Raising Wolves CHAPTER 33

 

 Raising wolves  

 Chapter 33

Translated by : DANMEI HEAVEN

   The strange atmosphere was thoroughly shattered by Zheng Yao's boisterous interruption.

Since the moment had passed, pressing further wouldn't be appropriate. Lu Qingze coughed lightly and tapped Ning Juan's head with the manuscript: "No need to be so harsh."

This little brat had never had much patience with anyone other than him since childhood.

Poor Commander Zheng, working for the imperial court wasn't easy.

The hidden guards around them twitched at the corners of their eyes.

The exalted Son of Heaven, scolded like a child, didn't take offense. Instead, he happily sidled closer to Lu Qingze, sticking to him like glue, his tone placating: "I was wrong, Teacher."

Apologizing with his mouth, but daring to do it again next time.

Lu Qingze shot him a sidelong glance: "Keep it. Once Minister Yu finishes transcribing it, have him send it back to you. Really, what were you thinking?"

"Yu Shurong didn't come for this matter," Ning Juan immediately defended himself. "It was for another issue."

What else could warrant Yu Shurong taking time out of his busy schedule to come personally?

Lu Qingze frowned slightly: "What is it? Related to the epidemic?"

During the incubation period, the symptoms of the epidemic in Jiangxi resembled a common cold. After three to five days, the illness would manifest, bringing prolonged suffering—vomiting, diarrhea, inability to eat or drink. At most a month, at least ten days, and the person would be gone.

During this time, the imperial physicians had worked day and night, trying numerous prescriptions, but none had significant effects on the epidemic. At best, they could alleviate some of the patients' suffering.

Because the disease was contagious, only patrolling soldiers and physicians were allowed in the infirmary, with daily reports on the patients' conditions.

The epidemic continued to spread within the infirmary, but fortunately, it was located far from Jian'an City, preventing it from reaching the townspeople.

The original text hadn't mentioned the plague in Jiangxi, and Lu Qingze had no expertise in this area, so he couldn't help. The solution lay in the hands of the physicians.

Ning Juan casually removed the mask from Lu Qingze's face, picked up a document from the desk, and handed it to him: "No, it's another matter."

His anger was flaring—he really wanted to kill someone.

He needed to look at his teacher a few more times to calm down.

Wait, why did you take off my mask?

Lu Qingze, utterly baffled, accepted the document as Ning Juan's cold voice rang in his ears: "It seems they no longer wish to live."

At first, Lu Qingze didn't understand. He opened the document.

The first part was a secret letter from the Imperial Guards. Due to the scorching weather, distributing porridge daily was inconvenient, so grain was also being distributed outside the city. While maintaining order, the Imperial Guards noticed that some among the disaster victims seemed to be sneaking in to claim relief grain. After observing for two days, they confirmed that these were impostors.

Lu Qingze's brow furrowed slightly: "These people would even stoop to stealing relief grain from disaster victims? Have their identities been verified?"

He had heard that in some places, soil was mixed into porridge during distributions to prevent impostors from claiming extra portions, ensuring that only the truly starving victims could eat.

He hadn't expected it to actually happen.

Ning Juan nodded: "They're grain merchants from Jian'an Prefecture." A cold sneer flashed in his eyes. "Quite the entrepreneurs."

They took the grain back to their shops, mixed it with their stock, and sold it—a business with no upfront costs.

Since the floods and epidemic in Jiangxi, merchants across the prefecture had been hoarding and inflating grain prices.

Not only the disaster victims, but even unaffected commoners could barely afford food.

Lu Qingze frowned and glanced at the next document, a report from Yu Shurong.

Recently, while repairing the embankments, large quantities of rough stone and other materials were needed. Seeing an opportunity, the stone merchants had inflated prices several times over when selling to the government. Initially, Yu Shurong felt this wasn't worth reporting to Ning Juan, so he personally went to negotiate with the merchants.

