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

Empress Zhangsun was still furious, and Cheng Jun's words were still echoing in her ears.

“The princess stood up for her father, and I was also speaking out for my brother. According to Her Majesty the Empress, the princess is not wrong, and I should also be not wrong.”

"Then why did Her Majesty the Empress summon my father to the palace?"

Cheng Jun asked, "Is this revenge for personal reasons, or is it settling a personal score under the guise of public office?"

Empress Zhangsun was furious. Of course, she couldn't tell him that it was Li Shimin's idea to summon Cheng Yaojin to the palace. She scolded him, "What a joke! As the empress, why would I take revenge on a mere subject for personal reasons, let alone settle a personal score in public?"

Cheng Jun said in a deep voice, "Because I impeached Her Majesty the Empress!"

Empress Zhangsun's chest heaved with anger. She picked up the teacup brought to her by a palace maid, took a sip, and glared at Cheng Jun, saying:

"Minister Cheng, you just said that it was right for you to speak out for your brother, so it was also right for you to impeach me. And it should also be right for the princess to stand up for her father and hit your brother!"

Cheng Jun shook his head and said, "That's not right!"

"..."

Empress Zhangsun laughed in exasperation, "Oh? Now it's not right again? Come, tell me, what's wrong?"

Cheng Jun sat up straight, placed his hands on his thighs, and said solemnly, "It is right for me to speak out for my brother. It is wrong for the princess to hit my brother!"

"I am speaking out for my brother because the princess hit someone first!"

"The princess hit someone to stand up for her father. May I ask Your Majesty, what stand-up did the princess stand up for His Majesty?"

Before Empress Zhangsun could speak, Li Lizhi, who was standing nearby, said angrily, "You ruined my father's selection of imperial censors!"

Cheng Jun glanced at her and retorted, "If it were a stunt, why would I be an imperial censor?"

He then looked at Empress Zhangsun, who was sitting next to Li Lizhi, and asked, "Your Majesty, do you think I am capable of being selected as an imperial censor?"

Empress Zhangsun thought of the imperial edict of punishment drafted by Cheng Jun and nodded.

Cheng Jun continued, "Then how did Your Highness come to the conclusion that I ruined the selection of censors? The purpose of the selection of censors is to select censors. My becoming a censor means that the selection of censors has been successfully completed."

Cheng Jun looked at Princess Chang Le, who was speechless, and slowly said, "So, Princess, your idea of ​​standing up for your father from the very beginning was wrong!"

“If it’s wrong for a father to stand up for his son, then it must be wrong for the princess to hit my brother.”

Cheng Jun said calmly, "His Majesty once said that the emperor is the source of the water, and the ministers are the streams. It is impossible to expect the streams to be clear when the source is muddy."

"The same principle applies to Your Highness's matter. It was wrong for your father to stand up for you, and hitting someone is naturally wrong."

As soon as he finished speaking, the Lizheng Hall fell silent.

"..."

Empress Zhangsun looked at Princess Changle, who had suddenly lowered her head and remained silent, and sighed inwardly.

This girl shouldn't have spoken.

She was no match for Cheng Jun at all!

Empress Zhangsun said in a cold voice, "Minister Cheng, what are you trying to do by quoting classical texts and bringing up His Majesty's words?"

Cheng Jun sat up straight, cupped his hands in greeting, and said solemnly, "Your Majesty, the princess has struck my elder brother, so I beg Your Highness to apologize to my brother!"

"In this way, Your Highness is indeed a wise, virtuous, and discerning princess!"

"Only in this way can my memorial today have served its purpose."

Cheng Jun spoke earnestly and earnestly: "My purpose in submitting this memorial today is not to impeach the Empress, nor to ask Your Majesty to blame the Princess. Rather, I hope that the Princess will come to her senses and that Her Majesty the Empress will take better care in teaching her the principles of conduct and interpersonal relationships."

"Your Majesty, I humbly beseech you to understand my sincere heart!"

After saying that, he bowed again with heartfelt sincerity.

"..."

Empress Zhangsun was stunned.

Do you still have any shame?

He went on and on about me, and in the end, he even said it was all for my own good?

"Mother, perhaps I should apologize..."

Just then, Li Lizhi, sitting beside him, said in a voice barely above a whisper, "Your subject thinks what he said makes some sense..."

"..."

Empress Zhangsun turned to look at her and suddenly felt powerless. She never expected that her daughter had been so easily fooled and believed Cheng Jun's words.

But upon closer examination, Cheng Jun's words did not lack merit.

She suddenly had a feeling that her second brother's feelings when he heard Cheng Jun impeach the Empress were the same feelings she had now when she heard Cheng Jun ask Li Lizhi to apologize to the second son of the Cheng family.

