"...Huh?" Ji Weiqiu's eyes widened, momentarily overwhelmed by the favor. No, what was his brother's status, to go to the night market with him?! Was this night market gilded? Even if it were gilded, it wouldn't be worth it! Or was some major event concerning the state going to happen at the night market?

To take ten thousand steps back, even if it was just an incognito visit to have some fun, was it on the same level as him going out?! When he went out, at most he'd bring a few guards. Given that he was being watched now, adding some defensive controls and two Shadow Guards would be the absolute limit! If his brother were to leave the palace, he couldn't even imagine how many real commoners would be left in that market district.

This was by no means an exaggeration. When the fate of the world rested on one person, no amount of caution was too much.

Maybe he should just forget it. It wasn't like he absolutely had to visit that darn night market.

He failed to notice that in the brief moment he hesitated, Ji Su's gaze grew colder. He asked, "Unwilling?"

Ji Weiqiu subconsciously replied, "It's not that I'm unwilling. Imperial Elder Brother, you are the supreme ruler. An incognito trip is a matter of great importance. It's already late, I'm afraid there won't be enough time to set up defenses. How about we go another day?"

Ji Su stared at him and said slowly, "If you want to go, then go."

That meant arrangements had already been made. After all, his brother never did anything he wasn't sure of.

Ji Weiqiu suddenly figured it out. Hmm, since his brother had already made arrangements, it meant he was planning to leave the palace today anyway. Perhaps he had just overheard his wish to go out and decided to bring him along, thus saving the need for separate defenses.

"That's wonderful!" Ji Weiqiu's face lit up with delight. "Imperial Elder Brother, I'll go change my clothes first. You should too. Let's hurry, it's getting late! If we're any later, there'll be nothing fun left!"

After saying this, he gave a cursory bow and ran towards the side hall. Ji Su watched his retreating back. Eunuch Qingxi stepped forward and whispered, "Your Majesty?"

"Help me change." Ji Su walked towards the Green Gauze Alcove. Eunuch Qingxi paused for a moment, then hurriedly called for people to follow.

Heh, what was going on today? The Emperor actually wanted to leave the palace!

Before long, Ji Weiqiu was waiting by the carriage for Ji Su. The two brothers had, by coincidence, both changed into green robes. For no other reason than that green was a good choice; countless people in the world wore green robes. However, Ji Weiqiu felt... it didn't matter what color his brother wore.

"Imperial Elder Brother." Ji Weiqiu raised a hand. Ji Su glanced at him, then took his hand and boarded the carriage. Ji Weiqiu followed him inside. He had to say, his brother's carriage was truly reliable! Though it looked plain on the outside, it held a world of its own within. It was spacious, comfortable, and didn't jolt in the slightest. He wanted one too!

The bronze bells on the eaves chimed. Ji Weiqiu lifted the curtain to look outside. The surrounding palace servants had already been replaced by Qingxuan Guards. Ji Weiqiu murmured, "I wonder if they've found all the spies among the Qingxuan Guards yet..."

He stopped mid-sentence, only then realizing he wasn't alone in the carriage. He turned to look and, sure enough, Ji Su was watching him. "...Er, Imperial Elder Brother, pretend I didn't say anything!"

He said awkwardly, "I was just speaking casually... I didn't mean anything by it, I really didn't."

Ji Su didn't press the point and closed his eyes without a word. Ji Weiqiu rubbed his nose and lifted the curtain to look outside. He saw that the Qingxuan Guards' postures were much straighter, and their gazes towards him were chilly, making him feel even more awkward.

This was killing him. Surrounded by a circle of masters, how could they not hear him speak?

It was truly like cursing a bald donkey in front of a monk.

The carriage moved at a decent pace, and soon they were out of the Imperial Palace. Seeing that they had barely encountered any palace servants along the way, it was clear that special arrangements had been made. With Ji Su in the carriage, Ji Weiqiu didn't dare grab a couple of Qingxuan Guards to chat with him. He thought that his brother might also be bored and might start quizzing him on his studies any moment. So, he began to organize his thoughts, striving to answer fluently.

