Xue Shu had not been prepared for him to wake up suddenly. When he met those eyes, his body stiffened for a moment, then he quickly calmed down and lowered his head, saying, "I had a nightmare, so I wanted to come and see Your Highness."

When he was picked up, Yin Chengyu had actually woken up. He continued to pretend to sleep, just to see what Xue Shu was going to do next. He didn't expect to get such an answer, and it was Yin Chengyu who was surprised.

In his previous life, Xue Shu had sneaked into his bedroom in the middle of the night like this many times, and his reasons were often strange, but he had never had a reason like today, "I had a nightmare and wanted to come and see Your Highness."

Yin Chengyu originally wanted to embarrass him, but now that he was so straightforward and frank, he didn't feel annoyed at all.

There's even a hint of humor.

He loosened his hand, adjusted himself to a comfortable position, leaned forward, supported his chin with his hand, and looked at Xue Shu again and again, with a faint smile on his lips: "What did you dream about? Is it related to me?"

Recalling the scene in his dream, Xue Shu frowned, shook his head, and was unwilling to say anything.

"Dreams are always the opposite of what they actually are. Telling them out loud would not only pollute His Highness' ears, but would also be unlucky."

As long as he is here, how can Your Highness be left alone and helpless?

Yin Chengyu looked at him for a long time, and seeing that he was resisting, he didn't force him. He took out a calming sachet from the pillow and threw it to him, snorting and laughing, "You are an adult, and you still come to look for me after having a nightmare. Take it and get out of here."

Seeing Xue Shu put the sachet into his arms, he glanced at him and said, "If there is a next time..."

Xue Shu lowered his head and waited for his next words, but he didn't hear anything. He raised his eyes and saw Yin Chengyu standing up and waving at him: "What are you still standing here for? If someone comes in and sees you, you should go to the imperial prison."

He walked barefoot on the soft carpet, rang the bell in the house, and called someone to come in and serve him.

Seeing this, Xue Shu had no choice but to climb out of the window, and his figure quickly disappeared into the darkness.

Yin Chengyu watched his disappearing back, then looked at the guards outside who were motionless, and couldn't help but frown: "These imperial guards are really useless."

It actually allowed Xue Shu to come and go freely in the palace.

After saying this, I was stunned again, as I felt that these words sounded somewhat familiar.

He thought about it carefully and his expression turned grim - Xue Shu had also said this in his previous life.

Whenever Xue Shu sneaked into his bedroom late at night and woke him up, he would always answer his questions calmly, "Your Highness, don't blame our family. It's all because of the useless imperial guards."

It is indeed waste, Yin Chengyu thought.

Zheng Duobao led the eunuchs into the inner room and saw Yin Chengyu with a gloomy face.

"Are you tired, Your Highness?" Zheng Duobao ordered someone to carry the hot water behind the screen, and then loosened his outer robe, leaving only his inner garment.

Yin Chengyu shook his head, chased Xue Shu away, and went to take a bath and rest.

Xue Shu did not leave, he stayed outside for another half the night.

Watching the eunuchs carrying hot water in and out of the bedroom, he guessed that it was Yin Chengyu taking a bath. After a while, the candlelight in the inner room went out, and Zheng Duobao quietly stepped out and closed the door.

He looked towards the bedroom, took out the sachet from his arms, put it to his nose and sniffed it.

The sachet contained soothing herbs, which had a pleasant medicinal smell. But perhaps because it had been placed next to the pillow for too long, it had acquired the scent of Yin Chengyu, and there was also a faint scent of snow ridge plum.

Xue Shu carefully put away the sachet, and did not return to Xichang until the night was about to fade, just in time for the shift change of the patrolling imperial guards.

He did not rest, but changed into the scarlet dragon robe given by Yu, took Wei Xihe with him, and received another hundred duties, and went to Dashiyongfang.

——The Chen residence is located in Dashiyongfang.

As soon as the light of day appeared in the east, the red lacquer gate of Chen's house was kicked open by the guards of the Western Factory. The drowsy doorman came out to check the situation. When he saw the ferocious guards, he was immediately awakened from his sleep. He took a breath of cold air and turned to report to the inner courtyard.

He had only run two steps when someone kicked him from behind and knocked him to the ground.

The guard covered the doorman's mouth and looked at Xue Shu.

Xue Shu scanned the elegant and unique mansion and said in a deep voice, "Bring Chen He here and search him."

