The Third Prince's Mansion, which had been bustling for quite a while since Yao became pregnant, suddenly became unusually quiet. The gate of the Prince's Mansion was closed, and the people in the mansion stayed indoors, as if they were brewing something.

In contrast, Concubine De, who had stayed quietly in the Xianfu Palace all year round, began to frequently go in and out of the Qianqing Palace to pay her respects to Emperor Longfeng.

Although Concubine De was not outstanding in appearance, she had a gentle personality and would never take the initiative to cause trouble for Emperor Longfeng. Over the years, she had devoted herself to being a considerate and eloquent woman.

Although Emperor Longfeng did not favor her, he was willing to go to Xianfu Palace occasionally to sit and talk with her, giving her some respect.

Therefore, among the ten times that Concubine De requested to see the emperor, Emperor Longfeng was willing to see her two or three times.

Emperor Longfeng's condition did not improve, but it did not get worse. His mind became a lot more confused, and his memory became much worse. Occasionally, when he was in a good mood, he began to like reminiscing about the past.

Defei was an old friend of the Qian Palace, and she and Emperor Longfeng had been through thick and thin together. Therefore, Emperor Longfeng liked to reminisce about the past with her.

Most of the time, it was the person lying on the dragon couch who was talking, while Concubine De sat beside the couch, listening with a smile, and occasionally adding a few words at the right time.

Yin Ci Guang watched coldly from the side.

Emperor Longfeng was already very old. This illness had completely drained his resources and made him weak overnight. He was only in his forties, in the prime of his life, but now he looked like a man in his fifties or sixties.

Especially with the well-maintained and very young Concubine De standing beside him, the Emperor Longfeng looked even more shabby and like a candle in the wind. They looked like two generations apart, and it was hard for Concubine De to still hold his hand and talk and laugh while reminiscing about the past.

Yin Ciguang lowered his eyes, picked up the silver stick, and slowly moved the incense ashes in the Boshan stove.

In fact, Emperor Longfeng's health would not have declined so quickly. When he was young, he was not favored, bullied by his brothers, and had done a lot of physical work. According to Emperor Longfeng, he suffered a lot, but the benefits were obvious. His physical foundation was quite strong, and even if he used so many strong drugs, it only weakened his body.

He was born in a humble family, was mediocre and incompetent, yet he was able to sit on the throne; so many heroic emperors died young, but he refused to die.

It really proves the old saying: Good people don't live long, but evil people live for a thousand years.

God refused to take him away, so Yin Ciguang had to do it himself.

It only takes a tiny bit of medicine to act as a trigger to bring out the old illness accumulated in his body and make him look like this.

With a barely perceptible smile on his lips, Yin Ciguang flattened the incense ashes and put the stove lid back on.

Emperor Longfeng was in low spirits, and after talking to Concubine De for half an hour, he became unhappy again. After Concubine De left, Yin Ciguang asked someone to bring the warm medicine, and after he finished drinking it, he whispered, "Just now, Eunuch Gao came to report that Commander Gong had met with the Third Prince privately several times."

Emperor Longfeng, who was drowsy after taking the medicine, suddenly opened his eyes: "When did it happen?"

Yin Ciguang replied in a low voice: "It's just a matter of the past few days."

Emperor Longfeng's eyes suddenly turned gloomy.

Gong Hongfei was his foster brother. His biological mother died early, and he was not favored, so he had a hard life in the cold palace. It was his wet nurse who raised him. Gong Hongfei was the wet nurse's only son. When he was young, he was very protective of her and even suffered a lot of bullying for her.

So after ascending the throne, he appointed Gong Hongfei as the commander of the Jinyi Guard without hesitation.

But after so many years, his uncle, who used to protect him and suffer for him, has started to have his own thoughts.

When he was healthy before, Gong Hongfei was making some small calculations in his mind but he just turned a blind eye and pretended not to know. But now that he fell ill, Gong Hongfei couldn't wait to turn against the third brother!

Although he got the throne by chance, he also witnessed the bloody fight among his brothers when they fought for the throne.

There was a hint of cruelty in his cloudy eyes. Emperor Longfeng took out a token from his waist and placed it in Yin Ciguang's hand. He said in a deep voice, "Tell Gao Xian to keep a close eye on it to prevent any changes."

Yin Ci Guang looked at the token in his hand, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly, and he closed his eyes in response.

Yin Chengyu did not participate in the conspiracy in the harem. He just quietly strengthened the defense of Jingren Palace. At the same time, he took advantage of the power of the regent to settle Shao Tian's old accounts.

Zhou Zhiling, who had been in prison for quite some time, was finally put to use.

The whereabouts of Zhou's family's money over the years and Wang Tuoling's private soldiers were all uncovered, and all the blame was directed at Shao Tian.

When Yin Chengyu questioned him, Shao Tian took off his hat and protested: "This is all slander! I have taken good care of my clan members over the years, and I did meet Zhou Zhiling in my early years, but that was just to encourage the younger generation of my clan members to make progress! Who knew that he had such evil intentions and dared to use the name of an old minister to do such a bad thing! If Your Highness the Crown Prince does not believe it, I am willing to resign. I only ask Your Highness the Crown Prince to investigate thoroughly and clear my name!"

He knelt in the hall, weeping and crying, and could not get up.

At one time, many officials who had dealings with Shao Tian resigned and petitioned, demanding a thorough investigation to clear Shao Ci Fu's name.

Yin Chengyu had expected this, and seeing the officials kneeling on the ground, he picked them up high and put them down gently, and of course did not agree to Shao Tian's resignation. On the one hand, he ordered the Dali Temple and the Ministry of Justice to investigate the matter, and on the other hand, he gave Shao Tian a leave and a lot of rewards to let him go home and have a good rest.

