Don't Raise A Black Lotus Flower; Use The Emperor As A Substitute [Transmigration novel] - Chapter 4

Lin Ruoxuan sighed inwardly, but he maintained a calm expression as he walked inside.

There were not many people in the Lin residence, just an old butler and a few servants. Under the system’s guidance, Lin Ruoxuan made his way to the study with Chen Lin following close behind.

Lin Ruoxuan sat in the armchair, accepted a bowl of lotus seed and white fungus soup from a servant, and took a slow sip. Imitating the air of a treacherous eunuch from the movies, he asked calmly, “Is there anything else?”

Chen Lin cupped his hands and said, “Chief Eunuch, regarding the Zhou Sixun case, Zhong Huaixiu has submitted a memorial to impeach you. The staff at the Directorate of Ceremonial intercepted it.”

Zhou Sixun? Zhong Huaixiu?

Lin Ruoxuan could not help but frown. Zhou Sixun was likely the “Magistrate Zhou” the officials had mentioned earlier. He had no memory of the name; the man was likely a small pawn. As for Zhong Huaixiu, Lin Ruoxuan remembered him well. In the original novel, this official was a top scholar with great talent and a haughty, stubborn nature. He would eventually become Ji Ruxue’s capable strategist and the future Chief Grand Secretary. He absolutely could not afford to offend him.

Seeing Lin Ruoxuan deep in thought, Chen Lin lowered his voice and made a slight gesture across his throat with his finger. “About that Zhong Huaixiu, should we remove him?”

“Should we what? Cough, cough!” Lin Ruoxuan reacted quickly, nearly choking on his soup. Chen Lin was asking if he should get rid of Zhong Huaixiu.

Within a single day, he had been asked to kill a child and now a loyal official. Could they not let him live a normal life, like eating, working, or playing cards? Besides, even if Zhong Huaixiu was only a minor Hanlin scholar now, he would be the Chief Grand Secretary of the Dayuan Dynasty later. Was that a risk he could afford to take?

“Chief Eunuch?” Chen Lin asked, confused.

Lin Ruoxuan steadied himself and feigned a profound air. “There is no rush regarding this matter. Keep Zhong Huaixiu for now; he still has his uses.”

Chen Lin pondered for a moment, then nodded in sudden realization. “I understand now. Your strategic planning and far-sightedness are truly admirable, Chief Eunuch.”

“As long as you understand,” Lin Ruoxuan said indifferently, though he internally scolded himself. What exactly do you understand? I just said that at random, and I do not even understand it myself.

Chen Lin continued, “Chief Eunuch, I have checked the forged evidence from the Eastern Depot. It is identical to Zhou Sixun’s handwriting and is completely seamless.”

“What forged evidence?” Lin Ruoxuan blinked.

“The letters where Zhou Sixun slanders the Imperial Court.”

“Oh, haha.” Lin Ruoxuan felt ashamed. It was a fake piece of evidence used to frame someone, yet it was being discussed so openly.

Chen Lin said, “The evidence is complete. Although Zhou Sixun was tortured, he still refuses to confess. It seems we have no choice but to use his wife and children to force him to put his fingerprint on the confession. Once you approve it, we can submit it to the Dali Temple to close the case.”

This was dark. It was truly heinous.

Lin Ruoxuan was speechless and could only wave his hand weakly. “Put this matter aside for now. Do not touch his wife and children, lest he does something desperate. I will go to the Eastern Depot to look into it myself in a couple of days. That will be all, I am exhausted, you may leave.”

“Yes, as you command.” Chen Lin gave a proper salute and retreated.

Lin Ruoxuan watched his straight back as he walked away. He lamented that such a delicate, clear-headed, and efficient young man had become a eunuch in the Eastern Depot. It was a pity that his morals had become so warped. It was all the fault of the wicked feudal society.

After Chen Lin left, Lin Ruoxuan began to ponder. At most, he could stall for a few more days before he had to go to work at the Eastern Depot. Dealing with prisoners and reviewing documents was going to be difficult.

Reviewing prisoners usually meant torturing loyal officials with cruel methods. He would certainly not do that, so he would just try to help that unlucky fellow Zhou Sixun as much as he could.

As for reviewing documents, it was even harder. Lin Ruoxuan felt a headache coming on. He could not even write Traditional Chinese characters, and his handwriting would certainly be completely different from the original Lin Ruoxuan’s. Would reviewing documents not expose him immediately?

Perhaps he should do as he did during his final exams: cram at the last minute and try to learn the original Lin Ruoxuan’s handwriting. In any case, he at least needed to learn how to write the character for “approve.”

Thinking of cramming, Lin Ruoxuan felt slightly calmer. He had graduated from medical school with over a dozen final exams; cramming was his specialty. As long as he could find a sample of the original’s handwriting, copying a few characters should not be too difficult.

With this thought, he became energized and began rummaging through cabinets and boxes in his study and bedroom, trying to find a piece of paper with the original’s handwriting. After searching for a long time, he found nothing. He felt extremely disappointed. Did this guy never work overtime at home? What a lazy fellow.

