Su Qinghe was feeling annoyed and was taking a nap in his room when he heard a knock on the door. He got up with a dark expression and opened the door, only to find Qin Yunyun standing outside. He asked irritably, "What are you doing here?"
"Your Highness, I have something to discuss with you, it's about the koi fish mark." Qin Yunyun smiled, but her tightly clenched palms were sweaty.
Upon hearing about the koi fish mark, Su Qinghe perked up and quickly pulled Qin Yunyun into the room, saying seriously, "Tell me."
Qin Yunyun's face showed a worried expression. She sighed and said, "I know what troubles Your Highness, but I regret that I am powerless to help you. I can only use my lucky charm to ensure things go smoothly for Your Highness. Now, Su Xiaoning's luck seems to be rising again, so I'm afraid this lucky charm mark is not something that can be unique to one person..."
"You mean—Su Xiaoning's koi fish mark is back?!" Su Qinghe's face suddenly turned ugly, as if he had a lump in his throat.
Qin Yunyun shook her head and said in a low voice, "This hasn't happened yet, but there's no guarantee it won't happen in the future. To prevent this possibility, we either need to eliminate Su Xiaoning completely, or we need to suppress her influence now..."
"You make it sound so easy. How could I not want to eliminate them completely! But as you've seen, that damned Su Qingcai is protecting her. I still need to think this through carefully. As for suppressing their influence, what good ideas do you have?"
"If Your Highness finds it too difficult to suppress her influence, then why not start with me? After all, I am the one everyone recognizes as the 'Holy Maiden.' I have an idea, please listen to it, Your Highness..."
Qin Yunyun whispered in Su Qinghe's ear, her mouth opening and closing, that she had told him the idea that Fu Ruo had taught her.
Upon hearing this, Su Qinghe's expression changed drastically. He shoved Qin Yunyun away and looked at her with a strange expression.
"To commit the same bloodshed as Yunjiang Village... Do you know what that means?"
Qin Yunyun whispered in his ear that they should find a small village near the capital and replicate the Yunjiang Village case from back then. Once the case was solved and they gained a reputation, how could Su Xiaoning erase her contribution?
When Qin Yunyun first heard Fu Ruo mention this idea, she was quite frightened. However, she has now figured it out. It's others who will die, not herself. As long as it benefits her, what does it matter if more Yunjiang Villages are built?
"The Yunjiang Village case shocked the entire capital back then. Since I didn't have the ability to solve the case, I had no choice but to create one myself. Once I solve this major bloody case, I will surely be able to trample Su Xiaoning under my feet. Su Qingcai is no match for Your Highness."
Qin Yunyun chuckled softly, her slightly hoarse voice seemingly carrying a strong allure.
Su Qinghe stared into Qin Yunyun's eyes, as if he were being drawn into a deep vortex. His heart pounded wildly, a mixture of excitement and panic coursing through him. He pulled Qin Yunyun into his arms and buried his face in the crook of her neck.
"Okay... I'll think about it."
...
In the imperial court, the ministers debated their arguments.
The officials then jointly pressured Su Qinghe to provide an explanation for the death of the Minister of Justice, but Su Qinghe remained unusually silent. It wasn't until the emperor released two different investigation reports that the officials exchanged bewildered glances, their faces flushed, and like Su Qinghe, fell silent.
The emperor snorted coldly, tapped the dragon throne, and his icy gaze swept over the timid and cowering figures on it.
“You lot are all incapable of investigating the case yourselves, yet you're so eager to criticize the Ninth Prince. How can you be officials of the court if you believe everything you hear? Now that Lord Cao's case is unsolved, I have handed it over to the Court of Judicial Review to continue the investigation. The Seventh Prince is no longer allowed to interfere, and you need not pressure the Ninth Prince any further.”
To say this openly is to exonerate Su Qingcai.
The ministers below dared not disobey, and all knelt down, nodding and replying "Yes" in unison.
Su Qinghe remained silent and motionless, his venomous gaze like a poisoned knife stabbing towards Su Qingcai.
Su Qingcai remained calm. He didn't even glance at Su Qinghe, but simply handed over the review document, following the normal court procedures.
The emperor nodded slightly, waved his hand to indicate that the matter should not be mentioned again, and then instructed his ministers to report on the various matters.
The governor reported that the north is currently suffering from a drought, resulting in reduced grain production, and many people are starving or dying; the situation is very serious.
Upon hearing this, the emperor frowned and slammed his hand on the dragon throne.
"The common people are suffering from hunger, while extravagance prevails in the capital. This is unacceptable! Issue an order to immediately allocate grain to the north, and at the same time, all officials must practice frugality and refrain from further waste!"
The ministers trembled, not daring to say anything, and could only kneel and answer yes. Su Qingcai, however, said loudly, "Your Majesty, there are several places in the capital that are rife with extravagance and are typical examples of waste. If we do not suppress them, how can we promote the spirit of thrift? As far as I know, Xiuyifang in Jinghu is the biggest money pit in the capital. This place cannot be allowed to exist!"
As he spoke, he suddenly took out a thin piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to the eunuch beside the emperor: "This is the list of regular customers of Xiuyifang. Please take a look, Your Majesty."
This list, obtained from Feng Lin, contains about ten names and details their annual expenses at Xiuyifang. One can imagine the uproar it will cause upon its release.
Almost half of the ministers had visited Xiuyi Workshop, and now they were staring intently at the piece of paper that Su Qingcai had handed over, as if trying to see through the faint ink seeping into the paper to see if their names were on it.
The young eunuch, feeling extremely uneasy, nervously presented the list to the emperor. Upon seeing it, the emperor flew into a rage, his knuckles turning white as he gripped the list.
"The people are suffering, and as officials of the court, you should be concerned about them. Yet you all have devoted your wealth to such places, and who knows how much of the people's hard-earned money you have plundered! Ninth Prince, I order you to thoroughly investigate this matter and find out the complete list!"
"Your subject obeys." Su Qingcai nodded slightly and calmly accepted the order, but the ministers behind him all turned pale.
Judging from the emperor's attitude toward this matter, if they were found out, they would surely be dead!
The emperor coldly swept his gaze across the assembled officials. No one knew who was on the list in his hand, and everyone felt as if the emperor was scrutinizing them. A sense of unease gripped the court, and this tense atmosphere lingered until the court session ended.
Some ministers, with fawning smiles, cautiously approached Su Qingcai and asked, "Ninth Prince, could you reveal who's on that list? We assure you, we will not mistreat you..."
"If you want to know, go ask the Emperor yourself." Su Qingcai smiled slightly, turned around and left gracefully, without even glancing at the group of ministers behind him whose faces had turned green.
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