“What?”
Yan Wenzhen trembled, his eyes flying open.
While the records in the palace were not the property of the Yan Clan, historical records were always managed under a strict system, both inside and outside the palace.
Moreover, for the sake of compiling the histories, all of the palace’s records were sent from the imperial household to the Yan Clan so that they could be inspected, referenced, and compiled. This was another of the Yan Clan’s important roles.
And these were the records of a sovereign. No matter who had done this deed, once they were found, they would face the death penalty.
“This is an extremely important matter, and there are many things that only your honored father might know about. Thus, if it is possible, I hope to see the honored Grand Scribe,” Wang Chong sincerely said.
“Your Highness, it is not that I am unwilling, but unable. To tell the truth, my father is nearly eighty years old, and because he spends long nights compiling histories, he has placed a heavy burden on his body that he does not have the energy to sustain. There are even times when he becomes very forgetful.”
Yan Wenzhen bitterly smiled.
Wang Chong was stunned. He had never predicted a situation like this.
Wang Chong was not unfamiliar with the condition Yan Wenzhen had described. In another world, it was known as ‘Alzheimer’s Disease’, or senile dementia.
It also meant that Wang Chong’s attempts to learn the Grand Scribe’s thoughts on this matter had come to naught.
Wang Chong’s heart sank.
“This is actually the true reason this one has come in place of Father,” Yan Wenzhen said.
Chapter 1954 - The Burned Records!
Chapter 1954: The Burned Records!Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: MichyrrHistorians placed utmost importance on the accuracy of records, and once they could no longer remember things correctly, their career was essentially done for.“Lord Yan, you also know of the incidents in court and how the Sage Emperor is very different from how he was in the past. I know that the Yan Clan values the historical records highly, but the original intention of the Yan Clan’s rule was to prevent officials from interfering with their own records and editing the books.“But the records Wang Chong wants to inspect are from thirty-some years ago, regarding the time before the Sage Emperor took the throne. It has nothing to do with the court or any other officials. In several decades’ time, these records will be made public all the same. In reading these records, Wang Chong will not affect the Yan Clan, the officials, or the court. I hope that Lord Yan can accommodate my request!” Wang Chong sternly said.Yan Wenzhen fell silent. Wang Chong was right. If he only read through the records of the Sage Emperor’s early life and did not read his own records, it would have little effect on the Yan Clan, the court, or any of the other officials.In Yan Wenzhen’s mind, this was the best-case scenario, but the rules of the Yan Clan…“Lord Yan, historians are also officials. As long as they do not defy their principles, they should be able to make a few exceptions. You also know of the selection of talented women. Although the Sage Emperor earlier said that he was putting the matter to the side, putting it aside means that he has not given up and could propose it again at any time.“The people throughout the realm are uneasy. Once the selection begins and the various provinces and commanderies must offer their women, mother and daughter, father and daughter, brother and sister will end up separated. How could Milord bear to see such a sight?“The matter of the Peace Pavilion is also a sign. This is only a palace construction, but what if His Divine Majesty suddenly changes his mind and tries to imitate Emperor Yang and construct palaces throughout the realm? This excessive construction is certain to place a burden on the people… Does Milord truly wish to see things reach this state?” Wang Chong said.“This…”Yan Wenzhen instantly became hesitant.Wang Chong was right. Historians were still officials, and the Yan Clan was made up of scholarly officials who cared for the prosperity of the empire and the happiness of the people. This was what the members of the Yan Clan hoped to see.But…“Lord Yan, please!” Wang Chong solemnly said.“Haaah…”Yan Wenzhen gave a long sigh and finally raised his head.“Your Highness, can you guarantee that you will not mention today’s matter to any outsiders?“Also, can these records really help you resolve the problems in the court?”Wang Chong was elated to hear this, knowing that Yan Wenzhen had relaxed his grip.