Is this child really the son of a military general...? Empress Zhangsun was somewhat puzzled, but it seemed there was no other way now, so she could only take the opportunity to slowly nod and say, "Alright."

“Minister Cheng, go back and have your second brother wait outside the palace. When he arrives, the princess will come out of the palace to apologize to your brother in person.”

"You can leave now!"

Empress Zhangsun waved her hand and said.

The palace maid from Lizheng Hall immediately came over, stood beside Cheng Jun, and pointed her palm out of the hall.

However, Cheng Jun sat as still as a mountain, not moving an inch.

Seeing that he remained unmoved, Empress Zhangsun frowned and asked, "Is there anything else, Minister Cheng?"

"There is still one thing I do not understand. Please enlighten me, Your Majesty."

Cheng Jun raised his head, stared at Empress Zhangsun, and asked, "May I ask Your Majesty, what is meant by 'great disrespect'?"

Upon hearing the words "great disrespect," Empress Zhangsun trembled, her eyes widening in anger as she stared sharply at Cheng Jun.

She finally understood.

Cheng Jun was never after Princess Chang Le from the beginning.

He came for her, the empress!

Empress Zhangsun asked directly, "I have only ever used the words 'great disrespect' to describe your father. Did your father tell you that?"

"Yes!"

Cheng Jun nodded and said.

Empress Zhangsun did not answer his question, but asked coldly, "What is your intention in saying this to me again now?"

Cheng Jun stated succinctly, "Your Majesty, I desire justice."

Empress Zhangsun narrowed her eyes and stared at him, asking, "Are you seeking justice for yourself, or for your father?"

Cheng Jun solemnly replied, "My father received this justice, so naturally I will also receive this justice."

Empress Zhangsun asked, "What kind of justice do you want?"

Cheng Jun said, "Then please tell me, Your Majesty, what constitutes utter disrespect!"

Empress Zhangsun snorted coldly, "I am the Empress appointed by the Emperor. Your impeachment of the Empress is a grave offense of disrespect."

You might be able to scare Cheng Yaojin with the crime of disrespect, but are you overthinking it to scare me...? Cheng Junsu straightened his face and retorted directly, "I am an imperial censor, the eyes and ears of the emperor. It is my duty to supervise all officials, report on matters heard, and advise the emperor!"

"As Her Majesty the Empress herself said, it was the Emperor who appointed her. If the Empress has lost her virtue, what wrong is there for a subject to advise the Emperor? As the Emperor's eyes and ears, it would be a great disrespect if I did not advise His Majesty!"

"Violation of morality..." Upon hearing these two words, Empress Zhangsun's hands trembled with anger.

She suddenly realized that not everyone could be as open to advice as her second brother. It took a lot of magnanimity to swallow this insult!

What do you want from me?

Empress Zhangsun asked through gritted teeth.

Cheng Jun shook his head and said, "I dare not do anything to Her Majesty the Empress. I only want to know one thing: Was it right or wrong for Her Majesty the Empress to threaten my father with the words 'great disrespect'?"

Empress Zhangsun remained silent for a long time before finally speaking, "It was my fault."

Cheng Jun asked seriously, "Since you made a mistake, shouldn't you apologize?"

"..."

Empress Zhangsun gritted her teeth so hard they almost ground to powder. She raised her finger, taut as a bowstring, and pointed outside the hall, saying, "Get out of here!"

This meant he had admitted it... Cheng Jun smiled gently and kindly, slowly rose, bowed, and said, "Your subject takes his leave!"

After saying that, he strode out of the Lizheng Hall.

"Mother..." Li Lizhi looked up at Empress Zhangsun and saw that her pretty face was flushed, and she looked like she wanted to get angry but couldn't. She called out weakly.

Empress Zhangsun glanced at her, the anger in her eyes subsiding somewhat. She patted her head and turned to the palace maids in the hall, saying:

"By imperial decree, the Duke of Su is to enter the palace immediately. His second son is to wait outside the Vermilion Bird Gate!"

…………

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty——"

Inside the Taiji Hall, Li Shimin wrote down the contents of the imperial edict drafted by Cheng Jun on paper in the Feibai style. The more he looked at it, the more amazed he became. At such a young age, he had written something that satisfied him so much. This time, the selection of censors was the right choice!

At this moment, a middle-aged eunuch in purple robes rushed in, looking anxious.

Li Shimin shifted his gaze from the paper to Zhang Anan, and seeing Zhang Anan's flustered appearance, asked, "What happened?"

"Your Majesty, Imperial Censor Cheng, Imperial Censor Cheng, he..."

Zhang Anan was panting heavily for a long time, and his speech was stammering. After a few seconds, he finally managed to say a complete sentence, and shouted loudly, "Imperial Censor Cheng has gone to the Lizheng Hall!"

