As the Chief Justice, Mu Ci has to deal with various cases. After Ye Xiaoan left, he ordered his officials to investigate the origins of that group of people.

Logically speaking, Ye Fu is a businessman who has only settled in the Imperial City not long ago. He should not have any enemies in the Imperial City. Why did those people attack Ye Xiaoan?

There are also servants in the Ye Mansion, all of whom are very skilled and loyal. It is not easy for an ordinary family to recruit one or two such people, but Ye Xiaoan has many...

Various signs indicate that Ye Xiaoan's background is not simple, but this is the boy he likes and wants to marry. Mu Ci is unwilling to doubt it. He has a strong intuition that this may be related to what Ye Xiaoan said he was hiding from him. According to Ye Xiaoan's intention, he will tell him the next time they meet anyway, so Mu Ci will just wait for him to tell him.

But as for that group of thieves, even if Ye Xiaoan didn't remember their appearance, Mu Ci couldn't just let it go. The carriage that suddenly rushed out of the flower market, the group of men in black, and the cabin in the woods where he later found Ye Xiaoan, there was no way that there would be no flaws.

Three days later, the investigation of the Supreme Court made some progress. Several men in black who were killed by Mu Ci and the servants of Ye Mansion were wrapped in a piece of white cloth with the same character, or surname, written on it: Cui.

If it was just one person, it might be that person's surname, but if it was a group of people, it would seem like some kind of news that was deliberately revealed to the world.

What can the word "Cui" represent?

Mu Ci was young after all, and had been in the army for many years, so he naturally didn't know the changes in the imperial city over the years. When Mu Ci's superior Zhang Qian saw this word, his brows furrowed, and he said to Mu Ci: "This word Cui reminds me of a family feud... Huaixuan, where did your friend come from? Is his surname Cui?"

Mu Ci said: "Not really."

He then asked, "What is the origin of this word Cui?"

Zhang Qian sighed and said, "You must have heard of the Cui family in the imperial city. The ancestors of the Cui family helped the founding emperor of our dynasty to conquer the world and were named the King of Chu for their military achievements. More recently, the empress of the previous emperor, Empress Gongsu, also had the surname Cui. As descendants of the King of Chu and the maternal family of Empress Gongsu, how glorious the Cui family must have been back then. Even the Yang, Qiao, Mu, and Yuan families today cannot compare to them."

"Such a prominent family later suffered a near-death blow. Someone secretly reported to the late emperor that the Cui family was plotting a rebellion. In a rage, the late emperor executed the entire Cui family. Because the Cui family was the maternal family of Empress Gongsu, not only did Empress Gongsu suffer disdain, but her son, the Prince of Huainan, was also implicated, and ultimately failed to ascend the throne."

Zhang Qian said, "I heard that when the Cui family was executed, all men, women, and children were tied with white cloth with the word 'Cui' written on it. Given this situation, I can't help but associate this incident with the Cui family."

Mu Ci: “…”

Mu Ci thought to himself, could it be that these people are working for the Cui family back then? But what does this have to do with Ye Xiaoan, who just moved to the imperial city?

The clues pointed to Cui, which was considered a progress. However, Ye Xiaoan, who said he would come to see him in three days, did not show up. Mu Ci was worried that Xiaoan was in danger again. He had planned to discuss the marriage with Xiaoan in detail, then inform his parents and go to propose marriage with his parents. But now Ye Xiaoan was gone, and Mu Ci didn't care about etiquette. He knew where Ye Xiaoan's home, Ye Mansion, was, and he went to Ye Mansion to look for him immediately.

The servant who came to greet him at Ye Mansion was replaced by another person, who tactfully told him that the master and his family had gone on a long journey and would not be back for an uncertain time, and asked him to come back in a few days. Mu Ci couldn't help but become even more worried.

He originally wanted to ask the servant to give a message to Ye Xiaoan, but at this moment, the servant from the Taifu Mansion came to look for him with sweat all over his forehead.

"Master, something bad has happened at home! The master and his wife asked you to go back quickly."

The people in the Taifu Mansion were in a panic and finally found Mu Ci. They refused to tell us what had happened and only said that Mu Ci would find out when he returned. Mu Ci had no choice but to come back to look for Xiao An another day, and hurriedly returned with the people in the mansion.

When he arrived at the main hall of the Taifu Mansion, the servants were in a mess. Mu Ci's father Mu Zheng was lying in a chair with his eyes closed and unconscious. Mu Li, who had been away from the mansion recently, knelt at Mu Zheng's knees with red eyes. Xiao was crying heartbreakingly, pinching Mu Zheng's philtrum with shaking hands. Mu Ci's mind went blank for a moment, then he came to his senses immediately and asked a servant to call a doctor.

