Ink Burns

Chapter 275: Borrowing Strength
The full moon hangs high, and autumn's chill begins to set in from the east.

The sky was still very dark, the night was like a pool of sticky ink. A tall horse tore open the ink scroll and galloped away from the foot of Hanshan Mountain in the east of the city. The night, the horse, and the mountain gave a sense of unrestrained movement, like traveling through grass and sleeping in the open, or resting in a temple in the mountains.

The tall, imposing man in black robes leaned forward on his horse, his back arching in a taut, muscular curve. The woman in his arms was slender, her outer garment billowing in the wind, its edges fluttering like butterflies chasing after her.

The woman seemed somewhat tired, her upper body leaning against the man's chest. She held the reins with one hand and lightly placed the other on the hem of his clothes. Her fingers were slender, as if pressing on a jade flute. Her fingers climbed up the man's wide sleeve little by little, and with each movement of her fingers, a corresponding, deep note would be produced.

"Shanyue, this place really won't work."

Xue Xiao's brows were relaxed and calm, but his voice tightened as he spoke: "I have never tamed this horse, and the journey has been bumpy; you will be in pain. I will carefully select a better one in the future."

The hand pressing down on the jade flute paused slightly.

Shan Yue weakly lifted her eyelids, her voice hoarse, the last syllable of her voice like a ripped piece of silk: "...No, it's not."

She didn't invite him; the journey was long and boring, so she just wanted to stretch her fingers.
After all, she was really tired.

After last night's incident, Shan Yue gained a deeper understanding of the concept that "people feel safe at home"—when people feel absolutely safe, they will do some incomprehensible and unrestrained things.

For example, last night.

She did start the fire.

But she didn't expect that a single spark could ignite not a prairie fire, but rather dry tinder and withered grass.

Her back was reddened from being pressed against the stone wall. Xue Xiao noticed this and, in his haste, precisely grabbed her waist with one hand, easily lifting her up with his arm. The man's forearm was taut, his long, bulging tendons like a powerful whip. His large hand spread out, pressing tightly against her back, absorbing all the impact. She only needed to respond like a powerless puppet, offering ambiguous, lingering, and intermittent responses.
She lowered her head with difficulty, only to see that Xue Xiao had already buried himself in the place his heart longed for.

The rain gradually stopped in the latter half of the night.

The insects in the haystacks, the ants in the cracks of the rocks, the leeches on the branches of the low shrubs, even the wind in the open space, even the damp mud and sand, even the stars in the sky, all watched her lying there, her body exposed, gradually surrendering to the unbearable emptiness, the anxious waiting, the ever-increasing waves of pleasure, and the ultimate joy.

She knew Xue Xiao would be fierce, but she didn't expect him to be this fierce.

"Wait until we get back."

Xue Xiao lowered his head, his lips brushing across the woman's smooth forehead: "We'll think of something else when we get back."

Shan Yue's hand fell down. Her spirit was full of fighting spirit, but her body was powerless and desperate: perhaps she should have just stayed in bed the first time. If the threshold was set too high at the beginning, it would be easy for it to start strong but end weakly later.

******
Upon arriving at Xue Nan's residence, it was still dark. Xue Xiao put Shan Yue down, but did not change his clothes. He wore the same black outer robe stained with blood from the previous day, and gently lifted the reins before turning back to enter the palace.

Today's court is not a grand court session, but the cabinet still needs to hold a meeting. It includes twenty-three people, including the cabinet, the ministers of the six ministries, and the governors of the three provinces. They will discuss matters to be proposed for tomorrow's morning court session, the contracting of death sentences by the various provincial administration commissioners with the Ministry of Justice, and the expenditure of large sums of money. At present, the war in the northern frontier has just started. Marquis Wuding is leading the northern frontier army to fight against the Gegeer tribe. He is asking the court for military pay and food every few days. The memorials are sent by express courier on the official road, one after another. The situation is very serious.

