Chapter 133: A Messy Affair (Part II)

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The Dali Temple was in utter chaos. Thick smoke still rolled through the rear compound, while the administrative hall in the front courtyard seethed with people. Apart from Duan Baoxuan, the Chief Minister of the Dali Temple, who was nowhere to be seen, nearly all the ranked officials had gathered in the hall, arguing noisily among themselves. Their voices blended into a deafening din, and not one of them noticed that the brothers Li Xian and Li Xian had entered the hall at some point.

“Hmph! What are you all doing here? Why aren’t you putting out the fire?”

Li Xian waited quietly for a moment, but when the officials of the Dali Temple continued bickering without end, his temper finally snapped. With a cold snort, he rebuked them in a voice that was almost a roar.

“We pay our respects to His Highness the Prince of Lu and salute His Highness the Prince of Zhou.”

The officials, who had been arguing merrily, were all stunned into silence by Li Xian’s shout. They stared blankly at the two princes for a long while before finally coming to their senses. Led by the Assistant Ministers Yuan Gongyu and Hou Shanye, they hurriedly bowed and offered their greetings in a disorderly chorus.

“Assistant Minister Yuan, what are you all making such a racket about? Why did the rear compound catch fire, and why didn’t you go put it out?”

Li Xian was already in a foul mood, and he had never held the officials of the Dali Temple in high regard. Naturally, his words were exceptionally blunt. Yet his questioning did carry an element of overreach. Li Xian had received the Emperor’s order to investigate the Dali Temple thoroughly, but the imperial edict had not yet reached his hands. Strictly speaking, he had no authority at that moment to interfere in the affairs of the Dali Temple. Even as a prince, he was no exception.

But at a time like this, none of the officials had the courage to argue with him. They stood there woodenly, not daring to make a sound.

“Your Highness, this subordinate had only just arrived and truly does not know how the fire began. As for putting it out, by the time I arrived, it had already been extinguished. There was simply nothing left to put out.”

Yuan Gongyu was a favorite of Empress Wu and believed he had her support. He therefore did not take Li Xian’s authority particularly seriously. Faced with the prince’s accusation, he replied woodenly, the contempt in his tone unmistakable.

“Oh? What a fine claim—that there was nothing left to put out. Then answer me this: what is the smoke in the rear compound? Speak!”

Li Xian had always been straightforward by nature. How could he tolerate such insolence from an aging bureaucrat of the fourth rank, lower grade? The moment his anger flared, his face darkened like the bottom of a cooking pot. Gritting his teeth, he demanded in a frigid voice, “Speak!”

“Your Highness, please understand. The fire truly has been extinguished; the smoke simply has not yet dispersed. We have already sent men to inspect the scene, and the cause of the fire should soon be established.”

Yuan Gongyu was not especially afraid of Li Xian, but he had no desire to provoke him while the prince was enraged. He therefore clamped his mouth shut and remained silent. Li Xian was just about to erupt when Hou Shanye promptly stepped forward and defused the situation.

Sent men? Damn it all—the men they sent were ours. Well done. That was a masterful bit of sleight of hand.

Although Li Xian had remained silent throughout, Li Xian had been watching every change in the expressions around him. He had already grown suspicious when he failed to see Song Xian and Di Renjie upon entering. Now that he had heard Hou Shanye’s explanation, how could he fail to understand the bastard’s scheme? He could not help sneering inwardly, though he had no intention of exposing it.

Instead, he slipped forward and gestured for the furious Li Xian to proceed.

“Sixth Brother, there is no point in arguing further. We should go inspect the scene before deciding what to do.”

“Hmph!”

Li Xian glared at Yuan Gongyu and Hou Shanye, gave a cold snort, and said nothing. With a sweep of his broad sleeve, he turned and strode toward the rear compound.

“Gentlemen, let us all go have a look.”

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Li Xian’s acting was far beyond Li Xian’s. Though he was every bit as furious inside, the smile on his face remained perfectly sincere. He cupped his hands and bowed to all the officials of the Dali Temple, then spoke in a mild voice.

“Your Highness, after you!”

The officials had gathered in the front courtyard for no reason other than to evade responsibility, and not one of them wished to take even a single step toward the rear compound. Yet faced with Li Xian’s radiant smile, beneath which lurked a blade, none of them dared say no. They all turned their eyes toward Yuan Gongyu and Hou Shanye.

After a long, deathly silence, Hou Shanye—who had experienced Li Xian’s methods before—was the first to lose his nerve. Forcing an ugly smile, he bowed to Li Xian and gestured for him to proceed.

“Gentlemen, please.”

Li Xian smiled faintly and said nothing more. He led the way toward the rear compound, while the officials exchanged glances and, helplessly, followed after him.

The rear courtyard of the Dali Temple was in complete disorder. The entire row of rooms on the left had been reduced to ruins. Black ash and scraps of paper covered the ground, and after being drenched with water, everything had become a muddy mess. Dozens of minor clerks from the Dali Temple, together with soldiers and constables from the Jingzhao Prefecture, were under the direction of Di Renjie and Song Xian, busily carrying out whatever could be salvaged from the burned rooms. The scene was chaotic beyond description, and Li Xian’s brows drew together more and more tightly as he watched.

“This subordinate Di Renjie pays his respects to His Highness the Prince of Lu and His Highness the Prince of Zhou.”

