Chapter 77 A Battle of Wits: The Princess's Male Concubine Has Arrived Here with Me?

"Miss, a secret report from Wuzhou." Jingming strode up the city wall and handed over a scroll of paper.

There were only two lines of small print. Chen Liangyu read them and her eyes sharpened.

A large crowd was blocking the main gate of Qunfang Garden. Judging from their attire, they were officials from the Wuzhou government. Through the gate and walls, angry shouts and the sounds of Du Peisun desperately trying to stop them could be heard from inside.

Chen Liangyu rode up, and the officials who were blocking the way immediately tore open a gap and made way for him.

Yongdu dispatched an imperial censor to the northern border, and Zhao Xingli and his entourage headed straight for the Qunfang Garden in Wuzhou.

Chen Liangyu immediately realized that something terrible was about to happen.

She had read the official gazette not long ago; Xie Wenjun had detained the students who had caused trouble at the Imperial Academy, and those students had been imprisoned in the Dali Temple jail and had not been released yet. Gu Xie was also imprisoned and awaiting trial, with his charges pending.

This time, Xie Wenjun was truly locked in a battle of wits with the corrupt officials in the court who refuted the idea of ​​women's education. The two sides were locked in a stalemate, each holding hostages; the outcome depended on who had more leverage.

Zhao Xingli headed straight for Qunfangyuan, clearly intending to find something to use against Xie Wenjun.

Zhao Xingli was known as "Iron Face," utterly unreasonable, always spouting national laws, ethical principles, and moral codes. If he disapproved of something, big or small, he would seize upon it and submit a memorial impeaching him without a shred of leniency. However, he was not without merit. Years ago, he risked his life to gather evidence for the Yao Chongshan palace embezzlement case and the Cangnan people's plight case, speaking frankly and earning a great merit, which led to his promotion to the fourth-rank Vice Censor-in-Chief. He was certainly not without talent.

Based on his seniority and ability, he should have been promoted to Vice Censor-in-Chief after all these years.

However, due to his overly upright nature, this man offended many colleagues in the court. He impeached the officials in the Ministry of Personnel, who were in charge of promotions and transfers, several times, thus ending his career path. The most ridiculous incident, as recognized by both the court and the public, was when the newly appointed Minister of Personnel, Liao Songqing, stopped at an official post station during a business trip. Unable to get used to the local food, he ordered his subordinates to buy dozens of chickens and cook a dish called "Imperial Concubine Chicken Wings," which helped him get through those few days. When Zhao Xingli learned of this, he was relentless in his criticism, impeaching Liao Songqing for excessive spending. In the end, Liao Songqing was forced to fast for several days as a form of repentance before the matter was dropped.

Extremely rigid.

His arrival in the North was a mixed bag.

Fortunately, this person wouldn't come because of factional strife. The problem is that Gu Xie, whom Xie Wenjun wants to protect, has implicated Yao Jifeng. Both the imperial palace embezzlement case and the Cangnan people's plight case were solved by Zhao Xingli, so he naturally wouldn't tolerate any members of the heinous Yao family escaping justice. Therefore, even if he's being used in factional struggles, he will definitely stand on the opposite side of Xie Wenjun.

"Your Excellency, Imperial Censor!" Chen Liangyu lifted his robe and stepped into the Garden of Beauties.

The flowers in the Garden of Flowers have withered and died without water. There are still traces of swords and knives on the branches and leaves of one flowerbed. The broken branches and leaves have been cleaned up. Although the garden no longer has the spectacular sight of competing for beauty, it is still well maintained and bright.

Du Peisun, who had just been arguing vehemently, breathed a sigh of relief. "General, you've finally arrived."

Zhao Xingli bowed and said, "This humble official greets the General."

After Xie Wenjun left Wuzhou, Lu Sutai and the others were confined to Qunfangyuan. Du Peisun planned to keep them there for a few years until the matter was forgotten, and then release them. Shi Tan, knowing he had caused trouble, requested to be demoted and sent to the Wuzhou ranch to guard the cattle and sheep.

Now, these teenagers, their hands and feet bound in shackles, were being roughly escorted away. As Zhao Xingli was about to take them away, their eyes were filled with unconcealed fear and confusion. Upon seeing Chen Liangyu, their faces first lit up with joy, but then their gazes turned to pleading for help.

Chen Liangyu said, "These people are just kept here by me for amusement. Can't the Censor tolerate this?"

