“How do we get rid of Zhao Wenyuan?” Boyong repeated Ji Fangluo’s question, looking slightly uncomfortable. Ji Fangluo and An Haoyang exchanged an uneasy glance, and Haoyang cleared his throat and went for another try.
“My lord, what are your plans?” An Haoyang asked.
A long silence hung over the three of them before Boyong gave a slight shake of his head.
“Leave him. Whether he lives or dies, there’s no need for us to interfere. Fate will decide.”
“Wait, young lord. This isn’t a simple issue, regardless of how it looks on the surface. The Grand Duke’s hold over the Imperial Family is very weak right now. He’s no longer the brother of an Empress or the father-in-law of an Imperial Princess. The strongest tie he has to protect him is Zhao Wenyuan. If that guy was just a useless playboy, we could just ignore him, but he’s not only the Emperor’s nephew but also the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review. He has a stranglehold over our case,” An Haoyang argued.
Ji Fangluo watched Qu Boyong’s reaction carefully, her own face an inscrutable mask.
“Have you grown attached to him?” Ji Fangluo asked.
Qu Boyong winced. “No…that’s not the case. But he’s useful in his own way, and there’s also the issue of how my cousin will take it.”
“Miss Shuyou has been working as Zhao Wenyuan’s serving girl since ten years ago,” An Haoyang explained to Ji Fangluo.
“How old was Zhao Wenyuan at that time?” Ji Fangluo asked.
“He’s three years older than me, so he should’ve been fifteen,” Qu Boyong replied.
Ji Fangluo nodded thoughtfully. “So he was twelve at the time of the Xiang family’s destruction…it’s safe to say that he couldn’t have been involved in the slightest. And is the young miss very attached to him?”
An Haoyang refrained from commenting, raising his eyebrows as he glanced down at the table. Qu Boyong awkwardly cleared his throat a little.
“Forget getting rid of him, they’ve practically spent half their lives together,” An Haoyang mumbled.
Qu Boyong let out a sigh. “It’s quite the headache for me. Shuyou’s a kind girl, but she’s spent way too long living as Chujiao. I know full well that her feelings for Zhao Wenyuan are that of a woman for a man, not just that of a childhood friend. If I were to lay hand on him, she would never forgive me.”
An Haoyang glanced at Ji Fangluo, noting her thoughtful expression. He softly cleared his throat and leaned over. “The young miss is the young lord’s closest living relative now, even if she’s on the maternal side, so we can’t just ignore her wishes,” he explained quietly.
Ji Fangluo gave a slight nod, but no other response.
“To be honest, I originally planned to get Zhao Wenyuan killed off one way or another since there was no way our plan could ever get anywhere as long as he was in the Ministry of Justice. I figured that I wasn’t the only one who wanted him dead anyway, so all I had to do was find a suitable opportunity. But he suddenly started acting against the Grand Duke so aggressively that it stirred up the entire court, and it threw my plans into shambles,” Qu Boyong sighed. “In any case, he’s been decent towards me, and a protector towards Shuyou. If the Imperial Family tries to shield him, I won’t press the matter.”
Ji Fangluo gave a small sound of understanding, looking down at the table for a moment before hesitantly speaking.
“But he’s currently the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, not only hasn’t he lost influence within the judicial system, he’s gained more. Do you really believe he would allow our plan to succeed?” Ji Fangluo asked.
“That’s why it’s imperative to keep this from him until it’s too late,” Qu Boyong said. “He may be the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, but I know that he’s burned quite a few bridges in the Ministry of Justice. Excluding the Minister of Justice and the Right Secretariat, there’s no one who would warn him.”
Ji Fangluo sighed, shaking her head. “That’s a bit optimistic. No matter what, Zhao Wenyuan is the Emperor’s only nephew, do you think a low-ranking official would dare to suppress the information from reaching his ears? Not to mention that the two highest-ranking members of the Ministry aren’t exactly-”
She fell silent, looking at Qu Boyong uneasily. The young man kept his expression calm, but his eyes were filled with murderous rage. Fangluo glanced at An Haoyang to see that he was also clenching his jaw. The temperature in the room seemed to drop.
