In front of the Emperor, Xie Jingyan questioned Empress Song's ability to manage the harem, and his words were unusually harsh.

Empress Song's face was long. Seeing Xie Jingyan's calm demeanor in the face of her attack, she suddenly felt uneasy. She knew why the heir of the Marquis of Anding was targeting Young Master Chen. Could it be that he had gone too far and been caught red-handed?

Empress Song was uneasy, but Xie Jingyan looked at the Earl of Anding and said, "Your Majesty may not know why the Earl of Anding's heir fought with Young Master Chen, but surely the Earl of Anding knows?"

The Earl of Anding panicked. The Emperor looked at him, and just as the Earl of Anding was about to speak, Xie Jingyan said, "Deceiving the Emperor is a capital offense."

The Earl of Anding's legs went weak and he knelt down with a thud, saying to the Emperor, "It is my fault for failing to educate my son properly. My son and Young Master Chen got into a fight at the Prince of Jin's residence because of a small argument. I will definitely discipline them strictly."

Xie Jingyan sneered, "The Marquis of Anding really knows how to avoid the important issues."

The Earl of Anding knelt on the ground, his head bowed even lower.

Seeing the Earl of Anding's attitude, the Emperor knew that things were not simple, and he looked at Xie Jingyan.

Xie Jingyan said, "When Prince Jin got married, there were many guests who came to offer their congratulations. Young Master Chen only accidentally bumped into the heir of the Marquis of Anding. The heir of the Marquis of Anding asked him to kneel down and apologize, but Young Master Chen refused, so he forced him to do so."

"They start a fight over a mere bump of the arm. The heir of the Marquis of Anding tore the brocade robe that the Princess Consort made for me. What's wrong with me kicking him?"

Empress Song did not expect the Marquis of Anding's son to provoke such a clumsy attempt. She said, "Then you can't break one of his ribs."

Xie Jingyan said, "The heir of the Marquis of Anding caused trouble without cause. Instead of disciplining his son properly, the Marquis of Anding complained to the Emperor, asking him to punish me. The Marquis of Anding is trying to deceive the Emperor. What should his punishment be?!"

The Earl of Anding turned pale and repeatedly confessed his guilt.

The emperor's face remained stern.

Shen Wan, always eager for a good show, said, "The Marquis of Anding clearly only allows his own son to set fires but forbids the princes from even lighting lamps. The incident happened at the Prince of Jin's residence, yet the Empress, without investigating the matter thoroughly, has already concluded that the Marquis of Anding's heir is innocent and is seeking justice for him."

If the incident had happened elsewhere, it would be somewhat plausible for Empress Song to claim she was misled. But to say she was completely unaware of what happened at Prince Jin's residence is simply unacceptable.

The Emperor glanced at Empress Song, whose face also darkened. "Your Majesty, please calm down. It was I who did not understand."

The Emperor's face darkened, and his cold gaze swept over the Marquis of Anding. "He has failed in his duty to educate his son and is now turning around and blaming others. He shall be fined half a year's salary. If such acts of bullying occur again, the Marquis of Anding's estate shall choose another heir."

The Earl of Anding quickly expressed his gratitude.

The Emperor punished the Marquis of Anding, then looked at Xie Jingyan and said, "Even though the Marquis of Anding's heir caused trouble first, it is not a reason for you to kick him and break a rib. As a prince, you should act with benevolence. I hereby deduct a year's salary from your salary as a warning to others."

Xie Jingyan looked displeased. Shen Wan tugged at his sleeve, but he didn't react. Shen Wan quickly said, "Thank you for your mercy, Father."

The Emperor's expression softened considerably as he looked at Shen Wan, praising her, "I never imagined that a lady from a prominent family could possess embroidery skills that rival those of the palace's embroiderers. Truly remarkable. I hereby bestow upon you twenty bolts of silk and satin."

Shen Wan, “…???”

Shen Wan was stunned when she didn't expect the Emperor to reward her.

Once they realized what was happening, they quickly thanked the Emperor for his reward.

Empress Song's face turned green.

Xie Jingyan broke a rib of the Marquis of Anding, and the Emperor punished him by deducting a year's salary, which was already the lightest punishment imaginable. However, no sooner had Xie Jingyan been punished than the Emperor bestowed twenty bolts of silk upon Chen Wan. In Empress Song's eyes, this was tantamount to giving them Xie Jingyan's year's salary in advance.

