All of the officers were in shock. No one had expected Fan Xian would sooner select death before a debate. The Minister of Appointments" face went dark, with a look as if he was prepared to say something. When he raised his head, he saw the higher-ranked officers in front of him, he was silenced. He then realized that these matters were not as simple as he believed them to be.

The Bureau of Military Affairs’ head diplomat, General Qin’s, long, white beard hovered above his face like a cloud in the breeze. His eyes were squinted so much that one might have a.s.sumed he was asleep. Yan Hangshu was looking down the aisle and spotted the General’s son, Qin Heng. He was silent as well. Where was the courage he had shown in early spring, suggesting that Fan Xian become the amba.s.sador to the northern Qi Kingdom?

The military’s silence was understandable, for this was a battle of words and not one of swords. This is despite the fact that they shared a very good, long-standing relationship with the Overwatch Council. There was an officer, referred to as Shu the Scholar, who looked almost afraid; as if he had never seen the Emperor raise his voice before. Such was this scene and its palpable tension, that many of the ministers in court became petrified.

Yan Hangshu was of the mind to yell at Fan Xian, but he ultimately deemed it unnecessary for him to offend the troublesome dog while the eldest princess was away in Xinyang.

Seeing as there weren’t any chancellors barking at Fan Xian, the Emperor’s temperament was still spoiled. He gazed at Fan Xian and told him, "If you continue to offer no counter-debate, we will listen to what Officer Lai has to say."

Imperial Censor of the Left Lai Ming Cheng was keen to adhere to such an order. He immediately stepped forward and spoke aloud the crimes that were now held against Fan Xian. He over-enunciated almost every word, ensuring everyone present could hear each offence clearly. As he did so, Fan Xian thought to himself, "This guy really is something. How can he willingly place the blame for all these things on me? Those little b.a.s.t.a.r.ds I already evicted from the First Bureau accepted a few loose-change briberies last month and now I must take the fall?"

An undercurrent of discussion between the people present in the court could be heard. The way that they each looked at both Officer Lai and Fan Xian was almost unnerving. The first crime that the Imperial Censorate accused Fan Xian of was the acceptance of a bribe by Eunuch Dai, who had done so on behalf of his cousin Dai Zhen. Each and every officer there thought it insulting that Officer Lai was willing to bring this matter before everyone in the palace. They also thought that the repercussions of such a crime were wasted on Fan Xian, who had only accepted a measly 1,000 tael. None of the officers in the court would have been willing to

accept such a tiny sum.

When the Emperor heard that these matters concerning Fan Xian were involved with the palace, his facial expression remained resolute. The Emperor did, however, call upon Imperial Consort Shu to bring Eunuch Dai to the court from the manor where he currently was.

Every officer believed that the method in which Officer Lai was going about the presentation of his case was a little strange. Everyone knew that the Emperor wasn’t one to forgive those involved with bribery, nor would he send them to prison. Therefore, they were each curious as to how today’s events were set to unfold. So they bit their lips in silence, perched at the edge of their seats.

Not long later, Eunuch Dai was brought before the court. Without being told, he knew what was occurring. As he stood there, he was both afraid and a little bewildered. In his thoughts, he recollected how he pa.s.sed on the money to Yi Guipin. She was a cheerful woman, but not one to say much of anything. She was also a distant relative of Fan Xian. "Could she have sold me out? I doubt it. But then, how could these revelations have come to light by the Imperial Censorate?"

While he was in the court, greeting the Emperor, he pleaded the "injustice" that had been done upon him. He fell upon his knees, begging as tears rolled down his cheeks, proclaiming his innocence and how he had not been involved with anything unlawful. He then said, "My lord has always forbidden the workers of the palace from communicating with the officers. Me? I have no courage. I could not even dream of breaking the law or any command issued by the Emperor! Speaking of Mister Fan, I have heard his name before, but…"

Eunuch Dai was a pitiable sight. He now looked up at the Emperor and spoke: "Everyone knows about Fan Xian. He is famous. But speaking of myself, I am a n.o.body. I am Iittle more than a shadow in the Qing Kingdom. I had heard that Fan Xian visited the northern Qi Kingdom, to represent and bring further honor to our nation. It would be nigh impossible to not hear of this man. But I swear, hearing is all I have done. I never laid eyes upon this man in all my life!"