While the common people starved, these merchants remained draped in gold and silver, living in opulence. When confronted, they argued righteously: "The floods have already caused us huge losses! We have hundreds of mouths to feed, Minister Yu! If we sell to you at a low price, what will we eat? The disaster victims are people, but so are we!"

"Minister Yu, we also need to do business. Everyone has their difficulties—please try to understand us."

"If we refuse to sell, will the government resort to robbery?"

...

Yu Shurong, slow with words, was left dumbfounded. By the time he was politely escorted out of the estate, he finally realized what had happened and was furious.

He made several more attempts but, unable to handle these people and worried about delays, had no choice but to report the matter.

After reading, Lu Qingze finally understood why Ning Juan was so enraged.

He glanced at the list of merchants attached at the end and raised an eyebrow: "If I recall correctly, these people..."

Ning Juan leaned against the desk, arms crossed. While Lu Qingze read, he watched him.

Just looking at Lu Qingze soothed his anger somewhat: "It seems Teacher remembers too."

The merchants Yu Shurong mentioned had all appeared in Zhao Zhengde's account books.

Though most wealthy merchants couldn't defy the government, plucking wool from sheep required feeding them grass—otherwise, how could they continue to be fleeced?

Zhao Zhengde's method was to strike first, then offer a carrot—extorting vast sums while granting these people various conveniences, a mutually beneficial arrangement.

Over time, for the sake of convenience, these merchants began voluntarily offering large sums of silver. In return, Zhao Zhengde turned a blind eye to their activities.

This was how they had become so brazen and unscrupulous.

Truly, they were rotten to the core.

Lu Qingze rubbed his temples: "Guoguo, how do you plan to deal with these people?"

Ning Juan's lips parted slightly, uttering two words: "Kill them."

Confiscate their property, then behead them.

The most straightforward solution.

Lu Qingze's hand, holding the teacup, paused.

He also loathed these profiteering merchants, but Ning Juan's approach seemed to be to execute everyone involved.

This reminded him of the tyrannical emperor from the original text, who killed without restraint, as well as the original protagonist in Jiangsu-Zhejiang, silently posing a threat.

Over the years, he had tried to steer Ning Juan onto the right path, but he feared overcorrecting.

Ning Juan was the emperor. If he were purely evil, he would be a disaster for the entire Great Qi. But if he were purely good, he would not only be a disaster for Great Qi but also for himself.

Lu Qingze had carefully balanced Ning Juan's nature, striving to nurture a wise ruler.

Frowning, he opened his mouth to say something when an Imperial Guard outside announced: "Your Majesty, the people you ordered to be brought here have arrived."

Before Lu Qingze could speak, his vision went dark.

This little brat's first reaction was to grab the mask and slap it back onto his face!

Ning Juan, expression unchanged, adjusted the mask on Lu Qingze and adopted the emperor's demeanor: "Bring them in."

Lu Qingze steadied the mask and swallowed his words, deciding to deal with the little rascal tonight.

A moment later, several middle-aged men, dressed in fine silks and clearly wealthy, were escorted into the study by the Imperial Guards. They knelt and kowtowed in unison: "This humble one pays respects to Your Majesty."

Lu Qingze narrowed his eyes slightly, guessing that these men were likely the ones mentioned in the secret letter and document.

He observed these merchants who had been extorted yet colluded with officials like Zhao Zhengde.

They were victims of Zhao Zhengde's schemes but also accomplices, profiteering from the disaster and thus perpetrators themselves.

Ning Juan's expression was indifferent as he ignored the kneeling men, walking to the desk and picking up a ledger.

The study was silent except for the soft rustling of pages.

When the Imperial Guards had taken them away, these men had suspected the reason but weren't overly alarmed.

After all, though they had raised prices for stone and grain, they hadn't dared to charge the government exorbitant rates. If the emperor questioned them, they could trot out their usual excuses, slash prices by half, and even earn some goodwill.

But they hadn't expected the young emperor to start with such a show of force.

Exchanging furtive glances, they sensed an unusual tension and grew uneasy.

