Chapter 46 Lawlessness
Pei Zhi picked up the letters, some of which were written in Chinese. They said that three months later, when the new emperor held a ceremony to worship Heaven, they would cooperate from within and without to seize the throne.
“Those people are really audacious.” A shadow crossed Pei Zhi’s face. “Let’s get these things to the Emperor as soon as possible.”
"No," Ye Wanning waved her hand. "Duke Li must already suspect that we betrayed him. If we present this, he'll definitely accuse us of fabricating evidence."
"Then what do you want to do?" Pei Zhi asked.
"Let's first put these items in the hands of some ministers who have conflicts with the Li family, so they can cause trouble in court. This way, we can both bring down Duke Li and distance ourselves from him," Ye Wanning said.
Pei Zhi nodded: "That's right. I'll go see the Minister of Personnel tomorrow. He and Duke Li have always been at odds, so he'll definitely help us."
Just then, Chun Tao rushed in, shouting, "Miss, sir, someone from the palace has arrived! They say the Emperor wishes to see you!"
Ye Wanning and Pei Zhi exchanged a glance, both seeing surprise in each other's eyes. What would the Emperor say if he sent someone to see them?
"Do you know what it is?" Pei Zhi asked.
Chun Tao shook her head: "I don't know. The eunuch who came said that the Emperor only wants you to enter the palace immediately."
Ye Wanning's heart skipped a beat; she had a bad feeling. She looked at Pei Zhi: "Let's go."
The atmosphere in the palace was much heavier than usual, and the ministers all exuded an inexplicable sense of oppression. When Ye Wanning and Pei Zhi entered, they all cast strange glances at them.
The new emperor sat on the dragon throne, his face as white as paper, indicating that his body had not yet fully recovered.
"Miss Ye, Minister Pei, you have arrived," the new emperor announced.
"Your Majesty," the two knelt down in unison, "Greetings, Your Majesty."
"Rise, all of you." The new emperor coughed twice. "The Duke of Li said that you broke into his residence last night and stole something very important. Is that true?"
Duke Li immediately stepped forward and knelt down: "Your Majesty, this old minister can testify! They not only stole things, but also set fire to this old minister's study; it's utterly lawless!"
Ye Wanning stepped forward: "Your Majesty, I am innocent! Duke Li is slandering me!"
"Innocent? Then tell me, where were you last night?" Duke Li shouted.
"I have always been at Ci'an Hall, as evidenced by the old manager and many orphans."
“But who knows if you’ve bribed those people!” Duke Li retorted loudly.
"Lord Li, you keep saying we stole something, so tell me, what did we steal?" Pei Zhi asked.
Duke Li was speechless for a moment. He couldn't very well say that they had stolen the rubbing of the military tally and evidence of collusion with the vassal kings of the Western Regions.
"Anyway...anyway, you stole something very important!" Duke Li argued illogically.
“Your Majesty,” Ye Wanning said, “the Duke of Li accuses us of stealing, but he can’t produce any evidence; it’s clearly a frame-up. On the other hand, I’ve heard that the Duke of Li has been in close contact with merchants from the Western Regions lately, and I wonder what he’s plotting.”
The new emperor's gaze fell on Duke Li: "Is that so?"
Duke Li was startled and quickly said, "Your Majesty, this old minister was merely doing business with them; I truly had no other intentions!"
"Really? Then what's with this letter? It clearly states that you're colluding with the Western Region king to seize the throne!"
The ministers were taken aback, and all turned to look at Duke Li. Duke Li's expression changed drastically, and he pointed at Ye Wanning, shouting, "You...you fabricated evidence!"
"Whether it's a forgery or not, His Majesty will know at a glance!" Ye Wanning handed over the letter that Hei Feng had found. "The handwriting on it is exactly the same as the handwriting in the letter that Duke Li wrote to the merchants in the Western Regions. His Majesty can send someone to verify it."
The new emperor took the letter, glanced at it, then had someone bring over Duke Li's memorial and compared it several times. His expression grew increasingly grim: "Duke Li, what else do you have to say?"
Knowing he could no longer conceal the truth, Duke Li knelt on the ground with a thud: "Your Majesty, spare my life! This old minister was confused for a moment, and was misled!"
"Who has bewitched you?" the new emperor pressed.
After hesitating for a long time, Duke Li finally said, "It's...it's the Third Prince! He said that if I help him seize the throne, he will bestow upon me the title of 'One-Character King'!"
Ye Wanning sneered inwardly. Even at this point, they still wanted to shift the blame to the Third Prince.
"Your Majesty," Pei Zhidao said, "the Duke of Li has colluded with a vassal king, plotting a rebellion. The evidence is irrefutable, and he should be severely punished!"
The ministers echoed this sentiment, demanding that Duke Li be severely punished.
The new emperor remained silent for a long while before saying, "Throw Duke Li into the imperial prison and thoroughly investigate this matter! All those who colluded with him must be severely punished!"
The guards swarmed forward and dragged Duke Li away. Duke Li cried out and struggled, "Your Majesty, spare my life! This old minister is innocent!"
Watching his retreating figure being dragged away, Ye Wanning breathed a sigh of relief. They had won this battle.
However, Ye Wanning knew that this was only the beginning. The Third Prince was still in exile, the Western Region vassal kings were still eyeing him covetously, and there were many more unknowns ahead.
The new emperor looked at Ye Wanning and Pei Zhi and nodded: "Thanks to you both, otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable. Tell me, what reward do you desire?"
Pei Zhi glanced at Ye Wanning: "Your Majesty, we, Pei and Miss Ye, have no other requests than that Your Majesty thoroughly investigate the wrongful case of the General of Zhenbei and restore his innocence."
The new emperor nodded: "Granted. I will have the case reopened and will certainly give the General of the Northern Garrison an explanation."
Ye Wanning and Pei Zhi exchanged a glance, both seeing a relieved smile in each other's eyes. Their mother's wish was finally about to be fulfilled.
After Duke Li was imprisoned, the court was relatively peaceful for a time. Ye Wanning's injuries gradually healed, and she began to manage the Ci'an Hall. Pei Zhi was also busy investigating Duke Li's cronies, and for a while, all was well.
That day, Ye Wanning was managing affairs at Ci'an Hall when the old manager suddenly rushed in, panicked: "Second Miss, something terrible has happened! There's been trouble in the Western Regions!"
Ye Wanning's heart skipped a beat: "What happened?"
"The Western Regions vassal king has urgently mobilized his troops and captured many of our cities. Now they've reached Yumen Pass!" The old shopkeeper was sweating profusely with anxiety. "The imperial court has sent Zhao Feng, the son of the General Who Guards the North, to resist them, but I hear the situation is dire."
"Oh?" Ye Wanning's face immediately turned ugly. The fact that the Western Region vassal king made his move at this time clearly indicated that he had received news of Duke Li's capture and wanted to take the opportunity to move south.
“I have to see Lord Pei,” Ye Wanning said.
She rushed to the Pei residence, where Pei Zhi was in his study, examining a map with a deep frown. As soon as Ye Wanning entered, Pei Zhi sighed, "You've heard about it, haven't you?"
"Understood." Ye Wanning hummed in agreement. "The prince arrived so quickly; it seems he was well-prepared."
"It's more than just preparation," Pei Zhi said, pointing to the map. "Their marching route is exactly the same as the one marked on the map we found at the Duke of Li's residence; it was clearly planned long ago."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com