The Empress's No.1 Lackey-Chapter 370 - 314, Chief of Staff blocks the way, examining the archives, the origin of the female sorcerer_2

Indeed, unlike those distinguished guests at the inn, the common people of the Capital are discussing Gao Lian's atrocities of rape and pillage, his selfish framing and extermination of entire families, and the wrongful killing of innocent people.

The common folk are filled with righteous indignation, cursing that the corrupt official deserves to die.

Hmm... if there are no surprises, this must be a rumor started by Yuan Li, or someone from the Imperial Faction... As Zhao Douan was pondering, a man looking like a house servant approached and said respectfully,

"Sir, my master invites you for a talk."

"Whose servant are you?" Zhao Douan asked with curiosity.

The servant lifted his hand and pointed towards a secluded street corner, where a carriage was parked by the roadside.

At that moment, the carriage curtain was lifted, revealing a somewhat familiar face.

Minister of Rites!

Zhao Douan was taken aback. He didn't have much interaction with this high-ranking official who was in charge of one of the six ministries.

His most profound memory was that of his son, Wang You, who was one of the scholars at the Xiuwen Pavilion.

The few subsequent encounters had mostly been at public occasions, with the relationship only extending to mutual attendance.

What does he want from me? Is it a mere coincidence, or is he specifically seeking me out?

Zhao Douan quickly recalled the man's political stance in his mind. The Wang family was one of the Great Yu Dynasty's noble clans, though not among the Jiangnan gentry.

This man was neither a member of the "Li Party" nor of the "Clean Stream Faction."

He could be considered as part of the Imperial Faction, but not a core member—rather, someone who had been co-opted.

"Minister Wang, what a coincidence. May I ask what you need me for?" Zhao Douan approached the carriage and greeted with a clasped hand.

The Minister of Rites, a noble gentleman from a scholarly family since childhood and now middle-aged, carried the demeanor of his class and smiled, "Mr. Zhao, why not get into the carriage for our talk?"

"Heh, no need, I still have some matters to attend to. Let's just talk standing here." Zhao Douan politely refused.

As if.

Does he think I'd just get into that carriage without a second thought?

Minister Wang's eyes flickered, and without trying to persuade further, his servants tactfully walked away before he sighed and said,

"It's nothing much, just that I've heard Lord Zhao has arrested Gao Lian and brought him back to the Capital, which has astonished all the civil and military officials..."

Zhao Douan said with a beaming smile, "Mr. Wang, I'm someone who likes to get straight to the point. Just say what you need to say; there's no need to beat around the bush."

Minister Wang let out a wry smile, "Yes, I've been rambling. In that case... Well."

He spoke seriously, "Regarding Gao Lian's punishment, I wonder what Lord Zhao thinks? I, for one, don't have many dealings with Governor Gao, but I've heard he's always been reserved and virtuous. It's hard to believe he'd commit such deeds, and I can't help but wonder..."

Zhao Douan smiled and said, "Are you criticizing me for wrongly accusing a loyal official?"

"No! Far from it," Minister Wang hurriedly waved his hand and said,

"Who in the court doesn't know of Lord Zhao's capability? But even a Saint can be deceived by a scoundrel. In my opinion, it's possible that Lord Zhao might have been tricked by Wang Chusheng, or someone else.

My point is that dealing with a governor, who's also a significant regional official, cannot be taken lightly. Furthermore, even if Gao Lian is indeed guilty, given the current juncture—with the rebels still rampant and the court's political scene unstable—punishing someone like Gao Lian harshly could cause the Jiangnan gentry to lose faith and loyalty. It might do more harm than good to both the Great Yu Dynasty and to Lord Zhao himself.

These words are inappropriate to say openly, so consider this a private reminder. Publicly, Gao Lian's case should be carefully reviewed, and privately, since you, Lord Zhao, have already achieved great merit, there's no need to push things to the extreme."

Zhao Douan watched the other party intently and said calmly,

"Minister Wang, for whom are you speaking these words today? Or who sent you to relay this message?"

Minister Wang vehemently denied any such implications, with a righteous demeanor:

"Lord Zhao has misunderstood. I act solely for the public good, for the court, for Your Majesty. If I represent anyone, it is the court and Your Majesty. If I am relaying a message for anyone, it's only for the common people and for the nation."

What a slick way to claim speaking for the common people... Zhao Douan inwardly cursed and replied with an indifferent expression,

"Minister Wang is a man of public spirit, and I admire that. However, I've returned to the Capital and am no longer the imperial envoy; subsequent proceedings of this case are not my concern, as it is now under the review of the Three Agencies. Minister Wang, you should express your concerns to them. I have pressing matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave now."

After that, he turned around and walked away.

"Lord Zhao? Mr. Zhao?"

