Qilin Pavilion

For those at the center of the great mourning period for the Empress Dowager, this was a journey of life and death, and a fight for their future.

But for those who live far away, everyone continues with their lives as usual.

Zhang Xuezhou said he had distanced himself from the situation, but he hadn't truly distanced himself; he said he was involved, but he couldn't truly be involved.

He participated in the duties that officials should fulfill according to the standards of a funeral, followed the procession to the Imperial Ancestral Temple to conduct the sacrificial ceremony, and sang eulogies for the Empress Dowager along with many of his colleagues.

"Han Yan, you've been close to His Majesty lately, so tell me, is there any chance we'll get appointed as officials this time?"

"Dongfang Shuo, aren't you a little too hasty in resigning? You haven't attended court for two years already. Wait another six months and it'll be over!"

"Lord Wei held on!"

"Lord Wei holds three official positions simultaneously: Director of the Jianzhang Palace, Attendant-in-Ordinary, and Grand Master of the Palace. This is truly enviable!"

"That's because Lord Wei has a legitimate claim. Lady Wei entered the palace to serve His Majesty, and her relatives received honors. No one could say anything against that. Dongfang Shuo doesn't have those advantages!"

"The official title His Majesty bestowed upon Lord Wei is in accordance with court regulations, and the position of Grand Master of the Palace is not entirely beyond the bounds of authority, but it puts Dongfang Shuo in a somewhat difficult position!"

"The main problem is that our identities are too clean, and we don't have connections or networks behind us. Even if we become officials, it's easy for them to be sidelined!"

"What more connections do we need, Your Majesty...?"

After being dismissed from his position as Grand Master of the Palace Zhang Xuezhou was demoted to the Office of Eunuchs.

Perhaps there really wasn't much profit to be made here, and no one cared about an institution that managed eunuchs. Neither Anle Palace nor Changxin Palace had any interest in this place, let alone sent important personnel to manage the eunuchs.

The new emperor assigned everyone to the eunuch's office.

While they might be nobody elsewhere, they were treated like royalty within the eunuch bureau, and no eunuch dared to risk offending anyone.

After participating in the sacrificial ceremony at the Imperial Ancestral Temple, everyone returned to the Eunuchs' Office where they were served food and drink. They gathered together and chatted casually from time to time.

Some things involved Han Yan, Zhang Xuezhou, and Wei Qing, who was not present.

Han Yan pursed her lips and didn't respond, while Zhang Xuezhou was arguing aimlessly with someone.

The new emperor was forced to feign illness and stay in bed; what chance did they have of becoming high-ranking officials?

This trip was a contest between the remaining forces of Changxin Palace and Anle Palace, and these little Karami could only watch the show from the eunuch's office.

If Changxin Palace wins decisively and leaves some vacant positions, then other talents may be able to fill those vacancies.

But this is something that neither Han Yan nor Zhang Xuezhou can be sure of, and even the new emperor would find it difficult to know.

"Gentlemen, there's a fortune teller named Ding outside Silanfang who's incredibly accurate in predicting things. If you'd like to ask about your future, you can go and have a look!"

Perhaps annoyed by the questions, Han Yan, whose face still showed signs of illness, pointed out the way to the group.

He's been spending a lot of time at Silanfang lately, and Han Yan has spent a lot of money there, including taking a lot of tonics.

It took him almost half a month to calm down before his anger subsided.

Of course, Han Yan was at a loss. Even if he wanted to go to Silanfang for some fun, Silanfang wouldn't dare to accept guests during the mourning period. If Han Yan were to take a wife and concubine, he couldn't just settle for anything.

He was seething with anger, and was also involved in the secret edict to inspect the Empress Dowager, so his physical and mental health were in extremely poor condition.

After dismissing the incessantly questioning Guo Sheren, Han Yan slowly chewed the hard-to-swallow vegetables, her gaze occasionally sweeping towards Zhang Xuezhou.

"Lord Dongfang, where do you intend to go these next few days?"

Han Yan swallowed the vegetables with difficulty, then ate a few mouthfuls of millet rice before asking Zhang Xuezhou, who was beaming with joy.

Zhang Xuezhou is ill and doesn't have much time left to be lucid. Han Yan is eager to know how Zhang Xuezhou will uncover Dou Taizhu's secrets and when he plans to take action.

Their probing was akin to gathering leverage, and how the new emperor would use it remained to be seen.

However, Han Yan and Zhang Xuezhou's actions were clearly better done as soon as possible, and the sooner they could obtain incriminating evidence, the better.

Perhaps in this upheaval in the imperial court, these incriminating facts could play an unexpected role.

