Joy of Life

Chen Pingping let out a sharp laugh. He rubbed his rough fingers together and asked, “Is Sir Wu in the capital now?” This was the question Fei Jie had asked on the day of Fan Xian’s wedding. Fan Xian shook his head and answered as he had last time: “I hear he went south to look for Ye Liuyun. I don’t know when he will return.”

Somehow, Fan Xian felt like he could hear a person sighing somewhere in this room. He frowned and put his finger on the trigger of his crossbow—what the three of them were discussing now was too terrifying to be leaked. If someone were to eavesdrop, the result would be difficult to bear for both Fan Xian and Chen Pingping.

“You may come out.” Noticing the movement in Fan Xian’s sleeve. Chen Pingping explained, “I believe you must be intrigued as to who leads the Sixth Bureau.”

As soon as he said that, a person—more precisely, a dark shadow—floated out of the darkness. Only when it got behind Chen Pingping could its figure be clearly seen. It was a figure dressed completely in black... The figure of someone extremely powerful.

Noticing the person’s aura, Fan Xian’s pupils contracted slightly as his entire body tensed up. Then he relaxed a bit as he remembered having seen this person before. Sixteen years ago, this same shadow stood atop of Chen Pingping’s carriage and killed a mysterious sorcerer in mere seconds like a swooping eagle.

“He is the head of the Sixth Bureau. He doesn’t see outsiders.” Fei Jie explained with a smile. “Of course, you are not an outsider.”

This leader of Qing’s assassins did not speak; he stood silently behind Chen Pingping, as if not interested in Fan Xian at all. Chen Pingping’s voice was a bit hoarse as he picked up where Fei Jie had left off: “Other than Sir Wu, he is the most terrifying assassin in the world. Naturally, he is also the best protector in the world. He is the reason I am still alive today.”

The shadow bowed slightly, showing gratitude in response to the praise.

Looking at Fan Xian’s eyes, Chen Pingping smiled, “This shadow here is an admirer and follower of Sir Wu. Many of his techniques he picked up at a young age from seeing and imitating Sir Wu. Hence why he was a bit disappointed after hearing you say that Sir Wu was not in the capital.”

Fan Xian now looked at this shadow assassin differently. To be this strong by simply imitating Wu Zhu—what astounding talent!

And it also meant that blind Wu Zhu was even more horrifyingly strong.

Pushing Director Chen on his wheelchair, they made their way to the Overwatch Council’s courtyard. The shadow disappeared in broad daylight. Following behind, Fan Xian felt strange. The strongest assassin of Qing really did act like Wu Zhu—whom he hadn’t seen for many days. While Fan Xian wasn’t worried, he still wanted to see the person dearest to him.

This was Fan Xian’s first time entering the council’s courtyard. It was a vast yard; there were no tall buildings within tens of meters around the walls. No one could see what was happening in the courtyard from the outside. Contrary to the outsiders’ imaginations, the courtyard of the Overwatch Council was a beautiful place. There were lush green lawns, many tall trees providing shade, and wild flowers growing by paths paved with stone.

The other officials of the council traveled between the different buildings in silence. As they saw the black wheelchair, they all saluted in respect.

Fan Xian would frown occasionally after walking for a bit. Below those beautiful, artificial rocks, within the fresh green woods, there seemed to be hidden guards everywhere. The security of this place was even tighter than that of the palace.

“Familiarize yourself with this place; this courtyard will be yours soon.” Cheng Pingping suddenly said that very casually, as if throwing a steamed bun at Fan Xian for him to eat.

Fan Xian’s heart skipped a beat. While he knew about the arrangement, he was still unsettled by how nonchalantly the old cripple had said it.

Cheng Pingping turned and gave Fan Xian a look. Shaking his head, the old man sighed. Fan Xian didn’t know why. The youth smiled and said, “I have a few questions.”

“Let’s hear them.” Cheng Pingping, in his wheelchair, was beside a pond. The pond water was clear and the golden hue of swimming fish could be seen. Cheng Pingping gazed at the water.

“I’ve alienated many people because of this year’s examination, but how come Imperial Censor Guo and Minister of Justice Han dared to make a move? Do they not fear the wraith of my father and the Prime Minister?” Fan Xian looked at Cheng Pingping’s messy hair. “Moving on to the Eastern Palace, if it wasn’t the prince’s orders, then why is the empress plotting against me?”

Cheng Pingping didn’t turn. He instead waved his hand. Fei Jie patted his student on the shoulder, praising his courage. Fei Jie then distanced himself from the pond.

