"Go find Yang Qiu and have him send someone to investigate if there are any rumors circulating recently!"

"promise!"

Zhang Rang bowed and withdrew, while Liu Hong looked coldly towards the direction outside the palace.

"Zhao Zhong!"

"Yes, sir!"

"Go find Lü Qiang and have him investigate whether any new servants or maids have been added to Chang Le Palace recently, as well as those who have recently visited the Empress Dowager. He needs to find out everything carefully."

"promise!"

Hearing the emperor's emotionless words, Zhao Zhong knew that the emperor was probably really angry this time, so he dared not delay and hurriedly left Deyang Palace.

"Jian Shuo!"

"Yes, sir!"

Liu Hong said slowly, "Take some palace maids and a troop of Imperial Guards to Hejian to visit my mother on my behalf, and also to pay off my debts!"

"promise!"

Jian Shuo respectfully responded, then asked with some doubt, "Your Majesty, what debt are you repaying?"

Recalling that powerful figure from back then, Liu Hong said, "When I was still the Marquis of Jiedu, I borrowed some money. So much time has passed, it's time to pay it back!"

Then Liu Hong took out paper and pen, wrote a letter, and handed it to Jian Shuo, saying, "When you get there, if my creditor produces an IOU, you can repay it truthfully. If he doesn't produce one, or if there is no debt, then give him this letter!"

Jian Shuo seemed to understand Liu Hong's intention and respectfully replied, "Yes! This servant will take care of it immediately!"

"Yes! The weather is getting cold. Go and fetch two newly arrived cotton-padded coats for my mother!"

"promise!"

After giving these instructions, Liu Hong slowly got up and went to the entrance of Deyang Palace. He felt the autumn wind blowing. It was already late autumn, and the wind was already a bit chilly.

Liu Hong also understood that Empress Dowager Dou's suggestion that he bring his birth mother, Lady Dong, into the palace was simply because she was worried that people would say she was using her power as Empress Dowager to suppress the Emperor and prevent him from fulfilling his filial duties to his birth mother. They would then use this as an excuse to attack her and her Dou family.

After watching Liu Hong leave, who seemed somewhat displeased, Dou Miao looked on with a hint of worry.

Accompanied by a female official, Dou Miao arrived at the garden of the inner palace. Looking at the mostly withered flowers, plants and trees, Dou sighed softly.

Dou Miao asked, "Xiao Hong, why does His Majesty suddenly seem so sullen? Wouldn't it be a good thing to bring his birth mother into the palace?"

Xiao Hong, the female official beside Dou Miao, shook her head slightly. "I don't know! But I think His Majesty rejected the Empress Dowager's suggestion perhaps because he was worried about how to handle the situation. After all, there is already an Empress Dowager in the palace!"

Dou Miao sighed softly and smiled, "Perhaps so. As the emperor, Hong'er probably thinks about things more than we do!"

As for whether bringing her birth mother to the palace would affect her status, she wasn't worried at all. According to the rules of etiquette, she was the late emperor's empress, and the current emperor could only honor her as his birth mother. Lady Dong's existence was merely that of a tool for procreation. (Sometimes, the rules of etiquette can be so ruthless.) In any case, her status as Empress Dowager could not be changed.

Even Emperor Ai of Han, in order to elevate the status of his grandmother, only created the title of "Empress Dowager." In reality, the one who held the reins of power in the harem was still the Empress Dowager Zhao Feiyan.

Moreover, through a year of getting to know each other, Dou Miao had already seen that Liu Hong was a very sensitive and sentimental person. Even after bringing Dong Shi to the palace, his respect for her would not diminish.

However, what Dou Miao was unaware of was the series of consequences that would result from bringing Lady Dong into the palace, but Liu Hong was well aware of them.

Besides not wanting his mother to be corrupted by the intrigues and power struggles of the harem, Liu Hong realized that if he really brought his birth mother, Lady Dong, into the palace, any event that happened in the harem would surely be exploited by those with ulterior motives, stirring up a debate on etiquette in the court.

Not only will her mother's peaceful life be disrupted, but she herself will also be instantly thrust into the eye of the storm of public opinion.

If he wins, Dou Miao and Dou Wu, who helped him rise to power, will step down, and he and his mother will be branded as mean and ungrateful.

If they lose, should their mother stay in the palace or be sent back to Hejian? Even if she is forced to stay in the palace, Dong Shi will likely be branded as greedy for wealth and status. As for sending her back, she will be ridiculed.

No matter what he did, it would be extremely detrimental to both his mother and himself. So how could Liu Hong not be angry at the sinister intentions of certain people?

The insidious hand has even reached into the palace; it must be cut off.

Soon, Zhao Zhong found Lü Qiang and told him the emperor's instructions.

Lu Qiang dared not delay and immediately arranged for people to begin an investigation within the palace.

Meanwhile, Zhang Rang arrived at the Sili government office again. Yang Qiu's opinion of Zhang Rang had changed, and he was no longer as hostile as before. After finding out the details, he immediately sent out the spies from the Investigation Department to gather information.

Suddenly, undercurrents surged once again, both inside and outside the palace.

Liu Hong, who had just returned to the palace, was reviewing the intelligence reports on the Xianbei and Northern Xiongnu sent by Lu Zhi and Huangfu Song.

The intelligence report mentioned the situation of Tan Shihuai, stating that Tan Shihuai seemed to have completed the integration of the western Xianbei, and there had been many more frictions with the northern and southern Xiongnu.

This gave Liu Hong a bad feeling. Once Tan Shihuai defeated the Northern Xiongnu, his prestige would surely rise. If he could then unite the central and eastern Xianbei, there would be no Xianbei people to oppose him on the grasslands.

The Xianbei's dominance over the grasslands will undoubtedly cause great trouble for me and the Han Dynasty. I must purge the court as soon as possible so that I can free up my hands to deal with the grasslands.

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