Scheming Emperor X Hunting Eunuch - Chapter 8.2

Seeing no one around, Jiang Yi still boarded the carriage.

Inside the carriage was also a fat man, arranging a pile of wound medicine on a small table.

Wuli had been wondering earlier why Yanci had bought these during the day—turns out he was waiting for this moment.

“Young General Jiang has suffered. Please use some wound medicine first,” Pei Yanci said.

Seeing that the medicines on the table weren’t particularly precious but were common and effective healing medicines, Jiang Yi didn’t stand on ceremony. He tore open his clothes, took the clean wet cloth Pei Yanci handed him, wiped the blood from his wounds, picked up a bottle, and sprinkled it on his wounds.

Wuli’s heart was bleeding—this was all bought with his silver!

“The Elu Bureau doesn’t distinguish right from wrong and arrests people randomly. It’s just unfortunate that the general had to suffer this undeserved disaster,” Pei Yanci asked with concern. “While you were in the great prison, did you see any arrested scholars? How are they doing?”

“I saw them, but unfortunately, while I could get out, they’re still living a fate worse than death in those sunless cells.”

“They’re all from common backgrounds, aren’t they? How pitiful. If they had connections, at least they could have bribed the Elu Bureau people to use less torture.”

“Not all are commoners,” Jiang Yi said. “That Song Suixi is a favored disciple of that great scholar Fang, and three others are from Qingcheng Academy, the foremost of the four great academies. One is even the son of the Bingcao official from Jingzhao Prefecture. Even they couldn’t do anything.”

(TL: Bingcao =military clerk/registrar)

“Whether great scholar or academy, a bunch of scholars gathered together—what can they do besides chattering?” Wuli said.

Being looked at by both men, he mumbled and fell silent.

Jiang Yi turned his gaze to Pei Yanci and the other, clasping his fists. “Both of you, please give Jiang’s thanks to His Highness the Crown Prince. Since His Highness could rescue me, surely he won’t stand by and watch those people die.”

He deliberately mentioned that among the arrested were people of relatively prominent status, though in reality most were from poor families. It wasn’t easy for a farming household to raise a successful candidate, and they shouldn’t die in vain over such a small matter.

If the Crown Prince was willing to intervene for the sake of those great scholars and academies to rescue them, those in white robes could also be saved together. Then the Crown Prince would surely win the favor of those literati, which would be a great help.

Having just returned from the border less than a month ago, he also knew that the Crown Prince was currently isolated and helpless in court.

One of Pei Yanci’s purposes in picking him up tonight was to understand which literati had been arrested.

Literati were different from each other.

Some scholars studied under great scholars or famous academies, making it easier for them to pass the imperial examinations and advance in their future careers than poor students from common backgrounds.

When trouble arose, they also had backing.

Now that the incident had occurred for three or four days, whether it could be resolved depended on these few days.

“Why thank the Crown Prince?” Wuli pointed to himself and Pei Yanci. “I paid for the medicine, and it was my big brother who begged that old eunuch to release you. The Crown Prince did nothing—thanking him would be unconscionable.”

“You’re not the Crown Prince’s people?” Jiang Yi frowned.

“We’re people from the Crown Prince’s Mansion, but does that mean we must do the Crown Prince’s bidding? Our few lives wouldn’t be enough for that.” Wuli said unhappily, having no good feelings toward Gu Jiuqing now.

Jiang Yi looked at them with gradually unfriendly and guarded eyes.

In his view, receiving a lord’s salary meant serving the lord loyally. Being people of the Crown Prince’s Mansion who didn’t follow the Crown Prince’s orders—were they working for outsiders instead?

That was betraying one’s master.

Pei Yanci suppressed Wuli, who was about to speak again, and said to the person across the small table, “His Highness has deep foresight. We only know to focus on immediate tasks, thinking we’re not working for His Highness, but in the end, it’s still the Crown Prince’s intention.”

Jiang Yi’s expression softened somewhat. He thought so—with the abilities of two servants, how could they possibly rescue him? It must be the Crown Prince secretly planning and arranging behind the scenes.

Originally, he hadn’t wanted to get involved in the court’s factional disputes, but now his life had been saved by them. If Gu Jiuqing asked for help in the future, he would certainly assist, and even now, he had already been branded with the Crown Prince’s party mark.

A knot formed in his heart. Choosing to take sides yourself versus being forced to take sides—these two feelings were different.

However, he had originally disapproved of the Elu Bureau’s methods and couldn’t possibly collaborate with them. If he really had to choose, he would rather choose the Crown Prince’s faction.

“I, Jiang, owe the Crown Prince a life today, and will surely repay it in the future!” Jiang Yi thanked again, then opened his mouth with difficulty. “I know the Crown Prince rescuing me is already a tremendous favor, but those scholars…”

Pei Yanci smiled and took up his words. “I understand. After returning to the mansion, we two will plead with His Highness again, and also convey Young General Jiang’s sincere care for talent. His Highness is benevolent and will surely not stand by and watch them die.”

Jiang Yi breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing that the carriage was almost at the ward gate, he got off early and parted with the two men.

There was curfew between wards but not within wards. Jiang Yi knew the Crown Prince’s Mansion was far away and told them to hurry back.

****

At the end of the You hour, Pei Yanci and Wuli finally returned to the Crown Prince’s Mansion amid the drum sounds.

As he had expected, just after entering the gate, the gatekeeper steward told him to go to the study.

Gu Jiuqing wanted to see him, extremely urgently.

Pei Yanci told Wuli to return to the courtyard first and act as if nothing had happened. After giving a few instructions, he followed the steward to the study.

The previous courtyard was full of peach blossoms, but the study was planted with bamboo and pine trees, which in the hazy rainy night were just clusters of black shadows.

He entered carrying thin, damp rain mist, and as soon as he opened his mouth, his voice was choked with sobs.

“Your Highness, this servant thought I would never see you again!”

Seeing tears in his eyes, Gu Jiuqing secretly frowned.

“Why are you crying!” Zhang Huairu’s sharp voice came from behind Gu Jiuqing. “Crying and wailing when meeting His Highness—this is great disrespect. Come, drag him out first.”

“Drag me out? You just don’t want me to see His Highness, so you can cover up your crimes!”

“What crimes do I have!” Zhang Huairu’s face darkened. “Stop this unreasonable troublemaking!”

“My advice was meritorious, but you couldn’t stand me stealing your spotlight before His Highness, so you sent the mansion’s guards to secretly kill me! You wouldn’t even spare Wuli who accidentally witnessed it. You eunuch, you have the same vicious heart as the Elu Bureau!”

“Those few shallow words of yours—you call that meritorious advice?” Zhang Huairu laughed.

Pei Yanci knelt prostrate on the ground again. “Your Highness, this servant knows you have always been benevolent and never harsh to subordinates. The world also knows your good temperament. Precisely because of this, some servants think highly of themselves, bullying those below while flattering those above. They acted against this servant while concealing it from you, calculating that since he knew you from humble beginnings, you would remember old feelings and thus dared to be so bold. That this servant and Wuli fortunately returned alive today is entirely due to Your Highness’s grace and protection. Heaven also couldn’t bear to see evil servants deceive their master and be misled by eunuchs.”

Zhang Huairu had originally not taken him seriously, thinking him shallow and ignorant, but after this speech, his expression changed slightly. He secretly glanced at Gu Jiuqing, who was also looking at him meaningfully.

“Zhang Huairu, is this true?” Gu Jiuqing’s voice was melodious and pleasant, yet contained hidden threats.