In the imperial study, the emperor and the marquis were drinking tea with smiles on their faces.
"I've been wanting to purge the Imperial Guards for a while, but I haven't had an excuse. Now's the perfect opportunity!"
The Marquis nodded. “My personal guards are all quite skilled at interrogation. If the Emperor wants to replace someone, why not drag them all into this matter and deal with them all at once? Then, if anyone in court has any complaints, just pin it on me.”
The Emperor had originally intended to do the same, and now that his cousin had brought it up, it was even better.
So he laughed and said, "In that case, the memorials impeaching you for being domineering will pile up on my desk again."
The Marquis, however, was unconcerned and replied, "After we recover Jiangbei next year, I will return to court and retire to travel the world."
"I've been fighting for the past few years, and I'd like to take a break. With me out of court, those old fogies will naturally shut up."
"However, this time they didn't impeach the wrong person. I was indeed a bit domineering just now, not only arresting people but also sealing the palace gates."
"But even though I personally escorted Fu Niu'er to the palace, they still dared to make things difficult for her. If I don't take drastic measures, they will become even more unscrupulous in the future!"
A complex look flashed in the Emperor's eyes, and he asked in a low voice, "Cousin, do you really want to retire and travel? The country will have just been recovered. Even if you are impatient to stay in the capital and enjoy the riches, you should still help me guard the border. How can you just leave?"
The Marquis shook his head, raised his hand to pour him tea, and refused to compromise in the slightest.
"The country is yours, and it's already good enough that I helped you take it back. Besides, there are many people who want to serve you, and you're not lacking in good generals."
Even if they are not capable of defeating the barbarians and reclaiming their territory, they are always competent to diligently guard the border and protect their homeland.
"Stop dragging me along. Let me relax and enjoy the rest of my life."
"To paraphrase Fu Niu'er, even when you're fleecing someone, you can't keep targeting me. You have to find a few more to fleece!"
"These past two years, Fu Niu'er has grown up and is always clamoring to go out and see the world. I want to take her to see the magnificent landscape of Tianwu!"
His tone suggested that he had temporarily forgotten their roles as ruler and subject, and had returned to the close-knit time when the two brothers depended on each other for survival.
If an outsider were to hear this, they would surely shout angrily, "How dare you!"
But the Emperor was pleased and replied with a smile, "Good, good, I'll find someone else to help. Cousin, please rest."
After saying that, he thought for a moment and then said, "I'm sorry that Fu Niu'er was wronged today. I'll have someone sew two more boxes of clothes for her as an apology."
"Good, this girl loves beauty, she'll be happy." Before the Marquis could finish speaking, Steward Yi hurriedly returned from the palace gate.
He held several confessions in his hand, and sure enough, the Imperial Guards soldiers and junior officers who had provoked him were acting under orders.
The person they identified as the mastermind behind it all was the commander of the Imperial Guards.
The emperor was very satisfied, which gave him sufficient reason to overhaul the Imperial Guards.
He wrote down three more names and gave them to Steward Yi, instructing, "Add these three to the list."
Manager Yi immediately bowed in agreement, then took the list and left.
As for how to add the name to the import list, it's not difficult at all.
Under severe torture, you can get the truth out of someone, and of course, you can also get a lie out of someone!
As soon as Steward Yi stepped out, he ran into the Third Princess and Jiayin.
The Third Princess and Jiayin greeted him, and Steward Yi smiled and bowed, saying, "Princess, Princess, His Majesty and the Marquis are having tea, perhaps waiting for you."
The Third Princess nodded, but Jiayin replied with a smile, "Chief Steward Yi, I'll be staying in the palace for a while from now on. Please take good care of me!"
Sure enough, Steward Yi smiled even more warmly, "Your Highness is too kind. If you need anything, just give me your orders."
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Jiayin and the Third Princess went into the study.
The Emperor saw the two young girls holding hands and walked in with smiles on their faces.
For a moment, he actually wanted to thank the Empress Dowager.
Thanks to the Empress Dowager forcing Jiayin to enter the palace, the princess finally gained a good playmate and appeared so happy.
"Father (Uncle Emperor) is well!"
Both girls bowed and greeted each other sweetly.
The Emperor quickly raised his hand to signal them to rise, and said with a smile, "Fu Niu'er, you've finally arrived. If you had been a few days later, the Third Princess would probably have been so anxious that she would have gone to Broken Gold Beach to look for you."
Jiayin sighed, her little face full of dejection and grievance, "If I had known that I would be bullied as soon as I walked in, I really wouldn't have come."
The Emperor quickly comforted her, saying, "Don't be afraid, Fu Niu'er. Your Imperial Uncle has already dealt with those blind lackeys for you. From now on, no one will dare to utter a single word when you enter or leave the palace!"
"Okay, I don't believe anyone else, but I have to believe Uncle Huang!" Jiayin wrinkled her little nose, then took the fruit basket from Shuiling's hand and put it on the table with difficulty.
"Uncle, these are the fruits I picked for you this morning. Do you think they're fresh?"
Before the Emperor could speak, the Third Princess said anxiously, "Father, give me half a bunch of bananas! Jiayin is so stingy; when I asked her for some, she always said she didn't have any!"
The Emperor rarely saw his daughter so lively; she even tried to snatch the fruit from him.
You know, although his daughter has become more sensible in the past two years, she has also become more distant from him.
He immediately replied, "Okay, you can have the whole string. But Jiayin will be staying with you from now on, so you'll have to take good care of her."
"Of course, we're best friends!" The Third Princess readily agreed, making everyone laugh.
After a short while of this small talk, Chief Steward Yi returned and reported, "Your Majesty, the matter is settled."
The Marquis then stood up, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Your Majesty, I'm going to confiscate your property."
"Alright, thank you for your hard work, cousin." The Emperor nodded, then sighed with a hint of guilt, "Cousin, you're going to have to take the blame for me again."
The Marquis replied indifferently, "They are just empty titles; whether they are good or bad is irrelevant."
After saying that, he turned and took his leave.
The Third Princess and Jiayin, not wanting to delay the Emperor's review of memorials, also took their leave.
Jiayin stepped out the door and looked at her godfather's departing figure, feeling a pang of pain in her heart.
Everyone says that the Emperor trusts Marquis Chongting, but no one knows how hard-won this trust is.
An emperor's trust is reserved only for a loyal and devoted minister!
A lone minister stands in opposition to all officials, or even the entire nation, serving only as a weapon in the emperor's hand.
I hope that after my adoptive father recovers Jiangbei and the Tianwu region is unified, he can truly achieve his wish, retire from the army, and let his horses graze in the southern mountains.
She turned to look at the carved sandalwood door of the imperial study, hoping that the person inside would always remember her adoptive father's kindness and wouldn't resort to the tactic of discarding someone after they've served their purpose...
"Jiayin, come on, what are you looking at?" The Third Princess turned around and saw that Jiayin was two steps behind, so she tugged at her arm.
Jiayin composed herself and replied, "I wasn't thinking about anything. Let's hurry back and eat. In the future, when we have nothing to do, we can bake some snacks and bring them over to Uncle Huang to accompany his tea."
"Great!" the Third Princess replied. "Last time, Father said the butterfly cookies I baked were a bit too hard. Do you have any ideas on how to improve them?"
“That’s easy, I’ll teach you later,” Jiayin replied, and the two of them returned to Zhilan Palace.
Shuiyun had indeed tidied up the side hall and prepared lunch.
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