Chapter 82: What are you mumbling about?
Pei Ji naturally would not suffer in silence when such a thing happened. After returning home, he asked Lin Feng to bring Chun Jian into the palace and tell Emperor An the whole story.
The reason why the Fourth Prince dared to threaten so confidently was simply because he thought the letter he had secretly placed was still there, and he had no idea that the assassin had already died at his hands.
Pei Ji also wanted to take this opportunity to see what Emperor An would do and whether he would remind them that there was something inside the Pei Mansion.
Even Emperor An did not expect that the Fourth Prince would cause such troubles just after being released from house arrest. Knowing that Pei Ji cared about his legitimate monarch the most, why did he have to provoke him!
Emperor An comforted him with a few words as usual, gave him some rewards, and then sent Lin Feng out of the palace.
From the beginning to the end, there was no mention of asking the Pei family to be vigilant about such words. It was obvious that he wanted to use this to shackle the Pei family.
"I understand. You can leave now." Pei Ji listened to the whole story quietly, but then he was too lazy to listen any further.
The emperor was ruthless and suspicious. In the final analysis, he did not believe in the loyalty of the Pei family, and he wanted to take advantage of the troubles caused by the princes to suppress them secretly.
He Zhiliao wanted to say something soothing, but what could he say? Those treasonous words could not come from the mouths of the Pei family.
"Now that His Majesty needs a prince who can compete with the Crown Prince, he will naturally be more lenient with him. We don't need to rush at this moment." This time it was He Zhiliao who held him and coaxed him softly. His hoarse voice was occasionally intermittent, but still gentle.
"I just don't want you to suffer any injustice," Pei Ji said. "If he wants to go crazy, then let him go crazy to his heart's content."
He Zhiliao didn't understand what he meant, but he soon knew what he was referring to.
After nightfall, the capital was still patrolled in batches by the police battalion, and no one noticed several figures carrying heavy objects that flashed by.
The second day.
The area in front of the Fourth Prince's residence was bustling with activity. He had just been released from house arrest these few days, and many officials had secretly supported him, so it was normal for them to send him some gifts to show their loyalty.
When it was getting dark today, the doorman heard a knock on the door. Many people would give gifts at this time, so he didn't think much about it and opened the door directly.
As soon as he opened it, a disgusting fishy smell hit him in the face. Before he could bend over to vomit, he saw the bodies lying neatly on the ground. The doorman had never seen such a scene before and screamed in fear.
This shrill howl woke up everyone in the Fourth Prince's Mansion, and even the people in the officials' residences next to the Prince's Mansion were woken up.
"Oh, how come so many people died? Was it the Fourth Prince who killed them? Can we ordinary people just be killed at will?"
"Who knows? Maybe he offended someone? It's too bloody and scary!"
"Oh my God, this is too disregarding of human life!"
“…”
People were all there to watch the fun, and they all came over. When they saw this tragic and horrifying scene, they immediately started talking about it, wondering if the Fourth Prince had done something bad to offend someone, otherwise why would such a thing happen!
When the Fourth Prince heard the news, he naturally came out to see. He didn't know what was going on until he saw it. His heart suddenly skipped a beat.
Others could not recognize these bodies, but he could.
They were clearly the servants who followed him when he was talking to He Zhiliao yesterday. The one who died the most miserably was the one who led He Zhiliao over.
Without thinking too much, he knew who did it!
"Pei Ji!" He squeezed out these two words from between his teeth, wishing he could bite the owner of the name into mud.
Wasn't it just about bringing his legitimate husband to talk? Why would he be so cruel and cause him so much trouble!
"Your Highness, what should we do?" The subordinate came up to him and asked in a low voice, with obvious fear in his eyes.
Fortunately, they were all the Fourth Prince's trusted subordinates, so Pei Ji couldn't deal with them all. But this was undoubtedly a warning and a threat, like a hanging knife that could fall and behead them at any time.
The Fourth Prince gritted his teeth and said, "What do you think we should do? Why don't we get rid of all this right away?"
He glanced at the crowd, trying to see if the murderer was still among them, but he didn't know that his red eyes at this time made others feel scared. The crowd retreated one after another, and they were more convinced that it was retribution for his evil deeds.
He turned around and went back into the mansion, no longer paying attention to what was happening outside.
