Chapter 35: The Legend of the Lady Who Cast Herself into the Well

As the court was dismissed, Qin Suwen rose and left the Golden Throne Hall without so much as a glance at Grand Secretary Zhang and the others below. Only after Qin Suwen had departed did Grand Secretary Zhang and his peers dare to lift their heads.

Grand Secretary Zhang offered a slight bow with clasped fists to Meng Tian, who stood beside him, a faint smile on his lips. Zhang clearly understood that if not for Meng Tian’s words in his defense, he might not have survived the day unscathed. Even if he had escaped with his life, he would have lost everything. None knew better than Zhang the dire consequences of falsely accusing a high-ranking minister of treason and colluding with the enemy.

Had Meng Tian not pleaded for leniency, Zhang might well have been forced into retirement—or even faced a threat to his life. Thus, Zhang felt it only proper to offer Meng Tian a gesture of respect, though expressing his gratitude outright was beyond him.

Meng Tian, seeing this, merely smiled and said nothing. He understood well enough that this was the most Zhang could bring himself to do.

With that, Grand Secretary Zhang gathered his confidants and left the Golden Throne Hall. Once he was gone, a trace of ferocity flickered at the corner of Meng Tian’s mouth.

“General, why didn’t you just finish him off? Surely His Majesty would stand with you!” One of Meng Tian’s trusted officers approached him in frustration.

From the perspective of Meng Tian’s followers, Grand Secretary Zhang had long been at odds with their general. Meng Tian’s forbearance was well-known, but today Zhang had gone too far. For any soldier, especially a commander, nothing was more intolerable than being accused of treason; such a charge was more cruel than death itself.

Meng Tian, a veteran of two reigns, was in no way Zhang’s inferior—indeed, he might even surpass him. But Meng Tian understood why Zhang opposed him at every turn: Zhang coveted the chancellorship.

Thus, Meng Tian had become Zhang’s greatest rival. Yet anyone who knew Meng Tian’s character realized he was more at home on the battlefield than in courtly intrigues.

“If I were to destroy him, who would be left to hold the court together?” Meng Tian replied with a gentle smile, his vision extending far beyond the immediate moment.

There was reason in this. Meng Tian knew he could have had Zhang executed today, and his confidants were not wrong—Qin Suwen would indeed have supported him. But Meng Tian also knew that if he killed Zhang out of personal enmity, who would keep order in the court when he was away defending the frontiers? He had to admit, Zhang’s presence kept many scheming officials in check.

For the sake of the realm and his own interests, Meng Tian had chosen to persuade Qin Suwen to spare Zhang. He hoped Zhang would understand that they were not truly enemies.

“General, was it really thanks to the ‘Lady of the Well’ that the northern borders were spared a surprise attack?” a young officer couldn’t help but ask in wonder.

“Indeed it was,” Meng Tian nodded with a touch of admiration. The analysis Fang Xu had given that day had been entirely accurate. The barbarians’ surprise attack played out exactly as Fang Xu had predicted. Had Meng Tian not known Fang Xu had never had any contact with those tribes, he might have suspected him of being in league with them.

Even after Meng Tian’s confirmation, the officers found it hard to believe—a simple tale from Fang Xu had thwarted a barbarian raid? It was almost beyond comprehension.

The ‘Lady of the Well’ had long been a subject of royal ridicule, yet now, thanks to Fang Xu’s story, she had prevented a catastrophe. Had the barbarians broken through, countless lives would have been lost and families destroyed. Because of the ‘Lady of the Well,’ such tragedy was averted. What had once been a joke in the royal household had now become the legend of a great hero throughout the realm.

News of Fang Xu’s deeds spread like the wind; soon, people in every province and district of Great Qin knew the legend of the ‘Lady of the Well.’

Unbeknownst to Fang Xu himself, he remained oblivious to the events that had taken place. All he knew was that, upon waking, he clutched his bedding in a panic.

Why was Fang Xu so flustered? At some point, Xiaoya had brought a group of handmaidens to surround his bed, each one gazing at him with curiosity.

Startled, Fang Xu quickly checked himself and, finding he was still wearing his nightgown, finally breathed a sigh of relief. In his previous life, he had been accustomed to sleeping unclothed; fortunately, he had not done so last night, or else he would have been thoroughly exposed before Xiaoya and all the young ladies.

“Ahem! Xiaoya, what is going on here?” Fang Xu coughed twice, looking at Xiaoya, who led the group.

Though Fang Xu prided himself on his thick skin, even he blushed under the unabashed stares of Xiaoya and her retinue.

“Oh! Brother, when did you wake up?” Xiaoya finally snapped to attention, startled by his words.

Fang Xu could only smile wryly—had his commotion earlier sounded so lifeless to Xiaoya that she took him for dead?

“Ahem, what exactly is happening here?” Fang Xu asked, rubbing his nose and wrapping himself more tightly in the blanket beneath the intense scrutiny of the young ladies. Even clothed, he couldn’t shake the feeling of exposure, as if he wore nothing at all—a most disconcerting sensation.