Chapter 43: Shen Jifeng's Victory

Shen Jifeng ran forward two steps, then stopped and looked back.

"Imperial Grandfather, please take good care of your health. Your granddaughter should not have provoked your anger."

Emperor Yuanchang felt a warmth in his heart. "If you encounter any emergency at the mine, you may go to the Xijing Camp and ask General Wei for help."

Shen Jifeng was secretly startled. The Xijing Camp guarded the imperial capital and was even more important than the Imperial Guard. Wasn't it said that Wei Xiao had been transferred back from Diannan just to live in retirement? It seemed the rumors were entirely unreliable; he was clearly holding a position of immense trust and importance.

"Your granddaughter does not know General Wei, Imperial Grandfather," Shen Jifeng feigned innocence.

Emperor Yuanchang said nothing more, watching Shen Jifeng's figure vanish at the end of the corridor.

Lin Ping'an gazed at that brisk, receding figure and could not help murmuring, "The Princess's disposition is even more forthright than a man's."

Emperor Yuanchang let out a hum, though his hand smoothing his sleeve slowed by half a beat. The morning light filtered through the lattice window, casting mottled patterns of light and shadow upon the carpet. He suddenly recalled when he had first found Shen Jifeng: in the deep chill of October, she had been standing barefoot in a basin of water, treading upon garments heavier than herself. Timidly hiding behind A-Pu, she had not dared to speak to anyone. Yet now, she was able to stand entirely on her own, daring even to detain officials of the Ministry of Punishments. Exactly when had her daring grown so bold?

Emerging from the Donghua Gate, Dongyang was already waiting with the horses. Seeing her come out, he hastily handed over a meat bun wrapped in oil paper. "Please eat while it's hot, Princess. I just bought it from that shop at the alley entrance—your favorite pork and scallion filling."

Shen Jifeng was indeed ravenously hungry. She took the bun and shoved it straight into her mouth, saying indistinctly, "We must ride back to the mine immediately."

Dongyang pulled a mournful face. "Princess, when I went to seek help from the Prince of Han last night, he rushed into the palace in the middle of the night out of anxiety and was detained by the guards. He is still in the duty room."

"What?" Shen Jifeng wolfed down her food, swallowing two buns at once. "Let's go, quickly, to fetch Fourth Uncle."

Prince of Han Zhao Zhen had just endured the most miserable sleep he could remember. Not only was the guards' duty room small and sweltering, but it was also plagued by biting mosquitoes. If that were all, it might have been bearable, but what made it truly intolerable was the air—a heavy blend of sweat, foot odor, dampness, and summer heat that smelled far worse than an animal pen.

"When on earth can I leave?" After enduring a whole night, Zhao Zhen had lost all his temper.

"Reporting to the Prince of Han, you are free to leave at your convenience."

Zhao Zhen bolted out the door of the duty room as if his tail were on fire. "You could have told me sooner!"

Uncle and niece met at the corner. Zhao Zhen pulled Shen Jifeng close, looking her up and down, and seeing that her complexion was rosy and she was missing neither arms nor legs, he finally let the heavy stone drop from his heart.

Shen Jifeng caught the scent wafting off Zhao Zhen, covered her nose, and frowned. "Fourth Uncle, you've gone sour."

Zhao Zhen gave his own sleeve a disdainful sniff. "And who do you think I suffered all this humiliation for?"

In just a few brief exchanges, the two brought each other up to speed on the events of the previous night.

"Fourth Uncle, I must hurry back to Xijing immediately. Please keep a close eye on the impeachment matter for me, and make sure it is suppressed utterly—not a single word must be allowed to fly into the imperial court."

Zhao Zhen said with dissatisfaction, "You're the one who should be called an old fogey. Your Fourth Uncle is in the prime of his life. If you call me an old man, your Fourth Aunt will be the first one to object."

"Alright, alright, alright." Shen Jifeng was most skilled at coaxing Zhao Zhen into a good mood. "My Fourth Uncle is dashing and debonair, graceful as a jade tree, and the very face of the Great Ning imperial family."

Flattered by his niece, Zhao Zhen floated on air, and even the sour odor clinging to him suddenly seemed a little less unpleasant. He wanted to offer a few more words of caution, but Shen Jifeng had already mounted her horse and vanished in a puff of dust.

Inside the Prince of Chu's residence, with a sharp crash, a medicine bowl shattered on the floor. The young maidservant feeding the medicine was so terrified she pressed her forehead against the ground and dared not move for a long time.