Zhao Xingli, of course, could not tolerate this. What he hadn't expected was that Chen Liangyu would so openly and shamelessly recount such a disgraceful matter. Shameless!

Before his anger could rise, he calmed down and said, "General, now that I'm here, I know who they serve. There's no need for you to mislead me."

Chen Liangyu said, "Does Your Excellency mean that the Princess has taken her male favorites to me?"

Zhao Xingli looked around at everyone and said, "What kind of behavior is this?!"

Chen Liangyu said, "Manners? Your first wife died in childbirth, and you married a new one within a year. Everyone says that you are honest and selfless, but besides your second wife, you also keep two concubines. You talk about manners, but you have beautiful wives and concubines on both sides. What kind of manners is that? Don't say that these people are just dancing and swordplay for fun. Even if I took them in, so what?"

Zhao Xingli's eyes snapped open, revealing an extremely surprised expression, and for a moment he couldn't find any words to refute him.

Chen Liangyu continued, "I have long heard of Your Excellency's incorruptible reputation, and I advise you to distinguish right from wrong in all matters. Do not let your honesty be exploited by those with ulterior motives, who may falsely accuse innocent people of theft." Chen Liangyu glanced sideways, and Jingming led his troops to snatch Lu Sutai and his men from the officials brought by Zhao Xingli. "I will keep these men; Your Excellency cannot take them out of Wuzhou. If Your Excellency has any grievances against me, please submit a memorial to impeach me."

The reporting period for military affairs in the northern border was once a year, and the border generals would return to the palace before the end of the year. Before the end of the year, Chen Liangyu received an imperial edict summoning her to report on her duties.

Along with this came an imperial edict ordering her to "rectify her conduct and cultivate herself, and not to act immorally or recklessly."

Chen Liangyu, with his legs crossed, was speechless and choked with emotion: "He really did seduce me."

The civil official and Xie Wenjun were deadlocked, and the emperor's attitude wavered. However, this stalemate couldn't continue indefinitely; sooner or later, one side would give in. After much difficulty, they found a clue about the Qunfang Garden, hoping to use it as a breakthrough to force the princess to release the people. But Chen Liangyu intervened, taking all the witnesses away and sending them to the army. The civil official, who had harbored resentment for half a year, then directed it at Chen Liangyu, who could have remained uninvolved.

In fact, Chen Liangyu did not intend to stay out of it; she was just far away on the frontier and did not have the reach to deal with the affairs of Yongdu.

Just then, the imperial edict from Yongdu gave her the opportunity to get involved.

The moment Chen Liangyu appeared, the spearhead was aimed directly at her. Chongzheng Hall was like a duel arena, filled with chaos.

"Bei Yong has not invaded, so why is the General sending troops? Does he intend to tear up the peace treaty?"

Chen Liangyu said, "Let the soldiers have a friendly spar."

"Your military reports from the north clearly state that there are a thousand wounded. How could there be casualties during a friendly sparring match?"

Chen Liangyu said, "The soldiers are full of passion. As the fighting goes on, they get caught up in national and personal grievances. There's nothing we can do about it."

"You're simply...you can turn black into white, and white into flowers!"

Chen Liangyu glared at the assembled officials. “Bei Yong is conducting military exercises at his doorstep. I have already saved face for everyone by launching an attack under the guise of a battle drill. As a military commander, if I do not repel the enemy, are the 200,000 troops in the Northern Frontier just there for show? Does any of you gentlemen perhaps wish for Zhai Ji’s army to besiege Yongdu?”

Chongzheng Hall was silent for a while.

Some people said, "Bei Yong's military exercises did have a reason for sending troops, but the court had already decided to trade with the three major tribes of the grasslands and issued an edict to the northern border. However, the general disregarded the national order and drove the chieftain into the heart of the grasslands just because he slaughtered a few chickens and sheep. How do you explain this?"

Chen Liangyu said, “Lord Liao, those bandits robbed the city, killing anyone they saw, robbing any woman they saw, and seizing any poultry they could. The men were exhausted from hard labor and couldn't do heavy work anymore. They relied entirely on their mothers and mistresses for sewing and washing to make a living. They raised a few hens, hoping to sell their eggs at the market to buy medicine for the men. They saved every penny throughout the year to make new shoes for their children at the end of the year. The mistress, even while pregnant, couldn't bear to kill a single chicken to nourish herself. The bandits caught them, plucked their feathers, and cooked them, eating half and throwing the other half away. Lord Liao, you have to cut off dozens of chicken wings just to have a good meal, so of course you don't care about a few chickens or sheep. To the common people, chickens are more important than your life, Lord Liao!”

