To let a fool… take over this…
Meanwhile, the instigator of it all, Xiao Jingchuan, grinned foolishly, even beginning to consider whether he should sacrifice a bit more authenticity by drooling.
Only he could see the Bone-Reflecting Mirror silently speak up: 【No, you don’t—please, Emperor Yunqi will be here soon!】
Even though it was just a mirror, it couldn’t bear the embarrassment!
Xiao Jingchuan closed his mouth: Well, forget it then. This “grandson” of a father wasn’t worth such a great sacrifice.
Speak of the devil, and he shall appear. Amid this eerie silence, a clear clap echoed from outside the hall, followed by steady footsteps.
“Well, well, what a heartwarming scene of brotherly affection.”
Emperor Yunqi, Xiao Quan, strode in with his hands clasped behind his back. The darkly embroidered dragon patterns on his black casual robes shimmered faintly in the light.
His gaze swept indifferently over the rigidly standing Crown Prince and Third Prince before finally settling on Xiao Jingchuan, who was tugging at the robes of his two elder brothers. A faint, elusive smile played at the corners of his lips.
He had just encountered this fool on the way here, and the fool had followed him all the way?
Wasn’t that just too coincidental?
The Crown Prince and Third Prince were startled, hurriedly straightening up to bow in unison: “Your sons greet Father Emperor!”
Emperor Yunqi didn’t bother questioning why Xiao Jingchuan was here, as it was unimportant.
He walked directly to the main seat and sat down, lightly tapping the table with his fingertips. “I listened outside for a while—quite lively. So, after all this discussion, have you reached a conclusion? Who will clean up the mess in Jiangnan?”
Silence filled the hall.
“Your son is incompetent, not yet…” the Crown Prince rushed to explain.
“The selection of the Jiangnan Inspector is still under discussion among us…” the Third Prince also attempted to evade.
Their throats tightened as they prepared to trot out their well-rehearsed excuses once more, ready to spout more nonsense about “needing further investigation” or “the matter being of great importance.”
Unexpectedly, the Sixth Prince, who was still tugging at their robes, suddenly looked up, his eyes startlingly bright, a flicker of imperceptible mischief flashing in their depths.
The Bone-Reflecting Mirror began facepalming for the two princes. Whenever Xiao Jingchuan put on this expression, it meant he was about to stir up trouble again.
And when he did, it was always something big.
Xiao Jingchuan widened his eyes and exclaimed loudly, “Father Emperor! Are my brothers going to become the Jiangnan Inspector?”
Crown Prince: !
Third Prince: ?
The two princes, whose every word and action could stir undercurrents and storms in the court, trembled in fear.
Damn it, Sixth Brother!
They had no grudge against him—why was this bastard trying to harm them!
Xiao Jingchuan continued his outburst: “Jiangnan sounds so fun! I often hear the palace eunuchs and maids talk about it—the mountains are green, the waters are blue—and the pastries are delicious too!”
His voice was clear and bright, brimming with an innocence untouched by worldly affairs, standing out starkly in this hall filled with schemes and minds teeming with ulterior motives.
Seated in the main position, Emperor Yunqi was momentarily taken aback by these words, but instead of getting angry, he burst into hearty laughter. The sound echoed through the hall’s beams, sinking the hearts of the Crown Prince and Third Prince even further.
Still laughing, old man? Keep laughing, and this guy might chase butterflies right into your Alchemy Hall, maybe even set your Wangu Changqing Palace on fire!
The two ignored princes gritted their teeth in frustration behind him.
After his laughter subsided, Emperor Yunqi condescended to crook a finger, signaling for Xiao Jingchuan to come closer.
He looked at the Sixth Prince with great interest and followed up with a question: “Your elder brothers aren’t going themselves but are selecting others to go. Old Six, in your opinion, who do you think would be most suitable?”
Xiao Jingchuan had been waiting for this very question!
He immediately released the robes of his two elder brothers and bounded up to Emperor Yunqi like a little dog seeking praise. Pointing at his own nose, his face showed unconcealed, almost naive pride:
“I think I’m the most suitable!”
The Bone-Reflecting Mirror emitted a silent scream: 【Your Majesty! Hidden Dragon in the Abyss! Aren’t you exposing yourself now?! Even if Emperor Yunqi is foolish, he’ll realize something’s off about you!】
【It’s fine. I was already tired of pretending to be his good son. I’m his ancestor! Why should I play the son?】
Xiao Jingchuan rolled his eyes inwardly, but on the surface, his smile grew even more radiant as he gestured animatedly: “Let me go! Father, let me go! The pastries in Jiangnan… if I go, I can eat the freshest ones every day! As long as I can eat pastries, I can crush those sea bandits like mud!”
As soon as these bold words left his mouth, both the Crown Prince and the Third Prince were stunned. Even their previous fear and anger were momentarily overshadowed by the sheer absurdity of it all.
