Chapter Eighty-Eight: A Sleepless Night

An hour earlier, in the Gu family’s heated pavilion.

Governor Tian sat with a grim face, staring at the head of the Gu household before him, nearly slamming the table in rage.

He drew a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, then ground out, “This is indeed the Gu residence, but it is still Xuanzhou!”

“An incident in your home is an incident in Xuanzhou. I am not afraid of that, so what are you afraid of?”

“Afterward, the murderer will certainly be caught. The local authorities will give the court an accounting, and none of it will have the slightest thing to do with the Gu family. What is there for the Gu family to fear?”

Gu Wen sat below Governor Tian, his expression equally unsightly. “Your Excellency, but that is an imperial commissioner!”

Governor Tian’s face remained dark. “He came secretly, without informing the local authorities. Who would know he was an imperial commissioner?”

Beside them, Commander Cao lifted his cup and took a drink of wine, then cursed bitterly, “Damn it! Because of a few obstinate peasants in Hexi Village, the whole of Xuanzhou has been thrown into chaos. Before Lord Pei left, didn’t he say there would be no more trouble? And how long has it been?”

“Now they have sent down some damned commissioner, and even ordered a secret inspection.”

Commander Cao Rong said with a sullen face, “They did not even notify the local authorities. It is clear they never intended to negotiate with us. If they really report everything upward…”

“I am afraid even the Crown Prince won’t be able to protect us.”

“It is all because of you!”

Governor Tian glared at him and snapped, “You went to suppress Hexi Village and still left so many fish in the net. Those surviving remnants from Hexi Village actually stirred up trouble again and once more alarmed the Son of Heaven!”

“And another thing,”

Governor Tian sneered, “this was never really a question of whether the Crown Prince would protect us. There are people in the capital who are aiming straight at the Crown Prince, using Xuanzhou to shake the Eastern Palace!”

“For people like us, life and death are small matters. The steadiness of the heir apparent is the great matter.”

Governor Tian ground his teeth. “Here, we must make our decision. Act first and report later. Finish the deed, then present the facts. Let those above argue over it!”

“Otherwise, if those villains truly succeed and shake the foundations of the realm, then Great Zhou itself will fall into chaos!”

At this point, Governor Tian drew another deep breath and looked to Gu Wen, saying in a grave tone, “Brother Zaidao, this is no time to hesitate. If we speak of it in small terms, it is for the stability of the court; if we speak of it in large terms, it is for all under Heaven.”

“The Gu family must make a decision!”

Gu Wen looked up at Governor Tian and frowned slightly. “Your Excellency, have you ever met the Crown Prince?”

That single question left Governor Tian speechless.

He had indeed never met the Crown Prince. Yet after meeting Lord Pei the last time, he had already begun to think of himself as a man of the Crown Prince’s camp.

Or rather, at this moment, he had no choice but to think of himself that way. Otherwise, when the Hexi bandits caused trouble again, he would never be able to cover it up.

Because the imperial commissioner who had come this time sought neither fame nor profit, and it was highly likely he had come specifically to deal with them.

Under such circumstances, his identity as governor was no longer as useful as before. After all, a mere governor of Xuanzhou was too insignificant to matter on the grand stage of the court.

After a long silence, Governor Tian finally looked at the head of the Gu family with an inscrutable gaze and said slowly, “Brother Zaidao, though I have been in Xuanzhou for less than four years, I have learned of many things here. If the court intends to investigate Xuanzhou thoroughly, your Gu family cannot escape involvement.”

“The Gu family…”

Gu Wen raised his head to look at Governor Tian and said quietly, “Those eight hundred coins in tax were not collected by our family. If the court investigates the Gu family, at worst we lose our fortune. But if that imperial commissioner dies in my house…”

“Then our family will be utterly ruined.”

“I have already said,” Governor Tian said with forced patience, his voice hoarse, “this matter will be explained to the court by the Xuanzhou government. The cause, the murderer, none of it will be left unclear. By the time it is reported upward, it will be for those above to struggle over. It will have nothing to do with us!”

Gu Wen’s face remained like still water. “Will the Crown Prince fight for this? Will he fight for you, Your Excellency?”

“If he fights for you, will he still fight for my Gu family?”

“My third brother is still serving as an official in the capital.”

Gu Wen held firm. “I cannot harm him.”

On the next page, chaos had already broken out across the side chambers of the Gu residence.

Li Yun and Mister Gu had taken refuge in another side room. Head Constable Li poured a cup of tea for this ash-covered Mister Gu and asked, “Mister Wenchuan, what are you planning tonight?”

“There is no point in investigating further. I intend to arrest them directly. Catch them first, then speak.”

“Once they are in hand and questioned, the truth will naturally come to light.”

“Arrest them?” Li Yun asked. “Arrest whom?”

“Who else? The officials of Xuanzhou.”

Mister Gu said slowly, “Tonight, whoever is in the Gu residence will be taken.”

Li Yun looked puzzled. “How did you know they had come to the Gu residence? Even if they meant to move against you, they would not need to come here in person…”

“Because my people saw them.”

Mister Gu smiled. “Surely Head Constable Li does not think I truly came alone to Xuanzhou?”

Li Yun glanced outside. The firelight beyond had grown even fiercer.

There were still some things he did not understand, so he asked, “Then this fire tonight is a frame-up laid on the Xuanzhou officials by you, sir?”

Hearing the word frame-up, Mister Gu paused, then nodded. “More or less.”

“Otherwise, there would be no excuse to arrest them.”

“Even if the matter in Xuanzhou were reported to the court, it would take months before the court reached a decision. Too many variables.”

Li Yun clicked his tongue.

The learned gentlemen really were the most devious.

But the problem was, how could the two of them possibly control the situation alone?

Just as that thought arose, a sharp shout came from outside.

“I am Commander He Chong of Tong’an Prefecture! I have been ordered to accompany and protect the imperial commissioner. You dogs have the nerve to set fire to the commissioner’s lodgings?!”

In the room, Gu Wenchuan looked at Li Yun with leisurely composure and smiled. “Before I came to Xuanzhou, I transferred some men from the neighboring prefecture.”

“But it was not convenient to make a grand display of it, so none of them appeared.”

He rose, brushed the soot from his clothes, and said slowly, “Come, Brother Li.”

“Let us go and… deal with this mess.”

It took a little while because I was revising the draft.