Spring arrives and the land smiles

Since we're going to investigate Chu Shen's shady dealings, we can't let Xu Zhao get the medicine so easily.

Just as Chu Shen issued the order to request medicine, Qing Yan sent someone to the Immortal Doctor Valley to deliver a message: A bad guy has come looking for trouble, so give him to the old rascal to play with.

Therefore, Xu Zhao's departure is likely to be utterly tragic.

Over the past few days, the old military doctor has been careful and diligent in his duties, and Qingyan's wound has gradually healed. However, as the old military doctor said, the scar is indeed easy to see and look hideous.

Seeing that her wounds had healed and she could get out of bed, Qingyan couldn't stay still. Zhuier tried to stop her, but Qingyan dismissed her.

Si Cheng opened his mouth as if to say something, but under Qing Yan's expression that said "Shut up too," he struggled for a long time without being able to utter a single word.

Chu Shen came to Qingyan's tent every day to report, but it was just a routine exchange of pleasantries. The things he reported were nothing more than routine military affairs. Siyou Siwu, who was keeping a close watch on Chu Shen and Xu Zhao, did not bring back any substantial or useful information.

Everything seemed to have returned to calm after the Seven-Colored Assassins' assassination attempt failed.

However, Shengjing became turbulent and unpredictable due to the return of Ning Yuan and Yun Xuan.

After parting ways with Qingyan, the two of them rode at full speed to Shengjing. As soon as they entered the city gate, before they could even catch their breath, they were both summoned by the Longqing Emperor.

The two had an audience at the Jingxin Hall.

"Look for yourselves." The Longqing Emperor threw a stack of memorials in front of the two men. They were stunned for a moment, exchanged glances, and hurriedly knelt down, quickly picking up the memorials scattered on the ground to examine them closely.

One-third of the Six Ministries, Nine Temples, Five Directorates, and One Platform were impeaching the two men. However, the impeachments were all about trivial matters, which could not convict them, but they could not escape unscathed from the barrage of attacks.

The two men lowered their heads, clutching several memorials tightly, their thoughts racing.

"Your Majesty, we are guilty and beg for your judgment," the two said in unison.

"Guilty? I married my precious daughter to you so that I would hear you say you are guilty?" Emperor Longqing grabbed a few books and threw them at the two men, who did not dare to dodge.

The Longqing Emperor glanced at the two kneeling figures, composed himself, sighed softly, sat down at his desk, and gestured to them:

"That's it, get up."

"The matter of Qiu Rong has just been settled, and you two have kept a tight rein on things in Yushan. It is expected that Prince Jin would have no way to make a move and would force me to recall you two. I have already sent Qin Mian to Yushan a few days ago, and you say you are safe." Emperor Longqing paused, remained silent for a moment, and then spoke, "Tomorrow morning court, you two should make some preparations and not embarrass me."

"Yes," the two replied and withdrew.

"Still too young."

As the two left the Jingxin Hall, they heard Emperor Longqing let out this low sigh.

The two exchanged a glance, their thoughts sinking even deeper.

The next morning at court, Yunxuan and Ningyuan lined up among the civil and military officials. Prince Jin glanced at the two of them and gave a wink to Zhang Wenqi, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel beside him. Zhang Wenqi immediately understood.

The chief eunuch, Wang Huaisheng, announced the start of the court session in a high-pitched voice. Emperor Longqing glanced at Yunxuan and Ningyuan standing below the hall, then looked away after a moment.

Zhang Wenqi slowly stepped forward, holding a two-foot-six-inch tablet, and bowed deeply to the emperor on the dragon throne. He then began to impeach Yunxuan, as instructed by the Prince of Jin. The impeachment was that as the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, he had neglected his duties for more than a month away from court, resulting in a backlog of government affairs and many cases of trial and punishment remaining unresolved.

