How to break the deadlock? (8,000-word chapter)

Fifteen minutes later, Xu Qi'an stepped out of Haoqi Tower, stood at the bottom of the tower, closed his eyes and concentrated for a moment, and then resolutely left.

Leaving the yamen, I rode my mare along the incredibly wide main road of the inner city, galloping towards the Ministry of Ministry of Justice.

The main road was over a hundred meters wide, leading directly to the imperial city, and was the route the emperor took when traveling. This width was primarily to prevent assassins from lying in ambush along the roadside; in the event of a sneak attack or assassination, such a wide road would provide the imperial guards with ample buffer time.

Before long, they arrived at the Ministry of Ministry of Justice.

Xu Qi'an spotted his Second Uncle Xu's figure in the distance. He was clad in armor and carrying a weapon, indicating that he must have received the news while patrolling the streets and rushed over immediately.

Second Uncle Xu was stopped at the gate by the guards of the Ministry of Ministry of Justice.

The two guards shouted at him, and one of them shoved Second Uncle Xu hard. Uncle Xu didn't dare to fight back and staggered backward.

"What, a mere Imperial Saber Guard centurion dares to barge into the Ministry of Ministry of Justice?" A guard pointed at Xu Pingzhi's nose and cursed, "Get out of here or I'll get rough with you."

Xu Pingzhi Qi Refining Realm, gritted his teeth and clenched his fists in frustration, saying in a deep voice, "I am Xu Xinnian's father, and I have the right to visit him in prison."

Another guard scoffed, "Serious offenders of the imperial examinations are not allowed to be visited; that's always been the rule. You illiterate wretch, what do you know?"

Xu Pingzhi was genuinely unaware that cases related to cheating in the imperial examinations were too far removed from his reach.

"Then why are you asking me for thirty taels?" Xu Pingzhi raised his eyebrows, his anger boiling over.

"So what if I try to cheat you? This is the Ministry of Ministry of Justice. You dare to lay a hand on me? Go ahead and try." The guard sneered.

"Hey!"

The other was even more direct, spitting a mouthful of saliva at Xu Pingzhi.

Xu Pingzhi quickly dodged.

The two guards laughed wildly.

"Call"

Second Uncle Xu slowly exhaled and glanced at the two rows of soldiers walking out of the yamen. Clearly, if he dared to cause trouble at the entrance of the Ministry of Ministry of Justice, he would be in deep trouble today.

We've handed over our leverage to them for nothing.

"Roll!"

The guard glared at him and reprimanded him.

Clatter, clatter. Suddenly, the rapid sound of hooves came from the direction of the sound. Looking in the direction of the sound, a swift and powerful horse charged towards the Ministry of Ministry of Justice.

It crashed into the two guards with fierce expressions.

Bang!

One of the guards was unable to dodge in time and was struck in the chest by the mare, thrown heavily into the air, struggled for a moment, and slowly collapsed, unable to get up due to his injury.

Someone actually dared to commit violence in front of the Ministry of Ministry of Justice?

"Ningyan."

Xu Pingzhi felt relieved to see his nephew.

The sound of swords being drawn rang out in unison. Hearing the commotion, the guards in the yamen rushed out, swords in hand, ready to tear the troublemakers in the Ministry of Ministry of Justice to pieces.

But once they realized that the man sitting high on horseback was Xu Qi'an, they all fell silent.

The lead guard sheathed his sword, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said in a deep voice, "Lord Xu, this is the Ministry of Ministry of Justice. You must know that offending the Ministry of Justice and injuring the guards will result in imprisonment or exile at best, and beheading at worst."

Xu Qi'an ignored him, dismounted, and kicked the guard who had nimbly dodged the charge of the mare.

"Ouch!" The guard cried out in pain and rolled on the ground.

Xu Qi'an took off the sword from his waist, picked it up, and began to whip it repeatedly. The dull thud of the scabbard striking flesh was terrifying.

The guards screamed in agony.

"Lord Xu!"

Call me Viscount.

The guard captain choked for a moment, pretending not to hear, and shouted, "Do you really think the Ministry of Justice has no experts? Are you really not afraid of His Majesty's punishment, not afraid of the Great Feng Law?"

"Bring it on, if I can't handle this little mess, then I, Xu Qi'an, have wasted my time in the capital." Xu Qi'an sneered, brandishing his scabbard as he continued to strike.

