"Aren't you afraid that if others find out, it will put him in danger?" Li Wan asked.

Ruan Dafeng said, "I am afraid, but didn't you say that the Emperor has decided to try this case? I don't want her to stay in that dangerous place for too long, so I hope you can go to the Prince's mansion and rescue her."

Li Wan said, "I can't make that decision. I'll ask the Emperor for you. But you can rest assured, the Second Prince has already had the Emperor imprison her in the Imperial Prison. No one should be able to harm her now."

When Ruan Dafeng learned that Hongshi had been imprisoned, he breathed a sigh of relief. "In that case, I can rest assured."

Li Wan nodded to him and then left the prison.

Back in his study, Li Wan tidied up all his things and then headed straight for the palace.

Upon arriving at the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Li Wan handed everything over to the Fourth Prince. While the Fourth Prince was reviewing the documents, Li Wan said to him, "Your Majesty, I have something to report."

Fourth Master said, "Speak freely."

“Your Majesty, before I returned, Ruan Dafeng said that he had a younger sister who was now in the Prince’s residence. It was she who helped Ruan Dafeng collect evidence of his crimes.”

Fourth Master looked up at her and said, "What do you mean?"

"Your Majesty believes that Ruan Meiying is also an important witness, and we should bring her out of the Prince's residence."

Fourth Master nodded and said, "What you say makes sense. Then I'll leave this matter to you."

"Your humble servant obeys." With that, Li Wan left.

Because the Fourth Prince had previously imprisoned the silk shop owner in the Dali Temple jail, he has now handed over the testimonies from various parties to the Dali Temple so that they can begin to investigate the matter involving the Duke of Ying and the Eighth Prince.

Now that the case has begun to be heard, the Fourth Prince felt it was time to go and see the Empress.

Because of the Fourth Prince's orders, the Dali Temple sent people directly to the Eighth Prince and took him away from his residence.

The Eighth Prince's wife was very anxious, but she was powerless to do anything as she watched the Eighth Prince being taken away.

The Eighth Prince's concubines all came to her courtyard, crying and asking her what to do.

"My Ladyship, my Ladyship, what should we do? Is the Prince never coming back?!"

"Alright, alright, stop arguing! All of you, get back to your own courtyards! Your crying is driving me crazy. None of you can help; you're just making things worse!" the Eighth Princess roared.

The concubines were all scolded by the Eighth Prince's wife, and she sat alone in a chair, her right hand supporting her forehead, not knowing what to do.

Ultimately, she decided to go to the palace to request an audience with the emperor.

The Emperor went to Jingren Palace. Upon hearing the news of his impending arrival, the Empress became increasingly restless. She wondered what his purpose was—whether he was there to interrogate her, or to announce his removal from her position as Empress… The more she thought about it, the more agitated she became. Only when the eunuch announced, “The Emperor has arrived,” did she stand up in alarm, walk to the palace gate, and half-squat, saying, “Your Majesty, I respectfully welcome you.”

The Fourth Prince walked past her, went directly to the couch and sat down before saying, "Get up!"

But the Empress did not rise. She turned to the Fourth Prince and said, "Your Majesty, I am guilty and beg Your Majesty to punish me."

The Fourth Prince raised an eyebrow and asked in an ambiguous tone, "What crime have you committed, Empress?"

The Empress said, "It is my fault for failing to properly educate the prince, and it is my brother who came up with this disastrous plan. I cannot shirk my responsibility."