The weather was getting hotter and hotter, and even with the windows open, the room felt stuffy and unsettling. After drinking two cups of cold tea, Luo Weiran still felt like a fire was burning inside him. Since returning to his residence from the yurt where His Majesty resided in Changchun Garden, he hadn't left his study.
Sitting opposite him, Hou Wenji, the Commander of the Imperial Guard, couldn't help but chuckle. "Everyone says that Luo Weiran, the Commander of the Imperial Guard, is calm and composed, unfazed by danger, and unmoved even if Mount Tai collapses before him. What's wrong with you today? You've paced around the room at least ten times."
"Unfazed by danger? That's because the danger wasn't great enough. Unfazed by change? That's because the shock wasn't great enough. As for Mount Tai collapsing before me… compared to His Majesty glaring at me, it's nothing."
Luo Weiran shook his head and sighed, "If this matter hadn't been arranged…" "Yi, easy."
He paced back and forth as he spoke, "At most, we'll just have to break up all those little schemes we set up before. Although I was the one who sent him to you and got him into the intelligence agency, once he's in your hands, he's your man. Your relationship is closer now than his relationship with me. I told Buyi today that you'd only give me three days' face at most… will you give it to me?"
"Nonsense."
Hou Wenji glared at him and said, "Since you said it yourself, Buyi is my man now. Do I need to give you face?" Son? You and I both know his temperament. It's not easy to find a disciple who likes him, especially a woman. If his stubbornness comes over, he will really dare to take people out of Chang'an and hide in a remote place where no bird can poop. In our eyes, the court's affairs and His Majesty's affairs come first, but he... those years in prison did not suppress his temper at all. "
Luo Weiran sighed: "I just keep thinking whether it's worth taking such a big risk."
"Zhuo Buyi always decides whether he is willing to do something or not. There is no way to say whether it is worth it or not."
"How about imprisoning him?"
Luo Weiran said: "After the matter is settled, the worst we can do is apologize to him together."
Hou Wenji couldn't help laughing: "Imprison him? After ten years in prison, he clearly understood the method of drawing a ground as a prison in the iron and copper walls. If he really takes action, neither of us will be his opponent."
"Keep Mu Xiaoyao, but not the others."
Luo Weiran found that his head was getting bigger and bigger, and his words were getting more and more silly.
"Once that woman named Shen Qingshan dies, Fang Jie, that mysterious fellow, will definitely not stay quiet. He's not honest; can you not kill him? If you kill Fang Jie, Mu Xiaoyao will die with him, and in the end, none of them will be left."
"We're both so troubled over Zhuo Buyi."
Luo Weiran sat down in a chair and said with a wry smile, "I'm afraid His Majesty actually knows we both know the truth. The seven days His Majesty gave us are just to let us decide what to do."
"Daring to storm the Ministry of War and kill 104 people… even the Heavenly King himself can't save them."
"No!"
Luo Weiran's eyes suddenly lit up when he mentioned the Heavenly King.
"Others may not know, but you, me, and His Majesty do… Fang Jie and that person had crossed paths in Fan Gu. If we use that person as a shield, do you think His Majesty might show leniency? For example… we could say that Fang Jie is that person's apprentice?"
Hou Wenji paused slightly, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "It's worth a try."
He took a sip of cold tea and continued, "After all, the scheme we've laid out is already complete. Although Fang Jie is just an insignificant pawn in our scheme, and we might not even need him in the future, since there's a chance to preserve the situation we've worked so hard to create, it's better to give it a try."
"Our Imperial Guard has always been forbidden from interfering in military affairs."
Luo Weiran said, "It's truly frustrating to have such a difficult opportunity ruined. Civil officials, military officers, the Imperial Guard… there are conflicts between civil officials and military officers, conflicts between civil officials and us, and conflicts between military officers and us. From the beginning, His Majesty has forced us to stand on the side of the court…" "Our Imperial Guard seems to be enjoying immense prestige, but once civil and military officials join forces, His Majesty won't always protect us."
