A scare, but no danger

The capital of the Great Feng Dynasty had 134 government offices of various sizes. Excluding those clerks without official positions and those in the military system, the number of officials who were paid by the government alone reached tens of thousands.

Of these, only one-tenth could attend the morning court session, and the officials, nobles, and members of the imperial family who could enter the Golden Palace to speak directly with the emperor were at most a little over a hundred.

The civil and military officials who had been waiting outside the Meridian Gate since the hour of Yin (3-5 AM) gathered in twos and threes, chatting about everyday matters, their words laced with barbs.

"His Majesty has been attending court more frequently lately."

"The Capital Evaluation is imminent."

"His Majesty wasn't this diligent in the Capital Evaluation last year."

"It's because of the Sangbo case, of course. Alas, these are troubled times. His Majesty is going to lose his temper today, so you should all refrain from provoking him."

"I am merely a civil official; the Sangbo case has nothing to do with me."

"Oh, then who does that concern?"

The group exchanged smiles.

Who is it related to?

It is certainly related to the commander of the Five Guards of the capital, and it is certainly related to the Nightwatchers who are responsible for protecting the capital and the imperial family.

Naturally, this is also related to Wei Yuan, the leader of the Nightwatchers's office.

Standing alone in front of the Meridian Gate, Wei Yuan, dressed in a blue robe, stood out from the surrounding civil and military officials.

Wei Yuan was a very special person. There was no eunuch in the court with more power than him. Even the chief eunuch around the emperor did not have much power.

Wei Yuan was different; he was both the head of the Nightwatchers's office and the Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate.

Both of these government offices had the power to supervise all officials.

Emperor Yuanjing's meaning was very clear: Wei Yuan is my sword, and whoever disobeys will have that sword fall on their neck.

Wei Yuan was not only a tool used by Emperor Yuanjing to counterbalance the officials, but he also served to incite hatred against the emperor.

The civil and military officials dared not harbor hatred towards the emperor, but they could vent their emotions on Wei Yuan.

With the Yongzhen Mountain and River Temple destroyed, Emperor Yuanjing, who has been inactive in governing for a long time, is clearly venting his anger by attending court today.

Wei Yuan will undoubtedly be the first to be targeted.

All the civil and military officials were happy to watch the drama unfold.

At the beginning of the hour of Mao (5-7 AM), the heavy tolling of bells echoed in the dark night sky, sounding desolate and lonely.

Civil and military officials entered through the slowly opening east gate, while members of the royal family entered through the west gate.

Emperor Yuanjing sat high on his dragon throne, expressionless as he looked down at the hundreds of officials who entered through the Meridian Gate in an orderly fashion, civil and military officials lined up separately.

More than a hundred officials, nobles, and members of the imperial family then entered the Golden Palace.

After the audience concluded, a censor from the Ministry of Justice stepped forward and declared loudly, "Last night, thieves broke into Sangbo and destroyed the Yongzhen Mountain and River Temple, a disgrace to our Great Feng. Wei Yuan, as the leader of the Nightwatchers, failed to adequately protect the imperial city. I request Your Majesty to execute this official to appease public anger."

"I second that proposal!"

"I second that proposal!"

Immediately, several professional critics from the Imperial Secretariat jumped out and demanded that Emperor Yuanjing behead Wei Yuan.

Attacks and annihilations in the imperial court are of the same nature as buying vegetables at the marketplace; usually, on a grand scale, they involve beheadings and confiscation of property at the drop of a hat.

No matter how big or small the matter is, just chop off the dog's head.

If the emperor disagrees, the price will be negotiated, ranging from beheading to exile, and from exile to dismissal.

In any case, you can't directly say "dismissal," you have to give the emperor some room to negotiate. Otherwise, the emperor will think, "You little minions didn't give me a chance to bargain?"

Then you are innocent.

To the surprise of the officials, Emperor Yuanjing directly rejected the impeachment against Wei Yuan and even praised Wei Yuan's work.

This puzzled the officials, who began whispering among themselves.

"Quiet!"

Emperor Yuanjing's personal eunuch cracked his whip, his sharp voice a warning to the officials.

