Chapter 226 What kind of sweet talk did King Xuan give you?
Erfeng tugged at his beard and chuckled.
"Sister Qiang has been searching for the First Prince all these years. Now that she has returned to the border, she doesn't know how to settle her down."
"Miss Ke'er needs a martial arts master; she's truly the prince's lucky star!"
Shen Cong glanced at him sideways.
Erfeng nodded earnestly and emphasized it again.
"Little Lucky Star!"
Shen Cong left without saying a word, his hands behind his back.
As he turned around, a silent smile appeared on his lips.
When Li Nanke returned home, the sun had already set.
She left Zisu at the door to wait for Nangong Qiang, and then told Li Mu and Song Yi about how she had found a martial arts master.
Song Yi was initially delighted upon hearing this.
"If Ke'er could protect herself, that would be wonderful. These days, things have been going on and on, and I'm terrified."
Then he became worried, "Ke'er is a girl after all. If she practices martial arts, won't she become big and burly? How will we find her a husband then?"
But her concerns quickly dissipated after meeting Nangong Qiang.
He muttered to himself, "Look at Master Nangong, he's tall and slender, and you can't see any trace of martial arts training at all."
Nangong Qiang was highly skilled in martial arts, so she naturally heard Song Yi's laughter and mutterings.
Thinking that Song Yi was questioning her martial arts skills, she immediately raised her hand and swung a palm in the air.
In an instant, a wind picked up in the courtyard, and the ginkgo tree, about half a person's thickness, planted in the southeast corner swayed in the wind.
Golden ginkgo leaves fluttered down, but seemed to be attracted by a suction force in mid-air, gathering together.
Then it landed steadily at Nangong Qiang's feet, forming a circle.
Song Yi and Li Mu were dumbfounded.
Song Yi, in particular, looked at Nangong Qiang with eyes that instantly filled with admiration.
I never knew women could be this amazing!
If it weren't for Nangong Qiang's cold face, Song Yi would have gone up and touched her hand.
He quickly instructed Mama Tao, "Make proper arrangements for Master Nangong, just let her..."
Li Nanke said, "Master Nangong can stay with me and live in my courtyard."
Song Yi readily agreed.
"Alright, alright, whatever you say!"
Li Nanke asked Zisu to lead Nangong Qiang downstairs to settle in and rest.
Li Mu grabbed her, looking suspicious.
"Such a skilled female master is hard to find. Where did you find her? Is she trustworthy?"
Li Nanke didn't hide it from him.
“He was a servant of Prince Xuan, and the prince gave him to me.”
Upon hearing that it was Shen Cong's person, Li Mu's face immediately fell.
"Ke'er, didn't your father tell you that you're not allowed to have any further contact with Prince Xuan? You..."
Li Nanke blinked her big eyes, looking completely innocent.
"Father, I am now Princess Zhaokang's study companion. In a few days, I will be studying with the princess. His Majesty has also allowed the prince to attend classes occasionally."
"It's impossible for me not to see the Prince."
"Besides, the prince isn't as bad as the rumors say. Perhaps you could try to get to know him better, Father?"
Li Mu frowned and touched her forehead, his expression grim.
"What kind of sweet talk did Prince Xuan give you? My dear daughter, let me tell you, although your father is not an official in the court, he knows what Prince Xuan is doing."
At such a young age, he took command of the Imperial Guards, and in just the past six months, the number of people whose homes he had confiscated was countless.
It is said that someone knelt before him for three days and three nights, kowtowing until their head bled, yet he still killed them without hesitation.
Li Mu looked around, then leaned close to Li Nanke's ear and whispered very softly.
"Not to mention his murder of his brother and mother, how could you possibly get involved with such a vicious person?"
This was not the first time Li Nanke had heard about Shen Cong killing his brother and mother.
She looked around, mimicking Li Mu, and asked in a low voice, "Father, what exactly happened with Prince Xuan killing his brother and mother?"
Li Mu sighed and pointed inside the house.
The father and daughter went into the room and began whispering to each other.
