The hand over his eyes moved very softly, retracting once an unknown amount of time had passed.

After a long while, Chu Jiubian finally opened his eyes.

His eyelashes dipped slightly as his gaze swept over the man’s hand hanging at his side, and then away.

“I’m going inside for a bit.” He didn’t look at Qin Xiao after speaking, and turned to walk toward the daoist temple.

Even though the temple had been given to him, the common people wouldn’t believe in a “god” they had never heard of, let alone who was standing in front of them.

Unless this god actually helped them personally, or the people around them continuously said, “This god is truly very effective!”

What Chu Jiubian needed to do now was find an opportunity to make the more influential people among these refugees believe he was a god, and help him spread his divine name.

Moreover, he needed to convince the refugees that he could actually help them.

For example, he could provide them with food, cure their illnesses…..

Inside the daoist temple.

The old doctor administered acupuncture to the crazed Dan Niang, and she visibly calmed.

But although she had indeed stopped making a fuss, her eyes were empty and lifeless.

She took the pearl flower from her hair and held it in her hands, stroking it repeatedly and ignoring everything else. It was as if her entire world consisted of only that pearl flower.

This was Dan Niang in a “clear-headed” state.

She had stopped making a fuss, but she looked even more unsettling than when she had been out of her mind.

“Thank you for your hard work, Doctor Zhao.” The woman who spoke looked at Dan Niang and heaved a great sigh. “What a tragedy.” The other women also regarded her with sympathy and heartache.

How had such a good person, such a good family, ended up like this?

With a sigh, Doctor Zhao instructed them to look after Dan Niang, then slowly made his way to his room.

There weren’t many doctors out in the world in the first place, and he was the one assigned to this temple.

The refugees all looked up to him, and had prepared him a separate room.

He didn’t disappoint them, and spent the entire day treating refugees.

These peoples’ bodies were already compromised due to years of backbreaking work, and now, with the weather so bad and insufficient food and clothing available, many of them were suffering from various ailments.

Rheumatic pain, high fever due to a cold, gastrointestinal upset…..

Ai, this world truly made it impossible for people to live, ah.

Doctor Zhao didn’t lock the door when he went into the room, and just went to the table to pour himself a cup of water.

The door behind him suddenly opened and closed, as if someone had come in.

Thinking that a refugee had come looking for him, Doctor Zhao turned around, only to be dazzled by a burst of light that he quickly raised his hand to block.

The white light gradually dissipated, and the old doctor lowered his hand, squinting as he looked toward the door again.

This time, he clearly saw that there was a man standing at the door.

Dressed in dark robes, the man had short black hair in the front and long, silver-white hair cascading down his shoulders. He was also soaking wet.

He should have looked somewhat of a mess, but the old doctor’s focus was not on any of this. All that met his eyes was the other’s face, like that of a banished immortal, as well as his noble, aloof demeanor.

Doctor Zhao was momentarily stunned.

Then he watched as the man extended his hand, palm up.

In the next instant, a small bottle made of an unfamiliar material appeared out of thin air in his palm!

Chu Jiubian had spent five points to make a deal with the System, and it did as asked, lifting the medicine bottle into the air and delivering it steadily to Doctor Zhao’s hands.

The System maneuvered Doctor Zhao’s hand so that he caught the medicine bottle.

Thud.

The old doctor had never seen anything like this before. His legs buckled and he fell to his knees, barely managing to avoid passing out.

*

*

Qin Xiao watched as Chu Jiubian walked into the daoist temple, weaving through the crowded throngs of people.

For some reason, although the crowd didn’t seem to notice Chu Jiubian, they all made way for him.

Qin Xiao softly rubbed his fingertips, which seemed to bear the lingering dampness from the other’s eyelashes.

A god?

He slowly clenched his fist, feeling the aura of that person dissipate, beyond his control.

Not long after, Chu Jiubian exited the daoist temple again and approcahed Qin Xiao.

Qin Xiao didn’t ask what he had done; he simply tilted the umbrella over his head again.

Since he didn’t ask, Chu Jiubian didn’t provide an answer. He just inquired: “Where are we staying tonight?”

“The magistrate’s residence. People have already been ordered to tidy up the courtyard.”

