Pampered Consort's Acting Awards - Chapter 66

Inside the Yangxin Hall, Xiao Yu calmly said, “Ah Ling, come and look at the list.” He handed the list, densely packed with names, to her. On the right side of the names, there was also the officials’ age marked in red ink.

Qin Ling read seriously while Xiao Yu said to Lu Ze, “Continue.”

Clearly, the emperor had no intention of avoiding Zhaoyi Qin.

Lu Ze paused slightly, the old imperial edict still resonating in his ears—”Yanqing, this old case is of utmost importance. Be cautious in your actions and avoid drawing attention.” For the emperor’s “avoid drawing attention”, he, Lu Yanqing, followed officials like a thief every day, secretly measuring their height, shoulder width, and foot size with his eyes. But what was the outcome? The emperor had someone else by his side.

Lu Ze sighed inwardly, paused, and said seriously, “Based on the old clothes left on the duke’s mansion, Dantai Yi should be about seven feet eight inches tall, four feet four inches in shoulder width, and a foot and two inches in foot size. Many officials on the roster match this, but due to the method’s precision, there might be some deviation.” The duke’s mansion referred to the Duke of Zhen’s estate. Lu Ze deliberately called it the duke’s mansion due to Zhaoyi Qin’s presence.

[T/N: So Dantai Yi (and “many officials”.) apparently seems outrageously humongous.]

Xiao Yu pondered for a moment and said, “Is this all?”

Lu Ze nodded, “Actually, according to the measurement of seven feet eight inches, there would be more than a hundred officials just in the fifth rank. If we add the soldiers in the capital, there must be at least two thousand people. I have accurately measured a group of military officials and soldiers under the pretext of a martial arts exam, discarded those with significant differences in shoulder width and foot length. Then after I filtered out those with age, appearance, and physique differences, there are 143 left.” He added, “I cannot guarantee there will be no omissions.”

Upon hearing this, Qin Ling guessed the purpose of this roster. They were using the clues left by Dantai Yi to gradually narrow down the range of suspicion.

Xiao Yu nodded and looked at Su Huai’an, “Jingming, what about yours?”

Jingming. Lu Ze’s pupils suddenly contracted, a cold sweat broke out on his back, he quickly held his fist to his lips and coughed a few times, reminding the emperor that Jingming was the courtesy name of the criminal Su Huai’an; not something that could be spout so casually! Please be careful!

Unfortunately, Xiao Yu didn’t react.

With his peripheral vision, Lu Ze watched Su Huai’an, who took out a roster from his sleeve and presented it with his usual calm expression. Such composure? As expected of a man who gets things done, Lu Ze thought.

Su Huai’an said, “Although there are many people in this year’s imperial examination, the physique of the literati is much lower than that of the warriors. Only seven people who match in age and appearance and stay in the capital. As for the Hanlin Academy, I interact with them every day, and I can assure that Dantai Yi is not among them.”

With that, Su Huai’an took out another list and said, “This is the list of officials below the fifth rank that I have filtered out, totaling twenty-seven. Adding the previous seven, there are thirty-four in total.”

Lu Ze, the Marquis of Chun’nan, was used to dealing with important officials on a daily basis. Even in court, he stood next to the emperor, his gaze naturally falling on the officials inside the Yangxin Hall who held fifth rank or higher. As for “Huaijing”, a seventh-rank scholar in the Hanlin Academy, his position at court was outside the Yangxin Hall. His perspective was exactly the opposite of Lu Ze’s, and he saw mostly officials of fifth rank or lower.

Xiao Yu put down the three rosters in his hand and drew out another from his desk, handing it to Qin Ling, saying, “During the selection this year, not only the daughters of the nobility but also those of merchants, local gentry, and farmers were required to submit their names to the Ministry of Rites. This was a matter overseen by the Imperial Guards and the Ministry of Rites. The marquis of Chun’nan has mainly investigated the well-known merchants and gentry. This is the last roster, with a total of sixteen people.”

Hearing this, Qin Ling was stunned… She clearly remembered the situation during the selection. The Ministry of Rites was yelling about the new emperor’s concubines’ selection, the scrutiny was unusually strict, almost going door-to-door. No family could possibly hide their daughters. If it hadn’t been so, Miss Qin wouldn’t have ended up at the point of seeking death.

