The Cannon Fodder Awakens, Training the Cold and Proud Protagonist into a Submissive Dog - Chapter 10

Yet he dared not show it. He could only forcefully suppress his anger, thickening his tongue as he knelt down to report vaguely: “Your, Your Majesty… The Imperial Household Department’s recent exp, expenditure account books have already been org, organized by this servant. Please take a lo, look…”

Shen Chaoqing could not even be bothered to lift his eyelids, waving his hand casually. “Hmm. From now on, such trivial matters do not need to be reported to me. Hand them directly to Fu An.”

How could someone belonging to the Empress manage his imperial palace? This authority should have been transferred to someone else long ago.

As soon as these words were spoken, not only did Wuhuo abruptly raise his head, but even Fu An froze, looking at Shen Chaoqing in sheer disbelief.

Was His Majesty… directly stripping the jurisdiction of the Imperial Household Department from Wuhuo’s hands and clearly handing it over to him?

Fu An came from a humble background, having entered the palace by a twist of fate, undergone castration, and suffered no small amount of hardship under Wuhuo before eventually being promoted by His Majesty.

Although it was a fact that Wuhuo had been punished and lost power yesterday, such a sudden and thorough transfer of authority still shocked Fu An. After all, relying on the Empress’s backing, Wuhuo’s influence within the Imperial Household Department had deep roots, and he had always enjoyed His Majesty’s… at least surface-level trust.

Wuhuo instantly grew anxious. Disregarding the sharp pain in his tongue, he anxiously argued, “Your, Your Majesty! Eunuch Fu, he, he usually does not handle these matters and might fi, find it difficult to become familiar with them for a moment. It would be bet, better to let this servant assist from the si, sidelines…”

Shen Chaoqing finally slowly raised his gaze, his eyes landing on Wuhuo’s face, which was distorted by anxiety. That look was very faint, yet it was like an ice-tempered blade, instantly freezing all of Wuhuo’s unexpressed words in his throat. A chill coursed through his entire body, and the remaining arguments could no longer be spoken.

“My decision,” Shen Chaoqing’s voice was not loud, but it carried an unquestionable coercion, “requires you to teach me?”

Scared out of his wits, Wuhuo slammed his head heavily against the ground. “This, this servant wouldn’t dare! This servant wouldn’t dare at all!”

“Then do as I say.” Shen Chaoqing withdrew his gaze, turning lazy and indifferent once more. “Now, go and hand things over to Fu An. All accounts, keys, and personnel must be checked and inventoried one by one. If there is the slightest concealment or omission… you know the consequences.”

Wuhuo’s face turned ashen as he trembled all over like a withered leaf in the wind, no longer daring to utter another word. He could only stutter in compliance: “This servant… this servant obeys the decree…”

He struggled to climb up, casting a venomous and resentful glance sideways at Xiao Huaiyan and Fu An.

It must have been this Liao slave and this lowly wretch who said something in front of His Majesty! Otherwise, why wouldn’t his power have been stripped yesterday, only for action to be taken today?

Wuhuo gnashed his teeth, yet ultimately hunched his shoulders and made an extremely reluctant and humiliating “please” gesture toward Fu An, his voice sounding as though it were squeezed through the gaps in his teeth: “Eu, Eunuch Fu, ple, please follow this servant…”

Fu An took a deep breath, suppressing the roaring waves in his heart, and respectfully bowed to His Majesty before following the limping Wuhuo out.

That night, the moment Xiao Huaiyan pushed open the courtyard gates of the western side hall, a wave of chaotic noise rushed straight toward him.

Seven or eight young eunuchs holding torches surrounded his dilapidated room, the firelight casting the snow-covered ground into a scarlet hue. Wuhuo stood in the center wrapped in a silver fox fur, his withered claws holding high a dazzlingly bright glazed cup as his sharp voice pierced the cold night: “How dare you steal a bestowed treasure! Search my quarters for the old servant! Don’t let a single corner go!”

The door panel was kicked until it was on the verge of collapsing, and muffled sounds of objects being smashed came from inside. Xiao Huaiyan’s gaze swept across the glazed cup; the body of the cup was carved with intertwined lotus hidden patterns, which had still been displayed on the multistoried treasure shelf in Wuhuo’s warm pavilion last night.

Since it was delivered right to his doorstep, perfect, I will use you to make an example.

“Oh, the main character has returned?” Wuhuo turned around, the firelight illuminating that old face like an evil spirit. “The Liao noble is certainly swift and agile; the moon-dew condensing light cup that this old servant spent days searching for has unexpectedly flown into your room!”