At first, the guard was able to dodge or raise his hand to block, but after being slapped a dozen times, his eyes began to roll back, and he was on the verge of death.

The guard leader gritted his teeth, the veins on the back of his hand gripping the knife throbbing, but he dared not actually fight the arrogant Silver Gong.

The scene of their duel that day was still vivid in their minds, and Xu Qi'an's momentum had not yet dissipated. At this critical juncture, ordinary people dared not confront him head-on.

Most importantly, this person had a get-out-of-jail-free card protecting him. Even if he went on a rampage at the entrance of the Ministry of Ministry of Justice, he would only be dismissed from his post and his life would be safe.

Seeing that the guard was still alive, Xu Qi'an stopped, hung his sword back on his waist, and said calmly, "Thirty taels of silver, consider it the doctor's fee and the cost of medicine for the two of you."

After venting his anger, he stared at the head guard and said, "Go in and announce my arrival; I want to see Xu Xinnian."

Upon hearing this, the head guard neither refused nor responded. He gestured to his men to carry the two injured men into the yamen for treatment, gave Xu Qi'an a deep look, and then retreated back into the yamen.

A moment later, the head guard returned and said, "Minister Sun requests your presence."

Xu Qi'an tied the reins to the stone lion at the entrance of the yamen (government office) and called back, "Second Uncle, let's go in together."

Xu Pingzhi followed silently. The two entered the yamen, passed through the front courtyard and the corridor. Second Uncle Xu opened his mouth, as if to say something, but chose to remain silent.

The guards led the uncle and nephew into a side hall. In the main seat of the side hall sat Minister Sun, dressed in a scarlet robe, his face serious and expressionless as he waited.

"Greetings, Minister Sun." Xu Qi'an clasped his hands in greeting.

Minister Sun, his gaze fixed straight ahead, seemingly oblivious to Xu Qi'an, said indifferently, "Two words are missing."

After staring at Minister Sun for a few seconds, Xu Qi'an bent his spine and, in a tone befitting a subordinate addressing a superior, clasped his hands and said, "This humble servant greets Minister Sun. This humble servant wishes to see Xu Xinnian."

Upon seeing this scene, Xu Pingzhi's eyes suddenly stung with tears.

Minister Sun smiled with satisfaction and said, "Cheating in the imperial examinations is a serious crime, but family visits are only natural."

Suddenly, the tone shifted. "No."

Xu Pingzhi gritted his teeth.

After speaking, Minister Sun stopped looking at the uncle and nephew and picked up his teacup. In official circles, if a host offers tea but doesn't drink it halfway through a conversation, it signifies that the guest is being asked to leave.

"I won't disturb Minister Sun any longer." Xu Qi'an turned and left.

Watching the uncle and nephew's retreating figures, Minister Sun said calmly, "There are a few brambles in the courtyard. I heard that Lord Xu has attained a golden body in Buddhist School. Would you be interested in trying them out?"

Xu Qi'an left without looking back.

As Xu Pingzhi walked out of the Ministry of Ministry of Justice, he cursed, "That son of a bitch, the Minister, he wants you to carry a bundle of thorns to beg for forgiveness? I'd rather draw my sword and chop him down than agree to that!"

"Why did you get here so quickly, Second Uncle?" Xu Qi'an asked.

"You arrived too late. After receiving the news, I immediately went home to comfort your aunt and Lingyue, but it was completely useless," Second Uncle Xu said with a headache.

"All you do is cry, cry, cry. Sigh, Ningyan, what are we going to do?"

Although Xu Pingzhi was a crude and uncouth military man, he knew about the "grudge" between the Imperial Academy and Cloud Deer Academy. On the way here, he tried to analyze the situation and felt that Erlang's imprisonment was most likely related to this matter.

"This matter is very complicated. Second Uncle, you should go back first. I have other things to take care of."

Xu Qi'an didn't want to waste time, so he mounted the mare and galloped away down the street.

Wei Yuan's words came to mind:

The first step is to prevent the Ministry of Justice from forcing a confession. Prefect Chen of the prefectural government is a slippery official who can get along with everyone. Once this matter is confirmed, he will most likely not want to offend Minister Sun.

