Chapter 133: People and Events Remembered

"Tsk, tsk, tsk..."

The squad leader of the Inspection Bureau took the copper gong, clicked his tongue, and grabbed the silver, feeling it slide through his fingers. Listening to the clinking sound of the coins, he smiled and said, "That brother of yours, he seems to harbor some resentment?"

"No, no..." Duan Yuanze hurriedly explained. "My younger brother lacks discipline and meant no offense to you, my lord. Once we return, I will certainly discipline him properly. I hope you will not take it to heart."

"Not bad, not bad~" Seeing how obedient and sensible he was, the squad leader turned his gaze to the swords in their hands and said pointedly, "The capital is right under the Emperor's feet; how can you brandish sharpened weapons so casually?"

"..."

Duan Yuanze’s breath hitched. He had thought that handing over the money would end the matter; he truly hadn't expected this man to be so greedy!

He cupped his hands and said, "The swords of my brother and me are old family heirlooms. We are merely street performers and did not intend to brandish them. I hope you can show us some leniency."

"You know you're street performers?" Seeing that he had no intention of handing over the swords, the squad leader snorted and said, "The capital is a critical location. No weapons are allowed without permission. The blades your brother and you carry are already sharpened—it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them lethal weapons."

He paused, his face hardening, and said, "I will be lenient, considering you two are new to the city, and will not pursue this further. However, these swords must be taken back to the office for registration."

"..."

Duan Yuanze took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "These swords are ancestral heirlooms of our family. I am afraid I cannot comply."

"Cannot comply?" The squad leader was slightly taken aback, not expecting this easy-going fellow to suddenly show some backbone.

After coming to his senses, he sneered and scolded, "The capital is not like other places. Here, if you are a dragon, you must coil; if you are a tiger, you must lie—"

"Too much bullying!"

Duan Yuansi roared and drew his sword. Before he even moved, a flash of cold light flickered!

The clothes on the squad leader’s body suddenly fluttered without wind, and then the light vanished from his eyes...

Hearing his brother's angry shout, Duan Yuanze closed his eyes in resignation. Just as he did, the copper gong in the squad leader's hand clattered to the ground, and the silver and copper coins within scattered everywhere...

Immediately after, a scarlet bloodstain welled up on the man’s neck, and he collapsed to the ground without a sound.

The surroundings fell into a brief silence...

When the onlookers realized what had happened, they all fled in panic. The soldiers of the Inspection Bureau, coming to their senses, began shouting that someone was committing murder in the street!

Duan Yuansi held his sword with a gloomy expression, and just as he moved to finish off the remaining soldiers, his wrist was grabbed by his older brother.

"Enough!"

Duan Yuanze opened his eyes, glared at his brother, and scolded coldly, "There are so many onlookers here—are you planning to kill them all?"

"..."

Duan Yuansi, as if possessed by a demon, his red eyes filled with malice, snapped, "These greedy, dog-like officials are not worth keeping alive!"

Before he could finish his sentence...

Duan Yuanze slapped him across the face.

The force was so great, the sound so loud, that it seemed to dissipate a third of the fierce, malevolent aura surrounding Duan Yuansi. Seeing his brother clutching his face, his eyes regaining a measure of clarity, Duan Yuanze saw government troops approaching in the distance and dragged his brother away.

"Run!"

"..."

***

Xu Boqing stood to the side with a furrowed brow. He had neither helped them out of the predicament nor stopped them from killing, nor did he stop them from escaping; throughout the entire incident, he acted like an outsider.

He was conducting a test...

Watching the backs of the two brothers disappear from view, he focused his gaze, sensing the feeling of an entangling thread—a connection to karma—surfacing in his heart once more. He concentrated all his attention on his eyes!

The scenery before him seemed like a fading painting, and he could clearly see thin, faint threads still attached to his own body...

Threads representing "karma"!

Some were thick, some were thin; some were taut, some were loose; some stretched straight into the netherworld, while others remained in this world!

He ignored the other threads and stared intently at one in particular—a thread that was not exactly thin, yet was being pulled by some force to the point of near breakage!

Only a sliver remained at the connection point!

The feeling from the past few days was not an illusion!

Xu Boqing’s breath hitched. He didn't know what kind of entity could influence karmic relationships... but he could clearly feel that if that thread truly snapped, he would completely sever his karmic tie with someone he knew well!

Perhaps... even forget them entirely...

Who did this thread represent!?

"Who gives me the feeling that I've forgotten something?"

The threads in his vision soon vanished, but his attention was no longer on them...

After confirming that the feeling of the past few days was not an illusion, he began to ponder the clues represented by that thread, trying to figure out which acquaintance he had forgotten!

It was Imperial Concubine Liu!