Imperial Censor of the Left Lai Mingcheng coldly asked, "You really have not seen Fan Xian before?"

Eunuch Dai’s knees ached as he knelt upon the floor. He paid no heed to it, though, as he cursed the nosy wretch before him a million times within his heart. Hearing what he asked, the eunuch perked his head and feigned the image of someone who had just remembered something. "Ah, I remember now. It was sometime last year. I think it was when I visited the Fan manor - but I only saw him once. And I was merely delivering a message. I entered and left shortly after. If that counts as seeing him, then yes, I have. But it was

was only that one time."

Eunuch Dai then began to cry out loud, proclaiming the earnestness of his words from the top of his lungs and amongst the tear-rocked mumbling and sniffles, said, "My lord, I only saw him once. Just once! If I was lying, may I be struck down by lightning and may I be once more reincarnated as a eunuch!"

The Emperor was taken aback. The eunuch’s words appeared honest, but he had no idea that the man despised his fate as a eunuch as much as he did. The Emperor was brought to anger and yelled, "What nonsense are you spouting?!"

Officer Lai looked a little worried and to perhaps ease tensions, said, "About the bribery, it’s not as if you’d both have to see each other to do it. Eunuch Dai, let me ask you something. Do you have a cousin called Dai Zhen? He is a small-time officer down at the markets, in charge of… the inspection of vegetables. Yes, he is a vegetable inspector."

Eunuch Dai did not deny anything and simply nodded.

Officer Lai continued by saying, "My lord, this Dai Zhen is the…" Officer Lai proceeded by speaking aloud the crime and its details once again. He turned his gaze back over to Fan Xian and with a chilling tone, said, "Let me ask you, Commissioner Fan. Where is Dai Zhen right now?"

Fan Xian thought for a while before answering, "That case is closed. That fellow Dai Zhen, after he was forced to relinquish the money, he was fired. Where he is now, I have no clue."

Officer Lai coldly said, "Objection! That is a lie. You took the money off Eunuch Dai, do not deny it. Dai Zhen had been a proficient inspector of vegetables for six years! Who knows how much he took from the palace? I would wager that you fired him, returned the money that he had stolen and then set him free. Your mode of operation is shrouded in a suffocating miasma of mystery."

Fan Xian looked unnerved, and so he calmly replied, "According to the Overwatch Council’s investigation, in six years, Dai Zhen accepted a number of bribes that, when all added up, amounted to the gross total of 472 tael. The third law of the Qing Kingdom specifically states that if the amount of a bribe is below 500 tael, one will only lose one"s job, pay a fine in the amount of bribed money, and pay an additional fee for committing the crime in the first place. There was no need for him to be sent to the Ministry of Punishment. Therefore, Dai Zhen was indeed fired, forced to pay 1,000 tael, and subsequently let go. I have no idea why you would think my treatment of the matter was an issue. Where is this suffocating miasma of mystery you speak of, hm?"

The case of Dai Zhen was indeed investigated by the Overwatch Council. Fan Xian spoke the truth, for he had only accepted briberies that amounted to the figure given.

Officer Lai began laughing. "472 tael? Are you

Are you trying to fool us all?"

It was a little silly for Officer Lai to say that, but then Fan Xian began laughing, too. He said, "Well, Dai Zhen was known to slip a cuc.u.mber or two into his pockets. According to the law, the sum of stolen vegetables should have been added to the tally of his briberies. That was an oversight on my own behalf, so I thank you for the reminder."

Officer Lai did not take kindly to Fan Xian making light of the situation and, with great fury, he shouted, "Ridiculous! In the past six years, Dai Zhen must have accepted a total that exceeded 4,000 tael. The civilians down at the markets are all mad about it. So why, Fan Xian? Why do you protect him? What have you to gain from this treachery?"

The court’s audience stayed silent. All that could be heard was the exchange between the commissioner and the Imperial Censor of the Left.

Fan Xian slowly lifted his head and, with frosted eyes, peered right at Officer Lai while taking a step forward.

