You've Got Mail: A Cautionary Tale

Chapter 85 — Advisor Wu Toughens Up

Edited by DancingDolphinsYo

Rain occurred over the next few days. Each time it rained, the weather dropped a few more degrees. Summer in the capital was about to end, and the autumn breeze gradually arrived along with the rain.

Unconsciously, Wu Xingzi had been in the capital for over two months already. He often went on short trips with Ping Yifan, and they had explored all the famous sights and attractions around the capital.

Today was a rare day that Ping Yifan had not invited him out. Wu Xingzi allowed himself to laze about for half a day, only getting up from the bed when it was close to noon. Pulling a slightly thicker robe around himself, he sat by the window, resting his chin on his hand as he admired the rain.

Lunch was quickly served, four dishes with two being vegetarian and the other two meat. They were accompanied by a bowl of vegetable and tofu soup. After setting the table, Mint called out, “Master, quick, come and have your lunch. You didn’t have any breakfast, you must be extremely hungry.”

Wu Xingzi agreed, but he did not move. He was a rare picture of laziness, and in his hand was a teacup. The originally steaming tea had already turned cold, yet less than half a cup had been drunk.

Osmanthus waited for some time, but still did not see him coming to the table. Walking over to him, she urged, “Master, there are fresh lotus roots today, and jiejie has made fried lotus root. Take a sniff, don’t they smell good?”

“It does smell pretty good. Mint’s culinary skills have improved again,” Wu Xingzi praised with a smile. Only then did he stand up from his chair.

“Isn’t that so? Master has recently often been eating outside with Ping-gongzi. There are so many great chefs in the capital, if we don’t improve our skills, how can we be worthy of working for Master?” Mint covered her smile, the teasing in her voice causing Wu Xingzi to scratch his nose embarrassedly.

“Girls, come and have lunch together,” Wu Xingzi said, feeling a little apologetic. Ever since he met Ping Yifan, he had been neglecting the two girls at home. Ping Yifan liked bringing him out on trips. Once they became more familiar with each other, he would often come by and pick him up early in the morning, only sending him home past 7pm.

Only after staring out into the courtyard for quite some time did Wu Xingzi then notice that the two girls had created a small plot for gardening, building a rack and planting eggplants.

Mint and Osmanthus naturally would not actually share a table with their master. Standing by the side, they would occasionally dish out more food for Wu Xingzi, chattering away as they spoke with him. While doing so, they shared all the rumours they had heard in the capital.

“Master, do you know of a court official named Yan Wenxin?” Speaking of Yan Wenxin, Mint’s face flushed red. Her smile vanished, and her cheeks puffed in anger.

“Yan Wenxin?” Wu Xingzi was startled, nearly dropping the fried lotus root between his chopsticks. “Isn’t he the current Minister of State Affairs?”

“Yes, that’s him!” Fury could be heard in Osmanthus’s voice as well, as her brows knitted deeply. “This Yan Wenxin, who knows what’s going on with him. He seems to dislike our General greatly. Hmph! If not for the General guarding the southern borders, could these officials in the capital have such carefree lives?”

Born in Bastion City, Mint and Osmanthus loved and respected Guan Shanjin like a god. Whoever dared say a negative word about Guan Shanjin, both girls could even roll up their sleeves on the spot and give that person a good whacking.

“What did he do?” Although Wu Xingzi had been living in the capital, he had spent most of his time with Ping Yifan. Towards the ongoings in the capital, he was truly unaware of it, knowing nothing of the happenings. He also was not sure if it was deliberate, or just unintentional, but Ping Yifan had never mentioned Guan Shanjin or Yan Wenxin after the meeting that happened over at Bai Shaochang’s place. The younger man even rarely mentioned anything that had to do with the capital, at most giving short explanations about the specialties they were having on the table. Hence, Wu Xingzi knew that there was a cellar in the northern suburbs of the city, where vegetables were planted using water from a hot spring, and thus people could still have summer fruits and vegetables even in the depths of winter.