The Huai County Magistrate had a history of numerous misdeeds, and this flooding only made him worse than before. Seeing the common people he was responsible for struggling to survive, he kept the granaries closed, and in an attempt to curry favor with a superior, he almost helped Zhou Boshan fill the levee with civilians.

Fortunately, Qin Xiao arrived in time to prevent a tragedy like the one in Pu County.

In the end, due to his heinous crimes, the Huai County Magistrate was among those officials executed outside the city gates.

The premise of “the misfortunes of an individual should not spread to family members” was that benefits shouldn’t extend to family members either. However, the magistrate’s family, young and old, had lived a comfortable life for so many years by relying on him and the common people’s hard-earned money. The magistrate’s manor even occupied nearly an entire street.

In Great Ning, there were specific regulations in place for the residences of officials, which could not exceed the prescribed standards.

However, the required specifications were all of the “how many courtyards deep it can be” type, so these lower-ranking officials simply expanded horizontally. There was always a way to make themselves more comfortable.

The county magistrate had now been executed, and his property confiscated. The rest of his family members were also imprisoned, and once the refugees were all settled, these people would embark on their journey to exile.

Chu Jiubian and Qin Xiao arrived at the county magistrate’s residence together.

For convenience, the two didn’t stay in separate courtyards, but rather in separate bedrooms.

The servants had already prepared hot water and a meal. After both of them had washed up and changed into dry clothes, they went to the main room to eat.

A single oil lamp was lit on the table between them. The wick had been burning for a long time, so the light was somewhat dim.

Rain pattered softly outside as they finished their meal in silence.

After rinsing their mouths, they took a slow stroll around the main room.

The servants cleared the table of dishes and set down tea for two.

Then, it was only the two of them in the room.

Directly facing the door were two chairs with a table between them – this was where the hosts would sit.

Below them were three chairs on either side for receiving guests.

Chu Jiubian went to the seat of honor and sat down. He picked up the teacup on the table next to him, tasting a faint sweetness when he took a sip.

“Is there sugar in this?” He looked up as Qin Xiao approached and took the other seat.

“Xiao Xiangzi informed me,” Qin Xiao said.

Chu Jiubian didn’t like the slightly bitter taste of tea, and preferred to add some sugar.

Although it sounded a little bizarre or unappetizing, it actually tasted pretty good.

“Actually, it would be even better with some milk,” he said.

Qin Xiao raised an eyebrow and didn’t voice his opinion.

But his expression clearly showed his difficulty accepting this.

“I’ll make it for you someday,” Chu Jiubian said.

Qin Xiao smiled faintly.

Chu Jiubian didn’t notice. He set the teacup back on the table and asked: “How is the dam construction going?”

Qin Xiao’s face lost its slight smile from before, and he said in a grave voice: “The damage to the dam in Huai County is much more severe than the one in Pu County.”

In Pu County, the breach could be sealed using the traditional “vertical blocking method.” However, the Huai County dam was located at a heavy flow point, and any materials used to block the breach would be washed away by the swift current as soon as they were thrown in.

Chu Jiubian frowned. He had thought of a solution, but he hadn’t laid eyes on the situation yet and wasn’t certain it would work.

Outside the main hall was a connecting corridor similar to the one in the eastern courtyard of Yangxin Hall. Qin Xiao had arranged for two city defense soldiers to take turns guarding outside.

At that moment, a soldier knocked on the door and said: “My Lord, Lord Jian has arrived.”

“Send him in.”

The door opened, and Jian Hongzhuo and an official from the Ministry of Revenue named Song Feng walked in and bowed.

Chu Jiubian and Qin Xiao had stayed up most of the night, mainly waiting on his Lord Song.

Chu Jiubian was somewhat taken aback by Jian Hongzhuo’s presence. He had thought he was keeping an eye on the dam project.

His gaze dipped slightly downward, and he understood immediately when he saw the roll of blueprints Jian Hongzhuo was holding.

It seemed that Minister Jian had been drawing up plans here all this time, trying to find a way to repair the dam. To have come looking for them so late, he must have come up with a solution.

In order to reach the position of Minister of Works, one must possess genuine talent and ability. Chu Jiubian was genuinely looking forward to his solution.

“Have a seat,” Qin Xiao told the two of them.

“Thanking My Lord.” After thanking him, Jian Hongzhuo took a seat on the left.

