As Pan Long raced toward You Province on the wild wind, word of what had just happened had already reached every faction.
Emperor Di Renchen was the first to hear. He listened to the spy's report without expression, nodded, dismissed him, and said nothing.
A moment later, he turned to Wei Lue, the Chief Eunuch at his side. "Grandfather, what do you make of this?"
Wei Lue was Di Renchen's maternal grandfather. Of his four daughters, the youngest, Wei Qingling, had been the late empress dowager.
The chief of the Great Xia Imperial Court's inner court had always been chosen from among the elder members of the emperor's maternal family. According to Di Yichou, who had established the rule, it was meant to keep the inner court in balance.
The inner court's officials were almost all eunuchs. Great Xia did not require its eunuchs to be castrated, but they did have to be orphans and cultivate both the Ice Heart Art and the Virgin Boy Art.
These people were naturally loyal to the emperor beyond question, but they often took extreme measures. They needed an experienced, steady elder to lead them and keep trouble from breaking out.
Di Yichou had chosen his own maternal grandfather as Chief Eunuch. Since then, most emperors had preferred to appoint theirs to the post.
Unless... their grandfather was already dead.
Wei Lue was one of Great Xia's foremost Great Grandmasters. When he roamed the Martial World, he had been known as the "Carefree Blade." He had sparred three times with the long-famous Ren Changsheng, the "Qionglai Sword." He lost the first match; the next two ended in draws.
After his grandson became emperor, Wei Lue entered court service and never left the palace again. For nearly thirty years, he had devoted himself to cultivation.