“Apologies, young lord. It was a slip of the tongue,” Ji Fangluo said, keeping her voice calm and neutral to avoid giving the two younger men a chance to lash out.
“That’s alright,” Qu Boyong said, giving her a pleasant smile even as his voice was dark with anger. It made for a very discomforting sight.
“Just keep this in mind. My mother may have been the daughter of an unfavored consort, but she was still an Imperial Princess. Regardless of what the Emperor and Empress Dowager may think, Zhao Wenyuan is not the only nephew of the Emperor,” Qu Boyong said coldly.
“I understand, young lord. I’ve made an unforgivable mistake,” Ji Fangluo replied.
Qu Boyong let out a deep breath, his anger receding. “It can’t be helped. Everyone’s eyes are only on Zhao Wenyuan, they’ve forgotten that I ever existed in this world.”
“My lord,” An Haoyang protested.
Qu Boyong shook his head. “It was like this even when my parents were still alive. My mother was married off before the Emperor and Imperial Princess were old enough to remember her, and my father was still a minor border general at the time. Even after he gained military merits and became celebrated, people still didn’t think of my mother as a proper princess because of the Empress Dowager’s power.”
“That’s something you can remedy once your status has been restored,” Ji Fangluo comforted him. “But first, we have to get to that point. As we were discussing before, Zhao Wenyuan’s influence in the judicial system is not an issue we can overlook, do you have a plan to deal with that? I’m not advocating for his death, but we do need a viable alternative.”
“Miss Ji is right, young lord. There are also rumors that the Eastern Turkic Khaganate will be proceeding with a political marriage, that would put the Grand Duke in too much of an advantageous position. He’d be in-laws with a Khagan, even if the Emperor wants to execute him, it won’t be so easy to push through due to political considerations. We should’ve just gotten rid of Zhao Wenyuan months ago,” Haoyang chimed in.
Qu Boyong fell silent again. After a moment, he glanced up with a sharp glint in his eyes.
“Would I choose to keep him alive unless I had a plan to deal with him? Relax, the solution to this is much simpler than you may think. The best way to ensure that Zhao Wenyuan can’t interfere is to drag everyone in. The Third Prince, the Seventh Prince, and the Emperor himself, I’ll give all of them a reason to keep this quiet.”
An Haoyang bowed his head. “Apologies, my lord. I didn’t mean to question your judgment. But won’t they just bury the case if they think it’s dangerous?”
Qu Boyong smiled thinly. “They won’t be able to sit still if they think they can grab on to their opponent’s greatest weakness. I’ve been watching for the last ten years, I know how to make them dance to my tune.”
Ji Fangluo jumped in, a frown on her face. “But Zhao Wenyuan’s the head of the neutral faction, isn’t he? He’ll definitely notice and step in if the princes are clawing at each others’ throats.”
Qu Boyong’s smile faded and he looked away from her, a twinge of unease and guilt in his expression. “He’ll be too preoccupied to notice. There’s something that Zhao Wenyuan’s been trying to keep under wraps, information potent enough to force the Grand Duke to back down. If we make use of that, he’ll have his hands full trying to stay afloat.”
A look of recognition flashed over An Haoyang’s face, and he nodded in satisfaction.
“You mean to make use of rumors to ruin him, young lord?” Ji Fangluo asked.
“The rumors are not enough to ruin him. No one will be able to find any evidence to support it, and with some help from the palace, it’ll all die down after a while. But as the person involved, Zhao Wenyuan will certainly be extremely frazzled, especially with that paranoid personality of his,” Qu Boyong said wryly. “After all this is done, he’ll probably have to step down as Minister anyways, so there’s no need to overdo it.”
An Haoyang grinned, satisfied with the response. Ji Fangluo was still watching him with a look of quiet curiosity on her face. After Boyong glanced at her a little uneasily, she gave him a smile.
“An excellent plan, young lord. It’s admirable that you can clearly distinguish who your animosity should and should not be directed at, even within members of the Zhao clan. It wouldn’t do to foolishly show mercy to a person who could endanger so many people’s lives, nor would it do to kill an innocent man while we claim to serve justice. It’s reassuring to see that you’ve inherited General Xiang’s wisdom and sound judgment,” Ji Fangluo said, her voice teeming with satisfaction.