Rather than sitting down, Song Feng remained in place and bowed: “My Lords, all of the items in the magistrate’s residence have been inventoried. Six thousand taels of silver, and precious artifacts and paintings worth twenty thousand taels have been seized.”

He stepped forward a few paces and handed the booklet he had been carrying to Qin Xiao, then stepped back.

Qin Xiao took it, ran his eyes over it a few times, and then handed it to Chu Jiubian.

Chu Jiubian also glanced over it briefly.

He didn’t take too close of a look, due to the belief that Song Feng wouldn’t dare falsify the accounts.

Because when Chao Shun had a high fever at the post station, it was Song Feng who had stayed to look after him.

The other party had not only witnessed the brutal scene of the guards taking Chao Shun away, but had also personally witnessed Chu Jiubian’s miracle of borrowing sunlight at night. Naturally, he kept all of his small calculations hidden after this.

Chu Jiubian turned to the last page and saw the shocking numbers.

It was astonishing that a mere county magistrate could embezzle so much money, even in a wealthy county such as this.

And this was only what they could see at the moment. In the decades before, the expenses of this county magistrate’s family for food, clothing, and other necessities must have been enormous.

For example, former Deputy Minister of Personnel Zhao Qianhe had embezzled hundreds of thousands of taels of silver. But he was a second-rank official in the capital, and worked in the very lucrative Ministry of Personnel.

However, this Huai County magistrate was just a minor local official, not even a prefect or governor, yet he had already embezzled so much.

This just showed how corrupt the officialdom in Great Ning had become.

The confiscated funds would be used for disaster relief, but a specific plan needed to be drafted to determine where it would be used.

Qin Xiao ordered Song Feng to liquidate all of the precious artifacts and paintings, so that the money could be used elsewhere later.

Song Feng accepted the order and withdrew.

Chu Jiubian placed the account book on the table and looked at Jian Hongzhuo, saying: “Has Lord Jian come up with a plan to stem the flooding?”

“I have indeed found a solution.” Jian Hongzhuo stood and walked over, spreading the blueprints down on the table for Qin Xiao and Chu Jiubian to see.

“I was thinking of finding some large boats and placing them upstream, then connecting them with ropes and filling them with gravel.” Jian Hongzhuo gestured to the blueprints. “As shown in the diagram, skilled seamen could then be ordered to scuttle the ships…..”

Qin Xiao listened attentively, but just by hearing the beginning, Chu Jiubian knew what Jian Hongzhuo intended to do.

This was the “sinking ship” method – when faced with a dam breach that was too difficult to close due to rapid currents, only such heavy objects could stem the flow. Then, people would be ordered to shovel day and night to reinforce the area, using objects such as reeds and stones to completely block the flow of water.

And once the flood season was over, the dam could be rebuilt.

Chu Jiubian couldn’t help but send Jian Hongzhuo a few more glances.

This Minister Jian was not one to hide his talents, and was indeed a person of great skill. Chu Jiubian thought that this method might be feasible.

However, shutting off the flow of the river by sinking boats would be too costly.

Just by looking at this diagram, one could see that the Huai County dam breach was quite large, and would require at least fifteen to twenty boats to plug it.

Hexi Prefecture was adjacent to the Ning River, and some county residents did make their livings by fishing, but they all used small boats.

The government could scrape together some large ships in a short period of time, but the money and manpower needed to build each ship was enormous, and it would be too risky to sink so many just to block the dam.

If Jian Hongzhuo didn’t handle this well, he could very well lose everything.

And in sacrificing these government ships, the court would be required to requisition funds for new ones, which would be a huge burden on the current Imperial Court.

It was too big of a risk for anyone to take.

Even Chu Jiubian was unsure whether he should agree.

However, after listening to Jian Hongzhuo’s explanation, Qin Xiao only asked one question: “What are the chances of success?”

After a moment of silence, Jian Hongzhuo said cautiously: “Seventy percent.”

“Do it.” Qin Xiao agreed at once, and even gave him both his personal and official seals.

Jian Hongzhuo didn’t waste any time. Having received the order, he immediately led his men to coordinate and supervise the operation.

Once they left, only Qin Xiao and Chu Jiubian remained in the room.

Chu Jiubian turned his head to face Qin Xiao.

Without much hesitation at all, Qin Xiao had agreed to something as risky and costly as blocking the dam with sunken ships.

