Chapter 345 (2/2)
That was a resentment towards the Academy and the Headmaster of the Academy.
According to the law of the Tang Empire, students of the Academy were not allowed to join the army after graduation. That was why the imperial court, where most of the civilian officials had come from the Academy, had maintained a close relations.h.i.+p with the Academy, while the army was more distant.
This was especially so in recent times. Xu s.h.i.+, the Defender-general of the State was the figurehead of the army who remained vigilant against the Academy. And he remained especially so against the supermundane beings of the back of the mountain.
The vigilance had become reality with the arrival of a memo from Tuyang City.
In the memo, the famous general Xia Hou had made an earnest request to retire. The words used in the memo were filled with weariness and dismay. After the dispatch of the memo, there were many generals in the Military Ministry who felt compa.s.sion for him. A few bigwigs in the upper levels were especially angry as they knew that Mr. First and Mr. Thirteen of the Academy had visited Tuyang City and spoke with Xia Hou in the Winter Courtyard before Xia Hou decided to retire.
Arranging for soldiers to enter the Wilderness without permission and the old case that had happened more than ten years ago had led many in the army to dislike Xia Hou. However, they believed that this was an internal issue and that if anyone were to punish Xia Hou, only His Majesty or the imperial court should be the ones to do so, and not the Academy. As for Xia Hou being a visiting professor of the West-Hill Divine Palace, it
Palace, it was not a major issue in the eyes of the citizens of Tang who were also believers of Haotian.
Of course, no one dared to suspect the Headmaster of the Academy. It was just that the Headmaster had not appeared in the human realm for years. Not even His Majesty had seen the old man in years, which was why the army felt that the back of the mountain of the Academy was at fault.
”I believe that if the Headmaster of the Academy knew about it, he wouldn't allow those from the back of the mountain to do as they wish.”
Xu s.h.i.+ said coldly, ”Cultivators should cultivate and not interfere with court matters. Just like the two Unknown Places hidden in the Wilderness. Those of the supermundane should care about what happens in their own world, and vice vera. Why must we be connected? Why do they have to enter the human realm?”
”How goes the research on the case?” He asked.
”The censor, Zhang Yiqi, did indeed have a nail in his head. The Chang'an Local Government had preserved the evidence well, but did not continue their investigation then. On the day the a.s.sistant of Xuanwei General, Chen Zixian, had died at the blacksmith, the Old Brush Pen Shop did not open for business.”
”On the morning after Military Clergy Appraiser, Yan Suqing's death, the Yulin Royal Guards discovered that the murderer had deliberately left behind a piece of cloth. They found an outer robe in another spot in the courtyard. The clothes were made at the Lanxiu workshop, so we do not know who they belong to. However, according to the damage on the clothes found at the scene, we can be sure that the murderer was heavily injured.”
An official from the Military Ministry said, ”Two days after the death of Yan Suqing, was the semester exam of the Academy. According to students' recounts, Ning Que had made a bet with Xie Chengyun on the results of the exam. However, he took sick leave for the next two days. This had created a furore in the Academy and cannot be fake.”
Xu s.h.i.+ said coldly, ”Of course, he had to take leave since he was heavily injured.”
The army of the Tang empire was very capable. Once they started an investigation, they were able to move speedily and efficiently. It was scary how they didn't take long to discover all these clues.
These seemingly insignificant clues were like a net. It pointed at a vague figure, as if saying that the student of the Second floor of the Academy called Ning Que had an inextricable connection to the murders.
”There is nothing that can withstand suspicion. That is because you will have a goal to pursue once you begin to have suspicions. It is only when you search for proof when you can find evidence. Who would believe that one of the core disciples of the Headmaster of the Academy is a cold-blooded
is a cold-blooded murderer?”
Xu s.h.i.+ said expressionlessly, ”I do not wish to know what had happened behind these murders, and I do not wish to know what kind of person Ning Que is and what he had against his victims. I just want to know if he had violated any laws of the Tang Empire.”
The official thought for a moment before shaking his head. He said, ”There is insufficient evidence for now.”
Xu s.h.i.+ frowned worriedly.
The official looked at him puzzledly and asked in a low voice. ”Actually... even if we find evidence stating that Ning Que was involved in these cases, could we really apprehend him at the back of the mountain and question him? General, we should just let the matter go.”
Xu s.h.i.+ looked at the sun outside the window and slowly said, ”The Headmaster of the Academy had once said, that the law of the Tang Empire came first.” The Great Tang Empire of mine had run on this creed and strengthened its people the same way. Those from the Academy who have violated the law are punished the same way as commoners who have done the same. Even if we don't have evidence that Ning Que had violated the laws of the Tang Empire, we have to let the Headmaster of the Academy know about it. We cannot allow Ning Que to become the Wayfarer of the Academy!”
After a moment of silence, he said coldly, ”It seems that I was right to be vigilant against Ning Que. If our future Nation Master is someone evil like this, how can the Tang empire be peaceful? The cultivators from other lands have already entered Chang'an. Arrange for things to go well for them. Order the Yulin Royal Guards to not stop the battle between the two.”
The official of Military Ministry shuddered before disagreeing. He said, ”I disagree. Even if Ning Que is evil, he is a Tang citizen. How can we allow foreigners to deal with him?”
Xu s.h.i.+ turned around and said sarcastically, ”Do you think that I am dumb?”
The official replied fearfully, ”Your subordinate does not dare. I just do not understand what you mean.”
”He has to face challenges since he's entering the human realm. It was like this for Ke Haoran, and it would be so for Ning Que. I just want to make the playing field fair. I believe that the Academy would not object to my plans.”
Xu s.h.i.+ said coldly, ”If Ning Que had indeed committed those crimes, he would be punished by the laws of the Tang Empire. But since we do not have evidence, I want him to lose and lose over and over again. I want him to lose his boldness and sharp edges!”
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