"I plan to go to the Qilin Pavilion where the Grand Astrologer is located," Zhang Xuezhou said. "I'll come out after the sacrificial ceremony. If Prime Minister Xu and Imperial Censor Zhuang see me off early, I can also go to Baling with them!"

"That's it?" Han Yan asked in surprise.

"That's the only way," Zhang Xuezhou nodded. "You know my home is a bit far from the palace, and it's inconvenient to travel back and forth every day. I can only stay at the Grand Astrologer's place to avoid delaying the sacrificial ceremony!"

"Fortunately, we haven't started families yet, so we can stay near the capital," Sang Hongyang sighed.

"It's so convenient for Han Yan to live in the palace," Guo Sheren said enviously.

"Han Yan has been His Majesty's study companion since childhood. You can't possibly envy that," Mei Gao said with a smile.

Seeing that everyone was interrupting again, Han Yan had no choice but to remain silent, but he knew that Zhang Xuezhou wouldn't act so quickly.

After considering Zhang Xuezhou's conditions, Han Yan finally agreed. Given that Zhang Xuezhou's home was so far from the palace, it would not only be inconvenient for him to spy on Emperor Dou, but he also hadn't been able to attend court regularly before.

"Everyone, I'm not feeling well, so I'll have to go first!"

After finishing the food in his bowl, Han Yan cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards the crowd.

Unable to go to Silanfang for pleasure, Han Yan could only endure his physical discomfort and visit the inner palace to check on the situation.

He was the first to bid farewell to everyone, and a short while later, Zhang Xuezhou also stood up to say goodbye.

There were many people living in the palace, and Han Yan was not an exception. People like Yi Shuo lived in the palace and only left on their days off.

However, the living conditions in the palace were a different story. The palace buildings were all grand and luxurious, but it was common for servants to sleep in rooms with more than ten or dozens of people, and there were even rooms with hundreds of people. Few people had single rooms, which made Sang Hongyang and others prefer to live outside.

The Grand Astrologer was in charge of books, astronomy, calendrical calculations, documents, and recording major events. He held a unique position in the imperial palace and was considered a group that received special treatment.

Zhang Xuezhou and the Grand Astrologer Sima Tan had little to do with each other, but it wasn't a problem for him to pass the time in the Tianlu Qilin Pavilion with his orders.

What's particularly interesting is that the Grand Historian possessed a special ability to travel extensively, allowing Sima Tan to hear about events from all directions while residing in the Qilin Pavilion, thus enabling him to record relevant information in a relatively impartial manner.

Even within the Qilin Pavilion, Zhang Xuezhou could learn about important palace affairs by questioning Sima Tan.

"Are you going to pee at Qilin Pavilion again?"

As usual, Tianlu Qilin Pavilion was closed. Zhang Xuezhou peeked around for a while before finally hearing Sima Tan's voice.

"I'm here with a permit, so even if I want to pee, I'll have a legal and legitimate place to do so!"

Zhang Xuezhou touched his sleeve pocket and then took out the token.

"This is the dragon-faced key to the exquisite lock. The holder of the complete key can freely enter and exit the Qilin Pavilion and the Secret Pavilion, while the holder of half a key can enter the Qilin Pavilion three times. Are you going to use the key now?"

"Yes!"

Zhang Xuezhou nodded.

The tightly locked door opened a crack a few steps away, revealing half of Sima Tan's face.

"Does our door only open halfway?" Zhang Xuezhou asked curiously.

"The first time you came in, you squeezed in through the door; the second time, you could open the door halfway; the third time, you'll open the door completely," Sima Tan said.

"You're using the door-opening standard to measure me!"

Zhang Xuezhou grumbled and squeezed into the door, while Sima Tan took the key and touched it.

"Others come only once, but you only need one visit and are allowed to stay twice. His Majesty's favor towards you is truly immense!"

Sima Tan ignored Zhang Xuezhou's teasing about his counting, and instead marveled at the jade key.

One is impeached, the next he's given the keys to the Qilin Pavilion to cultivate his character; such a combination of punishment and reward is quite rare.

Sima Tan keenly sensed that there was something to dig into, but now was definitely not the time to delve into Zhang Xuezhou's gossip.

He opened the secret door of the Qilin Pavilion for Zhang Xuezhou, gave a simple pointer, and then Sima Tan reached out and adjusted the crown on his head. A probe emerged from the crown, began to spin, and flew up towards the top of the pavilion, dangling from his neck.

The combination of this Law Treasure and the flying technique left Zhang Xuezhou speechless.

However, the pavilion and high platform that Sima Tan flew over were quite elaborate. This was the highest point in the Weiyang Palace complex, and many instruments were installed on the platform, allowing people to observe celestial phenomena, wind direction, and so on from inside the pavilion.

Even without using Technique Method, one can see the desolate and gloomy Anle Palace from this place.