This made Li Shimin anxious, and he wanted to trade one for one with me.

Cheng Jun walked to the Vermilion Bird Gate, just as he was about to leave the palace, when he saw Yuchi Jingde standing in the gatehouse behind the city gate, holding a sesame flatbread in his hand, leaning against the wall and chewing on his cheeks bit by bit.

Seeing him come out, Yuchi Jingde mumbled indistinctly, "Is the matter settled?"

"It's done."

Cheng Jun looked at the flatbread in his hand and said apologetically, "Uncle Yuchi, I'm so sorry to have troubled you. I'll have someone from my household bring you some proper food later."

Yuchi Jingde waved his hand and said, "You don't need to do that. My son led the beating of those civil officials' sons, which was also to vent my anger. I am sitting here taking the punishment, and I feel comfortable with myself. You don't need to feel bad about it."

Cheng Jun breathed a sigh of relief and said, "If that's the case, I'm relieved. Uncle Yuchi, please continue eating. I'll take my leave now!"

"Go on your way, be careful on the road!"

Cheng Jun walked out of the palace gate, came to the Turkic horse, untied the reins from the tree, mounted the horse in one smooth motion, turned the horse around, and rode off towards Huaidefang.

…………

Fifteen minutes later, Cheng Jun returned to the Duke of Su's mansion and saw Cheng Zhong standing at the door waiting for him from afar.

"Sanlang is back!"

Cheng Zhong also saw him and hurried over to greet him.

Cheng Jun dismounted, walked over and handed him the reins. Seeing his hesitant expression, he asked, "Uncle Zhong, is my father back?"

"Yes!" Cheng Zhong glanced back at the gate and whispered, "The young master is waiting for you in the main hall."

"When Sanlang goes to the main room and meets the master, be careful what you say."

It seems they already know about my entry into the palace... Cheng Jun wasn't too surprised; after all, such a big matter wouldn't be kept secret from anyone in the household. He said, "I'll go right now!"

As Cheng Jun approached the main room, he could see the three members of the Cheng family sitting inside. Cheng Chumo and Cheng Chuliang were constantly winking and making eye contact with him.

Cheng Yaojin, carrying a Xuanhua battle axe, stared at the path leading to the main hall with a livid face.

He was overjoyed to receive the news that Cheng Jun had been appointed as an imperial censor outside the city and immediately rushed back.

Upon returning to the mansion, he did not see Cheng Jun. He asked the steward why, and was told that Cheng Jun had gone to the palace to seek justice for his second brother because Princess Chang Le had hit him!

The news was like a bolt from the blue, shattering his joy.

That's a princess, you can't just join anytime you want!?

Seeing Cheng Jun approaching, Cheng Yaojin swiftly and fiercely carried his Xuanhua battle axe over.

"You unfilial son! You dare to come back?!"

"Where will I live if I don't come back..." Cheng Jun thought to himself, then stopped in his tracks and asked with feigned surprise, "Father, why are you so angry? Shouldn't you be happy that I've become an imperial censor?"

"Happy my ass!"

Cheng Yaojin gripped the handle of his Xuanhua axe, glared at him, and shouted, "I'm asking you, after your second brother was beaten by the princess, why didn't you wait for me to come back? Who let you into the palace?"

Cheng Jun understood immediately; it was indeed because of this matter. He countered, "My second brother was beaten by Princess Chang Le. His Majesty is Princess Chang Le's father. Shouldn't I go to the palace to demand an explanation from His Majesty?"

Cheng Yaojin turned around and pointed at Cheng Chumo and Cheng Chuliang, who were walking towards him at the same time, and said angrily, "I not only beat up your second brother, but also your eldest brother. Do you want an explanation too?"

"As long as you don't lay a hand on me, everything's negotiable..." Cheng Jun shook his head and said, "That's different!"

“We are family, and Princess Chang Le is an outsider. An outsider hit one of our family members. No matter if she was avenging her father or something, it was wrong!”

