Three Resignations

Di Qingyu returned to the teahouse from Zhihua Pavilion and listened to the storyteller for another half hour before leisurely preparing to return to the palace.

Inside the carriage, Di Qingyu, who had already removed her disguise, drank hot tea to warm herself.

"Master, this is the information the storyteller revealed this afternoon."

Chunzhi handed her a sheet of paper.

There were now fifteen teahouses established in Xiling. The storytellers at each teahouse told the same stories every day, repeating them at intervals. In every story, they revealed the times, places, and tasks Di Qingyu had ordered, allowing the various spies hidden among people from all walks of life to learn the news quickly.

They could act so openly because Di Qingyu had devised a special cipher. The numbers conveyed by the storytellers had to be matched one by one to the code to find the characters, which ultimately revealed the message.

The cipher changed at intervals, and Di Qingyu decided on the changes at the last minute, preventing traitors or others from discovering the secret as much as possible. Probably no one would imagine that someone would dare pass messages so brazenly through teahouse storytelling.

Di Qingyu raised the paper and glanced at the characters Chunzhi had already found on it. Her brows suddenly lifted, and she lowered her hand.

"So there's more to the robbery of those provisions."

Chunzhi added, "According to the information pieced together from what our people saw, those provisions weren't tampered with from the moment they left the city. They were stolen in their entirety. An informant in Luoyun City, the closest city to Xiling Royal City, once saw a large number of carriages escorting something, but that was where the trail went cold."

Di Qingyu lowered her eyes and examined her original conclusion once more. She had initially assumed that the corrupt officials had been unable to gather the disaster-relief grain on short notice, so they had staged the robbery themselves along the way to buy time to gather the supplies.

But the information now proved that there had been nothing wrong with the provisions; the carriages had indeed been full. Unless those corrupt officials were trying to save their own lives, they would never have robbed them. They would not anger the emperor over so little. In fact, they wanted the first batch of provisions to arrive safely more than anyone.

So the current whereabouts of the stolen disaster-relief grain were the key to proving who was behind it!

Di Qingyu's long, feathery lashes fluttered, and she looked up at Chunzhi.

"Keep investigating. Whether it's Luoyun City or the place where the disaster-relief grain was hijacked, have them watch the direction of the wheel ruts in the mud. The wheels on court carriages are made at a dedicated workshop. Send someone to secretly take impressions of all the wheels and distribute them. It would be best if they could obtain drawings of the wheels used by the convoy escorting the disaster-relief grain that day. Investigate along those lines."

Xialin, who stood beside her, said worriedly, "Master, it's autumn, and it's raining in some places. Could the rain wash away the wheel ruts and affect our judgment?"

"The more it rains, the softer the soil becomes, and the more solid and distinct it gets after being repeatedly pressed down by weight. If there were only a few carriages, it might make a difference, but the quantity of disaster-relief grain was enormous. It would only deepen the ruts." Di Qingyu shook her head slightly. "Besides, after stealing the goods, those people may well have thought only to tear off the seals and pull down the government escort flags, without thinking to change the carriages."

At that, Di Qingyu pointed out one thing. "So if you come across government carriages being escorted by people who aren't from the government, that would be extremely suspicious."

After listening, Chunzhi knew where to direct her efforts, and her eyes lit up.

"Yes, I understand."

"Mm."

Di Qingyu lazily narrowed her shimmering foxlike eyes. She had a faint suspicion that would overturn everything, but she still needed clues to prove it.

Late at night.

As she examined the information submitted to her in Yaohua Hall, Di Qingyu's expression grew subtle. Her eyes were half-lidded, a calculating glint flickering in their pale brown depths, while her slender fingers tapped lightly on the desk.

Again and again, in a precise rhythm.

All of a sudden-

"Chunzhi, send someone to tell Wei Ning that he must enter the palace tonight and submit his resignation to Imperial Father, asking to be relieved of office. Have him wake Imperial Father up. The next day, he's to ask again to be relieved of office at court, then try once more on the day before the Mid-Autumn Festival. It would be best if he acted as though he was determined to leave even if he had to threaten death, and provoked Imperial Father to anger. Bribe beggars and storytellers to spread the news throughout the royal city."