Just as he was losing heart, he made a new discovery: there was a small hidden compartment in the bed frame under his pillow.

A hidden compartment?

Lin Ruoxuan’s fatigue vanished, and he became excited. In the bedroom of a treacherous eunuch, a hidden compartment could only contain rare treasures or martial arts manuals. He took a deep breath, carefully opened the compartment, and peered inside.

The compartment was not large, and it contained no treasures or manuals. Instead, there was a small bronze box sitting on a thick stack of banknotes.

Lin Ruoxuan blinked and pulled out the box and the money. Good heavens, the banknotes were all large denominations, five thousand or ten thousand taels each. There were at least a hundred of them, totaling hundreds of thousands of taels. He was truly a major corrupt official.

The money was placed outside the box, which meant the contents of the box were even more valuable. Was it really a martial arts manual?

Lin Ruoxuan suppressed his excitement and picked up the heavy bronze box, only to find he could not open it. Was there some kind of mechanism? He muttered to himself while carefully inspecting the box. On the lid were hundreds of small, square bronze tiles with strange, unrecognizable lines on them.

After observing for a while, he noticed a missing tile in the corner. He immediately had an idea. He pressed on a nearby tile and pushed it gently forward. It moved!

The strange tiles were a scrambled puzzle. He assumed that once the tiles were back in place, the box would open. With such complex craftsmanship, what kind of treasure was hidden inside? He was itching to know, but he was not in a hurry. He had loved playing with puzzles as a child, so opening this box should not be a problem.

“Hmm, this tile should be next to this one.”

After nearly an hour, Lin Ruoxuan finally placed the last piece, forming a beautiful image of a crane spreading its wings. At the same time, with a soft click, the lid slowly opened.

Inside was a stack of palm-sized rice paper.

“What is this?” Lin Ruoxuan muttered, puzzled, as he took the stack out.

The top sheet was a beautiful, detailed portrait. Although it was only a profile, it was clear that the man in the drawing was incredibly handsome, with a gentle smile in his eyes and a refined appearance. Lin Ruoxuan stared at the portrait, feeling a strange sensation. Why did it look so familiar?

Pale skin, thin lips, and upturned eyes. Lin Ruoxuan frowned and examined the lifelike portrait carefully. After a moment, he realized who it was. Although the expression was different, the features were clearly Ji Ruxue. Wait, that was wrong. Ji Ruxue was only fourteen; this person looked to be at least twenty, which was why he had not recognized him at first glance.

Was it a grown-up Ji Ruxue? It felt strange. Who would paint something like this? Lin Ruoxuan looked at the portrait with a frown, then suddenly jumped as realization hit him.

This was not Ji Ruxue. It was Xiao Tunan. The protagonist of the original novel, the only king with a different surname in the Dayuan Dynasty, and Ji Ruxue’s maternal uncle. The original book had stated that Xiao Tunan and Ji Ruxue looked exactly alike. This portrait had to be Xiao Tunan.

But why would the original Lin Ruoxuan hide a portrait of Xiao Tunan? Did they know each other? Lin Ruoxuan could not figure it out immediately, so he shook his head and set the portrait aside to look at the other papers.

Beneath the portrait was a thick stack of letter paper covered in tiny, neat, feminine, and graceful handwriting.

Oh? Is this a letter written by the original Lin Ruoxuan? Lin Ruoxuan was overjoyed. He had finally found the original’s handwriting; he could copy his homework now!

The letters were written on fine, snow-white paper with a faint scent of osmanthus. The first line caught his eye: “Longing for you is like madness; I toss and turn and cannot forget.”

What was this?

Lin Ruoxuan blinked, then shifted his eyes to the salutation: “To A-Nan,” and then to the signature: “From Wa’er.”

“A-Nan” was clearly Xiao Tunan, but who was “Wa’er”? Since these unsent letters were in the hidden compartment of the original Lin Ruoxuan’s bedroom, was “Wa’er” the original’s childhood name?

Just as Lin Ruoxuan was contemplating this, the system spoke up. [You guessed correctly, dear. Lin Ruoxuan’s original name was Lin Wa’er.]

“Since Lin Ruoxuan is Wa’er, then these letters…” Lin Ruoxuan trailed off.

A-Nan, Wa’er, longing for you like madness? Are these love letters? Did the original Lin Ruoxuan, or rather Lin Wa’er, write love letters to Xiao Tunan?

A perverted eunuch writing love letters to the Prince of Ningyuan?

What kind of bizarre plot is this?

Lin Ruoxuan suppressed his sense of absurdity and continued to flip through them. The thick stack of letters consisted entirely of love letters. The content was filled with grief and longing—mostly declarations of love and accusations of Xiao Tunan’s cold-heartedness. It was incredibly pathetic.

Lin Ruoxuan felt goosebumps rising all over his skin. What was going on? Did the perverted eunuch love Xiao Tunan? How did they know each other? Was it a secret crush or a mutual romance? Was there some scandalous hidden plot?