Officer Lai saw the gravity of his demeanor and took a step back without realizing it.

Without averting his gaze, Fan Xian slowly said, "What do I want? The seething discontent of the populace?"

Fan Xian took a deep breath and continued, "Let me ask you something. You are a censor of the Imperial Censorate, correct? And you are in charge of investigating bribery, yes? If you are saying that Dai Zhen stole that much tael, and that the civilians are all mad about it, in the six years that have elapsed, why have you yet to notify anyone? I haven’t seen a single doc.u.ment make mention of Dai Zhen’s crimes. Perhaps you are the one who is looking to cover the tracks of others? Come on, tell us. Why didn’t you alert the correct personnel and arrange to capture Dai Zhen?"

Fan Xian suddenly exploded with rage, much to the bewilderment of his audience.

Fan Xian would not permit Officer Lai the opportunity to speak, and with a fiery look, he said, "I have been in charge of the First Bureau for less than a month, and we were already made aware that Dai Zhen was accepting bribes. Officer Lai knew that Dai Zhen was accepting bribes and thieving from the helpless populace for over six years and did nothing about it. When the Overwatch Council investigated it, we quickly sorted it out. Case closed. The Imperial Censorate on the other hand, had their head in the sand for six years.

"Six years!? And you have the audacity to tell me that the Overwatch Council is the one that is corrupted?"

Fan Xian bowed before the Emperor on his throne. He then turned around with anger to face Officer Lai once more. He said, "I really want to ask something. What are you trying to pull here?"

After a barrage of questions, Officer Lai remained silent. He was petrified. He acknowledged he had made a mistake in his dialogue earlier, which left a breach in his defensein his defense for Fan Xian to latch right onto, so that he could swing the discussion around. If he were to admit that the Imperial Censorate was not aware of the corrupt officer Dai Zhen, it would still put Fan Xian in the right, for there was no way to disgrace his claim that Dai Zhen only stole 400 tael. In his fury earlier, when he told the court that Dai Zhen must have accepted 4,000 tael in total, he walked right into the trap Fan Xian had laid out for him. He fell for it, hook, line and sinker. As the second-in-command for the Imperial Censorate, he could not claim to have known about it for six years without doing anything to resolve the situation. This case was only brought to their attention following the Overwatch Council’s investigation, after all. After Fan Xian pointed this out, it sounded as if the Imperial Censorate was desperate in their jealousy of the Overwatch Council, framing them with false allegations.

All the officers in the court stared at Officer Lai with unpleasantness in their eyes. When they turned to look at Fan Xian, it was only with respect and admiration. Of course, these officers knew what was going on, but it was Fan Xian’s ability to lay traps for his opponent with no prior planning that astounded them. With this power and wisdom, it drove fear into the hearts of even the oldest, most jaded officers who were there. Fan Xian was unlike any of the other young officers.

In their hearts, they were each and all thinking that this Fan Xian could not only write and fight with superb dexterity, but that he was more than suited to be a politician. They each thought his father, Fan Jian, was extremely lucky to have a son as talented as this.

The Imperial Censor of the Left Lai Ming Cheng’s lips were trembling. He fell to his knees and as he gasped for breath. He at last spoke. "I know I have done wrong. Please punish me, My Lord! But Fan Xian broke the law; you cannot simply let him go. Take him to the Supreme Court and you are guaranteed to find something out."

The Emperor had grown annoyed long ago. Seeing Fan Xian’s behavior, however, he was almost brought to smile. He spoke, "Okay, okay. I understand. You are the Imperial Censorate’s second-in-command; if you were unable to catch on to the treacherous misdeeds of a professional vegetable inspector, that’s fine. I won’t punish you this time. But if you come into my courtroom with falsified allegations again, using the "anger of the people" as justification, I’ll have you know that I am not like the emperor of northern Qi or Wei. And Qing is a different kind of nation. Do not seek to bolster your reputation again.

Trying to bolster his reputation? Lai Mingcheng was filled with both anger and embarra.s.sment. He felt as if he would rather die than be known for that. He maintained his position on the floor, and kowtowed repeatedly.