"If it is found out that it was Zhou Zhiling who made the slanderous statement, I will definitely clear Lord Shao's name."

This little thing, without any basis or evidence, was not enough to shake Shao Tian, ​​who had deep roots, but Yin Chengyu was not interested in this.

After returning to Ciqing Palace, Yin Chengyu summoned Xie Pingchuan to serve as his tutor.

After many visits, Xie Pingchuan was already very familiar with Ciqing Palace. After receiving the summons, he hurried into the palace.

He turned the page and was about to continue from where he had left off the last time, but Yin Chengyu waved his hand and said, "I won't read today. I have something I can't decide, so I'd like to ask Xie Xiuzhuan."

Xie Pingchuan closed the book and sat upright: "Your Highness, please speak."

Yin Chengyu told him the debate in the court without reservation: "Zhou Zhiling has been examined by the East Factory several times, and what he said is not false, but he really can't produce any evidence. Shao Cifu is a loyal and old minister. I respect him, but I don't want to let any termite go. Sir Xie, what should I do in this situation?"

Not expecting that he would suddenly mention Shao Tian, ​​Xie Pingchuan clenched his hands on his knees suddenly.

He pretended to be thinking, but in fact he carefully raised his eyes to examine Yin Chengyu's expression, trying to guess why he suddenly told him about this matter.

The debate in the court had not yet been spread out, and ordinary people were unaware of it. However, the prince had so many advisers, but he chose to ask for the opinion of a small sixth-rank editor, which made him think more.

Could it be that the prince already knew his identity?

But after looking at it for a long time, he could not see any clues. He could only reply cautiously: "The ice is three feet thick, and it is not formed in one day. If what Zhou Zhiling said is true, then Shao Cifu's crime is definitely not just this one. Your Highness should start to investigate other things." He lowered his eyes to hide the surging emotions in his eyes, and maintained a calm tone and said: "Yesterday, I read the "Thirty-Six Strategies", and there is a sentence in it, 'In case of doubt, verify it, and then act after investigation', which may help your Highness solve your dilemma."

Yin Chengyu pondered for a moment, as if he had gained something, and said with a smile: "There is another sentence in the Thirty-Six Strategies: 'The enemy's harm is great, so take advantage of the situation to gain benefits'. Xie Xiuzhuan should be able to understand its meaning?"

Xie Pingchuan's heart tightened, and he felt more and more that every word he said was meaningful.

He hid his clenched fists in his sleeves, his thoughts in confusion.

During these days of reading, he had come to know the prince. The prince was knowledgeable and kind, with a gentle demeanor. Anyone who had the honor of meeting the prince would have no choice but to respect him. He was like the wisest crown prince that the world could imagine, and he gave people endless expectations.

But are there really such perfect people in this world?

The Xie family's old case not only involves the second assistant of the inner cabinet, but may also affect the reputation of the current emperor. The emperor is the biological father of the prince, can he really overturn the case for the Xie family?

The lives of more than a dozen people in the Xie family weigh heavily on their shoulders. Now is not the best time to overturn the verdict, and Xie Pingchuan dares not take the risk.

He took a deep breath and answered fluently: "When the enemy is in danger, we should take advantage of the situation and attack them to win."

Yin Chengyu observed his expression and saw that he was gradually calming down, so he did not continue to test him. Instead, he said, "Thank you, editor, you are right. I have a deep understanding. Let's stop here today."

Xie Pingchuan breathed a sigh of relief, bowed and walked out.

When leaving Hongren Hall, I bumped into Xue Shu again. He also seemed to have just finished his work and was about to leave.

Xie Pingchuan had been in and out of the palace more often, and had heard a lot of rumors about the other party. Most of the rumors said that this young Dongchang Supervisor was cruel and merciless, and was definitely not a good person. He also seemed to have been at odds with the Crown Prince before. Later, it seemed that after he saved the Crown Prince's life in Qingzhou, the relationship eased.

But this is not what Xie Pingchuan himself saw.

Although this Dongchang Supervisor looked a bit fierce, he was very kind to others, not only to himself, but also to the eunuch Zheng who was beside the prince. He was not as arrogant and domineering as other high-ranking eunuchs.

Moreover, since he can enter and leave the East Palace at will, he must be the prince's confidant, and not at odds with the prince as rumored.

Xie Yunchuan shook his head, thinking that rumors were harmful, and bowed to Xue Shu.

Xue Shu deliberately waited for him here, and when he saw him, he showed a very kind smile. Now he has learned Zheng Duobao very well and it comes naturally to him: "Thank you, sir, why are you back so early today?"

Xie Pingchuan just said that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was busy today and said nothing more.

Xue Shu followed him and talked about Zhou Zhiling's case. He seemed to be having a headache. "Your Highness asked me to investigate Shao Ci Fu. I asked the Dongchang thugs to investigate, but they found nothing. At first glance, he is indeed a good official who is honest and upright and serves the country and the people. But even the most honest officials can be found out by the Dongchang thugs. Shao Ci Fu's behind is so clean that it makes people suspicious."

Xie Yunchuan paused, looked at him sideways, and gradually things became clear in his mind.

He no longer tried to hide the truth, but asked directly, "What did your Highness know?"

If the prince's previous test had only made him suspicious, then Xue Shu's words now had made him certain that the prince already knew.

Xue Shu was his lobbyist.

Xue Shu curled his lips and smiled, but did not say anything: "Your Highness is kind and gentle, and does not want to force others. If Lord Xie is willing to speak out, Your Highness will know. If not, Your Highness will not know."

Xie Pingchuan's heart was slightly moved. Since the other party had already sensed something, it would be useless to hide it. He thought for a moment and made a decision: "It is not appropriate to discuss things here. Please trouble Governor Xue to go with me."