“Aiyah, it makes me angry even when I’m just speaking about it! That Yan Wenxin actually dared harm the General! He said that the General is disloyal to the Emperor, and that was why he stayed at the southern borders for five years, refusing to return to the capital!” The girls spat. The most important reason that Guan Shanjin remained at the southern borders for so many years, not returning to the capital for a debrief, other than his disinterest in the power struggle in the capital, was that in private, the southern barbarians were actually not in peace at all. On the surface, they seemed to have declared themselves subjects to the Great Xia, but in truth, they were suppressing their anger, planning on rising up again once they found an opportunity. If there was no Guan Shanjin to defend the borders, there was no guarantee that Bastion City would have been able to enjoy a peaceful life.

However, it was stated clearly in the laws of Great Xia, that if there was no war, the head of the army would have to return to the capital every two years for a debrief, and Guan Shanjin had defied this law twice. Although the emperor neither urged him back, nor punished him, this was still a strike against him. This was exactly what Yan Wenxin was using against him in court, colluding with the censorate and other court officials who supported him – one of whom included the Minister of War — to submit dozens of missives to the emperor. As the Lord Protector’s line of ministers had always been focused on being just and righteous, never forming parties and factions within the court, the Lord Protector and his son thus stood alone. A few days ago, Guan Shanjin had finally been removed from his role, and he was no longer the Great Southern Garrison General. The emperor even wanted to place him under house arrest, for him to reflect at home. Only the heavens knew how long this house arrest would last.

The once peerless, matchless Great Southern Garrison General, the son of the Lord Protector, fell from a great height above to the grounds below in the blink of an eye.

“Is Haiwang not returning to Bastion City?” Listening to all this, for now, Wu Xingzi had no appetite.

“We don’t know.” Mint and Osmanthus spoke simultaneously, both wearing frowns on their little faces. They had only heard about this on the streets, and they were unclear of any further details. However, the General was such a clever man. He would definitely be able to get out of this danger, and return to Bastion City!

Wu Xingzi nodded. He put down the chopsticks in his hand, rubbing his chest. Towards the dishes covering the table, he no longer held any interest. As he sat there blankly, no one knew what he was thinking.

A moment later, he suddenly asked Mint, “Is Rancui at home?”

“The manager’s home,” Mint nodded as she answered. Just now, she had sent over a plate of freshly-fried lotus roots to the manager to accompany his meal too.

“You should go ahead and finish everything, there’s no need to wait for me to come back and eat. I have something to discuss with the manager.” Wu Xingzi stood up. Without waiting for the girls’ response, he hurried off. f𝘳𝚎𝐞we𝐛𝑛𝐨𝘃e𝘭.co𝘮

Rancui was currently having lunch. His appetite was ordinary, but there were quite a number of dishes on the table. At the same table was also Hei’er, who currently had his head bowed, and was deboning the fish for Rancui. Looking at that focused look of his, Rancui could not help but be amused. In his bowl were already two pieces of deboned fish, the snow-white tender flesh gleaming with a dark green sauce. It looked extremely appetising, and one could not help eating a couple more mouthfuls of rice with it.

When Wu Xingzi arrived, Rancui was already half-full.

“Mr. Wu.” Seeing him, Rancui called out to him warmly. “Quick, have a seat. Shall we have lunch together?”

He gave a kick to Hei’er next to him. Hei’er, who was currently drinking his soup with his head lowered, immediately wiped his mouth and stood up. Deftly, he placed a new set of cutlery in front of Wu Xingzi, then quietly removed his own set of cutlery and stood in the corner of the room.

“I- I’ll just have some soup…” Wu Xingzi originally wanted to refuse, but his stomach, failing to live up to expectations, growled loudly. With a blush, he wrapped his arms around his stomach, sitting down and ladling a bowl of soup to soothe his empty belly.