Qu Boyong gave a smile in return, pleased at her praise. After a moment, his smile faded as he gave her a suspicious look.
“Ji Fangluo, are you testing me?” Qu Boyong demanded. An Haoyang whirled his head to glare at her.
“What-seriously? How rude of you!” An Haoyang snapped.
Ji Fangluo’s smile broadened. “I apologize for my rudeness, young lord. I was simply curious as to how you intended to deal with this problem.”
Qu Boyong let out an exasperated sigh. “Well? Was my answer satisfactory?”
Ji Fangluo nodded. “I wouldn’t invoke General Xiang’s memory in vain.”
Qu Boyong gave her a tight nod. “I guess I can’t blame you for wanting to see what kind of person I am. But there’s no need for you to worry, you’ll get to decide for yourself whether my plan is good enough.”
----------------------------------------
Kayla lay her head on the desk in exhaustion. She’d returned to the Zhao household rather reluctantly from the Court of Judicial Review, only leaving after realizing that if she stayed in the office, none of her subordinates would feel comfortable going home. The mood within the Zhao household had grown increasingly stifling, both due to the Grand Duke’s growing animosity and Kayla’s growing paranoia. She still had no idea how the information had leaked, what other cards the Grand Duke had, or when Xianchun might find out about Consort Chen’s murder.
Qu Boyong hadn’t shown up today, preoccupied with the multiple leads he was chasing on the death of Wenyuan’s parents, and Kayla couldn’t help but feel a little relieved that at the very least, there were a few capable people around.
She’d fully taken back the reins from the two Vice-Ministers at the Court of Judicial Review, retrieving the Halved Seals and locking them back into her desk. Though the two Vice-Ministers had done alright heading the Court of Judicial Review while she was under investigation, they had been overly cautious to the point of not getting much done at all, leaving Kayla with a mountain of paperwork on top of everything else she had to worry about. Was it that hard to sign off on a few decisions? As capable as Chen Caichun and Sun Ruhui were, their positions were too low in the hierarchy to do much.
It wasn’t as though she could complain about work being too tiring when her subordinates were doing their best, but Kayla felt that she could really use some good news at this point in time. Though he was evidently trying his best, Qu Boyong had yet to turn up anything on the healers involved with Wenyuan’s parents, and Wenyuan himself had been moody and quiet ever since learning about his complicated family history.
Kayla drummed her fingers on the desk. Taking down the Grand Duke wouldn’t be easy, but taking over as head of the household before he goes down would be even harder. Kuang and Yunqi had agreed to support her, but there was still Xianchun to worry about. Once he finished gloating about the Grand Duke’s messy family relations, Xianchun would probably start feeling cheated at having been persuaded into letting Yunqi off the hook. Who knew how that would turn out?
I need to talk with the Empress Dowager soon. Kayla reached for the nullification talisman still tucked inside her robes. She pulled it out, looking at the expensive paper. It was yet another thing she had to discuss with the old woman.
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Kayla still had her Plan B in place, even though she’d all but given up on it altogether. If nullification magic-users were subject to the direct control and surveillance of the state, there was absolutely nothing to keep her from getting sent out to some border dispute and dying within the first five minutes of conflict. A magic arrow with its magic removed was still an arrow that could very much kill her, and a magic fireball with its magic removed was still a scorching-hot mass moving at high velocity. Considering Wenyuan’s physical capabilities, Kayla did not have the reflexes or strength to pull off any cool moves in combat.
But the longer she stayed in this world, the more questions she had, though most of them stemmed from her ceaseless worrying rather than simple curiosity. What kind of magical research had the late Imperial Princess been involved in? The princess had been skilled enough to send Wenyuan back in time and drag Kayla into this world, even if it was imperfect. If that was the case, how could someone that good at magic die of illness?
There was also the matter of Kayla’s nullification magic. She was literally not from this world, was there any reason why she had magic while Wenyuan didn’t? Kayla began to feel a nagging suspicion that her nullification magic was more the result of the Imperial Princess’ preparations than any innate talent on Kayla’s end.
