The Slender Waist-Chapter 68 - 55 To Kill One’s Own Father

The weather was sweltering, and Feng Yun didn’t return to the General Residence, opting to stay in Changmen Village with a group of servants and attendants.

Old Lady Han saw her poor appetite and went out of her way to procure some fresh delicacies for her, scouring the nearby villages. She bartered at one house for some green vegetables, at another for a couple of ears of corn, trying to vary the meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Still, Feng Yun was visibly losing weight.

Every morning, she woke up with a string of yawns as if she owed a lot of sleep and her temper worsened a bit too.

Even Ao Zi, that little thing, was listless and droopy, as if he hadn’t slept at night, finding a cool spot during the day to curl up in...

"Ao Zi used to go out at night before, but he hasn’t been going out recently."

Old Lady Han felt that both the woman and the cat were off, and she reached out again to touch Feng Yun’s forehead,

"You’re not sick, are you?"

Feng Yun shook her head, "It’s the heat."

She glanced at Ao Zi sleeping soundly, "Zi is tired too. Let him sleep."

Old Lady Han gave an ’oh’ sound, "Then I’ll get some tasty treats for Zi."

When she went out, she saw Peipei and Huanhuan, the two maids, carrying water to the cleaning room again, frowning tightly.

Shi’er Niang was not fond of her meals and couldn’t sleep well, but her bathing frequency increased?

"Autumn has passed, how can it still be so hot that one can’t eat?"

Under the eaves, two maids were sweeping and chatting.

In the yard, there were villagers from Huaxi Village bringing goods in exchange for mosquito-repellent incense.

That was something Feng Yun recently had Alou prepare in Shiguan County, claiming it was made with pine resin, mugwort, sulfur, and even arsenic, among other things. The ingredients themselves were rather expensive, but the lady had ordered that as long as the villagers were offering, whether it was a bunch of greens or an egg, whatever they brought should be exchanged.

Alou felt a bit heartache but dared not disobey the order.

Watching the two women leave with many thanks, he sighed and then bumped into Old Lady Han’s scrutinizing gaze.

"Manager Alou."

"..." Alou was terrified.

Old Lady Han used to affectionately call him Alou, treating him like a nephew.

This address as manager Alou, how could he bear it?

"If there’s anything you need, just order me around, but please don’t scare me..."

Old Lady Han pulled him a few steps outside the courtyard, "Is the lady feeling unwell?"

Alou jumped, "What?"

Old Lady Han thought for a moment, "Is she suffering from some illness and has instructed you not to let me know?"

Alou wiped the sweat off his forehead and replied with a smile, "That can’t be. The lady said that Old Lady Han is the treasure of the village, the first to be revered, and if there were such a thing, how dare we hide it from you..."

Hmph! Old Lady Han saw that he was honest and her mood improved quite a bit.

"In this blistering heat, you shouldn’t exhaust yourself either, it’s already late, you better go rest."

Alou was gratefully thankful.

At last, did someone notice that he too had lost weight?

—

At night, Huaxi Village was in complete silence.

Alou dared not sleep too deeply, getting up to check on any slight commotion.

After tossing and turning until the third watch, he finally settled down and fell into a deep sleep, not waking until he heard arguing and clamoring outside, thinking it was just a dream.

Until the door was knocked on. He dressed and went out, just in time to bump into Ao Qi coming from the inner room.

The youth, dark circles under his eyes, was fuming as he drew his waist knife.

"I’ll go see which suicidal fool dares to come knocking this early to take someone."

Alou saw his rage and raised his hand to call out to Guard Ao, about to say something, but the young man, long-legged and fast, had vanished before he could speak.

Alas?

Alou hurried out only to be surprised to see Ao Qi reluctantly sheathing his knife.

The visitor was none other than the Censorate Chancellor Ao Zheng, Ao Qi’s own father.

The Censorate Chancellor was responsible for supervising officials and had the authority to impeach them; his position was greatly feared among the officers.

Therefore, Ao Zheng never expected someone to come at him with a drawn knife, causing him to break into a cold sweat before he finally recognized that the damned individual was his own son, which made his anger erupt.

"Kneel down!"

The courtyard was filled with a dark crowd.

From the main gate to the yard, packed by over a hundred Imperial Guards.

Meiling’s attendants, about two dozen of them, were squeezed in the middle by the soldiers, like patties in a bun, utterly defenseless.

The commander was the Left Guard General of the Imperial Guards, Wei Zheng.

This man was formerly a military officer serving the Eastern Palace, and after the Young Emperor ascended to the throne, he was admitted to stay in the palace chambers. Because he was tall and handsome, he was also favored by the Empress Dowager, which naturally elevated his status.

In front of Wei Zheng, Ao Zheng wished he could strangle his son.

Ao Qi did not resist much and thumped down onto his knees on the stone pavement.

"Son pays respect to father."

Ao Zheng was both angry and heartbroken over his son.

Ever since Ao Qi left home to follow his uncle into battle, this was the first time father and son met.

The son had grown taller, his skin darkened by the sun and his frame thinner, with eyes like those of a young wolf, wide and round as if he hadn’t slept well. While he inwardly questioned how his uncle had taken care of the boy, he outwardly only hummed.

"Stand up when you speak."

