Nightwatcher

# 206. Scoundrel

Emperor Yuanjing looked at Wei Yuan and nodded, "What is it?"

Wei Yuan asked, "In the letter sent back by the Qingzhou Administration, does it explicitly state that this poem was written by Administrator Yang Gong?"

*... What does he mean by that?* The seasoned officials detected something amiss.

The Emperor did not answer directly but instead asked, "Is there a problem?"

The letter did not explicitly state that the poem was written by Yang Gong. The wording was as follows: "Administrator Yang ordered the Qingzhou officials to erect admonitory stele and inscribe the poem to warn the people."

This was a clever phrasing—neither confirming nor denying it. To Emperor Yuanjing, this was tantamount to acknowledgment.

"This poem was not written by Yang Gong but by another person. Your servant believes that once it spreads, it will become renowned across the land. Such an opportunity for fame should not be monopolised by Yang Gong," Wei Yuan said.

"Oh? Since when did Qingzhou produce such a great talent?" Emperor Yuanjing smiled with interest and stared at Wei Yuan. "But how did you come to know this?"

*Not written by Yang Gong, but by someone else... Qingzhou indeed produces many talented individuals, being a major province for the imperial examinations...* the officials pondered, casting curious glances at Wei Yuan following the Emperor's question.

They were all wondering how Wei Yuan knew that the poem was not written by Yang Gong.

"Nor is the author a person from Qingzhou," Wei Yuan shook his head.

The Emperor responded with a questioning "Hmm?"

"Moreover, I know that this poem was not written in Qingzhou but came into existence more than a month ago. And it was not written by a Qingzhou native," Wei Yuan continued.

At this, the officials echoed the Emperor's "Hmm?" in puzzlement, and the censor who had praised the poem earlier questioned:

"Lord Wei, please do not keep us in suspense before His Majesty."

A veteran of the court, starting with a pointed comment.

*Written more than a month ago… not by a Qingzhou native…* the more perceptive officials began to form guesses.

A moment later, strange expressions began to form on their faces.

Wei Yuan glanced at Emperor Yuanjing, whose face had darkened, and spoke calmly, "This poem was written by Xu Qi'an, a Bronze Gong of the Nightwatchers. The original still hangs in our constabulary. If the officials wish to view it, I can arrange for it to be borrowed."

*So it was him…* murmurs of discussion erupted again:

"This young man has great talent; it's a pity he isn’t as scholar."

"Hmph, that Xu Pingzhi is just a coarse martial man with no foresight."

"If only Xu Qi'an could enter the Imperial Academy, how wonderful it would be!"

Even those officials who disliked Xu Qi'an couldn't help but sigh in regret. Such poetic talent, if only he were a scholar—of course, a scholar of the Imperial Academy—how wonderful it would be.

No one doubted Wei Yuan's words, not even his political enemies. Wei Yuan had no reason to lie about this matter, which would only harm his own reputation.

The censor looked embarrassed and lowered his head, staying quiet.

Emperor Yuanjing snorted, "Why bring this up?"

Wei Yuan chuckled, "Naturally, to help my subordinate gain fame."

The Emperor snorted coldly but said nothing more.

Although he did not like Xu Qi'an, as the supreme ruler, he would not hold a grudge against a lowly Bronze Gong. Besides, there were many people in the court he disliked.

Of course, if the Bronze Gong made a mistake or angered him, that would be a different story.

…

Qingyun Mountain, Cloud Deer Academy.

A wild crane flew from the horizon, its wings flapping as it swooped down toward Qingyun Mountain, skimming over courtyards and pavilions before being caught in a lookout hall on the second floor of an elegant pavilion at the edge of a cliff.

In a distortion of clear light, the crane transformed into an intricately crafted paper crane, lifelike in its detail.

"Yang Ziqian has sent a letter back," Li Mubai said with a smile, turning to inform the two great scholars engrossed in their game, two terrible players.

Zhang Shen and Chen Tai were absorbed in their intense match and did not look up. One casually asked, "What does it say?"

Li Mubai unfolded the letter, smiling as he read. However, his smile gradually faded, his expression growing twisted.

"Shameless, simply shameless!" Li Mubai suddenly crumpled the letter in his hand and roared:

"Old scoundrel Yang Gong, shameless and disgraceful. I, Li Mubai, am ashamed of him, ashamed!"

The sudden outburst startled the two great scholars, Zhang Shen and Chen Tai.

"What is it this time? How could Ziqian's letter provoke such anger?" Zhang Shen shook his head helplessly, mocking:

"Purejing, you have a short temper, prone to anger. That's why you lost to Wei Yuan back then. Look at Wei Yuan, calm and unyielding like a mountain."

