Bone Painting Coroner

Deserved to be rewarded!

If what Qin Shiyu said was accurate, not only should Jing Rong be rewarded, it should even be something big. Qi Zhen Emperor contemplated as his furrowed brows gradually relaxed. He made a gesture and said, “Fine, I’ll think about it.”

Qin Shiyu bowed his head.

However, Qi Zhen Emperor had another concern, “Marquis Kang must be feeling unsatisfied after losing two-thousand troops in the ambush.”

“That is exactly the other reason why the humble servant came today.”

“Huh?”

“Your Majesty knows well Marquis Kang’s temper. Although he lent the troops voluntarily, losing two thousand troops must have displeased him. Your Majesty might as well compensate him so that he will not chatter about this in the future, saying that the royal court is indebted to him.”

“Do I have to reimburse the two thousand troops?”

“That’s not necessary. Your Majesty only have to pay him with the love of his life.”

The love of his life!

Everything was clear for Qi Zhen Emperor now. Amongst all the civilian and military officers at the court, everyone knew that Marquis Kang’s love of his life was the golden woven armour! Qi Zhen Emperor frowned as he weighed the pros and cons in his mind.

Outside the hall.

Jing Yi had not left, instead he was standing outside. After a short while, an eunuch came. He bowed and muttered a few words by Jing Yi’s ears, then he murmured, “Prince Yi, that’s all this humble one heard.”

Jing Yi nodded and glanced at the hall purposefully. Then, he left and headed straight to Xiao Concubine’s residence to report all he knew in full detail.

Xiao Concubine squinted her phoenix eyes and tapped the arm of her chair with her long, manicured fingernails. A moment later, she said, “Just disregard this issue for now. Jing Rong has already left the capital. What you should worry about now, is your marriage with the eldest daughter of the Ji Family instead of the Prince who’ll eventually lose to you.”

Jing Yi nodded, “Yes, this son understands.” He was always respectful to his Imperial Mother.

“Your Imperial Father has not been in a good mood. Although he appears to be fine, he is very sad about the Crown Prince’s death. After a period of time has passed and the incident has faded from his mind, I will suggest the marriage between you and Ji Family to your Imperial Father. The most important thing for you now is to avoid making any mistakes. Prince Rong is out of the capital, hence, regardless of how he’s doing, you don’t have to pay too much attention on him. But in front of your Imperial Father, you should always try to speak highly of Prince Rong.”

“Yes, I will listen to Imperial Mother.” Jing Yi was very obedient. After all, this was a critical moment in his life.

After talking about her son’s issue, Xiao Concubine was again reminded of her daughter. She sighed as her head started to hurt. She supported her head with her delicate fingers and massaged her temples.

Jing Yi noticed her change of expression. He understood what his Imperial Mother was thinking, hence, he asked, “Imperial Mother, you’re worried about Xuan’er?”

Xiao Concubine nodded. “I’ve grounded that girl for so many days. She has barely eaten anything and lost quite some weight. Of course I am worried. However, I’m afraid that she will reveal our plan to your Imperial Father and all our preparations will be in vain.” She sighed again.

“So, what’s Imperial Mother’s plan?”

Concubine Xiao stood up and paced back and forth, a troubled expression on her face. Suddenly, her eyes beamed as an idea emerged. “Xuan’er has reached the age of marriage. Instead of locking her up in the palace, I might as well just let her go. The third son of the King of Huyi sent a minister here last year. He delivered a letter to seek for marriage alliance. However, at that time, a large-scaled corruption took place around Pi Province, hence this matter was postponed. After the proposal was deferred, King of Qujiang happened to seek for marriage as well. Hence, the marriage proposal was delayed further until now.” The intention was obvious.

Jing Yi was kind of shocked, “Why did Imperial Mother never mention this before?”

“That letter was sent directly to your Imperial Father by the diplomat. Only a few of the ministers knew about this and briefly spoke to me about it. I didn’t take it seriously back then.”

“So Imperial Mother plans to bring it up with Imperial Father now? And marry Xuan’er off to Huyi?”

“Although the people of Huyi are mostly barbarians, it is a wealthy place. I have heard that the third son of the King of Huyi is a decent man. He is versed in both literature and military affairs. The King of Huyi values him, so he might be the new king in the future. By then, Xuan’er will be the queen.” It seemed as if she were playing a carefully calculated game of chess.

Jing Yi was doubtful, “Will this work?”

“As long as your Imperial Father agrees to this, everything will work out. But it doesn’t matter if it’s Xuan’er’s marriage or yours, we will talk about it later. In case this creates more trouble for your Imperial Father and causes an opposite effect.”

“Yes.”

Both of them stayed silent. But in Xiao Concubine’s mind, she had already had a perfect plan.

……

…

The next day, the Emperor sent down an order. Prince Rong had done both right and wrong. Hence, there was neither punishment nor reward for him. On the other hand, Marquis Kang would be rewarded! The two imperial edicts were delivered from the capital. One was sent to Jing Rong at Shanhuai Province, and another to Marquis Kang at Jing Province, along with the golden woven armour.

For this, Marquis Kang was very much delighted. He teared up as he held the golden woven armour. Eventually, he could not help but bawl loudly. The precious thing he had been longing for his whole life finally belonged to him. Of course, he could not contain his emotions. He brought the armour along with him to eat, to sleep, and even to the toilet. He even ordered people to customise an exquisite box so that he could keep the armour in it. Six locks were installed to secure the armour inside the box. Everyone else was speechless.

The moment Jing Rong received the imperial edict, he discarded it at the bottom of a box. After this incident, he was more careful than ever, and was essentially attached to Ji Yunshu at the hip. If he could, he would hang his eyeballs on her. He was so afraid that this woman would be taken away again. Just like how people described it as, ‘fear of dropping when you hold it in your hands, fear of melting when you hold it in your mouth’.

However, Ji Yunshu had been distressed for two days. Jing Rong tried to comfort her by saying, “This Prince has already sent people to the Gaoshan Village. It doesn’t matter if the village has turned into a ruin or the crystal has melted, if the jade is still there, I will find it for you.”

Ji Yunshu rolled her eyes at him. “Are you stupid? How can jade melt? Only the colour on the outer surface of the jade will change.”

“…” Jing Rong was irritated but couldn’t argue.

“Is the jade from Wei Yi so important to you?”

“That belongs to his dad?” Jing Rong was surprised and he said in disgust, “Ji Yunshu, are you crazy? Why are you so worried about his dad’s jade? What enormous secret was hidden in the jade? Is it a treasure map?”

You’re the crazy one!

Ji Yunshu glared at him. “That was the only thing his dad left for him. He gave it to me, yet I lost it. How am I supposed to explain this to him?”

Jing Rong’s face was painted with jealousy, yet he swallowed that feeling. He softened his voice and said, “Fine, if that item is still around, I will definitely get it back to you. Don’t worry.”

At this moment, Jing Rong’s guard rushed in and shouted joyfully, “Prince, Teacher Ji, it’s found, it’s found! The jade has been found!”

Ji Yunshu stood up and went out of the room. The guard carefully handed the jade to her, and said, “Teacher Ji, is this the one?”

Ji Yunshu held it in her palm and nodded happily. “Yes, this is the one.”

“That’s good, then.” The guard wiped off the sweat on his face.

“Where did you find it?”

“The first master of Gaoshan Gang sent it to us. He sent it here after he found out that Teacher Ji lost a jade. He said that his people found it in the fire.”

“Fire?”

“Yes.”

Weird! This jade was found in the fire, yet it still looks perfect and not scratched. Is it possible that this is a legendary jade? Wow, I found a treasure!

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