(Before writing, I glanced and noticed that the character "曈" in Wang Tong'er's name is displayed as an alternative form, possibly because it's too rare. "曈" has a very beautiful meaning. Now I wonder if I should change it to "瞳." Also, I'd like to report something to everyone: I'm earnestly asking for your monthly votes after the 28th because I want to be in the top three. *Clenches fist, says softly and with force.*)

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...

Fan Xian had been in the imperial study for a long time. At first, of course, he spoke about the most urgent matters. Now, the most concerning thing for Qing country was the situation on the Western Liang Road, and the progress of the plan that His Majesty had the Overwatch Council prepare four months ago. Fan Xian spoke eloquently, and His Majesty listened quietly, without a trace of dissatisfaction on his face. He even comforted Fan Xian a few times, which was rare, saying that he had worked hard.

Feeling the environment was suitable and the timing was right, Fan Xian rolled his eyes and took the opportunity to say a few idle words about the Grand Prince taking a concubine. Strangely, the main point of these idle words was completely different from the response he had discussed with the Prince in the Prince's mansion. He directly humiliated the Wang family's daughter with his words and, at the same time, expressed his strong unwillingness, as a subject, to interfere in the imperial family's affairs.

As Fan Xian had expected, His Majesty was furious upon hearing this and scolded him severely, pointing out Fan Xian's position as Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices and making harsh remarks about the Grand Prince taking a concubine. This storm of criticism did not make Fan Xian feel any fear. He had been with this unfathomable Emperor for a long time. Although he could never see the deepest part of the Emperor's heart, he had at least figured out his temperament and preferences. Such a vigorous scolding usually meant that the matter was not serious.

Sure enough, Fan Xian took the opportunity to suggest that since he was the Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, and His Majesty was going to marry the Wang family's daughter to the Grand Prince, he should consider the imperial family's reputation and perhaps teach the Wang family's daughter a few things—these things were usually done by the old wet nurses in the palace. It was somewhat ridiculous that Fan Xian, a young man, was taking over this task—but His Majesty did not laugh. He directly told Fan Xian not to interfere in this idle matter, but he was not angry either.

It was likely that His Majesty already knew the story at the entrance of the Prince's mansion and had guessed why his most beloved son had insisted on refusing before, and what benefits he was demanding.

Just as Fan Xian was feeling relieved, he heard the words "Zhaoshang Qianzhuang" (Merchant Bank).

These four words were like a deep brand, instantly searing his heart, causing him to lower his head and remain silent. He knew why the Emperor would choose this moment to make him account for the Merchant Bank because he had become accustomed to these sudden thunderbolts in the past two years.

If his skin wasn't thick enough, he would have been scorched by lightning long ago.

This was the so-called unpredictable imperial heart, wasn't it? Fan Xian thought to himself. Although His Majesty showed him boundless favor, allowing him to be unrestrained and arrogant in the Qing court, he still did not forget to occasionally knock him on the head.

Yes, this was a monarch's way of knocking his closest person on the head, to wake him up, lest he become too complacent and misunderstand the relationship between monarch and subject or father and son. Since the suppression of the rebellion in Kyoto, whenever Fan Xian had made great contributions to the court, or after being heavily rewarded by His Majesty, His Majesty would casually bring up some matters or names, making Fan Xian shudder and realize his position.

The stick the Emperor used in the court to knock Fan Xian on the head was the faction of officials led by He Zongwei, while the real lightning strike in private was about the things Fan Xian was doing secretly.

Looking back, the things that had acted as the Emperor's thunderbolts in the past two years included the truth about Xia Mingji, the relationship between Xia Qifei and the Jiangnan Water Village, Fan Sizhe's smuggling in the north, the first thunderbolt regarding Xu MaoCai's impure intentions, and why Wang Shisanlang had joined Fan Xian, and so on and so forth...

