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

"..."

Suddenly, the main room of the Yan family became so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Yan Shigu and Yan Qinli stared at Cheng Jun in astonishment, truly not expecting him to refuse.

Yan Shigu couldn't help but say, "If you don't give him his home address, how is my nephew supposed to apologize?"

Cheng Jun said solemnly, "How do I know if your nephew apologized to him? What if he tries to silence him?"

Yan Shigu glared at him and said, "My family members are not villains!"

Cheng Jun shook his head and said, "I know what kind of people the Yan family are, but I can't take the risk!"

Yan Qinli immediately said, "You can come along."

Cheng Jun flatly refused, saying, "I have other things to do!"

Yan Shigu frowned and asked, "What do you want?"

Cheng Jun pointed at Yan Xianfu and said, "I'm taking him back to the Censorate."

"..."

The surroundings fell silent once again.

The three members of the Yan family came to their senses, and Yan Xianfu immediately turned to look at his father.

Yan Qinli was silent for a few seconds before speaking:

“Imperial Censor Cheng, give me half a quarter of an hour.”

Cheng Jun nodded and said, "Okay."

"Brother, come with me for a moment!"

Yan Qinli pulled Yan Shigu away from the main hall and brought him to the tree in the courtyard. His expression was grave as he said:

“Brother, Xianfu is your nephew. You can’t ignore his affairs.”

Yan Shigu said with dissatisfaction, "Third brother, can't you see that Cheng Jun did this on purpose?"

Yan Qinli said in a deep voice, "That's why I wanted you to step in, precisely because I could see it."

Yan Shigu frowned and said, "The Censorate can't do anything to Xianfu. What are you afraid of? He'll only be in there for a few days."

Yan Qinli stared at him and said, "Once you're in the Censorate prison, Xianfu will be like a fish on a chopping board. What will happen if something goes wrong?"

Yan Shigu said, "If Xianfu were to lose even a single hair in the Censorate, I would impeach Cheng Jun!"

Yan Qinli exclaimed excitedly, "If something happens, it will be too late for you to impeach him! How long has it been since the Cui family incident? Have you forgotten?"

“The Cui family has been sent to the Censorate by Cheng Jun, and they will be exiled when they come out! So, the best thing to do right now is to prevent Cheng Jun from arresting Xianfu.”

Yan Shigu frowned even more deeply and said:

"If you try to persuade me, you're falling into a trap, you know?"

Yan Qinli said in a deep voice, "Cheng Jun came for you. My son is implicated because of you. You can't just ignore this."

Just as the two were arguing, Cheng Jun's voice suddenly came:

"Gentlemen, half an hour is up. How did the discussion go?"

Yan Qinli looked at Yan Shigu as he approached.

Yan Shigu remained silent for a moment, then finally made his decision, looking at Cheng Jun and saying:

“Cheng Jun, my nephew, you can’t take him away.”

Cheng Jun looked troubled and said, "Mr. Yan, what you're doing is obstructing my official duties."

Yan Shigu reminded him, "It wasn't my idea to impeach you."

Cheng Jun asked in surprise, "Why are you telling me all this?"

"..."

Yan Shigu twitched his lips, wanting to curse, but seeing that Cheng Jun hadn't left and was even listening intently, he knew there was hope, so he continued:

"It was the Duke of Song who asked me to jointly impeach you."

"The Duke of Song impeached you for the sake of the country and its people. Serving the country and its people is a noble cause. His Majesty's policy of opening up channels for advice is to listen to the voices of his ministers. As a subject, I also feel that it is inappropriate to develop gunpowder for use in war, which is why I co-signed the memorial impeaching you."

"No righteousness my foot, you're clearly picking a fight with me..." Cheng Jun didn't believe it in his heart, but on the surface he put on a serious face and said, "Yan County Magistrate, I don't think there's anything wrong with you impeaching me. On the contrary, I think it's justified because you're handling it in an official capacity."

"Now I'm taking your nephew back to the Censorate. I'm just doing my job. I'm not stopping you, but you're stopping me. Isn't that a bit inappropriate?"

