Ask the Nine Ministers

Chapter 290 Evil Intentions
Li Zhao reined in his black horse and stopped it outside the west gate of the Ministry of Justice.

A moment later, a figure in gray emerged from the gloomy prison door, his sleeves fluttering lightly, seemingly carrying the chill of the prison.

"Was it enjoyable?" he asked.

Xue Sui slowly raised his eyes.

The sound of horse hooves came from far away.

Li Zhao reined in his horse and stopped in front of her, his tall figure blocking out the faint warmth of early winter.

His gaze was deep and unfathomable, like a bottomless, icy pool, fixed directly on her face, as if trying to pierce through the forced calm she maintained despite her exhaustion.

He saw through all the scheming.

There was no mockery, only understanding and pity.

She felt a slight pause in her heart.

A complex, almost imperceptible, stirring feeling, one that even the person themselves didn't want to delve into, quietly passed by...

She raised her hand and slowly removed the veil covering her face, revealing a thin, pale, yet unusually calm face, and clasped her hands together deeply in prayer.

"Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness."

Li Zhao's lips were slightly pursed, and his jawline was taut as if carved by a knife.

Their eyes met, their gazes lingered briefly, and then settled.

In those flickering lights and shadows, something cold seemed to be ignited in an instant...

It wasn't the intense heat of a raging fire, but rather a settled, blood-stained tacit understanding and sense of relief.

Xue Sui met his gaze without flinching or showing any emotion.

But I feel very at ease.

It was as if the shackles forged by ten years of blood feud had found a moment of respite because of his presence at this moment...

"I thank Your Highness for handling the aftermath."

"Let's go back." His voice was low and unreadable.

Xue Sui adjusted the cuffs of his gray robe, walked to the small carriage with green curtains at the alley entrance, and nodded to him in greeting.

The sound of horses' hooves rang out again.

Everything was as usual, cold and calm.

Yet something seemed to be subtly changing between the two.

"Your Highness—"

Standing behind Li Zhao, Guan Ya watched the small carriage with blue curtains slowly drive away from the dark alley in the dead of night. As someone who had witnessed this earth-shattering change and silent confrontation, Guan Ya felt a tightness in his heart.

"Sixth Miss Xue is shrewd, ambitious, and ruthless..."

Li Zhao pursed his lips slightly, the cold and sharp curve of his lips seeming to soften for a moment.

"It's good to be ambitious and ruthless."

He spoke calmly, his gaze fixed on the direction where the carriage had disappeared.

"Has there been any unusual activity in the capital today?"

Yuan Cang rode forward a step and lowered his voice: "Guo Pi is desperate and will try anything, digging up all the old grievances... who knows how many corrupt officials will be implicated..."

Guan Ya chimed in, "Speaking of which, Miss Xue's idea of ​​using a whistleblower box is excellent. It has already received quite a few secret reports. Although there's no direct evidence or clues related to the military supplies case, it's enough to throw those with ulterior motives into disarray—that's truly gratifying..."

Li Zhao's eyes suddenly turned fierce.

"No need to follow the steps, if there's no solid evidence, then create it... That was the original intention behind my plan with her..."

Guan Ya and Yuan Cang exchanged a glance.

For some reason, I felt that there was an inexplicable arrogance about my master when he said those words.

It's hard to say.

Li Zhao was completely unaware of his subordinates' inner turmoil, and a sharp glint flashed in his eyes.

"Guan Ya, have someone make several copies of the secret report and distribute them to several officials involved in the military supplies case, citing the informant's report received in the whistleblower box as evidence... Say that I am compassionate towards my subordinates and know that corruption and malpractice are not something that happened overnight. They are also caught in the vortex and have been coerced by others. I am willing to give them a chance to repent and have their sentences reduced accordingly..."

Guan Ya felt a chill run down his spine.

He instantly understood the murderous intent behind it.

This seemingly impartial "channel of speech" is actually a highly venomous water snake that His Highness the Crown Prince has thrown into muddy waters.

Officials in the court, soldiers in the army, and ordinary citizens, regardless of their status, could anonymously submit letters to expose illegal activities. Those who made the first report would have their punishment reduced or even be pardoned, depending on the circumstances.

It gave all the small fry who were involved in the corruption chain, but were not at the core, a chance to struggle for survival, or even bite back and step on others to get ashore.

Especially those officials who were attached to Prince Duan, such as Xiao Guo Wang Ma, were bound to panic in the face of this life-or-death situation.

No one knows what's in the corruption box; it's up to the Crown Prince to decide how to use it.

And those old foxes, are they still able to sit still...?

Yuan Cang said, "Your Highness is wise! With this plan, Xiao Song, Xie Yanzhan, Wang Qinian, Ma Yuankui and their ilk will surely become like frightened birds..."

Guan Ya had no more hesitation, and clasped his hands in a deep voice.

"I will take care of it immediately!"
-
Ministry of Revenue.

The charcoal fire was burning brightly in the back hall. Ma Yuankui, the clerk in charge of the grain storage, paced anxiously in the flower hall with his hands behind his back, as anxious as an ant on a hot pan.

Several copied letters of denunciation from the "whistleblower box" were placed on the table in front of him.

The words, written in black and white, were sharp as knives, clearly pointing to several long-standing grievances he had handled...

"This is outrageous! This is absolutely outrageous..."

