That afternoon, Snow Empress met Cao Jing'an in the Court of Judicial Review prison. Cao Jing'an was a thin, middle-aged man wearing brass-rimmed glasses. His eyes behind the lenses were so swollen that they were barely slits, clearly indicating that he hadn't slept well for several days. When he saw Snow Empress enter the cell, he shrank back, pressed his back against the wall, and trembled, unable to utter a complete sentence.
Snow Empress sat down opposite him, without slamming her hand on the table or demanding an explanation. She simply said calmly, " Cao Jing'an, there are 327 people in the Spirit Vein Bureau. How many of them do you know?"
Cao Jing'an's face turned pale instantly. He opened his mouth, making a hoarse sound. Snow Empress didn't speak again, just looked at him. The cell was so quiet that you could hear the dripping of water from the walls. Cao Jing'an's glasses slipped down to the tip of his nose. He raised his hand to adjust them, but his hand trembled so badly that he couldn't get them back on after two attempts.
"I'll speak," he finally said, his voice hoarse like sandpaper grinding iron, " Meng Qi... Meng Qi asked me to replace those seven secret letters in the Spirit Vein Bureau's archives with his forgeries. I did. Later, he asked me to go to the Heavenly Prison to retrieve Lu Qingya's testimony draft, which I did. He didn't destroy the testimony draft; he locked it in a secret compartment in his study. The location of the secret compartment is..."
An hour later, Snow Empress emerged from her cell, holding a sketch showing the location of the hidden compartment. Pei Jichuan was already waiting outside. Seeing her, he nodded and said, "The letter from the Meng residence has been delivered. The watchers reported that Meng Qi's personal servant slipped out from the rockery in the back garden half an hour ago and was intercepted by our men. They found a letter written by Meng Qi himself and a draft of testimony on him."
Snow Empress unfolded the manuscript of the testimony. The pages were yellowed, the handwriting neat and precise—it was the work of her master, Lu Qingya. The first sentence read, "Since its establishment, the Spirit Vein Bureau has acted solely to protect the common people, and has never engaged in any acts of treason or collusion with the enemy..." Her gaze stopped at the last line. Lu Qingya's personal seal was affixed at the end, and next to it was a line of smaller characters, added later, the handwriting trembling but clear. "My disciple, Snow Empress, seeing this is like seeing you in person. Your master is leaving this world without return; I hope you take care. The 327 members of the Spirit Vein Bureau are all entrusted to you."
Snow Empress slowly rolled up the draft of her testimony and tucked it into her sleeve. There were no tears on her face, and she didn't show much expression, but Yin Wujou, standing behind her, saw that her knuckles were white as she held the scroll.
That evening, Pei Jichuan entered the Meng residence with a search warrant. In a hidden compartment in the study, he found all the remaining drafts of the testimonies, secret letters between Meng Qi and Xuan Abyss Workshop, a sample drawing of the Puppet Armor given to him by Liu Yanzhao, and a detailed plan for "kidnapping the emperor" that had not yet been implemented. Meng Qi himself sat in the study, a cup of tea that had gone cold in front of him, watching Pei Jichuan take the items out of the hidden compartment one by one. He did not resist or argue, but simply looked up at the darkening sky outside the window and suddenly laughed.
" Lu Qingya said something before he died," Meng Qi said calmly. "He said, 'No matter how much you scheme and plot, you can't escape that girl coming for you in the end.'"
Pei Jichuan ignored his words and waved his hand. Two constables stepped forward, lifted Meng Qi from the chair, put him in shackles, and escorted him out of the study. All of the more than one hundred people in the Meng household, masters and servants, were placed under guard on the spot, awaiting further instructions.
By the time the message reached the Imperial Guard's garrison, it was already dusk. Song Xuanwei stood at the entrance of the council hall, watching the lights gradually illuminate the city, and let out a long breath. He turned back into the hall, picked up his pen, and wrote a brief petition, which he submitted to the palace. Meng Qi had been detained, his testimony had been obtained, and the old case of the Spirit Vein Bureau was complete with witnesses and physical evidence. He requested the emperor to overturn the verdict.
