Chapter 123 The Restriction on the Zhuang Mansion is Lifted "Regarding Lang Ge's matter, I suspect it's Li Zhaozhu..."

The news was delivered to the teahouse, and upon hearing that Zhang Youdao was in charge of the punishment, Li Yang nearly fainted.

Inside the teahouse, everyone was in a flurry of activity, some pouring water, others pressing on his philtrum, and still others waiting. It was only with great difficulty that Li Yang slowly regained consciousness.

She held Ziyan's hands tightly, "Sister Ziyan, Sister Ziyan, they are all businessmen, how can they endure torture?"

With tears welling up in her eyes, Zi Yan said, "Zhao Zhao, it's precisely at times like these that we mustn't lose our composure. Let's quickly think of a way to stop Zhang Youdao from doing whatever he wants."

Hearing this, Li Yang choked up and stammered, "Grandfather, but Grandfather is also imprisoned in the Prime Minister's Mansion. What can we do? Who else is there? Who else is there?"

Ziyan squatted down so that Liyang could lean against her on one side. Seeing Liyang's disoriented state, she quickly looked up at Zheng Qingbo.

Zheng Qingbo was also extremely angry at this moment. Ziyan stared at him with anger in her eyes. He quickly calmed himself down and thought, "Don't panic, don't panic. Madam Chen, you said that Prime Minister Zhuang was implicated in the 'Song of the Big Rat' incident, so you ordered the current emperor to close his residence."

Li Yang looked up at him helplessly, nodded, and hoped that Mr. Zheng could come up with a way to get out of the current predicament.

Chen Junbo once said that Mr. Zheng was a man of great talent, a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) personally bestowed by the current emperor. He only came to Songshan Town to escape the intrigue and deceit of officialdom.

At this moment, these words were like pillars supporting Li Yang as she straightened up, looking at Mr. Zheng with her eyes, "Sir, do you have a way to resolve this situation?"

After receiving the reply, Zheng Qingbo narrowed his eyes and pondered for a moment before saying, "Madam Chen, the only way to resolve this matter is to report it to His Majesty. Among us, only Prime Minister Zhuang has access to His Majesty, but he is currently being held captive in his residence."

"What nonsense are you spouting? Speak up!" Ziyan said impatiently.

“Alright, alright, Madam Chen, we still need to inform Prime Minister Zhuang of this matter as soon as possible.” Zheng Qingbo said to Li Yang, “Madam Chen, you need to be alert. Vegetable carts don’t come to the Prime Minister’s residence every day. Judging from the time, it’s time for you to deliver the message.”

"Okay, okay, I'll go deliver the message right away." Li Yang was somewhat at a loss, but he found Zheng Qingbo's reasoning reasonable, so he blindly followed his instructions.

"And what happens after we tell Prime Minister Zhuang?" Ziyan asked in an unfriendly tone. "What good will it do for Prime Minister Zhuang to know? He's already locked up in his own residence. What good will it do him to have another person to share his burdens?"

Hearing her say that, Li Yang stopped and looked at Mr. Zheng.

The latter said, "Don't worry, Madam Chen. I've heard that in addition to his legitimate daughter, Prime Minister Zhuang also has a son."

"Uncle, that's right, Uncle now lives in a separate residence, we can go find him." Li Yang suddenly became happy. How could she have forgotten that she also had an uncle who was an official in the court!

Suddenly, she began to worry again, "But my uncle is a military general and not good at scheming."

She was being polite; her uncle wasn't just bad at scheming, he was practically clueless. He probably wouldn't be able to do anything about it besides worry.

Zheng Qingbo smiled upon hearing this, "I have a plan..." He then shared his thoughts with Li Yang, "Madam Chen, you should have someone take this letter to the Prime Minister's residence today, and we can simply wait for Prime Minister Zhuang's reply tomorrow."

After thinking for a moment, Li Yang wrote down the matter briefly on a single page and then left Chaoyang Teahouse.

She knew that the plump aunt who delivered the vegetables wouldn't remember so many words of greeting. In the past few days, the plump aunt had already developed a good relationship with the guards at the back gate when she came and went from the mansion. Under these circumstances, it shouldn't be a problem to slip in a letter.

To everyone's surprise, Aunt Pang said that the guards had been changed in the past few days, and the reason she was able to enter and leave the Marquis's residence these past two days was because the previous guards had confirmed her identity as the vegetable delivery girl.

