Chapter 170: Ups and Downs

The emperor picked up a memorial at random and opened it.

Scan ten lines at a glance.

Change to another one.

Although the wording is different,

But the central idea is only one, which is to denounce Concubine Lan for being tyrannical, seductive, and causing chaos in the harem and harming other concubines.

Concubine Lan is guilty of the most heinous crimes and deserves death!

The reason, of course, was that on the day she went to the Dali Temple, the emperor demoted the ranks of all the concubines present and punished them by confining them to their homes for a month.

The emperor kept his word.

In the past few days, he has been staying at Concubine Lan's place every day.

Originally, this was a matter of the emperor's harem. Although the ministers could not stand the emperor's exclusive favor, they had to endure it.

Unexpectedly, yesterday morning, the emperor canceled the early morning court session for this reason.

The civil and military officials who were still patiently watching the situation suddenly panicked.

Afraid that the emperor would become a tyrant.

Just this morning, his imperial desk was piled with memorials impeaching Concubine Lan.

The emperor looked at the mountain of impeachment memorials, the corners of his mouth rising and falling, and he sneered from time to time, making a creepy creaking sound.

The eunuch standing by was so frightened that his legs went limp and he held his breath, not daring to breathe.

At this time, the chief steward came in to add tea and whispered, "Your Majesty, Concubine Lan will be outside the door soon."

The emperor's face changed, and he suddenly stood up in anger and swept the table full of memorials to the ground.

He shouted angrily, "What does my favoring my own woman have to do with those old guys?

I think they are just bored and have started to meddle in my harem.

Those who know me as the emperor, those who don't think I'm just their puppet!"

"Your Majesty, please calm down!" Inside the house, the eunuchs and the chief steward knelt on the ground in fear and trepidation.

"Calm down? Calm down! Besides telling me to calm down, can you please say something useful? Those old guys, relying on their high positions and long experience, are bossing me around..."

Concubine Lan came to the door of the imperial study and heard all the emperor's angry curses.

It turns out that the emperor actually protects himself in this way!

Concubine Lan smiled complacently.

But he didn't go in immediately.

How many women in history could make a king lose his temper for a beautiful woman?

She wanted to listen for a while longer.

She wanted to hear more.

The emperor glanced at the door and saw no one coming in. He shouted angrily for a long time before pushing the door open.

Her face was filled with concern. She strode up to the emperor, placed the food box on the table, and soothed him, saying, "Your Majesty, anger is harmful to your health. Please calm down."

"If those ministers displease you, just issue a few edicts to reprimand them. If you get yourself hurt by anger, it will be more trouble than good."

Concubine Lan winked at the chief steward.

The chief steward quickly took his men away.

The furious emperor's expression changed in an instant, and he gently held Concubine Lan's hand: "My dear, why are you here?"

"I was worried that you were too busy with government affairs to eat, so I came to see you."

"You are the only one who truly cares about me, unlike those old men in the previous dynasty. Not only did they get angry with me, they also wrote a memorial to impeach you."

As he spoke, he picked up a memorial and handed it to Concubine Lan: "Take a look at what's written on it."

Concubine Lan picked up the memorial and opened it.

Read the above content at a glance.

Her small face, the size of a palm, turned pale.

He dropped the one in his hand and picked up another.

She read more than a dozen memorials in a row and collapsed to the ground in fear: "Your Majesty... I have never seduced you, I just feel sorry for you, I just want to make you happy, wuwuwu..."

As she said this, she started crying.

The emperor held her hand and comforted her with heartache.

Concubine Lan fell into the emperor's arms and almost fainted from crying.

After a while, she looked at the emperor with a pair of red and swollen eyes: "Your Majesty, please banish me to the cold palace! As long as Your Majesty is happy, I am willing to do anything."

The emperor felt even more sympathetic towards her: "How can that be? That would be too unfair to you. I don't agree."

"Then what should I do? If the emperor doesn't punish me, they will keep pestering me. I don't want the emperor to suffer even the slightest injustice."

The emperor hugged her tightly, as if he wanted to crush her in his arms, and murmured her name: "Lan'er, my dear Lan'er..."

Concubine Lan also hugged him back tightly.

The emperor suddenly asked, "Lan'er, why has the fragrance on your body changed?"

Concubine Lan pouted: "I changed the incense, Your Majesty, don't you like it?"

"I still like the scent you had a few days ago."

"That was something I made casually. I may not be able to make something exactly the same. Your Majesty, please don't hold your expectations too high."

"My beloved concubine is so capable, I believe you can do it." The emperor scratched her chin like teasing a cat.

He had smelled that fragrance on Meng Chifei.

According to her, this fragrance was created by her good sister Wen Yan, and only the two of them have this unique fragrance in the world.

How did their private incense end up in the hands of Concubine Lan?

No matter what, he always has to push forward.

The two embraced each other for a long time before the emperor reluctantly said to her, "In order to be together forever, I have no choice but to ask you to lower your rank and silence those sour-tongued people."

When Concubine Lan heard that she was going to be demoted, she pouted unhappily.

Then the emperor said, "To compensate you for the injustice you've suffered, once the Dali Temple clears Lan Hong's name, I'll take the opportunity to reinstate him. Your rank will eventually rise as well."

Using my first-level rank to exchange for my brother's reinstatement in the lawsuit is a very good deal.

You know, in the previous dynasty, promotions required real achievements.

In the harem, as long as she showed some tricks in bed and made the emperor happy, it would only take a few minutes to restore her position as a noble concubine.

For a moment, she had no complaints.

The two of them flirted with each other and drafted an imperial edict to demote the emperor, and even asked Concubine Lan to personally stamp it with the imperial seal.

After the imperial edict was issued, the emperor rewarded Concubine Lan with many good things.

From then on, except for attending court and handling government affairs, he stayed with Concubine Lan all the time.

The "demotion" not only failed to appease the ministers in the court, but made them even angrier.

At the same time, he also knew that impeaching Concubine Lan was useless.

They then turned their target to Lan Hong.

The emperor looked at the impeachment and sneered, "A bunch of old bastards who can't even write an impeachment letter clearly."

At the grand court meeting on the second day, the emperor flew into a rage: "You scholars, why are you holding on to a woman?

Lan Hong is innocent in the Jinyang Prefecture case. There is no evidence at all. Don't even think about touching him."

The emperor's protection of his shortcomings was clearly and unambiguously demonstrated.

All the civil and military officials shouted that Dayong was doomed.

However, some people were smart enough to capture some important information.

Lan Hong was innocent in the Jinyang Prefecture case.

What about other cases?

Lan Hong has been a lawyer for decades. Has he never made any mistakes?

then.

In the capital, many officials were secretly collecting evidence of Lan Hong's crimes.

Waiting for the critical moment to give Lan Hong a fatal blow.

Of course, this is all later.

At this time, the emperor and Concubine Lan were snuggling together and flirting.

The chief steward walked in from outside.

He said, "Your Majesty, Jingzhao Prefecture has sent over a memorial."

"From Jingzhao Prefecture? Bring it here for us to see."

The chief steward immediately presented the memorial with both hands.

After reading the memorial, a trace of anger appeared between the emperor's brows.

"It's outrageous! Sun Rulan, a mere official, is so lucky to marry Chi Fei.

How dare you use such dirty tricks to frame her."

He immediately picked up his pen and wrote on the memorial: "Approved! According to Dayong law, severe punishment will be imposed without mercy."

It turned out that it was a case in which Sun Rulan framed Meng Chifei in a men's brothel, and the trial would begin tomorrow.

At the same time, Wen Yan from Songshan Village also received the news of the opening of the court.