There was something wrong with Imperial Concubine Liu!

He must have forgotten something about her!

Xu Boqing’s heart pounded. Having grasped the key clue, he did not hesitate and ran straight back to the Imperial Palace.

He didn't go to ask Imperial Concubine Liu, because he didn't know what had caused him to forget things about her. Moreover, it wasn't just him who felt something was strange; Empress Dowager Chen and Empress Zhang had both mentioned an indescribable sense of oddity when speaking of her...

He was certain the problem wasn't with him...

Since it wasn't his problem, the issue must lie with Imperial Concubine Liu!

He had to remember what he had forgotten!

After a moment's thought, he returned to the Cining Palace and rushed into his room...

This room had been arranged by Chief Steward Huang when he first entered the palace. Since getting involved with Empress Dowager Chen, he hadn't stayed here much, except for the months he spent in mourning after the Chief Steward’s death...

But there was something here!

He found his diary, "Xu Genshuo’s Eunuch Journal," which he had written when he first entered the palace, on the bookshelf. He flipped through it page by page, trying to recall the events of that time...

Suddenly...

He seemed to see something, his gaze stopping on the entry for the fourth day of the eighth month, in the sixteenth year of the Yonghe era...

"Yonghe Year 16, August 4th, Sunny."

"My name is Xu Genshuo. This is my eighteenth day in the Cining Palace. Today was an eye-opener."

"Empress Zhang of the Kunning Palace, and Imperial Concubines Liu and Zhou of the Yongning Palace, came together to pay a visit to the Empress Dowager."

"Truly worthy of being chosen as the Empress, her appearance and temperament are exquisite. With lightly painted brows and a touch of rouge, her red lips are mesmerizing—damn, she's beautiful, especially that noble temperament of a mother to the world, far beyond what ordinary women can compare to."

"The two concubines, Liu and Zhou, are no less impressive. One is as charming as a peach blossom in spring; the other is as pure as a chrysanthemum in autumn. Each has her own beauty, and both are fully ripened."

"To be honest, I wanted to threaten suicide at the time to make Chief Steward Huang transfer me to the Kunning Palace or the Yongning Palace to serve, to carry on the ambition of a Prime Minister, but that was just a thought."

"It is rumored that ever since the dog Emperor sought immortality and Taoism, he has become ascetic and rarely visits the harem. I don't know if it's true or false."

"Sigh, true or false, it doesn't matter. Either way, some are starved to death, while others are drowned in excess."

"The more I think about it, the angrier I get. Dog Emperor! Damn you!"

……………

Looking at the contents of the diary, he slowly recalled the astonishment he felt when he first saw Empress Zhang and the two concubines shortly after entering the palace...

This was the scene of his first meeting with Imperial Concubine Liu!

Some forgotten, or perhaps suppressed, memories flooded back. He couldn't wait to continue flipping through the diary, looking for the records he had written about Imperial Concubine Liu...

He slowly recalled related matters...

When he reached the diary written during his mourning for Chief Steward Huang, he found the dying words of the Chief Steward that he had recorded in his own hand!

"From now on, the Cining Palace is entrusted to you. With this favor, even if your affair with the Empress Dowager is accidentally discovered, the Emperor likely won't kill you?"

"But you must remember, even a life-saving talisman can fail..."

"Never be too indulgent. Caution must be your priority in everything. I observe that Imperial Concubine Liu does not seem like someone with a long life. Do not covet pleasure and get too entangled in karma with her..."

………………

A smile appeared on Xu Boqing’s face, and he whispered to himself: "I observe that Imperial Concubine Liu does not seem like someone with a long life. Do not covet pleasure and get too entangled in karma with her..."

"Do not covet pleasure... pleasure... heh..."

He laughed with an inexplicable expression. He didn't finish reading the diary; there was no need to.

He had found the answer.

Just then, his heart gave a twitch, and he could clearly feel that thread which had only a sliver of connection left...

It snapped...

Without any warning, the ink of the twenty-odd characters he had written by hand—"I observe that Imperial Concubine Liu does not seem like someone with a long life. Do not covet pleasure and get too entangled in karma with her"—began to flicker...

It seemed as if an invisible force wanted to erase the traces of its existence, but in the end, it fell one move short, and the disappearing handwriting reappeared.

Meanwhile, in the Yongning Palace...

Several imperial physicians were busy checking on Imperial Concubine Liu, who no longer had any signs of life. Shortly thereafter, news broke that she had passed away due to illness...

"Your Highness, you hid this from me so well~"

Xu Boqing closed the diary with a sense of loss, looking towards the direction of the Yongning Palace with a hollow gaze, and murmured: "This karma..."

"Won't be broken so easily..."