Chapter 516 Departure to the Southwest!
After Consort Shu fainted in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, people in the harem and the court sensed that Consort Shu was about to fall out of favor.
Your Majesty more or less believed that the Prince of Zhennan had betrayed the throne. Even if it is later proven that the Prince of Zhennan was innocent, given Your Majesty's personality, it would be difficult for him to allow Zhou Ruyuan to inherit the throne.
But now His Majesty only has a few incompetent princes left, and none of them seem like a wise ruler.
Whom should they support?
Shen Lanxi had just returned to the palace when she received a report from her secret guards.
“A palace maid tried to get close to Song Daoxi.”
Shen Lanxi: "Have you found out whose people they are?"
The bodyguard reported: "We received news from the Regent's Palace that the son of Wang Mama, the kitchen maid, met with people from the teahouse today. Afterwards, the people from the teahouse contacted a laundry slave in the Yeting Palace through someone from the Imperial Palace who was in charge of purchasing supplies. This laundry slave then used his connections to find a newly arrived palace maid."
The bodyguard explained the contact information and the people he had contacted to Shen Lanxi in detail.
Shen Lanxi thought for a moment and said, "Don't touch these two people yet. We've screened the palace staff several times, but we still haven't found this criminal slave. He must have been hiding very deep before."
If even those who were kept so hidden have been mobilized, there must not be many people left in the palace.
"I roughly know what that palace maid is up to. Tell Song Daoxi that the gift delivered to his door is a reward for him. As long as he behaves well and doesn't leave the palace, I can guarantee his life!"
Bodyguard: "Yes."
Shen Lanxi gave a silent, cold laugh. Her good mother couldn't even wait for her to leave the capital.
Before leaving, the Shen family held a family banquet.
"Grandmother, Lanxi is going to the southwest and we don't know when she will return. I'll have to trouble you to take care of things at home."
Ever since Emperor Renxiao recovered, Madam Shen has been unable to eat or sleep. She keeps having nightmares that people are coming to ransack her home again.
"Lanxi, will His Majesty take action against our Shen family..." Saying the word "take action" on such a day was too heavy, and Old Madam Shen was afraid that her granddaughter would be discouraged before her departure, so she did not say it.
Shen Lanxi said firmly, "As long as our family doesn't rebel or commit regicide, His Majesty won't do anything to us."
The old lady quickly waved her hand: "No, no, how could that be? Our family are all honest and law-abiding people who just want to live a peaceful life." What rebellion? Such words are terrifying. She wouldn't dare to even think about it if she had a hundred lives.
Shen Lanxi reassured her family.
"In the Northwest, Yuan Jing commands the army; in Ganzhou and Shu, Wei Dongzhu and Shen Yuanxu follow. The majority of the imperial forces are under our control..."
Before he could finish speaking, Shen Congwen interrupted him.
"Be careful what you say. Is this something you can say?" If things go wrong, their family will be accused of having an army and being too powerful.
Shen Lanxi wants to seize power and shouldn't implicate the Shen family.
"That's what Father meant when he forbade us to say it. But let me make this clear: while I'm away from the capital, the evil spirits and monsters there will surely emerge and cause trouble. Our family needs to keep a low profile and avoid giving anyone any leverage over us. Otherwise, I'll be in the southwest, and all that water from afar won't be enough to quench my immediate thirst!"
This principle doesn't need to be explained in detail; the Shen family all understand it.
"Lanxi, after you leave, we'll live our lives behind closed doors!" Don't think she's ignorant because she's always been in the innermost courtyard. The master said that Lanxi is at the height of her power, and many people will definitely try to find fault with them, bring Lanxi down, and make the Shen family die without a burial place.
Shen Lanxi raised the corners of her mouth: "With Grandmother Shen managing things, I feel much more at ease!"
The next day arrived, the day of departure.
Before leaving, she made a special trip to see her mother.
"Mother, Lanxi is gone!"
Zhou Xinrou said with a worried expression, "You need to be careful while you're out there."
Shen Lanxi: "My daughter will, and so will my mother."
