Everyone now knew how partial the emperor was to Xiao Jinghan.
When Xiao Jinghan returned from Li City, he had given a stern warning to the local officials along the way. After his return, he merely received no reward and was ordered to reflect at home. Other than that, he remained unscathed.
On the other hand, Xie Hongyi was directly punished by having his salary docked, and his position in the Ministry of Personnel was also at stake.
However, there was nothing to be done. Xiao Jinghan had too many military merits. In the court, only the Duke of Di could rival him in this regard.
The emperor took Xiao Jinghan to the imperial study. “Tell me, you used to be so imposing. You were the God of War, the mere mention of whose name could stop children from crying at night. How could you be bullied by a few hooligans? And that Xie Hongyi, his official position is even lower than yours, yet he dared to try to ride roughshod over you. What did you do to offend the Xie family?”
Xiao Jinghan wondered when the emperor had become so long - winded. He had never seen him like this before.
“Are you listening?” The emperor saw the calm yet impatient look on Xiao Jinghan's face. Had all his words been in vain?
Xiao Jinghan nodded. “How about I go and kill those hooligans? And raze the Xie family to the ground?”
The emperor stared at Xiao Jinghan in shock for three seconds, then helplessly pointed at him with his index finger. “Xiao Jinghan, how could you have such thoughts?”
Xiao Jinghan didn't answer. He even felt a bit like laughing in his heart. But it was also the first time he had realized how difficult the emperor's position was.
He had been a hero on the frontier, facing only enemies, where there was only victory or defeat.
But in the court, it was all about balance. Every official was like the emperor's flesh and blood.
“Get out, get out, get out! Hurry up and leave!” The emperor wondered what he had been worrying about for so long.
“Your humble servant takes his leave.” Xiao Jinghan left gracefully.
The emperor watched Xiao Jinghan's back and slowly began to smile.
He had always been worried that Xiao Jinghan would not adapt to the situation in the capital after his return. But now it seemed that his worry was unnecessary. Once he was back, it was those in the capital who should be worried.
Xiao Jinghan saw Xie Hongyi at the palace gate. Xie's eyes were full of malice as he was waiting to see the queen.
“General!” Lu Tianzuo shouted excitedly when he saw Xiao Jinghan coming out.
Xiao Jinghan looked over.
“Thanks to the general for sending me to investigate. Otherwise, I don't know what I would have been framed for by some people.” Lu Tianzuo said as he glanced at Xie Hongyi.
The Xie and Lu families were in - law families. Back then, the Lu woman had married into the Xie family against her family's wishes. After that, the communication between the two families had decreased. And Xie Hongyi had always been outshone by Lu Tianxun. Naturally, their relationship was far from good.
“Alright, you've worked hard these past few days.” Xiao Jinghan didn't look at Xie Hongyi.
“How can this be considered hard work? But general, you shouldn't be too kind to some people in the future. After their ruckus, others might think the general has done something shameful.” Lu Tianzuo felt annoyed.
The two left. A palace servant came out to deliver a message to Xie Hongyi. The queen didn't want to see him.
The Ghost Lord was really bored, so he wandered around the general's mansion. Although he couldn't use his martial arts now, with his stealth skills, the guards in the general's mansion couldn't do anything to him.
“Are you making Ruyi cakes?” The Ghost Lord watched for a long time through the window of the pharmacy before he was sure.
Yi Qing was startled by the Ghost Lord. The pill in her hand was squashed. She looked at the Ghost Lord with a pained expression. “When did you come?”
“How dare you make Ruyi cakes?” The Ghost Lord ignored Yi Qing's question. “Hey, since you can make Ruyi cakes, how about we cooperate? Then we'll have mountains of gold and silver.”
Yi Qing looked at the Ghost Lord. “Have you lost all your principles as an assassin?”
“The only reason for having principles is that the silver isn't enough.”
Yi Qing thought the Ghost Lord was really annoying. “I think you'd better stay away from this stuff. The gu worms in your body...” Her expression froze for a moment.
“What?” The Ghost Lord looked at Yi Qing and waved his hand in front of her. But his hand was caught by Xiao Jinghan. “It hurts!” He protested.
Xiao Jinghan stared at the Ghost Lord with a frosty face. “I've said you're not allowed to leave your courtyard.”
The Ghost Lord scoffed. “You're taking advantage of the fact that I can't use my martial arts now.”
Xiao Jinghan was about to strike.
“I'm leaving.” The Ghost Lord immediately ran away. A gentleman takes revenge ten years later.
Xiao Jinghan looked at Yi Qing. “Did he do anything?”
“I overlooked it before. The gu poison the Ghost Lord has should have been bred on the plants used to make Ruyi cakes, and the amount is very large.” Yi Qing looked at Xiao Jinghan seriously.
Once it came to her area of expertise, she became extremely focused.
“It seems we must go to the Southern Border.” Xiao Jinghan frowned.
“By the way, was there anything wrong when the emperor summoned you? I saw those people at the gate being taken away.” Yi Qing immediately changed the topic.
“It's nothing serious. Thanks to you for sending Lu Tianzuo to investigate those military households. Otherwise, it would have been a bit troublesome.”
“As long as it's okay. Who was targeting you this time?”
“Xie Hongyi.”
Yi Qing gritted her teeth. How dare he bully her man? She would drug him tomorrow and make him impotent for life.
The queen propped her head with her hand. The matters of the Xie family gave her a headache. Her mother would surely come to her later. Her situation in the palace was already bad enough, and being dragged down by her family like this made it even worse.
She felt even more exhausted. Back then, in order to please the emperor, she had helped the emperor weaken the power of the Xie family. At that time, her father had also supported her. But now that the Xie family was in decline, her father was no longer as calm as before.
Maybe her father had helped her only because he wanted her to secure the position of the queen and give birth to an imperial heir. Then, as the imperial relatives, the Xie family could retreat unscathed.
The Duke of Xie understood the principle that extreme prosperity leads to decline. Moreover, the emperor had given too many concessions to their family when he ascended the throne. Sooner or later, the emperor would take them back. It was just that the emperor didn't have the time to deal with it for now.
“Your Highness.” Mu Yu called out softly.
The queen looked up, about to scold, but then saw the emperor standing by the window looking outside.
“Your servant pays respects to the emperor. Your servant didn't know the emperor was coming...” The queen quickly got up and bowed.
The emperor waved his hand to excuse her. “I remember there were no flowers and plants there before. Why did you plant honeysuckle now?”
“Your servant planted them when she was bored.” The queen was a bit puzzled. Why did the emperor suddenly ask such a trivial question?
“It's good to have something to do.” The emperor turned to look at the queen. “Do you hate me?”
The queen knelt on the ground with a thud. Just as she was about to express her loyalty, her lips twitched, and she slowly said, “As a woman, I once hated you.”
“How dare you!” The emperor thought the queen had become bolder after associating with Yi Qing.
“But as a queen, the emperor is right.” The queen wasn't afraid. She slowly said.
In her current situation, there was nothing left for her to be afraid of.
“What's the difference?” The emperor became interested.
“As a woman, the emperor is your servant's husband. Naturally, your servant has a woman's petty temper and hopes that her husband will love her more. As a queen, the emperor is the lord of the world. He has to care about the world, and there's no room for so much love between a man and a woman. It's already a blessing for your servant to stand behind the emperor and spare him the trouble of the harem.” The queen said very seriously.