"Mother, Ali, what happened?"

Mu Li's cheeks were swollen and he knelt there without saying a word.

Xiao cried, "Aci, Aci!"

Something terrible happened at home. Her husband was in a coma. She felt like she had lost her backbone. She had finally waited for her eldest son to come back. Xiao held Mu Ci and cried, "Ali is in trouble. Your father fainted because of worry..."

Mu Ci took a deep breath, looked at his brother Mu Li, and asked with obvious anxiety in his tone: "What happened?"

Mu Li was still stubborn and refused to say anything. Xiao was crying breathlessly again. Mu Yuan, Xiao's youngest son, didn't understand anything yet. He just cried along with his mother. Mu Ci's forehead was throbbing. He pointed at a servant and asked him to tell him everything.

It turned out that Mu Li had been studying court etiquette recently and was not at home. One day, the eunuchs in the palace sent Mu Li back alone, saying that Mu Li had done something shameful with a woman while studying etiquette and was caught on the spot by the teacher in charge.

You have to know that the young men who entered the palace for selection were required to have not only good looks but also pure moral character, and it was definitely not allowed for them to have affairs with other people. Mu Li was in the same room with that woman, his clothes were disheveled, and many pairs of eyes saw it. Soon, the news of the second son of the Grand Tutor having a secret meeting with someone spread, and at this juncture, Mu Li's reputation was completely ruined.

This kind of situation had never happened in the Mu family from generation to generation. Mu Zheng, who had always been in good health, slapped Mu Li in the face after hearing the news, and the man fainted on the spot. Xiao was so anxious that she was at a loss and ordered someone to call Mu Ci. This was no small matter. Even though Mu Ci believed in his brother's character, he still asked without thinking: "A Li, do you have any..."

"I didn't!" Mu Li gritted his teeth and said, "Brother, don't you believe me? I was framed!"

Of course Mu Ci believed him and frowned, "Who hurt you?"

Mu Li's eyes suddenly turned red: "I, I'm not sure, but when I was learning etiquette, there were always people provoking me..."

The palace gathered all the young candidates in Hongyan Pavilion to teach them etiquette. During this period, they were not allowed to bring any followers with them, nor to return home. Since Mu Li came here, she planned to completely give up other thoughts and concentrate on being a palace concubine, so she studied very seriously. He was handsome and exquisite in appearance, and he was the son of a royal tutor. His character, appearance and status were outstanding among this group of young men. However, many people disliked him, and the young master of the Su family was the leader among them.

"Ali, you mean Mr. Su?"

Mu Ci thought of someone.

Mu Li said: "He is the young man who is waiting to be selected for the Imperial Concubine's family. He is arrogant and doesn't get along with me."

Young Master Su's name is Qingyu. Not only his name but also his appearance is extremely similar to the deceased Imperial Noble Consort Su. It is said that he is a sure candidate for Imperial Noble Consort. Since Mu Li is the son of the Grand Tutor, he will at least be a concubine if he enters the palace. Therefore, he regards Mu Li as a strong rival and provokes him again and again.

Before Mu Li came, Mu Zheng warned him not to conflict with others. If Su Qingyu made sarcastic remarks, Mu Li would just think she was barking nonsense and ignore her. Su Qingyu became more and more arrogant. Once, Mu Li even found a silver needle in the tea. Fortunately, he was used to making tea by himself and discovered in advance that the cup had been tampered with, otherwise the consequences would be disastrous. After all, Mu Li was still a young man at heart. He lost his temper and ran to confront Su Qingyu. The two of them had a dispute over their words. During the pushing and shoving, Young Master Su fell into the pool of Hongyan Pavilion. Mu Li was scolded by the teacher for this.

Mu Li said angrily: "I didn't push him at all, he fell in by himself, but because it was him who fell in, everyone thought it was me who did it."

Fortunately, the pond was not deep and the weather was hot, so Master Su was fine. The teacher in charge of teaching etiquette had originally praised Mu Li, but in a fit of rage he punished Mu Li to copy books all night to reflect on his mistakes. Mu Li was the son of the Grand Tutor, and if he had not committed any serious faults he would still have to enter the palace, so the teacher could not punish him too harshly. If it were someone else, he would have been deprived of his qualification as a showman and kicked out long ago.

After Mu Li calmed down, he realized that he had caused trouble, so he quietly copied books all night, thinking that this was the end of it. That night, someone took advantage of his sleepiness at his desk, covered his mouth and nose, stuffed a pill into his mouth, and secretly sent him out of Hongyan Pavilion into a nearby room.

