Chapter 5: She Is Also His Blade

The next day at dawn.

The news that Zhao Xingjin had issued an imperial decree the previous night appointing Xie Jiu as the princess’s tutor had already spread throughout the outer court and the inner palace.

Appointing a tutor was nothing unusual. It wasn't just princesses; daughters of high-ranking, wealthy families also hired governesses to instruct them or sent them to girls' schools.

However, this decree had been issued at night, and that very night—even up to this moment—Xie Jiu had not left the palace.

It was said she was there to accompany the princess, but who was she really accompanying? Could anyone not taste the underlying meaning?

Wu Que had been so thoroughly humiliated the night before that he had no desire to face the mockery and ridicule of others today. He had called in sick and did not attend the morning court session, which resulted in Xie Mingshen becoming the center of conversation among the officials.

After all, he was Xie Jiu’s biological father.

"Grand Secretary Xie, congratulations, congratulations."

Wei Zhang, who served in the Cabinet alongside him as the Second Secretary, smiled and cupped his hands toward Xie Mingshen.

"For the Grand Secretary’s daughter to be chosen by the Emperor as the princess’s tutor—that is a unique honor in the entire capital. It shows that the Xie family knows how to raise their daughters well; you are truly worthy of being the premier scholarly family."

Wei Zhang had been the primary strategist under Zhao Xingjin when he was still a feudal prince. Now that Zhao Xingjin held the throne, Wei Zhang could be considered Xie Mingshen’s greatest political rival.

If not for the fact that Xie Mingshen had spent years cultivating a reputation for integrity and incorruptibility in the eyes of scholars across the nation, always acting with caution to leave no evidence behind, and leaning on the prestige of the Xie family as the foremost scholarly clan, Zhao Xingjin likely would have stripped him of his position as Grand Secretary the moment he seized the throne and installed Wei Zhang instead.

This was also the reason why Xie Mingshen had agreed to Wu Que’s plan to offer Xie Jiu into the palace.

He now deeply felt that his power was unstable, and he hoped to use this method to secure his official position.

Whispering in the Emperor’s ear might not be a respectable tactic, but it had always been effective.

"Many thanks, Minister Wei. It is my daughter’s good fortune to catch the Emperor’s eye and serve by the princess’s side," Xie Mingshen replied with a smile.

He had already learned of what happened at the Marquis of Weiyuan’s estate the previous night.

After a brief review, he understood exactly what had transpired.

After a night of deliberation, Xie Mingshen had decided to draw a clear line between himself and Wu Que, acknowledging only Xie Jiu as his daughter from this point forward.

After all, now that Xie Jiu was with Zhao Xingjin, her marriage to Wu Que would henceforth be a marriage in name only.

In Xie Mingshen’s view, given Zhao Xingjin’s current unrestrained behavior and his dislike for being bound by rules, it was only a matter of time before he openly brought Xie Jiu into the inner palace.

The excuse of being the princess’s tutor was merely a temporary transition.

And once Xie Jiu entered the inner palace, how could she establish a foothold without the support of her natal family?

As biological father and daughter, their interests would once again align; any past grievances should be cast aside.

Moreover, he had never personally admitted to colluding with Wu Que. Even if Xie Jiu held a grudge and wanted to settle scores in the future, as long as he firmly denied it and set aside his fatherly pride to speak some soft words, he believed the father-daughter relationship could be mended.

If Xie Jiu gained favor in the future, he would benefit all the same.

With this calculation in mind, Xie Mingshen did not care in the slightest about the snide remarks from Wei Zhang and the others.

He wore a cheerful expression, as if he were truly delighted.

Seeing this, many who had come specifically to mock him felt they were wasting their time. Cursing Xie Mingshen under their breath for being shameless, they dispersed.

However, there were always a few stubborn ones.

Sure enough, after the morning court began, someone jumped out to argue that while Xie Jiu serving as Princess Wenxi’s tutor was fine, it was against etiquette for a subject’s family member to stay overnight in the palace at will.

But as these men pleaded their case earnestly, Zhao Xingjin sat on his high throne with an air of indifference, looking as if he couldn't be bothered to listen.

He turned a deaf ear, and the ministers grew increasingly discouraged.

After all, Xie Jiu’s entry into the palace was currently covered by a grand and legitimate excuse; these men couldn't tear off the facade and ask directly, "Your Majesty, how can you have an affair with a subject’s wife?"

Thus, before long, the voices gradually died down.

Only then did Zhao Xingjin lift his eyelids and speak in a slow, unhurried tone.

"Are you all finished?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the crowd below fell completely silent.

Zhao Xingjin’s gaze swept over the officials, and then he tossed a stack of papers from his side.

"Since you are finished, take a look at these. I was wondering why the national treasury was so empty—it turns out it was all embezzled by these parasites!"