Li Mu said, "This all happened four years ago. You were young then, so you don't know about these things."
Although His Majesty quelled the Rebellion of the Five Princes back then, all five princes who participated in the rebellion were defeated one after another, captured alive and brought back to the capital.
Out of consideration for their brotherhood, His Majesty did not order the execution of the five princes, but instead ordered them all to be imprisoned. At the time, the court officials all praised His Majesty for his leniency.
It was Prince Xuan, who was only eight years old at the time, who ordered people to brew poison and force-feed it to the five princes, who reportedly died on the spot.
By the time His Majesty arrived, the five princes' bodies were already stiff. Yet Prince Xuan insisted that to nip the problem in the bud, one must eliminate the root cause; if the five princes weren't killed, their rebellious followers would always remain among the people.
Li Nanke frowned.
"Then what about the matricide?"
Li Mu's voice became even softer.
"On the second day after His Majesty ascended the throne, he issued an edict to confer titles on the Empress Dowager and the Empress. However, the Empress Dowager did not appear on the day of the investiture ceremony."
His Majesty led his men to the Empress Dowager's palace, only to find that she had already passed away, bleeding from all seven orifices, clearly poisoned.
At that time, there was no one else by the Empress Dowager's side except Prince Xuan. Although His Majesty issued a gag order afterward and executed the palace maids and nannies who served the Empress Dowager.
But rumors still spread, and many people said that Shen Cong had personally poisoned the Empress Dowager!
Li Nanke was completely confused.
"The Empress Dowager was Shen Cong's biological mother, so why would he poison his own mother?"
Li Mu curled his lip.
"Who knows? Who can say for sure about royal matters? But everyone says that Prince Xuan is now coughing up blood three times a day and has become a sickly person."
"It was because he was so rebellious that he was punished by heaven."
Li Nanke was speechless.
Shen Cong became sickly because someone had placed a "blood curse" on him.
It's not some divine retribution.
"Father, how could you believe such rumors? I don't think Prince Xuan is that kind of person."
Li Mu glared at him, "There's no smoke without fire. Anyway, you're not allowed to have much contact with him in the future. Just say hello when you see him, understand?"
Li Nanke gave a perfunctory reply and left.
Li Mu could easily see through his daughter's perfunctory attitude, and he stomped his feet in anger.
He muttered to himself, "I wonder what kind of spell that brat cast on Ke'er! Never mind, I need to choose an official soon too."
Once I'm elected as an official, I'll work really hard. With a powerful backer, Ke'er won't go looking for those shady characters outside!
Meanwhile, Yintai Division.
Although it was late, the lights inside were still on.
The supervisors are still sorting through the reports they received today, which will be sent to various departments below.
"Ha ha ha ha!"
Suddenly, one of the supervisors slapped his thigh and laughed so hard he almost fell over.
The supervisor frowned. "What are you laughing at?"
The supervisor handed over the document he was holding.
"My lord, take a look at this memorial. Oh my, it's absolutely hilarious!"
The supervisor took the document and saw a line of small characters written in the lower right corner: "Li Mu of the Marquis of Anping's Mansion recommends himself."
He raised an eyebrow. "Is that Li Mu, the one who was imprisoned in the Censorate for over a month for signing in on behalf of someone else at the yamen?"
The supervisor nodded.
"That's him. Because of him, the higher-ups ordered a strict investigation into the attendance of officials in various government offices. My brothers have been working day and night for a month straight."
When this matter was mentioned, everyone felt a pang of sympathy.
When you're on duty, working from nine to five, there are always times when you want to slack off.
So sometimes when someone is a little late or leaves early, the superiors turn a blind eye, and everyone tacitly understands the situation.
But because of that kid Li Mu, no one dares to be late or leave early now.
You can have someone else sign in for you, fine, but you keep doing it year after year, and you don't even know which way the government office gates face!
The supervisor felt a surge of anger upon recalling this incident.
"Supervisor, perhaps we shouldn't submit Li Mu's memorial to the Ministry of Personnel?"
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