Chapter 98
Wei Luo caught his breath before daring to enter Qixiang Palace.
Inside the hall, the emperor was reading memorials when he saw the crown prince approaching. He handed the memorials directly to Wei Luo.
"Your Highness, please take a look first."
Wei Luo opened it and saw that it was a report from the Ministry of Personnel and the Censorate explaining why many officials in the Censorate were being investigated.
He skimmed through the text, reading ten lines at a glance.
The emperor asked, "What are your thoughts?"
Wei Luo lowered his eyes and pondered, "In the 18th year of Yongzhen, the capital inspection resulted in the punishment of seven censors and ten provincial officials; in the 24th year, the capital inspection resulted in the punishment of five censors and nine provincial officials. This year, the capital inspection resulted in the punishment of four censors and seven provincial officials. In terms of numbers, it has decreased rather than increased."
The emperor looked at him and hummed in agreement.
Wei Luo continued, "Judging from the number of people, there is nothing unusual, but many of those investigated have had close ties with the Grand Secretary. It is possible that they are acting out of personal revenge."
After saying the last few words, he broke out in a cold sweat.
After a moment, the emperor said, "Then, Crown Prince, tell me, how should this matter be handled?"
"Your subject dares not speak presumptuously."
"It's alright."
Since the emperor had spoken, Wei Luo had no choice but to bite the bullet and say, "The censorate is currently short of people. I suggest that those who are impetuous and impatient be retained for the time being, while the rest should retire and be demoted according to custom."
After he finished speaking, the room was quiet for a moment.
After a moment, the emperor said, "That is a good method."
The eunuch Chen Zhen was serving the emperor with pen and ink. The emperor turned to him and said, "Let it be as the crown prince says."
Chen Zhen lowered his eyes and said, "Yes."
Wei Luo looked up at Chen Zhen, just as Chen Zhen was also raising his eyelids. Their gazes met briefly in the stagnant air before the emperor, and then separated. Chen Zhen immediately lowered his eyes, while Wei Luo's fingertips silently tightened inside his sleeve.
Wei Luo smiled at him, "Thank you for your hard work, Chief Eunuch."
Chen Zhen blinked, his expression somewhat unnatural, and quickly bowed, "Your Highness is too kind to this humble servant."
Seeing the two of them speaking in cryptic terms, the emperor said, "Your Highness, if you have nothing else to do, go back. Remember to keep yourself pure and upright."
The ambiguous words made Wei Luo tremble involuntarily, and he quickly bowed and replied, "Yes."
He turned back to the East Palace.
Liu Heng offered tea, but Wei Luo pushed it away and asked him, "Do you think Chen Zhen has found anything about the Shen family? I felt uneasy looking at him today."
Liu Heng said, "He is investigating whether His Highness has formed any factions, but he would not investigate private matters."
Wei Luo shook his head. "The Crown Prince has no private matters, especially not the Shen family. The Shen family is a powerful maternal relative whom His Majesty has personally supported, and they are also His Majesty's money bag. If he finds out about my deal with Governor Shen, then the charge of forming a faction will likely be confirmed."
Monarchs are especially wary of forming factions, and Wei Luo was particularly cautious about this matter, hence his deep concern.
Liu Heng sighed, "Dealing with a tiger for its skin is inherently risky. Since Your Highness has chosen this path, you must come up with a plan to deal with it."
"So what's your idea?"
Wei Luo pinned his hopes on Liu Heng.
Liu Heng lowered his eyes, "Use coercion and bribery to get to Chen Zhen."
As he spoke, he took a piece of paper out of his sleeve. Wei Luo took it, glanced at it, and frowned as he asked, "Is this your idea?"
"yes."
"Not bad, just a bit of a scoundrel."
One second it's praise, the next it's disparagement, leaving Liu Heng both amused and exasperated.
Wei Luo coughed a few times, handed the paper to Liu Heng, and went to pour himself a cup of tea.
Liu Heng followed behind and advised, "Those who achieve great things in ancient times, which one did not do something petty? If Your Highness finds it dirty, this servant will do it."