There, waiting for him was a dishevelled woman who was also unconscious like him.

Mu Li said painfully: "They actually fed me that kind of medicine and locked the door outside."

After Mu Li said this, Mu Ci also knew what kind of medicine it was. He wondered why it was so similar to Ye Xiaoan. He was more worried about Mu Li's experience at this moment, and asked with concern: "A Li, how did you..."

Mu Li cried, "It was Sister Jing. She saved me, but I also implicated her..."

Mu Li woke up and soon felt the surging desire brought by the drug. Before losing consciousness, he knew that both the woman and himself had a reputation as important as the sky. In order to prevent himself from doing anything worse than an animal, Mu Li pulled out a dagger from his boot and planned to commit suicide. At the critical moment, the door lock was opened from the outside. It was Doctor Jiang outside the door. Jiang Jing was also stunned when she saw Mu Li.

It turned out that after Jiang Jing left Mu Ci and Ye An, she recalled Ye An's pulse and thought that the aphrodisiac seemed to be a little special. Jiang Jing planned to look for clues about the aphrodisiac herself, but she found out halfway that someone else had taken the same aphrodisiac and seemed to want to harm people. Of course, Jiang Jing went to save that person first, but unexpectedly she ran into Mu Li who had been drugged.

Jiang Jing took Mu Li out of the house without saying a word, and used the emergency medicines and silver needles she had on her to detoxify Mu Li. Mu Li did not have the same physique as Ye An, so it was easy for him to detoxify after being poisoned by the aphrodisiac. However, after the detoxification, he did not have much strength for a while and had to let Jiang Jing support him.

But their luck was not good. Not long after they escaped, they were surrounded by a group of men in black. Jiang Jing and Mu Li did not know martial arts, and Jiang Jing had to take care of the weak Mu Li. She could not escape either and was caught by the men in black and locked back into the previous room. The woman had disappeared. Mu Li fully believed that as long as he could hold out until dawn, someone from Hongyan Pavilion would notice that he was missing and come out to look for him, and he would be able to escape from this predicament. However, when the door was finally opened, it was Su Qingyu who led all the people from Hongyan Pavilion, including the two teachers, and denounced him for having a tryst with a woman and for having improper conduct.

"Brother, I really didn't..."

Mu Li covered his eyes and shed tears. He explained countless times on the spot, but no one listened. No matter what he said, it was a fact that he had been in the same room with the woman before running for election, and it also caused Doctor Jiang to be misunderstood!

"Ali..."

Mu Ci didn't know what to say. The aphrodisiac and the man in black were definitely not a coincidence. The thieves wanted to harm Ye Xiaoan for some unknown reason, but their purpose of harming Mu Li was obvious. It was clear from the fact that they still locked Jiang Jing and Mu Li together in the end that they wanted to ruin Mu Li's reputation. If his reputation was ruined at this juncture, A Li would not be able to enter the palace.

Mu Ci had seen with his own eyes how painful Ye Xiaoan was after being drugged. He patted Mu Li on the shoulder and said, "Ah Li, I believe in you. You have tried your best..."

After the incident, Mu Li was subjected to overwhelming abuse and ridicule. Hearing this, he burst into tears. Finally, someone was willing to believe him!

"Brother, I, I'm fine, but I'm not good. I've implicated Sister Jing. What should I do? And what about the Emperor..."

Mu Ci felt like he was drawn into a huge whirlpool and was a little tired for a moment, but he still had to force himself to calm down and think. Based on his understanding of Jiang Jing, Jiang Jing was not a person who was fussy about details and might not care at all. It's just that reputation is very important to a woman. Even if Jiang Jing really didn't care, she was ultimately implicated by Mu Li.

"As for Jiang Jing, you have to go and plead guilty yourself."

Mu Li nodded and said anxiously: "Brother, can I kneel down and kowtow to her?"

"Ali, what are you talking about!" Xiao, who had been wiping her tears, could not help but said angrily, "You have ruined Miss Jiang's reputation no matter what. Shouldn't you marry her?"

Mu Li, Mu Ci: "..."

Mu Li was stunned. Wasn’t Sister Jing married to the eldest brother? Why did she want him to marry her?

Xiao mistakenly thought that Mu Li was unwilling, and she became so angry that she ignored her manners and slapped him in the face.

Mu Ci's head hurt even more, and he thought very inappropriately that if his mother knew how he was with Ye Xiaoan, she would probably slap him in the face.