The servants in the mansion quickly carried the body away and cleaned up the remaining bloodstains.
The matter was reported to An Di in the blink of an eye.
"Your Majesty, this matter is extremely egregious. I wonder what the Fourth Prince has done next. This must be thoroughly investigated!"
"You can't say that. If you need to investigate, then investigate. How can the Fourth Prince be innocent?"
"The body has been placed at the doorstep. How can the Fourth Prince be innocent? Who would do such a thing unless he secretly offended someone? Your Majesty, in my humble opinion, the Fourth Prince must be summoned for questioning!"
The Censorate was supposed to supervise all civil and military officials. Those who spoke frankly against their superiors should not be put to death. If there was even a slightly valid reason, the censors would not easily let go of such mistakes.
The matter has been brought to the attention of the people. If we want to maintain our reputation, we must investigate this matter thoroughly. Otherwise, when the people mention the royal family in the future, won’t they all be considered cruel and inhumane?
They quarreled constantly, not because they were deliberately siding with one another, but because officials always had different ideas, and sometimes when they quarreled, they just wanted to pick a fight with each other.
The censors of the Censorate were all charging into battle at the front, so it was naturally not the turn of Pei Ji, a subordinate, to say much. He just stood in the crowd and listened silently, but he knew that An Du would definitely question him about this matter.
Because he had just had a conflict with the Fourth Prince yesterday.
"Lord Pei, please tell me." Emperor An sat upright and looked down, picking out Pei Ji at a glance.
He stared at Pei Ji with deep eyes, and naturally he didn't believe that this matter had nothing to do with Pei Ji.
Here it comes.
Pei Ji sighed inwardly, but still stood up and said directly: "I just had a conflict with the Fourth Prince yesterday. To avoid suspicion from others, I am not in a position to say more."
Emperor An didn't expect him to say this, and his eyes suddenly changed slightly, but Pei Ji, who lowered his eyes, couldn't see it, and even if he saw it, it wouldn't matter.
"Just tell me what you think."
"In my humble opinion, we should invite the Fourth Prince in for thorough questioning, and then let the patrol camp investigate who dares to do such a heinous thing under the feet of the emperor! It's obvious that they want to frame the Fourth Prince, and we must not tolerate it!" He deliberately spoke with righteous indignation, and emphasized one of the words, which made it obvious that he wanted to keep himself out of the matter.
He can naturally trust the people under him to do their work.
The patrol camp will not find out anything, and will then investigate and question anyone who has been close to the Fourth Prince or has had conflicts with him recently. Pei Ji doesn't believe that after such an incident, anyone would still be willing to get close to the Fourth Prince?
After hearing what he said, the court officials who already supported a strict investigation became even more supportive.
The censors are inherently upright. If they agree with each other, they will say the same thing. If they disagree, they will argue with each other until the end of time.
This matter is of great importance, and the Fourth Prince must be summoned for questioning.
The Fourth Prince had anticipated this and had prepared his excuse long before. After being summoned into the meeting hall, he immediately knelt down and cried, begging for mercy.
"Father, please forgive me. It was all because of my misconduct that I was framed by someone with ulterior motives. I shouldn't have gotten carried away. This is all my fault!"
These words not only admitted his fault, but also put the blame on the murderer. He was clearly saying that someone secretly disliked his smugness and deliberately did this.
There are many people who dislike him, and the most suspicious one is the crown prince, who is also a prince like him. It is not surprising if he is harmed in this way.
Since they couldn't find the murderer and couldn't get the truth from the Fourth Prince, they could only send people to investigate randomly, but there were no clues and any further investigation would only lead to a mess.
Not to mention, the Fourth Prince is a prince, and Emperor An always has to maintain the face of the royal family.
Hearing him say this, Emperor An actually felt relieved. He scolded him in a deep voice: "You are already this old, and yet you still keep acting like this! Considering that you have a good attitude in admitting your mistakes, I will fine you half a year's salary. Don't behave like this again in the future!"
The Fourth Prince kowtowed, "Thank you, Father, for your forgiveness. I will remember this and will never do it again."
The court officials looked at each other in bewilderment. This matter had caused such a stir, yet His Majesty just let it go so easily?
Even if they were unwilling to believe it, His Majesty had already spoken, and no matter how dissatisfied they were, they could only swallow their words back.