—And then he'd bring up the False King's forces, letting his brother start observing them, so they could kill off this group of people sooner and be done with it.

He was naturally on the same side as his brother. The Prince of Rui in the original novel couldn't see it clearly, but he could. His entire honor and disgrace were tied to Ji Su. If he didn't help his own brother, was he supposed to help some False King of unknown origin? If the False King won and ascended the throne, would he have a good end? Would his old mother have a good end? Would his brother have a good end? He probably wouldn't even have the chance to be too happy to think of home.

The noise outside gradually grew louder as they entered the market district. Ji Weiqiu lifted the curtain and saw a bustling scene of carriages and horses, a dazzling display of colors. Men and women, old and young, flocked in, singing and dancing. He smiled and called out, "Brother, look outside."

Ji Su slowly opened his eyes. Seeing such a prosperous and lively scene, the tension in his brows eased slightly, and he took a rare second look. Ji Weiqiu was already happily ordering people around. He noticed a Qingxuan Guard on the outer perimeter looking a bit dazed and idle, so he called out, "You over there, go buy two pieces of brown sugar rice cake from that stall. That's an old, reputable brand."

The Qingxuan Guard met Ji Weiqiu's eyes, confirmed he was the one being called, bowed, and went.

Before long, Ji Weiqiu received a small plate of sugar rice cakes. A clever tray had been made from oil paper, and the cake was cut into small, neat squares. The pale white rice cake was drizzled with dark red brown sugar syrup, and bamboo skewers were placed on top for easy eating.

The Qingxuan Guard lowered his head and said, "Your Highness, be careful."

"I'm used to eating it." Ji Weiqiu took it. "Go to Yuelai Pavilion and buy a few pots of their new wine. Whatever it is, specify that you want the new one. Then go to the third sugar water stall on the next street and buy two bamboo tubes of sugar water."

The Qingxuan Guard noted everything down, took his leave, and went to get busy.

Ji Weiqiu examined the rice cakes in his hand. When he bought them himself, these brown sugar rice cakes were a single piece the size of his palm. Now, they were cut into small pieces. He looked around and saw Eunuch Qingxi sitting on the edge of the carriage. Seeing him look over, the eunuch waved at him.

The carriage was being led by a Qingxuan Guard, saving Eunuch Qingxi the trouble. He too was holding a piece of brown sugar rice cake, eating it with a cheerful smile.

Ji Weiqiu tried a piece first. It was the same familiar taste. He happily offered it to Ji Su, "Brother, try some?"

Ji Su flicked his sleeves, pretending not to hear. Only then did Ji Weiqiu remember that his brother was a neat freak. He would never touch something from a street stall like this unless he was starving to death.

He didn't mind, eating it by himself. He then had someone lift the carriage curtains, using the scenery outside as a side dish.

He saw someone playing a ring toss game and craned his neck for a better look, then pulled his head back in. "Boring, boring."

Ji Su looked at him. Ji Weiqiu pointed at the ring toss stall and commented, "It's Old Zhang's turn to run the stall today. When other people run a ring toss stall, they put out nice and fun things, some even put out copper coins and silver fragments. But him... tsk tsk tsk, he's so stingy. His son-in-law is a hunter from outside the city, and he also has a piece of land and a small fishpond. Whatever his son-in-law catches is what he puts out."

Ji Su said, "That could be considered practical."

Ji Weiqiu scoffed, "How is it practical! There are fields everywhere outside the city. The vegetables grown by ordinary farmers don't sell for a high price. But him, he sets up a ring toss stall and puts all sorts of rotten and broken things in it. It's a good thing his fifty rings are half the price of the other stalls, otherwise who would buy from him? Brother, do you know how he got those few acres of land and that fishpond? He earned it all from this ring toss stall! He's amazing!"

