Chapter 464 Is Xie Ning'an important?
"You bitch!"
The Prince of Lingnan kicked Granny Hu hard in the chest, and this time, Granny Hu couldn't get up again. Zhu Junning's expression remained calm; he simply called for someone to come in and drag Granny Hu out. She was just a servant; her death was no big deal.
"It seems that all of this was planned by the Duke of Chu long ago." Zhu Junning poured another cup of tea for the Prince of Lingnan, his voice soft yet tinged with coldness. "Father, the most crucial thing right now is to find out exactly how the Duke of Chu persuaded Suyun to do this. Although Suyun is not a servant born into the household, she has served Grandmother for so many years, and should be loyal by all accounts. We have only been in the capital for a few days, so how could the Duke of Chu have bribed her and made her dare to do such a thing?"
The King of Lingnan gripped the teacup with his knuckles white, his fingertips trembling uncontrollably, causing tiny droplets of tea to swirl around the rim. A few drops of hot tea splashed onto the back of his hand, but he seemed oblivious, saying in a deep voice, "Su Yun's master is not us at all. There is someone else behind her."
Zhu Junning frowned and pondered for a moment, his tone uncertain: "Could it be someone from the Yu family?"
"Who else could it be but the Yu family?" The King of Lingnan gritted his teeth, feeling a lump in his throat, suffocating at the thought of all the troubles the Yu family had caused him over the years.
Zhu Junning's face also darkened, and he pressed, "So, the Yu family has already submitted to the Duke of Chu's mansion?"
"That's most likely the case." The King of Lingnan downed his tea in one gulp, slamming the cup heavily on the table with a dull thud. He continued, "That old man from the Yu family and Madam Yu are blood-related siblings, with a deep bond. These past years, he's been going against us at every turn, to put it bluntly, he just wants revenge for his sister."
The "Yu" he mentioned was the original wife of the old King of Lingnan.
Zhu Junning tightened his grip on his sleeve, looked up at the Prince of Lingnan, and said thoughtfully, "Grandmother mentioned before that Yu's son might not have died back then. If that's true, he might have been raised in the Yu family."
"Hmph!" The King of Lingnan snorted heavily, a ruthless glint in his eyes. "If we can weather this crisis, once I return to Lingnan, I will make sure the Yu family is completely annihilated!"
Even so, he knew that the Yu family was far away in Lingnan, and the most important thing right now was not to deal with the Yu family, but to deal with the emperor and Jiang Yu. He silently took a few deep breaths to suppress his anger and said to Zhu Junning, "Tomorrow, go to the Dali Temple and say that you want to see your grandmother."
"Yes," Zhu Junning answered readily, though he knew perfectly well what was going on. They certainly wouldn't be able to meet her. But this act had to be performed; they couldn't let outsiders think that he and his daughter were cold-blooded and heartless towards Pei Tinglan.
Moreover, this was also meant for the Prime Minister's benefit. Although the Prime Minister had no way out and could only be tied to them, if he felt that they had given up on Pei Tinglan too early, he would inevitably harbor resentment and might act perfunctorily in the future.
"You must be tired too, go back and rest." The King of Lingnan's voice sounded weary. Zhu Junning was indeed exhausted, so he stood up, bowed to him, and turned to leave the study.
...
Inside the imperial study, after dismissing Jiang Yu and the others, the emperor kept only Prince An. Just as he was about to give important instructions, a eunuch entered to announce, "Your Majesty, Prince Rui has arrived."
The emperor summoned a eunuch and immediately asked, "How is the Empress Dowager's health?"
Emperor Ruiqin bowed and replied, "It's the same as always. However, my mother heard about the matter between the Duke of Chu and the King of Lingnan and is somewhat worried. She specifically sent me to check on the situation."
The emperor waved for him to sit down, his tone softening: "Tell your mother that this was a plan that I and the Duke of Chu had discussed beforehand, so she doesn't need to worry."
Prince Rui responded with an "Mm," glanced at Prince An sitting to the side, and rose to take his leave. But the Emperor said, "Why don't you stay and listen too?"
