Chapter Thirty-Five: Turn in Your Assignment First

Xu Boqing once again saw his second uncle, Xu He, and his family...

During the brief time spent at the warden's quarters "discussing business," Second Uncle Xu He, Aunt Li, and Cousin Xu Da had all changed into clean clothes, and even shaved their stubble, making one marvel at the efficiency of the prison guards.

Warden Hu gave a subtle signal, and the guard beside him immediately understood, stepping forward to unlock the cell door.

"Boqing!" "Brother Qing!"

Second Uncle Xu He was still immersed in the grief of losing his elder brother to bandits, and in sorrow for his nephew, who had been implicated and castrated because of him. When Xu Boqing entered the cell, he seemed to have much to say yet could not find the words.

"Second Uncle, Aunt, Dazi," Xu Boqing greeted, knowing there were people watching outside and that his secrets were not suitable for them to know. He comforted them, "You needn't worry for me. I am quite content with my life as it is."

Cousin Xu Da glanced at him with disbelief and muttered, "Brother Qing, we're family. You don't have to pretend."

Second Uncle Xu He, his tiger eyes brimming with tears, spoke with guilt, "It's all my fault for being useless."

Aunt Li sighed, "It truly is our fault. Otherwise, you, a man, wouldn't have ended up like this."

"..."

"No, I really am doing well," thought Xu Boqing, unsure how to convince them of his contentment. After some consideration, he changed the subject, "Second Uncle, you'll have to endure a few days here in the Heavenly Prison. At most, two or three days, and no longer than half a month, I'll come to take you out."

"What?" Xu He was briefly stunned, then quickly grasped the meaning and said, "There's no need for you to waste your silver..."

Before he could finish, Warden Hu coughed pointedly outside the cell, and Xu He realized the occasion, sighing, "Really, there's no need..."

"Second Uncle, don't overthink it," Xu Boqing replied, understanding his intent. He turned to his cousin and aunt, instructing them, "It's getting dark; I can't linger outside the palace. Dazi, Aunt, keep an eye on Second Uncle, don't let him brood."

"But..."

"No 'but's," Xu Boqing soothed them further, only leaving after reassuring them. Warden Hu, recognizing the lateness of the hour, arranged for a carriage to take him to the Imperial City.

Outside the Heavenly Prison, he happened to see the second son of Minister Zhang board a luxurious carriage...

Meanwhile, inside the upper prison of the Heavenly Prison...

Xu He sat gloomily on the bed, replaying the day's events in his mind, as if caught in a dream.

Xu Da saw his father's troubled face and understood what weighed on his heart, but he truly didn't know how to comfort him. So he said, "Father, did you notice? Brother Qing seems like a different person now."

Xu He, annoyed, glared at him and scolded, "If you had your own 'lychees' cut off, you'd look like a different person too."

"Not... I..." Xu Da instinctively pulled his legs closer, mumbling, "That's not what I mean. I mean that Brother Qing used to be shy but a little unruly, reserved yet somewhat wild.

But now, he seems to have shed all that, as if cleansed of worldly dust, and gained a sense of composure and nobility."

"Everyone grows up," Aunt Li shook her head. "Especially after all Brother Qing has been through, and now that he's working in the palace. If he hadn't changed, that would be strange."

"Boqing must have suffered so much," Xu He knew that before becoming a eunuch, one had to endure special training from elder eunuchs. The beatings were one thing, but some treated people as less than human.

Thinking of his nephew's hardships in the palace, he felt a pang of heartache, and his guilt deepened.

"Father, stop worrying..." Xu Da tried to comfort him. "Brother Qing said himself that he's living well in the palace, and now he's even wearing the imperial Flying Fish robes. What hardship could he possibly suffer?"

"Use your pig brain!" Xu He said, exasperated. "Do you think the palace is some ordinary place? Boqing has been there for less than two months. Though he's been fortunate enough to receive imperial favor, what about before that?

And now he's running about for our family.

You know what the Heavenly Prison is like. To get out, you need a fortune in silver!

Your Uncle Zhou made inquiries before: our family is worth three thousand taels of silver. Boqing said he'd get us out in two or three days, or at most half a month.

He was robbed on his way to the capital—because he had no money to ransom himself, he was sent to the castration chamber. Now, to raise three thousand taels—isn't that nearly impossible?"

"..."

Xu Da finally realized, and muttered, "But Brother Qing said he has benefactors in the palace, and told us not to worry."

"You... you... If you had half of Boqing's brains, I wouldn't be so infuriated," Xu He grumbled, turning his head away as if he couldn't bear to look at his son.

Suddenly, he seemed to think of something and said to his wife, "When we're out, we must do whatever it takes to help this rascal find a wife—she has to be pretty, so the child won't take after him."

"Huh?" Not only Xu Da, but even Aunt Li was bewildered.

Xu He gritted his teeth and explained, "Elder brother is gone, and the last branch of the family has entered the palace. We must find a wife for this rascal, have a child, and then adopt it to Boqing to continue the family line."

"That makes sense!"

Aunt Li nodded vigorously, her eyes brightening as she leaned in and whispered, "Aunt Wang, who sells tofu on South Street, though of low status, her daughter is very striking, with wide hips—she'll surely bear children. When we're out, I'll go negotiate!"

"Yes," Xu He nodded. "Have several children, pick the smartest and best-looking one to adopt to Boqing. If one isn't enough, then two."

Xu Da blinked in confusion.

"So I'm just a breeding tool now?"

……………

Money, money, money!

Three thousand taels to ransom the family, one thousand to unlock the house and restore their official status—a total of four thousand taels. Eight hundred taels had been paid as a deposit, leaving a gap of three thousand two hundred taels.

Where could he possibly find the remaining three thousand two hundred taels?

On his way back to the Palace of Mercy and Tranquility, Xu Boqing silently winced. From the moment he arrived in this world, he had been plagued by lack of silver!

First, he had to tell fortunes just to avoid starving and earn food and travel expenses;
Then, in the dungeon of the Police Bureau, he couldn't produce enough silver, angering that wretched eunuch from the Eastern Depot, which led to his castration;
He thought he had finally found his footing in the Palace of Mercy and Tranquility, with eight gold ingots in hand, believing he wouldn't have to worry about silver anymore—but now, the ransom for the Heavenly Prison left him short on funds!
And short by quite a lot.

His relationship with the Empress Dowager was delicate; his heart dared not speak, but her body had certainly been conquered by him. Borrowing a little silver shouldn't be difficult.

But to ask her for money...

Would that not make him a kept man?

No, that would not do...

Chief Steward Huang said the Palace of Mercy and Tranquility was not short on silver and treated him with great care. If he were to borrow money from him, he could probably get it.

But on careful thought, Steward Huang was over eighty, and to ask an old man for money, whether from sentiment or reason, seemed inappropriate.

Sigh...

Xu Boqing pondered the matter all the way back to the Palace of Mercy and Tranquility, unable to find a solution. Shaking his head, he headed towards the Empress Dowager's bedchamber.

First, he had to deliver his assignment...