Each thunderbolt struck directly at Fan Xian's heart, making him feel cold all over. It seemed that he had no secrets in front of His Majesty. If these crimes were truly exposed, they would all be punishable by death. Of course, he knew that the Emperor was reluctant to use these charges against him, but was just reminding him. Even so, he still felt cold all over, feeling that the grandmaster Emperor on the dragon throne could swallow him up with a single breath.

Fortunately, Fan Xian was not an ordinary subject. Faced with the Emperor's thunderbolts, his response was also unparalleled. He relied solely on his thick skin. He would admit to the sins he should admit to, but he would continue to do what he should do. Anyway, the Emperor didn't want to kill him, so he would continue to muddle along.

But he couldn't muddle along today because the Merchant Bank was too important to Fan Xian. Whether it was the Overwatch Council's expenses, the money moved to the Da Jiang River to build dikes, Wan'er's large-scale charitable deeds in Hangzhou, or even the luxurious lives of the entire family and Chen Garden, all came from the Merchant Bank's income.

Most importantly, the Merchant Bank once held millions of taels of silver belonging to the little Emperor of Northern Qi. Once this was discovered, even if Fan Xian played the filial son and wailed, he would not be able to cover up this crime of treason.

A few lines of cold sweat slid down his back. Three years ago, when he subdued Lord Ming, the old man who wasn't afraid of boiling water, the Merchant Bank was forced to come to the forefront. He had guessed that this matter would arouse the Emperor's suspicion. The Ministry of Revenue had not allocated so much silver, and the Emperor would definitely think about where the silver in the Merchant Bank came from.

Fan Xian had made many preparations for this secret, confirming that he had cleaned up the Northern accounts completely. In the past, His Majesty had also asked about the source of the Merchant Bank's money, but Fan Xian had used the most famous rumor in the world to evade the question—everyone thought that the Merchant Bank's mysterious shares were the secret wealth that Shen Zhong, the commander of the Northern Qi Brocade Guard, had accumulated over decades of operation.

But today, His Majesty asked him face to face, and also mentioned Miss Shen, who had been married to Yan Bingyun for less than three months. This was naturally a warning to Fan Xian that Miss Shen had always been under his control, but also had always been in His Majesty's eyes. He shouldn't use the ridiculous excuse of the Shen family's inheritance today.

A few more lines of cold sweat appeared on Fan Xian's back, but as it was late autumn and early winter, and the imperial study was still cold even with the fire stove, and he was wearing thick official robes, the traces were not visible for the time being. His expression remained stubbornly calm: "Your Majesty, what do you want me to explain?"

The Emperor's face darkened, displeased that this kid was still trying to deceive him in such a private conversation.

How could he know that Fan Xian was drumming in his heart, wondering if the little Emperor in the North resented him for the massive killing of Northern Qi spies on the Western Liang Road, and had thus thrown out this secret agreement, using Qing Emperor's hand to kill him? Could it be that Northern Qi hated him so much? They were willing to spend so much to get rid of him?

Fan Xian's expression could no longer remain calm. Sweat seeped from his forehead as he wondered if the little monster from Northern Qi dared to throw a knife, who knew if he dared to throw the Merchant Bank?

Just then, he caught a glimpse of the Emperor's obvious displeasure in his peripheral vision. Seeing this displeasure, Fan Xian was overjoyed.

If the Emperor really knew the inside story of this matter and wanted to take him down, with his cultivation, state of mind, and shrewdness, how could he be so "sincerely" displeased?

Fan Xian smiled awkwardly, coughed twice, and said, "The first sum of money in the Merchant Bank... was indeed not the Shen family's treasure, but... my own private money."

This answer was extremely clever.

If ordinary officials heard this sentence, they would definitely scold Fan Xian for being shameless and disgusting. The Merchant Bank started with several million taels of silver as its base. Whose private money could be so much? But when His Majesty heard this sentence, he clearly revealed an expression of complete understanding and said calmly, "Indeed, when did Fifth Brother give you this money?"

Fan Xian smiled wryly and respectfully replied, "It was before going down to Jiangnan. Uncle Wu Zhu knew I needed money."

