PC Chapter 59

The autumn wind blew bleakly, the weather growing colder. Grass and trees withered, and dew turned to frost. After the frost descended, the days grew colder and colder. Su Cen’s greatest struggle every day was getting out of bed in the early morning. The sky was often still dark, the air frigid, and every time he heard the rooster crow next door, he felt an overwhelming urge to have chicken for breakfast.

 

But out of consideration for Ah Huang, the dog that had been sent away earlier, Su Cen decided to be kinder to the few small animals belonging to his neighbors.

 

To be good to them meant being harsh on himself. Gritting his teeth, Su Cen threw off the covers and hurriedly dressed before the warmth on his body could dissipate. It took him a long while of shivering before he finally recovered.

 

After breakfast, he had to head to the Dali Temple before dawn. Poor him—born with the body of a young master yet living the life of a common man. From Changle Ward to the Dali Temple required crossing the entirety of Chang’an City, but his rank wasn’t high enough to merit a warm sedan or carriage. He could only set out early and rely on his own two legs. In the summer, walking could at least be seen as exercise. But in this bone-chilling weather, wandering the streets felt like torture, the biting wind cutting through him and stealing what little warmth he had in an instant.

 

Yawning, Su Cen reminisced about the major events that had occurred in the court recently. After Xiao Yan relinquished his military authority, he was poisoned to death in the Northern Liang Prince’s estate. The rest of Xiao Yan’s household was demoted to commoners, marking the downfall of the Northern Liang estate, which had defended the region for generations since the founding emperor. One had to admit that Li Shi had shown a measure of mercy in this matter, refraining from complete annihilation. One of Xiao Yan’s concubines was already pregnant, preserving a thread of the Xiao family’s bloodline.

 

After purging internal factions, the Turkic leader Mohe regained control and, seeking peace after years of conflict, sent a state letter to the Great Zhou expressing willingness to submit as a vassal and pay annual tribute.

 

Meanwhile, Huainan Road submitted several memorials, still concerning the salt monopoly, price-gouging by salt merchants, and rampant smuggling of private salt. The debate had raged on from early spring to late autumn, yet no solution had been found. But looking at the whole thing, no matter how high-sounding the words are, whether it is private salt or official salt, most of them are out of their own selfishness. How many people can speak for the people when officials and businessmen collude?

 

Half-squinting, Su Cen pondered these matters as he walked, only to nearly collide with a passing carriage as he turned out of the alley.

 

Startled, Su Cen froze. Judging by the lavish carriage, it must belong to someone of high rank. Hastily stepping back, he clasped his hands in greeting. After waiting for a while without receiving any response, he looked up to find Li Shi lifting the curtain, smiling at him in amusement.

 

“Sleeping while walking—now that’s a skill,” Li Shi teased.

 

Su Cen glanced up and shot him a look, responding smoothly, “This lowly official’s rank and responsibilities are light, unlike Your Highness, who toils daily for the affairs of the state. I merely stayed up late working on a minor case last night and unintentionally inconvenienced Your Highness’s carriage. I beg your forgiveness.”

 

Li Shi chuckled. “Get in.”

 

Without hesitation, Su Cen eagerly climbed into the Prince Ning’s carriage.

 

The moment he stepped inside, warmth enveloped him. The extravagance of the Prince’s carriage was almost offensive—fox fur pelts covered the seats, incense burned on one side, and a pot of tea simmered on the other. It seemed the accusations made by that old minister about the Prince’s ostentatious carriage weren’t entirely groundless.

 

Muttering a polite “Thank you, Your Highness,” Su Cen found himself a cozy corner and settled in comfortably.

 

“Cold?” Li Shi asked.

 

Su Cen nodded. “Colder than Suzhou.”

 

Li Shi smiled. “Naturally, it doesn’t compare to Jiangnan.”

 

Su Cen returned the smile but thought privately that the real issue was that no one in Suzhou dared to wake him up at such an ungodly hour.

 

Who would dare disturb the esteemed Second Young Master of the Su family? He had a hundred ways to make sure they’d never want to speak to him again in this lifetime.

 

“What case were you handling last night?” Li Shi asked again.

 

Su Cen thought for a moment and spoke directly: “It’s an old case—a man was killed by a butcher, but his body was never found. The villagers claimed that the Mountain Goddess took him to make him a spirit servant.”

 

After wrapping up the Xiao family case, Su Cen had revisited this unresolved case from years ago. He deliberately avoided mentioning names and locations, partly to test Li Shi’s reaction and partly because he truly didn’t want the two of them to remain adversarial. Their collaboration on the Xiao Yan case had gone well, hadn’t it?

 

Li Shi’s expression didn’t reveal any reaction. He calmly sipped his tea and said, “Tales of ghosts and gods are nonsense. If something isn’t where it should be, it means someone moved it—either the person themselves or someone else.”

 

Su Cen nodded in agreement. “I think so too. But there are some oddities. The villagers saw the butcher kill the man with their own eyes. Why didn’t the butcher confess at the time? Why did he only confess when Lord Chen arrived? Let’s assume he confessed under pressure—why did the body disappear as soon as Lord Chen showed up? If the man wasn’t actually dead and later woke up, where did he go? Why wouldn’t he return, especially if someone was willing to seek justice for him?”

 

“There are only two possibilities,” Li Shi said, tapping his knuckles lightly on the table. “Either there’s something wrong with the man, or there’s something wrong with the village.”

