Transmigration: Of Mysteries and Songs

Chapter 168 Green Vines: Disorder in the Court

The imperial palace was forever so stately and solemn. The soldiers who guard the palace walls always kept a straight face while the handmaidens could only lower their heads as they walk by hurriedly. The officials who entered the palace from time to time all had a nervous expression on their faces.   Even the laughter in the imperial palace was suppressed. In the Imperial Garden, the white sasanqua camellias were struck with reverence and humility, the pink tea tree curled their bodies up in fear, the yellow oriental paperbush crowded around and embraced each other while the purple bougainvillaeas could not bear but turn its head away.     

There, everything was stifling and heavy. Yet, the lofty palace beyond the vermilion red, towering walls was what countless people yearned for. 

The palace attendant led Situ and the First Prince all the way to the Imperial Study. He lowered his head and dared not talk to Situ or the First Prince. The two of them detected this strange atmosphere and exchanged glances with each other before quickly turning away.

After Palace Attendant Yu loudly announced their presence, Situ and the First Prince strode into the Imperial Study.

In the Imperial Study, other than the Emperor who held the power of the kingdom in his hands, and Palace Attendant Yu who had served him for many years, the Eighth Prince, Liu Ren, was present as well. Compared to the Emperor’s expressionless countenance, the Eighth Prince appeared to be concerned but the icy coldness in his eyes only served to make him look more vicious.

“Your son and subject pays his respects, Father. May Father have good fortune and health.” 

“Your subject pays his respects to your Majesty. May your Majesty have good fortune and health.”

The First Prince and Situ bowed deeply.

The Emperor’s calm line of vision swept across them before he slowly commanded, “Rise.”

“Thank you, Father.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

The First Prince and Situ had just stood up when the Eighth Prince said beamingly, “It must have been really hard on Elder Brother and Duke of Anping to go to Dingtao Province to investigate the case. Father was extremely pleased when he saw the report.”

Situ remained expressionless.

Deep down, the First Prince had a better understanding of how treacherous and vicious this Eighth Brother of his was. 

“What Eighth Brother has said is wrong. We are all merely trying to help relieve Father’s worries. There is nothing hard to speak about.”

The Eighth Prince did not have time to refute when the Emperor had already spoken, “Nonetheless, it was indeed very tough this time. Many officials in the court are praising you a lot. I should also reward you. Tell me, what do you want?”

The First Prince’s heart was filled with suspicions right now. Could it be that Father is not planning to investigate further about their game of words? The calmer the Emperor was, the more uneasy he felt in his heart. This was the disparity between one who sat in the top seat of power and all those beneath him.

“Thank you for your praise, Father. But it was all thanks to the Duke of Anping and the officials in Dingtao Province that I managed to get to the bottom of this case. I dare not claim credit for myself.”

“No need to be modest, my Imperial Brother.” The smile on the Eighth Prince’s face widened, but he was a ruthless character behind a gentle appearance just like a needle concealed underneath layers of silk. 

“Father has read all the reports and is aware of all the news sent from Ding Tao Province. For example, there’s the Demonic Sect, the Xiaoyao Sect as well as those Jianghu people.” 

The Eighth Prince paused after saying a few words, hoping to see the alarmed expression on the face of the First Prince but he was disappointed. The First Prince was sincere and courteous. His voice was still as gentle as usual and there was no anger on his face at all.

“That’s right. No one had expected that this was actually a crafty plot by the branch Demonic Sect which had diverged from Dingtao Province’s governor and the Qing Cheng Sect. The Jianghu people are really getting more wanton. They actually even dared to kill the court’s officials. It was thanks to the Xiaoyao Sect that dauntlessly helped back then that I was able to handle this matter properly.”

The Eighth Prince’s expression instantly became dangerous. He also involuntarily emanated a vicious aura, obviously forgetting where he was at that moment.

“Cough cough.” Palace Attendant Yu lightly coughed, and the Eighth Prince quickly came back to his senses. The Eighth Prince looked at the Emperor with a terrified expression, but the Emperor’s countenance remained calm and peaceful like water. This made him even more restless and apprehensive.