Two eunuchs fiercely twisted Xiao Huaiyan’s arms. Xiao Huaiyan did not resist, watching Wuhuo’s movements with cold eyes.

“Strip off his outer robe!” Wuhuo proclaimed loudly, “Who knows if the stolen goods are hidden close to his body!”

“Eunuch, this is someone favored by His Majesty.” A young eunuch timidly added a sentence.

The several eunuchs beside him also did not dare to make a move.

Wuhuo’s face darkened. If it were the past, he would hit or punish whomever he pleased, but this little bastard was now clinging to Shen Chaoqing, so he needed to find a suitable excuse before he could act.

Xiao Huaiyan suddenly spoke up, “If nothing is found… what should you do?”

“Nothing found?” Wuhuo let out an eerie laugh. “The things in this room are the evidence itself. How could nothing be found? It can only mean you destroyed the corpse and obliterated the traces! This old servant will have no choice but to invite you to the ‘Marrow-Washing Pool’ of the Punishment Department… to properly rinse your intestines!”

The Punishment Department was a place that devoured people without spitting out their bones; one could hear the wailing from inside ten miles away. Once you entered, you could never hope to come out again. The Empress had told him to deal with Xiao Huaiyan and blunt Shen Chaoqing’s sharp edge. Completing this task here would also allow him to claim a few more delicate young eunuchs to toy with.

Xiao Huaiyan glanced at the glazed cup in Wuhuo’s hand. He didn’t even need to guess to know that this thing must have already been hidden inside and deliberately rummaged out from his room.

“Click.”

A piece of shattered colored glaze rolled from Xiao Huaiyan’s trouser leg onto the snow, coming to a halt right at the tip of Wuhuo’s boot.

That was a fragment from when Shen Chaoqing had smashed a bowl while dining and it had splattered onto him.

The venomous flame in the depths of Wuhuo’s eyes blazed brightly. Bending down to pick up the fragment, he prepared to strike it against Xiao Huaiyan’s face. “Caught red-handed! Beat him to death for this old servant!”

Before the sharp porcelain shard could touch Xiao Huaiyan, Wuhuo’s piercing scream tore through the cold night.

“Ah!!!”

His withered wrist was gripped by a hand like an iron vise, and excruciating pain exploded along his arm bones as the glazed fragment dropped with a “clack” into the snowy mud.

Xiao Huaiyan kicked him hard in the back of the knee. The muffled sound of bone fracturing was swallowed by the wind and snow, and the old eunuch collapsed onto the ground like a pile of mud. His fingernails dug into the frozen earth, but before he could struggle to stand up, a dark boot sole had already ground down onto the back of his neck.

“Since the Grand Administrator has determined that I stole a bestowed item,” Xiao Huaiyan leaned down, grabbed Wuhuo’s hair, and hoisted him upward, “we might as well ask His Majesty to render a sacred judgment.”

“Stop him! Quickly stop him, you pack of good-for-nothings!” Wuhuo shrieked.

The watching eunuchs stood frozen like statues with torches in hand, the firelight dancing upon Xiao Huaiyan’s blood-stained coarse hemp lapels.

The young man’s spine stood as straight as a cold blade. Someone unconsciously stepped back half a pace, stamping out a cluster of flames.

The murderous aura radiating from Xiao Huaiyan was too intense; no one dared to move. Xiao Huaiyan dragged Wuhuo forward like a dead dog. The old eunuch’s garments were wrapped in mud and snow, leaving a deep brown streak across the palace walkway.

Outside the Zichen Hall:

“Your Majesty!! This old slave is wronged”

Wuhuo’s mournful cries were cut short by the booming sound of the palace doors being forced open. Fu An looked at them, a slight look of astonishment crossing his face.

“Are you all out of your minds? Disturbing the imperial carriage, ten heads wouldn’t be enough to chop off!”

Xiao Huaiyan’s expression remained unchanged as he flung Wuhuo forward. Wuhuo crashed heavily onto the floor. “Eunuch Fu, I request an audience with His Majesty.”

Wuhuo’s frail constitution had long since been ruined, and sprawled on the ground wailing ghost-like screams, unable to get back up for a time.

“Is His Majesty someone you can see just because you want to? Hurry up and take him back.”

Shen Chaoqing had finally fallen asleep, and Fu An was terrified of disturbing him, His Majesty was already tired enough.

“Bring them in.”

A lazy voice came from inside the doors; he had been awakened after all.

Fu An’s expression sank as he hauled them up. The difference was that Xiao Huaiyan walked in on his own two feet, while Wuhuo was dragged along by the eunuchs.