He had even given Jian Hongzhuo both his personal and official seals, which previously had only entered the hands of Qin Chaoyang.

Qin Chaoyang hadn’t accompanied them this time, staying behind in the capital to look after Bai Lihong instead, so Qin Xiao carried both seals himself.

But given the current situation…..

How could Qin Xiao trust Jian Hongzhuo so much?

Wasn’t he afraid that the other party would take this opportunity to embezzle from the disaster relief funds?

Qin Xiao turned his head to meet Chu Jiubian’s thoughtful gaze. His expression softened slightly as he asked: “Are you wondering why I trust him?”

“Is he one of yours?” Chu Jiubian guessed.

Qin Xiao nodded: “Everyone knows that Jian Hongzhuo is a descendent of meritorious officials, the last remaining survivor of a family of loyal martyrs.”

He got up and paced to the window, looking out at the tall, straight figure receding into the distance: “But no one knows that he was entrusted with the care of my grandfather. He was also a close friend of my father’s.”

Before, Qin Xiao had been able to cooperate with Qin Feng in the palace coup and push Bai Lihong to the throne – and this was in no small part due to the covert support of the Minister of Works.

Jian Hongzhuo enjoyed a free and easy lifestyle. If Qin Jingzhao and his wife hadn’t suddenly died in battle, he would have long since resigned from his post and wandered the world with his loved one.

But life was unpredictable. His good brother had died in a conspiracy plot, leaving behind the elderly Grand Marshal, as well as the young siblings, Qin Xiao and Qin Feng.

Naturally, he could not stand idly by. This was why he remained in the court, clinging to the position of Minister of Works. When the time was right, he would be able to protect the Qin family and even find a way to uncover the truth behind the deaths of Qin Jingzhao and his wife.

But he hadn’t expected the Qin siblings to be so formidable that, after their mentor the Grand Marshal passed away, they would go all out and take that supreme position directly into the hands of the Qin family.

Although he did aid them in some ways, he was truly amazed by the siblings’ decisiveness, as well as their grasp on the political situation and peoples’ hearts.

As a result, Jian Hongzhuo felt more confident, and thought that once Bai Lihong’s position was stable and the cause of Qin Jingzhao and his wife’s deaths was uncovered, he would resign.

Therefore, he maintained his “salted fish” attitude and didn’t let anyone discover his relationship with Qin Xiao.

Like this, he would be able to safely withdraw from the chessboard in the future.

However, the flooding had clearly caused Qin Xiao a great deal of trouble, and with so many common people in the two counties suffering because of it, Jian Hongzhuo could not stand idly by, and thus unexpectedly stepped forward.

However, after returning from the disaster relief mission, this minister whose position was so leisurely that he was basically marginalized could no longer remain aloof.

Once you stepped into the vortex of power, you could only move forward, and none could escape unscathed.

Chu Jiubian went to Qin Xiao’s side and looked out the window with him.

Among the so-called “pure” officials in the court, from Zhao Qianhe, the former Deputy Minister of Personnel who had been exiled, to Jian Hongzhuo now, not one of them was truly “pure.”

Then what about Su Sheng?

Was that high-ranking official in charge of the Ministry of Revenue truly able to remain in power for so many years due to his outstanding competence?

Since he dared to share profits with the Su family and the four great families, did he really have no fallback plans at all?

If so, then his only way out seemed to be the seven vassal kings.

Chu Jiubian turned his head to look at the person next to him. The man’s eyes were deep and dark, and his entire being was shrouded in a sense of isolation that Chu Jiubian could empathize with.

The Regent, second only to the emperor, carried a burden that was much too heavy and all-encompassing.

He had no one to rely on and no fallback options; he could only walk forward alone in the struggle for power, encircled by wolves.

Just like this flood – if it weren’t for a hidden pawn like Jian Hongzhuo stepping forward to help him repair the dams, who would he be able to trust? And how would he be able to resolve this crisis?

Chu Jiubian lowered his eyes slightly.

He and Qin Xiao were very similar in some ways.

The two remained silent for some time, their shoulders very close together. If either of them moved even slightly closer, they would be touching.

However, neither of them crossed that line, and simply maintained a restrained distance.

The light in the room grew dimmer.

It threw the flickering shadows of their two figures across the wall, sometimes with a gap between them, and sometimes overlapping.

Like two lonely, solitary souls.

The pattering rain continued without abating.

