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The old man put the wooden trowel on a rock beside the vegetable bed, then, holding his back, slowly sat down. It appeared to take some effort.

It had just snowed. The weather was cold, and the vegetable garden was full of leftover snow and mud. How could there be vegetables growing, and what need was there to water them? However, tonight, he had unconsciously picked up the wooden trowel and used clean water to water the ground as if he wanted to wash something away.

The old man was very old. After Xiao En and Zhuang Mohan died, he became the only one left in the world who had personally witnessed the founding ceremony of Qing Kingdom. Fifty years had passed. The deep wrinkles and those more and more apparent yellow spots told a story of his history and the country’s history.

An old official of three dynasties? More than that. How many Emperors had he served? The old man couldn’t quite remember clearly anymore, however, when the previous Emperor took the throne, he had, without question, chose the correct path. Thus, he had obtained an irreplaceable position in the military for his clan.

The current Emperor, without question, was the one he admired the most out of all the rulers he had experienced through all these years. Three expeditions North, taking from the South and going on campaigns to the West...although he had long guarded Jingdou as a powerful military official, stabilizing the rear for the Emperor, the sons of the clan in the military followed the Emperor out. Some slept forever in foreign lands, and some returned home.

Qing Kingdom had been forged with spears, knives, bows, and on horseback. The old man had also spent his entire life among these weapons. He had killed countless people in his life and wiped out numerous clans all around Qing Kingdom. Tens of millions of people could die in front of him without his expression changing. This kind of history could not be washed clean with a few trowels of clean water.

In this long history, who knew how many good and famous generals, wise Emperors and Grandmasters gave off their own special light. However, the person that the old man had the deepest impression was actually a very young and beautiful woman.

Every time he thought of her, the old man’s heart would begin to tremble. No matter how extraordinary a person, they could only try to change the direction of history. However, this woman, it seemed from the very beginning, was preparing to flip over Qing Kingdom’s foundations and continue to turn the entire world upside down.

The old man never knew whether or not those attempts had a chance of success. He only acutely felt that if any of the situations at the time had developed further, the entire nobility class of Qing Kingdom would be wiped away by an unseen current. And, as everyone knew, the nobility class of Qing Kingdom provided the military with the most powerful human resources.

He was afraid of these disturbances. These disturbances looked as if it could make Qing Kingdom powerful but would change it to something unlike itself.

The old man was a military man, a military man loyal to Qing Kingdom. For him, extending Qing Kingdom’s existence was an order from the highest power, so he had participated in some secrets and had kept this secret until now.

That woman...or perhaps it was better to say that beautiful demon woman died...

Is this very good? At least Qing Kingdom was still powerful and this Qing Kingdom was still the Qing Kingdom of the past without any changes. To exchange one person’s death for the peace of an entire country, the old man had never felt regret for the choice back then.

The old man sat silently on the rock on the ground. Looking at the muddied water in the vegetable garden, he didn’t say anything for a long time. He had already heard of the incident this afternoon in front of the Bureau of Military Affairs, 200 heads...

The Emperor had treated him well. He served 30 years as the head of the Bureau of Military Affairs, which was a rare honor never seen before in history.

However, this leading figure in the military was still the same as many years ago, seeing himself as a normal member of the military and considering the other men in the military to be his brothers. With his growing age, he began to see them as his descendants.

Although his face was cold, his heart was kind. This old man’s might in the military was not something a normal person could compare to.

Those 200 good men were the old man’s most trusted squad of his private army. He had long kept them in Xiao Mountain, secretly training them. Originally, they were for the purpose of attacking Northern Qi. However, now he had to use them ahead of time in a plot to kill an imperial envoy of the court.

The old man generally did not pay attention to the politics in the court, however, this time, he had to pay attention. Regardless of whether it was for the continued existence of his clan or for the future of Qing Kingdom he believed in, he had to kill that young man.

Unexpectedly, he did not kill him.

The old man coughed. He didn’t know whether it was because the coldness of the rock beneath had seeped into his cotton coat or because a chill had welled up in his heart.

Two hundred people.

The old man’s face appeared very old and had a faint additional glimmer of sorrow. Those were all his juniors. They should have been Qing Kingdom’s wonderful future, but they had died just like this. And, they received no peace after death. Their names would never be recorded. They would be remembered in history books to be cursed by others. They had become the first rebel Qing Kingdom troops in dozens of years.

The old man’s heart was sore and cold.

...

...

The Emperor was too fickle and made one’s heart turn cold. Having the young man stay in Jingdou and giving him more power every day, this kind of trend had no end to it. Even if that young man couldn’t be touched while the Emperor was alive, but what about in the future? After he and the Emperor had both died, would that young man not bring up old debts?

He had participated in the shocking murder case that killed Ye Qingmei, could he count on the fact that her son would not dig up this old debt?

Ever since a few years ago, when that young man in Danzhou was summoned to Jingdou by the Emperor, a glimmer of coldness had appeared in the old man’s heart. Other than Chen Pingping and Fan Jian, no one knew that the old man had long known of Fan Xian’s past.

