Chapter 242 – Time in the afternoon is to snuggle with each other.

Chu Qing-Yan listened to the melancholy tone along the way and fell asleep just like that.

Last night, she didn't sleep at all because of excitement. Today she had to climb up the mountain then walk down. Her energy had already been exhausted since earlier. Now, she could only nestle in the carriage and sleep deeply with loud snoring sounds.

And for Xiao Xu right now, he had in his hands full of information of the past ten years on the next dozen cities they were about to reach. The information was on officials, people's livelihood, natural and manmade disasters. How many small and large disasters that happened, almost all of these information was arranged on the table.

It had been a while since he didn't get six hours of sleep. He was examining these contents around the clock and circled all the officials that may be a problem as well as what happened. The more serious ones had to be reported and heard in court.

Right now, he felt somewhat tired. He lifted his hand to pinch between his eyebrows.

At his side, he took a glance at the little fellow peacefully sleeping. Don't know why, but the jittery feeling in his heart was smoothed.

Xiao Xu's lip hooked up with helplessness. This little fellow, no matter where she was she could always sleep so soundly. Even if the heaven and earth were to break up, she could still lie on her side and sleep peacefully. The feeling she gave off was that of it "what can you do to me!" But this adaptable temperament really invoked a person's liking.

And just at this moment of being lost in thought, that restless little fellow had already unconsciously climbed up his knee. She placed her head on his leg, using it for a pillow. Afterwards, she had an expression of being very satisfied.

Xiao Xu's hand that was holding a brush stiffened slightly. He put down the brush and wanted to s.h.i.+ft the little fellow back onto the couch. Only that just as extended his hand, don't know if this little fellow was really sleeping or pretending to sleep, she suddenly was not satisfied with small gains and also hugged his arm. She not only refused to let go, she even rubbed her face against his arm. Then she quieted down, hugging his arm.

This time Xiao Xu was in an impossible situation. To push her away or not to push her away? If he pushed her away, it certainly would wake her up. If he didn't push her away, then he won't be able to continue dealing with these information.

"Big Block of Ice, go to sleep and rest." She unconsciously blurted this out and slightly startled Xiao Xu. But when he lowered his head to look, the little fellow's eyes were still tightly closed with a satisfied appearance.

Finally after weighing things over and over, Xiao Xu still couldn't bear waking her so he let her hug his arm, resting her head on his legs as she sank into the land of dreams.

He thought back to the matters they encountered these days, whether there were things that he forgot and didn't handle. The memos he sent back to the capital, were interspersed with a new round of crimes and proof, as well as a new group of officials that were about to land in his net. Don't know if father emperor would be pleased with his work and effort?

Whether he was pleased?

Xiao Xu's mouth couldn't help but hook into a self mocking shallow smile. Whether he was pleased or not, with regards to him it already wasn't important anymore.

The cold wind blow partnered with the warm temperature from the sun. It blew into the carriage and brushed past the two people nestled together.

Somewhat tired and also somewhat sleepy.

Unconsciously, how did that person resting on his legs curl up into his embrace step by step?

Unconsciously that person with his head lowered, how did he step by step gather closer to the person in his embrace?

The two young bodies got closer and closer together, just like the two willow branches outside the carriage window that were blown together, winding and coiling and couldn't be separated no matter what.

Outside the carriage, a homing pigeon landed. Fire Spirit took off the letter and wanted to immediately transmit it to the person in the carriage. But he was blocked by Earth Spirit three steps away from the carriage.

"What are you doing?" Fire Spirit was somewhat puzzled.

"Master hasn't rested properly for four days. Do you plan to wake him up?" Earth Spirit put down his hand, he didn't state it clearly but his gaze had already turned toward the carriage.

Fire Spirit followed his gaze to look over. He could see the two figures lying together from the carriage curtain that rose up from time to time. It was harmonious, the kind that made people feel they are well-suited.