As his words fell, the complexions of many officials below changed instantly.

Xie Mingshen, standing at the very front of the officials, remained calm. He stepped forward with Wei Zhang to pick up the documents. After flipping through them, they both immediately put on expressions of shock and anger.

"Your Majesty, these people are truly audacious! To dare to embezzle so much military funding and grain—their crimes deserve death!" Wei Zhang was the first to speak.

He then turned and glared at Xie Mingshen. "Minister Xie, there are quite a few people here who have close ties to the Marquis of Weiyuan, Wu Que. It stands to reason that the Wu family must be involved. Wu Que is your son-in-law; how much were you involved in this?!"

"Do not spout blood and slander me!"

Xie Mingshen’s expression remained unchanged as he immediately retorted, bowing toward Zhao Xingjin.

"Your Majesty, setting aside whether the people mentioned in these documents are actually connected to the Wu family, even if the Wu family is involved, I have absolutely never colluded with them. I beg Your Majesty to investigate clearly!"

On the throne, Zhao Xingjin seemed to believe Xie Mingshen’s words implicitly, nodding repeatedly.

"Mm, mm, I believe Grand Secretary Xie would never collude with these parasites. Yesterday, I met the Marchioness of Weiyuan; she is well-read, gentle, and virtuous. Since Grand Secretary Xie has raised his daughter so well, he must also be upright and incorruptible!"

His words sounded exactly like those of a man blinded by lust, favoring everything associated with his beloved.

Seeing this, Xie Mingshen couldn't help but breathe a secret sigh of relief.

In the past, Zhao Xingjin had always valued Wei Zhang’s words. Under normal circumstances, Zhao Xingjin would have followed Wei Zhang’s lead and ordered an investigation into the Xie family as well.

But now, feeling the shift in Zhao Xingjin’s attitude toward him, Xie Mingshen felt truly fortunate that his daughter had entered the palace. He immediately decided to hurry and repair his relationship with her, lest she refuse to be of use to him in the future.

Zhao Xingjin seemed to have no suspicion of Xie Mingshen at all. After withdrawing his gaze, he ordered in a deep voice

"The Minister of the Grand Court of Revision, hear my command: immediately order men to investigate the embezzlement of military pay by these officials!"

Having dropped this, Zhao Xingjin announced the end of the court session and rose to leave.

Xie Mingshen also hurried out of the palace, quickly and secretly summoning his closest subordinates to discuss a countermeasure.

Based on his experience, Zhao Xingjin was definitely using this as a starting point to begin purging corruption in the court.

He knew better than anyone whether his own hands were clean.

He could not afford to be careless; he had to prepare early.

In contrast to Xie Mingshen’s nervousness and caution, Xie Jiu was quite at leisure within the Chengming Palace.

Although she had been appointed as the princess’s tutor, Zhao Xingjin had not arranged for anyone to take her to see Princess Wenxi, only telling her to stay temporarily in the side hall of the Chengming Palace.

Xie Jiu realized that Zhao Xingjin was using her to put on a show.

There was no reason for a princess’s tutor to live in the Emperor’s own residence; this was clearly meant to tell others that their relationship was extraordinary.

But more than that, it was likely meant for the Xie family to see.

After a night of pondering, Xie Jiu had roughly guessed Zhao Xingjin’s purpose in keeping her in the palace.

He was using her to deal with the Xie family.

In her previous life, Xie Jiu had trusted her father’s character implicitly and noticed nothing. Now, living a second life and seeing her father colluding with Wu Que, Xie Jiu realized that her father’s career was likely not as clean as it seemed.

A new emperor brings new ministers; could Zhao Xingjin be happy to see someone like Xie Mingshen occupying the position of Grand Secretary forever?

But the Xie family was deep-rooted, and Xie Mingshen had an overwhelming reputation and left no evidence behind. To get rid of him, one had to proceed slowly.

She wanted revenge, but that was only aimed at Wu Que and Xie Mingshen. Zhao Xingjin, however, was plotting something much larger—he wanted to uproot the entire Xie clan, and even the officials who relied on them.

*Truly, I am negotiating with a tiger for its skin,* Xie Jiu thought, lowering her eyes and sighing softly.

She had thought she was using Zhao Xingjin’s hand to take her revenge, but now it seemed she had become a blade in Zhao Xingjin’s hand, used for his own purposes.

What would her fate be when she was no longer of use?

Xie Jiu dared not think too deeply; she only felt that she had just climbed out of a mountain of blades, only to find a sea of fire ahead.

Just as Xie Jiu was lost in this worry, the door to the side hall was knocked, and Yang Zhi’an’s voice came from outside.

"Madam, the Emperor asks you to come to the main hall to speak."