[Where the Military Pay is Hidden (Part 1)]
No one knew what Vice Minister Shen said to the Emperor after entering the palace. However, immediately after his departure, the Emperor summoned officials from the Three Judicial Offices [1] Supreme Court of Justice, Ministry of Justice, Censorate jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_1502829_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_1502829_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], }); to the palace; the candlelight burned late into the night.
As the Northern Army returned in triumph, the Emperor declared a general amnesty… but the military pay case, which had almost settled into a quiet conclusion, was suddenly transformed by the assassination attempt on Vice Minister Shen. It stirred up a monstrous wave that no one had anticipated. First, several high officials responsible for the Imperial Examinations were investigated; next, security lapses were uncovered at the capital’s garrison. In an instant, countless officials were implicated.
The powerful nobility and the Qingliu scholars attacked one another, each side desperate to clear themselves of responsibility.
During the morning court session, the Emperor sat upon his high throne, his gaze toward the civil and military officials filled with a chilling frost. He hurled the memorial scrolls down: “A single military pay case has revealed the murder of a court official, the bribery of officials, and the capital’s garrison pursuing private gain. How many more things are being kept from Us?”
As his voice fell, the hundred officials prostrated themselves, silent.
The Emperor’s majestic gaze swept over the officials, finally landing on the military officers at the head of the line. The border could not be left unattended for a single day; the Qi Family Army was set to return to the North immediately. Since the military pay case concerned the soldiers at the front, the morale of the army would never be pacified unless it was resolved.
His gaze skipped over Qi Shen and finally rested on Qi Hanzhou.
The youth, only fourteen or fifteen years old, had already grown into his stature. Standing beside his father in the imperial court, he showed not the slightest hint of stage fright.
Hearing his name, he lifted his head: “Your servant is here.”
The Emperor declared: “This case shall be spearheaded by the Supreme Court of Justice, assisted by the Embroidered Uniform Guard. You shall serve as the supervising official. Investigate this matter thoroughly for Us!”
At those words, everyone turned to look at Qi Hanzhou.
The Qi family was the entity the Son of Heaven trusted most. With a member of the Qi family overseeing a case involving the border, this matter would not end peacefully!
The Emperor dismissed the court with a wave of his hand, and the officials filed out of the Great Hall.
The Minister of the Supreme Court of Justice stopped Qi Hanzhou outside the hall. “Young General, wait a moment. How should we proceed with this?”
“Place the two suspects under heavy guard. Additionally, conduct a thorough audit of the Ministry of War’s financial records from recent years,” Qi Hanzhou replied.
The Minister’s expression stiffened, but before he could ask for clarification, Qi Hanzhou had already walked away.
A colleague approached, seeing the Minister of State Ceremonies hesitating. “Minister Liu, this case will be difficult to handle.”
Feeling a massive headache coming on, the Minister hurriedly consulted his colleague.
“This case implicates many high-ranking officials; you must handle your duties with extreme caution, Ministry Liu—especially regarding Young General Qi. He must not be slighted.” The colleague looked toward the distant figure of Qi Hanzhou. “The Qi Family Army returns to the North in the coming days. The Emperor’s move… I fear he intends to keep that one here in the capital.”
Outside the palace gates, Qi Hanzhou paused. A deputy hurried over and handed him a secret letter: “Following your orders, Young General, we found that the assassin and the scholar involved had no prior intersection. The one who hired them chose them specifically. The assassin frequented luxurious restaurants and had served wine to several nobles in the capital; the scholar loitered in teahouses, which are gathering spots for the Qingliu faction. If one were to claim they were trading in official posts, the story holds up under scrutiny.”
“The person who truly hired the killers knows the secrets of the nobility and is aware of the undercurrents of selling official positions in court.” Qi Hanzhou folded the secret letter, his peripheral vision lingering on the palace walls. “He merely pushed the boat with the current, and yet he managed to stir up this entire pool of murky water.”
The deputy was slightly stunned upon hearing this. “Then the incident with the startled horse at the martial arts field—was that his doing as well?”
“Not necessarily. The methods are different.” Qi Hanzhou frowned. “Evidence for Vice Minister Shen’s alleged crimes is hard to find, and the scholar and the assassin are ultimately worthless. Regardless, that isn’t something for my father and me to worry about—nor is it what His Majesty is truly concerned with.”
The deputy hesitated, his heart racing as he thought deeper. “Young General, are you thinking—”
Qi Hanzhou flipped himself onto his horse, his eyes sweeping across the distant streets of the capital. “Tell me, where could that military pay be—the silver that the Qi family has searched everywhere for, yet cannot find?”
While everyone in the court was as jumpy as a bird startled by a bowstring, the inner palace was a picture of silence.