The Emperor shook his head as he looked at him and said, "Fifth Brother is also being reckless, giving you, a child, such a large sum of silver."

Fan Xian breathed a sigh of relief in his heart, knowing that the Emperor had indeed thought of the old Ye family of that year, as he had expected. But his face still wore a strange smile, as if he was slandering the Emperor for being envious of this money, or as if he was slandering His Majesty for not being satisfied, even though the Jiangnan treasury had earned him several million taels of silver after he took over.

The Emperor clearly saw through the things hidden in Fan Xian's expression and angrily reprimanded him in a low voice for a few moments. After a while, he forcibly suppressed his anger and said casually, "Originally, this treasury was left by your mother. How could I look up to those few million taels of silver? It's just that you shouldn't squander the silver your mother left you."

Fan Xian did not dare to be negligent and quickly explained the uses of the Merchant Bank's income one by one. In fact, His Majesty knew these things very well, but it was always better to explain them clearly one by one. Moreover, if he explained it clearly now, he wouldn't be able to bring up the old accounts in the future.

The Emperor stroked his beard under his chin with satisfaction, nodded, and said, "It's naturally excellent to use it for good deeds. Chen *ya tou* (girl) is also someone who can get things done. Don't always keep her locked up in the residence. When you have time, let her come to the palace to keep me company."

Fan Xian thought to himself that he had never locked up his beloved wife. She was now busy managing the affairs of the entire Fan clan, and because of the rebellion in Kyoto, she inevitably had some aversion towards this Emperor-uncle. He was unwilling to enter the palace.

"Handle the matter in the West properly." The Emperor stood up and suddenly thought of something, asking casually, "Where did Fifth Brother go?"

"I don't know where Uncle has gone." Fan Xian also quickly stood up and said, "I haven't seen him for two years."

"This kid always likes to disappear. How did he learn the same temperament as Uncle Ye Shi?" The Emperor said with some headache and then waved his hand, signaling Fan Xian to leave.

...

...

The door of the imperial study was finally pushed open, and Fan Xian walked out with a calm expression, nodding to Eunuch Yao, who was waiting beside him. Eunuch Yao quickly bowed and asked in a low voice, "How is His Majesty's mood?"

Fan Xian smiled, and the clouds on his face quickly turned into a ray of sunshine, extremely bright. But his mood was somewhat heavy—every time he entered the palace to meet with His Majesty, it was his day of suffering. The ubiquitous pressure and the sense of authority from the Emperor and grandmaster made him very uncomfortable, especially having to endure this kind of unprovoked thunderbolt from time to time. It was really unpleasant.

Especially today, when the Emperor asked about Wu Zhu's whereabouts at the end, Fan Xian couldn't help but sneer in his heart. Now that two of the grandmasters from foreign countries were either dead or crippled, Ye Liuyun's existence seemed unnecessary for Qing. This person, whose nature was like idle clouds and wild cranes, had truly drifted away after helping Qing Emperor complete the Da Dong Mountain scheme, and of course, would not appear again. Although the Emperor's inquiry about Wu Zhu seemed natural, Fan Xian knew that the Emperor had always had a secret vigilance and precaution against Uncle Wu Zhu.

As for why this was the case, Fan Xian knew it very well in his heart.

Walking along the long eaves of the Taiji Hall towards the tall imperial city, his expression gradually calmed down. Such private conversations in the imperial study had been conducted many times. From the discomfort of facing thunderbolts for the first time to now being able to deal with them freely, Fan Xian had grown tremendously.

Standing under the tall Taiji Hall, looking at the stone steps engraved with dragon clouds, Fan Xian took a deep breath, allowing the cold air of early winter to quickly enter his chest, feeling incomparably comfortable.

The things that the Emperor knew were the things that Fan Xian was not afraid for him to know. Although these thunderbolts were terrifying, they could not break the hard shell on Fan Xian's heart. He still had many secrets that he had successfully concealed from the Emperor, such as the Merchant Bank, the few managers of Qing Yu Hall who had reported their deaths, Uncle Wu Zhu's true whereabouts, and the small workshop that was slowly taking shape within a small country controlled by Dongyi City.

