A gift of poetry

After a brief silence, the officials in the court inevitably began to discuss the matter. The ins and outs of the Sangbo case had become widely known.

The fugitive Zhou, a former Golden Guard, was the mastermind behind the smuggling of gunpowder into the capital by colluding with the demon Demon Race.

As for whether he was the culprit, opinions vary, but the bigwigs in the court are rarely of low intelligence. Therefore, Wei Yuan's words were like a boulder thrown into the temple, causing a huge uproar.

Although Wei Yuan, the old eunuch who had no descendants, was detestable, he was also a formidable opponent, and his words still carried considerable weight.

The consensus among the high-ranking officials in the court was that someone was about to be finished.

The Ministry of Rites' expression changed drastically; his white beard trembled, and his pupils froze as he stared intently at Wei Yuan.

This old man's composure is always praised; it's rare for him to lose his composure like this.

Emperor Yuanjing said in a deep voice, "Summon them!"

Xu Qi'an sat in the driver's seat, lifted the curtain and glanced at Zhou Chixiong. The guy was still unconscious. To prevent him from committing suicide, Xu Qi'an asked Chu Caiwei for a large dose of sleeping pills.

Xu Qi'an had two concerns in choosing Cloud Deer Academy to take this person in instead of putting him into the Earth Book Fragment: First, this person was at the Spirit Refining Realm, a higher level than him, and he dared not take the risk.

Second, the existence of the Earth Book fragments is a secret and cannot be openly displayed. One cannot simply enter the imperial palace and take out the Earth Book fragments in front of the emperor and court officials.

Of course, if there's no other way, he'll still choose to use the Earth Book, but now that he has plenty of connections, he tries to avoid using it.

"Senior Brother Song, Senior Brother Yang Qianhuan, which disciple are you, Supervisor?" While waiting for news from the court, Xu Qi'an chatted with Senior Brother Song.

Senior Brother Song's dark circles are extremely rare. In his previous life, he would definitely have been considered a fan of group sex, but Song Qing is a science and engineering man who is not interested in women.

He only saw humans and beasts, not women.

"He's my and Caiwei's senior brother, our teacher's third disciple." Song Qing took a few steps closer to him and whispered, "My senior brother has mental problems."

"Are any of the disciples of the Supervisor normal in the head?" Xu Qi'an doubted this, and with his hands behind his back, he imitated Yang Qianhuan's stance.

"Yes, yes, yes!" Song Qing nodded repeatedly. "He always likes to turn his back to people, and he doesn't speak properly. His fellow disciples are all annoyed by him, but he himself is not ashamed at all, but rather smug about it."

"Why is that?" Xu Qi'an recalled that night at the Imperial Academy of Music, and the brief moment he spent with Yang Qianhuan.

"He said he wanted to turn his back on everyone to show the demeanor of a superior person," Song Qing said.

Is he cosplaying the Great Emperor Wushi? Xu Qi'an felt a surge of anger stuck in his throat, it was very uncomfortable.

This isn't chuunibyou (middle school syndrome). Chuunibyou is a cognitive bias, a fundamental problem with thinking. This is being a master of showing off, because showing off is done intentionally, not due to a cognitive flaw.

Xu Qi'an thought for a moment and said, "Senior Brother Song, could you please pass on a message to him for me?"

"You say."

Xu Qi'an lowered his voice. "To hold the bright moon in one's hand and pluck the stars from the sky, there is no one like me in this world."

Arrogant!

Yang Yan and Jiang Luzhong, the two golden gongs, twitched their ears, heard it, and subconsciously turned their heads to look over.

For a martial artist, hearing such a sentence is like a thug seeing another thug showing off arrogantly. It easily arouses their competitive spirit.

The reason why Nangong Qianrou scoffed at Xu Qi'an's rendition of "With sword in hand, who in the world is a hero?" at the Star-Gazing Tower last time was precisely because of this.

Such arrogant words will surely please Senior Brother Yang, but he'll probably get beaten up if he goes around telling everyone. It would be good if he did; I've long disliked his attitude. Song Qing nodded happily, "I'll definitely bring it."

As they spoke, a eunuch led a line of armored soldiers out, looked around the palace gate, and announced loudly:

Where is the Nightwatchers?

Jiang Luzhong cupped his hands and said, "Here I am!"

After everyone produced their waist tokens and gold badges to prove their identities, the eunuch nodded and said, "Follow me into the palace; His Majesty summons you."

Yang Yan immediately lifted the carriage curtain and grabbed Zhou Chixiong.

"Who is this?" the eunuch asked with curiosity on the way to the palace.

"Wanted criminal, Zhou Chixiong," Xu Qi'an replied.

"Why is it still covered by a burlap sack? Let me take a look." The eunuch seemed very interested and leaned closer.