 

Su Cen fell silent, leaning against the couch as he sank into thought. By the time Li Shi finished his cup of tea and turned his head, he saw that Su Cen had dozed off, his head drooping.

 

Li Shi chuckled softly. Seeing that Su Cen was about to topple over, he leaned in and gently propped his head against his own shoulder.

 

With a sturdy support, Su Cen slept even more soundly. He only woke up when the carriage came to a halt. Lifting the curtain, he realized they had already reached the gates of the palace city.

 

Hurriedly wiping the corners of his mouth—thankfully, no drool—he quickly saluted Li Shi. “I’ll take my leave now.”

 

He lifted the curtain and bolted out of the carriage.

 

After Su Cen left, Li Shi’s expression grew serious. He turned to the person outside the carriage. “Did he get this case from that book?”

 

Qi Lin replied, “It seems so. The spy we planted in Zhang Jun’s household burned the study when things seemed suspicious, but it looks like Lord Su still managed to save the book. Should we throw some obstacles in his way to stop him from digging further?”

 

There was no response from inside the carriage for a long while. Through a small opening in the curtain, Qi Lin could see the sharp curve of Li Shi’s lips.

 

After a while, Li Shi finally said, “Delay the start of court by half an hour from now on.”

 

Qi Lin bowed with his sword in hand and answered affirmatively as the carriage slowly entered the palace gates.

 

 

—

 

Thanks to catching a ride with Li Shi, Su Cen arrived at the Dali Temple earlier than usual after clocking in. Calculating that he had no trials scheduled for the day, he decided to head to the rear hall to review case files sent in from various regions.

 

As soon as he stepped into the courtyard, Su Cen muttered under his breath, This can’t be good. Sure enough, he saw Zhang Jun balancing on one leg, a hook in one hand, striking a pose in the sunlight—apparently practicing the “Monkey Play” from the Five Animal Frolics.

 

Su Cen turned to quietly retreat, but Zhang Jun, quick as ever, bellowed, “Su Cen!” freezing him in place.

 

Turning back, Su Cen saw Zhang Jun squinting with a grin, shading his eyes with one hand as if looking into the distance. He beckoned with his other hand. “Come here. Let’s chat.”

 

The saying “An official one rank higher crushes the lower” held true, so Su Cen had no choice but to steel himself and walk over.

 

Thus, under Zhang Jun’s enthusiastic coaching, our dear Su Cen was soon standing in the courtyard, arms stretched out, one leg lifted behind him, and body tilted forward. Zhang Jun proudly called the pose Bird Stretch.

 

Any bird stretching like this would’ve fallen off the tree and broken its neck ages ago.

 

Su Cen muttered inwardly as he wobbled on one leg.

 

Zhang Jun continued practicing as he spoke: “You young people these days are too weak. Sit in court all day and end up sickly. Back in my day, we followed our teacher across mountains and rivers, trudging through the harshest terrains. Tsk tsk, with arms and legs like yours, you’d probably collapse at the first sight of trouble.”

 

Su Cen’s heart stirred at the remark. He replied respectfully, “Thanks to talents like you and Lord Chen, Great Zhou’s criminal laws have become increasingly refined. But with you both in such high positions, why did certain cases still require your personal involvement?”

 

Zhang Jun was quite pleased with the compliment. Shifting to a ‘Fierce Tiger Pounces on Prey’ pose, he replied, “You don’t get it. Back then, the whole country was busy with wars, and we were short on manpower. Many local cases turned into unresolved mysteries. But a nation must establish its authority; cases can’t remain unsolved. So, we were sent from the capital to handle them.”

 

Balancing shakily, Su Cen pretended to ask casually, “What kind of strange and peculiar cases have you solved? Anything involving ghosts, gods, or monsters?”

 

Zhang Jun smacked the back of Su Cen’s head. “You rascal, trying to trick me into talking again! Isn’t all of Chen’s Criminal Laws in your hands? Don’t you already know what my teacher has handled?”

 

Rubbing his head and steadying himself, Su Cen quickly responded, “There’s one case I’m curious about—does Lord Zhang still remember the Lu Family Village case?”

 

Zhang Jun stiffened, then scoffed, “No, I don’t.”

 

“The one about Lu Xiaoliu’s missing body. The villagers claimed the Mountain Goddess took him to make him a ghost servant.”

 

Zhang Jun’s eyes flickered, but he quickly dismissed it. Straightening his robes, he turned and walked away. “I don’t remember anything about ghost servants or Mountain Goddesses. Never heard of it.”

 

“Lord Zhang, wait!” Su Cen grabbed his sleeve. “Just one more question—after Lord Chen Guanglu retired, where did he go?”

 

Zhang Jun stopped, frowned, and stared at Su Cen for a long moment before sighing deeply. “You’re just like him.”

 

“Him?” Su Cen blinked in confusion.

 

“We’re all stuck where we are, but you’re still young. You’re the top scholar of your year, highly regarded by others, with a bright future ahead of you. Don’t get bogged down in one place—keep looking forward.”

 

Zhang Jun patted Su Cen’s shoulder, then walked toward the rear hall with his hands behind his back, heaving another long sigh. “Far too alike.”

 

Su Cen stood there, dumbfounded.

 

So…

 

Where did the man go?

 

T/N : extra chapter :3

 

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