The doctor suffers from amnesia, but not complete amnesia.

For any operation to achieve its fullest purpose, thorough foreplay is essential.

So he remained "very well-behaved" outside the door, waiting for the Grand Tutor's actions.

An old Taoist master rushed out of the museum, carrying several boxes in his hands. Judging from his official robes, he should be the director in charge of this place.

"Open."

The Grand Tutor said in an icy voice.

The old master opened a box, his expression suddenly changed, then he put it down and incredulously opened the second, the third...

As the boxes were opened one by one, the old master's expression grew increasingly gloomy, but he still persisted in opening all the boxes.

The Grand Tutor just stared at the contents of the box without saying a word.

The old Celestial Master knelt down to the side, and all the Celestial Masters in the archives also knelt down in unison, each sweating profusely.

The documents in the archives are usually carefully preserved. Ordinary officials or Taoist priests can only access copies. Only a Vice Minister of Rites like Qiao Yelan can access the original documents.

Apart from the few books that Qiao Yelan reviewed, all the questionnaires about the phases of the year are here.

And without a doubt, not only the Grand Tutor, but even the old curator could tell after opening them that these scrolls themselves were problematic—although they shared the same aura of preservation magic, there were no signs of the passage of time on the scrolls.

"Your Excellency, I..."

"Shut up."

Neither apologies nor excuses are what the Grand Tutor wants to hear right now.

The old master, who had originally wanted to say something, immediately shut his mouth, and knelt on the ground with a pale face, waiting for his punishment.

"Whether this matter has anything to do with you or not, you are not exempt from punishment. Take these people, everyone, and report to the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion in the Northern Frontier."

Everyone's face turned pale, but no one dared to utter a sound. They all stood up, bowed to the Grand Tutor, and then followed the old Celestial Master away, looking utterly dejected.

Qiao Yelan stood outside the door, watching the group leave.

"Please come in, Minister Qiao."

A sound came from inside the door.

Qiao Yelan waved his hand, and Ace pushed the wheelchair over the threshold, looking at the solemn-faced old man inside.

"I've failed to manage my subordinates properly; I'm sorry you had to see that."

"This is no laughing matter, Grand Tutor. Moreover, the lax management of subordinates is quite alarming. Why didn't you investigate first? At least you should have asked them if they knew the inside story. How could you let these people leave so casually?"

"They are just pawns, not even pawns. They couldn't possibly know who the mastermind was—but even so, the crime of negligence alone is enough to send them to the northern frontier."

The Grand Tutor waved his hand, a strange feeling rising in his heart.

Why would Qiao Yelan ask such a low-level question?

However, he still intended to finish giving his answer.

"As for the mastermind behind this, I've been waiting here until now, just for him to come—if he comes, it means there's still a chance to salvage the situation; if he doesn't come..."

A ruthless glint flashed in the old man's eyes.

"Since the Grand Tutor already has a plan in mind, then I will not ask any further questions."

Qiao Yelan casually skipped over the topic, simply patting Ace and asking him to bring over all the documents from those boxes for her to look at.

The Grand Tutor did not stop him; he had already guessed the contents pretty much as he had—they were all the same as the documents Qiao Yelan had previously reviewed, altered to erase the actions or achievements related to the year's phases and graft them all onto some possibly existing Great Yan person.

However, Qiao Yelan's reaction and actions intensified the strange feeling in the Grand Tutor's heart.

If Qiao Yelan can't guess what's going on here, what's the point of reading it?

But Qiao Yelan read it with great interest, as if he had acquired some novel tale of the strange and supernatural.

Before long, hurried footsteps could be heard outside the archives.

"You all get out of here. Don't let anyone come near. I'll go up alone."

A command was given, and a throng of footsteps departed, leaving only one voice heading towards the archives.

The Grand Tutor closed his eyes in pain.

Even though he already guessed who did it, he still felt a little sad after hearing the voice.

As soon as Vice Minister Ning stepped across the threshold, he saw the Grand Tutor, who was supporting his forehead with his hands and closing his eyes—along with Qiao Yelan beside him.

This caught him off guard, so much so that he stopped in his tracks.

"Greetings, Vice Minister Ning."

Qiao Yelan put down the book in his hand and gave a friendly bow, breaking the awkward silence.

"...Greetings, Vice Minister Qiao."

With his plans completely disrupted, Minister Ning could only return Qiao Yelan's greeting before he seemed to recover and remember what he should do.

"...Greetings, Grand Tutor."

At this moment, the Grand Tutor had opened his eyes. His voice was old and tired, yet full of authority.