“This subordinate Song Xian pays his respects to His Highness the Prince of Lu and His Highness the Prince of Zhou.”

The moment Di Renjie and Song Xian saw the two princes enter the rear courtyard at the head of a large group of officials, they hurried over and bowed in greeting.

“Rise. What happened to the fire? How did it burn to such an extent?”

Li Xian knew that Di Renjie and Song Xian were Li Xian’s men. Thus, although he was in an exceptionally foul mood, he still made an effort to soften his tone as he questioned them.

“Your Highness, this subordinate was on duty today and was presiding over a case in the main hall of the front courtyard when I suddenly heard that a fire had broken out in the rear. By the time I arrived, the flames were already far beyond our ability to control. Fortunately, everyone worked together, and the reinforcements from the Jingzhao Prefecture arrived in time, allowing us to contain the blaze. Unfortunately, most of the records from previous years were destroyed. We managed to save less than thirty percent.”

Although Di Renjie held the higher office, he had gone to court earlier and had only recently returned. He did not know the full sequence of events, so Song Xian naturally answered for him.

“Then, if I understand correctly, you were not present when the fire started? I have not misunderstood you, have I?”

Li Xian nodded and asked the question pointedly.

“Your Highness is correct. That is indeed the case. This subordinate would never dare utter a falsehood.”

Song Xian had been chosen by Li Xian and was no fool. How could he fail to understand that Li Xian was deliberately helping him distance himself from the matter? He immediately took advantage of the opportunity.

“Very well.”

Li Xian asked no further questions. Turning around, he coldly surveyed the officials of the Dali Temple, whose expressions varied from one to the next.

“Who was in the rear compound when the fire began? Step forward on your own.”

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Silence. The only answer Li Xian received was utter silence.

None of them was foolish enough to step forward and make himself a target for Li Xian. Besides, who would be assigned to investigate the case would depend on the Emperor’s decision. The matter might not necessarily fall into Li Xian’s hands. Though none of them wished to antagonize him, they could not yield to him on a matter of such importance. Without question, silence was the unanimous choice of every official present.

There he goes again, overflowing with righteousness. Damn it, what a headache.

Watching Li Xian play the righteous champion, Li Xian felt his head begin to ache. The arson case was suspicious enough, and the responsibility involved was grave. Without an imperial edict in hand, even a prince could not possibly force these old foxes to bow their heads. These men were all seasoned experts at interrogating suspects; they would not shed a tear until they saw the coffin. How could a few half-hearted shouts from Li Xian possibly shake them?

“Sixth Brother, since the matter has already been reported to Father Emperor, we should wait until he issues instructions before deciding what to do.”

Seeing that Li Xian was beginning to lose face and showed signs of exploding, Li Xian had no choice but to step in and smooth things over.

“Hmph!”

Though Li Xian was burning with anger, he could not bring himself to reject Li Xian’s good intentions. He gave a cold snort and stopped questioning the officials who were pretending to be fools. After glancing at Li Xian and twitching the muscles of his face several times, he spoke thoughtfully.

“Seventh Brother, this matter is of great importance, and I trust no one else. You should go personally and ask Father Emperor for an imperial edict.”

“Very well. I shall go and return shortly. It is filthy and smoky here. Sixth Brother, you and the other gentlemen should go back to the front courtyard and rest for a while.”

This fire was clearly an arson case intended to destroy evidence, and it was unquestionably the work of Empress Wu. Given her meticulous nature, solving the case was not absolutely impossible, but the prospects were exceedingly dim. Li Xian had no desire to involve himself in it.

Yes, Li Xian had received the imperial order to investigate the Dali Temple thoroughly. But with this chaotic aftermath before them, a thorough investigation was now completely impossible. His original plan to wipe out every one of Empress Wu’s supporters within the Dali Temple had already become hopeless. At most, they could use the limited evidence Li Xian had provided to bring down a few unlucky scapegoats.

In Li Xian’s view, Li Xian’s decision to take charge of the fire investigation was pure self-inflicted misery. The problem was, first, that Li Xian was clearly in the grip of anger, making it difficult to advise him against it. Second, in circumstances such as these, Li Xian could not reveal any disagreement with his brother. After a brief, helpless pause, he therefore agreed to Li Xian’s request.

“There is no need to trouble yourself. It is only smoke, and I do not mind. Seventh Brother, go ahead.”

Li Xian’s suggestion had been well meant, but Li Xian did not appreciate it. Waving his hand carelessly, he replied with magnificent disregard.

This fellow really is stubborn. Never mind. It is not my neck on the line, so why should I concern myself?

Seeing that Li Xian wished to put on a show of fearlessness, Li Xian could not be bothered to say anything more. He nodded with a smile and ignored the ugly expressions of the Dali Temple officials as he made his way through the crowd and strode toward the front courtyard.

“Your Highness.”

Gao Miao had earlier been secretly assigned by Li Xian to contact Lin Hu. He had just returned to the front of the Dali Temple and was standing outside the cordon set up by the Jingzhao Prefecture with the guards of the prince’s residence. When he saw Li Xian emerge, he hurried forward to greet him, discreetly giving him a signal at the same time.

“To Chengtian Gate.”

Understanding, Li Xian gave a slight nod. Then, without revealing anything, he issued the order. With his head lowered, he walked to the carriage, bent at the waist, and slipped inside. A moment later, the great procession set off in a grand sweep toward Chengtian Gate.