Xuanqing Guard

The garrison came by, beat a retreat, and left even faster than they had arrived.

Who doesn’t know by now that the Qin Mansion has stirred up trouble? If you show up and get caught in the fallout, that’s a real loss. If it weren’t for the Ministry of Justice pushing, and the fact that the Imperial City brooks no carelessness, Lin Chong never would’ve bothered with this trip.

But a writ stamped with the Emperor’s personal seal instantly killed Lin Chong’s fleeting interest in watching the drama unfold. Best to leave quickly, and not look back.

Still, Lin Chong kept his wits about him. He led half a battalion of soldiers away from the Qin Mansion, but instead of returning to the camp, he stopped two streets away, just outside the Qin estate.

If fighting breaks out he can help keep things contained, right? That way he avoids being blamed for "negligence of duty" later on.

"Sir, do you think those Xuanqing Guards and Ministry of Justice men are really going to throw down?"

"Hard to say. With the imperial edict in hand, by rights the Major Case Department wouldn’t dare. But the Xuanqing Guard is full of slippery characters—if they happened to..."

Besides, didn’t you see those Xuanqing Guard soldiers just now? Those weren’t ordinary troops—they’re all experts. I’d wager they’re the Governor’s Personal Guard. Those Ministry of Justice paper-tigers wouldn’t even make a decent snack for them.

Tell the brothers to keep their eyes peeled, and keep an eye on the neighboring houses. If something happens, we can quickly get civilians out and away. As for what’s up ahead, let’s not get involved."

Two streets away, Lin Chong supervised his troops, setting up a basic defense, then sat on his horse, arms crossed, grinning. Xuanqing Guard and the Ministry of Justice brawling? Just imagining it is entertaining. Ideally, the Xuanqing Guard will bash those Ministry mutts straight into the ground.

...

The garrison departed, and Xue Gui’s face—hidden beneath his mask—grew ugly. He’d hoped to use the garrison troops to stall things, but it was useless. Worse, he saw Shen Hao produce a Copper Rod—what was that thing? It made the garrison’s Deputy Thousand Households leave without even farting a protest?

"Lord Shen! Are you aware this is the Ministry of Revenue right..."

Before Xue Gui could finish his protests, Shen Hao thrust the writ he’d shown Lin Chong earlier into his hands: "Have a look. We Xuanqing Guard always act according to orders—we’re never reckless."

Xue Gui choked on the rest of his words, rage rising in his chest. He had always been someone of some standing in the Ministry of Justice—when had he ever been treated this rudely? But when he unrolled the Copper Rod in his hand, his anger evaporated into aimless frustration.

"Th-this is..."

Shen Hao reached out, calmly retrieving the Copper Rod from him, and offered no explanation. With the information gap as wide as it was, all the strategies in Xue Gui’s chest were rendered useless, leaving him as nothing more than a pawn—how pitiful.

Soon after he’d returned to the Qin Mansion, his men reported that Xue Gui had led most of the governmental officials away in haste, leaving only a few to keep watch at the gates.

"Ignore them. Is everyone here?"

"Everyone’s here."

"Where’s Qin Yurou?"

"Identity verified—board lock secured, loaded into a carriage."

"Return to base. Interrogate overnight."

"Yes, sir!"

The Xuanqing Guard handled this with speed and force; as quickly as they arrived, they swept through like a storm, rounding up everyone inside and outside the Qin Family in barely an hour. Meanwhile, other branches of the Qin clan—including at the Jingdong ancestral land—received the same treatment.

Back at the Jingxi Town Governor’s Office, Shen Hao was approved for temporary use of a standard Punishment Room. Based on each captive’s standing in the Qin Family, they would be taken from lowest to highest into the Punishment Room for interrogation—layer by layer, building the case, to keep any gaps from forming in the narrative chain.

For example, Qin Wenhe would be held for now, interrogated last of all.

Of course, there were exceptions—key figures had to be interrogated without delay, like the woman at the center of it all: Qin Yurou.

Shen Hao entered, found a chair, and sat down. Though he’d been to the Jingxi Town Governor’s Office many times, this was his first time in the Punishment Room.

He looked around—about the same as the ones in Fengri City, just a bit more spacious. The torture devices on the racks along both walls didn’t differ much either.

Directly in front of him, Qin Yurou was still secured to the array-bonded stone pillar, her board lock yet unfastened. Eyes blazing, she glared at him.

Shen Hao realized something—he’d participated in nearly a hundred interrogations with the Xuanqing Guard over the years, but this was the first time interrogating a woman.

"Qin Yurou, we meet again. Last time was in Li City—surely you remember me?" He greeted her as he ordered the executioner to remove her board lock. Qin Yurou had no Cultivation; the bindings of the array-embedded pillar alone were enough to keep her absolutely still.

"Shen Hao, you haven’t changed a bit—still arresting people on your own whims. Not afraid you’ll land your superiors in hot water? Or maybe you’re just itching to eliminate me, tie up all loose ends?"

Surprisingly, Qin Yurou showed no trace of panic—she was calm, even smirking with a sardonic curl of her lips. As if convinced Shen Hao wouldn’t dare lay a finger on her.

"Arresting on a whim? Not at all. Everything the Xuanqing Guard does is by the book. You think it’s chaos, but from inside the Guard, it’s all routine procedure."

"Hmph. Self-justification. Do you really believe no one can hold your lot accountable? Hmph—digging your own grave, and you don’t even know it. Ridiculous."

Shen Hao blinked in surprise, then burst out laughing—he was genuinely amused by Qin Yurou’s words. The executioners flanking him laughed just as hard. Maybe they didn’t know what exactly Shen Hao found funny—did it really matter? If their lord laughed, they laughed too. Whether it was really funny was beside the point—it was what you did.

Suddenly, Shen Hao stood up, his laughter cutting off, leaving the interrogation chamber in abrupt silence. The executioners, caught mid-guffaw, nearly choked.

"Ridiculous? Qin Yurou, you’re the truly laughable one for being so foolish." Shen Hao waved his hand, and a man stepped forward, producing the rubbing of a letter Qin Xiuyuan had written to Qin Wenhe, unfurling it before Qin Yurou’s eyes.

"Thi...this is..."

"Qin Xiuyuan really was a fool—ambitions as high as Heaven, a fate as thin as paper. No real ability but always believing himself infallible. His petty mistakes were one thing—so long as he didn’t screw up big, rising on the coat-tails of your Qin Family would’ve been easy enough. But to be reckless and careless after getting the Xuanqing Guard involved—throwing away his own life and those of his entire family? Was it really worth it?

If I had that kind of brother, I’d be furious too. Still, you didn’t just get angry—you finished things off by poisoning him to tie up loose ends. That kind of cold heart doesn’t haunt your sleep?"

Qin Yurou: "..."

"Funny, isn’t it? You never imagined your idiot brother would be so perceptive, did you? His letter is off in some details, but our investigation tells us it’s not far from the truth at all."

"Utter nonsense!"

"No? Chen Youwen—now there’s a name you’ll be familiar with, isn’t it?"