The pretty widow is addicted to money, and the little wolfdog asks for a hug

Zhou Cuiwan frowned and put on an expression of serious thinking. After a moment, her eyes lit up and she continued, "Oh, and last year during the Chinese New Year, I heard that Gu Qinghuai robbed the Dragon and Tiger Village in Horse Shoe Mountain. There were so many things in the Dragon and Tiger Village, they must have been emptied overnight. If Miss Liang finds someone from the Dragon and Tiger Village, maybe she will have another piece of evidence to incriminate Gu Qinghuai."

Liang Yueru's smile deepened. "Very good. My Liang family also has a shop in Qinghe County. I will send a letter immediately and ask them to check. Oh, by the way, if you remember anything else, you can tell me everything and don't hide it."

Zhou Cuiwan raised her eyes to glance at Liang Yueru, then suddenly stood up and knelt in front of her, begging, "Miss Liang, I have something to ask of you."

"Tell me, what's the matter?" Liang Yueru picked up the teacup and took a sip.

Zhou Cuiwan said in a sad voice: "Gu Qinghuai is possessed by an evil spirit, and has many abilities you can't imagine. She is extremely strong and good at playing with poison. If she knew that I betrayed her, she would kill me by any means. I can provide information to help Miss Liang get rid of Gu Qinghuai, but Miss Liang must keep it a secret for me, and never reveal that I am helping you. I am not as noble as Miss Liang, and I am not even one ten-thousandth as powerful as the Liang family. I hope Miss Liang will help you."

Liang Yueru took out a handkerchief, gently touched the corner of her lips, and said with a smile: "As long as you can help me get rid of Gu Qinghuai, I will naturally keep it a secret for you."

"Thank you, Miss Liang. You are so kind and righteous. Cuiwan will do her best to help Miss Liang," Zhou Cuiwan said with a flattering smile.

Liang Yueru smiled faintly, her smile not reaching her eyes: "Miss Zhou, please go back. You are not allowed to leave the imperial capital without my permission."

"Yes," Zhou Cuiwan nodded slightly, her lowered eyes filled with hatred.

Liang Yueru, you bitch! Let you show off in front of me, it won’t be long before I make you kneel before me and lick my toes!

Zhou Cuiwan still remembered the glorious scene when she was the queen in her previous life and received homage from the six palace maids. She certainly could not tolerate Liang Yueru ordering her around.

In his heart, he had secretly trampled Liang Yueru under his feet and humiliated her thousands of times.

After Zhou Cuiwan left, Liang Yueru told Duke Liang and the third prince all the information she had obtained from Zhou Cuiwan.

Duke Liang and the third prince were extremely happy and immediately arranged for people to go to Qinghe County.

After that, the two drank tea in the study.

The Third Prince glanced at Duke Liang and sighed, "Grandfather, our financial situation is extremely tight. Is there any way to alleviate it?"

Duke Liang frowned and sighed, "I'll ask the Minister of Revenue to come up with a solution. At worst, we can get it from the national treasury. We just need a legitimate reason."

Liang Yueru smiled and said, "Grandfather, this is an easy excuse. Just say that the northern barbarians are invading the northern border again, and the Northern Foothills Army needs some military funds. If General Chang comes forward, the national treasury will definitely give it."

Duke Liang's eyes lit up, "It's indeed a good idea. Let me think about it carefully."

"That's great. Father's health is already beyond recovery. I want to act as soon as possible," the third prince lowered his voice.

Duke Liang and Liang Yueru both nodded in agreement.

The emperor's birthday banquet arrived as scheduled.

Gu Qinghuai and Qi Yuanshuo dressed up and went to the palace with birthday gifts.

The birthday banquet was held in Xuanming Hall.

Many guests had already arrived at the banquet. They were all sitting quietly and chatting in low voices with the people next to them. From time to time, bursts of low laughter could be heard.

Qi Yuanshuo and Gu Qinghuai walked into the hall, attracting a lot of people's attention.

