The Empress's No.1 Lackey

Shen Juan returned with his sword in hand, his eyes still unable to hide his excitement. Seeing Zhao Douan deep in thought, he couldn't help but cautiously say,

"Sir, were the brothers not harsh enough? Shall I chase after them and beat them up some more? Or if you're worried about trouble, we can wait till tonight, change into plain clothes, and block that Master Hee..."

Zhao Douan snapped out of his musings, glanced at him, and said irritably,

"I told you to be firm when facing trouble, but that doesn't mean you should go looking for it."

The second-generation layabout from Lihua Hall chuckled, his naturally curly hair framing his face marked with dark circles, as he revealed a flattering smile:

"The main thing is that surname Hee didn't give you face... We just couldn't swallow that."

Being a troublemaker doesn't necessarily mean stupidity.

Just now, a group of men in brocade clothing had punched and kicked the other party until he was black and blue.

But they had all used the backs of their swords to strike, no real blood was drawn.

However, what Zhao Douan was considering wasn't this; he asked,

"What do you know about this Master Hee, especially regarding his tie with Princess Yunyang?"

Shen Juan paused, pondered briefly, and replied,

"I don't know much, but I remember that Master Hee should be the direct line of the Minister of the Ministry of Justice. As for his relationship with Princess Yunyang... Indeed, there are some rumors in the streets; they seem to be involved. Why do you ask about this, Sir?"

He really is the princess's lover... Zhao Douan was astonished.

That was to say, women can be terrifying when seeking revenge.

That Princess Yunyang whom he had not yet met, only glimpsing her thigh, had sent two of her lovers to pick a fight with him in just one morning.

"What kind of faction is this? Am I surrounded by the princess's lovers?" Zhao Douan complained.

But compared to the Marquis Xiajiang, this Hee Zheng was obviously of a much lower caliber.

Especially the last few words, which could be interpreted as a threat.

But on the other hand, it could also mean "passing the buck."

"Did he deliberately leak to me that he's backed by Princess Yunyang... or was it intimidation? Or was it to cover his true nature of taking credit? It doesn't matter..."

Zhao Douan shook his head.

Compared to this pawn-like character, what he really had to watch out for was Princess Yunyang's subsequent moves.

"Troublesome woman," he muttered, somewhat annoyed.

Due to her royal family status, he couldn't deal with her as easily as he did with other enemies by setting her up.

For now, he could only counter each move as it came, maintaining constancy amidst change.

"It's nothing," Zhao Douan shook his head, not bothering to explain, and instead asked,

"Where are the criminals and the stolen goods?"

Shen Juan and the other subordinates hurriedly invited him into the civilian house.

Inside the small courtyard, a middle-aged man dressed like a merchant was trussed up on a stone table.

His mouth was stuffed, making muffled noises.

Scattered around were several large boxes. Zhao Douan lifted the lids for a quick look—mostly miscellaneous silver taels and copper coins, as well as a mess of account books and correspondence.

And a disarray of various other items.

"Sir, this man seems to be managing business for the rebels. The sub-branches of the Kuangfu Society need funds to operate, and this thief, superficially a small pawnbroker, is actually secretly working for the rebels."

Shen Juan explained,

"These were all seized; we haven't had time to thoroughly examine them."

Zhao Douan nodded approvingly, reached over and pulled the rag out of the merchant's mouth, who immediately shouted,

"You lapdog of the Fake Emperor, a bunch of treacherous villains, I will have you... Mmmph!"

Stuffing the rag back in, Zhao Douan lost interest and waved his hand,

"Take him away; it's infuriatingly noisy."

One of the brocade-clad men sneered, lifted the merchant, and landed a punch on his stomach. The middle-aged merchant curled up like a shrimp, the pain making him sweat profusely.

"Wait until you're in the Imperial Prison, see if you still have the gall to talk back?"

After the man was dragged away, Zhao Douan looked around the courtyard,

"Is this all?"

Shen Juan suddenly said, "Please come with me, Sir."

Secretive... Zhao Douan followed with suspicion, stepping into the main house.

He then saw the lackadaisical subordinate sneak a glance, reach into his robe, and fish out a small silver mirror,

"Sir, have a look at this. I picked it out from that pile of pawned antiques, and if I'm not mistaken, it appears to be a 'Suppressing Object.'"

A Suppressing Object?

A "Magic Artifact" used by Magicians?

Zhao Douan vividly remembered that Priest Jin Jian had once enlightened him that a "Suppressing Object" was a Magic Artifact with special abilities.

Strictly speaking, the "Imperial Talisman" given to him by Zhang Yan Yi also counted.

And the Golden Crow Flying Dagger, belonging to the exclusive Divine Weapons of martial artists, which could change size but contained no "Spell" inside, was not considered a Suppressing Object.

Nevertheless, Zhao Douan still preferred to refer to it as a "Magic Artifact" out of habit.

"Are you sure?" Zhao Douan raised an eyebrow, his interest piqued as he hadn't expected such an unexpected gain.

Shen Juan smiled, "You'll know once you see it, Sir."

Zhao Douan looked down at the small silver mirror, not even as wide as a palm.

It was round, and the frame was anciently and intricately carved with mysterious patterns.

On the back was boldly engraved the words "Fengyue Treasure Mirror."

"The name..." Zhao Douan's face twisted, feeling that it didn't sound very serious.

Beside him, Shen Juan was enthusiastically saying,

"This item is listed in the books that catalogue the world's Suppressing Objects in our Imperial Court's library; it is the kind that ordinary people can also use."

There are two types of Magic Artifacts: one that only magicians can operate, like the Magic Wand held by Priest Jin Jian.

The other type has far fewer restrictions, such as talismans.