Great scholar Chen Tai nodded, "Chunjing does have a tendency towards impulsiveness. Let me see the letter."

Li Mubai was already beside himself with anger, filled with jealousy, and snorted, throwing the letter onto the chessboard.

Zhang Shen picked it up, reading intently. In the letter, Yang Gong, or Yang Ziqian, mentioned meeting the inspection team in Qingzhou and encountering Xu Qi'an.

Yang Gong lavishly praised Xu Qi'an, calling him the greatest poet of Feng in over five hundred years. As Zhang Shen read further, he sensed something was off, as if Yang Gong were boasting and ingratiating himself.

Further down was a poem:

"*Your food and your money,

flesh and blood of the people.

The people are easy to abuse,

the heavens are hard to cheat.

—Xu Qi'an (taught by Yang Gong)."

The letter stated that this was taken from an inscribed tablet.

Crash… The cliffside shook violently, stones rolling down, as clear light fluctuated within the pavilion. The roaring voices of Zhang Shen and Chen Tai echoed throughout Cloud Deer Academy.

"Yang Gong, that old scoundrel, is unworthy of being a teacher. I suggest we expel him from the Academy."

"It's one thing to take credit for a farewell poem, but this too? I won't stand for it!"

"This is infuriating, it’s so infuriating! He's even written a letter just to boast…"

…

After enjoying a Yunzhou lunch at the station, Xu Qi'an took a cold bath, feeling refreshed.

He returned to his room in white inner garments and lifted the lid of his pot. A wisp of green smoke emerged, transforming into a stunningly beautiful woman who pouted:

"You damned man!"

Xu Qi'an sighed, "I was going to let you go, but now I've changed my mind."

Su Su immediately altered her attitude, coquettishly pleading, "Master~"

Xu Qi'an narrowed his eyes, scrutinising her.

"Master, what are you looking at?" Su Su blinked her eyes, adopting a seductive pose.

"I'm wondering how Ning Caichen managed it," Xu Qi'an said bluntly.

"Who's Ning Caichen?"

"A scholar who also fell in love with a spirit."

"That spirit must have been after his vitality," Su Su pouted indignantly.

"Why?"

"Because I'm a spirit, and I crave men's vitality."

"How do you crave it?" Xu Qi'an asked, narrowing his eyes and speaking in a low tone. "Confess honestly, and I'll decide whether to release you based on the severity of your sins."

"By sucking," Su Su said with a feigned innocence. "But I only suck the vitality of wicked bandits, never the innocent."

"Suck where? I'm just curious about a spirit's methods."

"From the head."

"Which head?" Xu Qi'an's eyes flashed sharply.

Su Su looked confused, but still innocently pointed to her forehead with her slender finger, "Here."

The sharp light in Xu Qi'an's eyes immediately dimmed. He said solemnly, "I've thought it over. You have committed many evils. I can't let you go easily. Back to the pot you go."

Bang!

He covered the pot.

"What a waste of time..." Xu Qi'an muttered, standing up and leaving the room to knock on Song Tingfeng's door.

"What is it?" Song Tingfeng, who had planned to take a nap and was already undressed, asked as he opened the door.

"The Inspector is not here, but we cannot slack off. I intend to try and decipher the code left by Zhou Min. You and Guangxiao are experienced Nightwatchers, and your insights could be invaluable to my deductions."

Song Tingfeng felt both honored and ashamed hearing this from the famed detective Xu Ningyan, knowing that most Nightwatchers, including himself, were more about brute force than reasoning.

"Ningyan, I’m actually not skilled in solving cases."

"Have you heard this saying?" Xu Qi'an said seriously.

Song Tingfeng shook his head.

Xu Qi'an said, "Some casual words can clear my doubts, and a sudden impulse can drive me to continue. I pay close attention to your every move."

Song Tingfeng looked wary, "Why are you paying attention to my every move? What are you planning?"

"No, that just slipped out..."

Xu Qi'an changed the subject, "By the way, what are your thoughts on Su Su?"

As he spoke, he stared intently at Song Tingfeng, hoping to see a reaction of shame.

Song Tingfeng felt a pang in his heart at the mention of Su Su and said solemnly, "It will be my lifelong regret if I can't find her."

*She's in my room... Hasn't he figured it out yet? This doesn't make sense. As soon as he and Zhu Guangxiao compare notes, Su Su's antics should be exposed... Are they keeping it from each other? Why?*

*Is it because I'm more trustworthy?* Xu Qi'an felt a sudden surge of emotion.

"By the way, don't tell anyone about Su Su, not even Guangxiao," Song Tingfeng cautioned.

"Don't worry, I'm very discreet," Xu Qi'an said with a bright smile, then asked, "By the way, is it because I'm more trustworthy than Guangxiao?"