This matter came to an end, but the impeachment against Wei Yuan did not stop; instead, it targeted a different person.

Another official from the Ministry of Justice stepped forward and said, "The Nightwatchers Xu Qi'an openly murdered a guard at the entrance of the Ministry of Ministry of Justice, showing contempt for imperial authority. I implore Your Majesty to severely punish this traitor and execute his entire family."

Wei Yuan, who had remained calm and unmoved when he was impeached, narrowed his eyes and stepped forward. "Your Majesty, the Ministry of Justice has instructed its guards to obstruct the Nightwatchers duties. Their intentions are sinister. I suspect that Minister Sun of the Ministry of Justice colluded with thieves to blow up Sangbo Lake. I request Your Majesty to dismiss him from his post and imprison him in the imperial prison for my interrogation."

The censors of the Censorate all seconded the motion.

"Nonsense!"

"Your Majesty, Wei Yuan is slandering us; his intentions are despicable."

"Your Majesty, there are serious problems with the Ministry of Justice. We, your subjects, second this proposal to dismiss all officials of the Ministry of Justice and investigate them."

The two sides immediately began a war of words, with officials from other parties occasionally chiming in and fanning the flames. In the imperial court, the various factions entered into a fierce struggle.

The current Grand Secretary, the Ministers of the Six Ministries, Wei Yuan, and several other high-ranking officials closed their eyes to rest.

Emperor Yuanjing was not angry at all. After seeing that the officials had stopped arguing, he signaled the chief eunuch to speak up and reprimand them, restoring silence to the Golden Palace.

"Xu Qi'an, the gong-wielding official, is already guilty of a crime, and it's understandable that he might act impulsively. You should all work together to solve the case, not obstruct each other. If this happens again, I will punish you severely," Emperor Yuanjing said in a deep voice.

Wei Yuan opened his eyes, a look of surprise flashing across his face.

He was certain that Xu Qi'an would be alright, but he never expected that Emperor Yuanjing would personally speak up for the little gong.

Emperor Yuanjing surveyed the assembled officials with sharp eyes and continued, "From this day forward, the city gates are closed, and no official of the sixth rank or above shall leave the capital."

"Dismiss the court!"

At the beginning of the hour of Mao (5-7 AM), Xu Qi'an woke up on time, washed up, got dressed, and went to his second uncle's house for breakfast.

Back when he was a junior video creator in Changle County, he had to arrive at the government office at the beginning of the morning to clock in, which was equivalent to going to work.

After becoming Nightwatchers, considering that Tongluo Xu Qi'an was a poor man who couldn't afford a house, the timekeeping was changed from the beginning of Mao Shi (5:45 AM) to the third quarter of Mao Shi (3:45 PM).

He was given an hour and a half to travel.

In this respect, the Nightwatchers's office was quite open-minded.

Winter has arrived, and the temperature is very low in the mornings, so people inevitably stay warm under their blankets for a few more hours.

The voluptuous and beautiful aunt was sealed on the bed and didn't get up. The pretty girl with the oval face was also sealed.

"Go and wake Lingyin up. If you develop laziness when you're young, it'll be hard to correct when you grow up," Second Uncle Xu said.

Xu Qi'an suspected that he felt the dinner table wasn't lively enough, because Xu Erlang had returned to the Cloud Deer Academy before dawn.

He said the dean was going to give a lecture this morning, and he would have to leave the city at dawn to make it.

In this way, only Second Uncle Xu and Xu Dalang were eating at the table.

Xu Qi'an immediately went to the inner courtyard and knocked on Xu Lingyin's door. The maid who served Xu Lingyin opened the door.

The young maid asked, half expectantly, half warily, and half shyly, "What... what does the Dalang want to do?"

It was still dark when they knocked on the door. Did Dalang intend to take advantage of the situation and do something to them?

Xu Qi'an said, "I'm here to wake Lingyin up."

Stepping into the room, I saw Xu Lingyin curled up in a thick quilt, like a tiny pillow hidden under the covers.

Xu Qi'an slapped her on the butt, waking her up.

