Fu Xuan ignored his reaction. “Once the capital is relocated, Luoyang will become the imperial capital. The Third Prince is also His Majesty’s only adult son. If you seize this opportunity, it may open up entirely new prospects for you in the future.”
Fu Xi Yan’s thoughts were in complete turmoil.
From what he knew of history, very few Commanders of the Brocade Guard had met good ends, much less their subordinates. In his mind, the curse of the Brocade Guard could probably be rivaled only by the Blue House. The only question was whether this world’s Brocade Guard was the one he imagined, or whether the name simply meant a cushy job with excellent benefits where everyone wore brocade and dined on delicacies every day.
Fu Xi Yan decided he could no longer allow himself to be butchered at others’ convenience. He had to rise up and fight for his ideals!
“I’m not going! I don’t want to go! I demand medical retirement!”
He spread his arms and threw himself onto the ground.
The heavy impact and billowing dust demonstrated the grim resolve of a warrior severing his own wrist!
Fu Fu was just about to lose his temper when Fu Xuan stopped him.
Fu Xuan toyed with the dagger in his hand and sighed softly. “If it were possible, why wouldn’t I want you to remain at home? But the Chu family has already set its sights on you, and your name has officially reached His Majesty. Even if you fall ill, the illness must be completely flawless.”
…
Fu Xi Yan raised his head slightly, his gaze rising and falling with the dagger.
What did that mean?
Surely it did not mean what he thought it meant?
He only wanted to resign, not quit gambling. There was no need to leave behind a hand or foot as a profound reminder!
Fu Fu frowned. “Look at him. Sending him outside would only disgrace us.”
Fu Xi Yan nodded repeatedly, his eyes growing moist. True affection revealed itself in times of hardship. This was what a real father looked like! Exactly—he was an absolute disaster, hopeless beyond salvation, a public menace and the black sheep of the herd. It was one thing for him to stay home and bring misfortune upon his relatives, but how could they release him into the world to victimize innocent people?
Fu Xuan said, “Don’t worry. I have already arranged for a pair of brothers to follow him at all times.”
Fu Fu looked slightly surprised. “You mean Zhong Xin and Geng Geng?”
Fu Xuan nodded. “Those two.”
Fu Fu shook his head. “They are your personal attendants. You indulge this boy far too much.”
In only a few sentences, the two brothers settled the matter between themselves.
The person lying on the ground: “…” This was supposed to be indulgence? Wasn’t he simply being made the sucker?
Fu Xuan walked over to Fu Xi Yan and gently nudged his arm with his foot.
Fu Xi Yan petulantly rolled over.
Fu Xuan said, “You said you didn’t want to remain in the Yulin Guard. Haven’t we granted your wish? Why are you still throwing a tantrum?”
Zhu Yu Da’s habit of saying only half of something while leaving the other half as a pitfall must have been learned from you! Fu Xi Yan said aggrievedly, “Given your relationship with Chu Guang, won’t joining the Brocade Guard be like a lamb entering a tiger’s den?”
Fu Xuan said, “Stay with your escorts and don’t wander off. Chu Guang won’t be able to touch you.”
Fu Xi Yan: “…” That somehow sounded even more alarming.
Fu Xuan asked, “Do you still want the dagger?”
Fu Xi Yan turned his head and buried his face in his arms. Oh, spiritual weapon, spiritual weapon! We were brought together by fate, yet destined never to be! This bond can only be renewed in our next lives!
No one knew a son better than his father. Fu Fu raised his eyelids. “How about this? Go to Luoyang first. If you truly cannot remain there, I will swallow my pride and petition His Majesty, asking Chu Guang to release you and let you return home.”
Fu Xi Yan turned back and pursued the matter to its roots. “What would I do after coming home?”
Fu Fu said, “Whatever you want.”
Fu Xi Yan said, “I want to open a shop!”
Fu Fu: “…” His hand was itching. He wanted to grab his saber and beat someone!
Fu Xuan hurriedly signaled him with his eyes.
Fu Fu inhaled deeply and, after holding it in for a long while, finally forced out an “Mm.”
