Shipin Dalizheng

"On the surface, I won, and Prince Huai and Prince Yong also won, but in reality, it was Your Majesty who won."

Rong Zhan didn't quite understand. "If you bring down Jin Shizhao, he won't be able to control you anymore. Prince Rui will lose a supporter, which means Prince Huai and Prince Yong have a better chance of winning. Maybe they can even compete for the position of Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites and install their own people. How can that not be a win?"

Rong Tang shook his head. "Did Jin Shizhao use his official position to control me? It's because of his status as my biological father. As long as he's not dead, I won't be able to rest easy. Prince Huai and Prince Yong have always acted noncompetitive, but this time they've been exposed. It's clear who's on their side at court. Besides, has Prince Rui really lost anything? He's been pretending to be low-key for a while now, leaving Jin Shizhao far behind and even gaining a good reputation for kindness. The Jin family never thought that His Majesty would leave me a natural enemy and would not kill Jin Shizhao at all, so they gave up Jin Xiangxiang in vain. The Xie family is even more ridiculous. In order to leave a descendant for Xie Jinzhi to marry, they agreed to plead for Jin Shizhao. Now, Taifu Xie has paid an unknown price in exchange for His Majesty not killing Jin Shizhao. Taifu Xie has left the impression of abusing his power for personal gain in the minds of officials and the people. This is a stain on the Xie family, who are so careful about their reputation."

Rong Zhan, who didn't know much about analyzing politics, was confused. He only knew that His Majesty was also wary of his master and deliberately spared Jin Shizhao's life to suppress his master.

"If Your Majesty is resourceful enough, he will use the position of Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites to fish. The bait is fragrant enough and he can catch a lot of fish."

Rong Zhan didn't understand, so he simply gave up thinking about it and whispered in his ear, "A letter, another letter."

Rong Tang's eyes lit up, "So fast!"

It’s only six days. Even if the horse runs day and night, it won’t be enough.

"It may not be a reply, it could be from the previous one, it just arrived."

Counting the time, Rong Tang has been in prison for seven days. Although he changed clothes twice and couldn't take a bath, he still smelled sour. It's time for him to get out.

"Have you asked the prefect when he will let us out?"

"The Lord said that we need an opportunity. Although Jin Shizhao has been dismissed from office, he is still your father. If he doesn't confess, we can't release you rightfully. He said he would find an appropriate opportunity to ask Your Majesty's opinion."

Nangong Jing certainly had his concerns. During these few days, he also thought about the problems that Rong Tang had thought about. Suddenly, he had an intuition that he should be extra cautious.

"Let's create an opportunity for him."

Rong Tang asked Rong Zhan to come closer to his ear, and then Rong Zhan went out.

After five days of fierce competition, the five-person team that drew cards finally had enough. They wanted to vomit at the sight of the cards and threw away the scraps of paper in their hands. No matter how much fun it was, it was still torture if they played until they were dizzy.

Only then did they remember they were still in jail. They looked at themselves, disheveled and shackled, looking no different from exiles. Suddenly, their defenses were broken. "What do you mean? Nangong Jing, are you serious? You're not going to let us go, are you?"

Rong Tang said lazily, "Why are you howling? Someone will come to pick you up. Just wait patiently and continue playing cards."

Gu Zhongxun spat, "I'm sick of it."

Indeed, playing cards is addictive, but it is also very brain-burning and takes a toll on the spirit. Once the novelty wears off, rationality will return.

"If you don't play cards, what else can you do? You guys like to drink and have some fun, so why don't you all sing a song to relieve your tension?"

"You idiot, you think we're the gang leaders in this building."

He Qilin had just finished his retort when he heard someone singing beside him, "One touch, two touches, one touch reaches my sister's pillow..."

Several people felt nauseous after hearing this and scolded Xiao Zhenyue, "You dead ball, you're still singing Eighteen Touches while in jail."

After Xiao Zhenyue finished singing, only Rong Tang applauded him, "You sang well, sang wonderfully, it was amazing."

