The Rebirth Of The General Who Always Sees Himself As A Replacement

Chapter 64: You’re Really Forgetting Your Old Friend When You See Your Sweetheart.

It rained all night, and only cleared up early in the morning. The daytime wind was somewhat cool, picking up the summer heat, while the earth was still damp from the dew.

Gu Heyan and Pei Hantang met face to face at the gate of the Duke of Yan’s Residence.

Pei Hantang: “Oh! Hey, hi!”

Gu Heyan: “……”

Pei Hantang: “Hey, don’t look at me like that. It was your little Gongzi who sent word to me that the female corpse case had progressed, so I came to look for him.”

Gu Heyan: “I know, me too.”

Pei Hantang: “Then why are you still staring at me?!”

Gu Heyan: “No conflict.”

Pei Hantang was so angry that he pointed his finger at Gu Heyan: “Well, well, Gu Yuyi! You are really forgetting your old friend when you see your sweetheart!”

Gu Heyan: “Hmm.”

“Oh my, and you still dare to answer so confidently!” Pei Hantang pretended to be annoyed.

Gu Heyan ignored him, turned around, and walked towards the Mu Residence.

“Hey, wait for me!” Pei Hantang trotted to catch up with Gu Heyan, reached out his arm and hugged Gu Heyan by the shoulders: “To tell you the truth, I’m not at all interested in your little Gongzi. Rather, I’m interested in the little Bodyguard by his side…. Hmm, he’s quite amusing.”

As soon as the two entered the Mu Residence, a servant immediately ran to meet them. After learning their identities, the servant politely led them to the study in the East Courtyard.

As for Mu Zhiming and Wen Heyin, they were already waiting inside the studio.

“Heyan, Lord Pei, please take a seat.” Mu Zhiming bowed and invited both of them to sit down. Then,  Mu Zhiming took out the brocade patterned money pouch he got from the Coroner’s hands yesterday, and handed it to Pei Hantang.

“What is this?” Pei Hantang asked without understanding.

Mu Zhiming: “Lord Pei, don’t be anxious. Please listen carefully to what I am about to say.”

Then, Mu Zhiming recounted in detail what had happened last night.

When Gu Heyan heard that Mu Zhiming and Wen Heyin had gone alone to the Coroner’s house, he frowned and said to himself in his mind: ‘Too dangerous.’

When the part about the fight between Wen Heyin and the man dressed in black came up, Pei Hantang looked at Wen Heyin and asked: “Little one, are you hurt? How could you want to chase after that man when it’s just the two of you? You are too reckless.”

Wen Heyin disdainfully replied: “Hurt? Do you think that a man with such mediocre skills would actually hurt me? Ha!”

“I’m glad you didn’t get hurt.” Pei Hantang twisted his lips and then said: “Lord Mu, carry on.”

“Alright.” Mu Zhiming nodded his head and continued his recounting.

Upon hearing that the Coroner wanted to make a financial gain, Pei Hantang even joked: “I would never have thought of investigating my own people.” However, when the surname of the Yuan family, and the name ‘Yuan Baode’, were mentioned by Mu Zhiming, the smile on Pei Hantang’s face disappeared almost immediately.

“Therefore, the murderer should be the son of the Head of the Ministry of Justice, Yuan Baode. The brocade money pouch, and the thumb jade ring1, counts as evidence.”

Once Mu Zhiming finished speaking, he looked at Pei Hantang.

Pei Hantang, on his part, stood with his head down, silently looking at the brocade money pouch he was holding in his hand. For a long time, he didn’t speak.

Wen Heyin couldn’t hold back his words: “You….”

“A-Yin.” However, Mu Zhiming gently interrupted the words Wen Heyin wanted to say, and shook his head.

Wen Heyin fell silent and no longer uttered any words.

“Yuan Baode.” Pei Hantang opened the brocade money pouch and saw inside the jade thumb ring: “His uncle is the Head of the Jail Department, Huo Xin.”

“That’s right.” Mu Zhiming gently nodded his head. At the same time he sighed in his mind, ‘Indeed, I can understand why Lord Pei is keeping silent.’

‘Officialdom is like a play. While the wind and clouds are treacherous2, the dark tide keeps rising3.’

Pei Hantang could immediately take his people to the Yuan Residence and arrest Yuan Baode…..

But could the Capital Prefecture bear to offend the Head of the Jail Department?

Even Pei Hantang’s father, the Capital Magistrate, wouldn’t dare go against Huo Xin.

So how could Pei Hantang, who’s only the Deputy Magistrate of the Capital Prefecture, dare to go against the Jail Department?

In the study, no one else spoke. It was so quiet, that if a needle fell on the floor, it would be heard. After about half an incense stick, Pei Hantang suddenly raised his head and said: “I have already decided.”

“What have you decided?!” Wen Heyin suddenly shouted, as if he couldn’t stop himself.

Pei Hantang didn’t seem to expect that Wen Heyin would be so excited over this, so he froze for a moment and then laughed: “I’ll be taking my people to arrest the culprit.”

Hearing these words, Wen Heyin let out a long sigh: “I was right about you!!!”

“What? Right about what? Little one, please be more specific.” Pei Hantang inquired.

Mu Zhiming interrupted the conversation by slowly saying: “Lord Pei, about the Jail Department…..”