Hou Wenji suddenly thought of something unrelated to their discussion and couldn't help but ask, "Why did you choose to stay back then? If you hadn't taken this job, you'd still be wandering the martial world, and your reputation would probably be much greater. Wouldn't you cherish those carefree days of indulging in revenge? Wearing this flying fish robe, you can forget about doing whatever you want anymore."
Luo Weiran shook his head: "Of the four of us, one had to stay by His Majesty's side."
He seemed lost in thought for a moment, then smiled helplessly: "I initially thought he would stay, given his status. But ten years ago, he left without a word, entrusting His Majesty's safety to me before he departed. I had no reason to refuse him, nor could I bring myself to say it."
"If you four brothers got together, could you uproot half of the Great Snow Mountain?"
Hou Wenji asked curiously. "He's enough on his own, why would he need four?"
When Luo Weiran said this, the respect and admiration in her eyes were no less than before.
"Ten years ago, didn't he leave?"
Hou Wenji asked again. Luo Weiran shook his head: "I don't know, but the Great Snow Mountain is still there."
...
...
"The Northern Liao people wanted to submit to Your Majesty, which naturally displeased the Mongol Yuan people. So they launched an attack on the border city of Fangu, but were defeated by the Right Valiant Guard General Li Yuanshan's army. The Mongol Yuan traitors were unwilling to accept defeat, so they sent a peerless expert to infiltrate the Ministry of War to steal the map of the Sui Dynasty's border defenses. Stealing the map, of course, meant launching an attack on the Sui Dynasty. After the Mongol Yuan expert infiltrated the Ministry of War, he was discovered by the guards. In the ensuing melee, the Ministry of War lost over a hundred men, but also killed and wounded the Mongol Yuan expert, preventing the Mongol Yuan from stealing the map."
Luo Weiran recounted what he had told the Emperor verbatim. Recalling how, not long ago, standing outside the pavilion, he hadn't even dared to look at the Emperor's face, and for a moment, he felt he would be burned alive by the Emperor's thunderous wrath for his answer.
Luo Weiran's terrifying aspect lies in the fact that he holds the prestigious Imperial Guard, while His Majesty holds the very weapon of the nation.
Hearing Luo Weiran's answer to the Emperor, Hou Wenji couldn't help but clap his hands in praise, "If it were me, I might not have reacted so quickly. Everything is ready; what His Majesty lacks now is a sufficient reason… Tell me, once the court publicizes the Mongol Empire's night raid on the Ministry of War, what will the people of the Great Sui look like? What will the officials in the court think?"
"Then the calls for war will shake the walls of Chang'an."
Luo Weiran said earnestly, "The people of the Great Sui will support this war at all costs. If necessary, they will dismantle..." They would use their own door panels as shields for the soldiers. If needed, they would melt down their own hoes to forge weapons for the soldiers. If needed, they would definitely charge forward with wooden clubs and pitchforks behind the Sui army.
"Whether it's the common people or the court officials of the Sui Dynasty, it doesn't matter how much they scheme against each other at home, once it comes to war, everyone's hearts will be united."
Hou Wenji nodded and said, "So, at this moment, the Ministry of War has been plowed up from the outside in like a plowshare, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. If it's because of the Northern Liao people, because of Fan Gu, the people's attitude towards this..." "Support for war is far less compelling than the massacre of the Ministry of War."
"Your Majesty has taken a huge gamble."
Hou Wenji sighed, "No matter how this war unfolds, it won't be a quick victory. The Mongol Yuan dynasty is too powerful; in fact, the Sui dynasty lacks the capacity to completely defeat them. Therefore, this war is about the initial objective: to win the first battle as quickly as possible, and then to secure the spoils of victory over a long period. Perhaps ten, twenty, thirty years… until the Mongols forget their revenge."
Luo Weiran picked up a pastry from the plate and put it in her mouth, chewing as she said, "Regarding war, you and I..." "I can't get involved."
