The next morning, Ning Fu was called for a private audience by His Majesty. With sweaty palms, he waited outside The Imperial Study to be called inside."Unit Commander, walk with Zhen," a voice from behind him called out and Ning Fu looked back to see His Majesty standing a few paces behind him.
He readily agreed with a salutation to the monarch and once again followed him on a walk in the gardens.
Ning Fu wondered why the monarch always seemed to go on garden walks? Even last time, when he had been given an audience, they had walked for quite sometime before His Majesty had said anything.
After walking around for a few minutes, Su Li entered a gazebo and sat down on a conveniently placed chair. She watched in veiled amus.e.m.e.nt as the other person tried to talk to her but couldn"t until she gave him explicit permission to talk before the monarch.
Su Li"s lips twitched of their own accord.
Trying not to laugh, she said, "Do you have something to say to Zhen?"
At her words, Ning Fu knelt on the wooden floor with a loud bang and with both hands raised, offered her something. She was interested in knowing what it was and took a quick look at it.
A strange silence settled between the monarch and his subject, not heavy with tension, but a queer stillness in which Su Li didn"t try to hide her scrutiny of The Unit Commander.
When the silence and the observation had grown too long, she questioned, "What do you mean by this, Unit Commander?"
With a bowed head Ning Fu replied, "This is the military tally of The Devil Snare Army, Your Majesty."
Su Li gave a snort at that answer.
What kind of a play was this person enacting now?
Was she an illiterate, that she wouldn"t even recognise the crest on the tally?
Was he trying to play dumb?
Or could it be that since the last time he had misunderstood her, this time he was giving up the military tally which gave him complete and utter control over The Devil Snare Army to show his repentance?
If it was the upper three reasons, she could still deal with him. However, if it was the last one, she had rather smack this person on the face for trying to make a fool out of her.
Meanwhile, Ning Fu felt that since he was ready to give up the owners.h.i.+p of the military tally without prompt and willingly to the monarch, their accounts would be settled and His Majesty would forgive him.
His Majesty further questioned, "Are you giving up the control of The Devil Snare Army?"
Su Li dared him to say yes and she"ll rip this person a new one.
Knocking his head on the floor, Ning Fu replied, "This lowly official is at your service and mercy, Your Majesty."
His answer provoked Su Li to give him a tight slap on the face.
Thinking about it for a second, Su Li realised that the slap might hurt her soft hands more than this cunning fox"s face.
Ning Fu didn"t know what the emperor was thinking. He still tried to reiterate his heartfelt words, "Your Majesty, This small one..."
Su Li interrupted his words harshly, "Unit Commander, Zhen doesn"t know whether to laud you to high heavens for this decision or to cry for Zhen"s own fate once this hot potato lands in Zhen"s hands."
Ning Fu didn"t understand what the monarch was trying to say and his face showed his confusion. Nonetheless, Su Li didn"t know whether she could trust him or not. Earlier, she had thought that since he and his subordinates fought wars on her behalf and her name, she wouldn"t make things difficult for him.
However, now she wasn"t sure if this person wasn"t pretending to be a pig, to eat the tiger.
He had the mental capacity to lead troops into enemy territory and conquer them. So she didn"t believe that he didn"t know what he was trying to do here.
Still, if the other person wanted to play, she"ll play him till the end.
His Majesty said, "Unit Commander, this military tally gives its holder the right to train and command the entire Devil Snare Army."
Ning Fu replied, "This official doesn"t care if His Majesty has someone else in mind for the position of The Unit Commander of The Devil Snare Army. Your Majesty, this lowly one just wants to serve the monarch."
His Majesty"s lips turned upwards with a sardonic smile and his words turned harsher, "Hmm...Zhen can see that. Zhen can see how loyal you are to Zhen but beloved official, what about your subordinates.?"
With a stuttering breath, Ning Fu answered, "They are all loyal to His Majesty."
At his words, the monarch picked up a teacup lying close to his elbow on the table and threw it down on the ground with force, as if trying to vent his anger on the cup rather than the person in front.
Su Li laughed at Ning Fu"s words.
The laughter wasn"t a happy one, rather it had clear undertones of anger and mockery.
His Majesty continued, "Beloved official, your words make Zhen laugh. It was a nice joke. Is it that you don"t know or are you trying to act innocent?"
Ning Fu didn"t know where he had gone wrong or which of his words had made the monarch so angry.
Not getting any response from Ning Fu, Su Li thundered, "Each and every one of your subordinates is loyal. In fact, extremely loyal but who are they loyal to?"
Without waiting for any utterances from the other person she continued, "They are good men and brave soldiers. However, they are neither loyal to the dynasty nor to Zhen. They are only loyal to one and one person alone and that person is you, Unit Commander."
As soon as the emperor said those words, Ning Fu was drenched in cold sweat. He felt apprehensive for all his subordinates.
The monarch"s words clearly indicated that though he was appreciative of The Devil Snare Army"s officers, he didn"t trust their loyalty. Ning Fu wanted to slap himself on the face.
If he hadn"t committed the blunder in the first place, he wouldn"t have pulled all his subordinates down with him.
He was pragmatic and practical enough to know that what the monarch had said wasn"t empty words. He knew his comrades in arms and it wasn"t false to say that they recognised his authority above that of the king.
It was just that when he had decided to hand over the military tally to His Majesty, he hadn"t thought that far into the future nor had he given any consideration to his subordinate"s reaction to his voluntary actions.
It seemed the monarch wasn"t only well-versed in the matters of court but also knew how to grasp human hearts and emotions and was far-sighted enough to think about things from all angles and prospects.
With a long intake of breath and slow voice, Ning Fu spoke, "Your Majesty..."
Ning Fu felt exasperated when his words were once again cut off before he could say something of import except the salutation.
He felt he was just here to sing "Your Majesty, Your Majesty" every few minutes when the monarch stopped in his words.
Was he being designated the role of a background musician?
Peh! peh!!
What was his mind thinking of at this juncture?
Had he really gone mad to think about being a musician?
Su Li could clearly see Ning Fu"s thoughts running a mile a minute. His face was akin to an open book in front of her and she realised that he hadn"t done today"s actions deliberately in order to cause troubles for her or in mischief.
She sighed to herself.
She was too d.a.m.n tired to play all this politics and double-speak.
Maybe she should have paid closer attention to Li Rong when he had tried to teach her about all this in her last lifetime.
His Majesty stood up from his position, patted Ning Fu on the shoulder and said with an amiable smile, "It"s all right. Don"t overthink and agonise over what Zhen just said and keep the military tally with you. Zhen doesn"t want o have his head on a spike so soon and you still have much to offer to the country."
Finished with his words, the monarch left with steady steps, not once looking back at the person he had left behind.
As Ning Fu saw His Majesty leaving, he recalled his words and his heart couldn"t help but feel a thread of joy.
His heart felt lighter than it had since he had returned to The Imperial Capital and with a spring in his steps, he also left The Imperial Complex.
On his way out, Ning Fu saw The Head Commander of The Shadow Guards. Since he himself was in such a good mood, Ning Fu gave the other person a big smile - all widened lips and front teeth visible.
The Head Commander saw that unbearable pest smirking at him in such a bold manner and felt his scalp tingle.
Had this person done something untoward to their liege?
Forgetting everything else, he ran towards The Imperial Study. If something had really happened in his absence, he"ll make all those idiots under his command pay with their lives.
How come they couldn"t look after their sweet-tempered and gullible monarch in his absence?
The Head Commander vowed to make it a point to stick close to the emperor from now on and if something needed his attention, he"ll send his second-in-command for any work-related issues.