But under her constraints, he dared not do that.
"Your Highness!" Zhang Feile called out again.
Si Xitong finally reacted: "Yes, I'm listening."
Zhang Feile recounted Zhang Ju's actions in detail, clearly showing his deep fear of Xie Lanzhi. This fear was understandable; Zhang Ju was a high-ranking official in the Censorate, personally promoted by her, and the Censorate, a powerful institution, had always been under Zhang Ju's control. Now that he had taken half of the power, it was hard to guarantee that he wasn't also taking away some of Marshal Xie's authority.
Si Xitong put down the teapot and replied, "Take your men and guard the Shenxing Division well. Don't worry about anything else. Remember, guard your own little territory."
Having received some reassurance, Zhang Feile hurriedly left the palace again.
The young lady who came later to make tea didn't even enter the door before she ran away.
"Your Highness, this is the first time I've ever seen the Deputy Envoy look like the sky is about to fall."
"I trained him because of his ruthlessness. Now that he knows fear, it will be good for his growth." Si Xitong asked her to prepare some lean meat and make some soup, just in case the man wanted to eat when he returned.
Xiao Xiu didn't understand those things; anyway, no one was afraid of Marshal Xie. Even someone as ruthless as the Deputy Envoy was still surrounded by powerful figures.
Zhang Ju personally received Xie Lanzhi.
A black horse, a cold and dashing figure in black armor and robes. She spurred the horse on, its hooves kicking up dust, and with a leap of its muscular legs, it charged into the gates of Tianjing City like a flying horse descending from the sky.
He rode alone with the ferocity and momentum of a thousand troops. Only one person could do that. The people of Tianjing had been fortunate enough to witness it several times, and this time was no exception. They all stood aside in the street, clearing a path for the horse to run.
Zhang Ju and Xie Jun knelt on the ground to welcome him, expecting a large group of people to follow the marshal upon his return, but to their surprise, he brought no one with him.
Xie Lanzhi rode her horse to the Emperor's Gate, then dismounted and walked into the palace step by step.
Zhang Ju followed behind her without saying a word.
Xie Lanzhi glanced down at Zhang Ju out of the corner of her eye, noticing his hesitant expression. She looked away, neither asking nor speaking, and first took a detour towards the direction of the Shenxing Division.
Zhang Ju was overjoyed; the marshal was going to stand up for him!
Meanwhile, Si Xitong heard that Xie Lanzhi had entered the palace, but changed his course.
She immediately got up, casually put on a warm yellow cloak with dark gold patterns, and sat in a palanquin to walk towards the Ministry of Justice.
The verses are secretly delightful.
Zhang Feile heard that his elder brother and Marshal Xie were on their way to the Censorate. He was so anxious his voice was hoarse: "Has the news been relayed to our master?"
The subordinate replied, "His Highness is already on his way."
Oh no, he heard that the marshal was not a stickler for rules, and that he only appreciated Zhang Ju after Huang Ze was captured. There was no need for him to make a trip for Zhang Ju.
He's just a servant; his master wouldn't care about that at all!
He had assumed, he had assumed, that was how it should be.
Who would have thought that Marshal Xie would act so unpredictably!
A note from the author:
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 19:59:37 on December 18, 2021 and 19:53:43 on December 19, 2021!
Thank you to the little angel who threw the landmine: Asi (1);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 86 Her Test for the Little Phoenix
A chilling atmosphere pervaded the Imperial Prison, and the jailers all felt a sense of impending doom. Even though promotions were irrelevant to them, their lives were at stake.
For some time, the deputy envoy and the chief clerk were locked in a power struggle, forcing the prison guards of the Censorate to take sides. This effectively split the Censorate in two, preventing the chief clerk's orders from reaching the deputy envoy, and vice versa, leaving the Censorate in a state of division.
The prisoners who would normally take three days to be interrogated were all interrogated by the two officers of the Censorate in one day, and they even snatched prisoners from each other's hands.
The prisoners were driven almost insane by the torture, and the jailers interrogated them day and night without end, not even getting a chance to sleep, and were on the verge of going crazy just like the prisoners.