The lean, middle-aged man with a doughy face and small eyes was muttering to himself when he suddenly stopped, grabbed a piece of paper, and slammed it hard on the table, making the teacup rattle.

"This is clearly a deliberate frame-up... an attempt to drag me down with them."

"My lord," his trusted aide leaned closer, his voice low, "could it be...the Zhang family? Zhang Minda died under mysterious circumstances, and the entire Zhang family is filled with resentment towards us. And Wang Qinian...that old bastard is probably lurking in the shadows, up to no good..."

Ma Yuankui turned his head, his bloodshot eyes fixed on his advisor.

"This matter is definitely related to the Zhang and Wang families. Zhang Minda, that good-for-nothing, is dead and that's fine, but he even implicated me... Wang Qinian, humph, is no better..."

He felt a chill run down his spine as he recalled the collusion and suspicion that had plagued him for years.

"Wang Qinian has always been opportunistic. He might very well use the whistleblower box to smear others and strike first! This letter of denunciation might just be his pledge of allegiance to the Crown Prince..."

The aide nodded, his face grave. "Does Your Excellency know that last night, Guo Zhaohuai... is gone from the Ministry of Justice prison. It's said he 'committed suicide out of fear of punishment,' and left behind a confession before his death, implicating quite a few people..."

He paused, carefully observing Ma Yuankui's expression.

"His Highness the Crown Prince is now releasing information that he's willing to give those who voluntarily expose wrongdoing a chance... Is this a test? Or... does he truly intend to show leniency?"

Ma Yuankui's eyes flickered violently.

The instinct for survival and immense fear battled fiercely in his mind. He slammed his fist on the table.

"Now that things have come to this, I can no longer sit idly by and wait for my doom!"
-
Wang Family Study.

Wang Qinian, a senior official in the Ministry of Works, was also restless.

He was in charge of construction and water conservancy projects, and should have been enjoying a life of glory and success, but he was caught up in a military supplies case and felt extremely uneasy.

"Everyone in the court knows perfectly well that the military supply transport back then was a complete mess. Layer upon layer of embezzlement and corruption—how many people were truly clean? Now, the Crown Prince is openly using the Guo family case to dig deeper into the past and establish his authority. This 'exposing corruption box' is a guillotine hanging over their heads. Yet these fools, oblivious to the danger… insist on courting death, walking right into the trap…"

"My lord," his trusted advisor said in a fearful voice, "I saw it with my own eyes during my night patrol the other day. The second steward of the Ma residence was sneaking around the left side gate, stuffing something into the corruption box... Isn't this just trying to protect themselves, scrambling to pin the blame on us? They stuffed the dirt on us, and the Crown Prince's men arrived right afterward..."

Wang Qinian's expression changed instantly.

My heart trembled.

The transcribed letter of denunciation on the table felt like a death knell, burning hot to the touch.

The clerk lowered his voice and continued, "The 300,000 taels of silver spent on dredging the canal back then—besides Ma Yuankui, no one else knew the inside story..."

Wang Qinian nodded and sighed softly.

"It must be this scoundrel. He's got a dirty reputation and he's trying to drag me down with him... Now that the Crown Prince has handed me a copy of the letter of denunciation, he's giving me a warning."

Years of suspicion and each having something on the other.

The alliance has been reduced to a life-or-death struggle.

Wang Qinian made up his mind.

"Hmph! Since he's so heartless, don't blame me for being ruthless too. Let's see who can absolve themselves of all responsibility..."
-
Shuiyuean.

Master Miaozhen, whom we haven't seen for a long time, has returned.

To the outside world, he only said that he had returned from a trip and was recuperating from an illness.

Once inside, the house was locked in the courtyard of the east wing, and no outside guests were allowed to enter.

It was early winter, and the mountain was desolate and cold, with few pilgrims, so it didn't attract any prying eyes.

In the vegetable patch on the back hill, only a sparse patch of cold-resistant radishes and tatsoi were still stubbornly stretching out their dark green leaves...

Xue Sui, wrapped in a worn indigo cotton robe, squatted by the vegetable patch, holding a small hoe in his hand, carefully mulching the soil around the vegetable row.

Her movements were focused and gentle, as if the bloody revenge in the Ministry of Justice prison was merely a vague illusion, unrelated to her tranquility...

"Young lady, you're just feeling a bit better, so don't overexert yourself."

Jinshu walked over carrying water, and seeing her slightly bowed back, she couldn't help but offer some advice.

Xue Sui straightened up, patted the dirt off the hem of his cotton robe and his fingers, and turned back to her with a gentle smile: "It's alright, stretching your muscles will actually warm you up and make you feel more at ease."

She took the water ladle and carefully poured the water onto the roots of the vegetables, smiling as she watched the water seep into the dark brown soil...

"These radish seedlings were transplanted from an old farmer down the mountain. If they're well cared for, we'll have something to eat even in winter..."

"Auntie, Auntie!"

A clear, bell-like child's voice rang out.

Like the joyful chirping of a mountain sparrow, it suddenly broke the silence of the mountains.

Xue Sui turned around and looked in the direction of the sound.

Niu Niu, like a joyful little deer, skipped and hopped along the cobblestone path toward her, her little face flushed red from the cold, her eyes brimming with happiness...

Not far behind her was Princess Wenjia, beaming with joy.

There were also two children, Tongtong and Guanchen, who were being led by their wet nurse and seemed a little reserved.

Ping Le and Lu You'an's two children.

(End of this chapter)