"Minister Sun hates me to the core. The imperial examination cheating scandal gave him the perfect opportunity for revenge. In fact, he was the one who orchestrated it. At the very least, he was one of the participants. It's practically impossible for him to treat Erlang kindly."

The mare, sweating profusely and panting heavily, finally stopped in a courtyard outside the city.

"Master Daoist, Master Daoist, I need your help urgently!"

Xu Qi'an pushed open the courtyard gate and went straight to the inner room, where he saw Daoist Jinlian lying peacefully on the bed, as if she were asleep.

He'd gone to the cat again. Seeing this, his lips twitched involuntarily.

Having experienced the mare's loving kick before, and needing a favor from someone, Xu Qi'an didn't use physical means to wake up Daoist Jinlian. He sat at the table and waited silently. Less than three minutes later, a slender shadow appeared at the door.

"What's up."

Master Jinlian squatted on the threshold, her voice gentle and calm, as if she were used to talking in this manner.

My cousin, Xu Xinnian, has been implicated in an imperial examination fraud case.

Xu Qi'an briefly explained the whole story, and then said, "Daoist Master, I need your help."

The orange cat's amber eyes gazed intently, vibrating the air as it spoke:

"I don't know enough about the officialdom of the Great Feng to give you any effective advice. You shouldn't have come to me about this; Wei Yuan is the real master of political maneuvering. If political maneuvering were ranked, Wei Yuan would be a second-rank official."

Xu Qi'an, who was initially very anxious, couldn't help but continue the conversation upon hearing this topic, "Only second rank? Then who is first rank?"

The orange cat chuckled and said, "Naturally, it's Emperor Yuanjing. In terms of imperial strategy, Emperor Yuanjing has reached the pinnacle. Wei Yuan and Wang Zhenwen both have the potential to become first-rank officials, but they disagree on their ideologies and have different political views."

Emperor Yuanjing deliberately placed two fierce tigers in the court, truly sitting on the mountain to watch the tigers fight.

That makes sense, wait a minute, didn't you say you didn't know much about the court? Xu Qi'an cursed inwardly, but asked aloud:

"Does the Daoist priest believe that political struggles can transcend ranks?"

"Of course," Master Jinlian raised her paw, licked it, and said, "The highest level of political struggle is to suppress everything with force, to have one's word be law, and for no one to dare to disobey. Every founding emperor has been like this."

The Daoist priest seems to be gradually being influenced by the cat's habits. Indeed, for any living being, the body controls the brain; the hormones secreted by the body determine what you do. When hungry, you eat; when sleepy, you sleep; when thirsty, you drink; when your coffers are full, you give alms to female worshippers. So the question is, does the Daoist priest Jinlian prefer female cats or sleep with them?

At this moment, the orange cat sighed, lowered its paw, and said softly:

"You seem to really enjoy hovering on the edge of life and death."

And repeatedly jumping back and forth? The thought flashed through Xu Qi'an's mind, then he quickly changed the subject, saying, "Daoist Master, I'd like to ask you for a favor."

Following the canal south from the capital, about ten miles outside the city, there is a lake with vast, misty waters, surrounded by green mountains on both sides, and lotus flowers blooming in abundance, making it an extremely beautiful place.

Along the lake, there are farmhouses with wisps of smoke rising from their chimneys, as well as teahouses and restaurants.

Because this place is located in the suburbs of Beijing, it can be reached quickly and conveniently by boat. Therefore, every spring, countless young gentlemen and wealthy ladies take boat trips on the lake, making it a very lively place.

An exquisitely embroidered boat was moored on the shore. Wang Simu was dressed to the nines today, wearing a trendy wide-sleeved light gauze dress with patterns and colors matching the base color, which was both intricate and exquisite, yet understated and elegant.

Her makeup was exquisite, her hair was styled in a beautiful updo, and her jet-black hair was adorned with gold and jade hairpins—she was dressed exactly to the standards for a date.

But an hour passed, and while others had gone on a round trip on the lake, Miss Wang's boat was still stuck in the same spot, which made her very unhappy.

"Miss, let's go back," the maid whispered, "Xu Huiyuan isn't coming."

"Did you fail to deliver the message?" Wang Simu refused to accept this reality, giving the maid a slight glare, trying to shift the blame onto Xu Xinnian.

"How could I dare? It must have been delivered," the maid said, sounding aggrieved.

