Footsteps sounded outside the duty room.
They were not the soft, muted steps of palace eunuchs in cloth-soled shoes. These were the firm sounds of official boots striking the bluestone pavement—long, powerful strides, yet carrying a habitual composure.
Gu Dezhao looked up and saw Ye Xian walking in from the corridor.
The young Left Vice Censor-in-Chief was dressed in a dark raven-blue gauze robe patterned with subtle designs. A rhinoceros-horn belt was fastened at his waist.
He had not submitted a calling card, nor had he entered through the main gate. Instead, he had come through the side entrance east of Qianqing Gate, approaching directly from the Censorate.
That meant he was not entering as an ordinary official.
He had exercised the emergency palace-entry authority granted to the Left Vice Censor-in-Chief.
“Heir Apparent Ye?”
Gu Dezhao rose and cupped his hands in greeting, unable to hide his surprise.
“Why have you—”
“Lord Gu.”
Ye Xian sat down in the chair opposite him.
His tone remained calm.
“It’s nothing major today. This morning, the Censorate received a memorial from Vice Minister Ji of the Ministry of Personnel. It’s the same memorial accusing you from before.”
He paused briefly.
“The memorial doesn’t target only Your Lordship. Attached is a list of officials who can be verified as having handled the transfer of military horses from the Imperial Stud Court to the border garrisons during the past two years.”
“There are seven names in total.”
“Yours is listed first.”
His gaze lowered slightly.
“Ji Minzhong may be on sick leave at home, but his brush has not stopped moving.”
Gu Dezhao’s expression changed slightly before quickly returning to normal.
He lifted his teacup and took a sip, brows knitting faintly.
“He chose his targets cleverly.”
“If he impeached only me, His Majesty would likely consider my years of faultless service and either withhold the memorial or return it to the Ministry of Personnel for internal investigation.”
“But he accused seven people.”
“That implicates most of the senior officials of the Imperial Stud Court.”
“His Majesty would have no choice but to summon me personally.”
He exhaled softly.
“He’s using His Majesty’s hand to strike the mountain and frighten the tiger, dragging the affairs of the Imperial Stud Court into public view.”
“Not only that.”
Ye Xian’s voice remained even.
“Other memorials are already on His Majesty’s desk.”
“The Imperial Stud Court supplies military horses to the frontier every year.”
“The southwestern battlefield has suffered heavy losses of horses.”
“The northwestern defenses are under increasing pressure.”
“The Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue have been arguing over logistical supplies for months.”
He looked at Gu Dezhao.
“Ji Minzhong chose this moment because he knows that the moment His Majesty hears the words military horses, he’ll pay special attention.”
A faint smile touched his lips.
“But he miscalculated one thing.”
“What?”
“His Majesty is not the Late Emperor.”
“The Late Emperor valued stability above all when employing officials.”
“His Majesty values results.”
“He places trust in ministers who can accomplish things and gives them room to work.”
His gaze remained steady.
“Lord Gu, officials like that are not easily discarded.”
Gu Dezhao silently stroked the teacup.
Only the soft dripping of the bronze water clock in the corner of the room broke the silence.
After roughly the time it took to drink a cup of tea, Zhang He emerged from Qianqing Gate and hurried over.
With a flick of his whisk, he announced sharply:
“Vice Minister of the Imperial Stud Court Gu Dezhao—His Majesty summons you.”
Gu Dezhao adjusted his robes and followed him inside.
Passing through Qianqing Gate and around the screen wall, he finally caught sight of the magnificent double-eaved roof of Qianqing Palace gleaming beneath the sun.
The bronze turtle and bronze crane standing upon the palace terrace reflected a dark green-black sheen.
The eunuchs stationed beneath the corridors stood motionless, eyes lowered.
As Gu Dezhao climbed the terrace steps, his heartbeat quickened.
Yet his pace remained steady.
Though he had met the Emperor before, he had never once been summoned alone into Qianqing Palace for questioning.
“Your servant, Gu Dezhao, Vice Minister of the Imperial Stud Court, greets Your Majesty.”
“Rise.”
The Emperor set the memorial aside and lifted his chin slightly.
“A seat.”
Gu Dezhao thanked him and sat carefully upon the embroidered stool.
Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced toward the memorial on the imperial desk.
Red brush marks circled several passages.
Ji Minzhong’s handwriting.
“How many years have you served in the Imperial Stud Court, Gu Qing?”
“Replying to Your Majesty—more than five years.”
“Five years.”
The Emperor took a sip of tea.
His tone remained leisurely.