"Minister Ning, how have I treated you since you joined the Ministry of Rites?"

Minister Ning immediately knelt down and bowed to the old man.

"I am deeply grateful for the guidance and support you have given me, and I have no way to repay you."

This is my heartfelt gratitude.

The more sincere he was, the more disappointed the Grand Tutor became.

Because he had to oversee the year's phases and handle many matters related to the candle bearers, he naturally spent most of his time at the year-keeping platform and rarely even went to the imperial court.

However, due to the relationship between the Ministry of Rites and the Imperial Household Department, in order to better command the Imperial Household Department, the Grand Tutor also held the position of Minister of Rites.

However, he wasn't some kind of superhuman from the Great Yan Dynasty who could be in two places at once and didn't need to sleep. So the more energy the Grand Tutor devoted to the Si Sui Tai, the less energy he had to manage the Ministry of Rites. But for the Great Yan Dynasty, the Ministry of Rites was also an important department, and someone had to take charge of it.

The Grand Tutor was not one to hold a position without doing his job, nor would he stand by and watch the Great Yan court malfunction—so he chose someone to help him handle the affairs of the Ministry of Rites.

The person managing the Ministry of Rites for this incompetent Minister of Rites was none other than Vice Minister Ning, who stood before him.

Without a doubt, at his age, he could not possibly have the power to lead a ministry. It was only through the teachings of the Grand Tutor and his own abilities that he gradually gained control of the Ministry of Rites.

It was clear to anyone with eyes to see what the Grand Tutor meant—as he grew older, he paid less and less attention to the affairs of the Ministry of Rites, and in the end, he would inevitably have to relinquish his position as Minister of Rites.

In other words, Vice Minister Ning is currently exercising the power of a Minister in his capacity as Vice Minister, and the position of Minister of Rites will certainly be his in the future.

This shows how popular this person was in the court—and how high the Grand Tutor's expectations were of him.

And he is so young. If he reaches the right age, he will likely be able to secure one of the three highest-ranking official positions.

But now, this expectation and future have been shattered by Ning Shilang himself.

“I thought many people would come, and I even thought it might be you—but the one person I don’t want to see coming to me is you.”

“I’m sorry, Your Excellency, this matter was entirely my doing and has nothing to do with anyone else. I have no intention of making any useless arguments. The witnesses and evidence are all here. Whether Your Excellency sends me to the Ministry of Justice for punishment or exiles me to the frontier, I will do so willingly.”

Ning Shilang banged his head heavily on the ground, displaying a cooperative attitude of admitting guilt and accepting punishment.

His words did not bring the Grand Tutor the slightest bit of relief; instead, they made him even more gloomy.

Because this matter could not have been done by Vice Minister Ning alone.

It could even be said that Vice Minister Ning was merely a pawn.

Given his current position, even the most foolish person could clearly see that his future prospects were bright beyond compare—as long as he continued to work diligently in the Ministry of Rites, and even if he didn't have any involvement with the Ministry of Rites, he could still walk onto this bright future.

He had a mentor-student relationship with him and had done his best to promote him. It could be said that, apart from the position of Grand Tutor, which was impossible to give him right now, the Grand Tutor had already given Minister Ning everything he could.

But why did he still remove the original text from the Bao Si Sui Tai document?

Why would he do these things behind the Grand Tutor's back?

Why did he become the most crucial pawn in the grand scheme of deceiving the Grand Tutor?

Apart from Minister Ning, no one else could have changed the questionnaire in the Si Sui Tai so easily, let alone avoid arousing suspicion. Even the old Celestial Master who had guarded the archives for decades had never noticed anything unusual.

Because he was the Grand Tutor's student, his successor, and the future Minister whom the Grand Tutor valued—so only he could accomplish this without the Grand Tutor's knowledge or anyone else's suspicion.

He is an irreplaceable piece.

But what is the purpose?

Everyone has a purpose in doing things—Minister Ning's willingness to become a pawn must also have its own purpose.

The price has already been so high, so why does Vice Minister Ning still so resolutely abandon a bright future, abandon standing on the side of the Grand Tutor, and willingly participate in deceiving the Grand Tutor?

Now they even want to take all the blame upon themselves, subtly and overtly urging the Grand Tutor to stop the investigation...

The old man took a deep breath. He already had some guesses, but he was still not convinced and wanted to ask again.

"...Is it His Majesty?"

Vice Minister Ning did not react.

"Is that the Grand Commandant?"

Ning Shilang on the ground remained unresponsive.

The Grand Tutor understood.

He simply sighed and waved his hand somewhat forlornly.