It wasn’t until three days later that Shen Yunfei entered the palace to see Ying Fusheng. When he arrived, Ying Fusheng was taking his medicine. The decoctions prescribed by Imperial Physician Chu had become a part of his daily routine; after a period of recuperation, his complexion was finally no longer as deathly pale as before, gaining a bit more life.
Recalling his father’s instructions regarding the recent events in court, Shen Yunfei looked at the young, frail prince before him and dared not show even a hint of slight. Once the surrounding palace servants were dismissed, he bent his knees to kneel immediately. However, just as he was about to touch the floor, he was caught by the eunuch Song An. Song An pulled him back up at once: “Young Master Shen.”
“My thanks to Your Highness for saving my Shen family from this predicament!” Shen Yunfei said, every word solemn.
Seeing that the other’s state of mind had improved, Ying Fusheng set down his medicine bowl. “It was Vice Minister Shen who entered the palace to see the Emperor; the Shen family only gained a slim chance of survival because he pleaded his own case.”
Shen Yunfei clenched his teeth. But if his father hadn’t been injured and if the assassination case hadn’t caused such a stir, the Emperor would never have granted his father an audience.
He didn’t know what exactly had been written in that letter; he only knew that without the Sixth Highness’s intervention, the Shen family would never have had this chance to breathe. This point was beyond doubt.
“By coming into the palace, many eyes are watching you,” Ying Fusheng said, looking at him. “On the surface, we are merely Prince and study companion.”
Song An added, “Young Master Shen, please stand.”
Shen Yunfei hesitated but finally stood up.
On the desk lay the Four Books and Five Classics, sent by the Empress Dowager for Ying Fusheng’s studies.
Ying Fusheng flipped through a book. “The Qi family is watching you.”
Shen Yunfei was startled. Ever since his father’s incident, the capital garrison outside their door had been replaced by Qi family men, and the Emperor had even appointed the Young General as the supervisor. “How does Your Highness know?”
The military pay case was far-reaching. By deducing details from his knowledge of the “future,” Ying Fusheng knew for a certainty that Vice Minister Shen was a mere sacrificial lamb in a partisan struggle. In the future history he knew, it took Shen Yunfei and the Qi family years to overturn this case. That long delay had allowed evidence to be erased. But right now, the case had only just broken; the culprits wouldn’t dare risk destroying certain evidence yet. They were all waiting for the Shen family to be convicted so the truth could be buried forever.
His Imperial Father was keeping the Shen family alive and giving Shen Yunfei the chance to enter the palace for one reason: to find the whereabouts of that military pay and the real “termites” within the administration.
To reach the position of Vice Minister amidst the struggle between the nobility and the Qingliu faction, Shen Changcun was no fool. Otherwise, where would the future Shen Yunfei have gotten the leads to bite so tenaciously onto the Crown Prince’s faction? Who was currently desperate to clear their name? Who had communicated with Vice Minister Shen regarding the military pay? Only a member of the Shen family could figure out these vital connections. In the “future,” the reason the case was so hard to solve was due to the passage of time, the complexity of the web, and the death of Vice Minister Shen. Now, the timing was perfect, and Shen Changcun was being protected by the Qi family. How could it not be investigated?
“The Qi family are upright officials. If anyone hates the culprits of the embezzlement more than your Shen family, it is the Qi Family Army of the North.” Ying Fusheng turned a page, the sandalwood incense on the desk drifting lazily. He continued with calm composure: “Master Shen entering the palace was the first step. The Qi family overseeing the investigation is the second. If you want to truly resolve this crisis, you need the third step.”
“Evidence of the Shen family’s innocence.”
Shen Yunfei managed a bitter smile. “If there were evidence, we wouldn’t be in a position where we have no way to defend ourselves…”
“Who said you need the Shen family’s evidence? It isn’t your family investigating this case—it is the Supreme Court of Justice, the Qi family, and the Imperial House.”
Ying Fusheng raised his eyes, looking at the Shen Yunfei before him—a youth who had not yet attained the legendary brilliance he would possess in the future. “Someone wants to destroy your family. If I were them, I would have scrubbed the evidence clean long ago. Since they’ve made the Shen family the scapegoat, why would they give you a chance to flip the board? However… evidence can also be the stolen goods themselves.”
Shen Yunfei’s mind recoiled in shock. “You mean the location of the military pay? But His Majesty has had people searching for so long…”
The Prince sat in silence, looking as if the stormy waves of the court had nothing to do with him. Yet Shen Yunfei knew perfectly well that the catalyst for everything had been a plan as simple as a staged assassination.
But that single act had pulled in every faction in the capital, buying the Shen family room to breathe. The reason the military pay case had broken out was because the funds had been surreptitiously swapped, delaying military operations. While the Shen family truly lacked evidence to prove their innocence, finding the actual silver would change everything. With such a massive amount of pay, the one hiding it would be unable to move it on a large scale. Once found, they would be revealed as the true culprit.