Liao Songqing's face flushed crimson instantly. Everyone in the court knew that he had been thoroughly humiliated by Zhao Xingli's impeachment over this matter and had been practicing vegetarianism and chanting Buddhist scriptures for a long time. When this embarrassing incident was brought up, he was speechless for a moment, and then someone else chimed in.

"In the past, during wartime, the Shuofang trade route was managed by the Northern Army Commander-in-Chief, and the tax revenue did not need to be turned over to the national treasury but was used for military purposes. But now the national treasury is empty and funds are scarce, yet you are using the tax revenue from the Shuofang trade route to build academies in the three northern states. What are your intentions?"

Chen Liangyu turned his head to both sides and saw that the speaker was the current Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, surnamed Cheng.

“Which prefecture, county, or county doesn’t have academies? Everyone can read the classics, so why can’t the people of the North read them? Are the people of the North not considered subjects of the Emperor? If you want to save money by banning academies, then just shut down the Imperial Academy as well, and you, Lord Cheng, can retire to your hometown. Nobody else should do this!”

Minister of Works Tang Shiqiong stepped forward, furious: "How can the Imperial Academy be closed! Fine, the Princess has detained the students of the Imperial Academy, and the General wants to close the Imperial Academy. How can the foundation of the nation be allowed to be messed around like this! The Northern Border has never respected education, and the old Marquis has never mentioned this matter. How come it is the General who wants to promote education? If you are not guilty, then submit a report on the tax revenue of the Shuofang trade route. We will investigate and everything will be clear."

Chen Liangyu spread his palms up and said, "Minister Tang, do you still remember why Minister of Works Yao Chongshan and his entire family were executed ten years ago? Now that the Yanzhishan Palace is being rebuilt, we hope that another case of embezzlement by the palace will not occur."

Tang Shiqiong was furious: "I am innocent, General, please do not make false accusations!"

"This general is reminding Minister Tang that saving national funds cannot be done by me alone; everyone has a share." Her gaze locked onto one person, Minister of War Sheng Xiuyuan. "Lord Sheng, if we ask Young Master Sheng Yu'an to buy fewer flowers at Yifeng Pavilion, wouldn't that save national funds? Minister Sheng, it's good that you're here. Don't go back and say that this general is talking about people behind their backs."

Chen Liangyu's gaze swept over the assembled officials. "You can investigate, but you can't just investigate the expenses in the Northern Border. Can everything withstand scrutiny? Whose bottom is clean?"

"You're vulgar!"

"You are refined. You all possess great talent, your writings are ornate and beautiful, depicting the peaceful and prosperous world, yet you refuse to bow your head to the suffering of the common people!"

The argument went on and on, but ultimately yielded no result. When the court session ended, the officials who emerged from the Chongzheng Hall were all flushed and fuming. Chen Liangyu strode out of the Chengtian Gate, spurred his horse, and rode away.

"When the old Marquis was alive, she was still humble and knew how to behave properly. But now that the old Marquis and Marquis Wu'an are gone, look at her behavior! No one can control her anymore!"

Chen Liangyu didn't lose in the verbal battle, arguing with the officials, but she wasn't entirely satisfied either. She took out her Lancang sword and wielded it freely in the Liangyuan Garden to stretch her muscles.

Her hair was simply tied up in a single strand, and the air around her moved with the movement of her sword. Her brow bone was prominent, and her nose was like an eagle's beak. When she raised her sword, the fluttering of her clothes gave people a fierce feeling of an eagle soaring through the sky, making people inexplicably afraid to approach.

After finishing a set of sword techniques, Chen Liangyu's forehead was covered in sweat. He walked to the stone table in the courtyard, which was piled with stones, picked up a pot of cold tea, tilted his head back, and gulped it down.

His throat bobbed up and down.

Some tea spilled onto my chest, spreading out like ink in a watercolor painting.

Out of the corner of her eye, she glanced at the gate of Liangyuan and noticed a figure standing there. She turned her head and saw a refined and elegant lady standing at the gate.

Xie Wenjun, dressed in a long brocade dress and draped with a white fox-collared cloak, stood there quietly, serene and beautiful, just like her.

Author's note: There will be one more chapter today, definitely.

Don't ask why, because if I don't update, I'll be put in the dark room.