Jiang Luzhong blocked his way, shaking his head and saying, "No one is allowed to contact the prisoners before seeing His Majesty."

The eunuch frowned, scanned the faces of the crowd, and said in a deep voice, "Before seeing His Majesty, his identity needs to be verified. How do I know if this person is a treacherous individual who has disguised himself as Zhou Chixiong and infiltrated the palace to attempt to assassinate His Majesty?"

"Of course, we're not saying you're accomplices, but even the wisest can make a mistake, and it's possible you've been deceived."

Jiang Luzhong shook his head again.

"What do you gentlemen mean?" The eunuch stopped, squinted, and scrutinized the crowd. "I now suspect this person's identity and wish to verify it."

The armored soldiers stopped and stared solemnly at Jiang Luzhong and his group.

What was said was reasonable and well-founded, and there was nothing wrong with it. It's just that bringing it up at this time made the matter suddenly sensitive.

Xu Qi'an knew many methods to kill silently, and he believed the two Golden Roosters knew even more. As martial artists, they were mostly powerless to stop him, given their strength in violent attacks.

If Zhou Chixiong dies, a silent death while unconscious, who will take the blame? It certainly won't be the father-in-law in front of us.

Because verifying the identity of the criminal is a normal procedure.

This eunuch belongs to a faction. He's probably from the same party as the Ministry of Rites. Indeed, if I had come alone, without the two Jin Gong (a high-ranking official), the great Confucian scholar Zhang Shen, and the senior and junior colleagues from the Bureau of Astronomy, I might have stumbled on the eve of victory.

Thinking of this, Xu Qi'an smiled and said, "Eunuch, when I see His Majesty later, I will say: Eunuch attempted to kill Zhou Chixiong to silence him."

"You brat!" the eunuch roared in fury. "How dare you slander our family! Guards, arrest him!"

"Your Excellency," Xu Qi'an said loudly, "Have you thought this through? If a conflict breaks out here, His Majesty isn't a fool, nor are the officials in the court. Have you considered the consequences?"

The eunuch sneered, "You young punk, have you considered the consequences?"

Xu Qi'an, with one hand on his sword, walked over and whispered in the eunuch's ear, "Don't try to be tough with a desperate man like me. It's not worth it. You're just doing your job, so do your best. You're not a core member of the royal faction, so don't make things difficult for yourself."

The eunuch, who was in his early thirties, changed his expression for a moment, then said in a shrill voice, "I won't stoop to your level."

Upon arriving outside the Golden Palace, a eunuch went to report, and shortly after, Emperor Yuanjing summoned Xu Qi'an and his entourage into the palace.

Stepping over the exaggeratedly high threshold, which was knee-high, Xu Qi'an entered the main hall of the palace and once again saw this group of people who stood at the pinnacle of power in the Great Feng Dynasty.

Especially that dignified middle-aged man, dressed in a Daoist robe and seated high on a dragon throne.

The officials in the court turned slightly to look at the main gate of the Golden Palace, watching Xu Qi'an and his entourage enter.

Still a little nervous. At the heart of the Great Feng's power stage. Xu Qi'an exhaled a long breath, suppressing his slight unease.

Wei Yuan's gentle gaze fell on Xu Qi'an's face, and he nodded slightly.

Xu Qi'an was no longer afraid. He took Zhou Baihu from Jiang Jinluo, removed the sack, and wrapped it around the back of Zhou's neck, forcing him to raise his face while unconscious.

"Your Majesty, this is Zhou Chixiong, a wanted criminal by the imperial court and former commander of the Golden Guard."

A great deal of discussion erupted.

The Ministry of Rites' face slowly turned pale.

Xu Qi'an pressed his fingers rapidly on several acupoints on Zhou Chixiong's body. "Hmm~" Zhou Baihu slowly opened his eyes amidst painful groans.

Then he was stunned.

Ahead stood Emperor Yuanjing, high on his throne, flanked by officials of the court. Above them was the imposing plaque of "Golden Palace," and beneath their feet gleamed crystals.

Perhaps he opened his eyes incorrectly. Zhou Baihu closed his eyes again.

"Slap!" Xu Qi'an slapped him across the face and sneered, "You little bastard, you've returned home in glory."

Zhou Chixiong, whose hands and feet were numb and weak, was thrown to the ground. He did not stand up, but lay prostrate, trembling as he cried out, "I deserve to die ten thousand times over! I deserve to die ten thousand times over!"

After the Yunzhou stronghold was breached, Zhou Chixiong was knocked unconscious and transported to the capital on a fire-feathered beast. He remained unconscious throughout the journey, receiving water only a few times but no food.

