Chapter 50: Your Time Is Up

The carriage sped away in a flurry of dust, leaving the street in utter silence.

The onlookers exchanged glances, the expressions on their faces shifting from initial anticipation to undisguised disappointment.

"Sigh, and here I thought Lord Zhao was an upright official. Turns out he's just another spineless coward afraid of trouble."

"Ain't that the truth? What kind of person is Chen Zi'ang? A high-ranking official of the third rank! How could an imperial commissioner for locust extermination dare to cross him?"

"Officials shield each other, officials always shield each other! This world is hopeless!"

Amidst the murmur of voices, Madam Qin collapsed to the ground, clutching the cold pottery urn as her tears mixed with the blood oozing from her forehead, staining her entire face.

She was finished.

Even her last shred of hope had been shattered.

Just as she was sinking into absolute despair, an old scholar in the crowd who had read a few books suddenly slapped his thigh.

"No! Something is wrong!"

At his shout, everyone around turned to look at him.

"You bunch of fools, didn't you understand a single word?" The old scholar sputtered in agitation, his beard trembling. "Was that any warning from Lord Zhao? He was clearly teaching her how to lodge a complaint directly before the throne!"

"'Do not look into the *Grand Annals*?' The *Grand Annals* left by the founding emperor are precisely meant for ordinary folk like us to seek justice! You can take your grievance straight to the imperial court!"

"'Do not cry outside the palace gates?' That was telling her to go cry! And to cry as loudly as she possibly can!"

"'The most foolish thing is to carry a coffin to pressure the palace?' That was an order telling her she must carry a coffin! Blow the matter up as much as possible, let the whole world know about it, so the Emperor cannot afford to ignore it even if she wanted to!"

Prompted by this sudden enlightenment, the crowd felt as though they had been struck by lightning, instantly seeing the light.

Recalling Lord Zhao's thorny yet profoundly wise "warning," and that heavy money bag that had "accidentally" slipped from his hand and rolled right to Madam Qin's feet...

This was no humiliation!

This was risking his own neck to point a path to survival for this wretched woman!

Madam Qin's body began to tremble violently.

Not out of fear, but from an overwhelming surge of emotion.

She turned abruptly toward the direction where the carriage had disappeared and kowtowed heavily three times. Her forehead struck the bluestone pavement with dull thuds as blood gushed freely.

"Thank you... Thank you, upright and noble magistrate!"

***

The following day, at the morning court.

In the Hall of Supreme Harmony, civil and military officials stood in two orderly rows amidst a solemn atmosphere.

Upon the dragon throne, Wu Mingkong sat clad in her imperial robes, her majestic gaze sweeping across the ministers below.

"Where is Zhao Yi?"

She spoke indifferently.

Everyone knew that this meritorious subject who had successfully quelled the locust plague was bound to receive grand rewards today.

Yet the spot where he should have been standing remained empty.

Minister of Rites Li Buqing, who had been confined to his residence but somehow managed to slip out, stepped forward tremblingly before anyone else could move.

His face still bore a sickly pallor as he bowed deeply toward the dragon throne.

"Your Majesty, Lord Zhao returned in triumph yesterday after a long and exhausting journey."

He paused, squeezing out an expression that clearly meant *I am only doing this for his own good*.

"This subject... this subject has heard that last night, he went to the Hundred Flowers Pavilion on Vermilion Bird Avenue to mingle with the common folk. Presumably... he was overly exhausted, which is why he delayed attending the morning court."

"I beseech Your Majesty, taking into account his diligent service to the country, to deal with him leniently."

What a vicious, invisible blade of a soft knife.

The moment his voice fell, Grand Court Judge Chen Zi'ang also stepped forward, chiming in with a solemn expression, "Minister Li's words are entirely correct. As a young man of great achievements and high merit, a momentary indulgence is only human nature. With Your Majesty's supreme wisdom, surely you will not blame a meritorious official for this."

Both men sang in harmony, reducing Zhao Yi to a pillar of shame branded with "pride in one's achievements and indulgence in sensory pleasures" within just a few sentences.

Right at that moment—

"Vice Minister of Works, Zhao Yi, enters the court—"

Accompanied by the high-pitched call of the eunuch, Zhao Yi strolled lazily into the hall, wearing a sleepy expression as if he had not yet fully woken up.

The moment he stepped inside, he locked eyes with those two old faces belonging to Li Buqing and Chen Zi'ang, both plastered with expressions of "deep concern."

Zhao Yi said nothing at all; he simply stared at the two of them.

That gaze carried not a hint of emotion, yet it felt like two invisible blades slicing across the old men's hearts, making them prickle with unease and instinctively look away.

"Minister Zhao, do you know your crime?"

Wu Mingkong asked coldly.

"This subject knows his crime."

Zhao Yi answered briskly and cleanly, without a shred of defense.