The guards will strictly check people and goods entering and leaving, and hiding someone in a vegetable basket as they did back then is now absolutely impossible.

"Young Miss, you don't know, those soldiers didn't even search the place, they just stuck their swords into the basket..."

Upon hearing these words, Li Yang couldn't help but shrink back, breaking out in a cold sweat and swallowing hard.

The two men looked at the letter in her hand. The plump aunt's face darkened, and she patted her sturdy chest. "Young Miss, just leave this matter to me. I will personally deliver the letter to Master and Miss."

After saying that, he plopped down on the ground.

"Auntie Pang?" Li Yang looked at Auntie Pang's actions with some confusion.

The fat aunt sat on the ground, took off her shoes and socks, placed the letter against the fleshy sole of her foot, put her socks back on, then put on her shoes, got up, and stomped her feet twice.

"Hehe, young lady, don't worry. They'll never find out!"

Li Yang forced a smile and said to Aunt Pang, "Aunt Pang, since there are strict checks for entering and leaving the mansion, please tell Grandfather that he only needs to send a message asking whether it is feasible or not, and there is no need for a long explanation."

The plump aunt was still stamping her feet, muttering "okay, okay" without saying a word.

Li Yang secretly stuck out his tongue and returned to the teahouse, waiting for news the next day.

It is said that Aunt Pang's return to the Prime Minister's residence that day was uneventful and surprisingly smooth.

However, when Zhuang Ziyang and Zhuang Shutong watched in the kitchen as Aunt Pang took off her shoes and socks and tore the letter from the soles of her feet, they looked at each other, neither of them taking the letter.

Finally, Aunt Pang laid the letter out on the table for the two of them to see.

As for that table, nobody wants to examine it closely.

-

On the southeastern border, General Anamu, whom the emperor trusted, was trapped for several days in a heavy siege by the enemy.

Seeing no hope of breaking through, Anamu led his men to set up camp on the spot.

The war lasted for two years, with year after year of victories and rewards, but the victorious army never returned home.

Now, along with the general's imprisonment came a report. It stated, "The military intelligence reports submitted by former Commander-in-Chief Fan Qian over the past two years are all untrue!"

Splash—

moment.

"Issue! Immediately issue the order: Fan Qian has lied about military intelligence, delaying crucial military operations. He is to be sent to the Dali Temple for investigation and to be executed at a later date!"

After Emperor Qing finished speaking, he leaned back, his chest heaving.

"Yes, sir."

Emperor Qing calmed himself down and slowly raised his eyes to look at the assembled officials. "Now that the war in the southern border is critical, what candidates do you gentlemen have for the General Who Pacifies the South?"

The title of General Zhennan sounds impressive. However, everyone in the Daqing Dynasty knows that the southern border is rife with miasma. It is already the end of July, and if the army is to set off and reach the southern border, it will be around the beginning of September. September and October are the months when miasma is most prevalent in the south.

In other words, upon reaching the southern border, the army would begin to suffer heavy losses even before the battle had started. Whether the General Who Guards the South would return alive was another question entirely.

But this was a problem for the military generals, while the civil officials were happy to kick the emperor and solve his problems, recommending military generals with whom they had long been at odds.

The prince's civil officials were bustling about, while the military officers stammered. Emperor Qing felt his head throbbing; not a single official in the entire court seemed to understand the emperor's urgent needs.

Just as Emperor Qing was about to lash out, someone loudly proclaimed, "Your Majesty, I am willing to lead troops to the southern border and defeat the enemy."

Emperor Qing looked in the direction of the voice and saw that it was Zhuang Rong, the eldest son of the Zhuang family.

He knelt in the center, hands clasped in prayer, facing Emperor Qing with a resolute expression.

Emperor Qing took a deep breath and instinctively felt the heat in his lungs gradually subside, making him feel much more refreshed.

But then he thought of Zhuang Ziyang's matter, hesitated for a moment, and then remained silent.

In the past, ministers skilled at discerning the emperor's intentions would have jumped in to defuse the situation. But today, no one was willing to be the first to step forward. Seeing Zhuang Rong's actions, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, and thus no one voiced any objections to Emperor Qing's expression.

