The years I was in the human world

At the court meeting the next day, officials from the Du family indeed reported the Third Prince's abuse of power and humiliation of others. A woman rang the celestial bell and tearfully accused her Xiangshui Lu family in the Golden Throne Hall of being a scholarly family, and how the Third Prince was so abused and humiliating that he had forcibly abducted her elder brother into the palace as a servant.

Before the Third Prince's family could react, another official stepped forward and pointed out that two bodies tortured to death were found in a private residence outside the palace. The horrific deaths shocked the people of the capital. The owner of the private residence was none other than Xie's youngest son.

Xie had two sons. The eldest, Xie Yang, had been stationed at the border for many years and had just returned to Beijing a few days ago. The youngest, Xie Yi, had been living in seclusion in the mountains and had not been in Beijing for many years. Therefore, the private residence under his name was actually where the third prince lived temporarily when he occasionally left the palace. It was self-evident who the two corpses were related to.

With such a big incident happening at the court meeting, all other matters were naturally pushed aside. The emperor sullenly ordered all irrelevant people to disperse and closed the door to deal with this murder case. The two bodies found in the private residence had not even rotted yet, and it was obvious that they had died not long ago.

The Third Prince is the Emperor's favorite child. He knows very well what kind of character he has. He would never do such a bad thing. Even if he wanted to do it, he would never be stupid enough to kill someone at this critical moment. So, there is no need to say who did it.

"Your Majesty, I think that this matter concerns the dignity of the royal family. It should be reported to the Dali Temple for detailed investigation and a clear report to reassure the people." The official who sued the third prince said in an earnest tone.

The fifth prince was about to speak up in agreement, but the emperor raised his hand to signal him to be quiet. This was a tug-of-war between the imperial power and the aristocratic families. Everyone present knew all the twists and turns, but they just had to go through the motions. The emperor calmed himself down and looked at the third prince, his tone relatively gentle: "Yun'er, what do you think about this?"

As an important part of the matter, Lu Zhouxue was naturally brought out of the Third Prince's palace and knelt. Listening to the emperor's amiable attitude, she could not help but frowned. The love and hate were really obvious. Chu Zhaoli did nothing but was beaten and scolded. The Third Prince had obviously made a big mistake, but the emperor did not even scold him.

"Father, please understand. I have been deeply influenced by you and Master since I was young. I have read books written by sages. I will never do such a thing that willfully disrespects human life." The Third Prince knelt on the ground and saluted respectfully. Then he stood up and said in a neither humble nor arrogant manner, "Regarding what Lord Wang said today, I have objections."

"Although my eunuch has the same surname as the commoner woman who filed the complaint, he has no connection with the Xiangshui Lu family. There is absolutely no such thing as him using his power to oppress others." The third prince said earnestly, "If your father doesn't believe me, the eunuch is also here. You can ask him if I have ever threatened him."

"Your Majesty, I also have objections." The fifth prince interrupted and got the emperor's nod. He looked at the third prince and said, "When that woman filed a complaint in court, she said that someone had secretly coerced her family. If that's the case, with the lives of her family members at stake, how dare I tell the truth?

If someone takes advantage of this to cause trouble and asks that servant to make random accusations, wouldn't that be even more troublesome? This is about Third Brother's innocence. I think that the words of that servant and the common woman are not credible, so it is better to let the Dali Temple investigate in detail."

"Fifth brother, you are wrong. Who dares to lie in front of our father?" The Third Prince turned to look at the Fifth Prince. For the first time, the usually modest man showed his edge. "The crime of deceiving the emperor can implicate the entire clan. Anyway, it will implicate your family. Why don't you dare to tell the truth?"

The Third Prince's words were so righteous that no one could find fault with them. The Fifth Prince did not want to tell the Emperor openly that he wanted to bring down his third brother, so he did not press the issue any further.

"Where is that eunuch?" The two sons said no more, and the emperor simply summoned Lu Zhouxue for questioning.

When Lu Zhouxue saw that it was his turn to perform in a play, he stepped out from the crowd and knelt before the emperor. The emperor took one look at him and saw that he was indeed a troublemaker. "What is your relationship with the Xiangshui Lu family? Why did you enter the palace? Tell me the truth. If you lie, I will never forgive you!"

These words were meant to cater to the Fifth Prince's words, but in reality they were secretly warning him not to try to slander the Third Prince. Lu Zhouxue heard the emperor's hidden meaning and thought that he was really too biased. She still pretended to be obedient and said, "I dare not."

