Just moments before, Li Qingchen's face was cold and stern, as if frost could form around him. But after hearing Yuan Que's report from outside the door, he suddenly became much gentler, like the first ripples of early spring spreading across a lake where ice floes were gently parted by willow branches.

But this gentle expression only flashed by under Li Zizhuo's sinister gaze, and in the blink of an eye, he returned to his previous demeanor.

“Just say I’m not here,” Li Qingchen said calmly.

Normally, if his master said such a thing, Yuan Que would immediately go out and send the person away. But today, Yuan Que hesitated and tried again: "But she was crying very sadly, as if she really had something important to say."

These words made Li Qingchen's eyes flicker again, but he still repeated coldly, "Say I'm not here."

Having received the same message from his master twice, Yuan Que felt he had done his best and had no choice but to retreat and reply to Zi Qiao.

Inside the Jingchen Pavilion, Li Zizhuo let out a strange, grating laugh.

Li Qingchen turned to glance at him, "Are you crazy?"

Li Zizhuo stopped laughing, but his lips were still curled up. He placed his hand on Li Qingchen's shoulder and patted it lightly twice: "It's not that I'm crazy, I just find your insincere behavior amusing! You clearly want to know what happened to that young lady from the Wei family, but because I'm here, you can only silently endure it and pretend to be heartless."

At this point, Li Zizhuo burst into laughter again, displaying his utmost sarcasm.

Li Qingchen raised his hand and brushed away the hand that was on his shoulder, his tone cold: "It seems that my elder brother has been planting quite a few spies around me lately."

"Is this something to get angry about? We're brothers, and you see everything I do." As he said this, Li Zizhuo put the hand that Li Qingchen had knocked away behind his back.

He appeared calm, but the hand hidden behind his back was clenched tightly together; the blow from Li Qingchen was truly heavy!

As the two were exchanging words, a commotion arose in the courtyard, and the noise was getting closer and closer to Jingchen Pavilion.

Li Qingchen had excellent hearing and could clearly hear the two sides talking from afar:

"Didn't I tell you my young prince wasn't in the manor? How dare you barge in? You think you can run rampant in the manor with your mediocre skills? Do you really think I can't beat you?!"

"What I'm relying on today isn't this skill, but the life-saving grace my young lady bestowed upon your young prince when he was ambushed and on the verge of death!"

"Oh dear, you little girl, you have no sense of reason at all. Which has saved my young prince more times, your daughter or my young prince?"

"Whether it's a few times or many times, it's all a life-saving grace! Do you think there are ten or eight lives?"

"you!"

...

Upon hearing this, Li Qingchen naturally understood that Yuan Que had failed to stop the Wei family's maid, who had forced her way in. Li Qingchen also knew that Yuan Que's skills far surpassed those of the little girl; it wasn't that he couldn't stop her, but rather that he felt compassion for her.

Although the maidservant was sharp-tongued, her words were tinged with tears, indicating that she was acting out of extreme anxiety and helplessness.

As the commotion drew closer, Li Zizhuo roughly discerned what was happening and chuckled, teasing, "What's wrong? Why don't you hurry up and ask what happened to Miss Wei? Her maid is desperate to see you."

"My relationship with Miss Wei is merely a gentleman's friendship, as light as water," Li Qingchen said calmly, distancing himself from the situation.

"Tsk tsk, you've saved each other's lives several times, and you still call yourselves indifferent? Besides, is she a gentleman or are you the gentleman? Didn't you go in when that young lady was bathing?" Li Zizhu deliberately nudged Li Qingchen with his shoulder, full of provocation.

Li Qingchen's eyes flashed like knives as he glared at Li Zizhuo.

That night, he was ambushed and shot in the chest with an arrow. He had no choice but to break into Wei Shuwan's boudoir at night. It was because Li Zizhuo instructed Yan Biao to expose him to the Imperial City Guard that he was forced to do so. Now, this incident has become a topic of ridicule for Li Zizhuo!

Li Qingchen felt his patience had run out, and just as he was about to explode, the commotion reached the door.

"If you don't want anyone to find out, then leave quickly!" Li Qingchen threatened Li Zizhuo in a low voice.

Li Zizhuo hesitated for a moment, but still moved the screen and hid the instant the door was kicked open.

His appearance clearly identified him as a native of Qiaochuan. If he were seen outside, he could indeed use a fake household registration and a fake travel document to prove he was just a merchant coming to Shengjing to do business. But if he were seen here, it wouldn't make sense.

Zi Qiao rushed into Jingchen Pavilion without regard for her own safety, and immediately saw Li Qingchen standing in the center of the room. Her eyes, brimming with tears, blinked twice, and she said, "So, the young prince is indeed in the manor..."

"Young Prince, this... I couldn't stop her..." Yuan Que knew he had failed in his duty and looked guilty.

Li Qingchen sighed softly, showing a rare good temper: "Alright, you may leave now."

He then asked Ziqiao, "Why are you in such a hurry to see me? What is it about?"

The tears that she had been deliberately holding back burst forth like a dam breaking, and strings of tears rolled down her cheeks. Zi Qiao knelt on the ground: "Young Prince, please save my young lady... she... she has been imprisoned in the Dali Temple prison!"

Li Qingchen narrowed his eyes slightly. "The Dali Temple prison? What crime did she commit?"

"Actually, it's not just my daughter, it's everyone in the Wei family..." Zi Qiao cried so hard that she was somewhat incoherent, but she still tried her best to suppress her emotions and make herself as clear as possible.

From the sudden arrival of Pei Shiyou, the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, with his yamen runners to the Wei family last night to deliver an imperial decree, to their tyrannical dragging of the entire Wei family onto prison carts, and then to her visit Wei Shuwan in prison this morning, Zi Qiao recounted the entire incident in detail.

Although she didn't hear the contents of the imperial edict when it was read aloud, she later learned the reason from Sheng Gong and told Li Qingchen everything.

A shadow fell over Li Qingchen's brow. He had received news of the dam collapse when he sent people to Wu County to investigate the old members of the Wei family. However, such things had happened in every dynasty, and the more massive the project that benefited future generations, the more inevitable the accidents and deaths were.

Usually, such things are overlooked, so he didn't take them too seriously. But now that the Censorate is impeaching Wei Zheng for suspected embezzlement, there might only be two possibilities.

Firstly, Wei Zheng did indeed embezzle funds allocated by the imperial court, using inferior goods to replace superior ones, which led to a man-made disaster. Therefore, he deserved to die.

Secondly, Wei Zheng did not embezzle any money; he was framed and falsely accused, and the other party wanted him to die unjustly.

Even if it's the first scenario, one person's mistake shouldn't lead to the entire family being implicated. It seems there is indeed someone behind this, stirring things up and trying to take this opportunity to wipe out the entire Wei family.

In this light, it seems that this matter may not be aimed at Wei Zheng. After all, although Wei Zheng holds an official title, he has only held a sinecure and has never been involved in officialdom, so how could he be considered a political enemy?

After arriving in the capital, the matriarch of the Wei family lived a secluded life, and the second wife, Madam Sun, did not have much social interaction. Moreover, Wei Chengxiu was blind. Considering all this, it seems that this person came for Wei Shuwan.

Prince Jing's Mansion?