"You know him well?"

Ji Weiqiu smiled, "I used to play at his stall all the time! I honed my ring-tossing skills right there."

As he spoke, Ji Weiqiu felt a little tempted. He sized up his brother, who seemed to be in a bad mood, but it also felt like he was imagining it. He said, "Brother, can I get out and play for a while?"

Ji Su said indifferently, "If you want to go, then go."

Ji Weiqiu cheered and jumped down from the carriage. The moment he disembarked, he became the center of attention. Seeing his handsome appearance, who wouldn't want to take a second look? Eunuch Qingxi smilingly handed him a monkey mask. He put it on his face and said, "This mask is quite ugly, I'll go buy a couple more."

He frequented the market district, and many people knew him. He had to wear a mask to avoid being recognized, which would spoil the fun.

The street was teeming with people. The Qingxuan Guards protected Ji Weiqiu as they walked towards the mask stall. Ji Weiqiu joked, "Sorry to trouble you all. You two can pick one out to play with later."

The two Qingxuan Guards didn't know whether to agree or not, so they could only grunt strangely. Ji Weiqiu paid it no mind. When they reached the mask stall, the owner was an old man in his fifties. Seeing them approach, he quickly called out, "Masks, cheap, ten wen each!"

Ji Weiqiu clicked his tongue and laughingly scolded, "Ten wen each? Are you trying to rip me off because I look young?"

The old man's expression changed with what could only be described as artistry. "What ten wen! This old man misspoke! Five wen! Five wen!"

Ji Weiqiu pouted, "Just this for five wen? I don't want it! Let's go, we'll find another stall!"

"Two wen! Two wen!" The old man hurriedly stopped him. "Two wen!"

Ji Weiqiu waved his hand grandly, "You all pick whatever you want! It's on me!"

The old man glanced at him with disdain. 'Picking whatever you want from two-wen masks. Pretending to be a big shot when you have no money.'

The two Qingxuan Guards exchanged a look. Ji Weiqiu gestured with his hand, "Go on, pick. No need to save me money!"

The Qingxuan Guards had no choice but to randomly grab two. Ji Weiqiu chose a gaudily painted mountain demon mask. Just as he was about to swap it for the monkey on his face, someone was pushed by the crowd and bumped into them. The two Qingxuan Guards discreetly pushed the person away. Seeing him unsteady, Ji Weiqiu reached out to support him. The person was disoriented by the crowd. After being steadied, he stood firm, cupped his hands in thanks, and then followed the crowd away.

Just then, a group of street performers dressed as various little demons happened to pass by, separating the two Qingxuan Guards from Ji Weiqiu. Their expressions changed drastically. Suddenly, one of them felt a tug on his sleeve. He turned his head to see Ji Weiqiu walking over through a gap in the crowd.

The two of them instantly breathed a sigh of relief.

Ji Weiqiu complained, "It's too crowded today. Forget it, let's go back."

Ji Su's carriage moved slowly. Ji Weiqiu returned to the carriage. As soon as he got on, he saw his brother frowning deeply. Ji Weiqiu was tactful and sat in the spot furthest from his brother. He took out a mask from his sleeve and showed it to him. "Brother, I bought one for you. Isn't it nice! Only two wen."

Ji Su gave a faint hum of acknowledgment but didn't take it. Ji Weiqiu naturally didn't expect him to. Ji Weiqiu raised his head and drained the tea in his cup. As he was pouring himself more, he suddenly heard his brother ask, "Have you finished reading the memorials? Do you have any thoughts?"

Ji Weiqiu had just been wanting to compare notes with his brother. He had been thinking about it on the way here, so he nodded now. "I've finished. I believe Qian Zhiwei is audacious and reckless, accepting bribes and perverting justice. He should just be killed."

"Why?" Ji Su asked lightly.

