Chapter 35: Burning Bridges After Crossing the River

The Twelve Directorates of the Inner Court, the Four Administrations, and the Eight Bureaus are collectively known as the Twenty-Four Offices of the Inner Court.

Among these twenty-four offices, the Directorate of Ceremonies ranks first. It is managed by the Grand Eunuch of the Seal, meaning the power of the Inner Court is held almost entirely in a single person's hands.

Emperor Ning was devoted to Taoist cultivation; for many years, he did not attend court or manage state affairs. Even the memorials submitted by the officials of the Outer Court had to be reviewed and marked in red by the Directorate of Ceremonies on his behalf.

Because the Grand Eunuch of the Seal handled all matters with impeccable order, Emperor Ning specially bestowed a pavilion upon him, naming it "Jiefan" (Relief from Troubles) as a commendation for the Directorate's service.

At noon, Wu Xiu emerged from the shadows of the pavilion, bowing respectfully as he backed out.

Only when the sunlight hit him did the red python embroidered on his robes finally regain its brilliance.

He let out a slow breath, straightened his posture, and strode purposefully toward the pigeon loft.

Along the way, whenever the eunuchs saw his python robe from a distance, they would kneel early to pay their respects, but Wu Xiu kept his gaze fixed straight ahead, not sparing them a single glance.

Arriving at the pigeon loft, he dismissed the young eunuch who was cleaning the cages and sat at a desk to write a note.

He scrutinized the note repeatedly, ensuring the handwriting and the meaning were flawless, before carefully rolling it into a slender bamboo tube.

Wu Xiu approached a pigeon cage engraved with the words "Luocheng." He reached in to retrieve a pigeon, meticulously tied the bamboo tube to its leg, and released the bird into the sky from outside the door.

He watched the pigeon fly away, lost in thought.

A young eunuch hurried over: "Godfather, His Majesty summons you. He says that the Taoist Priest Zidao, the Apostle from Mount Huang, has arrived with his eldest disciple, Zhang Li."

Wu Xiu nodded. "I understand."

He watched the pigeon ascend into the sky, circle once over the Imperial City, and then fly south. Wu Xiu mused, "Birds in the sky are truly free."

The young eunuch gave a forced smile. "Why should you envy a bird, Godfather? Once you take its place, you will be below one person but above ten thousand. You will be far freer than it."

Wu Xiu shot him a glance. Though his eyes remained as calm as a still well, the look made the young eunuch tremble. "Godfather, I spoke out of turn."

"If you do it again, go to the Charcoal Bureau to chop wood," Wu Xiu said, lifting his robes to step over the threshold as he hurried toward the Renshou Palace in the West Garden.

High above, the grey pigeon flew out of the vast Forbidden City, out of the capital region, over clouds and plains, and across rivers and mountains.

On the first night, the pigeon rested at a pigeon post station in Hebi.

On the second day, it flew straight south, finally reaching a small courtyard in Luocheng on the morning of the third day.

Inside the courtyard, black-clad secret agents stood before a sand table, which clearly displayed the topography of the Liu Family Estate and the Liu Family ancestral graves.

At that moment, seeing the pigeon circling in the sky, Yun Yang grabbed a handful of corn and raised his hand. The pigeon flapped its wings and landed in his palm.

"Jiaotu! A letter has arrived from the capital!" Yun Yang shouted.

Jiaotu responded from inside, "Hurry, open it and see what the Grand Chancellor has to say."

Yun Yang broke the wax seal and took out the paper. "It's another message sent through Wu Xiu; I recognize his handwriting... Wu Xiu says we are to decide for ourselves whether to deploy the Fan Guards to exhume the bodies for autopsy."

Jiaotu walked out and leaned against the doorframe. "How annoying. If something goes wrong, we'll be the scapegoats. What do we do? Do we still move forward?"

"The Grand Chancellor hasn't stopped us, which means he wants us to act. However, if we succeed, it will be a great achievement; if we fail... at the very least, we'll be exiled to Lingnan," Yun Yang said, standing in the courtyard in thought.

Jiaotu rolled his eyes. "Of the prisoners exiled to Lingnan, at least eight hundred were caught by us. If we go to Lingnan, do you think we'll have a good end?"

"What are you afraid of? We are both official executors," Yun Yang said.

"There are dozens of official executors who were exiled to Lingnan by us!"

"Their families are still in our hands; they won't dare to cause trouble. With our relationship with the Grand Chancellor, even if we are exiled, we won't suffer... Wait, why are you acting like we're definitely going to be exiled? We won't fail this time. The Liu family is just waiting to be investigated and their property confiscated!" Yun Yang said cheerfully.

Jiaotu tilted his head to look at the note. "Did the Grand Chancellor say anything else?"

Yun Yang looked down at the paper again, and a moment later, his expression changed. "Wu Xiu wants us to hand over the information regarding that masked man from the Liu estate to him!"

"Ah? It must be Lin Chaoqing reporting us! Those people from the Criminal Investigation Bureau do nothing but report people all day!" Jiaotu said indignantly. "...But if Chen Ji can become a secret agent, he could still help us earn merit. We should just transfer him under our command."

Yun Yang shook his head. "No... what kind of person do you think Chen Ji is?"

Jiaotu thought for a moment. "...When he's thinking and not speaking, he seems quite capable."

"I'm not talking about that!" Yun Yang frowned. "On that night at the Zhou residence, he killed the Zhou housekeeper just to save his own life. I could tell he wasn't an expert then; there was hesitation in his eyes. But now? In just a few days, he could stare calmly at a man being hanged in the Inner Prison."