Today's discussion concerns the memorial submitted by Marquis Cui Bainian of Wuding, who earnestly requests His Majesty to quickly allocate funds from the imperial treasury to secure the borders due to the depletion of border supplies.

His first words were, "Allocate 100,000 shi of grain, 50,000 sets of cotton clothing, and 30,000 jin of medicine."

The Linde Hall was completely silent.

Emperor Yongping gently placed the memorial on the table, clasped his hands over his stomach, and leaned back in his chair, his expression calm and indifferent: "What do you all think?"

The Second Grand Secretary, Yuan Wenying, dared not speak. The "pulling the trigger" incident terrified him; for the first time, he felt the fear of the wheels of official infighting about to crush him. If he hadn't intervened in time, he would likely be in the Censorate by now. Jing'an and the Marquis of Wuding had saved them once, but at a heavy price: the Jiangnan officialdom had fallen, a major reshuffle of third-rank officials in the capital, the Xishan Camp had changed hands, and all seven people diagnosed with the disease had been detained by the Censorate, their confessions unknown—the "Qingfeng" ship was on the verge of collapse!

If trouble arises suddenly, will these high-ranking ants still be able to be protected a second time?

Even Yuan Wenying, who was always eager to offer his opinions, dared not speak, and naturally, the other officials remained silent.

Emperor Yongping called out, "Minister Ai of the Ministry of Revenue, Minister Yin of the Ministry of War, what do you say—"

His tone remained humble and gentle, to the point that one might forget that Emperor Yongping had never called on anyone by name in court assemblies or small meetings.

Only those in positions of power will name names.

Lord Ai and Lord Yin exchanged a glance, then bowed and stepped forward: "Your Majesty, 100,000 shi of grain and 50,000 sets of cotton clothing are far too much. The Northern Frontier Army only numbers around 57,000 men, and even if we fight for two more winters, these supplies will be sufficient. As for the national treasury, during the early years of Emperor Taizong's reign, the annual grain tax revenue was approximately three million taels of silver. However, expenditures were controlled, and by the early years of Emperor Zhaode's reign, the annual revenue had increased to four million taels, enough to last for ten years. By the end of the dynasty, although the nominal annual revenue was over four million taels, the actual collection was less than 70%. The stipends for the imperial family, the stipends for officials, and the costs of river works and canal transport had already depleted 70%, making it truly unsustainable."

"Does my subject mean that I will not grant it?" Emperor Yongping asked gently.

That's not how you interpret it!
Lord Ai hurriedly said, "We need to ask the northern frontier for supplies to fight the war. If we don't contribute a single penny, wouldn't that discourage the soldiers on the frontier?"

Emperor Yongping leaned back a little further, his gaze calm: "Then, according to Lord Ai's calculations, how much money would it take for Marquis Wuding to be satisfied?"

Lord Ai was speechless. How could he possibly reply?
Emperor Yongping had never questioned his officials like this before!
The assembled officials fell silent once more.

Just as the officials remained silent, a loud announcement rang out from outside the Linde Hall: "The Right Battalion Commandant of the Western Mountain Camp requests an audience with His Majesty!"

The mad dog is coming.

They were saved.

Although they didn't know why, all the ministers breathed a sigh of relief.

"Announce it," Emperor Yongping said.

The porch creaked open, and Xue Qishu, the Right Battalion Commandant of the Western Hills Camp, emerged from the morning light, covered in blood and grime. His black long robe was torn to shreds, and his shoes were stained with mud. His personal weapon had long been unloaded outside the palace gate, but his right hand, which habitually held a knife behind his back, remained stiffly bound behind him. His gaze was extremely piercing, as if a hundred sharp knives were flying out of the air, piercing through the intestines of everyone present and hanging them from the beams.

It's obvious at a glance that he went through a fierce battle and crawled out of the brink of death.

All those present were civil officials, and they were all shaken by Xue Xiao's murderous aura.

