Concubine Lin handed over a yellowed book.

"Your Majesty, please look. This is the account book that Mu Changzai got from Abbot Tongguang's Zen room."

The emperor took it and flipped through a few pages at random, and a familiar name jumped into his eyes.

"On July 1, Concubine Sun gave me 200 taels of gold and a golden Buddha."

The emperor continued to flip through the pages, and more items came into view, each of which made him frown.

"On July 3, Jingwu and Jingkong passed away unexpectedly. Lord Pang Fei, the prefect of Jingzhao, gave them 530 taels of silver and sent Zhihui to comfort them. Lord Pang was very pleased and gave them an additional 150 taels."

A trace of gloom flashed across the emperor's face.

"On July 6, three disciples went astray while practicing the Golden Lotus Technique. The Golden Lotus Association will pay 100 taels for their funeral expenses."

"On July 8, Ye Qichang, a doctor of the Ministry of Works, was introduced by Lord Pang Fei and presented a membership fee of 2,000 taels of silver. Xu Wu and Xu Shen have been sent to the palace to teach the method of cultivation."

"On July 11, Lin Zhao of the Lin family..."

"July 13th, Liu Xi of the Liu family..."

The more the emperor looked, the more serious his expression became.

He didn't expect that this seemingly ordinary account book in his hand actually hid so many secrets.

The emperor asked in a deep voice: "What did Concubine Wu reveal?"

Both of them were thoughtful people, and they knew very well that the other could hear Wu Qing's thoughts.

The emperor did not dwell on the matter any further and asked directly about the key point.

Concubine Lin recalled Wu Qing's words and explained in detail the identity and background of Abbot Tongguang.

She also did not hide the fact that Tongguang had used the name of the Golden Lotus Technique to trick the monk into practicing dual cultivation with him.

After hearing this, the emperor couldn't believe it.

The Huguo Temple is near the outskirts of Beijing, right in front of the emperor.

He did such unscrupulous things and no one noticed. The Jingzhao prefect was really just a bunch of useless people!

The emperor narrowed his eyes and quickly turned back to the first few pages of the account book. Sure enough, he saw the name of Jingzhao Prefecture Governor Pang Fei.

I see!

The prefect of Jingzhao was in cahoots with the Huguo Temple, and Pang Fei had already been a member of the Golden Lotus Society.

The emperor's face turned pale and he angrily rebuked: "Pang Fei is so audacious and reckless. He has betrayed my trust!"

When the emperor is angry, his anger will be as powerful as thunder, and there will be corpses everywhere.

The palace maids and eunuchs outside the study were all silent, not daring to breathe.

The eunuch stood outside the door, sniffed the tense atmosphere in the air, and sighed in his heart.

Oh, it looks like someone will be stained with blood in the palace again today.

Concubine Lin closed her eyes and continued to report: "Your Majesty, Abbot Tongguang used the 'Golden Lotus Society' as a cover to secretly form a clique for personal gain and greedily accept bribes. Anyone who joins the Golden Lotus Society is firmly controlled by him to cover up his crimes."

"Most members of the Golden Lotus Society enjoy abusing others. I have verified that the disciples who died accidentally in the account book were prostitutes sent by Tongguang himself to satisfy the perverted desires of some officials."

"According to the account books, the number of people who have lost their lives to the Golden Lotus Society over the years has exceeded 200. Their crimes are too numerous to list."

The emperor laughed in anger: "I really underestimated him. He kept me in the dark the whole time."

Concubine Lin remained silent.

The emperor is so angry now. If he knew that Abbot Tongguang had wanted to sleep with him, would he order him to be cut into pieces?

Of course, Concubine Lin would never dare to say this out loud.

"I never expected that these ministers who seemed to be honest and loyal on weekdays actually had such unknown hobbies in private."

The emperor was obviously very angry. He kept flipping through the account book and reading the names of the Golden Lotus Society members.