The dishes Rancui had were naturally a lot more exquisite than the ones Wu Xingzi loved to eat. The soup was a broth made of emerald bamboo, creamy and smooth. The bamboo was soft with a crisp outer layer, and the soup was stewed with seafood and shellfish. The soup slid down with a warmth into his tummy, and Wu Xingzi momentarily became even more ravenous. After all, he was a person who could eat and loved to eat. Having not eaten any breakfast, how could he have endured his hunger during lunch? Despite the troubles weighing on his mind, he still managed to sweep the dishes on the table clean.

Smiling, Rancui filled up Wu Xingzi’s bowl. He was in no hurry to ask why Wu Xingzi came by, and afraid that Wu Xingzi was not yet full, he asked a servant to bring two more dishes of food over, as well as a plate of mantous. As he ate some candied lotus root, he accompanied Wu Xingzi.

When they were finally done with the meal, Rancui then feigned casualness as he asked, “Did Ping-gongzi not invite you out today?”

Ping Yifan? Wu Xingzi did not expect that this would be the first thing Rancui would mention. Dazedly, he replied, “He said that the rain today is too heavy, and it would not be good if I fell sick. Also, he has a group of travelling merchants stuck in the rain, and he needs to go handle it. Hence, it’s likely that he would not be able to see me for the next couple of weeks.” Wu Xingzi sighed, feeling a slight sense of reluctance.

Rancui covered his mouth with his hand. It seemed as though he was blocking his sudden bout of dry coughing, but the truth was that he could not hold his sneer back, and he nearly gave a roll of his eyes. This excuse was truly something, and Wu Xingzi was probably the only one who was willing to believe it. Today was not the first day the rain had fallen. It had already been raining for quite a number of days, but did Ping Yifan not bring Wu Xingzi out anyway?

“And the reason you’re looking for me?” Picking up his teacup, Rancui drank some tea to soothe his throat.

Wu Xingzi frowned thoughtfully, seemingly not knowing how to start. Rancui did not hurry him, knowing that Mint and Osmanthus must have said something to do with Guan Shanjin. If not, why else would Wu Xingzi have such an expression? He just was not sure if Wu Xingzi had come by to confirm the rumours, or hoped that he would give a hand.

“Rancui.” A moment later, Wu Xingzi gritted his teeth, looking as though he was ready to risk it all. “Do you have any sort of drug that can make people tell the truth?”

This question startled even Hei’er, who had always stood in a corner motionlessly, unaffected by anything. Staring at Wu Xingzi in amazement, he opened his mouth, wanting to say something, only to have Rancui hold up his hand and stop him.

Rancui was naturally surprised as well. He watched Wu Xingzi’s uneasy yet determined face for some time, before slowly opening his mouth to confirm, “You’re asking about drugs that can make people tell the truth?”

“Yes.” Wu Xingzi nodded. He could not help but rub his palms on his knees. It seemed that his hands were sweaty. Next, he quickly emphasised, “The drug cannot be too strong, I’m afraid that it’ll be bad for the body. Just, just make it such that one would let their barriers down a little, and be willing to speak some of the truths, that’s all.”

“I do have such a drug, and the effects aren’t strong too. Four hours after ingestion, the person will answer any question, then fall asleep after that. If you don’t want him to remember, just give him another drug. Although the truth-telling effect would then only last for two hours, he would not remember anything after waking up.” Rancui tapped his chin with a finger, giving a sudden smile. “I’m just wondering, who is it that Mr. Wu plans to use the drug on? Is it Ping Yifan?”

Wu Xingzi hunched into himself, shivering a little. His forehead was covered in a thin layer of sweat, and his hand went to scratch his nose unconsciously. Just when Rancui thought that he did not plan on answering, he heard Wu Xingzi’s low and muffled response. “It’s Ping Yifan…”

Hei’er was well trained in martial arts, and his hearing was much more sensitive than the average person. As such, he could hear Wu Xingzi’s answer clearly.

