Chapter 1284 - The Secretariat Advisor Residence!
Chapter 1284: The Secretariat Advisor Residence!
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
Wang Chong and Su Shixuan witnessed all the events from within their box seat, their gazes slowly turning grave.
“What’s going on? When did the Imperial Court set up an Office of Supervision? Did King Song mention anything about this?”
In the capital, the City Guard was responsible for maintaining order. There had never been any talk about some Office of Supervision.
Su Shixuan lowered his head and said, “Your subordinate does not know. His Highness King Song did not mention anything about an Office of Supervision.”
Wang Chong did not reply, a pensive look in his eyes. If this had been the result of a policy passed through the Imperial Court via normal means, there was no way he wouldn’t know about it. It was evident that the Secretariat had worked around the Imperial Court to make this decision. Currently, King Qi, the Prime Minister, and the Grand Preceptor were all in an alliance, and with the First Prince as regent, all they needed was a nod of his head to swiftly pass many proposals. Things that would have been at least somewhat difficult to pass in the past were now much easier with Li Junxian holding He Qingrong’s post. This Office of Supervision was clearly one of those things.
“Go to the King Song Residence and find out what’s going on,” Wang Chong said.
“Yes, your subordinate will do so!”
Su Shixuan swiftly left with this order.
Li Junxian, you’re truly too impatient!
Once Su Shixuan was gone, Wang Chong raised his head and sighed. The majority of military men were not meticulous thinkers and were easily provoked. Li Junxian had sent these storytellers clearly predicting that the military men would respond, thus leading to this Office of Supervision.
Maintaining order in the city was just a cover.
But no matter what your plan is, I can’t let you get your way! Wang Chong decided.
The generals and soldiers risked their lives for their country, but when they returned to the capital, the Confucians exploited the weak points of their personalities to ensnare them and throw them in prison. This was not something Wang Chong could sit back and watch. Thus, even though Wang Chong didn’t approve of that general’s way of doing things, this did not mean he would allow Li Junxian to torment him.
Whoosh! With a wave of his sleeve, Wang Chong quickly left his seat.
“Good!”
Not long after Wang Chong left, he heard a burst of cheers from the inn.
The sound of those cheers caused the worry in Wang Chong’s eyes to deepen.
……
“Who goes there?!”
Several streets away from the Inn in the Clouds, the white-robed young man from the Office of Supervision and the guards escorting the general suddenly stopped and became extremely wary. A figure had appeared in front of them in a flash of light, blocking their path. Not even the youth from the Confucian Sect had been able to see just how this person had appeared.
“I will be taking this person!” Wang Chong calmly said, his hands held behind his back.
“Impudent!”
The white-robed young man from the Office of Supervision was enraged by this, and with a clang, he unsheathed his long saber.
“The Office of Supervision acts first and makes reports later! You’re seeking death!”
“Is that so? When did the Office of Supervision begin to possess such enormous authority?”
Wang Chong sneered as he opened his hand to reveal a golden dragon token. The white-robed young man failed to recognize it, but the guards of the Office of Supervision at his side instantly paled.
“Your Highness!”
The guards lowered their heads and bowed. Even the general they were escorting widened his eyes in shock.
Soldiers were responsible for protecting the country, and there was no soldier who did not recognize Wang Chong, the King of Foreign Lands. Wang Chong’s token might not be of use against the Confucian Sect, but its effect was entirely different on soldiers.
“It’s you!”
The young man’s eyes chilled as he finally recognized his adversary. The Great Tang did not have many Kings in the first place, and there was only one who was so young. But before he could do anything, whoosh! A powerful attractive force immediately dragged the arrested general out of the grip of the guards. The white-robed young man grimaced and subconsciously made a grab for him, but he snatched at nothing but air.
Raising his head, he saw that the general had already fallen into Wang Chong’s hands.
“I’m taking this person with me. If there’s a problem, you can have your Secretariat Advisor come and ask for him!”
With these nonchalant words, Wang Chong swept his sleeves and flew off like a bird, vanishing from sight.
“Bastard!”
The young man ran forward a few steps, but there was no way he could catch up. The gap between the two was far too great. As for the armored guards at his side, they didn’t even dare to move half a step in pursuit.
The King of Foreign Lands was the War God of the Great Tang. If he wanted someone, who would dare to stop him?
The young man still harbored some thoughts of pursuit, but at this moment, he heard a soft and familiar whisper at his ear.
“Young Master already knows of this matter. Let him be. After all, he won’t be able to stay happy for very long!”