Emperor Keqing remained silent, so Zhuang Rong remained kneeling and did not rise, while everyone else stood upright with their heads bowed and remained silent.

Seeing this, Li Zhen stepped forward, bowed, and said, "Your Majesty, I believe that General Zhuang has performed outstandingly in the war in the Western Frontier and is truly the only suitable candidate."

Upon seeing this, the ministers all seconded the motion.

Seeing this, Li Zhen further said, "Moreover, Prime Minister Zhuang is currently claiming illness and unable to govern. General Zhuang's initiative to volunteer this time must be to relieve His Majesty's worries and to fulfill his filial duty."

Upon hearing this, Emperor Qing snorted.

He understood Li Zhen's words perfectly. However, Zhuang Rong's volunteering at this moment had indeed broken the stalemate in the southern border war.

Emperor Qing was not unaware that two generals had already been lost in the war in the southern border. The previous general was directly killed by the enemy, and Fan Qian had flattered the emperor with false information. Now that the matter had come to light, he committed suicide in the enemy camp.

After repeated setbacks, no one wants to get involved in this mess anymore.

Regardless, Zhuang Rong himself stepped forward to take on the mission in the Southern Frontier, returning the favor, so it's time to let Zhuang Ziyang off the hook.

Moreover, Emperor Qing knew the truth perfectly well.

Zhuang Ziyang was loyal and devoted. He had never befriended any princes during his many years in office. The second and fourth princes tried to win him over on several occasions. In particular, the fourth prince had recently been making connections with important officials in the court through his maternal family, so he would not miss the opportunity to work with the Zhuang family.

Therefore, this folk song could not have been started by the Zhuang family, and he even knew that the matter was vaguely related to the fourth prince. It was only because the Zhuang family's granddaughter was the cause of this matter, and Zhuang Ziyang was inquiring about the salt permit everywhere, that Emperor Qing had to use this as an excuse to give him a small punishment as a warning.

Now that things have come to this, the second son spoke up again...

"In that case, I hereby appoint Zhuang Rong as the General Who Guards the South. General Zhuang will command the troops and depart for the southern border in ten days." Emperor Qing slowly announced the decision, and then said, "Zhuang Rong, your father has been claiming to be ill for many days, but he is much better now. He cannot be idle and leave such a huge mess for me to handle."

Zhuang Rong nodded repeatedly in thanks.

Looking down into the vast hall, he saw not a single person facing him. If Zhuang Ziyang were here, he could simply frown, and the old prime minister, who had been his companion for over a decade, would have come to his rescue. Now, he truly understood what it meant to be 'a lone wolf'.

The news of the lifting of the lockdown reached the Zhuang family mansion as soon as the court session ended.

Within half a day, all the guards at the gate were dismissed.

Li Yang and his companions had been waiting on the main street outside the Zhuang mansion for a long time. They watched as two maroon horses pulled a black carriage to the mansion gate. As the carriage set off again, the yamen runners at the gate also lined up and left.

The gates of the Zhuang mansion slowly opened, and in the setting sun, the dust on the doors shed reflected rays of light.

Li Yang rushed straight into the mansion and saw Zhuang Ziyang and Zhuang Shutong leading people in the courtyard. "Grandfather! Mother!"

Upon seeing the two, Li Yang accelerated and rushed over, causing Zhuang Ziyang, an old man in his seventies or eighties, to barely take a few steps back.

After a long sigh, the three of them went to have their meal.

"Father." A male voice entered the mansion.

Li Yang turned around and saw Fei Ye dressed in a maroon long robe, walking gracefully towards him, accompanied by his uncle Zhuang Rong. Fei Ye's attire was quite different from usual.

"Second Prince?" Zhuang Ziyang asked curiously.

The other party nodded slightly to Prime Minister Zhuang, "Prime Minister Zhuang."

With the arrival of the Second Prince, the prepared dinner was no longer enough.

So, at the suggestion of the Second Prince, the group went to the guest hall to discuss matters.

The Second Prince glanced at Zhuang Shutong, then said to Zhuang Ziyang, "Prime Minister Zhuang, Sister Shutong, I have come today to discuss the matter of Li Lang with you both."

The group of people were each pondering their own thoughts, but now, upon hearing his words, all their gazes turned to Li Zhen.

"I suspect that Li Zhao was the mastermind behind Lang Ge's affair."

His words struck like thunder.