Chapter 324: Intrigue (3)

At first, Xu Yingrui sensed nothing amiss.

It wasn't until the third night after his return from the Ministry of Personnel that he came home from his duties at the Censorate and discovered that someone had disturbed the hidden compartment in his bookcase.

This hidden compartment was where he stored his confidential correspondence, and he never let the only key out of his possession.

But even a tiger can doze off—how could a man stay alert every waking moment?

He couldn't very well keep the key in his mouth while bathing or sleeping, could he?

So the compartment had extra safeguards: seven internal mechanisms, and only one—pressed with precision—would release the letter box.

Xu Yingrui was cautious by nature and would periodically switch which mechanism was active.

If the wrong one was pressed, the box would lock completely. Even pressing the right mechanism would only pop out a decoy box filled with harmless letters to throw off any intruder.

Only Xu Yingrui knew about this clever setup.

He stared at the compartment, locked shut at some point without his knowledge, and stayed silent for a long time.

After a moment, he calmly closed the outer panel, as if he hadn't noticed a thing.

He strolled out of the room and called for his personal attendant: "A Meng, cook me a bowl of noodles."

The attendant replied eagerly, adding casually, "Sir, didn't you say you already ate at the Censorate? Don't want you getting indigestion."

Xu Yingrui said, "It's fine. Cook it. A full stomach gives strength for a tough fight."

The attendant said "yes sir" and soon had a bowl of noodles with greens and shredded pork ready.

Xu Yingrui squatted on the porch and ate the noodles until the bowl was clean.

When he looked up again, the first watch was almost over, and the moonlight caught his eyes, making them gleam with unusual sharpness.

These past few days he'd stuck to his routine—clocking in at dawn, heading home at night, everything normal.

The only change was his trip to the Ministry of Personnel, where he'd checked Zhou Wenchang's files and accidentally found that Wang Su's personal attendant Bo Xin had been keeping an unusual eye on the guy.

And now, the compartment where he kept his secret letters had been messed with.

Xu Yingrui had spent years as a Censor, and he refused to believe in coincidences like this.

Though he had no hard proof, he could clearly smell the danger of a coming storm.

Wang Su had never been one to form factions, always projecting an air of lofty detachment—so why would he care so much about some remote county magistrate?

If trouble had cropped up under Zhou Wenchang's jurisdiction, why not send him—the Right Assistant Censor-in-Chief—to Dansui? Instead, they sent Wen Renyue, supposedly for experience?

Was Dansui really as peaceful as Wen Renyue's letter said?

If it was really peaceful, why hadn't Wen Renyue come back yet?

And if it was peaceful... why would someone be digging through his letters?

Xu Yingrui did have a great temperament, but his climb from a second-rank jinshi to Right Assistant Censor-in-Chief wasn't built on being nice and humble.

The censor's job had never been easy.

He'd clawed his way up through the local supervision system, starting as a seventh-rank investigating censor, dealing with hidden daggers and treacherous currents that rivaled any battlefield.

That was exactly why, when he found out at the Ministry of Personnel that his inquiries pointed to Wang Su, he'd immediately sensed trouble and pulled back.

Unfortunately, Wang Su wasn't going to let him back out.

There was another question Xu Yingrui hadn't dug into:

—It was Wen Renyue who'd used a letter to steer him to the Ministry of Personnel to check the records.

Why would he do something like that?

...But then again, there was no point in dwelling on it.

He knew damn well he'd probably caught Wang Su's attention.

And having a seasoned censor like Wang Su watching him was bad news.

Wang Su had lasted this long in the Censorate through ruthless methods. Now that Xu Yingrui had caught a whiff of the warning signs, he couldn't afford to be caught off guard.

This was no longer about picking sides or taking a stand—it was a fight for survival.

Xu Yingrui put down his bowl and chopsticks: "Get the sedan ready."

A Meng was startled: "Sir, it's this late—you're still heading out?"

Xu Yingrui lied without blinking: "There's an urgent case. I need to head to the Court of Judicial Review."

He couldn't be sure if the people around him had been bought—even A Meng, who'd served him since childhood, he didn't dare fully trust right now.

A Meng didn't suspect a thing, said yes, and hurried off to get the horse and sedan ready.

When he got to the Court of Judicial Review, Xu Yingrui made sure to confirm that Zhang Yuanye, the chief judge, was on duty that night. Only then did he ease up a bit and step inside.

Unexpectedly, even at this late hour, there was still a visitor at the Court.

Seeing Xu Yingrui show up unannounced, Zhang Yuanye was surprised but quickly stood up to introduce everyone: "Shou Yue, this is Right Assistant Censor-in-Chief Xu Yingrui, also known as Shi Tong. And this is..."

Before Zhang Yuanye could finish, Xu Yingrui—seeing the man who was as refined as a clear breeze and bright moon—smiled and clasped his hands in greeting: "I've admired you from afar in court for a while now. Meeting you, Mingjun, in the dead of night—this must be fate."

Ming Xiangzhao bowed slightly in return: "You flatter me, Vice Censor Xu. Shou Yue is honored."

His manners were flawless, but he offered nothing beyond formal courtesy—polite but distant, clearly not someone easy to get close to.

Luckily, Xu Yingrui hadn't come to trade on personal connections.

Seeing the two go quiet, Zhang Yuanye sighed softly and broke the silence: "Brother Xu, what's so urgent that you're here this late?"