Chunzhi was puzzled. "Master, will His Majesty tolerate him resigning three times?"

Coming in the dead of night, too... His Majesty's temper wasn't very good.

Di Qingyu wore a somewhat inscrutable expression. "That's why you must tell Wei Ning to be careful how far he goes with his words. He has to tread on Imperial Father's bottom line, but he can't be too resolute. Only when he asks to be relieved of office for the third time can he let things turn hostile. As for the outcome, it doesn't matter. In any case, it's the first move toward saving everyone in the Wei family."

If Wei Ning entered the palace tonight, he would only disturb Imperial Father, who would already be resting in one of his consorts' palaces. Anyone whose pleasure was interrupted would be in a bad mood. Imperial Father would probably just wave his hand and tell him to get lost.

When Wei Ning sought a private audience the next day, Imperial Father would grow curious about why he wanted to resign when everything was fine and would send someone to investigate. But before the investigation was complete, Wei Ning would go so far as to threaten death directly in the great hall on the third day, determined to leave office, return to farming, and depart the royal city.

His insistence on leaving office would enrage Imperial Father, who would either really tell him to get lost or order him home to reflect. After all, Wei Ning was upright and uncompromising at court, and he would occasionally talk back to Imperial Father over matters concerning the common people. He was capable, but he had offended too many officials. He was precisely the sort of person Imperial Father felt most at ease employing.

For Wei Ning had no faction to rely on except the emperor. He could only offer his loyalty.

Hearing this, Chunzhi asked no more questions and answered at once.

"Yes."

"Xialin, Qiuwen, I have a task for each of you."

Di Qingyu gave her instructions in a low voice. The night grew darker, and the show was about to begin.

Having received Di Qingyu's message, Wei Ning was now frowning in his study. He had a vague idea of what Di Qingyu meant, but he was still somewhat unclear about her precise intentions. Could the princess want him to retire and return to his hometown, leaving the royal city?

But losing his power and influence like that would be the most dangerous thing of all. No one would know if the Wei family were killed in the wilderness.

"Father, why did you send for me?"

Wei Ning's son, Wei Yan'an, pushed open the study door late at night and hurried in, flustered, with a robe thrown over his shoulders.

Wei Ning told him the whole story of his wager with Di Qingyu, but to his surprise, Wei Yan'an's face immediately showed his disagreement.

"Father, however favored the sixth princess may be, she holds no real power. There's no evidence to back up her order. If we act rashly, I'm afraid we'll beat the grass and startle the snake. As I see it, we should seek refuge with the empress's faction."

"At present, the forces at court are secretly divided into three sides: His Majesty, the empress dowager, and the empress's clan. We can't afford to gamble on His Majesty, and the empress dowager and empress have always been fighting openly and in secret. Only by relying on Her Majesty the empress can we have a sliver of hope!"

Ever since the former empress had passed away, the eldest prince had been raised by the empress dowager. Naturally, her faction supported him.

Wei Ning frowned deeply as he listened. He said nothing for a long while, merely sitting there by himself, struggling inwardly.

Clearly, he still had some hesitation where Di Qingyu was concerned.

Suddenly-

Bang!

"Who's there?" Wei Yan'an's expression immediately sharpened.

Something had suddenly smashed through the study window, and a brocade pouch rolled onto the floor.

Wei Yan'an stepped forward and pushed open the window. Only after checking repeatedly that the suspicious person had left did he turn and pick up the pouch, handing it straight to Wei Ning without opening it.

"Father, who could have sent this?"

Wei Ning said nothing. He quickly opened the pouch and found a piece of paper inside. He unfolded it and looked, and his pupils abruptly contracted.

He felt a chill spread through his body.

"Father, what is it?" Wei Yan'an asked in confusion. He had rarely seen his father like this.

But before he could make out the words on the paper, Wei Ning crumpled it up. There was no longer any hesitation in his eyes.

"Quick, arrange a carriage. I'm going to the palace to see His Majesty at once!"