"The Internal Guard Bureau has always handled matters well, deserving commendation, so let’s award each person twenty taels of silver, and if this task is done well, there will be more rewards."
Cao De immediately quieted down. If it meant being called Xiao Dezi by the Emperor and His Consorts, so be it. The Emperor was the Son of Heaven, what was the big deal if they called him Xiao Dezi? Yelling out the term wouldn’t cost him a shred of flesh; seeking silver for the Internal Guard Bureau was the righteous path.
However, these louts have become increasingly stupid; upon their return, each person would first be rewarded with a sound beating of five sticks to smarten them up, then given the Emperor’s silver as a sweetener – a stick followed by a treat.
Lian Hua gazed at the fair-faced, beardless young man in front of her, seemingly harmless as human or livestock, and let out an "eh" of surprise. Wasn’t this the same Young Eunuch who chatted her up while she was fishing yesterday? He didn’t look like a good person. Could someone like him really be up to the task?
Seeing her expression, the Emperor raised his eyebrows in confusion. What was this Little Concubine of his thinking...
Before he could figure it out, the Little Concubine tugged on his sleeve and, standing on tiptoe, seemed to want to tell him something.
The Emperor leaned in to listen, and heard his Little Concubine whisper, "Your Majesty, this pale-faced man is no good. He seemed to be trying to trick me out of my fish yesterday, but he was too clumsy and failed. A man both bad and stupid—can he really do it?"
The Emperor was nearly choked by his own spit, unable to hold back his laughter, which shook his chest in waves. Cao De fancied himself handsome and often posed and preened outside, mingling around and up to no good indeed.
Unexpectedly, his Little Concubine had such a discerning eye, keen and sharp at spotting a person’s true nature. Indeed, his Little Concubine was a treasure.
Cao De, seeing the two murmuring to each other, felt uncomfortable under the Little Beauty’s repeated glances. What sort of look was that? And then the Emperor laughed out loud, making him very curious about what the Little Beauty could have said about him.
Lian Hua was also puzzled. What was His Majesty laughing at? Had she said something funny just now?
Both of them looked at the Emperor, not understanding.
The Emperor stopped laughing and gazed back at the two pairs of eyes—one pair of fox-like eyes and the other, almond-shaped. The almond-shaped eyes were cuter.
With a smile, he pinched Lian Hua’s face and said, "Although the man leaves much to be desired, he is still usable. One should not judge by appearances. Whatever you wanted to say, just speak directly to Xiao Dezi."
Listening to the Emperor’s words, Cao De felt something was off, and the term "Xiao Dezi" stung his ears. Since he had just received a favor, it wasn’t the time to turn hostile, so he selectively ignored it.
Lian Hua stuck out her tongue and said to Cao De, "Xiao Dezi, many of the craftsmen inside are poor commoners. If it’s possible not to resort to torture, can we avoid it?"
Cao De’s fox-like eyes lifted in surprise; who would have thought that the previously fierce Little Beauty would have a heart of compassion, tsk.
He agreed without a second thought; after all, commoners usually spill everything when scared, and torture wasn’t much different. Easy to say.
Lian Hua nodded unconsciously, affirming what His Majesty had said about not judging by appearances; Xiao Dezi might look bad, but he was actually quite acceptable.
She continued, "If it is proven that someone is innocent, can we compensate them a little?"
There was no telling how long the investigation would take to release the innocent, and many people were waiting for their wages to feed their families. Too long a delay could starve an entire household.
Cao De thought to himself, well, this Little Beauty calling him "Xiao Dezi" sure does roll off the tongue easily. Fine, he’d accept it. But what compensation?
"This must be a joke, right? Since when has the Internal Guard Bureau ever compensated anyone? Even if they had the money, which they don’t, such a thing would be laughable if it got out. The ever-dreaded Internal Guard Bureau, even shrouded in the shadows, strikes fear into the hearts of people at court. When have they ever offered compensation?"
"They are not to be trifled with. It would be considered merciful of them to reduce torture and release innocent people unharmed. How could they ever offer compensation? How would they maintain their reputation then? Would anyone still fear them?"
"But I can’t just refuse outright. If Little Beauty becomes unhappy, His Majesty might become unhappy too, and the reward promised earlier might vanish."
Cao De looked towards the Emperor, seeking guidance from his eyes on how to respond.
The Emperor gave him a cool glance, as if to let him figure it out himself—and that if he overstepped, he was doomed.
Heh, this foolish ruler. Fine, fine, fine, I’ll shell out the silver myself!
Seeing that the pretty-faced man before her remained silent, Lian Hua quickly added, "I can provide the silver."
She had already planned to offer some silver, as she didn’t want to take advantage unduly.
Upon hearing this, Cao De’s fox-like eyes sparkled with delight. Little Beauty truly was beautiful inside and out—the number one good person in the Harem.
His eyes gleamed with a foxy smile, but before he could express his joy, he saw the Emperor giving him a cold look, making him feel short of breath.
His heart skipped a beat, and with a forced laugh, he repeatedly waved his hands, saying, "Beauty Lian is being too polite. There’s no need, no need. The Internal Guard Bureau has funds for wrongful case compensation. There’s no need for Beauty Lian to offer silver, haha."
After saying this, he laughed awkwardly again. It was just a small amount of money, just a little money. If he dared to ask Little Beauty for silver, Yuchi Zhao would have his hide the next moment. One does not lightly touch the dragon’s reverse scale, and the most he dared was to brush the dragon’s head.
He thought there was no such good fortune. Yuchi, that miser, had just given him some reward silver, and now he was being asked to bleed again.
Lian Hua, relieved after hearing this, thought the Internal Guard Bureau wasn’t so bad after all, having this compensation silver. The man before her seemed to be misunderstood; he wasn’t so bad.
After thinking it over, she finally said to Cao De, "Xiao Dezi, rivers are turbid, and ocean waves are high. If we want clear rivers and calm seas, each of us has to do our part. We should do our best and be careful to distinguish the bad from the good. Letting a wicked man go is like abetting tyranny, and he may harm even more people in the future; wrongly accusing a good person is like pushing someone off a cliff, causing their loved ones immense grief and perhaps even ruining their entire family. So if possible, let us do our utmost not to spare a single wicked person and not to wrong a single good one, preventing the world from becoming cold and people from losing hope, alright?"
Cao De was taken aback, looking at the naïvely speaking, delicate and adorable palace concubine before him; his feelings were mixed.
Since ancient times, the Imperial Palace has been the center of a vortex of power, be it the former court or the Harem. For power, countless people fight tooth and nail. There’s no clear distinction between good and bad people—those who stand against you are enemies. He had never heard such words from any other Harem Consorts before. Little Beauty was the first.
He lowered his head and smiled, somewhat understanding why the Emperor treated Little Beauty so differently. The palace lacked nothing, except for the rare sincerity of a child’s heart.
He raised his head and nodded solemnly. He was never a good man, but perhaps he could try to spare the harmless good people who crossed his path.
In the end, Cao De gazed deeply at Lian Hua, nodded again, bowed, and withdrew.
After he left, Lian Hua looked somewhat bewildered, and couldn’t help but take the Emperor’s hand, looking up to ask, "Your Majesty, am I being foolishly kind?"
She understood some things. Being too kind could end up hurting those around you.