Hundreds of soldiers were immediately divided into several groups and went to different courtyards.

Xue Shu sat down on the armchair brought by his subordinates and waited, with Wei Xihe standing beside him.

But a moment later, Chen He was pulled up from the concubine's bed and thrown over in disarray.

As for the rest of the people in the Chen Mansion, they were attacked one after another and driven into the yard.

Chen He had seen factory guards arrest people, but he had never thought that he would end up like this one day.

He looked at Xue Shu, who looked very unfamiliar, and then at the clothes worn by the guards, which were different from those of the Dongchang Jinyiwei. He suppressed his anger and said, "Who are you? How dare you break into the residence of an imperial official at night!"

Xue Shu looked at him coldly but did not speak.

Seeing this, Wei Xihe said, "The West Factory is doing things under the orders of the Emperor. Sir Chen should save your words. When we return to the West Factory, there will be plenty of opportunities for you to speak."

"Xichang?" Chen He was stunned for a moment, then he shouted, "I want to see His Majesty, I want to see His Majesty!"

Although he was over sixty years old, he was still very strong and he struggled and twisted his body.

Seeing this, Wei Xihe sneered and winked at the guards who were escorting him. The guards then increased their strength and pressed the man's head to the ground.

How could Chen He have ever suffered such humiliation? He immediately burst into cursing.

Wei Xihe limped up to him and looked down at him: "Master Chen, you can scold me, but I will return it to you when I return to the West Factory."

As they were talking, the factory guards who had been searching everywhere had already returned with the letter. Xue Shu took it, took a look at it, and stood up: "Take all of them back to the West Factory."

Hundreds of escorts came silently, but left in front of everyone.

Many officials of the imperial court lived in Dashiyongfang, and the distance between the mansions was not far, so the news of the Chen Mansion had spread out long ago. The neighbors sent people to inquire about it, and when they heard that it was the Xichang Office, they were immediately shocked and frightened.

West Factory Office.

How many years has it been since I heard this sentence?

The West Factory was established during the reign of Emperor Xiaozong. In its heyday, its status was higher than that of the East Factory and the Imperial Guard. Its jurisdiction covered everyone from officials appointed by the imperial court to ordinary people. Whenever the West Factory guards were dispatched to do something, the people were so scared that they would stay indoors, which shows how vicious they were.

Later, Emperor Longfeng came to the throne and gradually weakened the power of Xichang in order to appease the people.

In recent years, the West Factory has been like a non-existent entity. Only the old officials who experienced the reign of Emperor Xiaozong know how rampant the West Factory was back then.

Now that the West Factory has come out again, is Emperor Longfeng planning to reuse the West Factory? !

At the court meeting that day, several ministers successively impeached Xue Shu and Xichang for their arrogant behavior and for arresting court officials indiscriminately.

In short, they opposed the emperor's reinstatement of Xichang, asked Xichang to release the people, and severely punished Xue Shu.

Gao Xian, who was standing beside the Dragon Throne, lowered his head with a sinister smile on his face.

He said that Xue Shu’s arrogance would not last long.

Emperor Longfeng listened to these ministers impeaching Xue Shu one by one, with no expression on his face. After a group of ministers finished speaking in anger, he threw a pile of letters down: "Xue Shu was just following orders, but you are all so angry for Chen He. Is it possible that this is also related to the Yanyin case?"

Shao Tian, ​​the deputy minister standing in the front row, picked up the letter and read it. His expression changed immediately: "Your Majesty, please calm down. We are not trying to excuse Chen He. It's just that Xue Shu is too arrogant."

Officials close to Shao Tian also echoed: "The establishment of the Western Factory during the reign of Emperor Xiaozong aroused public resentment and almost caused a disaster. Your Majesty must not repeat the same mistake again!"

However, the more they impeached Xue Shu, the more determined Emperor Longfeng was to protect him.

He glanced at Gao Xian standing beside him, and what he was thinking was that the East Factory had been acting no less low-key than the West Factory over the years, but these people had never impeached Gao Yuan. What did this prove?

This shows that the people around him had already colluded with these court officials.

Emperor Longfeng's face darkened, and he raised his hand to stop the ministers' advice: "I have made up my mind, there is no need to say more."

He called the Dali Temple Chief Justice forward, handed him the list given by Xue Shu, and ordered the Dali Temple to investigate the people who were related to the Yanyin case one by one.