The news of the brave young general's marriage had already been reported to the Emperor, so the ministers in the court also knew about it.

Those ministers who wanted to use marriage to win over the young general felt very regretful.

Gu Qinghuai was of the second rank, Qi Yuanshuo was of the fourth rank. Gu Qinghuai was now the wife of a young general, and as a wife should obey her husband, her seat at the banquet was naturally in the fourth rank officials area.

After they found their seats, they sat down.

Liu Qiushi was going to come with Gu Qinghuai, but was stopped by Liu Kuo, who said angrily, "They are newly married, why do you always disturb them?"

Fortunately, Liu Qiushi's seat was not far from Gu Qinghuai, at the table in front of her.

After seeing Gu Qinghuai, Liu Qiushi smiled and waved at her, "Sister County Master!"

Gu Qinghuai also smiled and waved at her, motioning her to sit down first.

Gu Qinghuai looked forward and saw that Duke Liang and his family were sitting at the front, with Liang Yueru's seat just below the princess and the county lady.

She glanced in Gu Qinghuai's direction with an arrogant and disdainful look.

There were also many noble ladies from aristocratic families who looked at Gu Qinghuai with unfriendly eyes. They felt that she was a country widow and was not worthy of the handsome young general.

Today, Qi Yuanshuo was wearing gorgeous clothes, and his demeanor was particularly outstanding. The look he gave Gu Qinghuai was full of affection, which made some noble ladies jealous.

Gu Qinghuai and Qi Yuanshuo chatted quietly, ignoring the looks. After the banquet was full, they waited for a cup of tea before the emperor arrived, followed by Concubine Liang Shu and another favorite concubine, Concubine Luo.

Eunuch Tian sang loudly, "The Emperor has arrived!" Everyone present stood up and knelt, shouting, "Long live the emperor."

The emperor raised his hand and said something calming, and then the guests stood up and took their seats.

The light fell on the emperor's sallow face, making him look even more haggard and old. The people in the audience took one look and were secretly shocked, thinking that the emperor didn't have much time left.

Duke Liang and the Third Prince looked at each other, unable to hide their joy.

Concubine Shu and Concubine Luo sat on the left and right of the emperor respectively.

Although the two of them were smiling, they were secretly competing with each other.

Concubine Luo was not afraid of Concubine Shu. The people behind her were Concubine De and the Fourth Prince. Now that the Liang family and the Third Prince's strength had greatly decreased, she took Concubine Shu even less seriously.

Concubine Liang Shu glanced among the guests and finally found Gu Qinghuai's seat. She sneered, with a chill in her eyes.

Gu Qinghuai picked up the wine cup and raised it towards her with a smile, which was full of provocation.

The first step of the banquet is to sing birthday wishes.

Then comes the gift-giving part.

After the concubines and princes presented their birthday gifts, it was the turn of the ministers.

When it was the Duke of Liang's turn, he turned to the emperor and said respectfully, "Your Majesty, I am sure you will like this great gift from me."

"Oh? What's the gift?" The emperor asked curiously when he saw that Duke Liang had no gifts in his hand.

Now that his private treasury is empty, he hopes that his ministers will send him more valuable things.

Duke Liang turned around and glanced at the guests, then turned to the emperor and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I have already found the thief who was responsible for the theft in the imperial capital!"

As soon as this statement came out, the whole place was in an uproar.

"Are you serious? Did Duke Liang really find the thief?"

"May I ask, Duke Liang, who was that thief? Your Majesty, please cut her into pieces to serve as a warning to others!"

"Yes! How dare you steal from the palace and the important officials of the court? You are so bold! You don't take the emperor seriously at all!"

"This person dares to challenge the authority of our dynasty. I'm afraid he wants to rebel."

……

All the ministers were filled with righteous indignation and spoke out against the thieves.

Yan Siyuan, the Minister of Dali Temple, was a little embarrassed. He had been investigating for several months but had no clue. How come Duke Liang had found a clue and why didn't he tell him about it?

It makes him look like a useless bastard.