Fu Xi Yan sprang upright with a carp flip, moving with an agility entirely unlike that of a man weighing more than two hundred jin. “You’ll keep your word?”
Fu Fu glanced at him. “However, once you join the Brocade Guard, you must also work diligently. Chu Guang is at odds with your uncle. Act cautiously and do not allow him to seize any evidence against you.”
Although Fu Xi Yan felt this might be somewhat difficult, the fragrance of freedom lay ahead. No matter who tried to obstruct him, who could possibly succeed? Ah, he would become Kua Fu himself and chase that enchanting yet scorching sun!
Fu Xuan smiled and offered him the dagger. “Do you want it or not?”
Fu Xi Yan accepted it without hesitation. “I want it!”
As they watched him skip away with the dagger in hand, the smiles on Fu Xuan’s and Fu Fu’s faces slowly faded.
It was late autumn. The cicadas’ cries were gradually falling silent, withered leaves departed their branches, and yellow leaves covered the ground.
The scenery was bleak, and so were their hearts.
Fu Xuan’s gaze swept over the newly grown white hairs on his elder brother’s head. He slowly said, “We need to hurry with Xia Qing’s marriage.”
Fu Fu nodded. “I will speak with your sister-in-law.”
After a pause, Fu Xuan lowered his voice. “Find an opportunity to have Li An appointed outside the capital and send Dong Wen away to study.”
Fu Fu remained silent for a long while before releasing a faint sigh.
⸻
A business trip naturally required packing luggage.
Fu Xi Yan immediately took out the custom-made bamboo trunk he had commissioned, complete with wheels and a lock. He stuffed his hidden “middle-school textbooks,” soap, and formula inside, then brought out his favorite clothes and folded them one by one into separate categories.
His clothing sizes were larger than average and generally unavailable at ready-made clothing shops, so he had to bring everything he might need.
The young servant entered carrying tea and was horrified to see his master preparing as though he were fleeing into exile. “Young Master, where are you going?”
Fu Xi Yan answered casually, “Luoyang.”
The servant blurted out, “Wouldn’t that be walking straight into the trap? His Majesty is moving the capital there!”
“…”
Fu Xi Yan did not need to guess what the boy was imagining. Speechless, he said, “I’ve been ordered to go on a business trip.”
The servant said, “Oh. Then I can’t go with you.”
Warmth stirred faintly in Fu Xi Yan’s heart. After so many years as neighbors, a sudden separation naturally made it difficult to part. He was just about to offer a few comforting words when the servant asked cheerfully, “Then may I go home and live with my family?”
He was a household-born servant whose parents and relatives worked in other courtyards of the estate.
Fu Xi Yan: “…”
The servant looked at him pitifully. “Once you leave, the courtyard will be very quiet.”
Fu Xi Yan possessed too many secrets and suffered from a guilty conscience, so he had kept only this young and simple-minded child by his side. Everyone else worked in the outer courtyard as cleaners or guards. Once he departed, the courtyard truly would become deserted.
The servant hurriedly added, “I’ll still come back every day to dust and clean.”
Fu Xi Yan waved weakly. “Go, go.”
“Thank you, Young Master. I’ll help you pack.”
Fu Xi Yan watched the servant’s cheerful figure and sighed silently.
A joyful childhood never belonged to a precocious and wise soul.
⸻
A newly appointed official traditionally lit three fires to display his authority. As soon as Chu Guang assumed his new post, he handed Fu Xuan a list of personnel to be transferred. Few members of the Fu faction had been selected. Apart from Fu Xi Yan, the list contained only scattered names such as Zhu Yu Da, Zhou Geng Geng, and Zhou Zhong Xin.
Chu Guang understood that his foremost tasks were to establish the Brocade Guard and safely escort the Third Prince to Luoyang. Recruiting too many troublesome thorns would be detrimental to the stability of the force.
When the list reached Fu Xuan, he did not make matters difficult. He raised his hand and released everyone on it, including his own nephew. However, on the day before Zhu Yu Da was supposed to report for duty, he was expelled from the Yulin Guard for causing trouble while drunk. If Chu Guang still wished to recruit him, he would have to take the standard recruitment route.
