Chapter 281 The people from Lingnan have come again.

The imperial study was quiet, save for the sound of the emperor turning the pages of memorials. Outside, Ke Taining knelt on the ground, his knees aching as time passed.

The early spring weather was still chilly, and Ke Taining felt as if he were in an ice cellar. He hadn't suffered like this in years. After an unknown amount of time, when the pain in his knees was almost unbearable, a shrill voice rang out, "Lord Ke, the Emperor summons you to come in and report."

Ke Taining breathed a sigh of relief, supported himself on the ground to stand up with difficulty, and walked into the imperial study with a somewhat unsteady gait. Then he knelt down again: "This sinful subject kowtows to Your Majesty, long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"

......

Silence fell over the room again. After finishing reviewing the memorials, the emperor looked at Ke Taining kneeling below and asked, "What? Did the Duke of Chu not agree to plead for you?"

One sentence sent a chill down Ke Taining's spine. He hadn't expected the emperor to be so well-informed. He regretted going to see the Duke of Chu earlier; the entire capital knew about it. Even if the Duke of Chu wanted to make money off him, he wouldn't dare, since he was doing it under the emperor's nose.

But no matter how much he regretted it, it was too late at this point.

"Your Majesty... Your Majesty is foolish." Ke Taining kowtowed again, and then the emperor snorted and said, "Was Bao Tianheng's disturbance today at your instigation?"

"No, I did not instruct him. I did not know he would cause trouble." Ke Taining kowtowed repeatedly. "Your Majesty, I am simple-minded and cannot think of so many complicated things."

He was much clearer-headed now and knew that he could only save himself by admitting that he was stupid and that he had been instructed to do things before.

The emperor didn't know him very well, but judging from this incident, he was indeed not very clever. Seeing that he self-awarely admitted his stupidity, the emperor actually thought more highly of him.

"When you impeached the Duke of Chu, was it your own idea, or were you instructed by someone else?" the emperor asked.

Sweat beaded on Ke Taining's forehead and streamed into his eyes, bringing tears to his eyes. He glanced up at the emperor, then immediately lowered his head and stammered, "Your Majesty... I am foolish. My previous impeachment of the Duke of Chu was... I was instructed by someone."

The emperor snorted again and asked, "Who is it?"

"It's...it's Uncle Qingshan," Ke Taining said, forcing a smile. Then the room fell silent, and Ke Taining's heart was pounding with nervousness.

The silence in the room made him wonder whether the emperor would be pleased or displeased to expose Qingshanbo.

The emperor's face was grim, and he couldn't quite describe the feeling in his heart. He had indulged the Qingshan Marquis's folly, and he had also made the Eighth Prince the crown prince, turning him into a target.

Thus, neither the Qingshan Marquis's Mansion nor the Eighth Prince would end well. However, what he wanted was for the Qingshan Marquis's Mansion and the Eighth Prince to be defeated by others, and that would be a long time later. He did not want them to bring about their own demise, nor did he want them to die so early.

If they ruin themselves now, do they want to create another target? He doesn't have that many sons to cause trouble.

What should we do now?

Should we suppress the matter? If we do, they'll become even more arrogant. Moreover, if this matter isn't dealt with, Jiang Yu's reforms might encounter even more obstacles.

Punish the Earl of Qingshan and the Crown Prince? But the punishment can't be too severe; the target still needs to be set up. The Emperor suddenly regretted it, regretting making the Eighth Prince the target—it was too foolish.

After thinking for a while, the emperor looked at Ke Taining kneeling on the ground and said, "You yourself said that you are a fool, and that being an official is also a harm to the people. Go home and enjoy your old age."

Ke Taining collapsed to the ground, utterly shocked that the emperor had dismissed him from office so directly. He had merely been instructed to write an impeachment memorial, but he hadn't written it himself, so why was he the only one being dismissed?

Is he dissatisfied?

But what could he do if he was dissatisfied? He dared not say anything and had to kowtow to thank the emperor for sparing his life.

The emperor, impatient to see him, waved him away, telling him to kneel and leave. Ke Taining stood up and staggered out, while the emperor sat there pondering how to punish the Earl of Qingshan and whether the crown prince should be implicated in this matter.

After a long while, he picked up his pen and began to write an imperial edict, which dismissed the Earl of Qingshan from his official post. This was a severe punishment; without his official position, he had no power, and the Earl of Qingshan was like a tiger with its teeth pulled. However, he retained the title of Earl of Qingshan, leaving some room for maneuver for the Qingshan Earl's family.

The emperor handed the written imperial edict to Zhao Fuquan and said, "Summon the Crown Prince."

"yes."

Zhao Fuquan arranged for a young eunuch to read the imperial edict and also sent someone to fetch the Crown Prince. Upon returning, he saw the Emperor frowning and pressing his forehead. He went over and gently massaged the Emperor's forehead, sighing inwardly at the Emperor's hardships. It's not easy for a son to be outstanding, nor is it easy for a son to be foolish.

......

Qingshan Bofu

After listening to the steward's report on the situation outside, Uncle Qingshan smashed the cup in his hand to the ground. "Fool, fool! He can't even do something this simple. He even had someone kill him. If he had decisively taken his own life, Jiang Yu would have been accused of forcing someone to commit suicide. Even if the Emperor were to side with Jiang Yu, he would still have to punish her."

The butler stood to the side, head bowed, not daring to speak. Only the most ruthless could commit suicide. Bao Tianheng was a coward; how could he bring himself to do it? Besides, the benefits promised to Bao Tianheng weren't significant enough to make him sacrifice his life.

It should be said that this plan had flaws from the very beginning, but he dared not say it.

"Later, Ke Taining went to see the Duke of Chu," the steward added. "The Duke of Chu probably didn't agree to help him, so Ke Taining went to the palace."

"What?" Aoyama Bosuke stood up abruptly, then paced anxiously around the room, muttering, "He should know what he should and shouldn't say."

Just then, a voice came from outside, "My lord, someone from the palace has arrived."

Uncle Qingshan's heart skipped a beat; he knew it probably wasn't good news, but he had to face it. He wiped his face and strode towards the hall. The eunuch delivering the imperial edict saw him, said nothing more, and immediately opened the edict and began to read.

The eunuch knew he wouldn't get the reward this time, so he left immediately after reading the imperial edict. Lord Qingshan stood there stunned for a long time before finally finding his voice and asking the steward, "The imperial edict just said... said my official position was revoked?"

The butler forced a smile and said, "Yes."

Uncle Qingshan slumped into his chair, utterly shocked that things had failed, let alone that the consequences would be so severe. But before he could even think of how to salvage the situation, a steward trotted over and whispered to him, "The people from Lingnan are here again."