Promoted to Commander

Inside a warm pavilion in the Forbidden City, dragon saliva incense curled.

Princess Xuan Yi, holding up her skirt, rushed in, her hair ornaments trembling: "Your daughter greets Father Emperor!"

The Emperor didn't stop writing with his vermilion brush, his eyes filled with amusement: "What brings my precious pearl to visit Father Emperor today?"

"Father Emperor!" Princess Xuan Yi stamped her foot. "Your daughter is already eighteen! When Imperial Brother was this age, his little nephew could already recite the Thousand Character Classic!"

The Emperor paused, his brush leaving a blot of ink resembling a withered plum blossom on the memorial. He looked up at his most beloved daughter—her rouge-red palace dress set off her snow-white skin, and the floral ornament between her brows trembled slightly as she frowned, making her look exactly like the Empress when she was young.

"When did I ever stop you from marrying?" The Emperor put down his brush, his tone indulgent yet helpless. "You were the one who insisted on marrying that Li Chen Zhou."

Upon hearing this, a hint of slyness flashed in Princess Xuan Yi's eyes. She moved gracefully behind the Emperor, placing her slender hands on his shoulders: "Then why doesn't Father Emperor promote him? Today is the Earth Ranking competition..."

"Nonsense!" The Emperor suddenly slammed his hand on the table, startling the eunuchs outside the hall into kneeling. Seeing his daughter's eyes reddening, he softened his tone: "Do you know that the little rascal was scolding me for being stingy in front of me this morning?"

For the next hour, Princess Xuan Yi used all her charms. Sometimes she acted spoiled and coquettish, sometimes she looked like she was about to cry, and in the end, she even brought up the late Empress's last wish. The Emperor's temples throbbed, and he finally sighed, revealing his three concerns:

"First, my pearl has already been plucked by him, isn't that enough?" His fingers unconsciously caressed the Nine-Dragon Jade Pendant at his waist. "Second, that boy is only twenty years old and already has the strength to overwhelm the heroes of the martial world. If I bestow too much honor on him now..." His tone suddenly turned cold. "Third, power is a deadly poison. I'm doing this for his own good!"

After Princess Xuan Yi reluctantly took her leave, the Emperor grabbed the celadon teacup from the table and smashed it against the pillar. The flying shards of porcelain cut across the old eunuch's cheek, leaving a bloody mark.

"That little bastard!" The Emperor was amused despite himself. "He actually dared to incite the Princess to put pressure on me!"

Li Chen Zhou emerged from the Pingxuan Hall as dusk deepened. He stood in the narrow passage between the palace walls and took a deep breath. The cool night wind, mixed with fine rain, hit his face, slightly calming the Heavenly Frost Fist energy within him.

"Sir, are we returning to the residence?" The accompanying Brocade Guard Xiaoqi opened an oil-paper umbrella.

"To the Northern Investigation Bureau." Li Chen Zhou stroked the five Captain tokens at his waist. "Have all the clerks on duty wait in the records room."

The bookworm-like Xiaoqi was visibly stunned: "At this hour?"

"Exactly this hour." A cold smile appeared on Li Chen Zhou's lips. "Tell the Brocade Guard clerks that the more evidence of crimes they uncover tonight, the more reward money they'll receive tomorrow."

Two hours later, the records room of the Northern Investigation Bureau was brightly lit. Twelve clerks in blue robes buried themselves in the mountain of files, occasionally someone running to present newly discovered clues to Li Chen Zhou's desk.

"Sir, this is the case of the Vice Minister of Public Works' nephew forcibly occupying a civilian girl on the Qinhuai Riverbank. It was suppressed three years ago..."

"The second steward of the Minister of Personnel's residence is lending money at exorbitant interest rates in the outer city, driving two merchants to their deaths..."

"The Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices' brother-in-law is privately selling military equipment to martial arts sects..."

Li Chen Zhou tapped his fingers lightly on the desk, and frost spread across the mahogany surface like spiderwebs. Seventeen files were already piled up in front of him, each one enough to ruin a court official's reputation.

At the third quarter of Mao hour (5:45 AM), the bronze bell of the Northern Investigation Bureau suddenly rang.

Li Chen Zhou, dressed in a black Flying Fish Uniform, sat upright in the hall, tapping his fingers lightly on the desk: "Bookworm, bring up all the files."

More than ten clerks staggered in, pushing three carts piled high with files. The bookworm adjusted his crooked glasses and unfolded a yellowed ledger: "Reporting, sir, as you instructed, we have compiled 327 cases of crimes committed by the relatives of key officials from the Six Ministries."

"Read."

"The Minister of Personnel Wang Yan's nephew forcibly seized the Li Family Silk Shop in the south of the city last year, driving the shopkeeper and his wife to their deaths..."

"The Vice Minister of Public Works' nephew privately set up tax checkpoints at the canal docks, embezzling public funds..."

"The Ministry of Rites official's brother-in-law colluded with martial arts sects to traffic military equipment..."

A cold glint flashed in Li Chen Zhou's eyes, and the Embroidered Spring Blade at his waist was drawn half an inch with a "clang": "Gather the men!"

At Mao hour (6:00 AM) sharp, five hundred Brocade Guardsmen were arrayed on the drill ground. Black Dog, White Cat, and the other five Captains knelt on one knee, their armor gleaming coldly in the morning light.