However, the old man was silent, even more silent that he had been in the past. Thus, in the past few years, the Qin family had been strangely quiet in court.

Because that young man was of the Emperor’s flesh and blood, it was impossible for the old man to act ahead of time. He only watched to see what arrangements the Emperor would make for him.

In the beginning, the old man was very at ease because that young man seemed to be a hedonistic child. He spent all day with King Jing’s heir loitering in brothels, competing and being jealous, and wrestling at night. He didn’t demonstrate anything special.

Following that, the old man became slightly worried because the young man was going to marry princess Chen and was preparing to take over the palace treasury. Furthermore, he made 300 poems in one night in front of the palace and shocked the world. However, he immediately relaxed again because how could the mere palace treasury be considered important in the eyes of a leading military figure? No matter how powerful wealth was, it still couldn’t stand against knives and spears. No matter how shocking poetry was, it couldn’t stop the thundering of horses’ hooves.

However, gradually, the development of events made the old man watching coldly from the side become wary because of the spring examination incident. It was not until that moment did he know that the Emperor had actually secretly allowed the young man to have the Commissioner token of the Overwatch Council.

As the most powerful figure in the military, over these years, he had worked countless times with the Overwatch Council. Of course, he knew the terrifying power of Chen Pingping and the Overwatch Council, so he felt a glimmer of unease. Thus, he chose to show his attitude for the first time. He spoke to the Emperor and had Fan Xian go on a diplomatic trip to Northern Qi.

He knew that this diplomatic trip would not be as easy as it appeared on the surface because there was Xiao En and many other difficulties. After the old man spoke, he once again became silent. He secretly prayed that the young man would stay forever in Northern Qi. It would have been best if he never came back.

However, the development of matters disappointed him once again. Fan Xian returned fine to Qing Kingdom and had even more power and reputation.

...

...

The old man again fell into silence. He quietly and steadily watched that young man, watched as he fought joyfully in Jingdou against the Second Prince. He watched the Imperial College, the Hanging Temple, and the Palace. He found that this young man was, as he expected, ruthless, clever, relentless, and vengeful.

Powerful.

The old man felt a glimmer of fear. Although Fan Xian was still not enough to make him scared, every time he thought of that woman back then and of the fact that Fan Xian was her son—every time Fan Xian seemed to be walking exactly the same path as that woman using a very short amount of time to obtain a great deal of power and when he was even more ruthless and vicious than that woman—he felt a slight fear. Adding to the fact that he didn’t know just what the Emperor was thinking, he began to try and find a moderate solution in his silence.

He was gambling on the fact that Fan Xian would never know of the Qin family’s connection to what happened back then.

The old man chose to retreat, not asking and not acknowledging. When the Emperor became angry because of Fan Xian’s matter and ordered the court beating of the Imperial Censorate, the old man directly decided to say he was ill and stopped going to court. He also stopped watching over matters in the Bureau of Military Affairs. He only stayed quietly at home, growing old.

As the Emperor supported Fan Xian, the old man retreated. He retreated to the very end to avoid that old matter from the past being dug out by someone.

The old man knew that the Emperor had this ruthlessness in him.

This was not him holding a grudge against the Emperor, rather, this was him showing himself staying within his bounds to the Emperor. Also, he didn’t want to have to interact with Fan Xian in court. However, on the other side, the old man arranged for his son to befriend Fan Xian and also invited Fan Xian to the manor for a chat, watching him at a close distance for a long time.

...

...

If matters had developed like this, perhaps the old man would still have considered Fan Xian as a junior worthy of treating with respect and the door of the Qin family would have been forever open for Fan Xian. However, plans never come as violently or caught one off-guard as change did.

The Ming family had the support of the old man. The Qin family were all in the military. If they needed silver, it was much more inconvenient for them than those major officials in court. Thus, many years ago, when the Eldest Princess sent someone to respectfully bring 10 percent of the shares to the Qin manor, the old man nodded his head reservedly. He had always thought the Eldest Princess was a rarely seen clever person in the royal family.

Even if Fan Xian investigated Jiangnan, the Qin family was not afraid. They only had 10 percent of the shares of the wealthy Jiangnan merchants. How could the Emperor punish a long loyal powerful military family because of such a small matter?

Then there was the East Sea island matter.

Privately moving troops and massacring the island, these were shocking matters. As the head of the Bureau of Military Affairs, of course, the old man was one of the few people in court who knew of this matter.

Thus, the old man once again became silent and sank into thought.

Admiral of the Jiaozhou Navy, Chang Kun.

Just like when Deng Zi Yue of the Overwatch Council reported to Fan Xian when he was in Jiangnan, this first-level admiral had a good relationship to the Ye family but was actually born to the Qin family.

The old man had not given Chang Kun any instructions. The Qin family did not interfere with Chang Kun’s actions. It should have been the Eldest Princess’ intention. After all, everyone had too much interest tied up in Jiangnan.

However, the old man knew that the Emperor knew clearly that Chang Kun was one of the Qin family.