Sending a fool to serve as Inspector? To take on this mess that no one in the entire court dares to touch?
Emperor Yunqi’s gaze lingered on the Sixth Prince’s seemingly innocent and naive face for a long time.
It seemed as if this was the first time he had examined this child so carefully—the child he had abandoned in the Eastern and Western Five Compounds and never paid attention to again.
To be honest, Old Six was quite good-looking, except his eyes were a bit unusual—silver-gray with pupils that shimmered with a faint golden hue. Combined with his foolishness, Emperor Yunqi had always disliked this child.
Emperor Yunqi recalled the strange feeling he had experienced during their brief encounter on the palace path earlier.
Moreover, just moments ago, hidden outside the hall, he had clearly seen how this child agilely climbed in through the window like a yellow dog—a movement that was definitely not something a mentally impaired person could manage.
Now, these seemingly insane words—were they truly foolish, or… was this great wisdom disguised as folly?
Had he been pretending to be a fool all these years, or… had he suddenly regained his senses recently because of the appearance of the Celestial Screen?
Emperor Yunqi naturally linked the Sixth Prince’s abnormality to the strange Celestial Screen that had recently appeared.
If it really was because of the Celestial Screen, could it be that… the Qianwu Emperor was not one of the Third Prince or the Crown Prince, but… someone else?
If that were truly the case, heaven would indeed be helping him. He would finally no longer need to sift through those messy imperial clan genealogies to find the Qianwu Emperor.
The hall was so quiet that the faint crackling of the oil lamps providing illumination could be heard.
Finally, Emperor Yunqi slowly spoke, his voice betraying neither joy nor anger: “The position of Jiangnan Inspector is of great importance. This is no child’s play.”
Although his words said this, his gaze never left Xiao Jingchuan, as if examining an extremely intriguing artifact.
The Crown Prince and the Third Prince had just begun to relax slightly.
But then they heard Emperor Yunqi add: “However… for the Sixth Prince to have such ambition is not easy either.”
A single light remark made the hearts of the two princes leap into their throats once more.
Xiao Jingchuan instantly looked eagerly at this cheap grandson of a father, his eyes filled with: I’m so pitiful! I’ve never been loved by my father or mother in this lifetime—why can’t even such a small wish of mine be fulfilled now?—Hurry up and fulfill it!
No one could withstand Xiao Jingchuan’s puppy-dog eyes—not even the iron-hearted Jun Youcheng, let alone Emperor Yunqi. Xiao Quan awkwardly averted his gaze and coughed twice.
“You’ve been a fool for so many years, and this is the only time you’ve shown any wit. Of course, I shall grant your wish.”
Emperor Yunqi uttered two words: “Approved.”
Thus, the thorny issue that had nearly driven the Third Prince and the Crown Prince to blows was casually handed over to a fool.
“Father—”
How could a fool be appointed as the inspector to take on this mess that no one in the entire court dared to touch?!
Forgetting their rivalry for the throne, the two princes stepped forward simultaneously to protest but halted at the same time.
Letting a fool… take on this mess that no one in the entire court dared to touch…
Huh?!
Emperor Yunqi merely cast a cold glance at the two of them.
As if looking at two fools who had failed their Thick Black Theory exam.
The situation in Jiangnan had already become a tangled mess. The Ministry of War had no one to spare, and the Minister of War himself wished he could split himself into eight parts, arranging them in an arithmetic sequence along the Yangtze River Natural Barrier from one end to the other, guarding against hostile regimes including but not limited to Later Shu, Shuo, and Northern Qian.
As for the pirates “nurtured” in Jiangnan, there was simply no capacity to deal with them.
No faction was willing to take on this mess, tarnishing their reputation and meeting a miserable end. They would only continue to shirk responsibility and bicker. Even if Emperor Yunqi kept pressing, the Third Prince and the Crown Prince struggled to produce a solution satisfactory to both sides.
In that case, it was better to compromise and maintain balance.
Choosing a fool to serve as the acting Jiangnan Inspector was the perfect shield—at least if things went wrong, there would be someone to blame.
Moreover, all factions could freely place their own people under this fool, the Sixth Prince, ensuring they could still reap benefits in Jiangnan.
[I haven’t even set out yet, but I already feel like I’m carrying a heavy black pot on my back, haha.]
Xiao Jingchuan sighed inwardly, explaining the underlying reasons to the Bone-Reflecting Mirror.
The Bone-Reflecting Mirror widened its eyes: The hearts of your court officials are truly dark!
[But it doesn’t matter.] Xiao Jingchuan had always been adept at reassuring his subordinates. While outwardly cheering and thanking the emperor for his grace, he thought to himself: Once the dragon is released into the water, once we reach Jiangnan… what happens next will be beyond Emperor Yunqi’s control.
