Chapter 100: You Must Repay Your Debts
– Emetophobia warning ahead! –
"Zhao Qiuming," Xianzong called out towards the prime minister. How could he be ignorant of his son"s deeds? It had narrowly caused the entire Gu Clan to be exterminated! Xianzong might possess low IQ, but he still had common sense.
Zhao Qiuming"s fingers gripped the grooves of the brickwork floor before he cursed. "Unfilial son!" Then his body collapsed beneath him.
The justice court official hastily reached out a hand in front of him and pushed him a few times. After calling him a few times, he anxiously reported to Xianzong, "Your Majesty, the prime minister"s fainted."
Zhao Beicheng looked at his unconscious father as more blood trickled from his lips. Then he told Xianzong, "Your Majesty, this was all this subject"s doing, my father had no knowledge of such things. This subject deserves to die ten thousand deaths."
Xianzong gave a cold snort before he quickly strode out of the prisons.
Yu Xiaoxiao asked Zhao Beicheng, "What kind of play are you putting on now?"
Zhao Beicheng"s voice was very small. "This is what I owe Gu Xinglang, so I"m paying him back."
"Princess," Xiao Wei murmured by Yu Xiaoxiao"s ear. "Let"s go. This is good news for the Royal Son-in-Law, so don"t deliberately complicate the issue."
Yu Xiaoxiao looked towards the unconscious Zhao Qiuming. With a father like that, it"s only reasonable that Zhao Beicheng wouldn"t want to live. "The debts between us are cleared," she said, turning back to Zhao Beicheng. "Since you"re willing to fix your mistakes, that means you"re not hopelessly evil yet."
Zhao Beicheng gave her a despairing smile, but his heart suddenly felt freer than before. Now that he"d paid back his biggest debt, he felt he could die content.
Yu Xiaoxiao brought Xiao Zhuang and Xiao Wei out of prisons, walking right past Zhao Qiuming and the justice court official. Seeing the princess leave right after Xianzong, the justice court official hastened to asked, "Your Royal Highness, about the prime minister?"
"He can go die for all I care," Yu Xiaoxiao tossed back before striding off.
—
Outside the prisons, the four shadow guards were standing next to Xianzong as he paced back and forth like a caged animal with his hands folded behind him. Yu Xiaoxiao approached him and said, "Are you still mad? Just how long did Little Gu"s entire family stay in the prisons? His body"s filled with torture wounds and he was nearly crippled. If there"s anyone who should be angry, it"s him."
Xianzong was utterly discomfited. "Zhen was hoodwinked by that wretch Zhao Beicheng!"
"That"s what Little Gu said too," Yu Xiaoxiao replied.
That made Xianzong feel a bit better, so he sighed and added, "Gu Xinglang is a loyal subject."
Yu Xiaoxiao was too lazy to say things like Gu Xinglang was actually a fool, so she asked, "How are you going to deal with Zhao Beicheng?"
Xianzong raged, "Zhen will find someone to interrogate him tomorrow!"
"Then what about Zhao Qiuming?" Yu Xiaoxiao asked. "Does this have nothing to do with him?"
Xianzong replied, "Naturally, Zhen won"t let him off."
Yu Xiaoxiao said, "Fine then. I"ll bring you to the palace, imperial father, and wait for your good news tomorrow. I"ll be watching you, oh."
If Her Royal Highness had been smiling when she spoke, then Xianzong might have ginned and considered his daughter to be lively and vivacious. However, her words were spoken with her usual expressionless face, which made Xianzong feel like she was mocking him. Immediately, he grew depressed. Daughter must be thinking I"ve treated Gu Xinglang unfairly, ah. Why can"t she consider that I was tricked, too? I"m also very sad! She"s forgotten all about her father after getting a husband, ah!
Yu Xiaoxiao saw Xianzong standing there unmoving and asked, "You"re not going home?" She was supposed to take him, after all.
Xianzong had Yu Xiaoxiao look at the guards by his side. "No need. Imperial father has them to protect me."