What's more, His Majesty's attitude is unclear, and it seems that he wants to reuse the Fourth Prince.
The only available princes now are the Crown Prince and the Fourth Prince. There is an ongoing game of chess between the two, and no one knows who will have the last laugh. Naturally, the court officials dare not say anything more. The more they speak, the more mistakes they make. Even for the sake of their families, they have to be cautious.
After leaving the meeting hall, Pei Ji went with the Censor of the Metropolitan Censorate. This superior usually behaved in an upright and honest manner. He did not know how he was being wooed by those princes, but he never compromised.
He is loyal only to His Majesty Tianqi.
The old man stroked his beard and turned to look at him. "Why make such a big deal out of this? He didn't gain anything in the end."
"Sir, why do you ask when you already know the answer? He offended my king. If you can tolerate this, you are definitely not a gentleman, nor a human being." Pei Ji did not quarrel with him. He understood what the old man meant. He did not want him to make a fuss that could not be resolved.
But Pei Ji was not afraid. Even if the matter was really investigated and all the blame fell on him, what would it matter?
After all, it was not a capital crime, so he could only be acquitted.
"It's a good thing that you love your wife so much." The old man patted his shoulder gently. "By the way, I heard that Jingxing wanted an inkstone. I have a very good one in my house. I'll have someone send it to him later."
"Thank you, sir." Pei Ji felt like thanking you.
He knew that his second brother wanted an inkstone. The inkstones in the capital were all vulgar objects, which he looked down upon. He only wanted those extremely valuable collections. But if others really had these things, they would have collected them for themselves long ago. Why would they give them away?
But unexpectedly, this little old man actually got it.
If you think about it carefully, the two brothers have been officials in the court for several years, so naturally they have their own colleagues and close friends. It’s just that due to the special status of the Pei family, they dare not interact with them openly.
Just like Pei Ji at this moment, let alone now, even in his previous life, he didn't know that his second brother had such a relationship with the Censor-in-Chief.
Having hidden it so well before, he was now willing to reveal a little to him. Pei Ji vaguely guessed something, but did not dare to say much, for fear of implicating the other party before the matter was settled.
But he felt much more at ease.
The old man patted him on the shoulder without saying anything else, then he walked quickly forward. Old guys like them always had to be quick and nimble and not cause trouble for the younger generation.
As he turned the corner, he heard several footsteps behind Pei Ji. He turned his head and saw that the Fourth Prince had come with the Crown Prince.
Pei Ji pretended not to see it and continued walking forward.
"Master Pei!"
Pei Ji closed his eyes, turned around and bowed, "Your Highness the Crown Prince, Your Highness the Fourth Prince, are you well?"
The Fourth Prince immediately sneered, "With Lord Pei here, this prince is truly uneasy. Your actions have truly impressed me. Lord Pei, are you really going to expose your weaknesses like this?"
"Whether it's good or not, doesn't the Fourth Prince know it?" Pei Ji had a smile on his face and a respectful expression, but his words were not so respectful. "My Pei family is the most protective of its people. If the Fourth Prince really wants to know whether it's good or not, then give it a try."
The prince stared at the two of them, his gaze still gloomy, but now with a hint of a smile on his face, "Fourth brother, why do you have to upset Lord Pei? After all, we once had some friendship, so you shouldn't embarrass him like this. Lord Pei Sizheng is just a mute. If he was really bullied, he wouldn't dare to speak up for help."
Pei Ji's gaze slowly shifted to the prince. There was no need to explain what this meant.
As expected, people who are bad to begin with will never change.
"Your Highness, this is a very good move, perfect for a surprise attack." Pei Ji was not in the least bit tolerant. "If I dislike someone in the future, I will definitely cut off their tongue first. No matter how they cry for help, it will be useless and they will only be waiting for death."
"How dare you! Pei Ji, is this the attitude you should use when talking to me?" The prince didn't dare to admit it. At that moment, he was really frightened by the other party's eyes.
Pei Ji's eyes seemed to be saying that he would be treated as he said in the future!
Pei Ji snorted and laughed, "Your Highness, why are you so hasty and harsh? If you get hurt, wouldn't that be my fault? I guess Your Highness has a unique way to calm your anger. I heard that when He died, her body was covered with bruises. I wonder how she got hurt."