Yan Shigu asked, "Tell me, is the advantage of gunpowder greater than its disadvantage, or is the disadvantage greater than its advantage?"

Cheng Jun said, "The advantages outweigh the disadvantages."

Yan Shigu immediately said, "Hearing you say that, I am relieved. You came to my residence late at night and explained the greater good to me. I have listened to you. Tomorrow morning at court, the Duke of Song wants to impeach you in front of everyone, but I will not participate."

Cheng Jun asked doubtfully, "Whether you participate in the investigation or not is none of my business. Why are you telling me this? I only care about the people."

"..."

Yan Shigu stared intently at him, finally loosening his clenched fist and asking:

"How do you think this matter should be handled?"

Cheng Jun said, "Have your nephew come to apologize tomorrow. Once he has paid the full amount and apologized, I think he will naturally withdraw the lawsuit."

Yan Shigu waved his hand and said, "I know what to do about tomorrow, I'm asking about tonight."

"Give me a way to avoid taking my nephew to the Censorate."

Cheng Jun thought for a moment and said, "Write a confession."

Yan Shigu turned to look at Yan Xianfu, pointed to the main room, and said, "There are writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones inside. Write now."

Yan Xianfu responded, walked into the main room, sat behind the desk, quickly wrote down the contents on a piece of paper, and showed it to Cheng Jun.

Cheng Jun read it carefully; it was written in great detail. He nodded and said:

"That's it."

After saying that, he raised his head, looked at Yan Shigu, and said:

“Lord Yan, please urge your nephew to apologize and compensate the person as soon as possible. If the matter is resolved, there will be no problem. If it is not resolved by tomorrow, I will have to report this matter to His Majesty.”

Yan Shigu nodded and said, "Okay!"

Cheng Jun thought for a moment and then added, "I'm not talking about the person, I'm acting in the public interest, not for personal gain, so don't overthink it."

Coming here to arrest people so late at night, how could I not be suspicious...?

Yan Shigu knew he wanted his assurance, so he said calmly, "Don't worry, I won't get involved in your affairs at tomorrow's morning court session."

Cheng Jun didn't reply. Instead, he put away what Yan Xianfu had written, cupped his hands in a respectful gesture, and said:

"I have something else to do. Bye."

Having said that, he strode away from the Yan residence.

Yan Qinli watched his departing figure, then turned to Yan Shigu and said:

“Brother, Cheng Jun’s words just now were only to absolve himself of any involvement. He’s definitely after you for impeaching him.”

"If you still impeach him at tomorrow's morning court, I'm afraid Cheng Jun will never let our Yan family off the hook. You should know how troublesome that kid is."

Yan Shigu sighed and said, "I understand."

"I really didn't expect this kid to be so impatient today."

Yan Shigu muttered, "The person who dealt with him is the Duke of Song. I have done what the Duke of Song asked me to do, and that's the end of it. I will no longer get involved in their affairs."

Yan Qinli asked worriedly, "How will we explain this to the Duke of Song?"

Yan Shigu stroked his beard and hummed, "I have my own way, don't worry."

Just then, the steward of the Yan family came over with two servants, panting heavily, and said, "Master, I'm back."

Yan Shigu asked, "How is it?"

The steward of the Yan family hurriedly replied, "It's all taken care of."

"Very good, go and rest."

Yan Shigu was very satisfied. He waved his hand, dismissing them, and then looked at Yan Qinli and his son Yan Xianfu, saying:

"Are you and Xianfu going back now, or are you sleeping here tonight?"

Yan Qinli said, "Let's stay here for one night before going back."

Yan Shigu nodded slightly and instructed the steward to tidy up the side room.

…………

"One's been taken care of... there are still five left."

Under the cover of night, in Chang'an, Cheng Jun led the reins of his Akhal-Teke horse "Adolf" along the road in Chongrenfang.

He trusted the Yan family; they kept their word. Since Yan Shigu had said he wouldn't participate in tomorrow's morning court session, he certainly wouldn't.

"Who should we choose next...?"

Cheng Jun stuffed the Yan family's lawsuit into his sleeve, then took out two other lawsuits from his pocket and examined them carefully by the moonlight.