Chapter 594
Poisonous Appearance
The Minister of the Interior once used the words "fame and fortune" to tear the Ning Dynasty's martial arts world apart, causing some to be recruited as lackeys, some to kill each other, and some to betray their promises.
The words "fame and fortune" are like knives, cutting through the martial world with unstoppable force, severing nine-tenths of the chivalrous spirit. But now, these two words suddenly seem to have lost their meaning for Chen Ji.
Inside the Jiefan Building.
Wu Xiu curled the knuckles of his index and middle fingers, tapping them repeatedly on the dossier with a dull thud. The autumn sun shone brightly outside the window, casting a long shadow on the empty armchair.
He turned to look at the armchair behind the desk and muttered to himself, "No wonder you went to so much trouble."
The Director of the Palace Attendants carefully observed Wu Xiu's expression before speaking cautiously: "Your Excellency, what did you say?"
The word "Inner Minister" pulled Wu Xiu back from her thoughts.
He glanced at me sideways, his gaze indifferent: "What did you call me?"
The Director of the Directorate of Palace Attendants smiled obsequiously: "Back when Xu Wenhe was the Director of the Directorate of Ceremonial, he was the Grand Chancellor. Now that you are the Director, you are naturally the Grand Chancellor."
Wu Xiu laughed: "You're so clever. You probably don't even remember that people used to call him the Poisonous Prime Minister."
The Director of the Imperial Household Department was taken aback and did not dare to reply.
Wu Xiu stopped typing and placed his fingers on the dossier: "In the eleventh year of the Jianing era, he secretly instructed Xiao Shanniu, a spy from the Secret Service, to take away twelve volumes of scriptures from the Jiefan Tower and bury them quietly in the suburbs of Changsha Prefecture. Half a year later, the Tomb Dog brazenly dug them up and deliberately ran away with the twelve volumes of scriptures."
"From Changsha to Jinling, it's a 1,700-li mountain road. The Tomb Dog deliberately traveled at a moderate pace, just enough for the news to spread and for those martial arts figures to get involved. The first three volumes of the general outline alone caused a bloodbath in the martial arts world, with heads rolling."
Jiao Tu was startled: "Is this an inside scheme? Is it the twelve-volume scripture that records the Five Witches' army?"
Wu Xiu said slowly and deliberately, "Otherwise, Jinling can't escape Ningchao by sea, and it's an important town of Jiefanwei. Why would the tomb dogs run to Jinling? Wouldn't they be walking into a trap?"
Jiao Tu asked in confusion, "But in the end, the scripture still fell into the hands of others, and the Tomb Dog also died and disappeared."
Changxiu smiled and said, "It's just a few scrolls of scriptures. There are plenty in Jiefan Tower. As for Lord Tomb Dog's life... If the Poison Prime Minister were to be stingy with the lives of others, he wouldn't be the Poison Prime Minister. Twelve scrolls of scriptures and one Tomb Dog are worth it in exchange for twenty-one years of disloyalty in the Southern Jianghu."
Wu Xiu sighed, "Whether it's 'Poisonous Prime Minister' or 'Inner Prime Minister,' these titles weren't self-proclaimed; they've been passed down in the martial arts world for a long time. Remember, a palm seal is a palm seal, not an inner prime minister title."
The Director of the Imperial Household Department hurriedly bowed and said, "This humble servant has noted it down."
Wu Xiu tapped the table with her hand: "Let's leave the Morning Post aside for now, how's the salt permit situation?"
The Director of the Imperial Household Department lowered his head and said, "Everything is fine with the salt permits. The salt merchants were initially worried that the government would settle scores after taking over the salt permit exchange, but Bai Long instructed that not a single word of the rules left by Chen Ji should be changed, so the salt merchants gradually lowered their guard. However..."
Wu Xiu's eyes sharpened: "Don't speak so boldly in front of me."
The Director of the Imperial Household Department hurriedly said, "Now the salt permit trade has almost turned the salt registers in the hands of the eight major merchants into worthless pieces of paper. I'm afraid they won't let this go easily. Bai Long said that Chen Ji had already prepared a backup plan for this. The Gelaohui (a secret society) once told their subordinates that they were just waiting for the eight major merchants to make trouble... But what that backup plan is, nobody knows."