Upon hearing this, the prince was startled.
His throat rolled slightly, and he looked at Pei Ji with a sinister look. He didn't believe that Pei Ji was just talking. Maybe he had discovered something, but he definitely had no evidence to prove what he said.
The Fourth Prince on the side narrowed his eyes and looked at the Crown Prince thoughtfully.
It can be seen that no one can gain any benefit by confronting Pei Ji head-on. If one really touches the mute in his family, he will probably get unimaginable revenge.
"I don't know what nonsense you are talking about. She deserves to die for what she did!" The prince scolded angrily, and his father was unwilling to grant him marriage again. Although Zheng's family was only a fourth-rank official, he was also a useful person, and the position of concubine was enough for him.
The well-planned plan was completely disrupted.
Pei Ji smiled: "Of course he deserved to die. There are gods above us, and they are watching who has done what."
It was obvious that they were threatening He Zhiliao's safety. If he backed down, not only would the other party become his weak spot, but there was also a possibility that something bad might happen. How could he tolerate this?!
As soon as these words were spoken, the Crown Prince and the Fourth Prince fell strangely silent and said no more to him. They naturally did not believe these things, but when the words came out of Pei Ji's mouth, they made people feel particularly uncomfortable.
Pei Ji didn't want to get entangled with them any more, so he bowed and said, "I have some matters to attend to at the Censorate, so I'll take my leave now.
After saying that, he turned and left.
As soon as Pei Ji left, the Crown Prince and the Fourth Prince began to confront each other. They continued to speak with sarcasm. Although they had not completely torn their faces apart, they both knew that the throne would only be inherited by one of them, and naturally they did not want to lose to the other.
What's more, the only outcome of a disastrous defeat in the fight for the throne is death!
The Fourth Prince knew very well that he was now alone and powerless, and naturally there would not be more people in the court supporting him than the Crown Prince. However, the way to get to the top was not just to squeeze in, but also to pull others down!
He thought of what Pei Ji had said before, and couldn't help but wonder if there were other reasons for He Ruxi's death... Unfortunately, it was midsummer now, and the other person's body might have disappeared long ago.
But if you don't want others to know, then don't do it yourself.
Once something is done, there must be traces to follow.
The Fourth Prince was only verbally reprimanded and nothing else happened, so he prepared to leave the palace. After all, he had invited those officials to the restaurant tonight, so he should go back to oversee the preparations.
He didn't know that after seeing what happened today, those officials didn't want to be involved in this matter and found various excuses to shirk it, not to mention that He Zhilai had met with those ladies yesterday.
Even if there were people who went, they were all of lower rank and did not dare not go.
Pei Ji left the palace directly after reporting for duty at the Censorate. Previously, he was willing to be respectful to Emperor An and be a mad dog by his side, but facts proved that even so, he could not get the emperor's kindness.
Why should he pretend to be so loyal?
Qin Yurong went to the palace to accompany her in childbirth. The other men of the Pei family had not left the palace yet. Only He Zhile and Qi Guan were left in the mansion. Unfortunately, these two could not stay in the same room for a long time, so the entire Pei mansion was unusually quiet.
He Zhiliao fiddled with the ice cubes in the small bowl with some boredom. He felt a little hot, so he brought the ice cubes to play with in his cool hands.
Now that life has gotten better, he can even waste money like this. In the past, he could only endure the heat in the He family.
"Zhengjun, the Fourth Master is back."
"Really?" He Zhiliao stood up suddenly, took the handkerchief handed to him by Chunjian to wipe his hands, and walked outside.
Pei Ji walked quickly into the yard. As soon as he entered, he saw He Zhi walking towards him. He knew that the other party was willing to greet him and had never said no.
"It's hot, let's go inside." Pei Ji quickly held his hand, but he noticed that his fingertips were too cold, and his brows couldn't help but frowned, "Your hands are so cold, what's going on?"
He Zhiliao immediately smiled and said, "It's ice."
Pei Ji knew that he was just touching the ice cubes out of boredom again.
The house was much cooler. The ice jar and wind wheel were in use, and the tank was full of ice. If it was still not cool, then ordinary people would have no chance of survival.
"Did you do something about the Fourth Prince's Mansion?" He Zhiliao asked softly. Although he asked, he already knew what was going on in his mind.