Zhou Xinrou: "Go ahead, don't be late."
Shen Lanxi bowed deeply and turned to leave.
After leaving the city, they could already see the dawn. Shen Lanxi glanced in the direction of the capital, then led a thousand soldiers and spurred their horses into the morning light.
After she left, countless prying eyes on the city wall quickly scattered in all directions.
Shen Lanxi is gone. She's finally gone!
Today, many officials in their mansions are so happy they could dance with joy, and they drink to celebrate every morning.
"Now that His Majesty is personally handling state affairs, it would be better for Shen Lanxi to die outside than to return to the capital and find that she has no place to stand and is utterly ashamed!"
"It would be best if Shen Lanxi died in the southwest. A woman should be forgotten by all living beings. All the laws she modified before should be changed back."
"All these marriage-based migration policies, all these express reports, all these women participating in the imperial examinations and military examinations—they are all malpractices, and they must all be abolished!"
“Shen Lanxi is simply disrupting the foundation of our Great Zhou Kingdom. Today, I will definitely impeach her for disregarding the law, modifying the law according to her own likes and dislikes, wantonly framing court officials, and subverting the etiquette and laws of our Great Zhou Kingdom.”
During the morning court session, memorials submitted by Shen Lanxi flew onto Emperor Renxiao's desk like snowflakes.
"Your Majesty, during the Ming Dynasty, when Shen Lanxi was handling state affairs on behalf of the emperor, she acted recklessly, disregarded the court, wantonly harmed and installed her cronies, and seized control of the court. I beg Your Majesty to punish Shen Lanxi!" Chen Qing, the Vice Minister of War, spoke with fervor and indignation.
Emperor Renxiao remained expressionless and coldly asked, "Do you have any solid evidence?" To Emperor Renxiao's right was Wang Bao, to his left was Che Mingyuan, and behind the screen were the strategists of Qinglan Academy.
It's still the same team that Shen Lanxi used to work with.
Liu Mingxin looked up at Emperor Renxiao's left and right, then at Chen Qing, whose face was full of indignation, sighed, and silently shook his head.
Some people just can't see the situation clearly, and they bring trouble upon themselves, so they deserve to die!
Chen Qing: "Yes, the former Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites was only accused of arbitrarily amending the law and violating ancestral rules. She ordered the Imperial Guards to remove the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites' official hat and peacock feather on the spot, strip him of his official robes, deprive him of his official position, put him in a cage, and parade him through the streets as a public spectacle!"
"So much so that the official in charge of the Ministry of Rites committed suicide out of shame and indignation, running into a pillar and dying. She treated human life with utter contempt; she was simply vicious and cruel to the extreme!"
Emperor Renxiao calmly took a memorial from Wang Bao and then handed it back to Wang Bao.
"read!"
Wang Bao read aloud: "Zhang Yi, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, accepted bribes, leaked exam questions, allowed his family to commit violence, and seized hundreds of acres of farmland and houses from the people. He should be executed along with his entire family for his crimes. However, since the Great Zhou is in need of capable people, he is hereby exiled to the Northwest and his family will be enslaved for three generations."
Chen Qing's face turned pale. Why hadn't Shen Lanxi mentioned these things before?
Che Mingyuan: "If Lord Chen does not believe me, he can go to the Dali Temple and the Ministry of Justice to check. Both places have detailed case files!"
Chen Qingxin's heart sank, and he immediately gave the other officials a meaningful look.
"Your Majesty, it is true that Shen Lanxi attempted to overthrow our Great Zhou. How can women be allowed to take the imperial examinations? It is simply a disruption of the foundation of our Great Zhou."
Emperor Renxiao: "Don't you have any daughters in your family?"
The courtiers who filed the complaint never expected that His Majesty would speak up for Shen Lanxi. This was no longer just helping; it was favoritism.
How could Your Majesty be so foolish? If a woman were to enter the court, where would the majesty of the Great Zhou Dynasty be? Where would the solemnity of the court be?
Won't the men be overshadowed by the women in the future?
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