"No, why would you think that?" Song Tingfeng gave him a puzzled look. "It's because you have no boundaries when it comes to matters between men and women. I'm not afraid of you knowing. You can't be worse than you already are."

*...Why am I considered more shameless just because we all went to Jiaofangsi and I slept with Fuxiang while you slept with someone less attractive?* Xu Qi'an protested inwardly, thinking, I neither engage with young girls nor have a mother complex, how am I the one without boundaries?

"Every time other colleagues talk about how you sleep with Fuxiang every night without paying, everyone curses you: 'Damn scoundrel!'"

"..."

The two knocked on Zhu Guangxiao's door together. Song Tingfeng frowned, "What's wrong with you? You've been off since earlier."

Zhu Guangxiao opened his mouth as if to speak but hesitated, finally looking at Xu Qi'an.

*Why are you looking at me? Do you also think I'm a scoundrel?* Xu Qi'an rolled his eyes in irritation.

The three of them went together to the room where Zhou Min's belongings were stored and carefully examined everything for a long time. Song Tingfeng eventually gave up, saying, "We've gone through these items countless times."

Zhu Guangxiao looked at Xu Qi'an, "Ningyan, do you think there's a clue related to the code in his belongings?"

"Remember how I cracked the word puzzle to find the code?" Xu Qi'an began pacing around the room, carefully explaining his reasoning:

"Thinking from different perspectives is an essential part of deduction. Zhou Min's case is different from the Sangpo case. At least with Sangpo, there were traces to follow, and we could piece things together.

"But in this case, there are no other clues. The only lead we have is deciphering the code left by Zhou Min."

Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao nodded slightly, lost in thought.

Having experienced the Sangpo case, they had gained some insights into solving cases but were still in the stage of imitating what they had seen. If a case similar to Sangpo arose again, they could mimic Xu Qi'an's methods to try and solve it.

However, if the entry point of the case changed, they would be at a loss.

In terms of martial arts novels, Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao were still at the stage of practicing sword techniques, while Xu Qi'an had reached the level of winning without a move, holding an invisible sword in his heart.

"Don't just nod. Tell me your thoughts."

Song Tingfeng hesitated, "Leaving a code is for us to decipher. So, the clue should be in a very obvious place, easy to find, but it depends on whether we can discover it?"

"Very good, blind monk, you've found the key point." Xu Qi'an teased.

Then, he unfolded the slip of paper, looking at the two sets of codes, and said, "These are two sets of numbers. When numbers are used as codes, they must correspond to a cipher book. If we find the cipher book, we can decode the message."

Because a simple string or a few strings of numbers were meaningless in themselves, the meaning lies in what the numbers refer to.

There must be a cipher book.

"Except for the word 'Mo' [silent], the rest are numbers. The clue won't be in the map again, so where can we find a lot of numbers?" Zhu Guangxiao wondered.

"There are many clues containing numbers, aren't there numbers in books?" Song Tingfeng said.

"Good, very good guess." Xu Qi'an's eyes lit up. "Let's assume these two sets of codes are in a book. Following our previous logic, what books are the easiest for us to obtain?"

Song Tingfeng, feeling his suggestion was accepted, analyzed with renewed vigor, "The Three Character Classic, Records of the Great Feng, the Yunzhou Chronicles?"

These were all books readily available in Yunzhou. The Three Character Classic was a beginner's textbook, each prefecture has a copy of the Records of the Great Feng, and the Yunzhou Chronicles were the historical records of Yunzhou, commonly found in the constabulary and even at post stations.

They had the station attendants fetch these books but didn't immediately start flipping through them because there was another issue to resolve.

Zhu Guangxiao asked, "So what do the numbers represent, and how do we find them?"

"After losing a lot of protein, a man's brain can temporarily malfunction." Xu Qi'an looked at him seriously, "At such times, you need rest or a supplement."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, these numbers either represent page numbers or refer to specific characters. This is the simplest deduction." Xu Qi'an explained.

Song Tingfeng opened the Three Character Classic, "It's definitely not page numbers because the Three Character Classic is so thin."

He said as he flipped through the Three Character Classic, "The one hundred sixty-second character is 'Yi' [Righteousness], and the three hundred forty-seventh character is 'Qing' [Emotion].

"The other codes also decipher to: Silent man, human nature... Okay, this is incorrect."

As Song Tingfeng's attempt failed, Xu Qi'an and Zhu Guangxiao were also decoding the other two books.

Zhu Guangxiao said, "Silent flowers, deep water east... Okay, this is wrong too."

The two looked at Xu Qi'an, who dejectedly said, "Don’t freeload again…"

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