Chang Kun had already died, and the Jiaozhou Navy had been purged. Although the old man still had some generals in the Jiaozhou Navy and his nephew was already going to take over the post of admiral, he still did not understand just what the Emperor was thinking. Why would he still allow his family to control the Jiaozhou Navy?

The Jiaozhou case had been investigated by Fan Xian.

...

...

Even though it was so, it was not enough to have the old man make up his mind to carry out a lightning strike against Fan Xian. He knew that if he assassinated an imperial official, a prince in reality, and if it got out after the fact, the Emperor would probably grant him a cup of poisoned wine and his clan would certainly be wiped out.

The last straw that truly broke down the old man’s defenses around his heart was a piece of news from the Overwatch Council.

The Qing Kingdom military and Overwatch Council worked together for dozens of years, and each had pervaded a bit into the other, particularly in the way the Overwatch Council hired officials. Their first picks were unsuccessful examinees and retired generals. After dozens of years, countless retired military generals became powerful figures in the Overwatch Council.

As the leading figure in the military, the old man would not be so stupid as to pass up this opportunity. He had long arranged for people of his choice to enter the Overwatch Council.

Naturally, the Overwatch Council also had spies in the military. This was something both sides were aware of but neither would expose. The Emperor tacit allowed his two hands to watch each other.

It was the old man’s most useful person in the Overwatch Council that brought a strange message to the Qin manor.

There was a power above that of the eight bureaus in the Overwatch Council that was investigating matters that happened 20 years ago. However, the things being investigated seemed to be wholly unrelated to the situation of Jingdou’s change in defenses, the supply logistics from the Western Expedition back then, as well as the situation of the royal defenses for the Palace. There was even some trivial matters regarding moving of grains. All these loose pieces did not make a united whole.

However, because of all these years of caution, the old man sensed a glimmer of danger. When he read the file, he couldn’t help but furrow his brows. If someone carefully stitched all these loose pieces together, they would probably gradually find the truth of the Taiping Courtyard murder case, that bloody truth. The dishonorable role that the Qin family, who had been guarding Jingdou and was responsible for stabilizing the rear for the Emperor who had gone personally on an expedition, played would also be revealed to the world.

A careful and clever investigation meant he was terrified of someone being alerted. It probably wouldn’t be long before they tore through the layers of lies and touched upon the true history.

Who was investigating the events of that past? Who had the power to be above the eight bureaus in the Council?

Based on the report from the person in the Overwatch Council and the old man’s own judgement, both of them pointed that power toward to the Qinian Unit that Fan Xian personally led.

The last straw came crashing down. The old man gave out the order to kill Fan Xian.

He had the confidence he could temporarily hide the truth of the attack from the world and from the Emperor, but he absolutely did not want to face a Fan Xian that would crazily seek vengeance for that woman once he learned the truth. So, he chose the simplest, roughest, and more direct path...kill.

Perhaps he miscalculated Fan Xian’s interest in revenge.

However, this mistake could not be changed.

...

...

Hearing about the news of the failure, about the news of the 200 tragic deaths, the old Qin Master suddenly aged a dozen years. He rubbed his tree bark like face and gradually calmed down.

Twenty years of faint worry and a glimmer of fear for that woman’s spirit forced him, under pressure, to make the most direct decision.

After the failure, this old military man, who had fought on battlefields for half a century and who had once stood proudly without retreat in court, finally felt there was a slight problem.

It was not just Fan Xian who was able to mobilize such power to investigate the clues of 20 years ago and to also be above the Overwatch Council, there was also Chen Pingping, that old black dog.

Having Chang Kun massacre that island, it looked like it was for the Jiangnan matter. In reality, it was a very roundabout way of pulling the old Qin family into this mess. This was the Eldest Princess, that crazy woman’s, favorite trick.

The old Qin Master sat on the big rock and coughed. He had finally thought through the entire process of this matter. It had nothing to do with Fan Xian, the Emperor, or the Eastern Palace. There were only two people who, for different reasons, both wanted to bring the old Qin family into this matter: Chen Pingping of the Overwatch Council and Li Yunrui, the Eldest Princess.

The two people who were the best in Qing Kingdom, or even the world, at plotting and scheming for different reasons but for the same goal, cleverly planned for over half a year and finally reached the result they wanted.

Faced with the unintentional cooperation of these two people, even for a major figure like the old Qin Master, what could he do?

...

...

“Father, it’s cold outside. Let’s go back to your room.”

The second son of the Qin family, the current head of the Jingdou garrison, Qin Heng, came to stand behind his father. He placed a large coat on his father’s body and respectfully asked for instructions.

The old Qin Master turned his head to glance at his son. A sudden grievance rose in his heart. He was already so old, yet his son was only 30-something years old. Once he died, would he be able to protect the Qin family’s dignity and position?

“If only my eldest hadn’t died.”

The old Qin Master thought forlornly, remembering his impetuous eldest son. If his personality had not been so rash, he wouldn’t have been killed by an officer in the army during a mutiny. If his son was still alive, would he himself still have to work so hard?