The Imperial Princess was a highly talented magic researcher at a time when most of the court wanted to monopolize magic for the elite, is it really just a coincidence that the healers weren’t able to save her? But even then, the Emperor and Empress Dowager wouldn’t just stand by, would they? Or…had they tacitly allowed it?
Looking at Yunqi’s situation, it really was hard to say. But the Emperor hated General Shu, while he had doted on his younger sister. And looking at the way he treated Wenyuan, Kayla felt that she could reasonably cross out his involvement.
Shit, maybe I’m just overthinking- but there’s no way for me to confirm this, I can’t just ask Qu Boyong to check this for me either.
I have no idea what mother worked on in her research, but grandmother might know, Wenyuan jumped in, breaking his silence.
Kayla straightened in her seat, brightening at the idea. That’s a good point, maybe I should also ask her how to contact the guy who made the nullification talisman as well, who knows what they might know?
Kayla pondered it for a moment, uneasiness growing in her stomach. She could sense magic when it was around her, but she had no idea if others could sense nullification magic.
Technically, it’s magic that doesn’t create magic, right? Doesn’t that mean it can’t be sensed?
Theoretically, that’s the case. But the second you actually use it, other mages will immediately be able to recognize the sudden disappearance of existing magic, Wenyuan chimed in, much more enthusiastic now that it pertained to his hobby. Since magic only wears off gradually, and can only be removed by casting spells that can cancel out each others’ effects, nullification magic has a much more unique and recognizable feeling.
I have literally cast nullification magic in the palace before and you tell me this now?!
Most magic-users aren’t skilled enough to sense minute amounts of magic, if it’s just a small talisman or the like, they usually won’t even know of its existence, Wenyuan defended himself. You only nullified a few talismans that were wearing off anyways, no one in grandmother’s palace would’ve noticed!
Kayla let out a soft sigh in relief.
Could users of nullification magic sense it when others use nullification magic? I’ve never met anyone else, and I can’t sense anything from my own magic. It’s really hard to tell, Kayla griped.
Powerful mages are supposed to be able to sense other magic-users, even when they’re not casting. But nullification magic should be different. Then again, there are so few nullification magic users that there aren’t any records on the issue, Wenyuan said apologetically. Theoretically, they shouldn’t be able to tell, but I don’t know if fellow nullification mages can sense each other.
Then if I really meet the mage who made those talismans for your grandmother, I’ll have to be prepared to immediately throw a huge bribe in their face, Kayla decided. I’ll have to prepare some cash. But what if they just report me? I mean, they already get paid astronomical amounts just for making a single talisman! Should I even try to find them?
That opened up another rabbit hole of worries, which slowly began to bleed into her existing sources of stress to form a motley of anxiety inside her chest. The walls seemed to shrink in around her. It was suffocating to the point where Kayla couldn’t help but throw open the door and walk into the courtyard.
Wenyuan’s rooms had two entrances, one that led to the corridor connecting the rest of the Inner Quarters, and another one that led to a small courtyard. That door had been locked for quite a while since Wenyuan had never set foot into the courtyard ever since his mother’s death. Kayla had only been there twice, the first time when she was still wandering around in a state of confusion after arriving in Wenyuan’s body, and the second time after they had merged souls. On the second visit, the melancholy emanating from Wenyuan had been more than enough to dissuade her from going there a third time.
The courtyard was lined with weed and grimy with dust. Ever since Kayla had received the Imperial Edict promoting her to a third-rank official, the servants had immediately abandoned their upkeep of Wenyuan’s quarters, including the small courtyard. Kayla actually hadn’t wanted to come out here either, but going out into one of the larger courtyards meant she might run into the Grand Duke or Housekeeper Wang, and she couldn't stay inside a moment longer.
Kayla paced the length of the courtyard, which was really much too small to allow for much pacing in either direction. She settled for kicking at a bunch of weeds instead as she tried to clear her head. The suffocating feeling receded, and it became possible to rationally sort her thoughts again.
Maybe the stress is starting to get to me, Kayla wryly thought to herself. She lifted her gaze to look at the moonlight spilling through the clouds. The brief moment of peace was shattered by furious rustling in the branches of the tree that towered over her.
What the fuck? Kayla nervously stepped back until she had retreated into the doorway. Is it one of the investigators? Maybe it’s Hu Qing? She squinted at the branches as they frantically waved around. That doesn’t look good.
