bestfiction Chapter 403 Return to Beijing
Chapter 403 Return to Beijing
King Qi was gently stroking the teacup in his hand, looking the same as usual, but Yu Wan noticed that the veins on his other hand, which was resting on his knee, were bulging.
Is this the defense that's broken?
My little brother isn't doing so well either.
Yu Wan whistled in her heart, her little tail practically wagging in the air.
She's not stupid; she knew there was something fishy about the invitation from the Li family, yet she came without any preparation.
Prince Qi tricked Wang Jin into targeting the women of the Yun family, wanting to see her attitude towards the mistreatment of the Yun family women, in order to test whether the Duke of Anguo's mansion and the Yun family had truly broken off completely.
The plan was good, but King Qi was wrong. On the surface, she didn't need to help with this matter.
In order to frame the women of the Yun family, Wang Jin bribed a maid in the Li household to give false testimony. Couldn't she have bribed her in return?
She read the original novel and knows much more than Wang Jin.
Around 9 PM, the birthday banquet ended, and the guests bid farewell to the host family. Yu Wan also left with the Duchess of Anguo. At the gate, they met Madam Shen and Yun Xi. The two sides only glanced at each other before turning away with somber faces.
They each boarded their own carriages.
The Li residence returned to peace. Li Zhuoyue escorted Prince Qi to the gate of the residence, watched the departing carriage, and frowned slightly, saying, "It seems they have indeed become enemies."
The King of Qi's gaze was deep, his tone indifferent, "The investigation is complete. Why did that little maid betray us?"
With Wang Jin's abilities, how could he possibly bribe the Li family's maid without her knowing? Wang Jin probably thought he was capable, but in reality, it was Li Zhuoyue who deliberately allowed the maid to be bribed by Wang Jin.
Today's scheme, though said to be set up by Wang Jin, is more accurately described as a scheme set up by Li Zhuoyue.
Li Zhuoyue shook her head with a somewhat unpleasant expression. "That maid insisted that Wang Jin had bribed her to frame the women of the Yun family. She also said that she had struggled for a long time and was unwilling to do such a thing as slandering people against her conscience, so she told the truth."
What Huai Xiang said was indeed the truth.
King Qi chuckled lightly, but there was no hint of amusement in his eyes. "It seems this maid is an upright person who cannot bear to see others wronged."
Upon hearing this, Li Zhuoyue turned to look at the Prince of Qi standing beside him.
King Qi's appearance was extremely deceptive; those who didn't know him thought he was an approachable, gentle, and refined gentleman. But only Li Zhuoyue knew that King Qi was ruthless and cruel, and never cared about human life.
At this moment, seeing that although King Qi had a slight smile on his face, his eyes were filled with a chilling coldness, and his whole body exuded a cold and fierce aura that made people shudder, Li Zhuoyue felt a chill in her heart, knowing that King Qi was angry.
Looks like someone's going to be in trouble.
After the birthday banquet, Prince Qi did not seek out Yu Wan again. Yu Wan was left with nothing to do, spending her days going back and forth between Yu's Hot Pot and the Duke of Anguo's mansion, completely avoiding contact with the Yun family.
As a result, everyone else thought that the two families had completely fallen out.
During this period, many things happened in North Korea and China.
An official who secretly pledged allegiance to Prince Chen was impeached for embezzlement and bribery, the amount of which was enormous.
From the censor's impeachment to the official's swift imprisonment, and finally his suicide in prison, the entire process took less than a day, leaving no time for anyone to react.
This official was the Minister of Revenue at the time. His suicide was so sudden that Prince Chen did not have time to arrange for his own people to fill the vacancy. Thus, the position of Minister of Revenue was naturally occupied by the faction of Prince Qi.
At this point, the power of the three ministries—the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of War, and the Ministry of Personnel—all fell into the hands of the King of Qi.
Prince Su's mother was a foreigner, and he knew that unless all of Emperor Wen and Emperor Jing's sons died and he was the only one left, the throne would not be his. Therefore, Prince Su treated all the princes the same.