Taking over Fei Jie’s position, Fan Xian began to push the wheelchair alongside the pond. After a moment of silence, Cheng Pingping said, “Are you forcing me to spill everything?”

“You should at least tell me how much they know about us.”

Cheng Pingping laughed sharply. “What a cautious youth you are. Looks like you’ve guessed some things, and you are afraid the empress is trying to deal with you over those things.”

Fan Xian smiled. “Indeed. If the empress finds out about the things I guessed, it’s only natural for her to act against me. That’s the only reason I can think of. If it’s true, then, with my current power, I cannot stand up against the Eastern Palace.”

“Your enemies are all paper tigers,” Chen Pingping suddenly said.

Fan Xian wasn’t expecting to hear that term from the director, who then said, “That’s what your mother used to say. She also said we must strategically take the enemy lightly and tactically take them seriously.”

Fan Xian wanted to laugh. His mother didn’t come up with that quote, but there was no way for the old cripple to know that.

Cheng Pingping smiled. “Your biggest problem right now is that you are overestimating your enemies strategically. You’re even afraid of them. So you tend to find yourself getting tied up when you do things. Just the other day; even if you fought your way out of the Hall of Justice, do you think anyone would dare to hurt you? And when it comes to tactics, you consider too little. If it weren’t for the Council cleaning up your mess, some of the things you’ve done after coming to the capital were enough to have you executed hundreds of times.”

Fan Xian was speechless. Chen Pingping gently crossed his hands and said in a light voice, “Don’t view the Eastern Palace as being too powerful. In all of Qing, there is no true power. That includes the Prime Minister and your father Fan Jian.”

Fan Xian felt a bit enlightened. “Violence is true power, which is why only the military and the Overwatch Council are truly powerful.”

Chen Pingping raised a hand and wagged his long, old finger. “Incorrect. In Qing, only one individual holds true power.”

Fan Xian lowered his head. “His Majesty.”

“Correct. His Majesty can ignore everything as long as he holds sovereignty over the military. His subjects may be causing all sorts of unrest, but he couldn’t be bothered to even bat an eye.”

Fan Xian chuckled. “A very leisurely emperor indeed.”

Chen Pingping rubbed his dry hands and slowly said, “The Overwatch Council belongs to His Majesty. I’m only taking charge on his behalf. The same will be true of you in the future. You must remember that.”

Fan Xian calmly stared at Chen Pingping, the leader of the Overwatch Council, Qing’s special organization. He wondered whether to question the old man’s legendary loyalty to the emperor.

The black wheelchair had been circling around the pond for a while. Perhaps the fish were tired of watching, as they sank and began to stir the sand on the bottom with their mouths.

The other officials of the Council were watching the Director and the newly-revealed Commissioner from a distance; none dared to go and interrupt their conversation. Suddenly, Cheng Pingping sighed. “Time flows fast. In the blink of an eye, your mother’s son has grown so much.”

Fan Xian did a double take. “Why ‘your mother’s son’? What kind of saying was that? Why not refer to me directly?” With a bitter smile, Fan Xian said, “I only regret that I don’t know what my mother looked like.”

Cheng Pingping smiled. “There is only one portrait of your mother , drawn in secret by a former national master. That master artist was almost killed by Sir Wu.”

Fan Xian asked, “Could that portrait be in the palace?”

Cheng Pingping didn’t answer him directly. He only said faintly, “As mentioned before, you don’t need to worry too much about the Eastern Palace. The empress’s power was reduced quite a bit by His Majesty over twelve years ago.”

Fan Xian knew the story of the capital’s bloody history. He frowned. “Why didn’t His Majesty overthrow her?”

“She is still the mother of the Crown Prince, and she was liked by the empress dowager. Most importantly...” Cheng Pingping gave a fake smile. “Where would our emperor find another empress as powerless and unwise as she?”

Fan Xian felt a chill as he realized that this emperor really was no pushover—just as he had surmised. Fortunately, Cheng Pingping didn’t know that was how Fan Xian described His Majesty. The director said gently, “Don’t worry about your identity being revealed. The death of that infant sixteen years ago is an unchangeable fact in the eyes of the palace. The unwise empress ordered Minister Han to act against you because she was taking the Crown Prince’s side. At the time she didn’t know that you were the Commissioner of the Overwatch Council. She was merely angry at you for meeting the Second Prince on his boat.”

Cheng Pingping then became slightly angry. “I believe Count Sinan told you not to get too close to those princes. Did you think the nobles in the capital wouldn’t find out about you meeting the Second Prince on that boat?”

Fan Xian laughed nervously. He didn’t think the empress was warning him because she feared the Second Prince. At the time, he really did believe she knew his true identity.