Xu Yingrui led Zhang Yuanye outside and tactfully explained why he'd come: "To clear up a doubt. Across the whole court, few could answer my question. After thinking it over, only your office here, Brother Zhang, seemed safe."

Zhang Yuanye chuckled: "Ah, you're too kind. What can I do for you, Brother Xu? Just say it straight."

Xu Yingrui: "When Le Wuya's estate was confiscated, the Ministry of Revenue took over the seized goods, and copies of the inventory were sent to both the Court of Judicial Review and the Censorate. I'd like to borrow the copy you have here."

Zhang Yuanye: "..."

Xu Yingrui shrugged: "You told me to say it straight."

Zhang Yuanye: "...No, I meant—"

Xu Yingrui clasped his hand and lowered his voice, speaking earnestly: "This concerns your elder brother's future and very life. Though I can't go into the details, you should know that Le Youque's old case runs deep and can't be poked at lightly. If it weren't absolutely necessary, I wouldn't want to be involved either. Back then, you did expose him, but from what I've seen, you bear no grudge against Wen Ren Yue, who resembles Le Wuya. I figure there must have been a good reason back then. Now I'm in a bind myself, and I really hope you'll help me out."

The best defense is offense.

Since Wang Su had grown suspicious of him, his only move was to strike back and dig at the other man's foundations.

Even if it was just paranoia, being prepared couldn't hurt.

Coming to Zhang Yuanye was the best idea he'd come up with in the time it took to eat a bowl of noodles.

Before Wen Ren Yue was sent to Dansui, Xu Yingrui had heard a clerk mention the old Le Wuya case, picking up on a faint whiff of something off.

And that case had been handled entirely by Wang Su.

It was only after handling that case and taking out Le Wuya, that thorn in his side, that Wang Su really locked in his spot as the emperor's top guy. Since then, he'd gotten quieter and more withdrawn, rarely touching big cases again, happy to just sit back and play it safe.

As for up-and-comers like Jie Jitong, to put it bluntly, they were just stand-ins for Le Wuya.

To put it even more bluntly, all these years, Jie Jitong and Wang Su put together barely matched up to one sickly Le Wuya.

So if you wanted leverage on Wang Su and to shake his foundation, going back to the Le Wuya case from just a few years ago was the fastest way.

Zhang Yuanye had been personally promoted by Le Wuya. He kept his head down, never formed cliques, and just focused on criminal cases.

Even if he played it safe and said no, he probably wouldn't blab about tonight's visit.

Coming to Zhang Yuanye was way safer and more low-key than digging through the Ministry of Revenue.

Zhang Yuanye looked at him, his expression complicated.

"Did I put you in a tough spot, brother Zhang?" Xu Yingrui hadn't come in with high hopes to begin with, and seeing him hesitate, he lowered his head. "That was too pushy of me. Don't take it the wrong way, brother."

"No, it's nothing like that..." Zhang Yuanye pursed his lips and finally managed a complete sentence. "...You'll have to wait, Brother Xu."

"Wait for what?"

Zhang Yuanye: "Wait till Ming Shouyue finishes reading, then you're up."

Xu Yingrui: "...?"

After a moment of stunned silence, he shook himself out of it, looking at the figure just beyond the window, quietly flipping through the files. A flicker of surprise crossed his face, then a glimmer of understanding.

So that's how it was.

...

While Le Wuya stirred up the capital's officialdom into a frenzy from hundreds of miles away, he hadn't forgotten to stir up trouble in Dansui either.

Two days earlier, a big fire had broken out in the Dansui county jail.

The fire was set by Ji Zhun, on Qiu Sinian's scheme.

Qiu Sinian's logic was: you and I are Changmen Guards, supposedly working for the emperor. Taking on Lord Wang's private work on the side is already like carrying a lantern into a latrine—asking for death. But since you already took the job, if you do nothing, you'll have nothing to report back to Lord Wang. Better to torch the county jail and let fate decide what happens to the Zhou brothers. That way you've got something to report back, right?

After a whole spiel, Ji Zhun was left dazed and confused, rushing off that very night to torch the Dansui county jail.

With a sour face, he sloppily splashed oil around, thinking to himself: after this job, he'd never again take on work that put his neck on the line. He'd just stick with Brother Qiu, doing odd jobs and gathering intel, slowly saving up to fix up his father's grave.

His adoptive dad was a good man and wouldn't blame him for taking his time.

Meanwhile, Qiu Sinian turned around and handed his little pitch verbatim to Le Wuya.

Ji Zhun just didn't have the guts for cold-blooded killing, so although the fire he set was huge, lighting up half the sky, it didn't even singe a single hair on anyone.

In the dead of night, the Zhou brothers were dragged out of the Dansui county jail, coughing from the smoke, and moved somewhere else for their own safety.

Figuring his life was probably safe, Zhou Wenchang had a hunch this was part of Le Wuya's plan, so he stayed pretty calm.

But Zhou Wenhuan was clearly pissed. When they dragged him out, his eyes were bloodshot.

Wen Ren Yue and Ming Ke had no reason to kill them.

This had to be some dirty move ordered by Wang Su!

They'd done all the dirty work, and now they were gonna be thrown away like trash?!

Did they really think Zhou Wenhuan was some pushover?!

After working Zhou Wenhuan's anger up to a new high, Le Wuya packed up, leaving Zhi Jie in Dansui—supposedly to recover from his wounds, but really to hold down the fort—while he himself, along with Wang Cheng and Zhong Piaoping, carried a pile of evidence and headed straight for the capital.