A smug smile could not help but surface on Li Buqing's face.

Yet the very next second, Wu Mingkong's words caused that smile to freeze entirely.

"However, state law is state law. Being late is being late."

Her tone abruptly shifted.

"Fined... one hundred taels of silver."

Everyone expected Zhao Yi to cry poverty and make a fuss as usual, clinging to her imperial robes and rolling around to dodge the one-hundred-tael fine.

But this time, Zhao Yi acted completely out of character.

He bowed deeply, his expression frighteningly calm.

"This subject accepts the punishment."

Those three words brought complete silence to the entire Hall of Supreme Harmony.

A sudden jolt pulsed through Wu Mingkong's heart.

Something was wrong.

Terribly wrong!

Since when had this scoundrel become so agreeable?

If he had thrown a tantrum and rolled on the floor before her today, she would have felt much more at ease.

Yet this bizarrely calm demeanor of his inexplicably stirred a strong sense of unease within her chest.

This scoundrel was definitely plotting something monstrous!

***

Meanwhile, in the rear hall of the Grand Court.

Liu Biao, magistrate of the Grand Court and Chen Zi'ang’s brother-in-law, was leisurely sipping a cup of fine Longjing tea, blowing gently at the steam rising from the rim.

His trusted subordinate, Liu Ergong, was dutifully massaging his shoulders with a fawning expression.

"My lord, that crazy woman and her little brat are still wandering around the city. After that scene yesterday, the entire town has their eyes on them. Should this subordinate find an opportunity to handle it cleanly, and let them 'accidentally' fall into the Luo River to feed the fish?"

Liu Ergong made a slashing gesture across his own throat, his face full of viciousness.

"Idiot!"

Liu Biao backhanded him with a resounding slap that spun Liu Ergong halfway around, instantly swelling his cheek to a high ridge.

"Make a move now? Are you in such a hurry to die, or are you trying to drag me down with you?"

Liu Biao set down his tea cup, a calculating sneer playing on his lips.

"Let her make a scene! Let her cry!"

"Human beings are the most forgetful creatures. In a few days, once this storm passes, who will even remember who she is?"

"When the time comes, we can just fabricate a charge—say she went mad and assaulted government officers—and lock her up in the dungeon. Whether she lives or dies will be entirely up to us, won't it?"

Clutching his burning cheek, Liu Ergong nodded and bowed repeatedly. "Your brilliance is unmatched, my lord! Truly unmatched!"

Liu Biao grunted smugly, just about to pick up his tea cup again to enjoy this fleeting moment of peace.

"M-My lord! Bad news! Terribly bad news!"

A bailiff stumbled and scrambled into the room, his face as pale as paper, his voice trembling violently.

Liu Biao furrowed his brows and snapped impatiently, "What's with the panic! Has the sky fallen?!"

Gasping for breath, the bailiff pointed outside, practically on the verge of tears.

"T-The sky hasn't fallen!"

"It's that crazy woman... Madam Qin!"

"She... she she she... she's prepared a coffin and is heading... heading to the palace gates to kneel!"

*Clatter!*

The tea cup in Liu Biao's hand slipped from his fingers and shattered into pieces upon the floor.

His mind went completely blank, buzzing with white noise.

She... she's carrying a coffin?

To the palace gates?

How could this madwoman possibly dare?!

Before Liu Biao could recover from the shock, another bailiff tasked with surveillance rushed in, equally devoid of color.

"M-My lord! Han Yidao, the assassin from the west district, he... he's returned the deposit!"

"What?" Liu Biao's fury flared up instantly. "Dammit, just a butcher turned hitman, and he dares refuse an assignment from the Grand Court?!"

"It's not that, my lord!" the bailiff cried out. "Han Yidao said he doesn't want the money, but he wants to keep his life! He said whoever dares touch that woman right now has a death wish!"

"His mother's bullshit!" Liu Biao flew into a rage and kicked over the table.

Standing nearby, Liu Ergong trembled as he spoke up, recounting every detail of the gossip he had heard on the street the day before.

"Yesterday, right in the middle of the crowded street, Lord Zhao warned Madam Qin..."

"He told her 'on no account' to look into the founding emperor's *Grand Annals* to lodge a complaint!"

"He also told her 'on no account' to wear mourning clothes and carry a coffin to the palace gates to beg for sympathy!"

"And finally... he even 'accidentally' dropped a hundred taels of silver, warning her 'not' to pick it up to buy white mourning banners and a coffin..."

With every word Liu Ergong uttered, Liu Biao's face turned a shade paler.

By the end of it, Liu Biao's body was trembling uncontrollably.

A warning?

Was this damn thing any warning?!

This was a detailed, spine-chilling action guide!

"I'm finished..."

Liu Biao's legs went weak, and he collapsed heavily onto the cold floor.

"We are all fucking finished!"