The white-robed young man stopped with a sudden jolt. Turning his head, he saw that several figures had appeared like ghosts on a nearby wall, led by a white-clothed young woman with snow-white skin and long flowing hair. She was also frigidly staring in the direction Wang Chong had left.
“Yes, Senior Sister!”
The young man quickly came to a stop.
……
Meanwhile, Wang Chong quickly returned to his residence with the general in tow.
After comforting the general and ordering him not to do anything so impulsive again, he let him go. Meanwhile, news quickly arrived from the King Song Residence.
Everything was exactly as Wang Chong had guessed. Li Junxian had been the one who had set up the Office of Supervision specifically to be used against the military. This was one of the results that came from He Qingrong’s replacement. With Li Junxian leading the charge, the support of the Grand Preceptor, King Qi, and the Prime Minister, and the approval of the First Prince, they had been able to circumvent the Imperial Court to set up this new Office of Supervision.
“Have you determined how many storytellers like this are in the capital and how many of these sessions there are?”
Wang Chong stood in his study, having summoned Xu Keyi, Su Shixuan, Cheng Sanyuan, and almost all his other subordinates.
Cheng Sanyuan bowed and sternly said, “Your Highness, we’ve found that there are more than twelve hundred such storytellers in the city, all of them telling the same story of how the living standards of the people on the border have changed after the war. Many people have gone to see them, with adults even bringing children as young as three. We also noticed that there are more and more people discussing this matter. Many people are saying that they want peace and no more war, aiming their criticisms at the militarists. Your Highness, this situation is very bad for us!”
Upon receiving Wang Chong’s order, all of them had been working with all their strength to investigate this matter, from day to night. And upon receiving the report, all of them felt uneasy.
“Your Highness, what do we do? This is only the beginning. Not even a few days have passed, and it’s already having such an immense effect. If this is allowed to continue, the effects will only get worse and worse!”
Everyone in the room had anxious faces.
Su Shixuan ground his teeth and said, “Your Highness, why don’t we take some men and stop them from telling their stories? With the power of the City Guard, we can definitely do it!”
Wang Chong’s uncle-in-law Li Lin wielded immense authority and could directly mobilize the City Guard. By using the reason of public distortion of government affairs, they could seize all those storytellers being supported by the Confucian Sect and stop them from telling their stories.
“That’s useless! The Confucian Sect is being open and honest with their scheme. We can’t stop them. Besides, if we actually send people over, whether they’re the City Guard or anyone else, we would just be confirming the words of those storytellers. The people of the capital would all deeply misunderstand us while Li Junxian would only be too happy to see us do such a thing,” Wang Chong sternly said.
“Ah?!”
“What do we do, then?”
Everyone began to pale.
“You’re dismissed for now. I’ll think of a plan!”
Wang Chong waved his hand.
The most difficult schemes to deal with in the world were not the treacherous and unfathomable plots, but the ones that were laid out in broad daylight. Li Junxian had clearly calculated all the scenarios. Wang Chong silently began to think.
……
In the northwest region of the capital was an opulent estate. A black placard hung over the gate of the residence, with three words written in gold upon it: ‘Secretariat Advisor Residence’!
This was the residence of Li Junxian, the new Secretariat Advisor of the Great Tang, and also the official residence that King Qi had gifted him.
At this moment, Li Junxian, Elder Song, the white-clothed girl, and several experts of the Confucian Sect were gathered within. The Confucian Sect adopted a policy of isolation from the world and would never expose all its strength for the people of the world to see. But once Li Junxian ascended to the court, everything began to change. Now that they had entered the world of politics, they could no longer remain so isolated.
“Tell me about the incident again,” Li Junxian said.
“Yes, Young Master!”
The white-clothed young man bowed. He immediately retold how the quarrel caused by the general at the Inn in the Clouds had been noticed by Wang Chong and how Wang Chong had eventually rescued that general from him. At the end, the hall was quiet.
Li Junxian clasped his hands behind his back and abruptly said, “It seems like the King of Foreign Lands has already noticed what’s going on!”
A King like Wang Chong would never appear at the Inn in the Clouds at the Xu Period just to listen to a storyteller, unless he had some other motive.
“Young Master, the King of Foreign Lands is a meticulous thinker and intelligent schemer. Since he’s noticed us our movements, there will probably be some action taken soon that will disadvantage us!” Elder Song blurted out.
Their last several exchanges against Wang Chong had ended with Wang Chong easily resolving the threat. In addition, Wang Chong’s several moves that had forced Li Junxian to appear had left a very deep impression on Elder Song and all the other members of the Confucian Sect. It was said that the civil and martial had always scorned each other since ancient times, but now, nobody in the Confucian Sect dared to look down on the eighteen-year-old King of Foreign Lands.