Wang Simu sat there blankly for a long time, her bright eyes filled with undisguised disappointment, and said softly, "Never mind, let's go back."

"Yes," the maid replied cheerfully, and strode out of the cabin to the stern to inform the boatman to return to port.

The boatmen pulled the anchor out of the water and rowed together, propelling the embroidered boat slowly back to the capital along the canal.

Upon returning to the capital's docks, Wang Simu entered the carriage waiting by the roadside and instructed, "Lan'er, go to the Xu Residence immediately and tell them I want to go play with Miss Lingyue."

"I'll wait here for half an hour before setting off."

"Miss, why is this?" The maid frowned.

"Even if he has no feelings for me, I need to know everything clearly." Miss Wang was very assertive.

Xu Xinnian, the top scholar in the imperial examination, was arrested by the Ministry of Justice and imprisoned on suspicion of cheating.

This major case, destined to shake the entire capital, spread from the prefectural government and the Ministry of Justice, and then through the Six Ministries, quietly permeated the entire officialdom of the capital.

After a few more days of fermentation and spread, it will become known to everyone.

During lunch breaks, familiar officials and clerks would gather in restaurants and teahouses to discuss cases of cheating in the imperial examinations.

"I knew it! If the students of the Cloud Deer Academy achieved the top rank in the provincial examination, the officials in the court would approve. And here it is!"

"You only know one side of the story. This matter is definitely not that simple. Xu Xinnian is Xu Qi'an's cousin, Xu Qi'an is the top poet of Dafeng, who wrote a masterpiece like 'The Road to Shu is Great Feng.' I don't believe there's nothing fishy going on."

"Nonsense! Is Xu Qi'an the only one in the world who can write poetry? Can't we scholars have a flash of inspiration and a stroke of genius?"

"Alright, there's no point in arguing about this. Xu Huiyuan is doomed this time. Regardless of whether he cheated or not, his future is ruined. I remember in the twelfth year of Yuanjing, there was a cheating case involving three students. The case was investigated for two years, and they were eventually released, but their reputations were destroyed and their studies were neglected."

"A similar case occurred in the twentieth year of the Yuanjing era, but that time the evidence was conclusive, and the students and examiners involved were all executed by His Majesty."

"If this case is confirmed, given Xu Xinnian's status as a student of the Cloud Deer Academy... well, after much deliberation, there seems to be no way out. Do you think Duke Wei will intervene?"

"It's highly likely that Xu Qi'an is a confidant of Duke Wei and will definitely ask Duke Wei for help."

"What if Duke Wei just stands by and does nothing?"

"If Duke Wei doesn't intervene, who else can save Xu Huiyuan? Can we count on that military man, Xu Qi'an? He might be good at solving cases and killing enemies, but how can a mere military man possibly understand the intricacies of officialdom?"

Chu Yuanzhen, who was staying at an old friend's house, learned about this matter from his friend who had just returned from the yamen during lunchtime.

Number Three is embroiled in the imperial examination cheating scandal. Although Number Three is exceptionally intelligent, the struggle between the Cloud Deer Academy and the Imperial Academy is an irreversible trend that intelligence cannot overcome. The best outcome is to strip him of his academic title, preventing him from becoming an official, which would be a loss for the court.

"I heard this matter was started by the newly appointed Right Vice Censor-in-Chief's impeachment, but I reckon, well, with various factions either standing by or secretly helping, the Xu Xinnian is in grave danger," my friend said.

Chu Yuanzhen sighed and said in a deep voice, "I left the court precisely because I was weary of factional strife. Since ancient times, factional strife has damaged the nation's strength, and emperors' pursuit of Daoism has harmed their destiny."

His friend's expression changed drastically. "Yuan Zhen, watch your words!"

"What's there to be afraid of? I'm already a commoner, carefree and at ease." Chu Yuanzhen chuckled, then sighed, "I've been thinking about this for a long time, but I can't find a way out. Unless Wei Yuan gets involved in the fight, given Xu Ningyan's potential, Wei Yuan should make a decision."

"However, this might be exactly what those people want to see. Alas, we still can't break the deadlock."

The Imperial Palace.

In Dexin Garden, Huaiqing, dressed in a plain palace dress, sat behind a table and nodded to the head guard inside the room. "I understand. You may leave."

