Chapter 29
Rumors — as they circulate, they gradually take on a different flavor
By the time the whispers from the palace reached the common people, they had turned into the Emperor's own golden words. Those who spread the tale swore on their lives, as though they had personally witnessed the Emperor dressing down the Marquis Zhenbei at the palace gates—and the crowd nodded along in eager agreement.
The ones happiest to hear them were Wen Yao and Qi Fan. Both had suffered at Shen Nian's hands—been beaten, been humiliated. Now, true or false, they clung to the news like a lifeline, praying day and night that the Heavens would strike Shen Nian down, that he would fall so low they could finally trample him underfoot and avenge every blow and every curse they had endured.
The civil and military officials also wished the rumors were true—though most chose to watch from the sidelines. They adopted an air of calm detachment, letting the gossip swirl around them. Yet as the days passed and Marquis Zhenbei failed to return to the palace, a flicker of doubt crept into their minds: Could it really be that he has fallen from favor?
Shen Nian was currently filling in as acting Left Commander, taking Yang Jinglei's place and overseeing the defense of the imperial palace.
How could a man entrusted with the Emperor's safety stay away from the palace for days on end?
And the Emperor's silence on the matter was equally puzzling—not a single word of reproach or summons.
Those who supported Shen Nian began to push back against the rumors. They argued: "The Emperor clearly holds the Marquis in high regard. If he truly had cursed him out of the palace, there would have been consequences by now. But His Majesty hasn't said a word—and yet the rumors keep growing wilder. Someone clearly wants to harm the Marquis and is using these lies as a weapon against him."
Of course, behind the scenes, other officials quietly fanned a different flame—that Marquis Zhenbei, drunk on his military exploits, held the Emperor in contempt and sought to use the North Frontier Army to dominate all under Heaven.
When Shen Nian, the subject of all this chatter, caught wind of it, he could only sigh in resignation.
Ever since he came back to the capital, Qi Junmu had been pushing him right into the line of fire—making enemies out of everyone from Prince Ying to his own family. The knots of resentment were so tangled you couldn't count them all, and the people who wanted him dead far outnumbered those who didn't. After all, rumors could be deadlier than any blade.
The truth was, he had not entered the palace these past few days simply because he had been unwell. He had followed proper procedure, submitted a formal leave request, and received the Emperor's approval for a few days of rest. He was scheduled to return to his post at the palace tomorrow.
How had that turned into ammunition for talk of favor and disfavor?
Shen Nian was not worried that Qi Junmu would believe such gossip—at least not for now.
In fact, during his days of rest at home, he had found himself thinking a great deal about the Emperor. Beyond the shock of that bizarre picture booklet, what occupied his mind was the man himself—Qi Junmu.
When he had been at the border, Shen Nian had felt little toward this new Emperor.
Qi Junmu seemed no different from any other sovereign. For any new emperor, the very first task was always to tighten his grip on power—and men like him, who commanded large frontier armies, were naturally the first to fall under suspicion.
He had defied imperial orders more than once, and by the time he returned to the capital, he had already resigned himself to handing over his military tally.
He had braced for the worst—that Qi Junmu might be a reckless tyrant who would jump at any chance to use his defiance as an excuse to have him killed on the spot.
Before his death, Shen Nian's father, Shen Yi, had insisted that the Emperor Jing would never choose a fool to succeed him. No matter how much the new ruler might wish to reclaim military authority, he would still observe the proper courtesies—there would be a period of harmony between sovereign and subject.
Emperor Jing had been harsh toward others—he had spilled much blood during his reign, built his throne on a mountain of bones. His cruelty was notorious—he had put his own brothers to death without mercy, faced whispered accusations of killing his own father, and left rivers of blood in his wake whenever anyone dared to oppose him.
But for the frontier soldiers, as long as their pay was not docked and they had winter coats to keep out the cold, that was already a great blessing.
Most of them were far from the capital, untouched by the bloody purges, and had little sense of Emperor Jing's brutality.
It was the generals who felt it most—the Emperor doubted them, demanded perfection, and allowed no missteps.
Of all the frontier garrisons, the northern theater carried the heaviest load—and Shen Yi had felt that pressure more keenly than anyone.
He had once betrayed Emperor Jing and earned the Emperor's lasting distrust, which forced him to tread carefully every waking moment of his life.
And yet, even on his deathbed, Shen Yi still believed that Emperor Jing would never choose a worthless man to take the throne.
Shen Nian had not known whether to believe his father's words.
He had run through every possible scenario about the new Emperor—but never had he imagined things would turn out like this.
After so many years on the frontier, he had grown skilled at sensing ill intent in others. But that instinct failed him completely when it came to Qi Junmu.
He could tell that Qi Junmu wanted his military power—that much was clear. Yet the man showed no fear of him.
Even when Qi Junmu used him, he did it openly, speaking his mind with such frankness that it was almost disarming.
Sometimes Shen Nian found himself genuinely curious about what went on in Qi Junmu's mind. Yes, the Emperor was suspicious by nature—but he seemed utterly convinced that Shen Nian harbored no treasonous ambitions.
Where that trust came from, Shen Nian had no idea.
This Emperor was, to him, a fascinating puzzle.
Just as Shen Nian was carefully dissecting Qi Junmu's character, a young servant came to announce that the Old Madam had summoned him.
The once-vast Shen family now housed only four masters: Old Madam Shen, Wen shi, Shen Nian, and Shen Qing.
Wen shi had some distant relation to Old Madam Shen's family. She had been an orphan, and Old Madam Shen had taken her in out of pity, raising her in the Shen family. Later, Old Madam Shen arranged her marriage to Shen Yi.
Wen shi had gone from being a forlorn orphan that everyone avoided to the rightful daughter-in-law of the Shen family—a change so dramatic it was almost hard to believe.
Old Madam Shen doted on Shen Nian, for he was the eldest legitimate grandson. It was she who, noticing Wen shi's overbearing favoritism toward Shen Qing, had written to Shen Yi and urged him to take Shen Nian to the frontier. Knowing of Emperor Jing's animosity toward the Shen family, Old Madam Shen had kept a low profile ever since the family's decline.
Had Emperor Jing not shown Shen Yi a sliver of mercy—and had Shen Yi not proven himself capable—the Shen family would have been annihilated.
Mindful of the Emperor's grievances, Old Madam Shen had spent these years in quiet devotion, eating vegetarian meals and chanting sutras, leaving all household affairs to Wen shi. Shen Nian held his grandmother in genuine respect.
Since returning from the northern border, Shen Nian had only seen Old Madam Shen on the first and fifteenth of each month; the rest of the time, she remained in her Buddhist hall. This was the first time she had taken the initiative to summon him.
Naturally, he would answer the call—and he had a fair guess as to why she had sent for him.
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