Ji Weiqiu originally wanted to say that it wasn't worth it to use Qian Zhiwei to bait out the False King. But on second thought, he knew Qian Zhiwei was likely one of the False King's men because of the original novel. However, none of the dozens of memorials his brother gave him mentioned that Qian Zhiwei had someone backing him. How could he explain that?

His brows twitched slightly, and he changed his explanation. "Qian Zhiwei accepted bribes and perverted justice. The amount he bribed me with was already no small sum. Later, he spent another two hundred thousand taels to ransom his son... Um, Imperial Elder Brother, forgive my bluntness, but my entire Prince of Rui's Manor is only worth about that much..."

"He has more money than I do. If you really calculate it, all the heads in his family wouldn't be enough to chop off."

Ji Su paused, then said, "Insolent."

Ji Weiqiu teased, "Brother, just tell me if I'm right."

He was a super first-rank imperial prince. His mother was the reigning Empress Dowager, and his brother was the reigning Emperor. It was a time of peace and prosperity, so he was never short on expenses. He was supposed to be one of the wealthiest people in Nanzhu. Under these circumstances, even he couldn't easily produce four hundred thousand taels of silver. Wasn't the problem with this prefect big enough?

Ji Su didn't speak, which was a tacit agreement. Ji Weiqiu continued, "When I was in Quanzhou City, I also had people investigate. It's a case of darkness under the lamp. Since the evidence is conclusive, there's no need to worry about anything else. Execute him publicly according to the law to rectify the court's atmosphere."

"As for why he has so much silver... I find it a bit strange, but I don't think we need to bother with what he's doing. The person behind him must have deep roots. Even if we take down Qian Zhiwei, trying to get the one behind him would likely cause a chain reaction. It won't be that easy. Before killing Qian Zhiwei, we should torture him severely and make him spit out a few names. We can kill them one by one according to the list. As for the rest... there's no rush. The truth will come out one day."

"Hmm... if we release the news, maybe someone will come to the imperial prison to silence him beforehand?" Ji Weiqiu's eyes shone brightly, waiting for Ji Su to praise him. "Brother, what do you think?"

Ji Su said with a faint smile, "Severe torture? The Prince of Rui is no longer soft-hearted?"

"Why would I be soft-hearted? Was he soft-hearted when he extorted the common people? He's probably scraped three feet of land off Quanzhou Prefecture and put it in his own treasury, right?" Ji Weiqiu said without thinking.

Heaven have mercy. In his entire life, the first bribe he had ever received was the consolation money from this very official, Qian Zhiwei! He also knew that if you randomly picked any official in this court and investigated them thoroughly, you'd likely find enough evidence to warrant the execution of their entire clan. Some did it intentionally, others were forced into it. The key was to catch the big fish and let the small ones go, maintaining the country in a stable state of operation where everyone from the bottom to the top could get by. That in itself was a remarkable achievement.

"This method is feasible," Ji Su said. "The way of heaven is just and brilliant; there is no need to resort to treacherous schemes."

"You're right." Ji Weiqiu was satisfied and happy. His eyes crinkled into a smile, and his whole being radiated 'Brother, praise me a few more times.'

But then he heard Ji Su say, "It's just that Qian Zhiwei is now dead. Prince of Rui, do you have any clues?"

Ji Weiqiu froze. He looked at Ji Su in astonishment. "He's dead?"

He seemed to think of something. "...His son did it? Cutting off the tail to survive?"

Ji Su elegantly crossed his legs, watching him quietly, his gaze as sharp as a torch.

Ji Weiqiu stammered, "No... I was just guessing. Brother, is it true? Why would he do that?"

Ji Su said meaningfully, "That is a question for you... Prince of Rui."

The author has something to say:

Um... the pacing seems a bit slow, but this is my writing style, so there's not much I can do. I'll add some words to save it.

Here's a little tip for everyone, the cover features Weiqiu, the artist drew it based on his character design...