“Wang Chong guarantees that no outsider will ever hear of today’s matter. In addition, the records of the Sage Emperor’s life before his enthronement truly are extremely important for resolving the recent incidents in the court!” Wang Chong solemnly said.“Okay! I trust Your Highness! Your Highness, please wait a moment while Wenzhen inspects the records.”Yan Wenzhen emotionally sighed.“Many thanks, Milord!”Many of the buildings in the Yan Clan Residence were not meant for habitation.Inside were rows and rows of wooden bookshelves, each room packed in this way. Anyone who was not a member of the Yan Clan would take ages to navigate this voluminous library and find the records they sought, or perhaps never find it at all.Wang Chong quietly waited in the room. No matter what, he had to get those records, which would be his greatest harvest from this trip.An hour later, Yan Wenzhen finally returned, and Wang Chong hoped that he would have the books. But the moment he entered, Wang Chong sensed that something was wrong.Not only was Yan Wenzhen empty-handed, he had an extremely bizarre expression on his face.“What’s wrong?”Wang Chong bolted up from his chair in unease.“It’s gone!” Yan Wenzhen cried out, his eyes slack, apparently still immersed in shock.“What’s gone?”Wang Chong’s eyes widened as he asked.“I followed the map of our Yao Clan and headed toward Room One-thirty-two of Pavilion B, but I searched through the entire room and did not find information regarding the Sage Emperor’s life before taking the throne,” Yan Wenzhen sternly said.“How could this be?”Wang Chong’s body trembled in shock, his face paling.The Yan Clan’s recordkeeping system was extremely rigorous, even stricter than the palace’s on some levels. And for generation after generation, there had never been a mistake.Moreover, the Yan Clan’s library was immense, and if an outsider were trying to find something, they wouldn’t know where to start amongst the sea of books.Something like this shouldn’t have been possible.“When I discovered what was going on, I immediately mobilized the Yan Clan members to search all other possible areas, eventually confirming that these records had gone missing.“Sensing the seriousness of the matter, I immediately summoned all the clan members. In the end, I discovered that thirty-some years ago, not long after the Sage Emperor took the throne, there was a large fire in the Yan Clan that destroyed many books.“At the time, I was still copying books in the clan’s ancestral home, as per clan tradition, so I do not know the exact details. But it now seems that the books destroyed thirty-some years ago were exactly the ones you wanted, the information on the Sage Emperor’s life before he took the throne!”Yan Wenzhen was still in disbelief as he spoke.Everyone knew just how strict the Yan Clan was. It was their mission in life, their everything, to ensure that the records of history were accurate and well-preserved.An accident like this was no small matter.“Impossible!” Wang Chong said in shock.“How could there be such a coincidence? The records in the palace were lost, and then a fire thirty-some years ago at your Yan Clan just so happened to destroy the same records?”The chance of this being a coincidence was far too low. Even a fool could tell that something was wrong.Just as Yan Wenzhen had said, without a guide, an outsider would never be able to find that place.“Moreover, just who would think to destroy some records without much use? What sort of benefit would they obtain from this?”The matter was growing more and more confusing.“Our Yan Clan is responsible for keeping the records, so I want to know the answer even more than you do!” Yan Wenzhen sternly said.“But if they were burned, were they burned away so cleanly that nothing was left?” Wang Chong said.Everything left behind traces of its existence. If there was a great fire, some of these books had to have survive
d. From there, he could find some clues and perhaps even get an inkling of the mastermind.“I had the same idea, so I went to see if there were any damaged books left. But there were none! All the records had vanished without a trace!” Yan Wenzhen said.His chest began to heave up and down as he recalled what else he had discovered.“But the most shocking part was not this. Our Yan Clan has strict rules. If books have been destroyed in an accidental fire, we have ways of making new copies of the records,” Yan Wenzhen said.If the books were destroyed but the recorder was still alive, the effects would be limited.Many members of the Yan Clan wanted to become the Grand Scribe, the recorder for a dynasty, and a hidden requirement for this was an astonishing memory. Without this, one could not become a Grand Scribe.