After all, building a force in unfamiliar territory had always been his greatest strength.
Meanwhile, in Jinling City, at the residence of Zheng Wang, Minister of War.
Bright red wedding silks adorned every beam and pillar of the mansion, and the clamor of gongs and drums deafened the ears.
In the main hall, guests wore complex expressions of curiosity, sympathy, or mockery, their gazes fixed on this absurd wedding.
The main reason was the peculiar nature of the couple—the young Lieutenant Gu, descendant of martyrs granted special court privileges by Emperor Yunqi for her parents’ meritorious service in protecting the emperor, and Zheng Wang, the only son of the Minister of War guarding the Yangtze River Natural Barrier.
Two individuals with no conceivable connection had been inexplicably tied together by Emperor Yunqi’s whimsical matchmaking—even the wildest fictional pairings in storybooks weren’t this far-fetched.
Especially since… the current young Lieutenant Gu’s body now housed the soul of Gu Yue, the founding general of Da Qian from a century ago.
In the wedding hall draped with red silk, Gu Yue stood rigid as a pine tree, clad in a glaring crimson wedding robe.
The gilded cup in his hand, gripped so tightly his knuckles turned white, seemed on the verge of cracking. The clamorous congratulations from the full hall of guests sounded no louder to his ears than the clashing of weapons on the battlefield.
He still preferred eating sand among the Northern Barbarians.
Gu Yue thought to himself, Ah, how foolish I was. Truly, I only knew that Da Qian, newly established, could not afford to wage large-scale wars, but I never imagined that a hundred years later, I would be struck by the boomerang right here.
Had I known earlier, I would have chased across Hanhai even if it meant death, pursuing Chanyu Lie Ri’s ancestors to their graves. If Chanyu Lie Ri had never existed, then Emperor Yunqi would not have become emperor, or at least would not have succumbed to Madness Disorder. If Emperor Yunqi had not become emperor, he wouldn’t be here marrying a stranger.
And a man, at that.
Gu Yue, ready to perform the wedding bows, wished only for death.
Just then, a faint, crisp cracking sound came from beside him.
Gu Yue’s cold gaze swept over, and he saw a girl dressed in the robes of an Alchemy Attendant from the State Preceptor’s Mansion leaning casually against a vermilion-lacquered pillar, deftly shelling melon seeds with her fingertips. A few bits of shell still clung to her sleeves, not yet shaken off.
“Let me interview you,” said Dian Cui, his old friend who still wore the same face from a hundred years ago. She had clearly used her Witchcraft to effortlessly infiltrate the State Preceptor’s Mansion, even attaining a fairly high rank—otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to attend Gu Yue’s wedding.
Dian Cui tossed a handful of shelled melon seeds into her mouth and mumbled, her dark, gleaming eyes sparkling with undisguised curiosity: “You’re about to perform the wedding bows. Any thoughts on marrying such a… well, robust and dexterous young master?”
Although Zheng Wang, the eldest son of the Minister of War, was a military man, he was famously skilled in Suzhou Embroidery.
Gu Yue’s emotions were steadier than Dian Cui had expected. He merely sighed, “I only regret that His Majesty entrusted the nation to the wrong person and that we failed to eradicate the Northern Barbarians root and branch back then.”
Dian Cui was moved. Gu Yue was still blaming himself. She took a few steps back. “You still love His Majesty so much, but isn’t it improper to carry him in your heart while bowing to someone else? Why is the Ritual Official here so soon? I’ll take my leave then, so as not to disturb your ceremony.”
Before she finished speaking, the Ritual Official’s voice rang out loudly: “The newlyweds—approach!”
The drum music suddenly surged with intensity, and the guests’ clamor grew even louder.
Gu Yue followed the sound and saw his future “groom,” the eldest son of the Minister of War, being escorted as he stepped over the threshold.
Just as the rumors said, the young master was tall and powerfully built, his crimson wedding robe stretched taut over his muscles, his stride full of vigor.
Only his expression was rather unpleasant, clearly awkward as well.
“Brother Gu.”
Zheng Wang spoke first with a bitter smile, raising his hands in a bow.
“Brother Zheng.”
Gu Yue returned the greeting in kind.
“First bow to heaven and earth—”
The Ritual Official’s drawn-out chant echoed through the hall.
“Second bow to parents—”
The Minister of War was still at the front lines, so the two awkwardly bowed their heads and kowtowed toward empty chairs.
“Third bow to each other—”
The Zheng residence was filled with peach blossoms, and now, amidst the red silk and peach blossoms, Dian Cui watched as Gu Yue and Zheng Wang knelt stiffly among the flowers and silk. The scene felt strangely familiar.
She quickly remembered.
Dian Cui: Holy shit! The, the Oath of the Peach Garden Duo!