What was going on?

After a while, they heard a clear, calm voice from the side: "Do you gentlemen know why His Majesty summoned you here?"

Hearing the voice, they realized belatedly that there was someone else in the room.

Even the emperor was standing—how could someone else be seated?

Unable to resist, they turned their heads slightly to look, spotting the white-clad youth's masked face. Understanding dawned.

The merchants' information network was faster than that of the common folk. As soon as they saw the masked figure, they guessed Lu Qingze's identity.

The round-faced wealthy merchant at the head of the group swallowed hard, glanced at His Majesty's unmoved expression, and cautiously spoke: "Is it because of our dealings with the authorities?"

Lu Qingze leisurely took a sip of tea: "I didn't say that. Since you brought it up yourself, it seems you believe there’s an issue with your transactions with the authorities."

...He walked right into that!

Losing the upper hand right at the first meeting, the round-faced merchant's expression shifted slightly.

At the same time, the young emperor standing silently by the desk, exuding an aura of nobility, also turned his gaze toward them.

His cool, indifferent eyes swept over each of them, an invisible pressure weighing down heavily, icy and suffocating.

Cold sweat broke out on their foreheads almost instantly, and their carefully planned approach fell apart completely. The bearded man kneeling behind the round-faced merchant, who was the quarry owner, trembled uncontrollably and stammered: "The rising cost of quarrying and transporting stone due to the floods wasn’t my intention... But, but I believe that since Jiangyou is in dire straits, building the embankments is a boon for the people. I’ll reduce the stone prices by thirty percent—what does Your Majesty think?"

Though fearful, his merchant instincts still led him to bargain as if this were a business deal.

Lu Qingze smiled faintly and turned to another wealthy merchant: "What do the rest of you think?"

Once the first person offered a discount, the others, no matter how reluctant, could only chime in: "Of course, of course."

Lu Qingze took another sip of hot tea and smiled: "We are deeply moved by your generosity. However, I’m a bit curious."

The round-faced merchant, already sensing that Lu Qingze wasn’t as harmless as he appeared, felt a twinge of unease: "Lord Lu... what are you curious about?"

"What I’m curious about," Ning Juan interjected abruptly, his voice deep and resonant, each word heavy as it struck their hearts, "is their relationship with you."

The group froze, only realizing after a long pause that they should follow His Majesty’s gaze and look behind them.

Several refugees had been brought in at some point, their mouths gagged. When they saw the merchants turn around, they let out muffled cries for help.

Two of the middle-aged men instantly paled.

Before they could react, a few sheets of paper fluttered down in front of them, and the young emperor’s voice came from above: "Care to explain this as well?"

The signed confessions landed right before the round-faced merchant.

Their names were clearly written on them!

Recognizing what they were, the merchants' faces drained of color in an instant. A chill shot up from their feet to the crowns of their heads, and without hesitation, they began kowtowing, pleading in trembling voices: "This commoner admits guilt! This commoner admits guilt!"

"Your Majesty, spare us! Your Majesty, please understand—we were forced into this!"

"We’ll never dare again, Your Majesty... We have elderly parents, wives, and children at home..."

Ning Juan watched the groveling men with an expressionless face, murderous intent swirling in his eyes.

With a single command from him, the Imperial Guards would drag these men out and behead them, their heads displayed on the city walls as a warning to all unscrupulous merchants profiteering from Jiangyou’s disaster.

His gaze slid past them, landing on Lu Qingze, whose lips were slightly pursed as he looked back at him.

Though the young man’s frame was slender, his posture was upright. Sitting there quietly, he exuded an ethereal, untouchable aura, like snow or moonlight—always just out of reach.

But when his gaze turned toward you, it gave the fleeting illusion that he might actually be within grasp.

After a moment of silence, Ning Juan said coolly, "Considering you were initially coerced, I will not impose severe punishment."

The men, still kowtowing frantically, froze mid-motion.

They had genuinely felt the young emperor’s undisguised killing intent moments ago.