Could it be that the selection of beauties that year was not about choosing concubines at all, but about searching for someone? No wonder that in the end, aside from herself, those who entered the palace were all predetermined noble girls…

Qin Ling furrowed her brows and looked at Xiao Yu, saying, “So, the imperial exam, and the martial exam this year…were they all for… Dantai Yi?”

Xiao Yu said, “Not exactly. The imperial exam happens every year. I simply held the martial exam earlier.”

“What about the selection of beauties?”

Hearing her mention the selection, Xiao Yu looked up at her, naturally explaining, “That year, the empress dowager and the civil and military officials all urged Us to fill the harem. We just went with the flow and agreed to it. But the palace treasury was empty, We couldn’t afford to keep so many people in Our harem.” His eyes were deep and serious, as if he were saying: We can’t keep that many people in our heart.

Seeing this, Lu Ze involuntarily took a step back with his left foot. I must be blind, he thought. Did I just witness the emperor coddling someone in Yangxin Hall? As for the selection that year… If he remembered correctly, didn’t the emperor want to bring He Yuru and Xu Lanzhi into the palace? And there had been no plans to bring the daughter of the Qin family into the palace then.

Qin Ling, with her mind full of Dantai Yi, didn’t have time to think about anything else. She took a deep breath and said, “The preparations for the selection of beauties started in the second month of that year, was Dantai Yi back in the capital at that time?”

At this point, Su Huai’an said, “In the second month of that year, the Imperial Preceptor of the Qi State claimed to be ill and recuperating. I investigated and found that the person recuperating was just a stand-in. I suspected that Dantai Yi might have returned to the capital, so I quickly sent a message to the marquis to be on guard. But Dantai Yi could change his appearance and his whereabouts were mysterious. We couldn’t confirm where he was until the beginning of this year when I discovered his traces outside the capital and was sure he had really returned.”

Qin Ling turned back to look at Su Huai’an, worriedly asking, “You weren’t discovered by him, were you?”

Su Huai’an laughed and said, “Your Ladyship, don’t worry, I wasn’t.”

Qin Ling replied, “That’s good.”

Lu Ze’s facial expression gradually lost control. This Zhaoyi Qin is formidable! 

She dared to exchange glances with the officials right in front of the emperor, her worries on the verge of overflowing. However, the emperor remained silent. Lu Ze couldn’t help but sigh inwardly, Is this the level of scheming in the harem now? She’s just in her twenties, seemingly inexperienced, with an otherworldly appearance like a pure and untainted white lotus emerging from the mud. But who would have thought that behind those innocent eyes lies a pair of alluring and cunning eyes that can manipulate men?

No wonder his mother insisted on telling him to understand everything about a potential spouse.

Lu Ze raised his hand to rub his face, composing himself once again.

Qin Ling pondered for a long time before murmuring, “Dantai Yi must need time to imitate someone, that’s why he returned twice… The first time, he was selecting officials. After all, the officials in the capital have changed compared to four years ago.”

Su Huai’an nodded in agreement, “True.”

“What exactly does he want to achieve?”

“I speculate that this time he’s either coming for the emperor or pursuing the same goal as he did fifteen years ago.” Dantai Yi’s power struggle once triggered a political turmoil, and who knows what kind of chaos he intends to cause this time? He is definitely a troublemaker.

Qin Ling looked at the four rosters and asked Xiao Yu, “There are 193 names on these lists. How can we confirm the authenticity?”

Xiao Yu replied slowly, “Fake ones will have flaws, even if they have exceptional skills in forging documents. No one can achieve absolute perfection in deception.”

In the silence that followed, the four of them used the process of elimination on the lists. 

Lu Ze said, “Dantai Yi is much more cautious this time compared to fifteen years ago. I believe he won’t choose any well-known figures to impersonate, especially someone like Marquis of Gui’de. Four brothers live in the General of Gui’de’s household, making the risk of exposure higher. Back in the day, when the duke’s mansion had just been established, there was only one legitimate wife…” 

Lu Ze stopped speaking at this point. However, the other three understood what he meant.

Xiao Yu nodded, “Let’s remove those with complicated backgrounds first.”

After an hour, the list of 193 people was narrowed down to 93, and more than ten individuals required further investigation. 