A servant rushed through the rain and knocked on the door, breaking the silence in the room.

The two turned around to look.

Qin Xiao responded, and the servant opened the door and came in. With a respectful bow of his head, he offered the two of them a letter wrapped in oilcloth.

Having done this, he silently left and closed the door.

Qin Xiao opened the letter and walked back toward the oil lamp with Chu Jiubian.

Chu Jiubian moved closer to him so that their shoulders and arms touched.

Beneath the thin layer of clothing, Chu Jiubian could feel the contours of the man’s firm muscles.

His gaze shifted for a moment before he turned his attention to the letter.

The letter was sent from the prefectural city and signed by Kou Zimo, a senior official in the Ministry of War. Qin Xiao had kept him at the prefectural governor’s manor in order to investigate the truth behind the governor’s “suicide out of fear of punishment.”

The matter had now been investigated.

And it began with Zhou Boshan.

He was the well-known son-in-law of the Xiao family, as well as a rising star whom the Xiao family promoted through the dam repair project.

For fear of being blamed for the flooding, he had ordered the killing of civilians and used them to fill the dam.

He would surely die a horrible death if his actions were discovered, and might even implicate the Xiao family, tarnishing their reputation.

If it were someone else investigating, the Xiao family might still have had room to maneuver – but it was Qin Xiao who had come.

Qin Xiao had recently been concerned about how to target those powerful families, and now that they’d made such a big mistake, not only would the reputation of the Xiao family be affected, but even Xiao Wendao, the Deputy Minister of Works in the capital, might be implicated.

Therefore, these evil deeds could not be connected back to Zhou Boshan and the Xiao family.

Otherwise, what would the Xiao family do?

At this time, Kou Zimo had discovered correspondence between Lu Yuan and Huguang-wang Bai Liyue, hidden in a compartment in the governor’s study.

Lu Yuan was also a well-known member of the Xiao family faction, but these letters suggested that he may have already betrayed them and secretly become involved with Huguang-wang.

Kou Zimo’s first thought was that the Xiao family had discovered this and took the opportunity to kill Lu Yuan.

Firstly, Zhou Boshan’s crime could be pinned on him, and secondly, a traitor would be eliminated.

As for the third —

Once Lu Yuan’s seat was vacant, the Xiao family could promote Zhou Boshan to the position, and then Hexi Prefecture would still be under the control of the Xiao family.

They would have killed three birds with one stone.

This seemed to be the truth of the matter.

However, Kou Zimo was a cautious person, and there were officials from the Ministry of Justice around him. Therefore, instead of coming to a hasty conclusion, he continued to investigate and left no stone unturned.

During his investigation, he indeed discovered two points of doubt —

The handwriting on these letters was very fresh!

Although the writer of this letter had done his best to imitate Lu Yuan’s handwriting, there were still some differences in the details.

Therefore, these letters showing a connection with Huguang-wang had been forged by somebody else.

And the forger had used the same handwriting as the person who wrote the “suicide note.”

Was this done by the Xiao family?

Had the Xiao family killed Lu Yuan and then fabricated a letter between him and Huguang-wang to make it look like he wasn’t actually affiliated with them?

This way, even if Zhou Boshan’s evil deeds were attributed to Lu Yuan, it would implicate Huguang-wang instead of the Xiao family.

The Xiao family had so many members that it was reasonable to assume that they wouldn’t abandon Lu Yuan, who was already a prefectural governor, for the sake of Zhou Boshan, who had yet to make a name for himself.

However, since Lu Yuan didn’t share their surname, he could become the lackey of another faction.

Zhou Boshan was a son-in-law of the Xiao family, so their reputation would inevitably be affected.

It was not impossible for the Xiao family to abandon Lu Yuan for the sake of their reputation.

Kou Zimo briefly explained his reasoning process, and the conclusion he came to was:

The Xiao family forged the letter turning Lu Yuan into Huguang-wang’s man, and then forged the suicide note, where Lu Yuan took responsibility for all of the crimes.

This cleared Zhou Boshan of suspicion and preserved the Xiao family’s reputation.

The handwriting on the letters was fresh because everything had happened so suddenly.

The Xiao family had never expected that Zhou Boshan was both wicked and stupid, capable of doing so many despicable things, and could only come up with this last-minute method to protect him.

Qin Xiao burned the letter.