With this beginning, the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Justice, the Imperial Guard, the Ordnance Bureau, and the Imperial Workshop began to impeach Yunxuan and Ningyuan in turn, tearing them apart from head to toe.

The Longqing Emperor listened quietly, neither stopping them nor uttering a sound, letting the group express themselves to their heart's content.

Yunxuan and Ningyuan did not offer a single word of explanation, instead remaining calm and unhurried, allowing the group to continue their slander.

"Who else?" Emperor Longqing asked softly to the people below the hall. His voice was not loud, but his tone was authoritative.

The officials below fell silent, none of them able to fathom the Longqing Emperor's intentions.

"Do you two have anything to say?" Emperor Longqing glanced at the two men below the platform, his expression unchanging.

The two exchanged a glance and stepped forward at the same time.

Yunxuan spoke first: "The matters reported by the esteemed officials are all fabricated. Your Majesty, I humbly request that Your Majesty clear your name and exonerate you."

After saying that, he knelt down with a resounding voice.

"Your Majesty, please clear our names." Ning Yuan also knelt down.

This shocked all the civil and military officials in the court. The two men had been impeached many times, but they did not defend themselves, resist, or admit their guilt. They just knelt down in the hall and asked the emperor to make a decision.

Seeing this, the Prince of Jin was about to step forward and stir things up when he was quietly pulled back by Zhang, the Vice Minister beside him.

Originally, the impeachments were all for trivial matters. After arguing in court or admitting to some minor faults, the only consequence would be a pay cut, a few words of reprimand, or at most a slight reduction in power, and the matter would be over. But the two men's attitude of fighting to the bitter end made the impeachers' faces turn very ugly.

These are all cases of framing and deliberate misinterpretation. If investigated thoroughly, everyone would be afraid of being implicated.

Emperor Longqing looked at the two kneeling figures below the hall without uttering a sound. After a moment of silence, Emperor Longqing spoke slowly but clearly: "Order the Censorate to investigate thoroughly, one case at a time."

Upon hearing the imperial edict, everyone's faces turned a variety of colors.

During the investigation by the Censorate, Yunxuan and Ningyuan, due to their special status and the lack of obvious evidence against them, were sent back to their respective sleeping quarters in the Xuanhua Palace of the Eastern Palace by the Longqing Emperor. They were not allowed to leave the palace at will, which was equivalent to being under house arrest in the palace.

As night fell, Ning Yuan sneaked into Yunxuan's Bolanzhai, where Prince Rui, Shen Qinghuan, was already sitting in the main hall.

"Your Highness." Ning Yuan gave a slight bow.

Qing Huan nodded in acknowledgment.

Yunxuan stepped forward and offered a seat.

"Sicheng sent word the other day that my younger sister has been assassinated," Qinghuan said.

"What?" Ning Yuan jumped up from the four-cornered official's chair as soon as he sat down.

Yunxuan rushed directly in front of Qinghuan.

The commotion was so great that even though Qing Huan couldn't see it, he could hear it.

“My sister is indeed injured, but her life is not in danger. Please be patient.” Qing Huan raised his hand to signal, and the two had no choice but to return to their positions.

"The assassin came from Seven Colors, but behind him was Lan Jing, the eldest prince of Southern Xia. Therefore, the destruction of the Yushan branch of Listening Wind Pavilion was probably also related to him."

Another bombshell announcement! Ning Yuan clenched his fists, while Yun Xuan's face turned pale with anger.

"I shouldn't have let Lan Zhen stay by Yan'er's side for so long!" Yun Xuan slammed his fist on the rosewood coffee table next to him.

Ning Yuan looked at Yun Xuan, seemingly sensing something different in his words.

"Lan Zhen and his subordinate Li Muqing are border generals of Nanxia. During this critical period with Qiu Rong, it was indeed a thoughtful move for my sister to keep them under her control. However, I never expected that Lan Zhen would break away in the struggle for the throne, causing his opponents to even covet his partner. I will make Lan Zhen pay the same price as Lan Jing." A ruthless glint appeared in Qing Huan's dull eyes.