The doctor arrived late and took the pulse of the unconscious Mu Zheng. He just said that he needed to rest and should not be stimulated in the next few days. The doctor wrote a prescription. Mu Ci personally boiled the medicine for Mu Zheng and fed it to his father. Mu Zheng woke up and saw his eldest son guarding him, and tears flowed from his eyes.

"Aci, hurry up, help me up. I want to go to the palace to apologize to the emperor."

Tutor Mu was almost pissed off at Mu Li, but at the same time he felt bad that Mu Li's reputation was ruined. However, as the beauty pageant was approaching and such a big scandal had happened in the Mu family, he was even more afraid of angering the emperor, so he had to go and explain to the emperor in person.

Xiao hit Mu Li so hard that his other cheek was also swollen. She rushed over and grabbed Mu Zheng's sleeve, saying tearfully: "How are you going to get up like this? The doctor said you need to rest..."

Mu Zheng pounded the bed and sighed. How could he lie still after such a big incident? He didn't expect that after serving as an official for so many years, he would lose his integrity in his later years...

Mu Ci's eyes moved slightly, and he held his hand and said firmly: "Dad, I have an official position and I am the eldest son. I can go to the palace to plead guilty."

"Aci?"

Master Mu opened his eyes wide. His eldest son held his hand steadily, which gave him endless courage.

On the day of the selection, Mu Ci put on his official uniform and entered the palace. Following the eunuch's instructions, he came to the outside of Changle Palace. The emperor and the empress dowager were in the palace together, preparing to summon the young handsome men participating in the selection. Mu Ci had requested to see the emperor once before, but was rejected. He still didn't know what the emperor's temper was like, and he was not sure whether the emperor would listen to his explanation. This time he might lose his job, but his father was seriously ill in bed, and as the eldest son, he had to come in person to apologize to the emperor.

Fortunately, no matter what, the emperor would not take his and Mu Li's lives. As long as he could keep this life and wait for his youth, Mu Ci would not be afraid.

Outside Changle Palace, the handsome men waiting to be summoned all wore green jade crowns, green shirts, and silk belts around their waists. Mu Ci was the only one wearing a bright scarlet official robe, looking handsome and extraordinary, extremely eye-catching.

Mu Ci heard someone sneer, and when he looked up, he saw Su Qingyu in a blue shirt. Mu Ci already knew about the feud between this person and Mu Li. Mu Li suspected that it was Su Qingyu who harmed him. Mu Ci had no evidence yet, so he just nodded coldly. Su Qingyu glared at him angrily. He hated the Mu brothers very much. One destroyed his embroidery bag and slapped him in the face, and the other wanted to take his position as a favorite concubine. Fortunately, he used a little trick to prevent Mu Li from entering the palace again. Su Qingyu wanted to respond to Mu Ci with a loud laugh.

The Empress Dowager and the Emperor quickly summoned Su Qingyu. Su Qingyu no longer pretended to be his brother, Imperial Noble Consort Su. He glanced at the people around him with pride and walked into the hall with full confidence. The handsome men who were still waiting outside all showed envious looks. Who didn't know that this Young Master Su was going to be made Imperial Consort?

Unexpectedly, before even a cup of tea had passed, Mr. Su was dragged out by the eunuchs like a dead dog and thrown aside.

A few kind-hearted handsome men went to check. Su Qingyu got up by herself, glared at Mu Ci hatefully, and ran out.

Mu Ci still didn't know what had just happened in Changle Palace, but it was obvious that Master Su's wish to become a royal concubine had failed.

Thinking of his brother A Li who was framed, Mu Ci curled his lips indifferently.

The handsome men were summoned one after another. Most of them came out after going in, and only a few stayed in. Among those who had been eliminated, someone said something like this. The emperor seemed to be in a bad mood and didn't even look at the handsome men. The few who stayed were the ones that the empress dowager was going to give to the royal nobles.

Mu Ci waited for a long time, and finally a eunuch called him. Although his name was ranked after those of the handsome men, Mu Ci could understand it. After all, he was asking for forgiveness on behalf of Mu Li. When entering the hall, Mu Ci did not dare to look up, but he glanced at the princes and nobles sitting in a room and found a familiar figure among them.

There was a man, dressed in gorgeous clothes, holding a golden cup in his hand, sitting in a somewhat nonchalant manner. He was originally flirting with the man next to him, but his eyes accidentally met Mu Ci's. He immediately sat up straight, his pair of peach blossom eyes smiling brightly.

Mu Ci was slightly stunned. Isn’t this Ye Xiaoan’s younger brother Ye Lele whom he had met once?

He didn't have time to think about why Ye Lele appeared here, the Queen Mother at the head had already asked: "Are you Mu Ci?"

