Shocking! Five men are in love with the same woman!

The next day, after the court session, Emperor Jingzhao summoned the eldest prince to the imperial study and berated him for a full hour.

They berated him mercilessly, showing him absolutely no mercy.

When the eldest prince finally left the imperial study, he was unsteady on his feet, pale-faced, covered in sweat, and his expression was one of despair and death.

Most importantly, there was a wound on his forehead that was covered in blood.

Upon receiving this news, Lingyan laughed heartily and joyfully.

Live it!

Domestic abusers should also experience what it's like to be beaten.

Although it wasn't hit, but rather the teacup that was smashed.

But it doesn't matter, as long as the result is good.

………………

After half a month of tireless investigation and interrogation by Lu Yanqing and the Shadow Division.

In the end, more than 300 people were captured.

Among them were palace maids, eunuchs, nannies, and guards.

Of these people, 110 were involved in the plot to harm the prince, and the rest were dealt with along with those who had committed other evil deeds discovered during this investigation.

During this period, the palace was filled with a sense of unease and fear.

Besides all the servants, some of the concubines who had previously made small moves were also terrified and dared not go out.

Therefore, the palace was unusually peaceful during this period, and there was no more beating or scolding of servants; it was especially quiet and serene.

Upon seeing this, the Empress couldn't help but exclaim: "If only things could stay like this forever, it would be so easy to manage!"

After these people were dealt with, the Eighth Prince's fate was also announced.

He was imprisoned in the mansion, fined three years' salary, and his salary was suspended thereafter.

The mansion was also guarded by the Imperial Guards, and no one was allowed to leave without an imperial decree.

It was unclear how long this confinement would last, as Emperor Jingzhao had not explicitly stated it.

Fortunately, he hadn't married the princess yet, otherwise he would have implicated his wife's entire family.

Consort He was given poisoned wine to end her life.

Of course, He Fei had been tortured by Lu Yanqing with all sorts of cruel methods over the past two weeks.

Lu Yanqing vented his anger.

Consort He can no longer be considered a complete person; she can only be described as a puddle.

She was tortured to the point of being neither human nor ghost, and her life was worse than death.

Now all I want is to die to find relief.

Lu Yanqing felt that his anger had dissipated, coupled with Emperor Jingzhao's clear decree.

So he readily ordered someone to force-feed her poison to end her suffering.

Consort He drank the poisoned wine without any resistance, and even smiled before she died.

Yes, of course one would leave smiling, freed from the torment of suffering.

As for Consort He's maternal family, the Grand Secretary's Mansion, although they were not involved in the plot to murder the prince or assassinate Lingyan, they were implicated and not let off the hook.

Based on the investigation results, those members of the nine clans who committed crimes were demoted, exiled, or executed.

As for Consort He's father, his official rank was directly demoted by three levels, and he will probably stay in that position for the rest of his life, with no possibility of being reinstated.

Because he had already fallen out of favor with Emperor Jingzhao and was disliked by the next emperor.

Although he really didn't know anything, what could he do? He was Consort He's father!

This result is already quite good.

The rest were innocent, and Emperor Jingzhao did not pursue the matter further.

As for the assassins that Consort He hired to assassinate Lingyan last time, they were all from the martial arts world, and they were all from the same assassin organization.

They were all dealt with by Xiao Muyao's men.

Not only did they kill everyone in the organization, they also spread rumors in the martial arts world to intimidate other assassin organizations.

He said: Anyone who dares to take on the job of assassinating the Crown Princess again will suffer this fate.

They have all seen what happened to them.

The entire family was slaughtered.

All the martial arts practitioners were immediately terrified, and no one dared to take on the job of assassinating Ling Yan again.

With this, the case was finally settled.

The time had come for another scientific expedition.

Because Xiao Muyao had already abolished the system of recommending candidates based on their submitted documents.

Furthermore, a system of anonymous copying was established, so this imperial examination did not consider family background or wealth, but only talent and learning.

This can be considered the fairest scientific expedition in many years.

Some students naturally praised the opportunity with open arms and felt grateful, feeling that they had finally ushered in a fair opportunity to showcase their talents and change their destiny.

These were mostly impoverished students with no support whatsoever.

Some students also felt nervous and under increased pressure.

These students are those with family connections who can vouch for them, but some of them are truly talented.

In the past, family background and wealth might have given them an advantage, but now they can only rely on their own talents and are worried that they are not well prepared.

Some students strongly disagreed, but were helpless and fell into anxiety.

Because they have lost their family support and background, they are nothing and have no real skills, so they will be at a disadvantage this time.

Regardless of what these students thought, they all entered the examination hall on time on May 20th, marking a turning point in their lives.

The chief examiner for this imperial examination was Xie Zhiyi's father.

As a renowned Confucian scholar of his time, the reason he did not participate last time was because there were a few examiners he did not like.

Fortunately, those people have already been dealt with.

This time, he took the initiative to ask to be the chief examiner.

This expedition is completely different from previous ones; it's a true scientific expedition that only considers talent.

Such a grand event, and so beneficial to the court, naturally required his participation.

After the nine-day, nine-night imperial examination came to a close, and while more than a dozen examiners were busy grading the papers, another grand event was about to begin in the capital.

That's right, it's the opening of an entertainment complex.

The publicity efforts during this period have been very effective.

Everyone in Dazhao already knows about this.

Therefore, many people from all over the country packed their bags and rushed to the capital to participate in this grand event.

A large number of people have been flocking to the capital recently, and all the inns are overcrowded.

Many of the previously vacant houses were either rented out or bought.

Moreover, the cost of living in Beijing has increased significantly during this period.

Of course, the highest number would definitely be Lingyan's thirty shops.

In fact, half of the city of Dazhao is now filled with these branches.

However, the people who have come to the capital are here specifically for Ling Yan, so of course they will spend money at her shops.

Even though some people already have branches in their area, they are still willing to spend money in Lingyan's stores.

Besides Lingyan's shops, other shops in the capital were also frequented by these people.

Therefore, the capital city has been extremely lively and bustling during this period.

Amidst this excitement, June 1st finally arrived.

Lingyan's long-awaited entertainment center is finally about to open.

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Happy Mid-Autumn Festival everyone!

Although we can't eat mooncakes together, we are looking at the same moon.

A gentle breeze and a bright moon; a perfect time for humankind.

May we have a full moon, a reunion of family, and everything more perfect.