Prince Rui sat down as instructed. The Emperor turned his gaze to Prince An and asked, "How much evidence have you found against Pei Chengkun?"
Prince An took a memorial from his sleeve and presented it to the emperor. The emperor took the memorial, opened it, and frowned more and more as he read it. After finishing, he clutched the memorial tightly and remained silent for a long time. Although he had expected this evidence, even with it, he could not immediately punish Pei Chengkun.
Pei Chengkun had served as prime minister for many years, and his influence far surpassed that of Pu Tonghe. While obtaining evidence of Pu Tonghe's crimes allowed him to immediately confiscate his property and exterminate his entire clan, Pei Chengkun could not do the same. Acting rashly could potentially trigger turmoil in the court and even lead to greater chaos.
Prince An naturally understood this principle, and stood quietly to the side with his eyes lowered. At this moment, Prince Rui suddenly spoke up: "If we can't deal with Pei Chengkun for the time being, why not start with his subordinates?"
These words startled both the Emperor and Prince An, but their eyes immediately lit up. This was indeed the safest approach at the moment. Since they couldn't touch Pei Chengkun for the time being, they should first eliminate his peripheral forces. This would weaken his foundation and also serve as a warning to those around Pei Chengkun, making them realize the difficulty and back down.
"Great idea!" the emperor couldn't help but exclaim in praise.
Prince Rui did not want to stay any longer, so he stood up and said, "The Empress Dowager is still waiting for my reply, so I will go back now."
This time, the emperor did not try to keep him. He gave him a few more instructions, such as "Take good care of the Empress Dowager" and "Report any developments immediately," before letting him leave. Afterward, the emperor turned to Prince An and said, "Compile a list of Pei Chengkun's henchmen as soon as possible. Once the list is ready, take action immediately."
"Your subject obeys the decree."
...
In a secluded courtyard in the capital, the Prime Minister, the Earl of Qingshan, and the Crown Prince sat facing each other in silence. Jiang Yu's actions today had a significant impact on them. The Earl of Qingshan, in particular, had been dragged into the palace by Jiang Yu earlier, and the memory still lingered in his mind.
The Crown Prince was the first to lose his patience. Looking at the two silent men, he said with a hint of impatience, "Say something! What are we going to do now that things have come to this?"
The Prime Minister and the Earl of Qingshan both frowned. The Earl of Qingshan, being the Crown Prince's maternal grandfather, spoke first to reassure him, "What's the rush? We're trying to find a solution, aren't we?"
The Crown Prince opened his mouth, wanting to say more accusatory words, but seeing the Prime Minister's darkening expression, he swallowed his words. The Prime Minister glanced at him indifferently and asked in a flat tone, "According to Your Highness, how should we deal with this situation?"
"solitary……"
The crown prince's face flushed crimson, and he was momentarily speechless. If he knew what to do, he wouldn't be sitting here asking them. But he knew his situation; he absolutely couldn't say those words aloud. He secretly resolved that once he truly ascended to the throne, he would exact his revenge tenfold.
The shrewd and calculating prime minister could tell what he was thinking just by looking at his expression, but he didn't care at all. What could a puppet emperor who couldn't even make up his own mind accomplish, even if he sat on the throne?
He turned to look at the Earl of Qingshan, then changed the subject: "Princess Junning met with Xie Ning'an once before, and learned from Xie Ning'an that the amount of silver flowing into the national treasury in the past six months is far less than the eighty million taels that the Duke of Chu mentioned."
Uncle Qingshan looked puzzled, not understanding the Prime Minister's intention in bringing this up at this time, but still cooperated by asking, "Then how many are there in reality?"
"Xie Ning'an said there are only over thirty million taels." The Prime Minister drooped his eyelids, tapped his fingers lightly on the table, and after a moment of contemplation, said, "I have never been sure whether Xie Ning'an truly hates Jiang Yu, and what he really wants."
"But now, is Xie Ning'an important?" Uncle Qingshan was also getting impatient, his tone tinged with irritation. "No matter what Xie Ning'an thinks, the Xie family has long since fallen. Now he's just a lone wolf, and he can't cause any trouble at all."
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