Mayu explained, "Your Majesty, Xiao Zhihang is a rebel from the Green Dragon Gang, and he attempted to resist arrest, so I executed him on the spot!"
"Xiao Zhihang manipulated rebels and disrupted the court. I am doing this for Your Majesty! I am doing this for the Qing Dynasty!"
Ma Yu's explanation further fueled the anger of Yong Qi, Xiao Jian, and Xiao Yanzi!
They kept themselves firmly under control, awaiting Qianlong's judgment!
Emperor Qianlong snapped, "Shut up!"
"It is a disgrace to my Great Qing Dynasty to have an official like you! It is also a disgrace to us Manchus!"
"Now that ten years have passed, since you feel no shame or remorse what you did in the past, then I will make you submit wholeheartedly!"
"Guards, summon Prince Han and Zhu Gui!"
Upon hearing these two names, Ma Yu began to panic!
A man dressed in official robes with a large beard bowed and said, "Your subject Zhu Gui greets Your Majesty!"
Walking beside Zhu Gui was an ordinary commoner, a middle-aged man who looked to be about thirty or forty years old. "This humble commoner, Wang Han, greets Your Majesty!"
"Wang Han, during the Renxu year, you were a servant by Ma Yu's side. Tell me, who killed Ma Huang?"
Wang Han, kneeling below, replied truthfully: "Your Majesty, Na Mahuang has committed numerous evils, repeatedly raping women and abandoning their bodies after their deaths. The people of Hangzhou have long hated his tyrannical behavior to the bone!"
"But because of Lord Mayu's protection, the people dared not speak out against their anger!"
"In the third month of the year Renxu, when Ma Huang once again attempted to abduct a young woman for his pleasure, Xiao Zhihang, the greatest hero of Jiangnan, finally could not tolerate it any longer and, acting on behalf of Heaven, killed Ma Huang!"
Zhu Gui and Ma Yu, kneeling below, dared not utter a single word. Qianlong then said, "Wang Han, continue. What happened after Xiao Zhihang killed Ma Huang?"
Wang Han was somewhat frightened, but he still continued, "Back then, after Lord Ma learned that Xiao Zhihang had killed Ma Huang, he had been trying to avenge his son ever since!"
"He spent a fortune hiring martial arts masters to assassinate Xiao Zhihang, but all the masters in the martial arts world respected Master Xiao and no one dared to take on the job!"
"Then one day, Lord Ma sent Zhu Gui to search the Xiao family. Zhu Gui deliberately put the Green Dragon Gang's roster in the bottle as evidence that Xiao Zhihang was a rebel. Shortly after framing and arresting Xiao Zhihang, he was beheaded by Lord Ma..."
Zhu Gui continued, "Wang Han and I both knew this secret, but we were afraid of death and kept it hidden for ten years. Now we must thank the Emperor for giving us this opportunity to atone for our sins..."
Hearing them say this, Mayu was so frightened that her body went limp!
He immediately kowtowed and begged for forgiveness, "Your Majesty, please forgive me! Your Majesty, please forgive me!"
Emperor Qianlong angrily exclaimed, "Ma Yu, you have forged an imperial edict to settle personal scores and are trying to cover up the truth!"
"You and your son are utterly wicked!"
"I must now act on behalf of Heaven, uphold justice, and deliver justice to the Xiao family of Hangzhou!"
"I will strip you of your official hat and your title right now. How you treated Xiao Zhihang back then, I will now repay you in kind!"
Mayu was dragged away like that, still begging the Emperor to spare her life, but no one sympathized with her!
Yongqi immediately pulled Xiaoyanzi to stand before Emperor Qianlong. Xiaoyanzi quickly knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, I thank you for clearing the name of our Xiao family and avenging our grievances!"
Xiao Jiancai stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, thank you for your wise judgment and for giving my father justice that came too late!"
Emperor Qianlong exclaimed, "Although I have never met Xiao Zhihang, I can see the demeanor of the greatest hero in Jiangnan from your figure!"
"Although I do not approve of using vigilante justice, I still admire Hero Xiao for his chivalrous deeds and righteous acts of doing good without seeking recognition from others!"
