"Your Highness," began Huzi. "You really did take too much of a risk this time. Even if it was for the fourth miss, you shouldn"t… Though you"ve made it back now, that doesn"t mean His Majesty doesn"t know anything. Since he knows exactly what"s happened, he"s definitely going to make use of this to cause a lot of trouble for you. What will you do then?"
How would Pang Xiao not know this?
But when he wanted to do something from the depth of his heart, it didn"t matter what the consequences were. At least now, he could be certain that Qin Yining was still alive. He could finally be relieved from his daily nightmares of a corpse lying by the side of the road.
Pang Xiao wasn"t afraid of anything beneath the heavens, save for Qin Yining suffering or getting hurt. But this time, he really hadn"t fully considered everything. Then again, who would"ve fathomed that Ji Zeyu would be so impulsive as to ignore imperial orders and just go attack the surrendered convoy!
But upon further thought, some wryness swelled in Pang Xiao"s heart. Was Ji Zeyu really just seeking revenge for a good brother?
With their long-running relations.h.i.+p, he knew Ji Zeyu to be a highly shrewd, sharp, and deep individual—on par with the emperor. As the commander of the Dragon Riders, he dominated the north and had a death grip on the Tatars. How would someone with such bravery and astuteness be the sort to rush into something without care of the consequences?
Pang Xiao didn"t need to think too deeply to know that Ji Zeyu was killing two birds with one stone, but he didn"t want to think so ominously of a brother.
Thus decided, he ignored the rumors swirling outside and matched stories with his mother and maternal grandparents, then ran off to continue playing the patient.
Having trudged through snow and long distances, the Valiant Tigers had also finally reached the capital at this time.
When Li Qitian heard that Zuo Jinwei had returned with his men, he immediately had the Five Armies [1], Firearms Division, and the Three Thousand [2] as well as the ten thousand Dragon Riders that Ji Zeyu had left outside the city walls, block the returning Valiant Tigers outside the city gates.
When Zuo Jinwei learned that his men had been intercepted, a surge of indescribable excitement and antic.i.p.ation barreled through him. The emperor should"ve received his reports, right?
Pang Zhixi"s deeds threatened his master, yet he didn"t know the value of discretion. Anyone with half a brain could see where the trend of the greater picture was leading to. And he, Zuo Jinwei, had gotten evidence of such a large crime as soon as he"d taken control of the Valiant Tigers! No matter what the rewards were, his position in the emperor"s internal ranking would move up another step.
Didn"t those Valiant Tiger b.a.s.t.a.r.ds refuse his authority? Weren"t they willing to put their lives on the line whenever Pang Zhixi gave the word? He was going to show them just who was their real commander!
Blazing with self-righteousness, Zuo Jinwei steered his horse forward and had the men wait in place.
The troops sent by the emperor lined up in a great formation outside of the city gates. Their congregation didn"t spook the citizens, since the Valiant Tigers and Dragon Riders had been filtering back to the capital over recent days. Large military encampments outside the city walls were a common sight, and soldiers often entered the city.
However, the sight of two armies facing off in front of the city gates was a new one.
At this time, a disturbance filtered through from the city gates.
Sitting primly on his hose, Zuo Jinwei craned his neck curiously to see what was going on.
The newly appointed Minister of the Bureau of Punishments, Qi Rugang, led a stream of department personnel out of the gates. He declared roughly to the guards at the gate, "Watch the gates carefully! Only exit is allowed through the gates today, all entrance is forbidden!"
"Understood!
The guards on duty had no idea what was going on, but given the high tense atmosphere, they were worried about incorrectly executing any orders. They quickly pa.s.sed on the word to all the city gates.
Zuo Jinwei clenched his fist with elation. There was no way that Pang Zhixi could sneak inside the city now! Let"s see what excuses he comes up with when His Majesty interrogates him!
He also cast a quick look at his vice general, who immediately came forward understandingly. "We"ve had eyes on the carriage all this time. He"s still inside, sick."
Zuo Jinwei nodded with satisfaction and dismounted, walking forward with a perplexed and irritable expression. "What does Sir Qi mean by this?"
Qi Rugang flicked a lofty glance at Zuo Jinwei, pausing before moving to dismount.
Meanwhile, Zuo Jinwei busily cursed up an inward storm at how fake the minister was being.
The surrendered Northern Ji officials had always been estranged from officials like Zuo Jinwei, ones who"d fought by the emperor"s side to carve out his dynasty. However, the former hated Pang Zhixi even more so. Qi Rugang was here today as a blade to draw across Pang Zhixi"s neck.
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1. Full name Division of the Five Armies
2. Together, the three make up the Three Great Training Divisions