No, no, he refused!

The more he read, the more flustered he became. He shouted into his mind, “System! System!”

[Is there a problem, dear?]

“System, that Lin Ruoxuan—no, that Lin Wa’er—was he secretly in love with Xiao Tunan? Or did they have an affair? That was not in the original novel! I am not gay, just so you know!”

[Dear, Lin Wa’er was just a minor pawn. The original novel omitted his past, so I do not know either.]

Lin Ruoxuan was furious. “Brother, I am completely in the dark here! How am I supposed to complete the mission? No, you must tell me what the relationship between Lin Wa’er and Xiao Tunan was! Also, I have been wanting to ask, why is this body a fake eunuch?”

[The original book did not write about it, so the system cannot answer, either.]

“What use are you? You are worse than a customer service agent!”

After angrily exiting the system, Lin Ruoxuan calmed down and carefully sorted through the whole situation. It seemed that regardless of the relationship between Lin Wa’er and Xiao Tunan, Lin Wa’er liked Xiao Tunan. Wait, had he tried to molest Ji Ruxue before because the boy looked like Xiao Tunan?

Tsk, that was truly perverted and a bit pathetic.

And why was Lin Wa’er a fake eunuch?

Lin Ruoxuan pondered for a long time, only to find himself lost in a thick fog. He could not figure it out and just wanted to scream at the sky. Author, even if he is just a minor extra, at least write the cause and effect clearly! Do not just skip over it!

Sigh. Forget it. Do not think about it. Lin Wa’er’s past was not important. What mattered now were two things: first, properly educate Ji Ruxue; second, find the four herbs and refine the Sifang Huichun Pill to heal Xiao Tunan. That was his primary mission!

As for being a fake eunuch, he would just be careful not to let anyone find out. As for these mushy love letters and the sordid relationship between Lin Wa’er and Xiao Tunan, he would pretend they did not exist. When he met Xiao Tunan in the future, he would deal with things as they came.

Having made up his mind, Lin Ruoxuan picked up the stack of love letters and brought them close to the candlelight.

Destroying them is safer.

Just as the flame touched the corner of the paper, he suddenly remembered something and retracted his hand, hurriedly blowing out the sparks. Almost forgot, I still need to practice the handwriting!

Fortunately, he had only burned a tiny corner, just enough to erase the name “Tunan” from the salutation.

Lin Ruoxuan carefully blew off the ashes from the edge of the paper, put the “love letters” back into the bronze box, placed the box back into the hidden compartment, and carefully covered it with blankets and pillows. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief. He could practice his handwriting with this garbage in private, but he must never let anyone else find out.

With that done, he collapsed onto the bed, not wanting to move a finger. This long day was even more tiring than an overnight shift.

He would deal with the Eastern Depot after he practiced his handwriting. His top priority now was teaching Ji Ruxue. Wait, compared to Lin Wa’er, was his attitude today too different? Would Ji Ruxue discover he was an imposter? As the system said, he needed a reason to explain all of this.

And the Emperor? Since the Emperor had sent Lin Wa’er to torture Ji Ruxue, what would he think if his attitude toward the boy improved? But the original book wrote that the Emperor was obsessed with immortality and Buddhism, and once he handed Ji Ruxue over to Lin Wa’er, he ignored him completely. He probably would not pay attention to the Cold Palace, but he should still keep a low profile.

Lin Ruoxuan’s thoughts wandered until he drifted off to sleep.

When he woke up the next morning, the room was filled with sunlight.

“Oh no! Why is it noon already?”

Lin Ruoxuan climbed out of bed, had a quick lunch, took his palace entry token, and hurried to the Forbidden City. He could not neglect that future supervillain in the Cold Palace.

He arrived at the Cold Palace in a hurry. The courtyard was desolate, with only two young eunuchs lazily sweeping the weeds. They were startled when they saw Lin Ruoxuan and immediately knelt. “Chief Eunuch!”

Lin Ruoxuan waved them off, not wanting them to announce his arrival. He walked straight to Ji Ruxue’s bedroom, then paused in shock.

The bed was empty. There was no one there.

Where was he? Ji Ruxue had just had his bone set yesterday. There was a saying that one needed a hundred days to recover from a broken bone. It was only the second day; it was impossible for him to be out of bed.

Zhang Youde hurried over, his old face filled with an obsequious smile. “Chief Eunuch, you are here.”

Lin Ruoxuan realized something and asked sternly, “Where is the Fourth Prince? Where did you take him?”

Zhang Youde was startled, then displayed a look of sudden realization. “Chief Eunuch, please set your heart at rest. I have already sent the Fourth Prince to the cellar to repent, as usual.”

Lin Ruoxuan glared at the old eunuch, feeling a sense of shock. “You locked the Fourth Prince in the cellar? Did I not tell you to take good care of him?!”

Zhang Youde scratched his head, confused. “This… I do not understand. When you said ‘take good care of the Fourth Prince,’ did that not mean to lock him in the cellar? It has always been this way.”