Yuan Wenying was the first to react, holding her breath and frowning: "When meeting the Emperor, one must be upright and dignified, to show reverence and to demonstrate the proper etiquette, with proper attire and hat. Lord Xue, you have always been known for your arrogance; are you now about to add another chapter to the annals of history?"

Xue Xiao raised his eyelids slightly, took a few strides to stand next to Yuan Wenying, and bowed: "Your humble servant Xue Xiao greets Your Majesty."

"Rise." Emperor Yongping frowned: "What is the meaning of this, my dear minister?"

Xue Xiao stood still, his brows furrowing with a fierce look: "Your Majesty, last night, my wife and I were attacked at Hanshan Temple. We barely escaped with our lives. Fearing that things might have changed, I immediately sent a letter to the palace."

"What?" Emperor Yongping frowned, leaning forward unconsciously. "Attacked? Who attacked? Was it the Tatars?"

"Your Majesty, it was not the Tatars who attacked. There were more than thirty men, all masked and carrying swords, and some of them shot flaming arrows. I fought desperately and killed them all. After removing their masks, I found that all thirty-odd men were young, strong, and skilled in martial arts. The oldest was no more than twenty and the youngest was no more than sixteen. They moved in an orderly and disciplined manner, and in their fight, they were well-versed in the art of close combat. The attackers must have been trained in the military."

Xue Xiao's voice was deep.

Military background?

Sneak attack?

Yuan Wenying quickly raised her eyes, then quickly lowered them again: Could it be that Marquis Wuding sent troops to assassinate Xue Xiao?

"Not the Northern Frontier Army."

Xue Xiao seemed to hear Yuan Wenying's thoughts: "All the registered Northern Frontier Army soldiers in previous years came from Northern Frontier military households. Military households work in their spare time and are constantly engaged in farming and training. The wind and sun have made their faces dark and their cheeks ruddy, with distinct bone structures. The attackers yesterday had dry and clean faces. Most importantly, only the index finger and the web of the thumb on their right palm had thick calluses, while the other fingers were clean and long. If they were military households, they would use the first joint of their middle finger to hold the hoe when farming."

"Your Majesty, I suspect that the attackers are private soldiers kept by powerful and influential families in the capital," Xue Xiao said, raising his eyes sharply and concluding in a low voice.

Emperor Yongping slightly raised his chin: "Private soldiers? The capital is a crucial place for the dynasty. Since Emperor Taizu abolished the aristocratic clans, stripped the five surnames, and stripped the seven noble families, abolishing the aristocratic clans' private soldiers system was the first ironclad rule. How could anyone still violate it?"

Private soldiers?

Yuan Wenying immediately understood: it was Jing'an.

Jing'an kept nearly a thousand private soldiers in his villa, all of whom were supported under the guise of being the villa's headman and tenant farmers!

They were not allowed to farm, and were not usually tied up with agricultural affairs. Every year, they were used as soldiers and stuffed into the Xishan camp, where Chang Lin personally trained them. Not only did she have her own private army, but she even asked the court to provide her with money, food, and training plans.
During the Zhaode reign, there were quite a few powerful and wealthy families who did this.

Who wouldn't want a brave and elite private army to protect them?

If we really encounter trouble and have to flee the capital, carrying gold, silver and valuables, with the lives of hundreds or thousands of people blocking our way, we can at least carve out a way for them to survive!

Unfortunately, all the good days were during the reign of Emperor Zhaode.

The current Emperor Yongping felt a deep hatred upon hearing the words "private army": "Investigate—the laws and ancestral regulations clearly prohibit it. Anyone who violates it shall be punished with one hundred strokes of the cane, the male members shall be exiled, and the female members shall be sent to the official kiln. The principal and collateral branches within three generations shall be punished together. The law stipulates this. If anyone violates it again, do not blame me for being ruthless."

"Your Majesty has verified this."

As soon as Emperor Yongping finished speaking, Xue Xiao immediately followed up, his body stained with blood yet showing no sign of losing his imposing aura: "I beg Your Majesty to summon the Grand Princess Jing'an."

I never expected to get banned again, hehehe.