The last glimmers of light from the oil lamp grew even dimmer, and the room slipped further into shadow.

Chu Jiubian could barely make out the furnishings in the room; only Qin Xiao beside him stood out more clearly under the lamplight.

The man turned his head to look at him, and his voice was somewhat grave as he said: “Do you think it was the Xiao family?”

Chu Jiubian pondered for a moment, then said: “If it was the Xiao family, why would they involve Huguang-wang in the forged letter?”

Powerful noble families controlled the Imperial Court, maintaining a delicate balance with the vassal kings. The Xiao family wasn’t powerful enough to just do as they pleased, so how could they dare involve a vassal king?

Moreover, this was the most powerful and difficult to deal with Huguang-wang.

The Xiao family would be putting themselves in a precarious position by offending him, caught between a rock and a hard place. Would they be that foolish?

“If I were Xiao Yao, I would have given up on Zhou Boshan immediately after learning what he did,” Qin Xiao said.

He was a son-in-law of the collateral branch of the Xiao family, and it was only because he happened to be in Hexi Prefecture that he had the opportunity to follow Jiannan-wang and gain merit.

Given his recent stupidity and malice, protecting him would only bring trouble, so it would be better to eliminate him directly.

On the other hand, they felt more comfortable using Governor Lu Yuan, and had no reason to forge documents to make him take the blame.

As for the Xiao family’s reputation and the punishment Qin Xiao might impose on them, they could only grit their teeth and bear it.

There was ample time, and they could make their plans slowly.

Qin Xiao looked at the young man and found the firelight illuminating half of his face, the other half cast in flickering shadows.

He said: “So there is a third party behind this.”

This third party intended to frame the Xiao family for Lu Yuan’s death, and incidentally use the letters to sow discord between them and Huguang-wang.

One was the most powerful of the noble families, and the other was one of the most powerful vassal kings. When these two sides clashed, it would be a battle between the snipe and the clam.^[1]

The third party was the fisherman who benefitted.

Chu Jiubian asked with a frown: “Could it be one of the other three great noble families? Or perhaps a vassal king?”

He was actually partial to the latter. 

The situation in the capital was unclear, and no one, including Qin Xiao, Chu Jiubian, and the four great families, wished to involve a vassal king at this time.

Therefore, this was likely the work of one of the vassal kings.

Huguang-wang wouldn’t be foolish enough to put himself out in the open, so it could only be one of the other six.

Qin Xiao paused for a moment, then said: “I asked Henan for grain yesterday.”

Henan.

That was the territory of Anhuai-wang Bai Liming.

Hexi Prefecture was out of grain, and the grain from the two nearby prefectures had recently been sold to the southern regions. Currently, the two places that could send grain here the quickest were Northern Zhili and Henan.

Even at the pace Chu Jiubian marched, it would take three days for the grain to be transported from Northern Zhili.

Moreover, with nobody in the court capable of handling this matter, Qin Xiao had no way of knowing that the grain wouldn’t be embezzled.

It would be better to borrow grain from Henan, which was right next to Hexi Prefecture. Then there would be no need to worry about embezzlement, and he only needed to receive the required grain. 

Moreover, Henan was only a day’s march from Hexi Prefecture, and possessed large granaries.

But Anhuai-wang wouldn’t send him grain for free. He would definitely want some benefits in return.

“He wants Hexi Prefecture,” said Qin Xiao.

Chu Jiubian’s heart skipped a beat.

In an instant, everything seemed to make perfect sense.

If Anhuai-wang was the third party, then he had planned everything from the very beginning.

When he learned that Jiannan-wang had come to repair the dams, he devised a plan.

He tried every means to divert or destroy the grain from Hexi Prefecture and other nearby regions, and then destroyed the dams.

When the dams were destroyed, the first to be held accountable would be Jiannan-wang and the Xiao family.

Since he was a member of the Xiao family faction, Governor Lu Yuan’s suicide would clearly confirm their guilt regarding the “embezzlement of construction funds.”

With the dams destroyed and no grain available in Hexi Prefecture, the Imperial Court would have no choice but to transfer grain from Henan.

And with this, Anhuai-wang could legitimately request Hexi Prefecture.

The location of Hexi Prefecture was very clever, situated precisely at the junction between the provinces of Northern and Southern Zhili, as well as the connection between Henan and Shandong. It was also a wealthy prefecture, making its location very important.