Seeing that he remained unrepentant, Cheng Yaojin's face turned ashen. "So, you went to the palace and impeached the princess? You unfilial son, you deserve a beating—"

Before he could finish speaking, Cheng Chumo suddenly hugged him tightly from behind and shouted, "Father, is it really necessary to hit Third Brother?!"

Cheng Chuliang walked over and forcefully pried open Cheng Yaojin's hand, snatched the Xuanhua axe from his grasp, threw it far away, and echoed his sentiments while complaining:

"Exactly, why are you so angry? Why did you use a Xuanhua axe? Besides, my third brother was standing up for me. It wasn't him who caused the trouble. Why are you siding with an outsider?"

Cheng Yaojin was furious, "You two dare to lecture me?"

"You two elder brothers, he did something foolish, and not only did you not stop him, you even led his horse? You two wicked children!"

After saying that, he suddenly broke free from Cheng Chumo's restraints and raised his thick arms to deliver two powerful punches to the backs of the two men.

If an ordinary person had taken two punches, they would definitely be lying on the ground.

But the Cheng brothers took two punches, yet it was as if they hadn't.

Cheng Yaojin then turned his anger towards Cheng Jun, shouting, "Do you know that Princess Chang Le is His Majesty's most beloved daughter? He wouldn't even say a harsh word to her, and you went and impeached her? Do you know what you're doing? You're courting death!"

Cheng Jun pondered for a moment and said, "Who said I went to the palace to visit Princess Chang Le?"

Cheng Yaojin raised an eyebrow and said, "You don't have any?"

Cheng Jun spread his hands, "If I impeach her, do you think I can ever come back?"

Upon hearing this, Cheng Yaojin was taken aback for a moment before realizing what was going on. He frowned and asked, "Then what were you doing in the palace?"

Without hesitation, Cheng Jun replied, "Reason with His Majesty."

Cheng Yaojin asked, "What kind of reasoning are we talking about?"

Cheng Jun said, "About family ties..."

Cheng Yaojin became increasingly uneasy as he listened, and angrily demanded, "Tell me more details!"

Goodness, they're really determined to get to the bottom of this... Cheng Jun wisely shut his mouth; if he kept talking, he might give himself away.

At this moment, he sniffed and smelled the scent of rouge and powder on Cheng Yaojin. He asked in surprise, "Father, have you been out looking for women?"

Stop rambling on and on!

Cheng Yaojin's expression became somewhat unnatural, and his words were a mix of bluster and cowardice, "Tell me your business, and honestly explain your affairs to me right here!"

Just then, Cheng Zhong suddenly strode over.

"My lord, someone from the palace has arrived, saying they have an imperial decree!"

Cheng Yaojin was startled. He pointed at the three Cheng brothers and said to Cheng Zhong, "Keep an eye on those three. I'll come back later to ask them some questions!"

As Cheng Yaojin approached the gate, he saw a woman dressed as a palace maid riding a horse outside the mansion. He quickly cupped his hands and said, "I am Cheng Yaojin!"

The palace maid immediately dismounted and solemnly performed a clasped-hand salute, saying, "Duke Su, Her Majesty the Empress commands you to enter the palace immediately to attend to the Lizheng Hall!"

"The Empress's decree?" Cheng Yaojin quickly clasped his hands and said, "I understand, I'll go right away!"

"Hurry up, don't keep Her Majesty waiting."

The palace maid gave a few instructions, then mounted her horse and rode away.

After watching the other party leave, Cheng Yaojin turned back into the mansion, walked quickly to the main hall, and said to Cheng Zhong, "Go and prepare a horse for this old man!"

"promise!"

Cheng Yaojin then looked at Cheng Jun and his two brothers and said in a deep voice, "I have to go to the palace first. You guys wait here in the mansion and are not allowed to go anywhere!"

Cheng Jun was puzzled as to why the palace would send someone to summon Cheng Yaojin. He tentatively asked, "Father, what does His Majesty want you to come to the palace for?"

Cheng Yaojin glanced at him and said, "It's not His Majesty who wants me to enter the palace."