“I know,” Pei Hantang raised his hand to interrupt Mu Zhiming’s words, and said: “Lord Mu, I know no less than you about the dark and shady intentions of those in the bureaucracy. However, Lord Mu, I will not allow injustice to be ignored.”

Mu ZHiming suddenly stood up, only to immediately kowtow to Pei Hantang.

“Lord Mu, what are you doing?!” Pei Hantang was startled and panicked, so he hastily got up from his chair to help Mu Zhiming up.

Mu Zhiming’s eyes were slightly red: “If there were a few more wise and fair people like Lord Pei in the world, there would be less injustices.”

“Lord Mu, please get up quickly!” Pei Hantang blurted out, feeling helpless.

‘If you don’t get up, Gu Yuyi will cut off my head!’

Pei Hantang: “I’m not worthy. Although I’m determined to shed light on the injustices, I still don’t dare to confront the Jail Department. It’s something I have decided just now, so I’m still planning on the countermeasures.”

“So, have you thought of a countermeasure yet?” Wen Heyin asked.

“Mm-hmm.” Pei Hantang nodded and calmly said: “Tonight, I will take advantage of the curfew to sneak into the Yuan Residence and take Yuan Baode by surprise. After arresting Yuan Baode and taking him to the Capital Prefecture, I will write a memorial to the Emperor to inform him about the case. Once the case is closed and the sentence is delivered, even if the Jail Department tries to cause trouble, it will be all in vain.”

“Lord Pei, I have a favor to ask of you.” Mu Zhiming opened his mouth.

Pei Hantang: “Please, go ahead.”

Mu Zhiming pleaded: “Tonight, when you go to arrest Yuan Baode, can I accompany you alongside the Capital Prefecture squad?”

“This….” Pei Hantang’s face looked complicated. “Lord Mu, you don’t know martial arts, if anything were to happen….”

“Oh, can’t you promise it to my Young Master?!” Wen Heyin anxiously asked. “Because of all this, my Young Master hasn’t been eating or sleeping well at all. Don’t worry, I will personally take care of protecting my Young Master. I will take him away as soon as something happens! You know I can run very fast! We definitely won’t hold you back!!!”

Pei Hantang was amused with the phrase ‘I can run very fast’, and nodded: “Alright, then I promise you.”

The four men then spent a long time making plans in the study of the Mu Residence. After arranging the plan, as well as confirming that there would be no mistakes, Gu Heyan and Pei Hantang said their goodbyes and left.

Once outside the Mu Residence, Gu Heyan looked at Pei Hantang, as if he wanted to say something, but stopped himself from doing so.

Pei Hantang, on the other hand, patted Gu Heyan on the shoulder and said with a smile: “I know what you’re thinking. You’re worried about your little Gongzi going, aren’t you? Tonight, at Hai hour4, we will meet in front of the Yamen in the Capital Prefecture.”

Gu Heyan nodded: “Alright.”

—

At dusk, the twilight glow dyed the sky with a reddish hue, as if it was stained with blood. In the inner hall of the Jail Department, there was a majestic Bi’an5 carved on the wall, which gazed intently at the people in the hall.

Huo Xin, the Head of the Jail Department, was sitting in front of an ebony desk reviewing the records. All of a sudden, an Imperial Bodyguard dressed in a black and purple uniform rushed in. After respectfully saluting by clasping his fist and kneeling on one knee, he said: “Lord Huo.”

“Hmm?” Although Huo Xin was only a little over forty years old, the hair on his temples were already gray. As soon as he looked up, his eyes carried a chilling darkness.

The Imperial Bodyguard stood up and walked to Huo Xin’s side. Then, he approached Huo Xin’s ear and whispered something.

Huo Xin listened attentively, when all of a sudden, his pupils opened slightly, displaying anger. At that instant, a record fell on the desk, while his tone of voice was as terrifying as a bloodthirsty blade, he said: “Oh, is that so?”

The Imperial Bodyguard whispered: “Lord Huo, about the contents of the letter sent by the man we infiltrated into the Mu Residence, do you want to send a message to the Yuan Residence?”

“It’s too late…..” Huo Xin’s eyes sharply rolled. After a moment, he said in a cold voice: “Go and call our Xiongdi from the Word Department and the Knowledge Department. Gather them all in front of the inner hall door.”

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The Imperial Bodyguard clasped his fist in a salute and decisively said: “Yes!”

Footnotes

扳指 bān zhǐ; A ring, often made from jade, worn by archers in ancient times to protect the right thumb when drawing a bowstring.风云诡谲 fēng yún guǐ jué; Chinese idiom. It describes a turbulent situation/something that’s grotesque and changeable.暗潮涌动 àn cháo yǒng dòng; It refers to a secret current that has been brewing to the point of forming a more definite movement from within the shadows/darkness that has already brewed and formed a more obvious movement.亥时 hài shí; 9 to 11 pm in the system of two-hour subdivisions used in ancient times.狴犴 bì àn; In Chinese mythology, Bi’an is one of the nine sons of the Dragon King. It has the appearance of a tiger, is wise, powerful and has a great sense of justice, being able to determine who’s good and evil. Because of this,Bi’an is often found carved on the doors and walls of prisons to display a strong sense of justice, as well as acting as a dissuasion force for those prisoners who might still be thinking of escaping or committing crimes again. It looks something like THIS.