After the head guard left, Huaiqing stood up, walked to the window, frowned, and pondered, "If it were me, how would I break this deadlock?"

After thinking for a long time, he shook his head and sighed.

Then, she suddenly wondered what Xu Ningyan would do.

In a restaurant in the inner city, Sun Yaoyue booked a private room and invited his classmates from the Imperial Academy to drink with him. The main purpose was to share a major event that was about to shake up the Confucian circles of the capital.

"Xu Xinnian, the top scholar in the imperial examination, was arrested this morning by men sent by my father. It is said that he was involved in cheating on the examination and bribing the examiners."

"Is the news true?" The students of the Imperial Academy were shocked.

"It's absolutely true. I personally went to the yamen to confirm it and asked my father. Although he kicked me out of the yamen, Vice Minister Zhu has already told me. Xu Xinnian is in jail, waiting to be interrogated." Sun Yaoyue glanced at her friends and said smugly.

Sun Yaoyue is the only legitimate son of Minister Sun. He is quite good at his studies, better than most spoiled brats. However, he has one flaw: he loves to gossip.

Sun Yaoyue was both jealous and angry at Xu Xinnian, a student from the Cloud Deer Academy, for achieving the highest rank in the imperial examination. Now that Xu Xinnian was imprisoned for cheating in the imperial examination, Sun Yaoyue was overjoyed.

"That Xu Qi'an, the Silver Xu Qi'an, is a disgrace to humanity. Relying on the protection of that eunuch Wei, he flaunts his power in the capital and writes poems to insult my father. He deserves to be torn to pieces."

Sun Yaoyue slammed his hand on the table and burst into unrestrained laughter. "If we can't deal with him, we'll deal with his cousin! Hahaha, let's drink!"

The students of the Imperial Academy were both surprised and relieved upon hearing this news. Indeed, the top scholar in the imperial examinations had been chosen by a student from the Cloud Deer Academy; where was the dignity of them, the scholars of the Imperial Academy?

It's definitely cheating, absolutely cheating, no other excuses will be accepted.

"Brother Sun, it's better to share joy than to enjoy it alone. We should spread this wonderful news far and wide!"

"That makes sense, let's do it that way. See Imperial Academy of Music tonight."

After a hearty meal, Sun Yaoyue left the restaurant in a drunken stupor and entered a carriage parked outside. With the help of his attendants, he climbed into the carriage.

Just as he was about to take a nap, he saw a slender orange cat sitting on the soft couch covered with a tiger skin, its amber eyes gazing at him intently.

Without any movement, the carriage continued on its way. Suddenly, the window opened, and an orange cat leaped out. With its tail held high, the kitten moved with incredible speed and disappeared into the bustling crowd.

Ministry of Justice.

Minister Sun summoned his officials and asked, "Go to the prison and ask Xu Xinnian if he has confessed."

The clerk accepted the order and left. A few minutes later, he returned to report, "Your Excellency, Xu Xinnian is very stubborn. No matter how much we beat him, he wouldn't confess."

"That's because he wasn't beaten enough," Minister Sun sneered. "The Ministry of Justice has plenty of cruel tortures. Let him experience them all, even make a stone bloom. Hmm, just leave him breathing."

"Yes."

The official had barely left when a man dressed as a wealthy old man with gray hair rushed in, and he even tripped over the threshold.

"What brings you to the yamen?" Minister Sun asked, frowning.

This man was none other than the steward of the Sun family, an old servant who had served Minister Sun for decades.

"Master, something terrible has happened!" the old butler cried, his voice trembling. "Young Master... he's gone missing!"

"What do you mean the young master is missing?"

Minister Sun's expression changed slightly. He stood up and walked over, staring at the old steward, and repeated in a deep voice, "What do you mean the young master is missing?!"

"The servant who accompanied the young master on his outing returned to the manor not long ago to report that the young master hosted a banquet for his classmates at a restaurant today. After the banquet, he got into his carriage and then disappeared. It was only when the carriage returned to the manor that they discovered there was no one inside."

The old steward scratched his head, anxious and bewildered, and cautiously said, "The guest elder in the manor said that perhaps, perhaps the master has offended someone recently?"

There's a set of unspoken rules in the officialdom of Great Feng: political infighting is one thing, but family members should never be implicated. It's not that their moral standards are particularly high, but rather that if you do one thing, others can do the same.