Shen Yunfei suddenly understood the logic, and he finally realized why his father had rushed to see the Emperor that night.
“A few days ago, the horse was startled at the martial arts field. Master Shen, you are skilled with horses—do you truly believe that was an accident?” Ying Fusheng asked.
Shen Yunfei looked at him, stunned. “Are you saying—”
Ying Fusheng did not answer directly. With a calm expression, he poured a cup of tea and pushed it toward Shen Yunfei. The military pay case was difficult because the silver seemed to have vanished into thin air, disappearing entirely during transport. The Qi family had investigated the route rigorously but found no trace of it. “The pay was escorted out of the capital, but before it reached the North, it was swapped for crates filled with gravel, spoiled grain, and weeds. It seemed to vanish into the void.”
“But what if that military pay… never actually left the capital?”
Ying Fusheng’s words were pointed: “I have heard that Vice Minister Shen’s subordinates in the Court of the Imperial Horses are in charge of the administration of horses.”
“If so, your Shen family needs to set a fire.”
In the dead of night, at the capital’s garrison, the soldiers were changing shifts.
A shadow took advantage of the brief gap in the rotation to slip out of the garrison. He crossed South Street with practiced ease and finally pushed open the door of a teahouse. The Junior Minister of the Court of the Imperial Horses was sitting there restlessly, glancing outside repeatedly. When he saw the newcomer, he stood up abruptly, his expression frantic. “Why have you come? The Qi family has been tightening security lately. They’re already auditing the Ministry of War’s old accounts. If the records we faked are discovered—”
“I have come to deliver the Master’s orders. Please remain calm, Junior Minister,” the man in black said. “The capital is no longer safe. We must find a way to move those items.”
The Junior Minister’s face paled. “With so much of it, how can we move it?”
“If it can’t be moved, it must be destroyed,” the man in black stated. “The Master’s meaning is clear: we cannot let the Qi family find a single shred of evidence.”
The Junior Minister recoiled in despair. “We’ve hidden it for so long… must it really be destroyed?”
“The Emperor intends to protect Shen Changcun, and the Qi family is a sharp blade; it is not wise to have a conflict now.” As the man in black spoke, his eyes held a dark suggestion: “There are those in court who will mediate for you. You have three days at most to find a way to dispose of it… You can handle the details yourself. As for your family, someone will naturally look after them.”
With that, he left a secret order on the table, turned, and vanished.
The Junior Minister collapsed into his seat. Seeing that the man in black was gone, his attendant rushed to support him. “Master!”
“A secret message has arrived from the palace—it’s from the Eastern Palace.” The attendant produced a jade pendant.
The Junior Minister shuddered at the mention of the Eastern Palace. “The Crown Prince…?”
As he unfolded the secret letter, his horror grew. Between the assassination at the Shen manor and the startled horse at the martial arts field, people had already begun making pointed inquiries. The Court of the Imperial Horses managed the horse administration. That day, he had followed the Crown Prince’s private orders to arrange the horses for the field. Though he had used several layers of bureaucracy to hide his tracks, if someone targeted the Imperial Horses, he would be ruined. The man responsible that day had already been dismissed and sent home, but even the best-laid plans have flaws. If the Embroidered Uniform Guard reached the Imperial Horses, the problem would be catastrophic.
The “Master” didn’t know about this secondary complication yet. He had to clean up the mess immediately. “Go! To the stables!”
The Court of the Imperial Horses had specialized stables scattered throughout the capital’s outskirts.
The Junior Minister had just stepped out of the teahouse when he heard a noise. He looked up to see thick smoke rising in the distance, and his face instantly twisted in terror.
Late into the night, the Qi Family Army from the border defenses almost instantly surrounded the Court of the Imperial Horses. The overseers were startled awake in a panic. The Embroidered Uniform Guard acted in the shadows, surrounding the Junior Minister’s residence in less than two hours. Qi Hanzhou stood with the Minister of the Supreme Court of Justice—the latter looking pale with fright—as the guards rushed inside to search. The Junior Minister and other officials were all trapped; some who tried to flee in the night were intercepted.
Qi Hanzhou turned the remaining matters over to the Embroidered Uniform Guard. “Where is the Junior Minister of the Imperial Horses?”
“Not at his residence,” a subordinate reported.
Qi Hanzhou frowned, a realization striking him. “Go and check the Imperial Horses’s various locations across the capital—”
“Something has happened! Young General!”
A cavalryman galloped toward them from the distance. “The stables in the capital outskirts are on fire!”
A flash of surprise crossed Qi Hanzhou’s eyes. He pulled on his reins and ordered his men to put out the fire.
