "What... should we do next?"

Xia Lin stood up, walked to the window, and remained silent for a long time...

“What should I do…” He looked out the window and thought for a long time: “Since there aren’t many people here now, why don’t I find something to do? But be careful, the people outside haven’t left yet.”

She gave a soft "hmm," lay back down, and closed her eyes.

Outside the palace, Li Zhi and Xiao Wu had been anxiously waiting for almost an hour. When Xia Lin came out, they hurriedly went to greet him.

"Father, Mother, she..."

"She's asleep." Xia Lin waved her hand. "Let her get some rest."

His gaze swept over the officials who had not yet dispersed under the corridor, startling them into lowering their heads.

"Let's go," he said to Li Zhi and Xiao Wu, "What are you waiting for? Go back and receive your punishment!"

As dusk deepened, the palace lanterns gradually lit up, casting Xia Lin's shadow long and thin.

Li Zhi watched his father's strode away, then looked back at the tightly closed palace gates. His tense heart finally relaxed.

Back in the Eastern Palace, he happened to see his second brother, Tuoba Shang, squatting on a chair like a monkey, while Emperor Jingtai, Tuoba Jing, was demonstrating fire-making by drilling wood to his son. He quickly walked over and asked in a low voice, "Uncle, does this mean my parents have made up?"

Tuoba Jing was putting in a lot of effort at the moment, but upon hearing this, he chuckled and lost his strength, saying somewhat dejectedly, "There will still be trouble, but it will definitely be over soon! Don't be fooled by the fact that your father has a lot of women around him, the most important person in his heart is still your Uncle Zhang."

"Huh?" Li Zhi was taken aback: "Uncle, where did you come from?"

“He’s always been like this,” Tuoba Shang muttered from the side. “None of his words are serious.”

"Zhi'er." Tuoba Jing patted Li Zhi's head: "Uncle is asking you a question."

"You say……"

Have you ever been to a brothel?

Li Zhi was taken aback by Tuoba Jing's words, and then silently shook his head.

"Sigh, what a pitiful child." Tuoba Jing jumped off the table and washed his hands beside him. "Come on, your uncle will take you tonight. Just don't tell your parents."

"Isn't this bad..."

That's what he said, but Li Zhi's eyes gleamed with an eager, excited light...

(End of this chapter)