Wei Jin, however, felt a weight lift from his shoulders. At least he had delivered the items.
As for whether Qing Chen would kowtow in gratitude for imperial grace, that was not something a mere Junior Director of Ceremonial like him could insist upon.
"You still have business here, brat?" Qing Chen frowned. Did this man have no sense at all? Was he asking for a beating?
Wei Jin's heart jolted, and he quickly changed the subject.
"Duke, His Eighth Highness asked me to pass along a message some time ago. He did seem somewhat impatient then. However, His Highness had just gone through the affair with Ding Buxing. The people in his residence were unsettled, and he urgently needed a great victory to stabilize the situation."
Qing Chen had already been ready to lose his temper, but the name Ding Buxing made him pause.
"Ding Buxing?"
"Indeed."
"Some years ago, the Eighth Prince issued arrest warrants throughout the Fifteen Northwestern Circuit Provinces to capture him. Before entering seclusion, I ordered the provincial offices to assist in the search." Qing Chen lifted his teacup, his expression casual. "Did they catch him?"
He did not know what had happened afterward. After all, aside from cultivation, his thoughts back then had been occupied with plotting against the Black Fox King.
Wei Jin immediately looked somewhat embarrassed. "No." He had actually taken part in the pursuit himself. After Qing Chen sided with the Eighth Prince, he had joined the Eighth Prince's camp as well.
"The Eighth Prince actually failed to catch him? A Dharma Nascent Soul?" Qing Chen's interest was piqued. "The Nascent Soul attendants of the Eighth Prince's Residence, the Mirror-Holding Envoys of the Profound Mirror Sky-Hunting Bureau, plus the Immortal Officials of the provincial offices across nine circuits-and after all these