Decision

"Wouldn't passing notes like these down to his own son have been more in keeping with the ways of this age?"

"Though we worked together before, he was wary of me, doubted me, and distrusted me. Even our ways of doing things were utterly different. Shouldn't he have felt more dissatisfaction toward me?"

"Yet he actually had greater hopes for me?"

With tangled feelings, Su Ziji lowered his eyes to the pages and remained motionless for a long while.

Some time later, someone passed outside this temporary residence. The sound of voices roused Su Ziji. He set the stack of manuscripts aside, rose, and took out a book, turning to a sheet tucked inside it—a list he had prepared long ago.

The sheet was densely covered with records of Qi Hongxin's transgressions since Su Ziji had met him.

The gravest was killing people; the lesser offenses included insulting and berating subordinate officials, acting arrogantly, and showing no generosity of spirit.

As for misappropriating provincial funds, that, too, was a charge that could be verified. Every investigation would strike home.

In Su Ziji's eyes, these sentences represented so many knives, ready to plunge into Qi Hongxin and draw blood at once, perhaps even bringing ruin upon his entire household.

"What should I do with him?" Su Ziji hesitated as he looked at the list.

These charges had not actually been difficult to gather. Given how Qi Hongxin conducted himself, he had crossed the line repeatedly while handling affairs after arriving in Shunan Prefecture. A casual sweep would net several things to hold against him.

"I used to think killing fifty-three people without requesting an imperial decree was a grave crime, more than enough to strip him of office or even imprison him."

"Now that I've experienced officialdom, that seems laughable."

*"Killing