Things were getting rather anxious. “Mr. Wu, why do you want to give this drug to Ping Yifan?”

Rancui was unable to stop Hei’er. With an expression as though he was looking at a fool, he rolled his eyes. Wu Xingzi had already suspected that Ping Yifan had a rather complicated identity, and he most definitely had been speculating over it before deciding to give him this drug. With Hei’er’s question, was it not just confirming Wu Xingzi’s suspicion?

If Ping Yifan’s identity was just as he himself had said, why would Hei’er even show a modicum of concern over it?

The master was foolish, and the subordinate too. How did this group of fools defend the southern border? Rancui inexplicably felt sympathy for Man Yue. They all said that one should play their roles well, and he was afraid that Man Yue was the only one who was putting in all the effort.

As expected, Wu Xingzi’s head sunk low after hearing Hei’er’s question. His hands, placed on his knees, tightened into fists. “I- I plan on becoming life partners with Ping Yifan, and even if I never return to Qingcheng County, spending the rest of my days in the capital, it wouldn’t be too bad either. However… I would like to confirm Ping Yifan’s intentions. I’m afraid…” Clenching his jaw, Wu Xingzi did not finish his sentence.

Hei’er’s face darkened a little. He knew that in his life, Wu Xingzi had only ever liked three men in total. He shared no fate with the first two men, and now, he was still willing to present his heart. Momentarily, Hei’er was speechless.

“Becoming life partners with Ping Yifan…” Rancui’s slender fingers tapped lightly on the table. Seeing how Wu Xingzi was so nervous that his exposed skin was pale and clammy, he pushed over the plate of candied lotus roots. “Have some, and calm yourself down. This is something I specially bought from House of Taotie. They only sell one kilogram’s worth a day, and the ingredients and skills are all top-tier, you’ll definitely like it.”

Wu Xingzi picked up a slice and placed it into his mouth. However, it seemed to be somewhat flavourless to him, and he kept glancing over at Rancui with wet, damp eyes, deeply afraid that Rancui would not agree to help. After all, to drug a person was rather despicable, but as he was unable to come up with anything else, he had no choice but to do this.

Looking at how Wu Xingzi was nibbling at the candied lotus root with his two front teeth like a tiny mouse, Rancui smiled. “However, I thought that you had come looking for me to ask about the matters of Guan Shanjin. The two girls should have already informed you, right?”

Wu Xingzi’s head drooped lower, his body shrinking even more as though he wanted to hide from Hei’er’s eyes. He nodded hurriedly, “I, I heard about it… The Minister of State Affairs, Lord Yan, along with the censorate, have submitted dozens of missives. Now, Haiwang has been dismissed from his position, and he’s under house arrest in the Lord Protector’s residence.” Not much concern and worry could be detected in that serious and solemn tone.

Seeing that Hei’er wanted to speak again, Rancui shot him a frown, forcing the tall and muscular man to have no choice but to swallow his words. Hei’er’s face darkened even further, his feelings almost wafting off him.

“Mint and Osmanthus do have quite a good grasp on the news. It’s no longer a secret how Yan Wenxin does not like Guan Shanjin. That year, when the son of the Lord Protector returned from the northwest region, he had attained countless military achievements. Songs like ‘With a General Guan in the northwest, we don’t need the heavens, nor do we need the earth, to protect my life’ even spread to the capital. At that time, the Emperor had frozen out Guan Shanjin for quite some time as well. A sharp knife had to be used, but there had to be some sort of insurance against it, and a wife and children were the best sort one could ever have.” Rancui laughed. He drank some tea, pretending that he did not notice how entranced Wu Xingzi was. “Then, which noble family in the capital didn’t want to form a connection with Guan Shanjin? This was not a connection with the Lord Protector. The Lord Protector was as stubborn as a mule, going his own way in court. Although he was a military man, he was very ingenious. However, Guan Shanjin clearly was not the sort who was willing to aggrieve himself. In the entire court, he was the only one who was young and able to fight. If the Emperor wished to continue holding on to the Great Xia, there was no choice but to use Guan Shanjin. Naturally, Yan Wenxin thought this way too. That year, his daughter was only thirteen, but he still sent a drawing of her to Guan Shanjin. In private, he made many moves as well. He’s the Minister of State Affairs, and he had his finger on the pulse of all the court officials. If he had a pawn with power over the army in his hand as well, he basically had power over the entire Great Xia.”