“But when I carefully examined the incident, I found that the surviving books were all burned, and nothing was ever mentioned about recompiling them. This should have never happened in our Yan Clan. Even if the surviving books were burned, they would still be extremely important. To completely destroy them would require going through a strict process. It’s not something that can be done casually.“I looked through our records and discovered that the one who had given the order thirty-some years ago to destroy the surviving books was none other than my father!”Yan Wenzhen found it hard to hide the shock on his face.All the Yan Clan members knew how strict and scrupulous Old Master Yan was. Yan Wenzhen had spent his entire life trying to model his behavior on Old Master Yan’s.Every one of his words was like a nail hammered into the ground, excruciatingly difficult to change.Yan Wenzhen even remembered how his father would explode in rage when he got a single word wrong, punishing him by having him kneel in the ancestral hall and refusing to see him for half a year.But now, he had learned that his extremely strict father had ordered for books to be destroyed. How could Yan Wenzhen dare to believe this?Yan Wenzhen could have believed anyone else could do this, but not his father.Wang Chong was even more shocked than Yan Wenzhen.“How could this be? Old Master Yan?!”Wang Chong’s body shuddered. He had never imagined that even Yan Wenzhang would be related to this matter.But he quickly calmed himself down. Eunuch Gao, his grandfather, Yao Chong, and now, Old Master Yan… This matter continued to grow more complicated and confusing.“Just what are they hiding? What could it be?!” Wang Chong softly muttered.Wang Chong had not made much progress in his investigation, but there was one thing he was sure about.Eunuch Gao, his own grandfather, Yao Chong, and Old Master Yan were all hiding something, and this something was connected to the Sage Emperor.But there was one thing Wang Chong still didn’t know. What had happened in the palace thirty-some years ago that was somehow connected to the recent events in court?Wang Chong quickly left the Yan Clan. This matter involved Old Master Yan, so he would not be able to get any more information from Yan Wenzhen.“The trail was cut?”In the carriage, Xu Qiqin saw Wang Chong’s absentminded expression and cautiously probed.“Mm!”Wang Chong nodded as he recounted what had happened in the Yan Clan.“How could this be?”Wang Chong’s words and his speculations left Xu Qiqin flabbergasted.
In both this life and the last, the lady of the Xu Clan was renowned for her intelligence and wit. But not even Xu Qiqin had imagined that their investigation would involve so many influential figures.
Chapter 1955 - Zhang Tianlin!
Chapter 1955: Zhang Tianlin!
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
Xu Qiqin sat next to Wang Chong and pondered the matter.
She turned to Wang Chong and asked, “Should we continue our investigation?”
“It’s not a question of investigating or not. We need an answer for this matter. For some reason, I feel more and more uneasy,” Wang Chong sternly said.
He once more recalled Eunuch Gao’s conversation with him.
He needed to find the answer before the situation worsened.
As these thoughts passed through his mind, he quickly calmed down.
“Let’s head back first.”
With no more clues, the investigation came to a standstill. At this time, some news came from the palace.
Xu Keyi got down on one knee and respectfully said, “Your Highness, when we were searching the palace and seeking out people related to the records, we learned something interesting from an old eunuch.
“The old eunuch originally worked near the recordkeeping pavilion. Moreover, ten-some years ago, he was friends with a now-deceased eunuch who was responsible for recording the actions and words of the Princes and Princesses in the palace. The two of them would often drink together in their free time.
“From what he said, the recordkeepers of the palace are numerous, and in the last few decades, they’ve been constantly changing. But long ago, the palace used to use the ‘Imperial Eunuch Shift Registry’. Although it’s been some time, we simply need to find the ‘Imperial Eunuch Shift Registry’ to find out what happened back then.”
“What?”
Wang Chong trembled in surprise.
He had learned earlier that the recordkeepers of the palace were switched out at a high frequency, and as they were looking for books from thirty-some years ago, it was basically impossible to find any clues. He had not expected there to still be clues despite how long ago the records had been stolen.