There are books about Suppressing Objects in the Imperial Court? Zhao Douan felt he had learned something.

He thought to himself that he needed to make time to brush up on his knowledge, so he wouldn't miss recognizing treasures in the future.

"How do you use this thing?"

He played with the curiosity and tried to transmit his qi into the mirror, but it only glowed slightly.

Shen Juan explained,

"Just hold this object in your hand and calmly visualize the person you wish to find, and the mirror will show what the other person is currently doing…

However, we're not magicians, so we can't use it frequently. Using it a few times a day will deplete the mana within the mirror.

It needs to be left alone for a while to restore itself… Besides, the outcome is affected by the distance to the person being visualized, their level of cultivation… and so on.

If you try to probe into someone powerful, it's extremely easy to be locked onto in reverse… It seems like it was used by the rebels for gathering intelligence..."

Ah, isn't this function just a "Thousand-mile Eye" with a bit of "peeping"?

It feels even more improper… Zhao Douan muttered internally.

The first thought that came to mind:

To visualize what Zhenbao was doing, but hearing that it could be tracked by powerful people, he immediately chickened out halfway.

After thinking it over, he attempted to recall the appearance of "Zhuang Xiaocheng" in his mind.

The surface of the mirror rippled slightly before returning to calm.

Failed… That's right, the distance must be too far… Zhao Douan felt slightly disappointed.

He pondered for a moment and then tried to recall his stepmother in his mind.

This time, the mirror's surface rippled and slowly revealed a moving image.

Inside the Zhao Residence.

You Jinhua was crouching in a room with two iron basins in front of her, a small one inside a larger one, separated by clear water.

Next to her was a bag of saltpeter bought by a servant.

You Jinhua hesitated for a moment, rolled up her sleeves, bent down to pour the white saltpeter into the water basin, and tried to follow Zhao Douan's instructions to make ice cubes.

I knew the magician who crafted this magic artifact was definitely not serious…

Zhao Douan took a deep breath, flipped the mirror upside down, and tucked it into his chest, calmly saying,

"This object is quite useful for investigating cases, so I will keep it for the time being."

Shen Juan only glimpsed the silhouette of a woman in the mirror.

But before he could see clearly, Zhao Douan didn't let him have a look anymore, slightly disappointed, he joked,

"What mirror? I searched this place, but I never saw any mirror."

…

...

Shortly after,

Qian Ke Rou hastened with a carriage, arriving late. Zhao Douan waved his hand grandly, bringing back the rebels and their ill-gotten goods to Lihua Hall.

He handed them over to his subordinates for examination and investigation.

Noon.

In the Capital, at the Ministry of Personnel's Literary Bureau, Chief Feng Ju left the government office.

He ordered the carriage to stop far down the alleyway and walked swiftly alone on a quiet street.

The forty-something, thin-looking archetypal scholar, Chief Feng, had a look of restlessness and intense urgency and anxiety in his expression.

As the first official bamboozled by Zhao Douan when he initially traversed through time to turn the tides, Feng Ju had quite an eventful time recently.

Originally, Zhao Douan invited him to a covered boat in the middle of the lake, where they came up with the strategy to "bite at the Prime Minister."

Thinking he was acting on Imperial orders, Feng Ju bravely drank a whole jar of wine at home before he took up the brush and drafted the accusatory petition.

Then, a decree from the Empress came down that Feng Ju would be a "tainted witness," temporarily controlled by the Imperial Court of Supervision.

What followed was over ten days of intense struggle and tug-of-war.

He was repeatedly interrogated by different Imperial Censors, which was exhausting.

Luckily, the outcome was favorable.

The Empress pronounced that Feng Ju had made amends for his faults, which was commendable, thus retaining his official post but fining him three months' salary as a warning.

While it was a punishment on the surface, it wasn't actually.

After returning to the Ministry of Personnel, Feng Ju was quickly introduced by the "Imperial Faction" into the circle loyal to the Empress.

Whispers suggested that once the current troubles subsided, he would be promoted and favored.

He would be elevated to fifth-rank first, and if he performed well, a fourth-rank position might be in sight.

His colleagues also caught wind of this and treated him with even more respect and flattery.

Feng Ju enjoyed a period of success and happiness, but an unexpected disaster struck today.

On the main street.

Feng Ju entered a quiet teahouse, walking briskly upstairs to a reserved private room.

"Knock, knock, knock, it's me, Feng." He knocked on the door.

The door to the private room opened, revealing the face of another scholarly-looking man of similar age, albeit a bit plump.

He frowned, looked left and right, pulled Feng Ju inside, and closed the door.

Inside the private room, another middle-aged man, wearing a scholar's head wrap and carrying himself with ease, sat by a low tea table.

The slightly plump scholar said,

"Brother Baochang, you've gathered us in such a hurry today, what is the matter?"

"Baochang" was Feng Ju's courtesy name, and the two men present were his close friends, also former classmates and fellow officials in the court.

The middle-aged man with the head wrap seated by the tea table asked curiously,

"These past days, Brother Baochang, your career has been thriving; what has happened to make you look like this?"

Feng Ju had bloodshot eyes and an ashen face. He looked at his two close friends and forced out the words through clenched teeth,

"Brother Zigu, Brother Chang Feng… my daughter has been kidnapped!"

What?

The two men in the room exchanged solemn glances,

"You mean Lianlian has been abducted? What happened?"

Taking a deep breath, Feng Ju seemed to be desperately controlling his emotions.

He strode to the tea table and sat down, gulping down two cups of tea on the table before saying without expression,

"It's the Marquis Xiajiang! He sent his servant with a message demanding I report that it was Zhao Douan who forced me to falsely accuse Li Yanfu. If I don't comply, Lianlian won't return unharmed."