Wu Xiu pondered for a moment: "It will take a while for the eight major merchants to react. We can put the salt permit matter aside for now. The morning newspaper is the most urgent matter... As usual, you should send the morning newspaper to Renshou Palace these next few days."
The Director of the Imperial Household Department's expression changed: "Ah? Me?"
Wu Xiu smiled enigmatically: "What, you think I'll cover for you when you can't handle things properly? Go on, instead of shirking your responsibilities, you should think about how to improve the Morning Post."
The Director of the Imperial Household Department left in a hurry.
Wu Xiu then looked at Chang Xiu: "Go and see Qian Ping of the Sanshan Society, and have them take over the distribution of the Morning Post."
Changxiu shook his head: "My lord, the Three Mountains Society has always been at odds with us eunuchs. Even when the Grand Chancellor was in power, they were too lazy to tackle this tough nut."
Wu Xiu nodded, not pressuring him: "That's true. The one who tied the knot must untie it. Some things still need to be done by Viscount Wu Xiang himself. Jiao Tu and Yun Yang, you two arrest a batch of Red Gate members and send another batch away. Viscount Wu Xiang wants to live a life of leisure and wealth with that little bit of peace money. I also want to see if he can really live a life of poverty."
Jiao Tu and Yun Yang bowed and said, "Yes, your humble servants will go immediately."
The footsteps faded into the distance.
The room finally quieted down.
Wu Xiu stood alone behind the desk, her fingers gently tracing the wood grain, which had been smoothed and warmed by countless days and nights.
He raised his head and looked at the armchair behind him for a long time.
The chair was old; the armrests were worn shiny, and there was a shallow scratch on the back, the year of which was unknown. The seat cushion had sagged, leaving a deep dent.
Wu Xiu stared at the chair, but ultimately did not sit down. He withdrew his gaze and walked outside.
As he reached the door, he paused and instructed Changxiu, "From now on, all memorials and secret reports should be sent to the Eagle House Division. Seal off the Jiefan Tower; without my badge, no one is allowed to enter or leave."
Changxiu smiled and bowed slightly: "Understood."
……
……
The next morning.
In the main hall of the Eagle House, Wu Xiu sat behind a rosewood wooden table, writing annotations in red ink.
There were three stacks of memorials on the table; the ones on the left had been approved, the ones on the right were pending approval, and the one in the middle was the one he was currently reading. A cup of tea sat on the corner of the table, completely cold, the tea leaves sinking to the bottom, motionless.
The sound of pigeons flapping their wings could be heard from outside the window every now and then, without stopping all morning. In the past, Bai Long would handle the homing pigeon reports, but now he had submitted a report saying he was going to investigate official corruption, and he had disappeared.
Footsteps sounded outside the Eagle House. Wu Xiu looked up and saw the Divine Rabbit and the Cloud Sheep passing through the three courtyards, startling the pigeons that were roaming freely in the courtyard. There were more than a dozen old locust trees in the courtyard, their branches spreading out and shading half of the courtyard.
The bright rabbit and the cloud sheep passed through the old locust tree and stood outside the threshold, their expressions somewhat subtle.
Wu Xiu glanced at it, then continued reviewing the memorials, her tone indifferent: "How many Red Gate gangsters have been arrested?"
Jiao Tu hesitated for a moment, then took a step forward: "Reporting to my lord... we didn't catch them."
Wu Xiu stopped writing.
He slowly raised his head, his gaze shifting from the memorial to Jiao Tu's face: "Didn't you catch her?"
Jiao Tu felt a little uneasy under his gaze and quickly explained, "Yesterday evening, the Gelaohui (a secret society) hosted a banquet at Deshenglou Restaurant in the outer city and invited all the gangsters from the Red Gate."
Wu Xiu put down her pen and leaned back.
Jiao Tu carefully chose her words: "He dismissed everyone. In front of everyone, he said, 'A common man is innocent, but possessing a treasure is a crime.' If these scoundrels continue to gather together, they will sooner or later follow in the footsteps of Fu Ruixiang and Heji."