“We’ve questioned some of the old eunuchs tasked with recordkeeping in the palace, and from what they say, it has always been possible to track the palace recordkeepers. Moreover, in the past, there were not so many people. But several decades ago, several incidents took place in the palace, and after that, the system of Imperial Eunuch Shift Registry was ended,” Xu Keyi sternly said.
“What incidents?” Wang Chong asked, grimacing.
“We have not yet found that out. As it was so long ago, few people remember,” Xu Keyi regretfully said.
Wang Chong began to think, and he quickly issued an order.
“Get in touch with Old Eagle, Zhang Que, Li Jingzhong, Yang Zhao, and Bian Lingcheng. Have them find that registry no matter what!”
“Yes, Milord!”
Just one day after Wang Chong issued the order, the Imperial Eunuch Shift Registry was placed on Wang Chong’s desk.
It was a thin sheet of paper about two feet long and one foot wide. The passage of time had made the paper yellow and brittle, but the quality of the paper used by the palace was much higher. Even after several decades, one could still clearly read the contents.
Various tables had been drawn on the paper, listing the eunuch responsible for recording the imperial histories, but also recording the guards responsible for safeguarding the records, the supervisors, the night watchmen, the eunuchs responsible for collecting the trash, and the palace maids responsible for miscellaneous affairs. Everything was recorded in great detail.
According to these records, the guards and palace maids went through a minor reshuffle every five years and a major reshuffle every ten years. As for the eunuchs who recorded the lives of the imperial household, they went through reshuffles every fifteen to as long as twenty years!
Most importantly, this list covered the period before the Sage Emperor’s ascendancy, thirty-some years ago.
“Find the court historian responsible for recording the Sage Emperor’s deeds thirty-some years ago!” Wang Chong firmly said after he finished reading the registry.
This was most likely the only method he had left of finding the truth. As long as he could find those court historians and know of what information had been lost, everything would become obvious. At the minimum, he would know why that information had been lost.
The entire capital soon began to turn to fulfill Wang Chong’s order.
Even though finding a certain person from thirty-some years ago was not easy, with his vast network and a series of investigations, Wang Chong finally found the man he had sought.
“This vulgar subject pays respects to the King of Foreign Lands!”
Late in the night, when no one else was around, a gray-robed elder of more than sixty years of age
entered the main hall of Wang Chong’s residence, his head held tall.
Zhang Tianlin!
The vast majority of the people on the Imperial Eunuch Shift Registry had been very old and already passed. This man was the only one still alive.
But Zhang Tianlin had not been responsible for recording palace affairs. He had been the man in charge of the guards who safeguarded the books.
These guards were responsible for approving the entry and exit of those who entered the area where the records were kept.
Besides the court historians, he was probably the person closest to the truth.
Everyone else in the hall had left, even Xu Keyi. For a distance of some several dozen feet around, there was no one else except Wang Chong and this elder, the previous guard captain of the palace records.
“Milord is investigating the matter from thirty years ago?” Zhang Tianlin asked before Wang Chong could speak.
He stared at Wang Chong without the slightest hint of fear.
“You knew that I would come to find you?”
Wang Chong raised an eyebrow in surprise.
“Heh, this one is a vulgar man who long ago withdrew from the palace, while Milord is a revered noble. If it were not related to the palace, would Milord have taken such great pains to summon this vulgar one? Moreover, this vulgar one ceased to be called Zhang Tianlin long ago.”
Zhang Tianlin’s attitude was completely different from what Wang Chong had imagined. He was so composed that he seemed to have expected today’s meeting.
“It’s not right!”
Wang Chong frowned and shook his head.
“That’s not the reason. You’ve been retired for many years, but you weren’t surprised at all that I summoned you. Just how much do you know?”
“Milord is truly formidable!”
After a moment of silence, Zhang Tianlin frankly admitted the truth.
“Yes, I knew that Milord would seek me out.”
The Human Emperor c1-2382 Page 1185