You rascal, stop right there!

After finishing the provincial examination painting test, Bai Wan rushed back to Zhengzhou Prefecture as fast as he could after leaving the examination room.

He hurriedly...

Following my usual habit, I went to the post station in Zhengzhou again to pick up the letter.

Normally, I would receive a letter from Ling Shumo every ten days, but I didn't receive any letter today.

This is the first time this has happened in months.

Bai Wan paced anxiously at the door of the post station, hoping that the white pigeons on the roof of the post station would deliver the letters soon.

"Young master, I'm afraid the letter won't be delivered today. Why don't you wait a few more days?" Lao Hu, the groom in charge of correspondence, said to him.

Bai Wan curled her lips in resentment, feeling uneasy, as if she had a lot of helplessness and a bad premonition...

Writing to each other every ten days has become an inherent understanding between the two of them - it's like they understand each other tacitly and are in sync with each other.

With the encouragement of Brother Zichen, I studied painting for a year, and worked so hard just to get a little praise from him.

So he continued to wait, watching the sun set and the sky gradually darken...

I don’t know how much time passed.

As the night deepens, a crescent moon appears in the sky.

The man in white sat on a wooden stake next to the post station and waited until midnight.

Old Hu went out to wash his feet with some water, but saw Bai Wan waiting in front of the door stupidly.

He didn't understand. He had clearly heard this man say that the correspondence was just letters from close friends in the capital, so why would he wait like this until after midnight?

"Young Master, why are you still waiting?"

Bai Wan smiled silently, lowered his head to look at his empty palms, and shook his head helplessly.

Logically, he should go back.

But, for some reason, he was waiting here as if it was a matter of course.

why?

He was secretly puzzled: he knew that if the letter didn't arrive today, it would arrive tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow!

There may be some unavoidable reasons why the letter did not arrive today.

Maybe Ling Shumo was busy with official business, or maybe something happened to the person delivering the letter on the way?

Or maybe the stallion delivering mail at the post station met a charming and lovely mare on the road and was abducted by her.

Bai Wan didn't quite understand what he was thinking.

But he heard Lao Hu beside him say faintly:

"You come to wait for a letter every ten days, why not just go and meet him directly? Why do you have to do this..."

So, Bai Wan looked up at the starry sky, and thought that if he passed the provincial examination this time, he would have to go to the capital to take the palace examination of the Painting Academy.

By then, there won’t be any need to wait for letters like this, right?

…………

At this time, Ling Shumo was worried about a matter of life and death.

The entire Ministry of Rites... and all the talented and intelligent people from the other five ministries were gathered together.

They all came to ask Ling Shumo to jointly submit a memorial to impeach Li Simeng, hoping that His Majesty would dismiss him from his post.

Prime Minister Li has great power in the court and has instigated Your Majesty's imperial decrees, which has caused widespread resentment among the people.

Countless exorbitant taxes, internal consumption to suppress bandits, and arbitrary appointments and dismissals of officials have aroused public indignation.

If this continues, before Xuanli can gather troops to attack the border, the entire Daying will be in ruins and the people will suffer.

"Sir Ling, the reason why Prime Minister Li has gained the trust of His Majesty is simply because of the master-disciple relationship when they taught painting. As long as His Majesty no longer trusts him, we can break through!" said the newly appointed Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, twirling his beard.

"That being said..." Ling Shumo naturally knew it in his heart, but...

He has always known that ever since his mentor became prime minister, he has been forming cliques and engaging in private activities and has gained great power in the government.

Some of my teacher's actions with the emperor were indeed extremely despicable.

In the past, he could only do his duty in the area of etiquette, and as for the rest, before there was evidence, he could only try his best to investigate and not act rashly.

The reason why Prime Minister Li has such a high status is that he once taught your majesty Danqing and watched him grow up. The second reason is that his sister, Concubine Li, gave birth to Princess Qinyang for the late emperor, who happened to be the elder sister of the current emperor.

After all, the Li family is a royal family, and their power is beyond the imagination of ordinary people.

What's more... after all, this is the mentor who taught me since I was a child...

He understood very well why Emperor Jiaxing would listen to Li Simeng so much.

Be a teacher for one day, and be a father for life.

Letting him trip up the prime minister is equivalent to tripping up the teacher he once admired.

But recent investigation revealed that Li Simeng was actually related to the previous case of Xuan Li's mission to hunt down the envoy.

As a minister, I actually betrayed my country, which is truly despicable.

Ling Shumo held the paper and pen in his hand, feeling calm and indifferent, with no emotion visible. But for a long time, he couldn't write a single word.

People from various departments could not help but look at each other, not knowing what to do.

"The Li family is too powerful to be defeated in a day or two. We need to take a long-term view. The most important thing right now should be the visit of the Lingyu delegation." He murmured.

The Lingyu Kingdom's delegation will arrive in Daying in a month.

The non-aggression treaty between Xuanli and Daying is about to expire. Ever since the friction between the two countries' delegations last year, Xuanli has been ready to make a move.

To this end, Daying came up with the idea of forming an alliance with Lingyu and even borrowing troops.

Moreover, the person Lingyu sent this time is of noble status and is a royal relative.

In addition to a princess of Dianyang, Lingyu also specially selected a son of mixed-race parents of Daying and Lingyu - Shi Yaqing, the Minister of Rites, to lead the team.

They have long admired Daying's humanistic style, calligraphy, paintings, porcelain, etc.

If we can get Ling Yu's support, we may be able to fight against Xuan Li's soldiers.

Thinking of this, he seemed to realize that before overthrowing Prime Minister Li, he must first resolve the external threat.

So he picked up his pen and started writing down the solution.

When he finished writing the last stroke, Hao Yan, the chief of the Ministry of Rites' Qingli Division, took over the document and felt that what he was holding was heavier than Mount Tai.

……

"Lord Ling is unwilling to join in impeaching Prime Minister Li. Is he afraid of death?" a clerk in the Ministry of Revenue asked.

Another adult nodded and said, "This is impossible. He returned to the country with a wounded body. If he was afraid of death, he would have surrendered to Xuanli long ago..."

"That makes sense..."

……

Several officials from the six ministries and four departments as well as clerks discussed the matter with each other.

Some people felt that what Ling Shumo said made sense and decided not to act rashly.

The other part did not change their original intention and decided to jointly impeach Prime Minister Li Simeng.

After these people left, Ling Shumo suddenly felt a pain in his head and fell down quietly.

"Sir!" A Yan beside him shouted in panic.