"Quickly prepare the carriage!"

Prime Minister Wei could no longer sit still.

His attempt to inflate grain prices failed, and his scheme to manipulate Xiao Jingzhao backfired. Now, with grain merchants arriving in the capital, his wishful thinking has fallen through.

He had to hurry to the palace to plead guilty and beg the emperor to show leniency and spare his third son from corvée labor.

On the surface, the grain shops owned by the Wei family had nothing to do with him, but the eldest son's branch of the family still received a significant share of the profits.

The third brother was taken away by the government, but the crime of raising grain prices would not warrant the punishment of implicating his entire family.

If the emperor followed the laws of the Eastern Tombs, the third prince would be sentenced to forced labor, and it was not uncommon for people to die during forced labor.

The third son is good at business, and he manages the business on behalf of the eldest son's family. If the third son is gone...

The Wei family's business was cut in half, and the fine only made things worse.

As soon as the Prime Minister's carriage entered the street, some sharp-eyed people recognized it.

"Look everyone, the people from the Prime Minister's residence are coming out."

At a shout, the crowd surged forward.

Prime Minister Wei lifted a corner of the carriage curtain and saw that everyone had gathered around him; his expression changed drastically.

"The one sitting inside is Prime Minister Wei! Pull him down and give everyone an explanation!" a strong voice shouted from the crowd.

"Damn it, he's making it so we can't even eat, and this old geezer still has the leisure to ride around in a carriage! Everyone, overturn his carriage!"

"Get down here right now, you heartless bastard! If I don't give you a good beating today, it'll be against all reason!"

The man angrily waved his hand, and a group of people rushed forward and pushed the carriage forcefully.

The people were still furious and had no intention of arguing with Prime Minister Wei.

With everyone scrambling to help, the carriage wobbled precariously, and the scene descended into chaos.

Prime Minister Wei was greatly alarmed and shouted to the coachman, "Turn back!"

The driver was pushed off the cart by the crowd surrounding him, pleading repeatedly, "Please calm down, everyone. The grain shop matter has nothing to do with my master. It was all the third branch of the family that was blinded by greed."

The carriage curtain was lifted, and Prime Minister Wei attempted to jump out and escape.

As soon as he poked his head out, a woman threw cabbages and other odds and ends at him.

In an instant, Prime Minister Wei was like a rat crossing the street, covering his head and shrinking back into the carriage to hide.

"Ouch!"

Prime Minister Wei exclaimed in surprise, his face burning with pain, as a piece of glutinous rice cake had flown onto his face.

The sticky glutinous rice cake stuck to his face like a branding iron, and Prime Minister Wei instinctively reached out and peeled it off.

When I threw the glutinous rice cake in my hand, my fingers were already burned red.

Just as the carriage was about to be overturned, the city patrol guards who had heard the news arrived in time to stop everyone.

Prime Minister Wei was both anxious and angry. He had never been so humiliated in his life, having always been flattered.

He shook off the rotten vegetable leaves on his body and shouted at the city guards, "I am innocent! I want to see the Emperor!"

Seeing the disheveled Prime Minister Wei, the patrol guards bowed respectfully and said, "Lord Wei, are you going to the palace? Then we'll escort you."

Inside the palace.

Xiao Jingzhao had the imperial kitchen prepare wine and dishes, and after the meal, he drank tea and chatted with Lin Xiangzhi in Linhua Palace.

He stored all the grain he brought into the granary for future use.

Inside the main hall, the two sat cross-legged facing each other, just as before.

Lin Xiangzhi's wheat-colored skin did not detract from his handsome appearance at all.

He picked up the glass cup, took a sip, and said with a serious expression, "Your Majesty, as you instructed, when passing through the disaster-stricken areas, the Prime Minister left some grain for the county magistrate and had someone watch the magistrate distribute the grain before heading to the capital. This caused a few extra days to be delayed along the way."

"You've worked hard. The autumn exams are just around the corner. You're staying in the capital to prepare for them. I have too few people around me who I can rely on, especially those in charge of money and supplies. I don't trust anyone else."