Hou Wenji nodded, walked to the door, looked outside, and said, "Then let's continue with the matter at hand."
"Couldn't you wait until I've finished eating?"
Luo Weiran said helplessly, "I finally forgot about this for a while, and now that it's brought up again, I can't eat anything."
"I've already sent people to investigate what Fang Jie's identity is."
Hou Wenji turned around and said, "But... we haven't found anything."
Just then, a guard rushed in from outside. Seeing Hou Wenji standing at the door, he quickly bowed. Hou Wenji asked what was wrong, and the guard said someone was requesting an audience with the Commander.
"Who?"
Luo Weiran asked from inside the room. "A Taoist priest... not very old, short, and quite fat."
Luo Weiran's expression changed slightly. Looking at Hou Wenji, she smiled bitterly, "The most troublesome one has finally arrived."
...
...
"I have to go."
Fang Jie neatly folded the blankets on the bed, then picked up a broom and began sweeping the room. As he swept, he said, "I didn't want to say thank you, because those two words are too empty and meaningless. If I could, I would rather do something else; the debt of saving my life is too heavy... But now, I can only say thank you. I'm afraid I can't do anything else."
He bent over, his movements somewhat stiff.
Wu Yidao nodded, not trying to stop him.
"At this time, I dare not keep you... I'm sorry."
Fang Jie straightened up, looked at Wu Yidao, and smiled, "If it were me, I wouldn't dare either."
"Fang Jie... what exactly is your background?"
Wu Yidao asked. Fang Jie thought for a moment and replied, "Would you believe me if I said I didn't know myself? In fact, I want to know even more than you do, but I've been confused for fifteen and a half years, and if nothing unexpected happens, I'll continue to be confused."
"Now something unexpected has happened,"
Wu Yidao said.
Fang Jie shook his head: "I'm not referring to this unexpected event."
He swept the house clean, then straightened his clothes, stood up straight, clasped his hands in a fist salute, bowed deeply, and gave a very solemn and respectful bow of thanks.
"Farewell,"
he said.
"I thought I'd found a treasure, but I didn't expect to find a hot potato."
Wu Yidao sighed and didn't say anything more. Fang Jie calmly walked out of the house; Big Dog was already waiting for him at the door. The two walked out of Wu Yidao's house, and then their pace quickened. After turning several streets, looking at the three-story wooden building of Hongxiuzhao, Fang Jie thought he would be very excited and nervous, but in fact, he was surprisingly calm without a ripple of emotion.
"I've never liked Shen Qingshan."
He said as he walked.
Big Dog nodded. "I don't like her either. I still think Xiaoyao is nice."
"Is it worth dying for someone you don't like?"
Fang Jie asked Big Dog.
Big Dog chuckled. "Don't try to persuade me. It's pointless."
Fang Jie nodded and truly stopped trying to persuade him.
The two of them entered Hongxiuzhao. The servants, perhaps unaware of what had happened, greeted them with smiles, which the two politely returned. Walking into the backyard, they saw an old cripple sitting in front of a house, drinking sips of wine.
"I'm back,"
Fang Jie said.
The old cripple nodded and asked, "Have you thought it through?"
"There's nothing to think about,"
Fang Jie replied.
He pushed open the door and saw Mu Xiaoyao sitting on the edge of the bed. She was still wearing that beautiful flying fish robe, but Fang Jie knew that the robe had now lost its original meaning. He slowly walked to the bedside, looking at the woman lying there, weak as a paper doll. Taking the medicine bowl from Mu Xiaoyao's hands, he sat down beside the bed, looking at the woman who seemed too weak even to open her eyes, and said, "Idiot… I always thought you were the most intelligent person in the world, but now it seems you're the most idiotic person in the world."
He fed her the medicine, and she opened her mouth.
"Will an idiot die?"
The woman lying on the bed asked.
"Yes."
Fang Jie nodded, then smiled, very easily: "Everyone will die, we'll all die together."