Ao Qi listlessly got to his feet, looking at his own father with eyes that were turning red.

"Why would my father come to this war-ridden Andu County instead of enjoying his easy life in Central Capital?"

"Get lost, it’s none of your business," Ao Zheng felt that his son’s expression was very bad, as if he had been grievously wronged.

But with so many people present, he couldn’t talk about private matters.

Alou didn’t recognize the origins of this group of soldiers and seeing that they were not part of the Northern Yong army and the leader was Ao Qi’s own father, he hesitated for a moment before stepping forward to bow deeply in greeting.

"I am the steward of Changmen Village in Huaxi Village. May I ask the officials here..."

"Get out!" Wei Zheng, full of anger, didn’t let Alou finish his sentence and hurried forward to shove him forcefully.

"What do you think you are? Daring to question the master? Call your lord out to answer us."

Alou was half a head shorter than him and still not fully recovered. He was somewhat weak, and staggered a couple of steps back.

He didn’t get angry. Instead, he dusted off his sleeves and politely bowed again, "Our miss wakes up at the hour of Mao, and it’s not good to disturb her. Perhaps the officials would care to wait in the West Hall..."

"Haha?" Wei Zheng sneered twice, staring at him, "The daughter of the Feng Family of Changmen Academy in Huaxi Village harbors the Qi Army’s defender Wen Xingsu, commits treason, and sells out her country. With such a grave crime, you expect us to wait for her to get up at the hour of Mao?"

Upon hearing this, Ao Qi became anxious, "What nonsense are you talking about?"

Ao Zheng grabbed his arm, "Shut your mouth! Your case will be dealt with later; you have no place to speak here."

"Father!"

"Guards, take this gentleman away."

Ao Qi widened his eyes, continuously calling out ’Father’, but a son must not defy his father. His face full of anger, he dared not shake off Ao Zheng’s hand, and his forehead was covered in cold sweat.

Alou glanced towards the lady’s residence, calming his heart slightly, and inquired again with another bow.

"If the officials are here to arrest someone, do you have the arrest warrant?"

"What kind of bully are you?" Wei Zheng cursed, and with another fierce shove, knocked Alou to the ground.

Bang! Alou’s body slammed into the paved stone, his vision blurring with pain.

Before he could get up, a boot was already stepping on his face.

"Listen!" Wei Zheng ground his teeth, pressing down hard on Alou’s face as he laughed sinisterly, his eyes shifting towards Xing Bing and the Meiling troops who were eager to act.

"I am here by imperial command to capture the traitor colluding with the enemy and bring them back to Central Capital for interrogation. If all of you lay down your weapons and kneel to beg for mercy, you may just get a chance to live... Otherwise, you will all be considered accomplices of the Feng Family woman and punished severely!"

Alou grimaced in pain, his ears ringing.

The faces of the Meiling soldiers had already changed color.

Xing Bing said, "If you can’t present an arrest warrant from the Andu County Office, how are you any different from bandits?"

He asked loudly.

Immediately after, someone brought up Pei Jue to intimidate them.

"Have you obtained General Pei’s permission to take someone in Andu County?"

"Exactly, you should inquire what the relationship is between Huaxi Changmen Village and General Pei. You dare to bypass the General and send troops to arrest someone privately; just wait to face the General’s military law..."

"General Pei?" Wei Zheng glanced over with a cold look and a prideful smile, "Even an Emperor is subject to the same laws as the common people. Do you think you can do as you please just because you have General Pei’s support?"

He shouted, then whispered to Ao Zheng, who was stroking his beard, "Master of the Censorate, give the order."

Ao Zheng glanced at his son, who looked back angrily, his face showing a moment of hesitation.

"General Wei must not act rashly. Let us see the person first and ask in detail before making a decision," he said.

"Master of the Censorate is scared?"

Wei Zheng sneered again.

Of course, he knew what Ao Zheng was concerned about.

But he didn’t believe it.

Pei Jue was far away at the Huaishui Bay camp, nearly a hundred miles from here. Would he come to this dilapidated village to support a concubine?

It was merely an empty show of power. Wei Zheng didn’t take it seriously at all.

The Empress Dowager had sent him personally to apprehend the person, clearly providing him with a reason to establish his authority.

He must not disappoint her.

Even if he offended General Pei, what of it? As long as he took the person out of Andu County, could Pei Jue come with a sword to Jiafu Palace and demand his head?

With this thought, Wei Zheng grew arrogant again.

"The person, I am determined to take. Master of the Censorate, see to it as you please," he said.

Seeing Ao Zheng remain silent, Wei Zheng’s smile grew even more sarcastic.

"The Censorate Chancellor supervises hundreds of officials; surely you’re not considering covering up malfeasance, are you?"

Ao Zheng’s expression darkened.

He had never thought Wei Zheng’s rise to power was due to any genuine talent; a pretty boy like him wasn’t even fit to shine the shoes of his battle-capable young uncle.

"I don’t care for those words, General Wei," said Ao Zheng.

Ao Zheng, twirling his beard and casting a sidelong glance, retorted, "If General Wei has actual proof of my dereliction and favoritism, why not impeach me at the Golden Throne Hall and charge me with the crime of failing to maintain ministerial integrity? Why bother spouting such nonsense here?"