The Emperor’s voice gave nothing away, but it contained an imposing aura that had never changed despite his years. However, his greying hair, the wrinkles at the corner of his eyebrows and his slightly strenuous actions all indicated that he was debilitated with age. The deadline of his reign on the throne is nearing.

“You have handled this matter well by setting the rules for the people of the Jianghu.”

The Emperor’s words sparked anger in the Eighth Prince.  

“But there are some lines you can’t cross.” the Emperor’s words caused the First Prince to be relieved. At the same time, he was also puzzled. The various indications have already clearly expressed that the Eighth Prince has become dominant. Why is Father still expressing discontent towards him? Could it be that the one who is to Father’s liking is really Eleventh Younger Brother? If that’s the case, there is one more person as my obstacle.

No matter how ghastly the Eighth Prince’s expression was, he could not retort to the Emperor on the spot. He looked on helplessly as the Emperor casually asked the First Prince some questions while the First Prince’s fitting replies made the Emperor very satisfied.

Situ stood silently by the side, playing the role of an invisible person but he knew that the Emperor would not let him off this easily.

As expected, after the Emperor finished asking the First Prince, he switched to ask Situ instead. “Duke of Anping, it has also been hard on you this time. You probably don’t need gold and silvers. Why not a promotion?”

As soon as he finished speaking, the First Prince and the Eighth Prince’s expressions changed. 

Situ was the General of the North and his position was equivalent to the ministers which is an official of the first rank. At the same time, he was also the Duke of Anping, the only duke not of royal blood that was conferred by Emperor Cheng of the Xuan kingdom. If he was to get a promotion, he could only become a commandery prince.

The position as a commandery prince was a special glory. Those who could enjoy this position were the kings of the small nations that had pledged allegiance, other imperial princes after the future new Emperor has ascended the throne as well those who had assisted the Emperor in seizing the title of Emperor back then could enjoy

The First Prince felt that his heart was thumping expeditiously at this moment. His breathing was also very rapid and his palms were drenched in sweat. Yet, he must not express all these emotions. Once the Emperor before him see through a flaw, he would be only be harming Situ and himself.

Other than astonishment, the Eighth Prince was even more puzzled and uneasy.

He was puzzled why the Emperor still wanted to indulge Situ who had a high position and power, as well as great achievements that could make him feel insecure. He felt unsettled that Situ seemed to have chosen a side already. Was it more advantageous for me to push the boat along with the current and take advantage of this opportunity for my own gain or add more details to the story by adding oil and vinegar?

The Emperor’s heart was the hardest to figure out. He wanted his thoughts to become the Emperor’s thoughts. Silence hung over the Imperial Study. Other than the Emperor who maintained a calm countenance and found it hard to conceal his deterioration with age, Situ who was standing ramrod straight was considered the most unruffled.

After a long time, Situ bowed deeply. “I am terrified, your Majesty. What virtues and capabilities do I possess to receive such favour from your Majesty?”

An almost inaudible sigh sounded. Palace Attendant Yu who was at the side realised that the Emperor seemed even more aged and weak than previously.

“I’ll reward you with gold and silvers then. Palace Attendant Yu, go fetch it according to usual practices.”

“Yes.” Palace Attendant Yu replied with an affirmative.

The tense atmosphere in the Imperial Study did not subside.

