The next evening.

Imperial Physician Yang was sorting out the prescriptions with the help of the Imperial Physician, when Eunuch Yin beside Emperor Shangwen suddenly came over.

"Meet Lord Yang."

Eunuch Yin had a flattering look on his face and greeted him with a smile.

"The Emperor invites Sir Yang to meet at the Hall of Supreme Harmony later."

Hall of Supreme Harmony? Isn't that where the banquet is held?

I haven't heard of any banquets held in the court recently.

Doctor Yang looked a little confused and was about to ask, but Eunuch Yin saw through him.

"Master Yang..."

He looked around and saw no one around, so he lowered his voice.

"The Emperor only invited you. Others don't have this blessing."

After hearing his explanation, Doctor Yang understood.

It turned out to be a private banquet!

"Please report this to His Majesty. I will be here shortly."

Doctor Yang put away the prescription, went back to his room and changed into decent clothes.

…

[Mother, mother, please look at me wearing this outfit, is it ok? ]

Inside the Queen's Palace.

Xiao Ruyu put on her usual silk and satin clothes and gestured excitedly in front of the bronze mirror.

After Queen Duan put on the jewelry, she held her on her lap and looked her over carefully.

"My daughter Yu'er has become more and more beautiful. I wonder which young man she will marry in the future."

[Mother——]

Lying in her arms, Xiao Ruyu spoke coquettishly.

[Yu'er is still young and just wants to be with her mother. ]

Nanny Cui came to report, "Empress, the Emperor has moved to the Hall of Supreme Harmony. It's time for us to go there too."

"Okay, let's move."

Queen Duan put away her smile and took Xiao Ruyu to the Hall of Supreme Harmony.

Inside the Hall of Supreme Harmony.

As soon as I arrived at the palace gate, I ran into the eunuchs and palace maids who were busy with work. I could faintly hear the sound of a flute, the pavilions with wind and water, and the bright moon and pearly walls.

"Your father still loves to listen to Xiao so much."

Holding Xiao Ruyu's little hand, Queen Duan covered her face with a handkerchief and chuckled.

An idea suddenly flashed through Xiao Ruyu's mind. The storybook also mentioned the reason why Emperor Shangwen loved listening to the flute. She leaned close to Empress Duan's arm and asked in a low voice.

[Is my mother the best at playing the flute? ]

Queen Duan smiled without saying anything, but she could no longer suppress the smile on her lips.

[It seems to be true! Daddy really loves Mom the most! ]

The moment he stepped into the hall, the sound of the flute slowly stopped.

The flute player knelt down and saluted, "Greetings to Her Majesty the Queen, Princess Fu'an."

Emperor Shangwen stretched out his hand in the hall, gently helped Empress Duan to sit beside him, and spoke with a faint smile.

"The Queen is usually the most punctual. Why did you arrive so late today?"

[Daddy, it’s too late for mom to choose clothes for me.]

Seeing him asking, Xiao Ruyu came closer and turned around by pinching the edge of her skirt.

【Daddy, please take a look at my outfit and see if it looks good.】

Looking at her bright smile, Emperor Shangwen felt a warm current in his heart and picked her up and placed her aside.

"My little princess looks good in anything she wears, just like the queen."

Doctor Yang had already taken a seat at the bottom. Looking at this scene, he couldn't help but raise his glass and sigh, "The Emperor and the Empress have a very deep relationship."

"Okay, let's get started."

Emperor Shangwen was in a good mood. With a wave of his hand, the banquet officially began.

Many dancers were invited to the banquet. For a while, there was singing and dancing in the hall, and the dancers' sleeves fluttered in the wind.

【There are many beautiful women. 】

Xiao Ruyu was also distracted for a moment, staring at the dancers intently.

After the dance, the food was gradually served.

Doctor Yang picked up the delicate cold dishes and arranged them on a plate. Thinking of the bitter days he had gone through, he couldn't help but feel a mixture of emotion.