"what?!"

Li Shimin was startled, but quickly his face lit up with joy. "Great!"

Cheng Jun fell for her trap! Guanyinbi was no pushover; she was a well-read woman. For Cheng Jun to dare go to her was truly a case of hitting a brick wall...

Empress Zhangsun was the daughter of Zhangsun Sheng, the Right General of the Valiant Guard of the Sui Dynasty. She lost her father at the age of eight and was raised by her maternal uncle, Gao Shilian. She loved literature and history from a young age and was best at using the past to illustrate the present.

If we're talking about who in the harem could rival Cheng Jun, then it would undoubtedly be Empress Zhangsun!

"Okay, okay, great!"

"Probe again and report again!"

Li Shimin was eagerly anticipating Cheng Jun's humiliating escape after being reprimanded by the Empress.

"promise!"

Zhang Anan saw through Li Shimin's wicked sense of humor, nodded quickly, and ran to the Lizheng Hall himself. After a long while, he returned, covered in sweat.

"How about it?"

Li Shimin asked expectantly.

Zhang Anan swallowed hard and said, "Your Majesty, Cheng Jun has left the palace."

Li Shimin glared at him and said, "Nonsense, do you think I didn't know he wanted to leave the palace? Don't you know how long we've been talking! How did he manage to leave the palace?"

Zhang A'na said, "Imperial Censor Cheng walked out..."

"..."

Li Shimin sensed something was amiss and, narrowing his eyes, asked, "He walked out normally?"

"Yes!"

Zhang Anan nodded.

"Not at all disheveled?"

"Yes!"

"It's an act, it must be an act..." Li Shimin muttered to himself, then asked, "How is Guanyinbi doing?"

Zhang Anan said, “I heard from the palace maids of Lizheng Hall that Her Majesty the Empress has sent someone to the Duke of Su’s mansion to deliver an imperial edict, ordering the Duke of Su to enter the palace immediately and have his second son wait outside. Princess Chang Le has already gone outside the palace and will apologize to the second son of the Cheng family in person when he arrives!”

Li Shimin's eyes widened as he said, "Make my precious daughter apologize to her second brother? What kind of face does her second brother have? Haven't I already issued an imperial edict to punish the Empress? Where is Guanyin? Summon her to see me!"

Zhang Anan looked up, his lips trembling, and said, "Your Majesty, the Empress cannot come this time..."

As he spoke, he recounted the entire process he had heard from the palace maids at the Lizheng Palace, word for word.

My precious daughter is being told by Cheng Jun to go and apologize to the second son of the Cheng family?

My empress is being told she should apologize to Cheng Yaojin?

Li Shimin stood there dumbfounded, only regaining his senses after a long while. He looked outside the hall and muttered to himself, "He's only been in office for one day..."

…………

Outside the palace.

With his hands behind his back, Cheng Jun strolled leisurely out of the palace gate, quite satisfied with the outcome of his visit.

After persuading Empress Zhangsun and Princess Changle, Cheng Yaojin's anger will subside...

Just then, he saw Yuchi Jingde walking briskly towards him and asked in surprise, "Uncle Yuchi, weren't you resting?"

Yuchi Jingde said, "I had already rested, but when I heard you had entered the palace, I rushed over!"

After saying this, he glanced inside the palace gates and, seeing that no one had followed him out, breathed a sigh of relief and gave a thumbs-up, saying:

"You're quite something, kid, daring to impeach the Empress. No one in the entire court has the guts of you!"

Cheng Jun sighed, "I didn't want it to be like this either."

He doesn't like making enemies everywhere, and he won't retaliate unless someone provokes him first.

"A good start prevents a hundred more blows. Only by letting others know he's not to be bullied can he establish a firm foothold. This applies to the workplace, and he believes it applies to the officialdom as well."

This is why he went to the palace again to find Cheng Yaojin after learning that Princess Changle had hit Cheng Chuliang and that Empress Zhangsun had spoken with Cheng Yaojin.

He doesn't cause trouble, but he's not afraid of it either.

Yuchi Jingde moved closer to him, looking at him seriously, "You haven't caused any more trouble, have you?"

"No."

Cheng Jun shook his head. This time, he didn't go to Li Er's place to impeach anyone. He just asked Empress Zhangsun and her daughter to apologize. It wasn't considered causing trouble.

"That's good."

Yuchi Jingde breathed a sigh of relief.

Cheng Jun asked curiously, "Why does Uncle Yuchi ask that?"

"Look over there..."

Yuchi Jingde raised his palm and pointed south.

Cheng Jun followed the direction he pointed and saw someone riding towards them.

Cheng Yaojin, with a fierce and menacing appearance, wielded a horse spear and charged ahead on horseback!