The rustling came to an abrupt stop, followed by a whooshing sound as a corpse dropped from the tree, hitting the stone wall of the small courtyard with a sick crunching noise before falling to the ground a few feet away, broken limbs splayed across the stone paving. Kayla stared at the body in shock before hastily stepping back and slamming the door shut.
What the fuck?!!!! Holy shit! Did someone just fucking die in my courtyard?!
Right in my courtyard?!! Why?!! Wenyuan screeched.
Her hands shaking, Kayla hastily locked the door.
The window! Wenyuan’s voice was loud enough to make her wince. Kayla whirled her head towards the open window a few paces away. It didn’t face into the courtyard, but it was open.
Fuck! Why the fuck did I have to open the goddamn window?! Kayla sprinted over and locked the window shut before grabbing a stack of talismans out of her desk.
Kayla fumbled a bit as she pulled out an anti-theft talisman and slapped it onto the window before running back to the door and slapping on another one. It couldn’t stop anyone from physically breaking the door like the Grand Duke so often did. Kayla knew all too well that the quality of doors in this household couldn’t withstand much force. All the talismans could do were to start loudly blasting an alarm while flashing with red light, but that would hopefully be enough to alert someone. She backed away into the middle of the room to stand behind a bookshelf.
Who the fuck was that? An Imperial Investigator? An assassin? Some idiot who climbed a tree and then had a heart attack? She hadn’t seen any blood, so the last option was also possible.
Now is not the fucking time, Kayla! Hurry up and call for help!
Fuck-hold on! If someone wanted to break in, they would’ve done so already, do you really think I would’ve had the time to lock the door and the window like this? How fast do you think your body can run?
If that had been an Imperial Investigator who had dropped dead before her, that meant there was someone incredibly skilled involved. Should there really be an assassin that powerful, then the only reason they’re not coming in here is probably that they were ordered not to-but why? Kayla ground her teeth together as she glanced uneasily in the direction of the Grand Duke’s quarters. There had been such a commotion with the tree and a body had fallen from the sky. Even if there was no one in the courtyard, some of the guards stationed along the outer perimeter should’ve noticed, and yet there was no reaction. This could very well be an inside job. Shit, did I piss him off too much?
If it was an inside job, the Grand Duke wouldn’t want there to be signs of a struggle. The Zhao household was meant to be well-guarded and secure, it didn’t make sense for the only heir to die a violent death in the middle of the night without anyone noticing. Should Wenyuan’s rooms be left a complete mess, suspicion would fall on the Grand Duke rather than anyone else.
Maybe they can’t break in-or maybe I’m overthinking it, don’t Imperial Investigators wear masks? That guy wasn’t wearing a mask. Damn it, what the hell is the right move?!
There was another soft thump in the courtyard. Kayla stiffened, backing further away into the shadows. To her surprise, there was a knock on the door leading to the courtyard.
Are you fucking kidding me? Why the fuck are they knocking?!!! This crazy bastard!
“Excuse me,” a familiar voice said politely. “Minister Zhao, please pardon my intrusion. Are you there, my lord?”
Kayla’s jaw dropped. What? Is that Chen Jian?
“This is Chen Jian, my lord. Sorry for the disturbance, I hope I haven’t interrupted your rest.”
“Wait, what?” Kayla blurted out before she could stop herself. “Chen Jian? Why are you here?”
“Apologies for the disturbance, an assassin got in without our noticing due to my negligence,” Chen Jian’s voice said sheepishly.
Thank god, so the corpse was an assassin. I was just overthinking it. Feeling a rush of relief, she peeled the talisman off and opened the door.
“Chen Jian-”
Rather than Chen Jian, it was a man with black cloth covering his face.
Shit! Kayla hastily stepped back, reaching to close the door.
There was a flash of silver as moonlight glinted off a blade. The man lunged forward, plunging the sword at Kayla’s chest.
Even as she was backing away, she could tell it wouldn’t be fast enough. The world seemed to move in slow-motion, trapping Kayla in her moment of panic. Who had sent him? Xianchun? The Grand Duke? Shu Zhengyan? Someone else she’d pissed off along the way?