After Lu Zhouxue finished his ceremony, he stood up from his knees and explained in concise words that he had no relationship with the Xiangshui Lu family, that the fact that the Third Prince abused his power to oppress others was a fabrication, and that he ignored all the crazy looks that the Fifth Prince gave him.

"Third brother's eunuch, who thinks beauty is a disaster, is surprisingly loyal." Seeing that Lu Zhouxue couldn't make any progress, the Fifth Prince didn't insist on it. He pointed out the relationship between the Third Prince and Lu Zhouxue in a meaningful way. As expected, the Emperor frowned.

"Since the matter of the Xiangshui Road family is completely fictitious, I think there may be some hidden story behind the matter of the private residence. Wang Xian, it is your fault for implicating Yun'er without reason this time. You will investigate this matter. Give me a satisfactory explanation in three days." The emperor could see that today's matter involved the intention of the third prince. That was why he had to find a way to make a big thing small and a small thing nothing.

"Father, I have something to say." Originally, today's matter would have ended like this, but unexpectedly, the Third Prince spoke again. Upon hearing his words, not to mention the Emperor, even the Fifth Prince, the mastermind behind the scenes, looked over in surprise, wondering what tricks he was going to play.

"What I'm talking about is related to this eunuch. Although he is not from the Xiangshui Lu family, he is also the son of a decent family. He was forced to enter the palace for refuge because he had no other choice." The third prince said in a sonorous voice.

"I felt sorry for him, so I wanted to seek justice for him. This matter should not have troubled your father, but the traitor used it to frame me for bullying others and bring shame to the royal family. This is intolerable. I am going to make a bold appeal and ask your father to make the decision."

"Half a month ago, Marquis Guangping forcibly abducted a man into his palace. The man refused to surrender and was afraid of retaliation, so he had no choice but to enter the palace. I felt sorry for him and took him in to serve him. For half a month, the master and servant have been living in harmony, but who would have thought that he would suffer the misfortune today."

Lu Zhouxue, who was waiting there, was very surprised to hear this. He had not told the Third Prince about these things, but he did not expect that the latter had even found out about them. At this time, he turned the tables and dragged Marquis Guangping into the water. Marquis Guangping seemed to be a relative of the Du family, that is, someone from the Fifth Prince's side.

Lu Zhouxue's eyes gradually changed when he looked at the Third Prince. This boy was indeed not a simple person. He had been keeping silent about it and had done something big. The Fifth Prince, who heard about this, was also stunned. Why had no one reported this to him?

Today's farce ended with the emperor angrily summoning Marquis Guangping to the palace. After several people dispersed from the Golden Throne Hall, a few days later, the details of the two bodies in the private residence were also found out. They were all merchants from other places who came to do business. Because of their good looks, they were invited by Marquis Guangping to have tea in his mansion, but there was no news after that.

At this point, let's just say the truth has been revealed. It was Marquis Guangping who used his power to oppress people, causing the death and then framing the Third Prince. The latter's previous petition to the Emperor in the Golden Palace also happened to confirm this.

Because the two bodies were found in such horrific circumstances, it caused an uproar in the capital. In order to appease the public anger, the emperor had to impose a severe punishment. He stripped the title of Marquis Guangping and exiled him to the southwest to serve as a warning to others. In order to preserve the family's image, the Du family did not interfere with the verdict, and the case was settled.

After much planning by the Fifth Prince, he lost his wife and his soldiers. In the palace, he cursed the Marquis of Guangping, saying that he was a jerk with a head full of lust and could not control his lower body. He allowed the Third Prince to take advantage of him and ruined his plan.

"Your Highness, Marquis Guangping was exiled to the southwest, and the two corpses were taken from him. You see..." The subordinate spoke carefully despite the Fifth Prince's anger.

"Handle it cleanly and leave no evidence behind." The Fifth Prince's eyes flashed with cruelty. "Also, send someone to spread the news that Marquis Guangping died suddenly during exile, and that it was done by the Third Prince to vent his anger on the eunuchs in his palace."

"Didn't my good third brother keep saying in front of the emperor that he was seeking justice for the eunuch? I want to see if he can afford this beauty. I cannot take the post in Jiangzhou, so third brother, don't think of taking advantage of this."

A few days later, the news that Marquis Guangping died suddenly on the way to exile reached the capital. While the people applauded the death of this cancer that had plagued the capital, rumors spread that the third prince had sent someone to assassinate Marquis Guangping to vent his anger for his beloved, and soon reached the ears of the emperor.

"Yun'er, does the matter of Marquis Guangping have anything to do with you?" The emperor showed the latter the memorial impeaching the third prince for indulging in beauty. There was not much anger on his face, but it was unusually serious. In his opinion, it was not a big deal for the third prince to have one or two beauties around him. He was just afraid that he was really in love.