On the morning of the third day, an imperial edict was issued: Meng Qi was dismissed from his Court of Judicial Review and arrested, to be jointly tried by the Court of Ministry of Punishments; Liu Yanzhao and Zhou Jing were to be treated as accomplices; Cao Jing'an was to atone for his crimes by performing meritorious service, and was to be spared death but exiled; the old case of the Spirit Vein Bureau Spirit Vein Bureau was to be overturned, the original arrest warrant was to be withdrawn, Lu Qingya was posthumously awarded the title of Honorary Director of the Spirit Vein Bureau, and the families of those who died in the Spirit Vein Bureau were to receive compensation. At the end of the edict was a line of small print, added by the Emperor himself, " Snow Empress, a descendant of the Spirit Vein Bureau, has rendered meritorious service in protecting the case, and is hereby ordered to immediately reinstate him as Director of the Spirit Vein Bureau and rebuild the Spirit Vein Bureau."
When the Snow Empress received the imperial decree, she stood in the council hall of the Imperial Guard's garrison. She wore her faded white robe, her hair casually tied up with a wooden hairpin, and the burns on the back of her hands had scabbed over. When the purple-robed official who was announcing the decree handed it to her, she received it with both hands, looked down at it for a long time, and then slowly raised her head, her gaze passing over the windows of the council hall and looking towards the distant, continuous rooftops of the capital.
Yin Wujou stood a step behind her. He saw the Snow Empress's fingers tighten slightly as she held the imperial edict, then slowly loosen. She neither laughed nor cried; she simply turned around, folded the edict neatly, and tucked it into her sleeve, nodding to Pei Jichuan and Song Xuanwei.
Thank you.
It was just two words, spoken very softly, but exceptionally clear in the quiet council chamber.
That afternoon, Yin Wujou and Snow Empress walked out of the Imperial Guard's barracks side by side. Mu Canglan was already waiting at the street corner, carrying a jar of wine and three rough earthenware bowls. When he saw the two of them come out, he grinned, laid out the wine bowls on the stone bench by the street, broke the clay seal on the wine jar, and poured three bowls of wine.
"Respectfully addressed to the Spirit Vein Bureau." Mu Canglan raised the bowl.
Snow Empress took the wine bowl, Yin Wujou also took it. The three bowls gently clinked together, the wine swirling in them, reflecting the bright afternoon sun. Mu Canglan tilted his head back and drank it all in one gulp, wiped his mouth, and placed the bowl on the stone stool.
"I'm going back to the tavern." He turned and took a couple of steps, then looked back at Snow Empress. "Girl, if you need help rebuilding the Spirit Vein Bureau, just say the word. This old drunkard may not be good at much else, but he's still good at running errands and delivering messages."
Snow Empress held her wine bowl, watching Mu Canglan's ashen figure disappear around the street corner. Yin Wujou stood beside her, his wine still unfinished. He glanced at Snow Empress; she stood in the afternoon sun, her white shirt fluttering gently in the wind, the ashen and weary look on her face softened by the sunlight into a warm hue.
"What do you plan to do about what your master told you?" Yin Wujou began.
Snow Empress looked down at the wine in the bowl. Her face was reflected in the wine, a blurry outline, only her eyes were clear. She was silent for a moment, then raised the bowl and took a sip. The wine was spicy, and she choked, but quickly swallowed it.
"Rebuild the Spirit Vein Bureau." She put down the bowl, her fingers tracing the rim. "Three hundred and twenty-seven people, their deaths cannot be in vain. Their names must be engraved on the monument of the Spirit Vein Bureau, and their families must be cared for. My master said, 'They are all entrusted to you,' so I will continue."
Yin Wujou also took a sip of wine. He wasn't a good drinker and coughed twice, but he still finished the wine in his bowl. He put down the empty bowl and turned to face Snow Empress.