Transmigration: of Mysteries and Songs

Chapter 171: Mutual Exchange

Barely any of the officials dared to attend the court assemblies anymore. There were two reasons. Firstly, the struggle between the imperial princes had already reached a climax. The members from the different factions would be always engaged in a heated verbal battle every day. Those who observed on the sidelines all evaded the situation one by one as they were afraid of being implicated. Secondly, the Emperor was getting on in years. On top of that, the wounds he received when he was young accumulated and flared up again as he aged. The Emperor's illness worsened and it seemed as if it was apparent that he was debilitating with old age every day. At the same time, his temperament was getting increasingly odd. He would get into a temper every now and then. His heart did not soften due to his old age but on the contrary, he became even more ruthless in his methods. There was an official who embezzled a thousand taels of silvers. According to the Xuan Kingdom's laws, he should be demoted, fined, or banished due to the severity of his crimes which affected the image of the court. However, to everyone's surprise, the Emperor subjected him to the death penalty. If he was not stopped by the other officials, the Emperor would have subjected the official's extended family to the death penalty as well.

Such behaviour of the Emperor was strange to the officials and frightened many of them. Unfortunately for them, they were once again in trepidation and on tenterhooks today.

Despite all matters having been settled, the Emperor continued to remain in silence, showing no intention of dismissing the officials at all. All the officials could only patiently wait around. Finally, the Emperor slowly spoke up. His gaze unhurriedly slipped past the officials who were trembling in fear before it settled on Situ.

"Duke of Anping. I want to ask you for your opinions regarding a decision of mine." There were surging undercurrents beneath his tranquil voice.

Situ strode forward and bowed slightly. "Your Majesty's judgement will naturally bring fortune to the people."

A smile actually flickered around the corners of the Emperor's mouth but his voice was icy cold.

"General Ji of the Central Army has already been stationed in Xiang Yang for quite a few years, right? I miss him very much so, and I want to transfer him back to Chang'an."

A deadly silence immediately ensued in the court. Many officials held their breaths. Situ remained composed under the Emperor's scorching gaze as he waited for the Emperor to continue what he wanted to say.

"However, after contemplating over it, I realised that within the court, Duke of Anping is the most familiar with the military system. Could you recommend to me who you think is more suitable for this position?"

In a split second, everyone's gaze was congregated on that person in the middle of the hall.

~~~~~~~

'Ss!' Feng Luodi was playing the zither in the Feng residence when she suddenly stopped. She raised her hand to take a look. Her left forefinger was cut and blood was oozed out from the wound.

Scarlet who was attending to her at the side immediately cried out in surprise. She ran into the room to get bandages and tincture. As Feng Luodi glanced at the zither strings stained with beads of blood, she became even more restless.

"Situ."

The voice contained infinite feelings and drifted with the wind. When it wafted back to Feng Luodi's face, it was filled with worry and uneasiness instead.That day, when she was returning from the Jiang residence, Lu Bo had hinted to her multiple times to inform Situ that he should be more cautious these few days. There would be many open and covert attacks by their enemies hiding in the dark.

It was not just Jiang Moyin who was unwilling to say it clearly. Chamberlain Feng had also reminded her multiple times after she returned to the residence. She still remembered that on that day, Chamberlain Feng had called her into the study when she walked past.