The position of Changlu Salt Commissioner was a lucrative one. In the past ten years, countless officials had been involved in the salt administration of Changlu, not to mention the annual inspection of salt taxes by the salt inspectors. Even if he had no chance to be an official in the court, he would have had some experience with the job through his classmates and relatives.

Now that Emperor Longfeng has drawn up the list, it is clear that he is going to settle old scores.

For a time, everyone stopped arguing about the West Factory and began to feel uneasy. This was especially true for officials who had once been involved in salt administration, who were all in a state of panic.

Even the Dali Temple Minister shuddered at the sight of the densely packed names on the list.

I'm afraid there's going to be a big commotion in the court.

The court meeting that day was hastily dispersed, and when the court officials came out, their faces were gloomy, as if they had lost their parents.

By the time Yin Chengyu received the exact news, a group of officials had already been sent to the Dali Temple for imprisonment.

"Is uncle okay?" Yin Chengyu asked.

"Minister Yu asked me to bring a message to Your Highness, telling you not to worry."

Naturally, Yu Chen could not be missing from the list that Xue Shu presented to Emperor Longfeng.

Yu Chen was the last transport officer of the Changlu Salt Administration. During his tenure, private salt was not so rampant and the salt tax was not missed. However, the salt administration in Changlu had been corrupt for a long time and he alone could not change it, so he could only punish the big ones and let the small ones go. It was not until Wan Youliang took over and became greedy that private salt in Changlu became rampant.

If we really look into it, Yu Chen is certainly not completely without responsibility, but at most he is guilty of dereliction of duty and failure to investigate.

This was also a strategy he had discussed with his uncle long ago.

Emperor Longfeng has long been dissatisfied with him and the Yu family. In this case, it would be better for him to retreat bravely and avoid the limelight for the time being.

His maternal grandfather Yu Huaian was already the chief aide of the inner cabinet and concurrently served as the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. The Yu family was extremely powerful. After Yu Chen was transferred back to the capital from the Changlu Salt Commissioner, he joined the Ministry of Works to avoid suspicion and has only been a Vice Minister of Works ever since.

It would be good to take this opportunity to withdraw.

Yin Chengyu thought for a while and said, "Send some bedding to the Dali Temple in my name and tell them that I am worried about my uncle's relapse of his old illness. There is no need to avoid suspicion."

Since we want to reassure Emperor Longfeng, we naturally have to put on a good show.

The turmoil lasted for nearly ten days before it was finally calmed down.

The Dali Temple arrested a large number of officials. At the daily court meetings, a group of ministers had to tremble and confirm who was missing from the court today. Not to mention that some officials of low rank who were not qualified to participate in the court meetings were taken away by the Dali Temple officials and no one even knew about it.

For a time, the Dali Temple Prison was overcrowded.

The Dali Temple was very busy and the trial lasted for several days. Those who were proven guilty were directly detained, while those who were innocent were released.

Yu Chen was not released until the day before Yin Chengqian's full-moon banquet.

Emperor Longfeng looked at the memorial presented by the Dali Temple Minister, and then at the account list submitted by Xue Shu after the confiscation of property, and he was so angry that his heart ached.

These ministers are so bold and presumptuous!

Normally, he would advise him with a high attitude, with many profound principles one after another, but in the end, how many people were implicated in this case?

He would be criticized all day long for building a garden, but the money these greedy people used was enough for him to build ten gardens!

Emperor Longfeng was furious and immediately recalled Fang Zhengke, ordering him to lead ten inspectors to Lianghuai and other places to inspect the salt industry and thoroughly investigate the salt administration.

At the same time, 800 soldiers were transferred from Xichang, with Wei Xihe as the chief escort, to accompany and protect Fang Zhengke and others.

——Originally, Emperor Longfeng wanted Xue Shu to go in person, but Xue Shu recommended Wei Xihe to replace him on the grounds that the Chen He case had not been fully investigated. Emperor Longfeng was now suspicious of Gao Xian, Gong Hongfei and others, so he naturally would not send people from Dongchang and Jinyiwei to go, so he agreed to Xue Shu's recommendation.

On the fifth day of April, Wei Xihe, along with the Xichang guards, escorted Fang Zhengke and his party out of the capital.

On the same day, Yin Chengqian's full-moon banquet was held in Jiaoyuan.

The author has something to say:

Your Highness: Until next time...

Gougou (surprised): Will there be a next time?