For example, the soul inside him did not belong to this world, and he knew how another similar soul had touchingly appeared in this world and how heartbreakingly it had disappeared from this world.

These were all things that the omnipotent Qing Emperor did not know, and this was precisely Fan Xian's trump card. His Majesty did not even know that his two biggest cards—the box and Uncle Wu Zhu—had already left him and their whereabouts were unknown.

His eyes narrowed as he looked at the solid imperial city across the long imperial road, his gaze passing over the city walls, directly penetrating the cold clouds in the sky, as if he saw some past events many years ago, as well as the blood and fire of the battle two years ago.

The eunuchs and palace maids walking quietly in the palace quickly bowed to the young man under the Taiji Hall, but wondered what Little Fan was spacing out about.

Fan Xian's gaze pierced through the clouds, seemingly landing on the extremely distant northern snowfields, as if he saw a person with a black cloth covering his eyes, carrying a box and moving forward alone and resolutely toward an unknown and miraculous place.

With each step, that person broke through countless snowflakes, and with each glance, saw through endless illusions.

Fan Xian smiled warmly in the shadows of the palaces, sincerely wishing that Uncle Wu Zhu could find himself. This, perhaps, was the most important thing in life.

...

...

Now, the most popular restaurant in Kyoto was Yi Shi Ju. Although the owner of this restaurant was no longer the Cui family, who were once under the protection of the Eldest Princess, the Cui family had been uprooted by the Overwatch Council long ago for smuggling to Northern Qi, but the business here remained as good as ever.

The Taixue students and scholars from other places liked to visit Danbo Bookstore the most. It should be known that under the strict crackdown by the Eighth Bureau, no aunties carrying babies and selling red treasure books had appeared in the streets and alleys of Kyoto for several years.

The most popular inn was Tongfu Inn, the tofu shop with the most customers was Fan's family property, and the most thriving and high-end brothel... was of course Bao Yue Lou.

Traveling in Kyoto now was very easy. Usually, one would eat at Yi Shi Ju, stay at Tongfu Inn, eat a bowl of tofu pudding on the road, stroll into Danbo Bookstore to buy two books, and then go to Bao Yue Lou to embrace a few beauties in the evening. It seemed that all the pleasures of life were complete.

The reason for this was undoubtedly because of that person named Fan Xian.

Yi Shi Ju was the beginning of Fan Xian's legendary life. From Danzhou to Kyoto, his meeting with Prince Jing's son and He Zongwei began in this restaurant. With the current status and positions of these three people, Yi Shi Ju naturally took on a magical feel. Of course, the most important thing was the story of Little Fan's black boxing shocking Kyoto, which had been spread throughout the world by countless storytellers.

Tongfu Inn was the birthplace of the Four Talents of the Fan School, and the other three places were Fan Xian's property. We will not repeat the series of halos on Fan Xian because it is a very tiring thing. It is enough to note this fact to know Fan Xian's current prestige and status in the entire Qing country.

Many people hated Fan Xian, and even more people loved Fan Xian, but few people would have such a complex feeling towards him as the owner of the medical clinic opposite Danbo Bookstore.

The medical clinic had just been purchased and had not yet opened. The medicines seemed to be piled up in a disorderly but orderly manner.

A young lady dressed in a plain brocade coat was resting her chin, daydreaming in the room full of the smell of medicine, completely unaware that there were already too many idlers gathered outside the medical clinic. If it weren't for the guards from the residence and the secret Overwatch Council spies blocking them, those people would have squeezed into the medical clinic long ago.

Bitter Lotus Master's closed-door disciple, the remarkably skilled Miss Fan, Little Fan's most beloved younger sister, had finally left the Green Mountains and returned to her hometown, Qing country Kyoto. Amidst the joyful gazes of the Kyoto people and the fragrant smell of medicine in the room, she began to miss someone.

Some people were far away, traveling alone in the snowfields, while some people were about to come to her.