They would also be seen as ignorant of the rules and ostracized by the entire social class.

This unspoken rule carries significant authority; even the imperial court acknowledges it. It is not explicitly stated because it is not something that can be openly discussed.

However, the Great Feng had a rule that any official who went to the capital to serve in the government must have his parents or wife and children go to the capital with him.

What is the purpose of this system?

A single system can pave the way for an unspoken rule, demonstrating just how authoritative that unspoken rule is.

"Who did I offend?" Minister Sun muttered to himself, and the name of that despicable Xu Qi'an naturally came to mind.

"Madness!"

Minister Sun roared, his hair bristling, his anger barely contained, and roared, "You think you can subdue me by kidnapping my son? You brat, you're destroying your own Great Wall!"

"If anything happens to my son, you will have nowhere to stand in the entire capital. No, your whole family will die."

After roaring, he swept all the folded documents off the table, smashed the teacup to pieces with a "bang," and scattered writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones all over the floor.

The old steward remained silent, not daring to utter a sound. His master, having served as an official for many years, had long since developed a calm and composed demeanor, unfazed by either favor or disgrace.

This exasperated state had occurred twice before, the first time being because of that extremely humiliating poem, and both times because of this blond-haired brat named Xu Qi'an.

Suddenly, Minister Sun lifted the hem of his official robe and, with a lithe physique beyond his years, dashed out of the house.

"Master, please give me your orders."

The old butler chased after them, shouting.

Minister Sun ignored him and roared, "Guards! Guards! Take him to the prison immediately! Do not torture him! Do not torture him!"

The air above the Ministry of Ministry of Justice echoed with Minister Sun's words, "No torture is permitted" (his voice cracked).

Fifteen minutes later, Minister Sun, who had begun to calm down, returned to the hall panting, took the hot tea offered by the old steward, and drank a large gulp.

"You brat, how dare you threaten me! You are ignorant and foolish!"

After finishing his tirade, Minister Sun changed the subject and instructed his steward, "Go to the Nightwatchers's office immediately and bring that damned scoundrel to see me."

Although the other party had broken the rules, Minister Sun could not be too tough at the moment. It would be best to talk, first ensuring the safety of his eldest son, and then settling accounts with that scoundrel surnamed Xu later.

The steward nodded in agreement and turned to leave when a guard stepped over the threshold, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Your Excellency, Xu Qi'an has arrived again."

Just in time!

Minister Sun's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and he instantly straightened his back. "Let him in."

A moment later, the guards brought Xu Qi'an, dressed in a silver-plated uniform, inside. The scoundrel surnamed Xu had a smug smile on his face and strolled around leisurely, unlike when he had requested an audience that morning, when he had a sullen face and suppressed anger.

Minister Sun's expression at this moment was exactly like Xu Qi'an's back then.

"Where is my son, Sun Yaoyue? Xu Qi'an, release him home immediately, and I will pretend this never happened." Minister Sun looked straight ahead, as if Xu Qi'an didn't exist in his eyes at all.

"What do you mean? I don't understand."

Xu Qi'an looked completely innocent, but after a moment's thought, his expression suddenly changed drastically. "Well, Minister Sun not only falsely accused my cousin of cheating in the imperial examinations, but he even tried to frame me! How could there be such a despicable and shameless person in the world?"

"You"

Minister Sun finally shifted his gaze, staring intently at Xu Qi'an. He didn't speak, but instead dismissed the officials in the hall. Then, he said, word by word:

"I'm giving you a chance because you're young and don't know the rules. If you want to stay in the capital's officialdom, you'd better release him obediently."

Xu Qi'an shook his head and said, "Minister Sun must be mistaken. I don't know what you're talking about."

He paused, then suddenly realized, and asked with concern, "Judging from Minister Sun's words, has something happened to your son? Has he been kidnapped? Tell me, I'm a very public-spirited person, and no one can beat me at solving cases. As long as Minister Sun says the word, I guarantee I can find him for you within a day."

"Don't play dumb with me!" Minister Sun's anger flared, and he said viciously, "Xu Qi'an, don't forget you have family too."

Xu Qi'an sighed, his face showing sorrow. "Your Excellency, you don't seem to understand me. I lost both my parents when I was young, and my second uncle raised me."