For a second, they wondered if they’d misheard.

"Now that Jiangyou is in crisis," Ning Juan looked down at them, hands clasped behind his back, "what can you do?"

The wealthy merchants kneeling on the ground understood his implication.

Which was more important—their lives or their money?

Even the most profit-driven merchants quickly grasped the situation and hurriedly kowtowed: "This commoner admits guilt! This commoner is willing to donate all his wealth to provide work for the people and share Your Majesty’s burdens!"

The others followed suit: "This commoner admits guilt! This commoner is willing to cooperate with the authorities to distribute grain for free..."

"Building the embankments is our duty. From now on, we’ll transport the stone free of charge!"

Though their words sounded utterly sincere, the young emperor’s expression remained unchanged. His dark eyes held no emotion as he stared silently at them.

The men grew increasingly uneasy. Hadn’t they heard that the emperor’s word was law? Would His Majesty... go back on his word?

Only when the clamor died down did Ning Juan speak indifferently: "Take your people and leave. If there’s a next time, bring a coffin to collect their bodies."

The wealthy merchants were slow to react.

Lu Qingze ran his fingers along the rim of his teacup and added leisurely, "His Majesty means you may leave now. Unless you’d prefer to stay for dinner?"

Who would dare!

Not daring to say another word, the men kowtowed once more and retreated like frightened quail, a far cry from the shrewd demeanor they’d arrived with.

Lu Qingze turned to Ning Juan with a genuine smile: "Keeping them alive is useful. Your Majesty handled that well."

Ning Juan gazed at him, studying the curve of his lips beneath the mask, and allowed a faint smile of his own: "Then is Teacher happy?"

"My happiness isn’t important," Lu Qingze said seriously. "What matters is how Your Majesty truly feels."

Ning Juan idly fiddled with the inkstone screen on the desk.

Was what he thought really that important?

What he thought was, if not killing those people could make Lu Qingze happy.

Then letting them go wouldn’t be a problem.

With the matter resolved, Lu Qingze glanced at the mountain of official documents piled on the table and rolled up his sleeves: "Why are there so many? Give me half."

Ning Juan felt a sweet warmth in his heart and didn’t want Lu Qingze to overexert himself: "No need, I’ll handle it."

Lu Qingze didn’t think much of it: "Then I’ll head back first."

Ning Juan’s expression changed slightly: "Don’t go!"

"If I’m not helping you, what’s the point of sitting here?"

Ning Juan suddenly felt a shy, nervous dryness in his throat. He pursed his lips and whispered, "Teacher, just sit beside me and keep me company, alright?"

Lu Qingze was baffled: "No."

"..." Ning Juan fell silent for a moment, closed his eyes, then pushed a small stack of documents across the table to the opposite side. "Teacher, take your time with these."

The teacher and student sat in the study, each with their own pile of official documents, facing each other.

Lu Qingze flipped through them and found they were all reports submitted from various prefectures.

When they first arrived in Jiangxi, after arresting Pan Jingmin and others, Ning Juan had been furious and ordered the Imperial Guards to detain all the officials who had failed in flood control, big and small, throwing them all into prison.

If disaster relief hadn’t been more urgent, he might have immediately summoned them all for execution.

Now, the government offices in various prefectures were empty, the prisons were packed, and the subordinates were anxious, afraid of making even the slightest mistake that might lead to punishment. So they simply reported every trivial matter in detail.

Earlier that morning, the two had gone to Hongdu Prefecture to deal with similar minor issues.

All sorts of trivial and major matters were piling up, even down to how many new relief shelters a certain prefecture needed to add—everything was brought to Ning Juan for his opinion.

It was all excessively tedious.

The young and vigorous emperor, full of energy and sleeping only one or two hours a day, didn’t seem to find it a problem.

But this was just the paperwork for one province. What about when he fully grasped the reins of power in the future?

Lu Qingze lifted his gaze, peering over the towering stacks of documents before him to glance at the young emperor.