“Yes, yes… Yan Wenxin is truly intelligent.” Wu Xingzi was completely engrossed in the story. He nodded along, agreeing strongly. “What happened next?”

Was Wu Xingzi actually treating this like a story-telling session? Rancui chuckled, glancing over at the tense-looking Hei’er. He sipped his tea before he continued, “After that, Guan Shanjin then only had a Lu Zezhi in his heart. You know this as well. This Lord Protector’s son, he has a million negative points about him, but there’s at least one thing that is still acceptable. That is, the fact that he’s very faithful, and he doesn’t change his mind easily after settling on that one person. As such, he spread the word that in his life, he would only be willing to spend the rest of his days with a man. What wife and children, he didn’t want any. Even if his family’s lineage was to end with him, he still didn’t want them.”

“Ah…” Wu Xingzi sucked in a breath, then exhaled lightly. His eyes were still damp, but Rancui could not read his thoughts. He only saw Wu Xingzi nodding, speaking softly, “Haiwang is someone who takes responsibility.”

What a bare and utter compliment. Rancui resisted giving a roll of his eyes. What responsibility? He was clearly an idiot. He had Lu Zezhi in his heart, yet he could still go around with his flirtations, causing Rancui to lose two Peng Society members just like that. Now, looking at how Guan Shanjin’s attentions were fully focused on a certain someone, was it still not clear who he liked and who he did not like?

“Whether he takes responsibility or not, I’m not sure. However, it was certain that he had offended Yan Wenxin.” Rancui pursed his lips, lowering his voice. “Think about it, Yan Wenxin is vicious and scheming. How could he just give up like this because Guan Shanjin did not like girls? He did not only have a daughter, he had sons as well, and even a foster son too.”

Rancui paused here, but Wu Xingzi was already stunned.

This meant, to accomplish his objectives, Yan Wenxin even planned on pushing his sons at Guan Shanjin? He did not dare even think about how old Yan Wenxin’s sons were then! One must have been fifteen, and the other thirteen only! Guan Shanjin would definitely not have gone for them. After all, he seemed to prefer men who were older… However, talking about viciousness, Guan Shanjin also did not lose to Yan Wenxin in any case. These were all Rancui’s internal criticisms. He had already said everything that he should say, and he did not forget the reason Wu Xingzi came looking for him. Standing up, he walked into his bedroom, returning in a moment.

In his hand were two paper bags, one green and one pink. He placed both bags on the table. “Here, this green bag, it’s the drug to make people tell the truth. It’s colourless and tasteless, and you can just scatter it in wine, tea or food. After ingestion, the effect will come in less than ten minutes. For the next four hours, there would be no lies and deceptions. He will then fall asleep after the four hours, and he’ll be fine upon waking up. If you don’t want him to remember that he had been drugged, remember to mix the drug from the pink bag into the green one. The drug in the pink bag tastes a little bitter, and it’ll be best mixed in wine. Although the effect of the truth-telling drug will then last for only two hours, you’ll be guaranteed that there would be no issues for you after that.” After the exhaustive explanation, Rancui smiled as he pushed the bags towards Wu Xingzi.

Looking at those two bags, Wu Xingzi struggled internally for a while. In the end, he still only picked up the green bag with the truth-telling drug. His fingers hovered above the pink bag for a moment, then he pushed it back to Rancui.

“There are some things that are still better remembered.” Hearing the meaning implied in his words, Rancui held his smile back.