The carriage stopped at the Mu family.

Ruyi went in to find Mr. Mu, but found that he was very different today. He was not lying on the bed, but sitting on a chair, looking at her with a smile in his eyes.

"It's true that every generation has its own talented people, and each of them leads the trend for hundreds of years!"

He looked at Ruyi and sighed, "I am optimistic about your future. Maybe in my lifetime, I can see something different."

Because he got the news in the morning:

Late at night a few days ago, Ye Hongzhuang went to look for Ruyi.

Ruyi didn't know about Ye Hongzhuang's past, but Mu Yuandao remembered it vividly.

When the late emperor saw Ye Hongzhuang, he was amazed at her extraordinary talent, but it was a pity that she was a girl.

Nowadays, the emperor doesn’t care so much about who is a girl.

After all, Ruyi is the imperial seal holder, right?

Ye Hongzhuang went to visit her and gave her amulet to Ruyi.

Doesn't that prove that Ye Hongzhuang's ambition has been ignited again, and she hopes to see the light that belongs to "her" from Ruyi's generation?

Ye Hongzhuang is only in her thirties this year.

She still has time.

Mu Yuandao thought about these things and felt complicated.

Although as a man, he still believed deep down that this world should be a place where men work outside and women work inside, he had also seen how heroic his granddaughter Mu Rushuang was.

If Ye Hongzhuang's dream comes true, doesn't it mean that his granddaughter Mu Rushuang will also have the opportunity to become a female general with a large army in the future?

It is not just like now, holding a small position in a small palace. Although he is respected as "little general" by thousands of people, he only has a few hundred people at his disposal.

Ruyi didn't know what he was thinking.

Hearing this, he smiled and said, "I cannot afford Grandpa Mu's praise, but I accept your blessing."

"I'll come today and give you another acupuncture treatment."

"good!"

Mu Yuandao nodded, "Then thank you for your help."

He looked at Ruyi for a long time and just said, "Wait for me to go to court."

Ruyi smiled and didn't say much.

It would be inappropriate to say more.

Mu Yuandao had not attended the morning court for four years, and all the affairs of the Ministry of War fell into the hands of Cao Zhizhang.

Therefore, now the Ministry of War is actually on the side of the Third Prince.

But if Mu Yuandao returns to his position, the Ministry of War will turn to support Ruyi, and the situation between him and the third prince will decline at the expense of his own.

Therefore, it is impossible for Ruyi and the third prince to form an alliance. Some things are destined from the beginning.

It’s ridiculous that the Third Prince is still trying to win her over today.

But Ruyi didn't say much about these.

…

Just when Ruyi was giving acupuncture to Mu Yuandao.

The third prince entered the palace, met the emperor, and knelt down and cried, "Father, I never expected that such a big thing would happen at home just two days after I left. My eldest brother died so tragically!"

He knelt on the floor of the Dali Temple, sobbing and wailing, his face full of tears, and was heartbroken.

"Are you sad?"

The emperor sat behind the dragon table, his deep gaze falling quietly on his face, and his calm tone could not reveal his emotions.

This sentence sounds more like a statement.

But this statement implied something very subtle, which the Third Prince could not figure out and made him feel guilty.

All the third prince could do now was cry.

To be precise, for all the princes and princesses at this time, the best choice for everyone was to cry and grieve for it, otherwise it would seem too cold and heartless, and even arouse suspicion.

"Father, I beg you to bring people to catch the assassin and avenge my eldest brother!"

He looked up, indignant.

Because I was still crying, my body was shaking.

The emperor changed the subject and asked, "Has Shen Jiaojiao been caught?"

"……No."

The third prince was choked and could only make excuses.

He took out a half-piece of bloodstained rag and choked up, "We only found this downstream of the cold pond. I guess the person sank to the bottom and she couldn't get out."

"Dead but no body?"

The emperor was very frugal with words and didn't ask many questions.

The Third Prince nodded and said, "The Cold Pond is known as a hopeless place. Even if I were to go down there, I wouldn't last more than half an hour."

"Besides, Shen Jiaojiao was born weak. Even if she hadn't fallen into the cold pond, she would have suffered from stomachache all day. Now that she has fallen into the cold pond, she will definitely die. Please rest assured, father."

The third prince found sufficient evidence to prove that Shen Jiaojiao would never leave alive.

The emperor sneered, "You know Shen Jiaojiao quite well."

These words were like hail hitting the Third Prince.

The Third Prince froze all over and even forgot to cry. He looked at the Emperor in shock, not knowing for a moment what to say.

I was wondering what the emperor meant.

The emperor ordered, "I asked you to capture Shen Jiaojiao, but you only brought back half a piece of cloth, and you didn't even find her accomplice."

"You have not handled this matter well. I order you to reflect on your mistakes behind closed doors for a month and not to leave the Third Prince's residence."

The third prince was stunned, "Please have mercy, father!"

Just one month passed, and I missed the palace examination!

He is a prince, so of course he doesn't need to take part in the palace examination.

But the palace examination is held once every three years, how important is it?

This is the key to the renewal of power in the court. Everyone is trying their best to squeeze their own people in, or try their best to win over students from all sides in an attempt to expand their own lineup!

At the same time, look for opportunities to attack dissidents and weaken the strength of others.

He had already figured out how to benefit himself in the palace examination!

But at this critical moment, the emperor asked him to reflect on his mistakes behind closed doors?

Does not catching Shen Jiaojiao have such a big impact on him?

The third prince was terrified.

He even wondered, if the Second Prince fell within this month and he was put in solitary confinement, what would happen if the Fourth Prince took over?

Moreover, the Fourth Prince is investigating the tax and silver case.

If he succeeds, he will be admitted directly to the East Palace...

The Third Prince's body went cold when he thought of this. "Father, please give me one more chance. I will not let you down this time! Acting is a time when people are needed. I dare not do it alone!"

The emperor rejected him, "I have made up my mind, go away."

"Your Highness, please."

Eunuch Yuan stepped forward and ordered them to leave.

The third prince's face was pale. He no longer cared about acting and left the imperial study in a daze.

What now?

He couldn't really be trapped in the Third Prince's Mansion!

"Your Majesty, do you want to send someone to keep an eye on the Third Prince?"

Eunuch Yuan stepped forward and cautiously asked the emperor what he meant.

The emperor looked down at the memorial and said, "Send a palace guard."

Eunuch Yuan nodded, sent someone out, and then pondered, "Your Majesty, is it possible that Shen Jiaojiao... is really dead?"

"It doesn't matter if she's dead or not."

The emperor did not look up, "The important thing is that the third brother cannot interfere in the palace examination."

Eunuch Yuan suddenly realized.

"Go to the Imperial Concubine and ask Rong Yan to come over. I have something for him to do."

The emperor stood up and went to the side hall.

Eunuch Yuan left quickly.