In the face of food shortages, the Imperial Court could either agree to give him Hexi Prefecture or directly transfer grain from Northern Zhili.

But if the grain were to be transferred from Northern Zhili, the process would be very slow, and Anhuai-wang could send people to incite the refugees into launching an uprising.

At that time, the Xiao family’s reputation would be ruined, the common people would riot, and the court would lose their support. The accusation of divine punishment might even be leveled at them for the Emperor’s illegitimate ascension to the throne or Qin Xiao holding power as an Imperial family member.

These were the things Qin Xiao feared the most, so he was very likely to agree to Anhuai-wang’s proposal.

It was an excellent plan. If this operation were to be carried out, Anhuai-wang may very well succeed in taking over Hexi Prefecture.

But he forgot to take Zhou Boshan into account.

This person was both wicked and stupid, and actually came up with the idea of using the common people to fill the dams.

Qin Xiao would definitely investigate such a huge calamity when he arrived, and may uncover more of the inside story – even the parts leading back to Anhuai-wang.

Anhuai-wang had no choice but to change his original plan and make another move.

That was why the letters between Lu Yuan and Huguang-wang were forged. His intention was to frame the Xiao family for Lu Yuan’s death, and then implicate the vassal king, making the situation in Hexi Prefecture even more unpredictable.

In this way, he could better conceal himself.

The number of refugees had decreased sharply simply because Zhou Boshan had killed so many people.

In addition, Chu Jiubian was the one escorting the silver and grain this time. He had rushed as fast as he could, and by sheer coincidence, the remaining grain in Hexi Prefecture had lasted until the day the disaster relief grain from Northern Zhili had arrived.

Anhuai-wang must have been worried that he wouldn’t be able to exchange his grain for Hexi Prefecture.

But it seemed he had achieved his goal. There wasn’t enough food, so Qin Xiao eventually had to ask him for more.

Chu Jiubian said: “Since he wants Hexi Prefecture, we won’t give it to him.”

Qin Xiao looked into Chu Jiubian’s eyes, saying nothing.

If this person was able to transport grain to Nanjiang without anyone noticing, he could certainly do the same here.

“As long as they have faith in me, I can save them,” Chu Jiubian said.

His Faith Value was slowly increasing, likely thanks to Doctor Zhao.

But he needed more.

He also wanted to exchange points for more medicine and food, and buy high-yield sweet potato seedlings so that the common people of Hexi Prefecture could plant them and quickly restore their vitality.

And he had many more things to do when he returned to the capital, all of which required faith.

“Do you need more temples?” Qin Xiao asked.

Chu Jiubian had discovered that he and Qin Xiao were indeed very compatible in many ways. They didn’t need to explain many things to each other, as they understood the other party’s thoughts.

“No need for temples,” Chu Jiubian said. “A dilapidated house will do.”

What form it took didn’t matter. As long as people believed in “Chu Jiubian,” he would gain Faith Points.

They stood facing each other, their eyes locked.

The dying oil lamp finally went out, plunging the room into complete darkness.

Either of them could have easily asked someone to light another oil lamp, which could have been replaced before it went out. They even had tinderboxes on them.

However, neither of them made a move. From the very beginning, they had been tacitly waiting for this moment of darkness to arrive.

Darkness deprived one of sight, thus amplifying one’s senses and urging them to do things they wouldn’t normally do and say things they wouldn’t normally say.

Chu Jiubian could only vaguely make out the outline of the person across from him, but he could also sense that person’s gaze.

He seemed to be anticipating something, yet was also fearful of it.

After a long while, the man’s voice finally rang out.

“Will it hurt you?” he asked.

Chu Jiubian knew he was referring to the day of the assassination attempt, when firing the gun had torn off one of his fingernails. 

“It won’t.”

After a long stretch of time, Qin Xiao finally moved.

He turned and walked toward the door, lighting a tinderbox as he went.

“Rest. I will go make arrangements.” He opened the door and strode out without looking back.

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[1] This saying is based on the old proverb” “In a fight between a snipe and a clam, the fisherman comes out on top.” The story goes that a snipe flies down to peck at a clam, which shuts on the bird’s beak and traps it. While they’re stubbornly battling, a fisherman comes by and nets them both. ⮐

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Chapter 46 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 48