Wei Luo took a sip of tea, turned around and said, "What are you speculating about? When did I say I wouldn't do it? I've thought about what you wrote, but Chen Zhen helped us during the Demon Book incident and didn't seem to have any hostility towards me. If possible, I would prefer to win him over."
Liu Heng continued, "Your Highness is right. Not only Chen Zhen, but also his godson Hu Mazi, helped search for Your Highness when you went missing, and they kept their mouths shut. This matter is still completely under wraps. But—"
Then, changing the subject, he said, "Times change, and there are no permanent friends, only permanent interests."
Wei Luo frowned, lowered his eyes, and remained silent.
Liu Heng added, "One should always be wary of others. Since Your Highness is the ruler, it would be best to use both kindness and severity."
After a moment's hesitation, Wei Luo looked up at Liu Heng and nodded.
Liu Heng was immediately overjoyed and asked, "Your Highness agrees?"
"Yes, I agree. Not only do I agree, but this time I'll also make Governor Shen bleed a little."
As he turned to leave, Liu Heng hurriedly asked, "Where is Your Highness going?"
"Go and ask for the money, using the first method you suggested."
Just as he was about to step out the door, he turned back to Liu Heng and instructed him, "I'll use bribery; you'll use coercion. Remember, don't alert them!"
"Yes, Your Highness."
*
Shen Yao was admiring the flowers in the garden when she was suddenly hugged from behind.
A warm embrace, a familiar fragrance.
Turning around, I saw that it was indeed His Highness!
Before she could even ask, the man bit her lip without hesitation, and the two whispered sweet nothings for a while before finally separating.
Shen Yao smiled brightly: "Your Highness couldn't wait to come see me after just one day."
Wei Luo flicked her forehead and said, "You're wrong, it's not a day, it's half a day."
They both laughed.
Shen Yao smoothed out his clothes and straightened his hat before asking, "Did Your Highness come to see Father? He went out early this morning and hasn't returned yet."
“I know, he went to the prison to persuade Xu Xuan.”
Shen Yao asked, "So Your Highness came to ask about the results?"
Wei Luo smiled and said, "Yes and no."
Looking into the girl's sincere eyes, he suddenly felt a little embarrassed to speak.
Such a pure person deserves to walk freely in the sunlight; how could she allow those dirty deals to taint her ears?
So Wei Luo kept quiet, only saying that he was thirsty and asked Shen Yao to drink tea with him.
The two arrived at the flower hall.
Shen Yao personally ordered him a strong cup of tea and had someone bring some steamed cakes with fruit filling. After the two had been eating for a while, someone came to report that Master Shen had returned.
She still had a beaming smile on her face.
Shen Yao was curious when, before she knew it, Old Master Shen couldn't hold back and blurted out, "I have good news."
He poured himself a cup of tea and gulped it down.
Shen Yao hurriedly stepped forward and asked, "Xu Xuan has agreed to a divorce?"
Mr. Shen nodded repeatedly, "Almost agree."
After putting down his teacup and wiping his mouth, he continued, "I appealed to his emotions and reasoned with him, and sure enough, I succeeded. Now, all Your Highness needs to do is go to the prison in person to reassure Xu Xuan, and this matter will be resolved smoothly."
Wei Luo wasn't happy about the good news; instead, she asked in surprise, "You told him it was me?"
"Yes." Master Shen said seriously, "It's something we'll find out sooner or later, there's no point in hiding it."
For a moment, Wei Luo was speechless.
Shen Yao was also slightly surprised and asked, "What was Xu Xuan's reaction when he found out it was His Highness?"
Master Shen squinted, seemingly lost in memories, and after a long while said, "Anger and excitement, but His Highness is the emperor and he is the subject. What could he do? In the end, he still had to be pragmatic and agree."
As he spoke, he glanced at Wei Luo, whose face had turned pale, and then lowered his head to drink his tea guiltily.
The two took their seats one after the other.