The deputy held the officials of the Imperial Horses under guard. They had intended for tonight’s action to be a stealth operation to avoid tipping anyone off, yet the fire broke out the moment they secured the office. It was too coincidental. “You let the word out for the Supreme Court of Justice to check the Ministry of War’s accounts; then, the Junior Minister disappears and the stables catch fire. Someone is watching us.”
Qi Hanzhou pulled his horse around. “This fire wasn’t set by their people. If they were going to burn something, they would have burned the Ministry of War’s storehouse.”
Burning the storehouse would destroy all evidence and make the accounts impossible to verify. Burning irrelevant stables, however, would only serve to draw every eye directly to the Court of the Imperial Horses.
“Then this is—” The deputy gasped in shock.
Qi Hanzhou spurred his horse toward the capital’s outskirts. “Someone was a step ahead of us.”
In the dead of night, multiple garrisons across the capital region were alerted. The fire at the Imperial Horses’s stables was terrifyingly fierce, spreading in a continuous blaze.
The Embroidered Uniform Guards and the Qi Family Army acted almost simultaneously. The horizon of the capital was illuminated by the firelight; fortunately, it was discovered in time, and the blaze was brought under control before it could spread from the stables to the surrounding areas.
This commotion jolted the Imperial City. The Embroidered Uniform Guards entered the palace overnight to report, and the lights in Qianqing Palace were lit.
While Song An was attending to Ying Fusheng, he noticed that his Highness seemed to be in a slightly better mood today; he had finished his morning medicine quite early.
When master and servant arrived at Wenhua Hall, the other students were already there. Shen Yunfei sat in his place, looking lost and dazed, only barely managing to stand and bow when he saw Ying Fusheng arrive.
“The Crown Prince has arrived!”
Ying Fusheng looked over and saw the Crown Prince walking in from outside the hall.
Upon entering, the Prince’s gaze lingered on Shen Yunfei before shifting to fix heavily upon Ying Fusheng.
As if he hadn’t noticed the hostility in the Crown Prince’s eyes, Ying Fusheng followed protocol: “Greetings, Imperial Brother.”
The Crown Prince turned and walked away immediately, failing to maintain even his usual mask of gentleness. Many people clustered around the Crown Prince. Ying Fusheng rarely came to Wenhua Hall to study, and it was only recently, as his health improved, that he began appearing frequently. Those present knew the clear distinction between the Crown Prince and a mere Prince; seeing the Crown Prince display open hostility toward Ying Fusheng, they all kept their distance.
On the contrary, the Seventh Prince leaned a bit closer to Ying Fusheng. He still remembered the incident at the martial arts field and felt a bit more goodwill toward this usually gloomy Sixth Brother.
The whispering in the hall only ceased when the Grand Tutor arrived, but today at Wenhua Hall was destined to be different from usual.
Only four hours into their studies, Eunuch Rong, a personal attendant to the Emperor, arrived in person to summon the Crown Prince and the Sixth Prince.
The Emperor rarely came to Wenhua Hall to inspect the princes’ schoolwork. Clearly, this visit was intentional. Thinking of his recent assignments, the Crown Prince looked at Ying Fusheng—who was walking alongside him—and a shadow crossed his eyes. If the incident at the martial arts field had succeeded, Shen Yunfei would never have become a study companion, let alone entered the palace. Now that the Shen family’s case had reached a turning point, if they were truly exonerated, he would have lost his chance with Shen Yunfei for nothing.
In the back hall of Wenhua Hall, the Emperor sat in the seat of honor, with the Grand Tutor beside him.
Only after the Crown Prince and the Sixth Prince arrived did the Grand Tutor rise and take his leave.
“Little Sixth, has your health improved lately?” the Emperor asked.
Ying Fusheng replied, “Thank you for your concern, Father. I am much better.”
The Emperor nodded slightly, and when he turned his gaze to the Crown Prince, his expression cooled. “How has the Crown Prince’s schoolwork been lately?”
“In response to Father, your son has not dared to delay; the assignments set by the Grand Tutor were completed the day before yesterday.” The Crown Prince spoke eloquently, detailing what he had learned from his recent readings.
The Emperor’s expression remained unchanged. Only after the Prince finished did he ask: “And what else?”
The Crown Prince was taken down a peg, noticing the coldness in his father’s demeanor.
This change made him feel a sense of panic. He had no issues with his schoolwork and had even been praised by the Grand Tutor.
The Crown Prince could only say: “Your son has been busy with his studies lately and has even written two essays.”
“Only busy with your studies?” the Emperor said, his voice heavy.
The Crown Prince was confused. In the next moment, the Emperor threw a jade pendant, which crashed onto the floor.
Ying Fusheng’s gaze shifted slightly, landing on the jade pendant that had already cracked from the impact. He raised a brow slightly.
The moment the jade pendant appeared, the Crown Prince’s face turned deathly pale.
The Emperor’s face was now visible with rage: “Then how do you explain this jade pendant?”
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