That must be the Empress... Holy crap, what a ruthless woman... Cheng Jun's heart skipped a beat. Although this was something he had already done before, he had to admit that it was indeed hitting the snake where it hurt.

At this moment, Cheng Jun noticed that Cheng Yaojin was staring at him with a scrutinizing gaze, as if trying to discern something from his face. Cheng Jun immediately felt a chill and used words to dispel Cheng Yaojin's doubts, asking, "Why does Her Majesty the Empress summon you?"

Cheng Yaojin looked at him for a long time but couldn't see anything amiss, so he dispelled his doubts and slowly said, "It's probably related to Princess Chang Le's matter."

After saying that, he couldn't help but ask, "Master Chuxia, did you really not go to the palace to petition Princess Chang Le?"

Cheng Jun replied decisively, "Really not!"

"That's strange. Why does the Empress want me to enter the palace?"

Cheng Yaojin frowned, unable to understand it at all.

Suddenly, Cheng Chuliang, who was standing to the side, clapped his hands and said, "I get it! It must be an apology!"

"Well said..." Cheng Jun clapped his hands and said with a look of sudden realization when he saw Cheng Yaojin's thoughtful expression. "That must be it! My second brother was beaten by the princess for no reason. The Empress must have found out about this, which is why she asked you to come over and wanted the princess to apologize to you in person. Isn't that reasonable?"

Cheng Yaojin nodded and said, "That makes some sense... You really didn't impeach the princess?"

Cheng Jun said, "You've asked me three times already. Let me put it this way: if I impeach the princess, I'll go see my mother immediately!"

Cheng Yaojin was taken aback, genuinely not expecting him to swear such an oath. He waved his hand and said, "You want to go find your mother? Your mother doesn't want to see you so soon. Don't talk nonsense like that again!"

"I believe you."

Just then, Cheng Zhong's voice rang out from outside: "My lord, the horses are ready."

"Understood!" Cheng Yaojin replied, turning back to his three brothers inside as he walked outside, saying, "You guys wait here for me to come back!"

As Cheng Jun watched him disappear from sight, he heard Cheng Chumo humming in his ear: "Third brother, our father doesn't believe you."

Cheng Chuliang nodded and said, "I can see that too. Are we waiting here for our father to come back?"

Cheng Chumo chuckled, "What are you waiting for? Didn't we agree that once my third brother becomes an imperial censor, I'll treat him to some wine and women? Let's go, let's go drink!"

Would Cheng Yaojin's veteran generals agree to that...? Cheng Jun looked at Cheng Zhong.

But then Cheng Zhong took out a money pouch from his pocket, smiled and tossed it to Cheng Chumo, saying, "This old servant has already prepared the money for the eldest son."

Seeing Cheng Jun's surprised look, Cheng Zhong explained, "Sanlang, do you think this old servant can stop Dalang from going out if he insists on it?"

Cheng Jun shook his head and said, "We can't stop them."

Cheng Zhong chuckled and said, "That's it then. Rather than causing you trouble, it's better to let you have a more enjoyable time."

Cheng Jun asked curiously, "Aren't you afraid my father will blame you?"

Cheng Zhong said innocently, "Wasn't it that this old servant couldn't stop it?"

They're all old foxes... Cheng Jun smiled wryly. Just then, Cheng Chuliang suddenly said, "Big brother, third brother, I won't go. I'll wait for our father to come back so I can tell him you've left the city!"

This was a smokescreen, to prevent Cheng Yaojin from knowing they were going out for drinks and entertainment... Cheng Jun instantly understood why he was staying home.

Cheng Chumo's eyes lit up. "Yes, yes, that's great!"

"Then let's go out!"

Cheng Chuliang waved his hand and said, "Big brother, third brother, have fun!"

Watched by Cheng Chuliang and Cheng Zhong, Cheng Jun led the reins out of the mansion and looked at Cheng Chumo walking beside him, asking, "Brother, where are we going?"

"If you want to drink and enjoy yourself with courtesans, you should definitely go to Pingkangfang!"

Cheng Chumo grinned and said.