Fire Spirit immediately withdrew the letter in his hand and smiled in clear understanding. "Then I'd better wait until evening to hand it over to master!"

Earth Spirit didn't reply, his gaze s.h.i.+fted away from the carriage and turned toward the blue horizons.

"Fire Spirit, I have a feeling a mountain of rain and building full of wind is about to come."

Fire Spirit put away his smiling expression as he seriously looked at Earth Spirit. "All the way here master didn't care and did it in spite of everything, he has really offended too many people."

"I feel master is urgently doing something according to a plan. This is a kind of feeling I have never had from following master for so many years." Earth Spirit said in a low voice as if he didn't want others to hear.

Fire Spirit nodded. "I also have the same feeling."

Earth Spirit once again turned his gaze toward the two figures in the carriage. That was to say, landing on that lovable, naive person's face. "I hope this period of harmony and peacefulness could continue on like this."

Fire Spirit silently sighed.

As the most elite members of Western Xuan's Xiao Lie Cavalry, they had sharp senses that others didn't have. Although their people had withdrawn from the capital, but those fluctuations in the ways of the world as well as the surging waves in the dark, they could still faintly sense it.

The two didn't talk more because they had always followed master's orders. Even if it was wrong, they would still firmly carry it out!

The wind in the afternoon wasn't as cold as the wind in the morning. It carried a bit of warmth from the sunlight. It landed on the bodies of the two people inside the carriage, letting people indulge in this coy warmth of the afternoon light.

Don't know if snuggling up like this will ever occur henceforth?

Chu Qing-Yan who was dreaming also didn't know how difficult to come by this portion of peacefulness was.

Imperial palace in the capital.

Inside the imperial study, the memos had already piled up on the entire table.

They were all about the evidence gathered these recent days, together with a list of names among the one hundred imperial officials that embezzled, accepted bribes and had benefits from Liu s.h.i.+ and other entanglements.

The proof of guilt, account books and letters of these dealings were all put on top of another table.

Those were all delivered to the capital by people Xiao Xu dispatched. The information dealt with matters large and small, taking out any of them would make those officials silent with nothing to say, directly convicting them.

These several days, everyone in the entire imperial palace felt they were in danger. They behaved cautiously, afraid of provoking that person in the imperial palace.

Western Xuan seeing these proof, a fire seemed to be stifled in his chest. He originally thought governing a country wasn't as bad as he imagined. But when the evidence was brought up, he finally knew it was worse than he had imagined. He had finally found the reason why the national treasury was empty. This time, the gold, silver and precious stones from searching houses and confiscating possessions had filled the entire national treasury with excess that had no place to hold them. It was sufficient to see how deeply these vermin had eaten into the nation!

"Your majesty, you should eliminate some gas. Injuring the dragon's body from anger, the gains won't make up for the losses ah!" Eunuch Cao entered, carrying a bowl of medicinal soup to detoxify and alleviate the fever.

"Cao Zhi ah, I the emperor is too embarra.s.sed to face my ancestors to say anything ah. Look at how I the emperor had governed this nation to such an awful state!" Western Xuan gave a sigh, his chest still felt as if a mouthful of air was stuck there.

Eunuch Cao promptly said. "Your Majesty mustn't say this. You see, didn't these people get their proper punishment? The evidence of guilt His Highness Prince Ying has gathered is more than enough to judge them to be guilty. These vermins were arrested, with regards to the common people this is a matter worth celebrating. Your Majesty ought to be happy ah."

"That's right ah. This time Prince Ying really was a huge help to this emperor." Unable to deny it, Western Xuan Emperor stroked his beard as he said.

"Prince Ying really is your Majesty's most valuable arm. If it was changed to someone else, I estimate they won't have this kind of unyielding courage." Eunuch Cao smilingly praised.

Western Xuan's hand paused with the ghost of a smile. Only that this valuable arm had already been forced onto a road of no return by him.