Yu Xiaoxiao surveyed the four guards and concluded, "They can"t beat me in a fight."
"Zhen," Xianzong continued to pace before he thought of a suitable answer. "Are you so mighty just because you can beat up these shadow guards?"
Yu Xiaoxiao said, "Then who else do you want me to beat up?" She"d like to thrash Zhao Qiuming to death right now, but it didn"t seem right to do that in front of Zhao Beicheng.
"That"s not it," Xianzong replied, "Imperial father has taught you in the past to convince others with virtue and reason. Have you forgotten this logic?"
What kind of airs is this fatuous ruler putting on? Yu Xiaoxiao fretted. What do I do? I want to smack him to death because I can"t understand a thing he"s saying. Do you think zombies won"t bite you just because you talk sense to them? Oh right, this world doesn"t have any. She creased her brows in thought before finally saying, "No matter how much sense you make, you still can"t win against those other five nations. Otherwise, Little Sixth wouldn"t have to go to Zhuri."
Alright. Yet another sprinkle of salt settled on the wound in Xianzong"s heart. Too tired to keep pacing, he stopped to play a staring match with Yu Xiaoxiao instead. Combined with Xiao Zhuang and Xiao Wei, there were a total of six shadow guards by the father and daughter"s side. All of them were certain she was going to anger His Majesty to death.
"Forget it," Yu Xiaoxiao averted her eyes before she really thrashed him. "If you don"t want to go back to the palace, I"ll take you to stroll around the streets. As it happens, Jing Mo"s asked me out to eat. Want to come?"
Xiao Wei"s mouth twitched. So she hasn"t forgotten about Big Bowl Restaurant after all.
"Jing Mo invited you?" Xianzong echoed. "Doesn"t he know you"re already married?" Before a woman was wed, she was kept deep in her boudoirs; after marriage, she lived in the inner courtyard. Xianzong had never heard of women going out to eat at restaurants so casually.
The various shadow guards all rolled their eyes in secret. Is it so strange for someone like the eldest princess to frequent restaurants? They didn"t even find it strange when she set fire to the palace the other day.
Yu Xiaoxiao hauled Xianzong by the collar as she headed for the exits. "How could he not know I"m married? Little Gu is there too, as well as that Left-Right."
"You, put Zhen down!" Xianzong shouted.
"You should say sorry to Little Gu too after you see him," Yu Xiaoxiao said.
"Zhen is the emperor!" Xianzong cried.
"So emperors don"t have to admit their mistakes?" Yu Xiaoxiao asked.
Xianzong looked up at the wall towering before him and decided to leave the subject for another time. "Why can"t we just use the doors?"
Yu Xiaoxiao leaped up to the wall with Xianzong in one hand. "Wouldn"t that make us take the long way around?" she retorted.
"Zhen doesn"t flip over…" Walls went unspoken as Yu Xiaoxiao jumped off to land on the outside of the justice courts.
The two-meter high wall was no obstacle to her or the shadow guards skilled in martial arts. Xiao Zhuang and the rest soon followed after them.
"Your Majesty!" a freshly woken Zhao Qiuming only had time to see a few figures flash over the wall as he ran out of the prisons. Even if Xianzong heard him, he had no way to reply now that Yu Xiaoxiao was hauling him down the street.
The justice court official had quickly caught up. "Prime minister, what do we do now?"
Zhao Qiuming sank to his knees and grew physically paralyzed to the spot. The justice court official forgot all appearances as he hurried to kneel in front of Zhao Qiuming. "Prime minister, you have to hurry and figure out a strategy, ah!"
Zhao Qiuming raised his hand uncertainly. There was something creamy and slightly sticky on his palm. What is this?
The justice court official gave a whiff to the air and said, "What"s that smell?"
Zhao Qiuming focused on the substance on his hand as he began to tremble. "Which b.a.s.t.a.r.d threw up here?!"
"Blargh–!"
After realizing that he was kneeling in vomit, Prime Minister Zhao threw up too.