It was for this reason that Emperor Wenjing appointed Prince Su as the Inspector of the Ministry of Revenue.
After all, money is essential for everything. Among the six ministries, the Ministry of Revenue holds a pivotal position. Only when the Ministry of Revenue remains impartial can the balance of the court be maintained.
Therefore, Emperor Wenjing did not care which prince the Minister of Revenue secretly pledged allegiance to.
King Qi and King Chen knew this, which is why they dared to send their own people to the capital.
……
The spring night breeze carried only a slight chill.
Prince Chen, however, sat in front of the brazier wrapped in a fox fur cloak, with a pile of folded documents beside him.
Mingwei stood guard to the side, his brows furrowed.
His gaze remained fixed on Prince Chen's pale face. Several times, he was about to speak, wanting to advise Prince Chen to take care of his health, but each time Prince Chen raised his hand to interrupt him.
"Eighth Brother won't side with either me or Prince Qi. Now, only Sixth Brother's attitude remains unclear..."
Prince Chen's voice was weak and hoarse. After saying only a few words, he couldn't help but cough violently.
The Eighth Prince, Prince Su, treats everyone the same, but Prince Chen cannot be sure whether the Sixth Prince, Prince Jin, will show favoritism towards anyone.
Now, three of the six ministries are under the control of the King of Qi. If the Ministry of Justice, where the King of Jin is located, also leans towards the King of Qi, the situation will be very unfavorable for them.
Prince Chen suppressed a cough and said, "Sixth Brother has always been upright. We don't need to win him over. We just need to make sure he won't side with Prince Qi."
Seeing that Prince Chen was coughing so badly and still worrying, Mingwei couldn't bear it any longer. He reached out and snatched the memorial from Prince Chen's hand, his voice urgent, "Your Highness, you can't keep overworking yourself!"
Prince Chen stared blankly at his empty hand for a moment.
Prince Chen stared blankly at his suddenly empty hand.
After a long while, he gently patted his chest, suppressing the waves of coughing, and said, "If I don't worry about these things, who will? Yun Shang hasn't returned to the capital yet, and my other advisors can't handle these matters, so only I can."
Mingwei knelt down, clutching the memorial in his hands tightly, his eyes red, "But Your Highness, your health... even Physician Feng can't help you..."
Prince Chen's illness did show signs of improvement after being treated by Old Man Feng, but for some reason, it became ineffective after a few treatments and then gradually worsened again.
Old Man Feng had practiced medicine for many years, but this was the first time he had encountered such a bizarre illness. He was certain that with his medical skills, he could cure Prince Chen's illness, but to his dismay, nothing worked.
Old Man Feng tried many times, but in the end he still couldn't find forgiveness.
Now, all he can do is make Prince Chen more comfortable, less suffering, and live longer.
The premise is that Prince Chen should think less and rest more, and avoid overworking.
Prince Chen looked at Mingwei kneeling on the ground, his expression weary yet revealing a hint of determination.
He suppressed a cough and raised his hand to gently help Mingwei up. "Get up. I know my own body. Some things can't wait."
Mingwei clenched his fists in frustration, hating himself for being just a servant who couldn't share his master's burdens.
I don't know how things are in Huizhou, I just hope Lord Yun can come back soon.
Yun Shang, who is on the minds of many, is now preparing for the final stages of the flood control work.
He was ruthless and decisive, and after publicly beheading several corrupt officials, no one dared to cause him any more trouble.
With the help of prominent families in Huizhou, his flood control measures proceeded smoothly, and the flood situation in Huizhou quickly improved.
Most of the floodwaters have now receded, and several counties in Huizhou are already carrying out post-disaster reconstruction.
Yun Shang's task is almost finished; the rest is up to the county magistrates.
He spent another two days finishing up his work, compiling all the documents and records from the flood control period, the problems encountered, the solutions, and the suggestions for subsequent reconstruction into a booklet, and sent it to the magistrates of various counties in Huizhou for their reference and implementation.
The following day, Yun Shang and his party set off back to Beijing.