Yun Yang chimed in from the side: "He distributed the peace money from Liulichang, the Eight Great Hutongs, Panjiayuan Ghost Market, and Chongnanfang to a few small sects, such as Shuangdaomen, Mizongmen, Tongbeimen, and Chuojiaomen. Each sect controlled its own area, and they kept to themselves. From then on, there were no more Red Gates in the capital."
Wu Xiu raised an eyebrow.
The pigeons outside the window fluttered up and took flight, the sound of their wings beating clearly audible in the quiet courtyard.
He was silent for a moment, then suddenly laughed: "Chen Ji does have a compassionate heart. He guessed what I was going to do, and to save those scoundrels from imprisonment, he simply dispersed them."
Jiao Tu and Yun Yang exchanged a glance, neither daring to respond.
Wu Xiu picked up the now-cold tea and took a sip: "Where's the brotherhood?"
Jiao Tu nodded: "Brother Pao now lives with Chen Ji in Shaojiu Hutong. They have set up two wool felt tents in the courtyard and sleep in them every day without feeling uncomfortable."
Wu Xiu suddenly asked, "Chen Ji has already squandered all his wealth, where did he get the money to host a banquet?"
Jiao Tu said helplessly, "I heard it was the singing girls of Plum Blossom Ferry who put together the money for him."
Wu Xiu closed the memorial in front of him and tossed it to his left: "He doesn't seem to mind being shabby at all. Where are the old records?"
Jiao Tu's expression turned strange: "He went to the Imperial Hospital early this morning."
Wu Xiu was somewhat surprised: "He really wants to study medicine?"
……
……
Outside the Imperial Physician's Hall, Chen Ji looked up at the plaque.
The plaque has a black background with gold lettering, bearing the three large characters "Imperial Medical Academy" in a dignified and solemn style.
Two wooden couplets, also with black background and gold characters, hang on either side of the door. The first line reads, "Inheriting the skills of traditional Chinese medicine, his profound merit in saving the world relies on the three acupuncture needles," and the second line reads, "With a pure and simple heart, his power to restore youth will last for a thousand autumns."
The phrase "great power to rejuvenate" left Chen Ji completely bewildered.
The main gate of the Imperial Medical Academy was vermilion, its paint peeling away to reveal the grayish-brown wooden core beneath. The door studs were scattered haphazardly, a standard feature of a third-rank government office.
The barrier to entry is very high.
Chen Ji stood outside the threshold, not stepping inside immediately, but smelling the fragrance of medicine wafting out from inside.
It wasn't the pungent smell of medicine, but a faint fragrance that wafted out from the crack in the door, swirling in the autumn morning light.
Chen Ji took a deep breath; he was very familiar with this smell.
The Taiping Medical Clinic also smelled the same way. The steam rising from Old Yao's medicine cabinet and the stove used for decocting medicine, as well as the smell that clung to She Dengke and Liu Quxing's clothes, all smelled the same.
He thought for a moment, picked up the beast-head ring, and patted it on the vermilion gate.
The gatekeeper peeked out from a room and sized up his gray cloth clothes: "Who are you?"
Chen Ji politely replied, "My name is Chen Ji. I have come to the Imperial Medical Academy to borrow medical books."
The gatekeeper ignored what he said, sneered, and said, "Where did this poor scholar come from? The medical books of my Imperial Medical Academy are very valuable. You think you can just borrow them like that? Get lost."
Chen Ji stood outside the threshold without arguing. After thinking for a moment, he turned and left.
The gatekeeper scoffed and went back inside to take a nap.
Two incense sticks later, Chen Ji changed into a bright red robe with a qilin emblem and stood in front of the door. He picked up the beast-head ring from the vermilion door and knocked on it.
When the gatekeeper poked his head out again, Chen Ji pointed to the Qilin insignia on his chest and asked earnestly, "And now?"
The gatekeeper's expression changed drastically, and he turned and ran deeper into the Imperial Hospital.
"Academician! Chief Physician! Something terrible has happened, Viscount Wu Xiang has arrived!" (End of Chapter)