C89 No Problem

"Tiange! She recognized the Ghost-faced Buddha at first glance!" Rong Qi still regrets not following the Ghost-faced Buddha with Tiange back then. Now, they can't even find a trace. "I'm talking to you. Can you put down the pestle for a moment?"

"I don't want people to think I'm useless."

"…"

Chu Ping certainly isn't useless. Even if Gu Ziyan swapped the emperor's prescription, he could still tamper with the herbs sent to the palace. As long as the effects continued to work on the emperor, he would awaken in less than six months.

After this incident, Chu Ping changed the prescription. He wouldn't let the emperor regain consciousness gradually, as that would give many in the palace time to react. So, the emperor would wake up very suddenly...

The person most affected by Xie Jin's death was Xie Ruxuan. She refused to believe her father had hanged himself and even went to the Ministry of Punishments to demand justice. Despite her relentless cries and pounding on the drum, the doors of the court remained closed.

Several kind-hearted officers tried to console her, explaining that the coroner had confirmed the identity and the case was closed. But Xie Ruxuan wouldn't listen and ended up leaving a few officers with bruised faces.

Anyone else would have been thrown into the Celestial Prison by Ding Yuv, but out of respect for the deceased and their shared service, he decided to let it slide for Xie Jin's sake.

Ruxuan eventually left in despair. The funeral at the Xie Mansion was conducted with exceptional dignity, yet it was awkward to see so few people paying their respects. Beiming Yuan's subordinates believed Xie Jin's death was a punishment for his failures, so they dared not attend. Meanwhile, other officials, aware of Xie Jin's association with Beiming Yuan, chose not to go out of disdain. Xie Jin, who had lived a life of glory, never imagined such a lonely end.

During this time, Feng Yan approached Beiming Yuan, subtly suggesting that his son could fill the vacancy of the Deputy Minister of War. Beiming Yuan declined, not because of any personal reasons, but because Feng Ranxiu lacked the necessary experience. However, he assured Feng Yan that he would find a position for Ranxiu within the Ministry of War, ensuring he wouldn't be transferred out of the capital.

In the west courtyard of the South Suppressing Marquis Mansion, Sunn Hexiang was troubled. "Do you think the Crown Prince is dissatisfied with you?" she asked her husband.

Feng Yan set down his teacup and looked up, "Why do you say that?"

"If the Crown Prince was pleased with you, why wouldn't he let Ranxiu fill the Deputy Minister of War position?" Sunn Hexiang poured more tea into his cup as she spoke.

"I told you, Ranxiu doesn't have enough experience."

"Experience or not, it's really up to the Crown Prince! Honestly, I feel it's unfair to you. You've diligently supported the Crown Prince, yet you're only given a position in the Ministry of Rites. Now, when you ask for something, all he offers Ranxiu is a minor role in the Ministry of War..."

"Shut up!"

Just as Sunn Hexiang was grumbling, Feng Yan slammed his cup down, his eyes cold as ice.

"Master..."

"Women’s opinions! What do you know?" Feng Yan glanced nervously out the window, and when his gaze returned to Sunn Hexiang, it was even colder. "The fact that the Crown Prince Lord gave Ranxiu a position in the Ministry of War is already a blessing. Have you forgotten how Xie Jin died?"

Sunn Hexiang hesitated, "Wasn't it said he hanged himself?"

"Suicide?" Feng Yan sneered. "Xie Jin was a man who had weathered many storms. If he were the type to kill himself over a minor setback, he would never have risen to the position of Minister of War!"

"It wasn't suicide..." Sunn Hexiang seemed to realize she had stumbled onto something significant and cautiously moved closer to Feng Yan. "Then who killed him?"

Feng Yan shot her a glance and picked up his teacup again. When he married this woman, it was partly for her family's background and partly because she had some cleverness. But over the years, instead of growing wiser, she seemed to have gotten dumber.

"Could it be... the Crown Prince Lord?" Sunn Hexiang's voice was so loud that Feng Yan nearly choked.

Looking at Sunn Hexiang's flushed face, with two little green tea leaves stuck to it, Feng Yan was beyond furious. "Do you have to shout so loud? Are you trying to let the whole world hear?"

“Is there someone outside?” Sunn Hexiang excitedly got up and ran out, returning after a while. “Rest assured, sir, there's no one outside!”

In truth, Sunn Hexiang was simply too shocked; her intelligence wouldn't allow for such a mistake.

Feng Yan informed Sunn Hexiang that if she only saw Beiming Yuan as the Crown Prince, she was gravely mistaken. Beiming Yuan had clearly positioned himself as a ruler, and his actions now naturally wouldn't just consider the interests of his subordinates.

Thus, Xie Jin's death didn't alter the situation, but it certainly stirred emotions...

At the Imperial Academy, in the chess room.

Rong Qi set up an endgame on the tall wooden chessboard. As soon as he turned around, Feng Tiange and Ye Zhixi almost simultaneously stood up.

The chess room was filled with murmurs; the intellectual gap was indeed hard to accept.

After letting Ye Zhixi go, Rong Qi approached Feng Tiange, looking at her from all angles without saying a word.

“Delay me from going to the Martial Academy, and you'll face the consequences,” Feng Tiange said in a low, cold voice.

Rong Qi acted as if he hadn't heard. “I think there's a problem with how you solved this endgame!”

“When did you go blind?” Feng Tiange gritted her teeth, clearly seeing that the pieces on her board were identical to Ye Zhixi's earlier setup.

“Ahem...” Rong Qi's face reddened slightly. “You can go now.”

After leaving the chess room, Tiange headed straight to the Martial Academy, only to run into Su Hu coming her way.

The first thing he said was, "I hate you!"

Tiange almost retorted with, "You're not the first," but stopped when she noticed the swollen handprint on Su Hu's face. She frowned and asked, "Who hit you?"

Although Su Hu wasn't as strikingly handsome as Rong Qi, he was still a bright young man. Seeing his face marred like this, whoever did it must have been quite ruthless.

But to Su Hu, the issue wasn't who hit him. The real question was, why was he the only one who got hit?

According to Su Hu, the recent trial at the Martial Academy was about catching snakes. Encouraged by Tiange, he managed to catch ten.

Then, Gongsun Pei from the Sword Holding Small Building summoned him. Gongsun Pei claimed those snakes were his and that Su Hu needed to be punished for catching ten of them.

The punishment was a slap, but Su Hu had the option to dodge.

"Why didn't you dodge?" Tiange was surprised. Su Hu didn't seem like the type to just stand there.

Su Hu chuckled dryly.

He didn't dodge? More like he couldn't dodge in time!

Moreover, Su Hu thought to himself, he only caught ten snakes. Ruochen and Jun Wushang caught at least seventy-eight between them. Their handsome faces must have taken even more slaps, making them unrecognizable.

But, still. He was the only one called to the Sword Holding Small Building, and he was the only one who took ten slaps from Gongsun Pei!

"Why?" Su Hu looked at Feng Tiange with a deep sense of injustice and frustration.

Feng Tiange thought for a moment. "Maybe it's because the ten you caught were the ones he was raising."

"I think he wants me dead," Su Hu said, following closely behind Feng Tiange, his teeth grinding in anger. "But I won't give in. As long as I'm alive, I'll wait for the day he meets his end!"

Feng Tiange privately thought there was nothing wrong with that logic.