Mei Linghan dismissed everyone present.

"His Imperial Majesty actually issued an imperial decree ordering the Ministry of Punishments to send men to Xijing to try the case. Why? This defies all reason. There must have been something else last night that we don't know about."

"Early this morning, someone spotted the Princess outside the Donghua Gate. She must have just come out from the palace."

Zhao Jian irritably pounded the edge of his bed. No wonder old Fourth had forced his way into the palace last night; he had known Yanru was inside, which was why he dared to act so recklessly.

No! There was something fishy about this affair!

Yanru's return to the palace could only be for the sake of pleading on behalf of the artisans. Regardless of the outcome, it would not have warranted a dignified prince forcing his way into the palace unless there was a far greater matter at stake.

"Go investigate. What time did the Princess enter the palace yesterday? Whom did she see? What did she do? Investigate every single detail, leaving nothing out."

"Furthermore," Zhao Jian said with a sinister gleam in his eye, "have the Ministry of Punishments keep the people detained in the Xijing Prefecture for now. As for the officials sent to try the case, there is no rush for them to arrive. They can dawdle on the road for two or three days. Once they get there, they can drag out the trial slowly. If the Emperor asks, push all the blame onto the Princess. With time, people's hearts easily change, and they will naturally fall into chaos on their own."

When Shen Jifeng returned to the silver mine once more, a drizzle had begun to fall from the sky. She hurriedly changed out of her damp clothes and went directly to the room where Cai Xin, the Chief Secretary of the Ministry of Punishments, was being detained.

A dish of steamed buns, a plate of scallion-fried mutton, and a plate of stir-fried bunashimeji mushrooms sat upon the table. Shen Jifeng mentally gave Li Leqi a thumbs-up. She had been in far too much of a rush when she left to give any instructions, but fortunately, Li Leqi had thought of it. Although detaining the man was an improper act, at least they had treated him with due courtesy regarding his meals and had not mistreated him.

"Chief Secretary Cai, I rushed back to the imperial palace last night, and Imperial Grandfather has already agreed that these artisans from the mine will be tried right here in the Xijing Prefecture. Please wait here a moment; news will be sent down shortly."

Cai Xin had been locked up for a day and a night, and his anger was burning fiercely. So what if she was of royal blood? To arbitrarily detain an imperial court official and act so lawlessly, yet still receive the Emperor's heavy favor—how could this possibly be a blessing for Great Ning?

"According to the *Great Ning Code*: 'Those who arbitrarily detain a vital official without an official warrant shall be exiled three thousand li.' Furthermore, anyone who interferes with legal judgments or delays trials through bribery, coercion, or violence shall, if they belong to the imperial clan or nobility, be stripped of their titles and sentenced to three years of penal servitude."

True to his background in criminal law, Cai Xin could recite the legal codes of Great Ning backward and forward.

"The Princess has the Emperor shielding her through favoritism, and as a subject, I dare not disobey. But the laws shine bright! When I return to the capital one day, standing upon the Golden-Pillared Throne, I will surely ask His Majesty: if the Princess can use her imperial lineage to suppress this matter today, and others follow her example tomorrow causing the state's discipline to collapse, who will bear the responsibility?"

Shen Jifeng rubbed her nose. Ever since she had taken charge of the silver mine, the scoldings she had received could fill a basket, but this was the first time someone had pointed right at her nose and cursed her to her face. She hadn't been able to tell yesterday, but this Chief Secretary Cai actually had some backbone.

Shen Jifeng poured a cup of tea for Cai Xin. "Master Cai, I offer you my apologies. I am sorry about yesterday."

Cai Xin turned his head slightly and ignored her.

Shen Jifeng walked around to the other side and brought the tea right before Cai Xin's eyes.

"Both my imperial father and mother died at the hands of remnants of the previous dynasty. If the enemy were right before my eyes, would I really disregard the vengeance of my parents just for the sake of a silver mine?"

Cai Xin felt a shock in his chest. When the Prince of Qi incident occurred, he had still been a mere scholar. After entering officialdom, he occasionally heard people mention it, only to be told that the Emperor had been furious at the time, executing batch after batch of people. The implicated and the innocent—the blood at the entrance of the vegetable market had pooled layer upon layer, making it utterly impossible to tell who was who.

In a flash of lightning, Cai Xin suddenly realized: could it be that after killing so many people back then, they had never actually found the true culprit?