Is this a punishment?

This is clearly an award!

Empress Song clenched her teeth in anger.

After Shen Wan thanked him for the reward, the matter was not over yet. Xie Jingyan raised the memorial in his hand, "Yesterday, at the banquet at the Prince of Jin's mansion, almost all the civil and military officials were present. These impeachment memorials only mentioned that I kicked the heir of the Marquis of Anding, but they didn't mention a word about the fight between the heir of the Marquis of Anding and Young Master Chen. It's clear that they are targeting the person, not the matter. I want to ask these court officials, did they receive bribes from the Marquis of Anding and help him cover up, or did I offend them and they took the opportunity to kick me when I was down?!"

Shen Wan stood beside Xie Jingyan, never expecting that Xie Jingyan would turn around and pursue those who impeached him.

The Emperor reached out his hand, and Xie Jingyan frowned slightly, but still handed the memorial to the Emperor.

The Emperor opened the document, glanced at it, and said, "Anyone who submits a memorial impeaching Prince Ling shall be fined three months' salary."

Eunuch Yuan said, "Your Majesty is wise."

The impeachment matter ended there. Xie Jingyan usually didn't like to stay in the Imperial Study for even a moment longer, but this time he didn't leave even after the matter was resolved. The Emperor knew they still had something to do. Just as he was about to send Empress Song away, a eunuch rushed in and reported, "Your Majesty, the Right Chancellor has important matters to report."

The Emperor said, "Let him in."

The eunuch withdrew, and a short while later, the Right Chancellor walked in.

The Right Chancellor stepped forward and bowed to the Emperor. Since the matter he was to report was not a court secret, he did not need to worry about other people being present and directly reported, "Your Majesty, Zhou Da, the Director of the Arsenal, has suddenly died."

The Emperor frowned. "How could he have died so suddenly?"

The Right Chancellor said, "I heard that he drank some wine and stayed by the stove for a while. Suddenly, he foamed at the mouth and fainted. By the time the doctor arrived, he was already dead."

The official rank of the Military Equipment Bureau was not high, only the fourth rank, but it had real power and was much more desirable than some third-rank officials.

I had never heard of anyone in the Armory suddenly dying in my previous life. However, there are too many differences between this life and the previous one. In addition, no one can predict birth, aging, sickness and death. Now that the position of Armory is vacant, I don't know whether it will fall into the hands of Xie Jingyin or the First Prince.

Empress Song was eager to make her move, but the inner palace was not allowed to interfere in politics. If she wanted the position of Director of the Military Equipment Bureau, she could only compete with Xie Jingyin. If she spoke up, it would only displease the Emperor and cause trouble for Xie Jingyin.

Upon receiving the news, the Right Chancellor went to the palace to report to the Emperor, naturally intending to recommend someone. The Emperor glanced at Xie Jingyan and said, "This matter will be discussed later."

The Right Chancellor, though his words were on the tip of his tongue, could only swallow them and then took his leave.

The Emperor picked up his teacup and said to Empress Song, "Go to the Empress Dowager first, you don't need to wait for me."

Empress Song's face was somewhat unpleasant. She had been waiting for the Emperor for a long time, just to go to Shou Kang Palace with him to drink tea with Xie Jingyin and Fu Shujing, but because of Xie Jingyan and Shen Wan, the Emperor would not go with her.

Empress Song clenched her sleeves tightly, not daring to utter a word, and could only curtsy and retreat.

After Empress Song left, the Emperor asked, "Is there anything else?"

Xie Jingyan said, "Yesterday, Shen Du sent a message back to the capital by carrier pigeon, and it has been confirmed that there is no grain left in the Meizhou granary."

Swish.

Almost instantly upon hearing this, the emperor's face darkened.

Meizhou Granary is the largest granary in the southeast, storing at least 300,000 dan of grain and fodder. It was prepared in advance to defend against Xiliang's invasion of Jing. Now he's being told that Meizhou Granary is empty?!

Have the officials in Meizhou lost their minds, daring to even covet war reserve grain?!

The Emperor was furious.

From the Emperor's expression, Shen Wan knew that the officialdom of Meizhou was about to be shaken, and a large number of people would die.