Bright sunlight spilled into the study, outlining the boy's handsome and clean features, while also clearly revealing a visible trace of exhaustion.

Ning Juan already had faint dark circles under his eyes.

In the original story, the tyrant's highly centralized rule had bathed the court in blood, both inside and out.

One of the reasons was that he couldn’t tolerate the slightest impurity in his sight.

Those who embezzled and accepted bribes—kill. Those who oppressed the common people—kill. Those who held positions without fulfilling their duties—kill... His intentions were good, but water too clear breeds no fish. The ruthless reign didn’t lead the Great Qi Dynasty further; instead, the suppressed resentment erupted into large-scale uprisings and rebellions.

Ning Juan naturally didn’t want Lu Qingze to walk this path.

He had wanted to bring this up for a while but had hesitated, knowing the stubborn streak in Ning Juan’s personality. Now that Ning Juan had learned to spare those wealthy merchants in Jiangxi, perhaps it was the right time to mention it.

Under Lu Qingze’s gaze, Ning Juan felt as though he were sitting on pins and needles. No matter how hard he tried to ignore it, he couldn’t. Finally, with reddened ears, he lifted his head and asked helplessly, "Teacher, what is it?"

Lu Qingze rested his chin on his hand, tapping the pile before him. "Guoguo, how do you plan to deal with those imprisoned officials involved in the case?"

Ning Juan paused slightly. "Does Teacher want me to show them mercy?"

Lu Qingze shook his head, emphasizing his words: "I’ve said before, what matters isn’t my thoughts—it’s yours."

Ning Juan lowered his eyes, his expression serious. "Does Teacher truly want to hear my thoughts?"

Lu Qingze nodded.

"I think," Ning Juan’s dark eyes gleamed with icy ruthlessness, his tone frigid, "the best fate for them is to be thrown into that mass grave, first riddled with arrows, then buried alive."

Lu Qingze fell silent for a moment.

He suddenly realized that he could understand some of the tyrant’s actions from the original story. Emotionally, he agreed with Ning Juan’s sentiment.

But rationally...

As if sensing that his tone had been too harsh, Ning Juan quickly adjusted his expression, offering Lu Qingze an innocent smile: "But it's just a thought."

He slowly picked up a document and opened it, his voice softening: "If we kill them all, it won’t serve as a warning to others. Having too many vacancies would also hinder Jiangxi’s recovery. Those who committed major offenses will be executed, while those guilty of minor mistakes will be temporarily reinstated and punished later. After being imprisoned for so many days, they’ve likely learned their lesson and won’t dare to slack off anymore—there’s too much to handle in Jiangxi, and I shouldn’t be trapped in this study by trivial matters."

Ning Juan’s voice still carried the clarity of youth, but his reasoning was sharp and his tone solemn.

Lu Qingze exhaled softly, gazing at Ning Juan with a trace of relief: "Guoguo is looking more and more like an emperor."

Ning Juan’s eyes flickered slightly, but he said nothing.

In truth, he wasn’t the benevolent ruler Lu Qingze hoped for. Like a wolf born with a thirst for blood, his instinct was to slaughter every corrupt official without mercy.

But for Lu Qingze’s sake, he was willing to show leniency—to be the wise and measured monarch Lu Qingze envisioned.

It would make Lu Qingze happy.

As long as he fulfilled all of Lu Qingze’s expectations, Lu Qingze would have no reason to leave, right?

Although some of the officials who committed crimes will be released to work later, the current tasks still need to be solved first.

Lu Qingze was in a good mood, gathered his thoughts, and began to help Ning Juan handle matters.

The study was quiet, with only the slight rustling sound of pages turning and pen touching paper. The atmosphere was peaceful and tranquil. The hidden guards and attendants were all outside, not disturbing the two.

However, this silence did not last long.

Zheng Yao rushed back from the prison again and brought good news: "Your Majesty, Pan Jingmin confessed!"

Lu Qingze was slightly surprised: "So fast?"