Having finally arrived in the capital, Xu Qi'an felt that he was in good condition, so he decided to keep him unconscious and gave him a sleeping drug again.

Emperor Yuanjing's face was stern as he looked down at Zhou Chixiong: "Zhou Chixiong, who instructed you to collude with the Demon Race to smuggle gunpowder?"

Zhou Chixiong lay prostrate on the ground, repeatedly saying, "This humble subject deserves to die."

Emperor Yuanjing stopped looking at this insignificant ant and instead focused on Zhang Shen beside Xu Qi'an, saying gently, "Mr. Zhang, thank you for your trouble."

Zhang Shen snorted coldly, offering no explicit response to the emperor. He stepped forward, hands behind his back, and said in a solemn tone, "A gentleman should be honest, and so should a commoner."

An invisible breeze swept through the entire Golden Palace, and in an instant, the word "honesty" filled the minds of everyone in the hall.

"Who ordered you to collude with the Demon Race to smuggle gunpowder?"

"Yes, it's Li Yulang, the Ministry of Rites." Zhou Chixiong burst into tears.

In an instant, the Golden Palace erupted in chaos. The ministers completely lost their composure and a commotion broke out.

A court official stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, this matter is absurd; Zhou Chixiong is slandering us."

Song Qing coldly interrupted, "Commander Zhou is not lying."

Chu Caiwei repeated like a broken record, "I didn't lie."

The Qi-Watching Technique cannot be used to assess ministers of the fourth rank or higher, but it can be used to assess Zhou Chixiong.

The Ministry of Rites looked ashen.

There's no point in trying to explain; Zhou Chixiong had already lost when he was arrested. Unless they knew about it beforehand and ambushed him halfway through.

"Li Yulang, what do you have to say?" Emperor Yuanjing asked.

The Ministry of Rites took a deep breath, composed himself, and said, "I am innocent."

It seemed like a death throes, but there were no superfluous explanations, only three pale words.

Wei Yuan immediately said, "Your Majesty, please hand this villain over to me for interrogation and to find his accomplices."

The Minister of Ministry of Justice then stepped forward and challenged Wei Yuan, saying, "Your Majesty, this case should be handled by the Ministry of Justice."

Emperor Yuanjing did not answer, silently looking down at the court officials, causing them to stop their discussion and lower their heads slightly.

After a long silence, Emperor Yuanjing announced loudly, "This case will be handled by the Ministry of Justice."

After the court session ended, the Ministry of Rites and hat, was escorted out of the palace.

"Wait!"

The Ministry of Rites, his heart filled with despair, turned around, and the officials from the Ministry of Justice beside him also turned around. They saw the little gong from the Nightwatchers's office chasing after them.

Officials from the Ministry of Justice stepped forward to stop them.

Xu Qi'an didn't press the matter. He stopped and looked at the Minister of Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Rites, saying calmly, "I heard about what happened in court a few days ago from Duke Wei. If your Wang faction had settled things earlier, this wouldn't have happened today."

This scene was witnessed by many officials, who couldn't help but stop and observe.

In the distance, Wei Yuan stopped beside the carriage and gazed at this side.

Yang Yan said in a low voice, "Godfather, should we call him back?"

Wei Yuan shook his head. "It's inevitable that he harbors resentment. If he doesn't vent now, when will he? Keep an eye on him and don't let him escalate the conflict."

At this point, he smiled gently and said, "I'd also like to hear what he has to say."

Minister Sun of the Ministry of Justice narrowed his eyes and said disdainfully, "A mere child, spouting nonsense here."

Xu Qi'an was not angry at all, and said, "Do the two ministers know that I am quite talented in poetry? I dare not make wild pronouncements, but only wish to present Minister Sun and Minister Li with a poem."

The poem is titled "The Case of Sangbo: A Gift to Minister Sun".

A poem as a gift?!

The surrounding ministers were taken aback at first, but then they became excited. They didn't care about the reputation of Minister Sun and rushed over.

"Let's go listen." Wei Yuan's eyes lit up slightly, and he strode over.

Minister Sun's expression changed as he recalled Xu Qi'an's reputation and his poetry. A strong sense of unease welled up within him.

Xu Qi'an said loudly:

Everyone raises children hoping they will be intelligent, but I've been misled by my own intelligence all my life.

"I only wish my child were foolish and dull, so that he might reach the ranks of high officials without any disaster or hardship."

P. S.: I'd like to recommend a book called "Please Behave Yourself, Enchantress." It's by an experienced author; you've probably read his previous book, "The Empress's Little gigolo."

Also, I chatted with my good buddy Rong Xiaorong about his new book today. We talked for ages, and time just flew by. Sorry about that.

After all, when I first started writing this book, he talked to me every day and gave me a lot of inspiration and help.