As the Emperor’s strength was already insufficient to confront the younger generation before him, the feeling that his life was elapsing and the powerlessness of the body debilitating with age accelerated the decision in his heart. 

~~~~~

The First Prince and Situ walked towards the palace gate side by side while the Eighth Prince from behind hastened his footsteps and wanted to come over to get into a conversation. “Are we going to talk to him?”

The First Prince was a feeling anxious and unwilling to talk to the Eighth Prince behind him. Situ hooked the corner of his mouth up to form a sneer. He glanced at the Minister of the Right who hurried over from outside the palace. He roughly surmised that it was regarding the matter of Concubine Yao giving birth recently and quickly strode towards the Minister of the Right.

Even more unwilling to face the Eighth Prince alone, the First Prince quickly followed

The Eighth Prince stopped somewhere not far away from the three of them. He appeared pensive and quickly turned around to leave. After the Eighth Prince left, Situ and the First Prince also informed the Minister of the Right that they were taking their leave. Discussing matters in the horse carriage was already the best way to pull the wool over people’s eyes.

“Your Covert Guards' competence have improved recently. They could actually conceal themselves from Father’s Shadow Guards.” The First Prince also felt extremely powerless about how he was constantly monitored at every single moment, yet there was nothing he could do about it.

Situ did not feel proud due to this but slowly said, “That’s because the Emperor hasn’t dispatched Blood Shadow. My Covert Guards can’t go against those people.”

“Blood Shadow?” The First Prince was astonished and involuntarily lowered his voice. “Are you referring to that batch of Shadow Guards left behind by the late Emperor?”

Situ nodded. This was the weakest link in their plans. “This is the Emperor’s trump card. We’ll just have to see when he will use it.”

The First Prince’s expression gradually sank. “There’s no way Father would be using these people to deal with me, right?”

Situ smiled lightly with a sliver of ridicule. “But he will use them against me.”

The First Prince fell silent. the Emperor continuously sounding out Situ was already something obvious to all. 

Will Father really kill Situ? Situ has only committed meritorious deeds and never a mistake. Can he still bear to kill him?

The horse carriage travelled all the way and gradually arrived at a place where the people’s homes were clustered together. There was an enormous villa here. That was The Villa of Mount Baicha’s branch in Chang’an. Only after they alighted from the horse did the First Prince speak again. “Why is Father’s attitude towards Eighth Brother so strange?”

“We’ll find out from Qingjia.” Situ softly and politely knocked on the main entrance of the residence.

The door quickly opened, and the two of them filed into the courtyard. There was only one type of flower in the courtyard. It was the white common camellia, also known as the Baicha flowers, which Gan Qingjia used to win the smile of his beauty.

The white common camellias crowded together. Outside the green branches and tendrils were the pure white flowers that had unrivalled arrogance in the world and the gentleness that charmed the world.

That dissolute gentleman was currently half leaning against the stone table with his hand holding a cup of wine. His passionate peach blossom eyes carried an intoxicating smile as he looked at that particular flower as if it was his lover.

“Cough, cough.”

When the First Prince saw Situ’s expression, he found it hard to conceal the smile at the corner of his mouth and heavily coughed a few times.

Only then did it seem as if Gan Qingjia had just awoken from his dream. As soon as he saw that it was the two of them, he hastily tidied up the flask of wine and cups.

However, it was already to no avail. Situ sighed slightly before he asked, “Is this the reason you didn’t dispatch a message to remind us when we entered the city?”

The First Prince had thought that Situ was blaming Gan Qingjia for indulging in comfort and a life of debauchery, thus erring in reminding them about the matter regarding the Emperor and the Eighth Prince when they entered the palace. He smiled hastily. “Didn’t we come out from the threatening situation with no mishap? Everything is fine.”

In fact, up until now, the First Prince was still very flabbergasted about Gan Qingjia turning over a new leaf. Back when he was still in Yizhou Province, he had already heard about his romantic affairs many times. It was just that after he returned to Chang’an, what he did not expect was that Gan Qingjia would become one of his major helpers.

However, the First Prince had speculated wrongly this time. What Situ wanted to talk to Gan Qingjia about was not regarding this matter. Gan Qingjia showed a slightly stern expression and looked at the two of them. “I’m sure you have already seen it. the Emperor’s attitude towards the Eighth Prince is very strange, but there is a reason for it.”

Gan Qingjia’s cautious expression caused the First Prince who had slightly relaxed become solemn again. Situ and Gan Qingjia still had quite a bit of tacit understanding between them.

“There was a setback in his task of supervising the nation?”

Gan Qingjia revealed a helpless and slightly serious smile which resembled a frail flower in the fog which might wither any time.