"It's all my fault. If Yan'er hadn't been worried that I would go to war with Qiu Rong, I wouldn't have had to pretend to be friendly with Lan Zhen and become his shield." Ning Yuan was extremely annoyed.

“This can’t be entirely your fault. If it weren’t for that Lan Zhen…” Yunxuan hesitated, then changed the subject after a moment of thought. “Right now, the most important thing is to ensure Yan’er’s safety.”

"I have already sent more people to Yushan. As long as the Yushan branch is rebuilt, my little sister's life will be safe," Qing Huan said, which put Yun Xuan Ningyuan at ease.

“The Yushan iron mine also contains gold. The fact that Father Emperor summoned you two back at this time must be due to great coercion from Prince Jin. If the Censorate cannot investigate the cases involving you two as soon as possible, and this drags on, my younger sister may face unpredictable dangers,” Qing Huan said worriedly.

"How about I ask His Majesty for a secret decree tomorrow to secretly cross the Chencang pass? If His Majesty agrees, I will immediately ride a light cavalry to Yushan," Ning Yuan hurriedly said.

“No, there are Prince Jin’s men in the Censorate. If they insist on interrogating us, I’m afraid even His Majesty can’t stop them.” Yunxuan felt this was inappropriate.

Qing Huan pondered for a moment: "This is indeed not a safe approach. At this juncture, the only option is to send more people."

Ning Yuan and Yun Xuan remained silent, which was taken as tacit agreement.

The three discussed some specific matters, and Qing Huan and Ning Yuan did not leave until midnight.

For three days in a row, Ning Yuan and Yun Xuan were under house arrest in the East Palace in a rather uneventful manner. They were neither summoned by the emperor nor interrogated by the censorate. However, the two were worried about Qing Yan's safety, so these three days were not peaceful.

Every day, Qu Wenchuan, the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, would deliver official business to Bolanzhai on time, so Yunxuan was not idle.

Normally, this trivial matter of delivering official documents shouldn't have been handled by him, the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review. However, Qu Wenchuan was a fellow student of Yun Xuan, and Yun Xuan had also shown him kindness and support, so their relationship was naturally quite special.

“Zi Mo,” Qu Wenchuan called Yun Xuan by his courtesy name, “there are people from the Prince of Jin in the Dali Temple.”

Few people call Yunxuan by his courtesy name, so Qu Wenchuan's use of it was both intimate and solemn.

Yunxuan lowered his eyes slightly and after a long while replied, "It is Chen Jinzhi, the Temple Assistant."

Although it was asked in a questioning tone, it was also very certain.

Qu Wenchuan tacitly agreed and handed over a note with Chen Jinzhi's handwriting, recording Yunxuan's words and actions at Dali Temple.

“With you here, he can’t cause any trouble for the time being.” Yunxuan said thoughtfully.

“Or, we can…” Qu Wenchuan whispered in Yunxuan’s ear, and Yunxuan nodded.

The following day, the Censorate interrogated Yunxuan, and the so-called evidence was Chen Jinzhi's records.

Censor Wang Xian neatly laid out the documents in front of Yunxuan.

Yunxuan felt relieved when he saw that it was Wang Xian who was interrogating him.

"Lord Fu, what is your explanation?"

Yunxuan flipped through the documents on the desk and casually tossed them onto the table: "No explanation needed."

“Lord Fu is a man of few words. Since there is no need for explanation, then please proceed.” Wang Xian stepped aside to make way for Yun Xuan.

Yunxuan stood up and bowed deeply to Wang Xian: "Lord Wang, thank you for your trouble."

"It's my duty," Wang Xian replied, his sincerity evident.

After Yunxuan left, Wang Xian put away the documents on the desk and handed them to the attendant beside him, instructing, "Tell the messenger that Lord Fu... has confessed."