Chuan Wen continued reading, then nearly dropped the persimmon he was eating in shock: "What?! The little note the Chaoyang County Princess wrote her love confession was picked up from under a table in a temple! And it was a packet of rat poison that a young monk had thrown away! It almost poisoned Zhang Qing to death!"

The post was shocking: "Don't they have any public decency? How can they litter like that? And that awful girl from Chaoyang County, doesn't she have any sense of propriety? Do they write love letters using scraps of paper they find on the ground?!"

Whether she can be exempted from the ten thousand repetitions of the female precepts depends entirely on Zhang Qing. Poor Zhang Qing, who originally only had external injuries, now has internal injuries as well. She is so tired.

Marquis Changxing blinked. What? Princess Chaoyang is involved too?

Temple? Chuan Hai thought for a moment and immediately thought of Famen Temple outside the city.

There's no time to lose, we mustn't let them get poisoned! Chuan Hai and Marquis Changxing came in a flurry and left just as quickly. Chuan Wen watched their departing figures, feeling utterly bewildered.

In the palace, the emperor was practicing calligraphy with a brush in hand, while Consort Shu ground ink beside him. She hesitated several times, as if she wanted to say something, but then the emperor finally put down his brush, looked at his calligraphy with satisfaction, and said to Consort Shu, who was clearly distracted, "My dear consort, do you want something again?"

Whenever Consort Shu wanted jewelry or clothes, she would bring over a bowl of white fungus and lotus seed porridge, then diligently grind the ingredients for him, and finally massage his shoulders and legs, coaxing him to ask for this and that.

Of course, as long as it wasn't an excessive request, he would grant Consort Shu's every wish.

As he spoke, the emperor reached for the bowl of white fungus and lotus seed porridge. The porridge that Consort Shu served was always particularly delicious, and he always enjoyed it. But after taking a expectant sip, he immediately spat it out.

"Consort Shu, is there a savory version of white fungus and lotus seed porridge? And it must have contained a whole jar of salt, right?"

Consort Shu quickly poured water for the Emperor to rinse his mouth, and she was busy for quite a while.

"Consort Shu, what is it that you need?"

The emperor sighed helplessly, wondering what was wrong with him lately, as everything seemed to be going wrong.

Consort Shu hesitated, stammering, but finally revealed what she had overheard in the Imperial Garden about Chuanwen's thoughts. She had no choice but to speak; there were so many people present, and quite a few had heard.

It took the emperor a while to react. "You mean, I will die in three years?"

Consort Shu nodded, and the Emperor asked again, "The Crown Prince is gone too?"

Consort Shu nodded again, and the Emperor asked again, "Was it the third prince who ascended the throne?"

Consort Shu nodded again and again. The emperor remained silent, sitting blankly on the dragon throne, staring unfocused ahead. He, he, he was actually a short-lived emperor! His eldest son was also a short-lived crown prince!

"How's the investigation into the embezzlement of disaster relief funds going?"

After a long while, the emperor asked leisurely, and Consort Shu shook her head, saying she didn't know.

The emperor realized what was happening and immediately sent someone to summon Chuanhai. Before the eunuch sent out could even leave, a messenger eunuch rushed in to announce that Chuanhai, the inspector of the Ministry of Revenue, had arrived.

The emperor immediately sent someone in to inquire about the progress of the investigation. Chuan Hai then presented an account book, saying, "Your Majesty, the matter has been thoroughly investigated."

The emperor was stunned. He was in a terrible predicament yesterday, and the matter was already cleared up today? Thinking of the imperial edict, his heart sank, and he opened the account books to check.

The more he looked at the ledger, the darker his face became, until he finally angrily slammed it down.

This document records when the disaster relief funds were distributed, how much was distributed, how much was embezzled and deducted in the process, how much was left in the end, and all the details of embezzlement, from high-ranking officials of the second rank to low-ranking officials of the ninth rank!

The emperor was furious, not only because of the officials' corruption, but also because it proved that Chuanwen's true feelings had been fully verified, from trivial matters like smelling farts and falling into a latrine, to the prime minister's private affairs, and now to such a large case of embezzlement of disaster relief funds!

The emperor's rage had already sown the seeds of panic. Would he really die in three years? Would his crown prince really die of illness? And what about the empress? How heartbroken she would be to lose her husband and child overnight!

In the following days, Chuan Hai was very busy, busy getting promoted and busy confiscating property. However, in the midst of his busy schedule, he still managed to receive the Third Prince, because the Third Prince sent an assassin.

According to the assassin's confession, they were sent by Cao Huan, the head of the Ministry of Revenue, to intercept and kill Zhang Qing, but unfortunately they targeted the wrong person. This further solidified the evidence, ensuring that none of the officials who embezzled disaster relief funds could escape.

After leaving the Ministry of Justice, the Third Prince wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. He had already guessed that Chuan Hai was able to solve the case so quickly because of Chuan Wen. That girl knew everything in the world, so he couldn't hide the fact that he was harboring assassins.

He had originally intended to use the assassin to consolidate his power, but since everyone had fallen so quickly, he saw no need to keep the assassin around. That was one reason. There was another reason for his swift handing over of the assassin: for some reason, his father was particularly furious about the corruption case. He needed to clear himself of suspicion as quickly as possible, lest he end up losing more than he gained and being suspected by his father of forming a faction.

Previously in the Imperial Garden, the Third Prince was busy explaining to his cousin Hu Nuan'er that his sexual orientation was normal under the orange tree, and missed hearing Chuan Wen's heart-stirring words. He was unaware that the plot of Chuan Wen ascending the throne three years later had already reached the Emperor's ears.

As the horse clattered forward in the carriage, the Third Prince's thoughts drifted along with the sound of its hooves striking the bluestone pavement. He had to speed up the process of Chuanwen's writing; otherwise, he would be constrained in everything he did, and when would he ever be able to sit in that position?

However, the Third Prince was not the only one who wanted to spread the message.

After the court session that day, Chuan Hai was kept behind by the emperor. Chuan Hai was filled with trepidation and dared not look at the emperor's face above his head. He knew perfectly well that he was kept behind because of his niece and wondered how the emperor would deal with Chuan Wen.

"My dear minister, how old is that little girl, Chuanwen?"

The emperor smiled kindly, but Chuan Hai shuddered, every cell in his body seemed to be activated. What did the emperor mean by this?

"Your Majesty, she is already fourteen."

Chuan Hai answered cautiously. The emperor said "oh" as if he was thinking, and then said to Chuan Hai, "The little princess is in need of a study companion. Let Chuan Wen come tomorrow."

Chuan Hai secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness, it wasn't Chuan Wen who was to enter the palace and become the emperor's woman.

The emperor did want to keep such a... uh... amazing person by his side, of course, but he was afraid that if he let Chuanwen enter the palace as his concubine, she would curse him to death in her heart, and then he would lose his temper and behead her at the Meridian Gate.

At this moment, Chuanwen was lying on the table in the Changxing Marquis's residence, racking his brains about how to reveal himself without revealing the plot. Unexpectedly, he sneezed. Chuanyu, who was also worried about Chuanwen, asked nervously, "Could it be that you have caught a cold?"

Chuanwen looked over and was stunned. Why did those words and expressions look so familiar?