“How many military horses are dispatched to the frontier each year?”
“Last year, twelve thousand horses were sent to the three garrisons of Xuanfu, Datong, and Jizhou. As of June this year, seven thousand four hundred have already been dispatched. The loss rate remains below twenty percent. The imperial ranches currently retain—”
…
Meanwhile, Ye Xian stood beneath the corridor outside the duty room.
He watched Gu Dezhao’s figure disappear beyond Qianqing Gate.
He neither left nor sat down.
Instead, he stood with his hands clasped behind his back beside a pillar, eyes fixed upon the tightly closed doors of Qianqing Palace.
The sun climbed steadily higher.
The corridor’s shadows grew shorter and shorter.
Yet he remained unmoving, as though unaware of the heat.
Approximately half an hour later, Gu Dezhao emerged from Qianqing Gate.
His expression looked considerably more relaxed than before.
Even the lines between his brows had eased.
Ye Xian stepped forward to meet him, and the two men walked side by side toward the palace exit.
“What did His Majesty ask?”
“First, matters concerning the Imperial Stud Court.”
Gu Dezhao spoke quietly.
“The number of military horses dispatched this year. Loss rates. The livestock inventory of the imperial ranches.”
“Then he asked about the grain supply case.”
“His Majesty neither approved nor rejected Ji Minzhong’s accusations.”
“He repeatedly asked whether horse losses at the Xuzhou front were connected to grain shortages.”
Gu Dezhao lowered his voice further.
“There was something else.”
“Ji Minzhong’s memorial didn’t only accuse officials from the Imperial Stud Court.”
“It also mentioned Changxing Marquis Residence.”
After a brief pause, he added:
“It mentioned you, Heir Apparent.”
Ye Xian did not respond.
Only his footsteps slowed ever so slightly.
“His Majesty asked whether any Imperial Stud Court transfer records involved Changxing Marquis Residence.”
“He also asked whether there had been any non-official contact between the Heir Apparent of Changxing Marquis Residence and the Imperial Stud Court.”
Gu Dezhao shook his head slightly.
“The questions weren’t severe.”
“It felt more like His Majesty was confirming something.”
“I answered truthfully.”
“Every transfer record of the Imperial Stud Court is available for inspection.”
“In the past three years, not a single military horse has ever been transferred to Changxing Marquis Residence.”
“Though Heir Apparent Ye and I are personally acquainted, he has never crossed professional boundaries.”
He paused.
“After hearing that, His Majesty only said, ‘I understand.'”
Ye Xian remained silent for a moment.
Then he nodded faintly.
The Late Emperor had suppressed the southwestern grain supply case.
The young Emperor, however, was not rushing to reach a conclusion.
An emperor was not incapable of perceiving the truth.
He simply needed his ministers to build the steps that would allow him to reach it.
By the time they spoke their way toward the palace gates, they were nearly outside.
Ye Xian stopped walking.
Turning to face Gu Dezhao directly, he extended a thin oil-paper package.
“Lord Gu still needs to visit the Imperial Stud Court after leaving the palace.”
“The route from there back to your residence is somewhat inconvenient.”
“If you don’t mind, you may stop by the Censorate first.”
“I’ve arranged a carriage there.”
He handed over the package.
“This is for the Eldest Miss of your household.”
“Something to calm her nerves.”
“Everything was prepared in a hurry.”
“It’s only a few pieces of pine-nut candy freshly made at our residence, along with a box of pastries collected from one of the Marquis Residence’s shops.”
Gu Dezhao lowered his gaze toward the package.
Something shifted faintly in his expression.
Yet he did not immediately reach for it.
Ye Xian met his eyes directly.
His voice was open and steady.
“My mother mentioned inviting the ladies of your household to the Marquis Residence to watch an opera performance someday.”
“If Lord Gu considers it appropriate, please choose a date.”
On the surface, it was merely an invitation for the women of the Gu family to attend a performance.
But spoken immediately after offering sweets meant to comfort Gu Jinzhao, beside the palace gates no less, the meaning carried far more than one layer.
Gu Dezhao fell silent.
For a moment, he recalled the expression on his daughter’s face the last time she had mentioned this Heir Apparent while sitting in his study.
That look.
And the look Ye Xian was giving the package now.
There was a similarity between them that he found difficult to describe.
At last, he extended his hand and accepted the oil-paper bundle.
As he departed, his pace was noticeably slower than when he had arrived.
When he reached the corner of Chang’an Street, he turned back for one final glance.
Ye Xian was still standing at the palace gate.
The wind lifted the hem of his robe gently as he watched him leave.