"However, my aunt bullied and humiliated me, subjecting me to all sorts of shame. When I was fifteen, she kicked me out of the house and made me live in a doghouse. It's a pity I didn't have a father with a hundred thousand soldiers surrounding me and a crooked mouth."

"Xu Qi'an!" Minister Sun interrupted angrily, staring at him for a long time before whispering:

"What exactly do you want? The imperial examination fraud case is being investigated by His Majesty, with the Ministry of Justice and the provincial government in charge, and the entire court is watching. Non-Self me to decide. If you want to use my son as leverage, I have no choice but to fight you to the death. Don't be naive!"

These days, whoever is more domineering gets the advantage. My cousin's importance is naturally less than my son's. I can be "ruthless," but he can't. Xu Qi'an narrowed his eyes, walked up to Minister Sun, and whispered in his ear:

"I have only one request: during Xu Xinnian's imprisonment, he must not be tortured or forced to confess. If he loses a finger, I will break one of your son's fingers; for every wound he has, I will leave the same number of wounds on your son."

"After the imperial examination fraud case is over, regardless of Xu Xinnian is exonerated or not, I will release your son as promised."

Xu Qi'an

Just as Minister Sun was about to reprimand him, Xu Qi'an suddenly turned dark, his face contorted with rage, and he shouted sharply, "Call me Viscount!"

Minister Sun relented, saying in a deep voice, "Your Excellency, why should I believe you?"

Xu Qi'an walked slowly to the table, picked up a piece of pastry and ate it, saying calmly:

"Minister Sun, do you have a choice? Believe me or not, you must do as I say. Unless you don't want a legitimate son. I didn't ask you to help Xu Xinnian get away with his crime, I just want you to avoid doing anything unnecessary. This matter is not difficult."

He walked up to Minister Sun, wiped his hands on the crimson robe, and said in a deep voice, "Just as you said, I also have family."

Wei Yuan taught him this step, but the method and plan were his own ideas; Wei Yuan didn't offer any suggestions.

Doing nothing and hoping for mercy from the opponent is nothing but wishful thinking, as evidenced by the mockery and cold treatment I received at the Ministry of Justice this morning.

To defeat an enemy, you must exploit their weaknesses.

Most of his weaknesses lay with his closest family members. However, harming his family was a major taboo, and Xu Qi'an had to carefully consider and control the degree of this.

Therefore, he didn't have the unrealistic expectation that he could save Erlang from escape with just Sun Yaoyue. He simply made a deal with Minister Sun using Sun Yaoyue, which greatly reduced the difficulty and made the situation less serious.

As for Minister Sun's disagreement and insistence on torturing Xu Erlang, Xu Qi'an kept his word, even causing Minister Sun to suffer the loss of his son.

So far, everything has gone as he predicted, thanks to his excellent grasp of the situation.

Minister Sun let out a sigh of relief, "I'll trust you this time. I won't torture Xu Erlang. I also hope that when my son returns home, he will be safe and sound. Otherwise, he will bear the consequences."

"That's natural," Xu Qi'an scoffed.

"However, I'm still worried about you. I need to see Xu Xinnian. Have someone arrange it."

As he spoke, he strode to the door with an air of indifference, then suddenly turned back and said with a smile, "By the way, you addressed me correctly as Viscount."

Minister Sun's face was gloomy, and his beard trembled with anger.

"Splash!"

With the sound of chains sliding, the jailer opened the door to the cell, and a damp, rotten smell rushed out.

Led by the jailer, Xu Qi'an walked through the dimly lit passage and arrived at the cell where Xu Xinnian was imprisoned.

Xu Xinnian rested with his eyes closed, leaning against the wall. He was wearing prison clothes, his face was pale, and his body was covered in blood.

Seeing his younger brother's miserable state, Xu Qi'an's face suddenly darkened. He had arrived too late after all; Erlang had suffered in prison.

He underestimated Minister Sun's eagerness to take revenge on him.

Xu Qi'an whispered, "Erlang, Erlang."

Xu Erlang was stunned for a moment, wondering if he had misheard, and then opened his eyes in astonishment.

PS: I'm making up for yesterday's missed update today. I'm referring to increasing the word count, not the number of chapters. Longer chapters will greatly improve your reading experience.

My usual chapter length is 4,000 to 5,000 words. So today's word count will be between 12,000 and 15,000.