Zheng Yao bared his teeth, revealing a somewhat ferocious smile: "I used a little trick."

Receiving a bland glare from Ning Juan, he quickly retracted his fierce expression so as not to scare Lu Qingze.

Lu Qingze wasn't scared at all; instead, he curiously took the confession paper marked with a bloody handprint and read it together with Ning Juan.

Pan Jingmin truthfully recounted his relationship with Wei Herong.

Each year, he offered silver tributes to Chief Cabinet Minister Wei Herong, accumulating millions over the years. Thus, his official career had been smooth, and he became the Jiangyou governor at a young age.

After gaining control of military and political power in Jiangyou, Pan Jingmin turned his attention to the common people. He imposed excessive taxes under various pretexts, with tax rates reaching as high as fifty percent, ruthlessly stripping Jiangyou of its wealth, amassing millions of silver taels and hundreds of thousands of gold taels.

Wei Herong promised that in a couple more years, he would transfer him to Nan Zhili.

This was another reason why he suppressed news of the flood in Jiangyou—his performance evaluation depended on it.

He never expected that the matter would grow bigger and bigger, eventually bringing the emperor himself.

In Pan Jingmin's mind, Chief Wei, who held great power, was much scarier than the emperor. As long as he stuck to not betraying Wei Herong, Wei Herong would save him since he had evidence of their transactions.

Even if the Chief acted, what could the emperor do?

But he didn't expect that Zhao Zhengde, that fool, swore that the account book had been washed away by the flood, only for the account book to fall into the emperor’s hands shortly after.

Days of interrogation had already exhausted Pan Jingmin, and Zhao Zhengde’s account book was the final straw.

After reading the confession, Ning Juan raised an eyebrow: "Where is the account book?"

The Embroidered Uniform Guard had thoroughly searched every inch of Pan's residence but couldn’t find Pan Jingmin's private ledger or correspondence records with Wei Herong.

Zheng Yao's lips twitched: "This..."

Seeing his hesitation, Lu Qingze became even more interested, eagerly turning his gaze: "Oh?"

Ning Juan helplessly nodded at Zheng Yao.

"Pan Jingmin was highly suspicious by nature. After learning that His Majesty was heading south, he became paranoid and fearful. He wrapped up the account book and hid it in..." Zheng Yao paused briefly, his face peculiar, "...the pigsty manure pile in Pan's residence."

No matter how diligent the Embroidered Uniform Guard might be, they wouldn’t dig through feces!

Lu Qingze: "..."

Mr. Pan, you’re something else.

Ning Juan lightly tapped the desk with two fingers, expressionless: "Bring Pan Jingmin to Hongdu Prefecture and make him retrieve the account book with his own hands."

No need to send our men to dig it out. Zheng Yao immediately relaxed and revealed a bright smile, grinning widely: "I’ll go and handle it right now!"

Zheng Yao stormed out like a black whirlwind, slapping into Changshun, who was tiptoeing into the room, almost flattening him like paper.

Zheng Yao always looked down on eunuchs, but Changshun served Ning Juan personally, so despite his disdain, he dared not offend Ning Juan. He quickly pulled him aside, muttered an apology, and then left grumbling.

Changshun, dizzy from the collision, entered the room and said hazily: "Your Majesty, I went to fetch that Lin gentleman to get Master Lu's handkerchief back, but Lin washed it..."

Upon finishing his words, he noticed Lu Qingze was also in the room.

Changshun’s hand holding the handkerchief trembled slightly.

Lu Qingze, utterly confused, extended his hand and hooked the handkerchief onto his fingertip, examining it leisurely.

Then raising an eyebrow, he turned toward Ning Juan, his faint red lips hinting at a smile: "Oh—Your Majesty, care to explain?"

Ning Juan: "………"

Ning Juan, with a stiff face, cursed Zheng Yao and Changshun in his heart once again.

Author’s note:

Young Ning: Waaah teacher seems a bit clueless QAQ

Lu Qingze: Isn’t keeping you company during overtime the ultimate romance?

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