Chapter 417 (1/2)

Chapter 417: Legend of the Building (I)

When it came to idiots, there were two people in Chang'an who liked to scoff others by calling them idiots . One was the emperor of the Tang, and the other one obviously turned out to be Ning Que .

However, His Majesty ridiculed people aboveboard and boldly, regardless of the varying situations, while Ning Que was used to make cutting remarks when chatting in private with Sangsang, totally demonstrating his quality of being petty . Consequently, he felt very excited to outrageously mock Chao Xiaoshu as an idiot together with His Majesty in the Imperial Palace, spluttering with exhilaration .

The word ”idiot” could be heard repeatedly and constantly in the quiet hall . It amazed and amused Her Majesty, the palace maids, and eunuches, provoking them to smile surrept.i.tiously behind their hands . Nevertheless, the scene was more or less embarra.s.sing . Her Majesty winked to her maid to leave the hall quietly along with all the other maids and eunuches .

Sometime later, His Majesty and Ning Que finally vented their grievances of Chao Xiaoshu, gasping and stopping, and the sound of ”idiot” began to fade .

The emperor, picking up a square towel from the couch, wiped the sweat from his face and looked at Ning Que with satisfaction . He was sometimes constrained by being a wise monarch, but today he comforted and pleased himself by finding someone who he could abuse another person with .

. ”The Divine Priest of Revelation didn't clearly explain the whole thing to me before leaving Chang'an . What's your plan?”

The emperor tapped the table, beckoning Ning Que to drink some tea .

Picking up the tea bowl, Ning Que, rather than drinking the tea at once, answered, ”We tentatively decided to discuss again it in three years . If Sangsang would like to go to West-Hill at that time, then we'll go . ”

The emperor asked, ”Tell me about your little handmaiden . How did she suddenly become a daughter of Zeng Jing and then turn out to be a Great Divine Priest of Light?”

After sipping the tea and moistening his throat, Ning Que poured out the tale beginning from the year that he picked up Sangsang beside the corpses up to their experience in later years .

. Keeping silent for a while, the emperor sighed with emotion, and said, ”Her experience is really legendary and rare, as is the mutual affection between the two of you . You'd better cherish her . ”

Ning Que nodded .

Looking at him, the emperor asked, ”Why didn't she come with you to meet me today?” ”Why didn't she come with you to meet me today?”

. Ning Que said, ”She went to the Princess' Mansion . She has always had a good relations.h.i.+p with Her Highness . Besides, the little prince misses her a lot if he does not see her for a few days . ”

Hearing his explanation, the emperor frowned anxiously .

Ning Que knew what His Majesty was anxious about . After a short while of silence, he said, ”Although these things are affairs of state, they are ultimately family matters . ”

Remaining silent for a short while, the emperor then asked, ”Does Headmaster of the Academy have any idea?”

Ning Que shook his head .

The emperor sighed and said, ”Not surprisingly, the master, being broad-minded, shouldn't be bothered by these minor troubles . ”

Silence struck the hall for a moment .

Sometime later, the emperor looked into Ning Que's eyes and asked, ”I'm wondering what on earth the animosity between you and General Xiahou is about . ”

. Shaking his head, Ning Que blurted out without forethought, ”There had been no animosity until I went to the Wilderness . ”

”It means that something happened in the Wilderness . ”

. The emperor looked at him and said, ”So you have to kill a military advisor in Tuyang City . ”

. Ning Que knew that he was talking about the death of Gu Xi . Upon second thought, he said, ”I don't know what are you referring to . It is a capital crime under the law of Tang Empire to kill military advisors without authentication . ”

. The emperor stroked his beard and scoffed, ”You even refuse to reveal any information to me . You are most likely the only cautious one in the Academy during these years . ”

Allowing himself a wry smile, Ning Que said, ”Certain questions should not be given a response . ”

The emperor said, ”Then give me a reason . ”

. Ning Que said, ”In the Wilderness, the subordinates sent by General Xiahou disguised themselves like those in the Horse Gang and tried to kill me . What's more, General Xiahou himself was waiting to kill me in the north of the Hulan Sea . ”

These two things were already known to the court by the secret guards and the Imperial Center Administration . However, apart from a reprimand, there was no additional punishment for Xia Hou .

. The emperor put the square towel on the table and said, ”You should be clearly aware that Mr . First was under my instruction, and surely you should understand what

what I meant . ”

”I'm not holding any grudge . I'm just confused why those bigwigs from the imperial military are so unwilling to let me off and where their hostility comes from . ”

Ning Que said, ”In the beginning, General Xiahou tried to kill me in the Wilderness . I could understand that he was blinded by the allure of the 'Ming' Handscroll, but what about General Xu s.h.i.+? As an important minister of the Tang Empire, the old general attempted to prey on my little handmaiden and now he seems dissatisfied with me . I used to be a soldier of the Tang Empire, thus, it is beyond my understanding why he keeps a wary eye on me . ”

Those words were very plain .

Taking into account either Her Majesty's emotion or the stabilization of the empire, apart from the precaution against the West-Hill Divine Palace, His Majesty would surely not impose severe punishment on General Xiahou as long as he was willing to retire from the court . Besides, the Academy had agreed .

Ning Que seemed to have accepted that decision, but he wanted the emperor to know that he could never accept the vague threat from the Tang military . He wanted an explanation .