"What are you mumbling about?" Pei Ji pinched his cheek and kissed him unceremoniously, "Even so, Your Majesty has no intention of punishing him severely."
He Zhiliao frowned slightly, "Then the prince will not be severely punished easily."
Pei Ji raised his eyebrows slightly, and was particularly satisfied with his words. "So I gave the Fourth Prince a little hint. He might have already sent people to investigate."
"What? About He Ruxi?" He Zhiliao instantly understood what he meant. "But she died of poison. What can we find out?"
Pei Ji did not hide anything from him and told him all the findings of his subordinates.
Zhou Qi and He Yao were not the only two murderers in the torture and corpse disposal case. Given their identities, it was impossible for them to be so foolproof that it took so long to be exposed.
There must be people with higher positions and more power among them.
Pei Ji naturally wanted to understand all of this before revealing it. Moreover, even if his direction was wrong, as long as the Fourth Prince continued to investigate, he would definitely find out the unknown secrets of the Crown Prince, which would be enough to make him suffer.
It would be better to have a dog-eat-dog fight immediately, so that they don't have to stare at the cicadas in their house out of boredom.
Pei Ji thought for a moment and then warned, "If you want to go out during this period, you must be careful, or take Qi Guan with you. He has plenty of free time at home anyway."
"I understand." He Zhiliao nodded obediently.
He never asked why Pei Ji said these things. He would just do whatever the other party asked him to do. It would not harm him.
As these princes fight for power, it is inevitable that it will bring harm to their relatives and friends as court officials, so they should be on guard if possible.
The two of them stopped talking about this and started chatting about other things, such as sitting opposite each other, eating and drinking, or talking about how hot it was today. They kept talking about the same old things, but He Zhiliao didn't find it boring at all.
In the past, she didn't dare to hope to marry Pei Ji, and she didn't even dare to imagine sitting with him. Now that all her wishes have come true, she was shocked to realize that those things that she thought she dared not imagine, had already been imagined by her hundreds of times unintentionally.
evening.
The sun was still hanging in the west, casting a fiery cloud, and the men of the Pei family returned home at the same time.
As soon as they entered the front hall, they saw a strange girl sitting in the hall. He Zhiliao was politely receiving her. When he saw them, he stood up happily.
【Second brother! 】
It had been a long time since they last saw each other. Pei Su was stunned for a moment before nodding at him, "What's the matter?"
[Miss Gongsun has come to bring you something on the orders of her elders.]
After he finished speaking, he looked at Miss Gongsun. The blue and white colors made her look extraordinary and her appearance was even more pure and elegant.
Gongsun Yan stepped forward and bowed, saying politely, "Grandfather heard that the Second Young Master was looking for a fine inkstone, so he asked me to bring this to you. I hope you'll like it."
Pei Su lowered his eyes to look at her and the inkstone in her hand. The words of refusal were on the tip of his lips. He had thought about it several times before. If he encountered this situation again, he would definitely refuse sternly.
but--
"Thank you very much, Miss Gongsun, and thank you very much, Lord Gongsun." Pei Su nodded at her and took the gift. "I will go there in person to express my gratitude someday."
Gongsun Yan seemed to have expected him to say this. He looked up at him and said, "Grandfather means that Second Young Master does not need to express his gratitude, nor does he need to meet in private."
Pei Su, who was always eloquent, was speechless when facing these eyes. He just remained silent for a moment and then looked away.
He Zhiliao poured tea for Pei Xiao and Pei Ding neatly. The three of them sat and watched what the two standing people would say next, but unfortunately they just remained silent.
Pei Xiao coughed heavily, "Miss Gongsun, why don't you have dinner at your residence and have Jingxing escort you back later? How about that?"
how?
He Zhiliao was shocked. How could such a question be asked?
How can we let a girl have dinner at another house and ask the man to send her back? If her mother were here, her father would probably be beaten again.
"Thank you for your hospitality, Uncle Pei. It's getting late and I can't stay long. Goodbye." Gongsun Yan looked up at Pei Su, nodded slightly, and left past him.
Pei Su frowned fiercely, but said nothing.
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The author has something to say: Little Cicada: "Let's have some tea and watch the show~" [laughing]
Gongsun said: "I'm leaving." [Dissolved]
Pei Su: "Hmm???" [Clown]
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