"Pang Fei, Ye Qichang, Lin Zhao, Liu Xi... Oh, well, if I remember correctly, these people have already started families and some even have many children and grandchildren."

"Pang Fei's son even got into the Imperial College!"

The emperor's temples ached when he thought of some of these people who he once regarded as the pillars of the country.

Seeing this, Concubine Lin gently consoled him, "Your Majesty, people's hearts are hidden, who can really see through others' hearts? Your Majesty's health is the most important thing, it is not worth getting angry over these villains."

"I remember that Lin Zhao is from your clan?" the emperor asked back.

Concubine Lin knew that this matter was difficult to avoid, so she immediately knelt down and replied respectfully: "Your Majesty, Lin Zhao and I are of the same clan, and his father is my father's second uncle. Lin Zhao once worked in the Hanlin Academy, and I was also taught by him when I was young."

The emperor said indifferently: "It seems that you have a close relationship with him. If so, how come you know nothing about what he has done?"

Concubine Lin said calmly, "I dare not deceive the emperor. When I saw Lin Zhao's name in the account book, I was really panicked."

Concubine Lin has been with the emperor for many years, how could she not know that he is suspicious?

The imperial concubine smiled slightly and said softly, "But as the emperor's concubine, I know that the emperor should be the most important in everything. The moment I got the account book, I immediately set off to return to the palace without delaying for even a moment."

"I do not ask the emperor to comfort Lin Zhao, but I ask the emperor to give Abbot Tongguang the punishment he deserves, so that those innocent monks who passed away can rest in peace."

Concubine Lin said sadly.

"In order to hide the account books, Tongguang actually ordered the monks to surround the concubines and kill them to silence them. When I think about it now, I am still very panicked."

"If it weren't for Mu Changzai's quick wit and courage to light the Zen room in time and divert their attention, I am afraid that I and others would have died."

Her eyes were slightly red, and the fear on her face had not yet completely subsided, which made people feel pity for her.

The emperor's eyes once again fell on the concubine's overly simple dress and bun.

The emperor was well aware of the influence of the aristocratic families and was deeply wary of them. The imperial concubine was also from the powerful Lin family, which made him suspect that she was also involved in this complicated conflict of interests.

But when he saw Concubine Lin’s haggard face, the emperor softened his heart again.

Yes, Jinlian was so vicious and shameless, it was extremely difficult for the imperial concubine to bring out important evidence.

As soon as she returned to the palace, she came to see me without stopping, which was enough to prove that she had no intention of shielding Lin Zhao.

The emperor sighed, helped Concubine Lin up from the ground, and comforted her: "I don't blame you. Lin Zhao is just your distant relative. I believe you are also unaware of it. Concubine, rest assured, I will definitely punish Tongguang severely."

"Someone! Quickly summon the commander of the Imperial Guards, Fang Rong'an, and Prince Ding to the palace for an audience."

When the eunuch heard the names of these two people, he knew that something big was about to happen.

Next, it is time for the emperor to discuss state affairs.

Concubine Lin bowed and politely said goodbye: "I'll take my leave."

The emperor patted her hand and said gently, "My beloved concubine, I am sorry for the fright. I will come to see you after I have dealt with these matters."

When she stepped out of the threshold of the Palace of Tranquil Longevity, Concubine Lin realized that her palms were covered in cold sweat.

Zijuan looked at her worriedly.

Concubine Lin shook her head and said, "I have nothing to do. Give orders that no one is allowed to pass on any news to the family in the next few days. If anyone disobeys, no need to say anything, just drag him out and beat him to death."

Although Zijuan was surprised, she immediately nodded in agreement when she saw Concubine Lin was so serious.

Concubine Lin looked up. Although it was a fine day, her heart sank to the bottom.

The emperor was suspicious, she knew.

But the moment the emperor questioned her, she couldn't help feeling a little hurt.

Concubine Lin let out a breath.

At this moment, she just wanted to return to Linhua Palace as soon as possible and be with Concubine Wu.

In this entire harem, only Concubine Wu can make her feel at ease.