Everyone was waiting for Marshal Xie to give them a swift and decisive end. Whether they lived or died, it didn't matter. Even if the sky fell, they could always be heroes again in eighteen years.
In the narrow passage of the Shenxing Division, Zhang Ju followed a figure in an obsidian robe with his head bowed respectfully. The newcomer strolled leisurely, as if he were having a meal.
Completely different from the chief clerk behind him, who was looking smug and self-satisfied.
The jailer standing on the deputy envoy's side was immediately uneasy. He had thought it was just a dogfight, and that the Emperor wouldn't interfere unless he exposed the truth. He hadn't expected Marshal Xie to be different; instead, he seemed to be upholding justice for Zhang Ju.
It seemed the deputy envoy was doomed. The jailer who sided with Zhang Feile was filled with regret.
The jailer on Zhangju's side was secretly delighted, preparing to watch the deputy envoy make a fool of himself.
As soon as Xie Lanzhi arrived at the entrance of the Censorate, everyone knelt down: "Greetings, Marshal!"
At the same time, four people carried the palanquin onto the main narrow passage. As the palanquin landed, a beautiful figure appeared in front of Xie Lanzhi wearing a warm golden cloak. She wrapped her delicate body tightly, and since it was already hot in the summer, she appeared in front of Xie Lanzhi wearing the cloak.
The jailer, who had been expecting a good show, suddenly froze, and Zhang Feile's subordinates changed their expressions from one of impending doom to one of utter disastrousness.
The crowd bowed again and said, "Greetings, Your Highness!"
Si Xitong walked towards Xie Lanzhi, who stopped and waited for her. The prison guards of the Shenxing Division lowered their heads in unison, their eyes fixed on the ground.
"Since you're back, why didn't you let someone notify me?" Si Xitong scolded softly. She reached out her right hand and quietly wrapped it around Xie Lanzhi's waist with her cloak. The waist armor was very cold, so it was good to cool her down.
Xie Lanzhi was filled with doubt. Her eyes fell on the cloak, and she asked with concern, "Are you cold?"
"I didn't take care of myself the night before, so I caught a chill." Si Xitong pressed her whole body against her chest; it was very hot, so hot that she felt hot too.
Xie Lanzhi immediately pulled the open cloak over Si Xitong's neck, making it completely airtight. In no time, Si Xitong's face turned bright red.
Her eyes flashed; she was faking it.
She has always protected her very well, taking meticulous care of even the smallest details, down to the last strand of hair. To touch her body is tantamount to touching one's own.
Little Phoenix actually dares to pull this trick on her now?
Xie Lanzhi didn't offer any subtle, concerned words: "Didn't I tell you to take good care of yourself?"
"It's my fault." Si Xitong nestled into her arms and snuggled closer, her intentions quite obvious.
She pretended not to notice, wanting to take the opportunity to teach this ignorant woman a lesson. She was actually playing the victim with her, did she not have any other way to get her to agree to deal with the matter of Deputy Envoy Zhang Feile?
If she can't handle the aftermath and still makes such a big fuss in the Censorate, she's just asking for trouble.
She certainly didn't teach her to get herself involved when stirring up a hornet's nest.
The more Xie Lanzhi thought about it, the darker her face became, and the five fingers pressing on the woman's shoulder tightened.
Si Xitong was in her arms. Her eyes flickered a few times, sensing that Lan Zhi wasn't buying it. A smile played on her lips. Very well. She knew it wouldn't work.
But that doesn't stop her from wanting to give it a try, whatever her goal may be. She should never think that she's doing this just to become a subordinate.
If that's the case, then Lan Zhi absolutely mustn't fall into my hands again. Otherwise, I'll make her pay.
Xie Lanzhi thought to herself, "How dare they use such a low-level and high-level tactic as seduction on me? They don't even consider the timing. I should take this opportunity to teach them a lesson."
"As a patient, the princess should be resting in bed. Why did she come to the Department of Cautious Punishment in person?"
She didn't say she was there to pick him up, which also implied that she knew the answer already.
Si Xitong responded fluently. She covered her mouth and pretended to be sick, then coughed lightly: "Marshal, I am fine. The most important thing is that you are back."