Mu Ci knelt down respectfully. Suddenly, the sound of the dragon throne being dragged was heard. The eunuchs all called out "Your Majesty". It seemed that someone was running a few steps in the hall. In the blink of an eye, a bright yellow dragon robe floated in front of him.

Mu Ci: “…”

Mu Ci wondered a little uneasily, what is the emperor going to do?

The owner of the dragon robe stretched out a hand and placed it on Mu Ci's arm, as if to pull him up. Mu Ci refused, helpless. The emperor asked him to get up, and if he didn't get up, wouldn't he be asking the emperor for help?

Mu Ci quickly stood up and was about to speak when he saw the face under the crown that haunted his dreams. His beloved young man was wearing a bright yellow dragon robe, holding a white jade ruyi in his arms, and gazing at him with a smile.

For a moment, Mu Ci was stunned. A bone-chilling chill kept rising from his feet and swept over him.

It turns out that Ye Xiaoan is not Ye Xiaoan, but Ye...

And the name of today’s emperor is... Ye An.

Ye An had been waiting for Mu Ci for a long time. The day before the selection, when she heard that Mu Li had an accident, the Queen Mother wanted to punish him, but Ye An painstakingly persuaded her not to. After that, he asked people several times, but Mu Ci was not on the list of candidates. Ye An was dejected and didn't plan to go to Changle Palace. Later, his subordinates reported that Mu Ci came to the palace to ask for an audience. Ye An was overjoyed, thinking that Brother Mu must have just figured it out, and quickly ordered people to prepare.

According to the rules of the Wei Dynasty, whoever the emperor liked during the beauty contest would be rewarded with a jade ruyi, and if he didn't like her, he would give her nothing. Ye An had never seen Mu Ci's name before, and he didn't bother to ask anyone to prepare it. When the eunuchs hurriedly presented him with the ruyi used only for the beauty contest, Ye An felt dissatisfied. This ruyi was only the size of a palm, and was not enough to express his love for Mu Ci. He decided to pick a special one for Brother Mu, and personally took down a mutton-fat jade ruyi as thick and long as his forearm from the top of the Eight Treasures Grid in the Xuande Hall, intending to give it to his Brother Mu.

He patiently sat with the Queen Mother in the Changle Palace and summoned the beautiful men one by one according to the selection procedure. Although these are all handsome men picked from thousands, Ye An already has someone in his heart, so he thinks they are all the same. Young Master Su Qingyu came with full confidence, but when he saw Ye An sitting on the dragon throne, he was so frightened that his face changed drastically and he knelt on the ground, shaking.

How could he have expected that the boy who followed Mu Ci and spoke so arrogantly was actually the emperor himself, and he even made such a boast in front of the emperor!

Ye An still remembered this person, and said with a smile: "I told you last time that the emperor would not make you a concubine. What do you think? I didn't say that nonsense, did I?"

Su Qingyu was almost in tears and kowtowed continuously. Ye An was disgusted by the man's arrogant and humble attitude, so he didn't even give him the lowest position and directly ordered his men to drag him out.

The Queen Mother was very satisfied with Ye An's attitude towards Master Su, so she didn't care that he didn't keep any of the handsome men. However, Ye Le, the Prince of Dongling who came to join in the fun, was in a good mood as the Queen Mother pointed out two beautiful beauties to him.

Ye An waited and waited, and finally Mu Ci arrived. He could no longer sit still, so he jumped off the dragon throne and even trotted over to Mu Ci. He had never thought that he could run while wearing such a heavy dragon robe.

Ye An personally handed the jade ruyi, which was a symbol of keeping the property, to Mu Ci's hands, but he missed Mu Ci's extremely complicated expression for a moment.

Ye An said happily: "Brother Mu, you are finally here."

Mu Ci was silent for a long time, and then he said softly in a voice that only the two of them could hear: "Xiao An, are you the emperor?"

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Brother Mu didn’t receive Ye An’s letter. What went wrong? But I still chose it!

Mu Li’s official partner is Jiang Jing, but it’s not a marriage before love. I think Ali is still too young and immature. When someone takes advantage of him, he will calm down. The combination of Qixi was actually the right one!

Thank you to the little angels who cast their votes for me or irrigated me with nutrient solution~

Thanks to the little angels who cast [mines]: The letter is short but the feelings are long, you look like a younger brother when you smile, did Cai Xukun eat celery today, Jiang Heting 1;

Thanks to the little angel who irrigated [nutrient solution]:

Paper is short, love is long 20 bottles; Mo Xiaobei Beibeibeibei? 10 bottles;

Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!