"Black Dog, take men and surround Rouge Alley in the east of the city." Li Chen Zhou threw out a command token. "Lord Zhao of the Ministry of Rites' mistress is hidden in the third courtyard. Three private ledgers are buried under the floor tiles."

"White Cat, go to the West Market Gambling House." Another bronze token flew out. "The eldest son of Lord Qian of the Ministry of Public Works is gambling in the Heaven-Class room. The jade pendant at his waist is the key to opening the secret chamber."

The sound of hooves thundered, shattering the Capital City's morning mist.

In front of the Li Family Silk Shop in the south of the city, Black Dog kicked open the vermilion gate. As the Brocade Guardsmen poured in, a young man in luxurious clothes was embracing a courtesan and drinking merrily.

"What are you doing? My uncle is..." Before the young man could finish speaking, an iron chain was already around his neck.

Inside the West Market Gambling House, White Cat split open the carved screen. The son of the Vice Minister of Public Works was so frightened that he knocked over the chips, and a blood-stained land deed fell from his arms—the very evidence lost in the extermination case in the suburbs last month.

By noon, more than thirty good-for-nothing playboys were kneeling at the execution grounds. The old man selling sesame cakes tremblingly brought out his treasured old wine and kowtowed three times in the direction of the Northern Investigation Bureau: "The wise officials have opened their eyes!"

Inside the Captain's office, Li Chen Zhou watched the ledgers being sent in one after another, the frost gathering on his fingertips gradually spreading across the entire desk. When the last box of ill-gotten silver was carried in, the bookworm's hands, holding the abacus, were trembling: "Sir, there are 5.4 million taels of silver in cash, and..."

"Continue investigating." Li Chen Zhou flicked his finger, shattering the icicles on the corner of the table. "This is just a drop in the bucket."

As the evening drums sounded, he summoned his confidant: "Take ten percent of the silver and distribute it to the brothers, and ten percent to pay respects to the Commander." His gaze swept over the mountain of treasures. "The rest... send it to the palace as is."

Inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the Emperor stared at the floor full of silver ingots. Moonlight streamed through the window lattices, casting cold patterns on the silver mountain. The old eunuch's hands, holding the list of gifts, trembled incessantly: "Ten bushels of South Sea pearls, thirty-eight paintings and calligraphies from the previous dynasty, Tianhuang stone seals..."

"Good! Very good!" The Emperor suddenly laughed, smashing the corner of the dragon desk with a palm. "My Ministry of Revenue's annual tax revenue is not even equal to what these parasites have embezzled in one night!"

After calming down for a while, "What a swift blade." The Emperor stroked a blood-stained jade Guanyin, suddenly laughing. "Wei Wuji, that old fox, has sent me a useful weapon!"

On the third day, at the Grand Assembly, the atmosphere in the Hall of Supreme Harmony was heavy as iron.

"Your Majesty! I accuse Li Chen Zhou of the Brocade Guard of abusing his power!" The Minister of Rites stepped forward, holding his jade tablet, his voice echoing in the hall. "Yesterday, he actually led men into the residence of the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy..."

Before he could finish speaking, the Vice Minister of War had already rushed forward: "I second that! Li Chen Zhou has no regard for discipline and should be dismissed and investigated!"

The memorials of impeachment on the dragon desk were piled precariously high. The Emperor tapped his fingers lightly on the gilded armrest, his gaze sweeping over the court officials, who were noticeably thinner in number—the positions of fifth-rank officials were mostly empty, like teeth that had been pulled out.

Wei Wuji chuckled softly, his python robe and jade belt gleaming gently in the morning light. "Why must you all be so angry?" he said. "The young man is simply eager to prove himself." He casually twirled the jade ring on his finger. "Besides... wasn't the evidence against everyone arrested irrefutable?"

The hall fell deathly silent. The ministers who had been filled with righteous indignation just moments before lowered their heads, some even taking a half-step back without realizing it.

The Emperor watched this scene, a hint of bloodiness rising in his throat. He suppressed his anger and counted—of the forty-three officials of the fifth rank who had stood here yesterday, only twenty-one remained today.

As the bell signaling the end of the court session rang, the six ministers were asked to stay behind.

Inside the Imperial Study, even the scent of agarwood couldn't mask the tense atmosphere. Wang Yan, Minister of Personnel, was the first to speak. "Your Majesty, Li Chen Zhou's actions are truly..."

"Truly what?" the Emperor interrupted suddenly, grabbing a ledger and slamming it onto the desk. "This records the eight hundred acres of fertile land your nephew seized. Would you like me to read it aloud for you, my dear minister?"

The Vice Minister of Public Works wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. "But the operation of the court..."

"Operation?" the Emperor sneered. "I think you mean the gravy train has been cut off, haven't I?"

The six high-ranking officials exchanged glances. They knew perfectly well—those relatives who had been arrested, let them die if they deserved it. It was just that with so many people suddenly missing from the court, documents were piling up like mountains in every department.

After a long silence, the Minister of Justice tentatively suggested, "Perhaps... we could promote Li Chen Zhou to Commander? The Jiangnan Water Transport Authority happens to need someone to guard it..."

The Emperor stared at the parasol trees outside the window for a long time, then suddenly laughed. "Draft the decree." He caressed the jade seal on his desk, his voice so soft it was almost a whisper. "This blade... I must sharpen it even more."

Suddenly, thunder rumbled outside the window, and the sound of rain lashing against the glazed tiles was like a stampede of ten thousand horses.