Su Huai’an added, “Dantai Yi’s intelligence should lead him to suspect that we are prepared. Hence, those with shallow roots in the capital would be his favored candidates.”

Lu Ze furrowed his brows and said, “With such shallow roots, how can one achieve success? How long does it take to plan and accomplish something? Besides, Dantai Yi is not young anymore. How many fifteen-year periods does a person have in their life?”

Su Huai’an responded, “Having shallow roots doesn’t mean he cannot rise in rank. What if he has capable sons or married daughters?”

They crossed out some names. The list went from 93 to 73 people.

Lu Ze tapped his head with the brush and mumbled to himself, “Capable sons, married daughters… I must make a note of this and investigate further later.”

Qin Ling pointed to a name on her list and said to Xiao Yu, “Your Majesty, I don’t think Si Yuanbai is a possibility. I’ve met his wife before, and her temper is fierce. Whenever Si Yuanbai returns home late, she’ll pick a fight.”

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yu slightly curved his lips, his expression meaningful, and he replied, “Is that so?” Back then, she had also told him to return home earlier. “I’ll listen to you, let’s cross it out,” he said.

Qin Ling gripped the brush and exchanged a glance with him, then lowered her head and continued to scrutinize the list, trying to recall the married women she had seen before.

After a while, she leaned her head toward Su Huai’an. He glanced at her, speaking gently, “What’s wrong?”

Qin Ling said, “Brother, let’s switch. I don’t know anyone on this list.”

Lu Ze, with excellent hearing, suddenly turned his head, his handsome face once again losing control. Brother? Brother?? She calls Su Huai’an “Brother”??? What kind of play is this?

Su Huai’an immediately exchanged his list with Qin Ling’s. The list in Qin Ling’s hands now contained officials of the fourth and fifth ranks.

Prominent fifth-rank officials:

• Wei De, an Assistant Court Secretary.
• Zeng Hening, a Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.
• Zhuang Qizheng, a Right Assistant Minister of the Bureau of Military Affairs.
• …
• Qin Wang, a Grand Scribe.

Qin Wang…

Qin Ling’s gaze froze, her breath quickened, and her fingertips turned ice-cold.

Shallow roots in the capital.

Capable sons in the family.

Married daughters.

Everything in Qin Ling’s family fits the criteria they discussed earlier.

Moreover, when considering appearances, she looked similar to before. Qin Wang and Su Jingbei naturally shared some resemblances too, as if…

There couldn’t be a more suitable candidate than Qin Wang…

Tucking her stray hair behind her ear, Qin Ling kept telling herself: “It can’t be, it won’t happen, how could such a coincidence occur?”

However, while she denied it, recent events flashed through her mind…

Qin Wang took another concubine.

Qin Rong secretly met with Sixth Young Sir Chu.

If Qin Ling, with just a letter, could make Qin Wang so upset, how could he allow Qin Rong to meet someone from the Chu family secretly? And afterward, he didn’t punish Qin Rong at all?

Seeing her distressed expression, Xiao Yu asked, “Ah Ling, what’s wrong?”

Qin Ling turned to Su Huai’an and asked, “Brother, you mentioned earlier that Dantai Yi’s traces were found outside the capital at the beginning of this year. Where exactly? Is it nearby?”

Su Huai’an replied, “It’s not too close, in Hebei.”

Qin Ling clenched the list in her hand, her voice inexplicably tightening, “Hebei… Is it Qian’an County?”

Su Huai’an nodded unexpectedly, “Yes, how do you know about this?”

The list in Qin Ling’s hand fell to the ground as she stumbled back a step.

How could she know…?

It was because there was a mansion in Qian’an County, where that woman, Jiang Lanyue, was kept. If Dantai Yi wanted to impersonate Qin Wang, wouldn’t his most familiar concubine be the best choice for a test?

Realizing this, Qin Ling immediately asked Xiao Yu for some paper, quickly wrote a letter, folded it, and turned to Lu Ze, saying, “Please, Marquis, quickly send this letter to my elder brother at home.” Her hands trembled slightly, as if she knew that something had happened to Jiang Lanyue.

Lu Ze was going crazy; he couldn’t understand anything but couldn’t get angry either. He sighed deeply and said, “Your Ladyship, which elder brother are you talking about!?”