The palace servants in the hall were all far away, and Xiao Jingzhao, as before, did not refer to himself as "朕" (Zhen, meaning "I" or "the Emperor").

He could have directly assigned Lin Xiangzhi to the Ministry of Revenue. He had just abolished the recommendation system and the system of purchasing official positions, so it would have been inappropriate to assign Lin Xiangzhi an official position at this time.

Lin Xiangzhi had been paying close attention to the emperor's announcements throughout the journey, and he understood Xiao Jingzhao's intentions.

"Xiangzhi had the same idea. He studied his lessons along the way, hoping to one day pass the imperial examination with flying colors and make his father and uncle proud."

"By the way, when will Your Highness and Princess arrive in the capital?" Lin Xiangzhi asked with concern, knowing that Xiao Jingzhao's enthronement ceremony was imminent.

Xiao Jingzhao took a sip of tea and said, "Yesterday I received a message from my father by carrier pigeon, saying that the change of dynasty in Dongling might attract invasion from neighboring countries, so he is stationed in Yannan to prevent Liang from taking the opportunity to invade."

Xiao Jingzhao did not mention that his mother would bring his sisters to the capital in the future.

"Your Highness has lived in Yannan for many years and has a deep affection for the place. This time, you went to Liang Kingdom. The Liang royal family is fighting to the death for the position of crown prince. They really have no intention of provoking Dongling."

Mentioning the Liang Kingdom, Xiao Jingzhao asked with interest, "Did you find out any interesting news this time?"

Lin Xiangyi could tell what Xiao Jingzhao wanted to know just by looking at his expression.

"Xiangzhi specifically inquired about it, and it is true that the eldest son born to the Empress of Liang was lost within the territory of Dongling."

"This happened more than 20 years ago, so it will probably be very difficult to find any trace of it."

Xiao Jingzhao nodded slightly, "That's right, but we'll have to try our luck. Once the enthronement ceremony is over, I'll send a few secret guards out to investigate."

"You can stay in the palace for now. I'll arrange a residence for you after the autumn examinations."

"I can live in the palace? Your Majesty, you're too kind to me." Prime Minister Lin beamed, almost calling him by his first name without thinking.

The two of them were already going too far with their intimate behavior, and Lin Xiangzhi secretly resolved that he must change this habit in the future.

Now that his friend is the emperor, he must set a good example and not let people say that people from Yannan are unruly, let alone take advantage of the emperor's favor to become arrogant.

As the two were chatting enthusiastically, Ma Liang reported from the palace gate, "Your Majesty, the Prime Minister requests an audience."

Xiao Jingzhao raised an eyebrow slightly. "Isn't he sick?"

"Does His Majesty mean he will not see him? This servant will go and send him away immediately."

"Wait, summon him in."

A moment later, Prime Minister Wei appeared in the main hall, looking disheveled and dejected.

A bump appeared on his forehead, there were obvious burns on his cheeks, and his clothes were covered in spots, whether from water or oil, it was hard to tell.

Lin Xiangzhi, unaware of the truth, stared wide-eyed.

How did a prime minister, who was second only to the emperor, end up in such a sorry state?

While wondering what was going on, the person suddenly knelt down with a thud.

"Greetings, Your Majesty! Long live the Emperor!"

Xiao Jingzhao did not tell him to rise, and let Prime Minister Wei kneel and speak.

"Your Majesty, it is not that I am disrespectful to dress like this, but rather that this unruly commoner was rude and almost overturned my carriage. If the city patrol had not arrived in time, I would not have been able to see Your Majesty."

Prime Minister Wei bowed his head and prostrated himself on the ground, almost bursting into tears.

"Many court officials appear on the streets every day, why do the people only want to overturn your carriage?"

Xiao Jingzhao remained expressionless, exuding a chilling aura that captivated all who beheld him.

That domineering aura, commanding respect without anger, instilled fear in Prime Minister Wei just from hearing his voice.

"Please forgive me, Your Majesty. It was all my fault for not disciplining my clansmen properly. If Your Majesty spares them this time, I promise they will never dare to engage in high-priced business again."