"Your Majesty, the things that have happened in the past few days are really thrilling."

"At this moment, I am sitting here unharmed, and I feel lucky in my heart."

Emperor Shangwen moved the wine glass in his hand to the side, narrowed his eyes slightly, and asked, "Can you tell me more about this?"

Taking this opportunity, Doctor Yang lifted up his clothes, walked to the center of the hall, knelt down, and recounted the events of the past few days one by one.

"As I traveled west, I discovered that many disasters in these places were not natural disasters but man-made disasters!"

After hearing his words, Emperor Shangwen's face became serious and he listened carefully.

"Not only did some officials suddenly fall ill due to witchcraft, but even the flood and locust incident was manipulated by someone behind the scenes!"

"Is it really like that?!" Emperor Shang Wen tightly gripped the wine glass, his eyes suddenly becoming cold.

"Every word I say is true."

Doctor Yang spoke word by word, reporting clearly what had happened in the past few days.

When she heard about what the evil cult had done in the village and the corpses everywhere, Queen Duan's hand trembled and the wine glass fell to the ground with a clang.

"Such a thrilling thing?!"

She held the handkerchief in her hand and hugged Xiao Ruyu in her arms, her eyes full of heartache.

"I didn't expect that Yu'er had suffered so much injustice outside, and it was inevitable that she would lose a lot of weight."

Emperor Shangwen said nothing, his face gradually becoming gloomy.

Doctor Yang took the opportunity to reveal Prime Minister Lu's affairs.

"Not only that, I also found out that Mr. Lu used the excuse of resigning from his post and returning home to secretly collude with the cult."

"Everything is extremely bad!"

"I hope the emperor will conduct a thorough investigation!"

The sound of the wine glass hitting the ground was clearly audible. Emperor Shangwen was furious and threw the wine glass in his hand to the side. "Under the emperor, such a thing actually happened!"

"I will punish you severely!"

Seeing the anger in his eyes and his fingers trembling slightly, Queen Duan quickly touched his hand.

"Your Majesty, please calm down. It would be disgraceful if you get sick from anger."

"Since Imperial Doctor Yang has found some clues, we can just continue to trace the cause."

When Emperor Shangwen calmed down a little, Empress Duan turned her gaze to Imperial Physician Yang, who had been kneeling for a long time, and spoke softly.

"These days, thanks to Doctor Yang who has been handling all these matters behind the scenes, the emperor should reward him."

"This is what I should do. I must not take it for granted."

Doctor Yang knelt on the ground in fear and trepidation, his feet feeling a little numb.

[Mother, please let Master get up first. His legs are twitching.]

Xiao Ruyu, who felt sorry for his master, spoke quietly from the side.

Emperor Shangwen reacted and heard what Xiao Ruyu said, his mouth twitched slightly, "Get up, you are a meritorious minister, I will definitely reward you!"

"Pass the order down!"

Eunuch Yin rushed out from the side and listened to the imperial edict.

Emperor Shangwen straightened his posture and looked calm.

"Yang Xufeng has made meritorious contributions in the investigation and in the flood control in the south of the Yangtze River, and he will be rewarded for both his merits.

"I hereby order you to grant me an annual salary of 1,000 taels of gold, a mansion in the south of the city, and to establish my own palace. I decree this."

Doctor Yang quickly knelt down to express his gratitude, "Thank you, Your Majesty. Long live the emperor."

[A thousand taels of gold? A mansion? Daddy, you are so generous! ]

Xiao Ruyu's eyes lit up, and as if she remembered something, she immediately ran down from the hall.

She took the hand of Eleven who was standing beside her and knelt down in front of Emperor Shangwen.

"Dad, Eleven has protected me along the way and helped Master a lot. Please give him a reward as well."

Eleven was unwilling to seek credit, but when he met Emperor Shangwen's gaze, he immediately fell to the ground.

"In that case, let's enjoy it together!"