Fuck, I’m such a fucking idiot, did I make it this far just to die like this?!
The blade pierced into her robes, slicing through layers of cloth. A clanging noise rang out as the sword struck metal.
There was a sharp pain as the golden plaque in Kayla’s inner pocket was pressed into her skin by the force of the blow, hard enough to make her stumble backward. The plaque vibrated as its magic activated. Both the assassin and Kayla glanced at the item in shock as it emanated high-tier magic. The assassin jumped back.
“What? A magical item?” The assassin said in surprise, still in Chen Jian’s voice. Kayla grabbed her chance. Fueled with adrenaline, she stepped back and slammed the door shut at an ungodly speed, slapping the talisman back on.
“Oh my god,” Kayla gasped, stumbling away from the door.
What the fuck-he had Chen Jian’s voice! Whoever did this knew who I’ve worked with. This is definitely an inside job! Kayla fled deeper into the room. But who is it? The Grand Duke? Someone in the Investigator's Bureau? Shit, it's probably the Grand Duke.
Kayla, we need to get out of here!
I just said this is an inside job! The second I step into the corridor there’ll be another one waiting, I need to buy time!
We’ll just get killed! Not dropping dead just now must’ve used up all of our luck, if we just stay here we’ll be waiting for death!
“Damn it, fuck the orders! I can’t just go back like this!” The assassin snarled from the courtyard. He was using his own voice now, deep and raspy. From his moonlit silhouette against the window panes, Kayla saw him raise his sword.
Fuck, this crazy piece of shit!
Wood splinters flew in every direction as the assassin cleaved the door open.
The talisman activated. A blaring alarm sounded out, blinding red lights flashing like a strobe light throughout the room. Kayla was prepared, but the assassin wasn’t.
“What in the heavens?!” The assassin shouted in confusion, his eyes watering from the lights going off right in his eyes.
“THIEF! THIEF! THIEF! THIEF!” The alarm blared loudly. Wincing at the noise, Kayla backed away towards the corridor entrance.
“Damn it!” The assassin snarled, rubbing the back of his hand over his tearing eyes. His words were drowned out by the alarm blaring on.
“THIEF! THIEF! THIEF! THIEF!”
Kayla waited by the door a moment more. Even if the Grand Duke had another assassin lying in wait, he couldn’t make another attempt at this point. With such a large commotion, the Grand Duke couldn’t pretend that an intruder had just snuck in without his noticing-regardless of how much he wanted Kayla dead, the only thing he could do now was to pull the brakes.
The assassin blinked until his vision cleared, locking onto Kayla with a watery glare. Kayla dashed out of the door into the corridor. She instinctively stiffened, half-expecting a blade to plunge into her side. To her relief, nothing happened.
Kayla sprinted down the corridor towards where she knew there had to be at least two guards stationed. She didn’t expect them to be there tonight, but if she made it that far, the Grand Duke would no longer be able to stand back and let her die without incurring suspicion.
Even from down the corridor, she could still hear the alarm blaring.
“THIEF! THIEF! THIEF! THIEF!”
She caught a flash of motion from the corner of her eye and instinctively dived toward the ground. The sword slashed thin air through where Kayla had been standing a second ago.
“Fuck, you crazy bastard!” Kayla screamed in fear. She rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding the assassin’s attack as he plunged the sword downwards. The edge of the blade nicked her cheek, right under her left eye.
Kayla lunged forward to try and escape, only to receive a kick to the ribs. Winded, she hit the floor with a painful thud, the air forced out of her lungs by the sudden impact.
The assassin raised his sword and swung it down. The world didn't seem to slow down this time, not when Kayla could barely breathe from the pain.
Blood splattered over her face. The blade clattered down next to Kayla, narrowly missing her fingers, a severed arm thudding onto the ground a second later. The arm landed right on Kayla’s hand and she hurriedly drew back, scooting away as the assassin screamed in pain.
“How dare you!” A familiar figure had his blade pressed against the assassin, having pressed the man against the wall. Kayla scooted further away, nervously glancing at the two of them.
“Hu Qing?” Kayla managed to wheeze out as she caught her breath.
“Minister, are you alright?! You’re bleeding!”