"I'm back, but my wife doesn't seem to have done what I instructed her to do, and she's distracting me for no reason." As Xie Lanzhi spoke, the undercurrent in her eyes deepened. She even grabbed Si Xitong's chin, forcing her to look directly at her, and then scrutinized her eyes. "Tell me, how should I punish her?"
Si Xitong smiled innocently at her and said, "How would I know? How about tonight..." She deliberately circled her fingertips around her chest.
"You really don't know?" Xie Lanzhi pressed down on her hand. Her tone grew increasingly somber, and her patience was wearing thin.
Si Xitong seemed determined to test her patience. She smiled and said, "Even if I knew, what could I do?"
As expected, he's still so clueless about romance. He can't even see a hint.
How about that? Xie Lanzhi found it somewhat amusing. Did she intend to keep pretending to know the answer? She had to expose her herself.
Just as Xie Lanzhi was hesitating whether to expose her beloved wife's little trick, a young man emerged from a dark corner of the Shenxing Division. He was dressed in a black official robe with red accents, and his whole aura was cold and sinister, like a demon that had been accidentally stumbled upon in broad daylight.
The boy came out and immediately put both knees down without saying a word, making a loud thud, showing that he was ready to risk everything.
The boy braced himself on the ground with both hands and slammed his head against the stone slab with a loud thud, like the sound of a drum being struck.
The sound it emitted was like a wolf cub's mournful howl: "Please punish me, Marshal!!"
"Zhang Feile, the newly appointed deputy envoy of the Censorate, begs the Marshal to punish him!!"
"Oh?" Xie Lanzhi looked at the man with interest. That kneeling and kowtow just now was no small feat. Was this the deputy envoy mentioned in the intelligence, the new subordinate Little Phoenix had taken a liking to, Zhang Ju's half-brother Zhang Feile?
"What crime have you committed?"
Zhang Feile looked at the stone slab and cried out, "Your subordinate is incompetent. I have gained Your Highness's favor but have placed Your Highness in danger. This is my dereliction of duty."
"We beg the Marshal to punish me!"
Xie Lanzhi wanted to hear what this young man had to say: "How did you put His Highness in danger?"
Zhang Feile did not answer immediately.
Xie Lanzhi: "Raise your head."
“It is precisely because of my incompetence that Your Highness went there. Otherwise, how could those unrelated people outside have so easily known Your Highness’s whereabouts!” Zhang Feile immediately looked up. His obvious stubbornness was very similar to the prince he was talking about, which momentarily dazzled Xie Lanzhi.
The confidant Little Phoenix chose is just like her! How so? Birds of a feather flock together? She'd heard this person was ruthless and showed no mercy to the Xie family. Little Phoenix certainly wouldn't be so blatant.
Xie Jun of Jianzhang Palace was originally her manpower, but now, after she just went out for a trip, he was all replaced by Little Phoenix. Isn't it obvious that Little Phoenix ordered Zhang Feile to do this?
She was well aware that Xie Jun of Jianzhang Palace had no ulterior motives, and that once she learned of Xie Jun's intelligence, the Xie clan would likely also learn of it.
This kind of double-dealing intelligence agent certainly failed in his duty. And since she didn't think it was a secret important enough to be kept completely confidential, she didn't pay much attention to it.
Now that Zhang Feile has said that she is in danger, he is clearly implying to her that Xiao Fenghuang has been under the surveillance of the Xie family all along, and that the Xie family will know her every move. Therefore, as a subordinate, it is his dereliction of duty to expose his master's whereabouts. Even if he has not encountered any danger, exposing his whereabouts is putting him in danger.
"Heh, interesting." Xie Lanzhi said, "In that case, not only can I not blame you, but I should also reward you."
Zhang Changle replied, "I wouldn't dare!"
Xie Lanzhi squeezed the woman in her arms, controlling her strength, but the woman suddenly gasped, "Hiss~"
She froze, wondering if she was going to use even this.
Xie Lanzhi narrowed her eyes, hitting her right on the spot again. When will this little phoenix ever stop?
She's terrified that Little Phoenix might go astray and plot something big, so she has to keep a close eye on her and prevent her from taking a dangerous path.
Her methods can be cold-blooded and ruthless, but they must never be this servile and obsequious.