His words and expression showed he already firmly believed that Mu Qing had purposely sabotaged the event. Xie Lian glanced at the silent, thin youth kneeling on the side and pondered his words before he spoke.
“State Preceptor, I think there must be some kind of misunderstanding here.”
Hearing this, Mu Qing slowly looked over, his gaze profoundly dark but not lingering.
Xie Lian said, “If he had purposely held back word, once the event was over and we all compared notes, his deceit would be exposed and there’d be no way he could escape responsibility. Mu Qing is not a short-sighted imbecile, and he wouldn’t have come up with such a low tactic. Besides, with the God-Pleasing Martial Warrior missing, what advantage does his demon opponent have? Please hear him out, State Preceptor, and then draw your conclusions.”
Finishing his speech, Xie Lian inclined his head.
“Tell us, Mu Qing. What happened?”
Mu Qing lowered his eyes and said softly, “I did pass on what His Highness bade me to say yesterday.”
The State Preceptor frowned. “Wouldn’t we know ourselves what you did or did not say? When did you tell us?”
“Yesterday, an hour after the evening lesson, when the four State Preceptors were resting at Sixiang Palace, this disciple spoke from outside the window,” Mu Qing said.
The State Preceptor turned his head to his three fellows, looking puzzled. “Yesterday, after the evening lessons? What were we doing then?”
Just as he asked, he remembered, and traces of awkwardness colored his face. The other three Deputy State Preceptors also coughed nervously, their responses ambiguous.
“Nothing really. Just…resting is resting!”
Seeing how the State Preceptors stammered, everyone understood immediately.
The Royal Holy Temple was a place of quiet meditation and training, and there was very little entertainment save for small games that could serve as amusement. One of them, the most popular one, was playing cards.
Cards could only be played in secret, seen by no one. The State Preceptors had long been bored out of their minds residing at the Royal Holy Temple, so they were heavily addicted. When they started playing, they would forget everything and everyone and fall into a state akin to hysterical obsession or drunkenness. Nothing from the outside world could be heard. If Mu Qing had told them anything at that time, how could they possibly hear?
One of the Deputy State Preceptors said, “Oh, um…maybe there were too many people, your voice was too quiet, and we didn’t hear clearly. Yeah, we didn’t hear clearly.”
The State Preceptor, on the other hand, was doubtful. “Did you actually go to Sixiang Palace yesterday?”
“I absolutely did,” Mu Qing said, and as proof, he relayed without fault the dress, look, and accent of the guard standing at the door.
The State Preceptor had to believe him, but still he frowned. “If you had gone to Sixiang Palace, you could’ve just passed on the message to the trainee outside the door or entered the chamber and spoken to us in detail. Why speak outside by the window? You didn’t even confirm whether we heard?”
Mu Qing responded softly, “This disciple tried. This disciple spoke politely to the shixiong guarding the door, but for some reason that shixiong had to make things difficult and wouldn’t let me into the chamber or pass on word for me. He mocked me and drove me away.”
After a pause, he continued, “This disciple had no other choice, so I went around to the other side of Sixiang Palace and tried to pass on the message through the window. After I spoke, I heard one of the State Preceptors say ‘I get it, now leave,’ so this disciple took that as consent to His Highness’s plans and returned.”
The State Preceptors pursed their lips and didn’t speak.
At the height of a round of cards, who would pay attention to whatever was said outside? If they heard anything, of course they’d respond offhandedly with “I get it, I get it.” But they probably didn’t even know where the voice came from!
Xie Lian knitted his brows. “That such a thing would happen! Which trainee was that impudent? He’s got guts to be so disrespectful to one of my messengers.”
Although Xie Lian was usually friendly and rarely put on airs when interacting with others at the Royal Holy Temple, he was still nonetheless the esteemed son of the king, the prominent crown prince. Even as he knelt before the statue of a god, he had not shown any humility. So with this sudden turn to sternness, he was authoritative without needing fury. Everyone fell quiet, and the State Preceptors wore unreadable expressions on their faces.