Although Chu Guang knew Fu Xuan had manipulated the situation, Zhu Yu Da had only been selected to disgust him in the first place. Chu Guang had already won a decisive victory and achieved his goal, so he let the matter go.
Unaware of the real circumstances, Fu Xi Yan, Zhu Qiao, and several others arranged to visit Zhu Yu Da after their shifts. He was still being held in the capital prefecture’s jail.
The conditions inside the jail were reasonably good, though Zhu Yu Da looked considerably more haggard. Seeing the regret covering his face, everyone assumed he was remorseful over the drunken disturbance and offered him consolation.
Zhu Yu Da had already learned the true reason for his imprisonment. He sighed. “General Fu is angry with me now. I don’t know how he’ll punish me after I return.”
Confined inside the jail and cut off from news, he did not yet know that he had been expelled from the Yulin Guard.
His colleagues exchanged glances before directing them all toward Fu Xi Yan. Since Fu Xuan was his uncle, Fu Xi Yan was naturally the best person to break the news.
Fu Xi Yan scratched his cheek. “Perhaps, possibly… dismissal?”
Zhu Yu Da’s entire body shook. He cried out, “How could it come to that?”
His question also voiced everyone else’s thoughts.
How serious was causing trouble while drunk? A reprimand and docked salary should have been enough. How had it escalated to dismissal? It was not as though no one had pleaded on Zhu Yu Da’s behalf, but Fu Xuan had been unusually severe this time. Everyone who tried to intercede had also been implicated and received a scolding.
Zhu Qiao shook his head. “You should have chosen a more auspicious day to cause trouble. Of all times, you just had to do it when General Chu was being promoted. It’s like sailing straight into a headwind—simply terrible luck.”
The others also sighed repeatedly, believing Zhu Yu Da had innocently suffered the consequences of Fu Xuan’s displaced anger.
Zhu Yu Da, however, knew that the chain of cause and effect was precisely the opposite. Because he had “offended his superior” by taking imperial property without permission and violated a palace taboo, Emperor Jianhong had decided to warn the Fu faction. That was what led to Chu Guang’s meteoric rise!
The injustice Zhu Yu Da suffered was both undeserved and deserved.
Seeing shame on his face, Zhu Qiao comforted him. “Your name was originally included on General Chu’s transfer list. Perhaps after you are released, you’ll simply report to the Brocade Guard.”
For a member of the Fu faction, entering the Brocade Guard was like a lamb entering a tiger’s den. Yet for Zhu Yu Da in his present circumstances, it still offered a way out.
Zhu Yu Da did not know what to say and could only respond vaguely a few times.
They spoke for a little longer before a jailer cautiously approached to urge them to leave. Everyone had no choice but to rise and say farewell. Just before they departed, Zhu Yu Da suddenly called out to Fu Xi Yan.
“Please plead with General Fu on my behalf. I… I merely lost my judgment for a moment and made a mistake. My original intention was only to help. Please ask the general to show leniency in consideration of my loyalty over the years!”
Something about this sounded strange to Fu Xi Yan.
It made sense to describe drunken troublemaking as a momentary lapse in judgment, but saying that he had “only wanted to help” did not fit at all.
Help whom?
Help the capital prefect achieve his performance targets?
Fu Xi Yan puzzled over the matter throughout the journey home. The instant he stepped through the main gates, a flash of inspiration struck him.
Zhu Yu Da had caused trouble while drunk and been sent to jail, leaving a stain on his record. As a result, he had been expelled from the Yulin Guard and could no longer enter the Brocade Guard. Wasn’t this precisely what Fu Xi Yan had dreamed of day and night… being fired?
Whatever Zhu Yu Da had originally meant by “wanting to help,” as far as Fu Xi Yan was concerned, he had helpfully demonstrated exactly how it should be done!
A temporary spell in prison in exchange for escaping the lifelong cage of an official post—what a bargain!
Fu Xi Yan’s heart immediately surged with excitement, and he could no longer restrain himself. He pivoted on one foot and turned back toward the street.
The gatekeeper froze, then hurriedly asked, “Where are you going, Fourth Young Master?”
Without turning his head, Fu Xi Yan answered, “To jail!”
Futile Devices Scans 
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