Xiao Zhenyue seemed to have found a soulmate in life, his eyes shining. "Prince Rong, it's your turn. I heard you're from the southern mountains. Do they all sing folk songs over there? Oh, right, love songs!"

Rong Tang cleared his throat. "Of course I can sing folk songs and love songs, but I'm still young and haven't participated in singing competitions yet. So, let me sing a little tune to liven up the atmosphere. Ahem..."

"There are two cows on the eastern hillside... The bull said to the cow, "I love you..." The cow said to the bull, "Are you ashamed?" The bull said to the cow, "No, no, I love you..."

Xiao Zhenyue's eyes widened with excitement, and he poked Gu Zhongxun beside him, "This is the ceiling of the dandy class, just two bulls, their singing makes my blood boil..."

Gu Zhongxun slapped him away with all his strength, as if it were the hand of a sex maniac, "Get away, don't touch me..."

At the entrance of the prison, Zheng Changzhi, who had just been pushed in, turned pale and asked Lao Wen to push him back.

Xuan Que's face flushed red, and he stamped his feet and cursed, "Master, I knew this little thief was not a good person, and you still came to protect him. Let him stay in there."

Old Wen looked helpless. "What the hell is Rong Shizi doing? Why is he singing such a good song? What kind of obscene lyrics and music is this..."

It sounds so good.

The prison was in turmoil again. The young men also let themselves go, each singing their own songs. Some sang Guan Guan Ju Jiu, while others sang Tiao Tiao Altair. As they were howling, the jailer came and shouted, "Prince Gu, the censor Ji of the Huai Palace is here to pick you up."

The clerk in charge of the Huai Palace's history was a double-entry Jinshi (imperial scholar) and a skilled writer. He wrote the article that helped He Qilin escape, and he sincerely admitted his mistake in the name of the Huai Prince and promised to discipline him strictly in the future. Later, it was said that his beautiful handwriting attracted many scholars from the capital to imitate him, and that the article was stolen before it could be delivered to the palace. It's unclear whether this is true or not.

The second person to be taken away was He Qilin. His father was not good at writing, so he asked for some good leather from Prince Yong's Mansion and finally got Prince Han to speak well of He Qilin.

Xie Bingzhi said that his eldest brother was getting married and he hoped to be released to attend his brother's wedding. Of course, once he was released, it would be impossible to catch him back. That was his intention.

Wang Bo'an's family was more practical. He accepted the punishment and donated two hundred taels of silver to repair the charity hall. Nangong Jing also raised his hand and let him go.

Let’s not even mention the disheveled looks of the young men who were released, which broke the hearts of many old mothers. The two in prison are still eagerly waiting for their parents to claim them.

Xiao Zhenyue waited again and again, but as his brothers were taken away, no one came from his home.

Although I was disappointed, there was still Rong Tang at the bottom of the list. His father hated him so much that he would definitely not come to pick him up. Thinking of this, I felt much better.

"I say, Prince Rong, you may have to stay in jail for a long time. Nangong Jing won't beat you, but he won't let you go either."

Rong Tang said confidently, "I will definitely be able to get out. Maybe the prefect will come personally to see me out."

Xiao Zhenyue sneered at him, "Don't dream. Nangong Jing is very straightforward. Even if he caught a prince committing a crime, he would still arrest him. He has never personally escorted anyone out. I advise you not to argue with him. He is a man who can only play along. Basically, as long as you don't commit a serious crime, he won't deliberately kill you."

"It seems that you all know the prefect well."

Xiao Zhenyue sighed, "The job of Jingzhao Prefecture Governor is difficult. While his rank is low, he's in charge of the entire Shangjing security. In this imperial city, where fifth-rank officials are as numerous as dogs, it's extremely difficult for a prefect to handle cases. His predecessor, and the one before that, were both murdered within a few months. Your Majesty has no choice but to choose a member of the royal family. If the prefect can't suppress the suspect, then the prince will be the one to do it."