“Your Majesty, no matter how handsome the eunuch is, he is just a slave. I will never act inappropriately for him. If you are worried, I will send him to another palace today.” The third prince was favored by the emperor largely because he could understand what the emperor said and gave the emperor a satisfactory answer after a little thought.

"Yun'er knows what's going on. You go back first and prepare to take up your post in Jiangzhou." The emperor nodded and casually told the third prince the news that the Du family had tried every means to find out but could not.

"Father, you mean your son..." The Third Prince looked up at the Emperor in surprise. He was not unaware of the rumors in the capital recently. The Fifth Prince's sudden move really caught him off guard. He thought that the task of harvesting in autumn would not fall on him anyway. "Those rumors..."

"Don't worry, Yun'er. Your father will take care of it for you. Just go." The emperor nodded at the third prince soothingly, signaling him to just go and do it. He would take care of everything.

As soon as the Third Prince left Chengming Palace, the Emperor summoned the Fifth Prince to question him. He was still serious, but also had a fatherly love. He sat there, looking at this son who was spoiled by him and became arrogant and willful. He asked, "Yun'er is handling the post of Jiangzhou. Do you have any complaints about Jin'er?"

"Father, I, your son..." The Fifth Prince knew that his father would make this decision, but when he actually heard the decision, he couldn't help but feel that it was unfair. However, he gritted his teeth and said, "No complaints."

How can a father and son in heaven tell so many truths? Most of them are half true and half false, so that they can get along harmoniously.

"Do you really have no resentment?" the emperor asked, his inquiring eyes fixed on the fifth prince's face, observing his expression.

The Fifth Prince was not as cunning as the Third Prince. Under the Emperor's deliberate indulgence, his emotions would show on his face. He said in a sullen tone, as if complaining: "Father, since you have already made the decision, why bother asking me whether I resent it or not? Isn't that stabbing me in the heart for nothing?"

The fifth prince said this, looking up at the emperor with moist eyes, his neck stiffened like a stubborn calf, feeling wronged and sad because of his father's partiality. The emperor's hard heart softened when he saw this. As a monarch, he liked such innocent behavior the most. He touched the fifth prince's head and said:

"Jin'er, are you still angry with your father because he didn't allow you to go to Jiangzhou?"

"Father, I am obviously no worse than my third brother. Why do you always favor him?" The fifth prince complained. He was unsure about the emperor's attitude. Was he testing his attitude towards the third prince's appointment to Jiangzhou, or did he know something?

"Is Jin'er angry just because of this? Don't you hate Yun'er?" the emperor asked again. The fifth prince's heart sank. The emperor finally knew it.

"Third brother treats me very well, why do you resent him?" The fifth prince pretended to be puzzled and asked, "I am just frustrated. Is it because I am really not as good as third brother that your father is unwilling to trust me?"

"Jin'er is fine. I didn't choose you to go to Jiangzhou, not because I don't trust you, but after all, the matter of Marquis Guangping has not been resolved. If Jin'er goes to Jiangzhou again, it will inevitably cause criticism." The emperor said sincerely, "Jin'er, don't think too much. You are my most beloved child. Yun'er is going to Jiangzhou. Pingyang County's salary has not been paid this year, so let Jin'er go."

"Thank you, father!" The fifth prince pretended to be excited and threw himself into the emperor's arms, acting like a loving father and a filial son, but in his heart he was thinking, the most beloved child? I'm afraid not, otherwise why was the same Guangping Marquis's matter making such a fuss, and his third brother still went to Jiangzhou, but he was implicated and had to stay out of the limelight for a while.

But Pingyang County... that seemed to be the sphere of influence of Xie family. The fifth prince threw himself into the emperor's arms and narrowed his eyes. His father was really good at balancing the forces. His third brother went to Jiangzhou to preside over the autumn harvest and suppress the power of Du family. He went to Pingyang to distribute military pay, which also reduced the reputation of Xie family in the army.

The next day, the emperor announced at the court meeting that the third prince would be appointed to go to Jiangzhou to replace the governor of Jiangzhou to preside over the autumn harvest. Some officials opposed this because of the rumors in the capital in recent days, believing that the third prince was obsessed with beauty and was obviously not capable of taking on such a heavy responsibility.

Upon hearing this, the emperor said that since there were objections to the candidate, he would choose another one. However, in the afternoon of the same day, a new rumor circulated in the capital: Marquis Guangping died suddenly because the prince was seeking personal revenge because he had been openly molested by Marquis Guangping because of his beautiful appearance.