Minister Wang called out twice, but seeing that his words had no effect, he sighed in defeat and finally called out,

"Consider this, if you take the appropriate actions now, it's simply lending a helping hand. Not taking action might still resolve the issue, but then that favor could turn into a resentment. Think carefully about it."

After speaking, Minister Wang seemed to have completed a task and pulled back into the carriage, urging the driver to leave.

Mr. Zhao Douan stood still, turned his head, and watched the other party disappear into the crowd, deep in thought.

...

In the afternoon.

Mr. Zhao Douan went to the Imperial Palace once more, not to see the Empress but to use the Tributor's waist card to enter through the palace gate and headed towards the armory.

He found the entrance to the government office where the Imperial Family's Tributors were located.

The last time he was here was to receive his Tributor's waist card. Upon arriving, he first inquired about Eunuch Hai's whereabouts and received the reply:

"The eunuch is resting and does not see visitors."

Resting? Sleeping at this hour? Mr. Zhao Douan murmured sarcastically, wasn't it said that the older one gets, the less sleep they need?

The on-duty eunuch in the government office, knowing Mr. Zhao Douan's special identity, carefully said:

"If you have an urgent matter, you may still send a message."

"No need," Mr. Zhao Douan waved his hand, saying:

"I want to check the Shadow Guard's records. Where can I view them, or, with my authorization, can I access them?"

The young eunuch pointed with a smile to the building opposite the government office:

"In that Archival Repository. The basic information of the Shadow Guard is all there. You can go and check them out by yourself. Only a few of the top-secret ones are not kept here."

Being able to check by himself was best... Mr. Zhao Douan nodded his head, went out to the Archival Repository, presented his waist card, and entered smoothly.

And smoothly, on one of the bookshelves in the Archival Repository, he found the files for "Gold Shadow Guard of Linfeng."

This chapt𝒆r is updated by frёewebηovel.cѳm.

"This is it!"

Mr. Zhao Douan picked up a file covered in a thin layer of dust, opened it, and on the first page was indeed the picture of the woman wearing the bronze face armor.

"Hong Ye? Her name is Hong Ye?" Mr. Zhao Douan finally learned her name.

The members of the Shadow Guard were generally comprised of three types of people: one type was hereditary succession, meaning when an old Shadow Guard retired or died, they could recommend their descendants to replace them and join.

Another type was soldiers transferred from the military, often "military scouts" who were exceptionally talented and selected for transfer.

Then, there were those recruited from the outside world, such as Jianghu people and even merchants, who would be incorporated as members of the Shadow Guard.

However, these types often operated peripherally, mostly responsible for collecting intelligence and providing some assistance.

The information showed that this Shadow Guard named "Hong Ye" was an internal successor, and her specialties were assassination and tracking.

As for the legacy she mastered, it had no name, but was passed down in a single line.

It was a unique martial art that combined "Sword Dao" and the "Magic" of the Great Mother God.

"Huh, she also practices both martial arts and magic? Hmm... but it seems to be different from the Martial God inheritance...

The Martial God combines the two into one, whereas Hong Ye just straightforwardly roots her practice in the Cultivation Method of magicians and practices Sword Dao martial arts at the same time... Hmm, if I have to make a comparison, it's like the Buddhist monk Tian Hai, right?"

Mr. Zhao Douan tried to understand.

"So, she's essentially a magician, but her combat style leans more towards that of a martial artist... Hiss, reminds me of mages who use a Magic Wand for physical attacks..."

"Great Mother God? One of the righteous gods, only women can worship this deity, but she isn't on the list of deities mainly followed by the Heavenly Master Mansion or Divine Dragon Temple...

She was more active a thousand years ago, but since the deity's magic combat power was weaker and more supportive... so it gradually declined... Hmm, I understand why she had to also practice martial arts..."

Mr. Zhao Douan flipped through the contents of the dossier, suddenly enlightened.

He continued to flip through and saw densely packed records of Hong Ye's achievements on the pages.

Quickly skimming through, he indeed found a description of the origins of this inheritance at the end:

"Those who practice this legacy wear a face armor to gather Mana, and in times of life and death, lifting the face armor can grant empowerment... This legacy can be traced back to about six hundred years ago, concurrent with the Grand Ancestor Emperor, to the first female sorcerer of Jianghu, Pei Niannu.

History records her battling the Grand Ancestor with no decisive winner, and in a fight against her enemy, she lifted her face armor to enter a pseudo-Heavenly Human Realm, pursued the strong foe for three thousand li until she was exhausted and perished."

"Note: As recorded in 'Grand Ancestor's Handwritten Notes·Volume Six·Family Letters', Pei Niannu often lingered in teahouses, listening to story-tellers with fascination, unable to extricate herself, especially when stories were left unfinished. She would often detain storytellers with secret techniques until they concluded the tale before letting them go."

...

Feeling unwell, only one chapter today. I will strive to write more tomorrow to make up for it.