Yun Yang looked at Jiaotu seriously. "Jiaotu, he is a man who holds grudges. He will never forget how we treated him. The Grand Chancellor likes people like him—smart and unscrupulous. If one day he climbs higher than us, we won't be able to survive."

Jiaotu pondered for a moment. "Then should we kill him? We don't need him for the Liu case anymore anyway. But if the Grand Chancellor finds out, he will definitely investigate the cause of death. Whether it's the Black Snake or the Golden Pig investigating, we won't be able to hide it."

Yun Yang shook his head. "So we cannot do it ourselves. We must borrow someone else's blade to kill."

"What should we do now?"

"You take the Royal Command Flag to deploy the Fan Guards. I will go to borrow the blade. Success or failure depends on today."

The morning in Luocheng was crisp and clear. It was the ninth day of the ninth month; the stars indicated it was a day suitable for travel, marriage, praying for blessings, healing, and killing.

***

Taiping Medical Clinic.

The three fellow disciples leaned against the clinic entrance, happily watching the passersby.

The Double Ninth Festival was approaching. Not only were wealthy families parading Buddhas and Bodhisattvas to ward off evil, but rich merchants were also going door-to-door distributing "Double Ninth Cakes."

Taverns displayed signs for chrysanthemum wine at their doors, while street vendors wandered through the alleys selling crimson pouches—buy one pouch and get a sprig of dogwood for free.

Chen Ji remarked, "The Double Ninth Festival is so lively."

In his former hometown, the festive atmosphere was no longer this thick. Firecrackers were banned during the Spring Festival, and even the Dragon Boat and Mid-Autumn Festivals had turned into carnivals of the commodity economy.

Wait, Chen Ji suddenly asked, "How did the Double Ninth Festival originate?"

Liu Quxing replied casually, "You don't even know that? During the Eastern Han Dynasty, a plague demon once plagued Runan in Yuzhou. A man named Huan Jing sought an audience with the immortal Fei Changfang. Fei Changfang gave Huan Jing a flask of chrysanthemum wine and a sprig of dogwood, instructing him to climb a high mountain with his family on the ninth day of the ninth month to avoid disaster, ensuring no demons would invade. After the ninth day, Huan Jing brought his family down the mountain and found that all their cattle and sheep had died of illness, but their family had escaped the calamity."

Chen Ji froze. Because in his hometown, the origin of the Double Ninth Festival was exactly the same.

The same Eastern Han Dynasty, the same Fei Changfang and Huan Jing.

If it were just the same moon or the same sun in the sky, he could force himself to accept it. But since even the legends were identical, he had to think deeply: Why?

What was the connection between the two worlds?

As he was pondering, he saw Chun Hua from Wanxing Garden leading two strong servants, carrying four food boxes, walking down the street.

She Dengke's eyes lit up. "Chun Hua, why are you here?"

Chun Hua was wearing a pale green *ruqun*, with a golden chrysanthemum embroidered on the hem to suit the occasion. Lifting her skirt, she said with a smile, "Isn't it the Double Ninth Festival? My lady sent me to deliver some pastries to the clinic."

Liu Quxing hurriedly took the boxes from the servants. "Miss Chun Hua is so thoughtful. The last time we ate pastries from Wanxing Garden was during the Lantern Festival; I still haven't forgotten them."

Chun Hua shifted the topic and looked at Chen Ji with a smile. "My lady happens to be free today and would like to invite the doctors of your clinic to have some tea and chat. What do you think?"

She Dengke quickly replied, "That sounds wonderful!"

However, at that moment, out of the corner of his eye, Chen Ji saw Wuyun perched on a roof across the street, panting heavily.

Wuyun let out a meow, but only Chen Ji understood: "Someone told Consort Jing that you are the masked man from Liu Shiyu's residence. She wants to trap and kill you!"

Chen Ji's heart tightened, a massive sense of crisis suddenly rising within him.

Who told Consort Jing his identity?

It had to be Yun Yang and Jiaotu, as they were the only ones who knew his true identity.

Was it because the Liu case was about to catch a big fish, and they felt he was no longer needed, intending to burn the bridge once they crossed it?

Chen Ji looked at Chun Hua composedly and asked with a smile, "Miss Chun Hua, why does Consort Jing invite us?"

Chun Hua explained, "Thanks to you helping find that cup last time, otherwise my lady would still be using it to drink water. She mentioned wanting to thank you before, but she's been busy with other matters and only found time today."

But Chen Ji wasn't actually asking Chun Hua; he was asking Wuyun: *Why does Consort Jing want to kill me?*

Wuyun meowed again: "Consort Jing is a member of the Liu family. Liu Shiyu is the only son of her biological sister. A few days ago, when she left the Prince's mansion, she went back to the Liu residence to mourn Old Master Liu!"

So, the powerful figure in the Prince's mansion connected to the Jing Dynasty's Intelligence Bureau wasn't Consort Yun, but Consort Jing!

But if Consort Jing was that powerful figure, why did she try to kill him back then? Did she not know he was a spy for the Jing Dynasty?

Strange, too strange!

Seeing that Chen Ji didn't respond, Chun Hua waved her hand in front of his eyes. "Chen Ji? What are you thinking about?"

Chen Ji snapped back to reality and said to Chun Hua with a smile, "My apologies. Since it is the Double Ninth Festival, my master has permitted us to go home and reunite with our families. Please convey my apologies to Consort Jing; I will definitely come next time."

Without waiting for the others' surprised reactions, he turned and walked out of the door without looking back.

Consort Jing's revenge would not happen just this once. If she failed this time, she would surely come again.

Chen Ji didn't know if he could easily evade her next time, but he knew that he only needed to take his revenge once.

He muttered softly, "I wonder if there's still time..."