Changing the subject, Qianlong asked again, "However, Xiao Jian, what are your plans next?"
Xiao Jian laughed and said, "I heard before that Xiao Yanzi would leave the palace after her birthday next year, so as her older brother, I naturally have to accompany her."
Yongqi patted Xiao Jian on the shoulder and laughed, "That's great, Xiao Jian. With your older brother by her side watching over her, I can finally relax!"
But Xiao Yanzi said, "That won't do. Whether it's Yongqi or my brother, staying by my side doesn't count as training!"
"I have to make my own way! As for my brother, you stay in Beijing and help Yongqi out!"
Xiao Jian and Yong Qi both looked at Xiao Yanzi in surprise. Yong Qi said anxiously, "Xiao Yanzi, you should let your brother come with you. I'm really worried about you without him!"
Xiao Jian chimed in, "Yes, Little Swallow, you'll learn so much more with me around!"
Little Swallow still shook her head, "No, no, no, I want to do it myself!"
"Yongqi, Xingchen, Shizhu, and Liuqing and Liuhong are enough!"
"You have to include me too. If you won't let my master come with you, you have to let Jiang Ying come with me!"
Little Swallow nodded quickly, "Yes, yes, we have to take you with us! That way, my brother and Yongqi can know our news in time!"
Emperor Qianlong sighed, "It seems that even you, Xiao Jian, as her older brother, can't stop Xiao Yanzi from pursuing a great career!"
"So, Xiao Jian, with your abilities, wouldn't you like to stay in the capital and become an official?"
"You must have heard about Xiao Yanzi and Yongqi's situation these past few days. As their older brother, why don't you stay and help them?"
"My dear brother, you stay and help Yongqi! Let me go and gain experience on my own!"
Who could resist Little Swallow's coquettish pleading?
In the end, Xiao Jian reluctantly agreed!
Little Swallow shouted happily, "That's wonderful, Xiao Jian! You're truly the best brother in the world!"
Xiao Yanzi had two plans. One was to get Xiao Jian to stay and help Yongqi, and also to protect his safety!
The second reason was naturally to have Xiao Jian win Qing'er's heart, which would give them a greater chance of winning over the Empress Dowager!
"Your Majesty, Xiao Jian is willing to stay, but he hopes to win through his own strength!"
Emperor Qianlong laughed and said, "Hahaha, Xiao Jian, don't worry about that. I also hope to see your true talent and learning!"
"You use your strength to convince others, which is a good thing for Xiao Yanzi, and it's also good for you!"
Qing'er returned to the Empress Dowager's side and told her everything about Xiao Zhihang. Only then did the Empress Dowager feel at ease. "So, Xiao Yanzi and Xiao Jian are also pitiful people."
"Yes, the year Uncle Xiao had his accident, Xiao Jian was seven years old, and Xiao Yanzi was only six months old!"
"After that, the two of them wandered from place to place. I don't know how Xiao Yanzi survived all those years?"
"Fortunately, we met Yongqi later, which was a twist of fate that made amends to the Xiao family..."
"Your Majesty, now you can rest assured that she can stay by Yongqi's side, right?"
The Empress Dowager shook her head and laughed, "It's one thing for Xiao Yanzi to have a pitiful background, but whether she can stay by Yongqi's side is another matter entirely!"
“Qing’er, you grew up by my side, you should know that Yongqi has a limitless future, and his wife must not be an ordinary person either. Do you think it’s possible for Xiaoyanzi to have such a background?”
"To put it another way, after Xiao Yanzi grew up, she had her own abilities. She could compose poems with Yongqi and fight alongside him. But did she have the ability to subdue those court officials?"
Although the harem is not supposed to interfere in politics, the court and the harem have always been closely linked, and Qing'er is well aware of this!
However, she was willing to believe that Xiao Yanzi definitely had the ability, and that she could definitely stand smoothly by Yongqi's side and watch the world go by with him!
Qing'er thought of something and laughed, "Your Majesty, how about Qing'er makes a bet with you? Qing'er bets that Xiao Yanzi will definitely succeed in getting what she wants!"
"If Qing'er wins, then the Empress Dowager must grant me one request!"
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