Xu Lingyin groggily opened her eyes, wiped her drool, and mumbled, "It's the big pot."

Get up and eat breakfast.

"Oh"

"Then get up!"

"Snoring."

"Today's breakfast is steamed lamb, steamed bear's paw, steamed deer tail, roast duck, roast chicken, roast goose, braised pork, braised duck, and soy sauce chicken."

Suddenly, Xu Lingyin on the bed started convulsing, kicking her limbs wildly. Her brain was still asleep, but her body was already impatiently going to eat breakfast.

The maidservant helped the little girl wash her face and brush her teeth. Xu Qi'an carried her to the front hall. Xu Lingyin rested her chin on Xu Qi'an's shoulder, her bottom sticking up. She wanted to sleep but dared not, afraid of missing out on the delicious food.

"Don't fall asleep, big brother will sing you a song."

"Oh"

"Little bunny, open the door, open it quickly, I want to come in. I won't open it, I won't open it, my husband hasn't come back, I won't open it for anyone."

Upon arriving at the front hall, Xu Lingyin stared in disbelief at the steamed buns, soy milk, and fried dough sticks, almost bursting into tears from feeling wronged.

"This isn't the breakfast I wanted. Where are my steamed lamb, steamed bear's paw, steamed deer tail, roast duck, roast chicken, roast goose, braised pork, braised duck, and soy sauce chicken?"

"You've already memorized that?!" Xu Qi'an rolled his eyes. "Big brother was just kidding."

Xu Lingyin burst into tears, put her hands behind her back, leaned forward, and launched a sonic attack at Xu Qi'an.

Finish eating!

"I knew I shouldn't have called her, she's so noisy it's making my chest feel tight." Second Uncle Xu, clutching his helmet, walked away grumbling.

"Yes, I finally understand how hard my aunt has worked. Auntie, you've suffered so much." Xu Qi'an muttered as he walked away.

Xu Lingyin was left to eat while being served by her maid, crying as she went.

Although the lack of steamed lamb, steamed bear's paw, steamed deer tail, roast duck, roast chicken, roast goose, braised pork, braised duck, and soy sauce chicken made her very sad, she could still eat while being sad.

Wei Yuan left the Golden Palace, mentally reviewing the day's events at court. Suddenly, he heard someone call out behind him, "Duke Wei, wait for me!"

Turning my head, I saw it was Eunuch Liu.

Before Wei Yuan rose to prominence, he also worked in the palace and had a very good relationship with Eunuch Liu. He smiled and asked, "Eunuch Liu, what is it?"

Eunuch Liu glanced around, then pulled out several sheets of Xuan paper from his sleeve and handed them to Wei Yuan: "These are copies we made; Duke Wei can take a look."

Wei Yuan understood immediately and smiled, "I'll invite you to the palace for a few drinks another day."

After exiting the Meridian Gate and boarding the carriage, Yang Yan, the driver, drove silently towards the yamen (government office).

Wei Yuan took out a piece of Xuan paper, looked at it for a while, and a smile appeared on his lips.

"What is Godfather looking at?" Nangong Qianrou, who was leaning lazily against the carriage and acting as his personal bodyguard, asked curiously.

"I thought I would be reprimanded by His Majesty today, but I passed the test smoothly," Wei Yuan said with a smile.

"You passed smoothly?" Yang Yan asked in surprise from outside the carriage.

On his way to court, Wei Yuan mentally simulated the court proceedings. He had this habit of simulating the situation before court and reviewing it afterward.

In the original simulation, this court appearance would inevitably lead to impeachment, and Emperor Yuanjing would take the opportunity to reprimand or punish the offender.

Wei Yuan's guess was correct; the Sangbo case did indeed become a pretext for attacks by political enemies.

He just didn't expect the matter to be swept under the rug so easily.

Nangong Qianrou frowned and asked, "Did no one take the opportunity to attack my godfather?"

Wei Yuan smiled and handed over the crumpled paper.

Um, Auntie's name Li Ru. You bunch of idiots, you actually asked me why there's no Auntie in the cast.