Wei Luo said to Shen Yao, "There's no more tea. Go and get some more."
Knowing they had something to say, Shen Yao tactfully left.
Only the two of them remained in the hall. Wei Luo said, "If Xu Xuan really agrees to a divorce, that would be fine. But if she refuses, I'm afraid we can't keep her here."
When Master Shen looked at him, he saw a cold glint in his eyes, and a murderous aura permeated his entire being.
He had just seen this familiar feeling with Xu Xuan; it was very familiar. He didn't expect that in a different place and with a different person, it would still be the same familiar formula.
These days, all sons-in-law are so ruthless.
He wiped his sweat and replied, "Your Highness, please rest assured, I will handle Xu Xuan's situation well and will not cause you any trouble."
Wei Luo snorted coldly and said with a smile, "That would be for the best. However, I have come here today for another matter that I need Governor Shen's help with."
He straightened up slightly and said in a low voice, "His Majesty has sent people to investigate me."
Just one sentence was enough to make Old Master Shen's expression change drastically, and he stammered, "Investigate what?"
Wei Luo truthfully replied: "To form a faction."
Those two words almost made Mr. Shen faint.
He asked, "Where have you gotten to? Have you found the Shen family?"
Wei Luo scoffed, "If the investigation leads to the Shen family, would you and I still be sitting here peacefully drinking tea?"
That means it's gone, though only temporarily.
Mr. Shen's complexion improved slightly.
Wei Luo continued, "Chen Zhen, the director of the Eastern Depot, is extremely meticulous and loyal to His Majesty. If he continues his investigation like this, we will be exposed sooner or later."
"So—" Old Master Shen made a throat-slitting gesture.
Wei Luo shook his head. "Chen Zhen is almost always by His Majesty's side. Not to mention that he would be difficult to kill, even if we were lucky enough to kill him, His Majesty would definitely become suspicious, which would be a loss. So, what I mean is to bribe him with a large sum of money."
"Heavy~gold~"
Master Shen's expression changed slightly. In an instant, seeing the Crown Prince's burning gaze, he sensed that something terrible was about to happen.
As expected, Wei Luo spoke up, "I originally thought of taking money from the Eastern Palace, but as you know, every expenditure in the treasury must be recorded in an account book. If I were to move it, the risk would be too great. So, I will have to trouble Governor Shen for help with this matter."
Old Master Shen's vision went black, his hands trembled on his lap, and his heart bled.
Chen Zhen, the Director of Ceremonial Affairs, was already extremely wealthy. To bribe him would require a significant financial investment.
The hatred in his heart was immense.
He then said, "Chen Zhen is not short of money. Even if it were a bribe, would he dare to accept it?"
Wei Luo said, "Whether he accepts it or not is his business, whether you give it to him or not is your business. Besides, I have my own ways to make him accept it."
Master Shen, breathing heavily, hurriedly asked, "Does Your Highness have another plan?"
“Of course, he will refuse if you bribe him directly, but he will not tolerate it if something happens to his most beloved godson.”
"Sesame seeds?" Master Shen exclaimed in surprise. "Your Highness intends to use sesame seeds as a blackmail?"
"Hu Mazi is greedy and lustful, and has a lot of murder cases on his hands. Chen Zhen has cleaned up his messes many times. I've already asked Liu Heng to find evidence for this. So as long as we pay them, they won't dare to refuse."
Wei Luo raised an eyebrow and smiled, "Commander Shen, are you relieved now?"
Master Shen swallowed hard, clenched his fists, and gritted his teeth, saying, "Since Your Highness is so confident of victory, how could a little money be a problem? Even if Your Highness hadn't said anything, I would have covered it all myself and would never have allowed Your Highness to spend any money—"
They really went all out to achieve their goal of helping the emperor rise to power.
Wei Luo stood up straight and gestured for him to proceed. “I am very pleased that Governor Shen is so sensible. Without further ado, let’s go to the warehouse and count the money.”
Master Shen: "..."
*
After counting the gold and silver treasures, Master Shen went back to his room to wallow in melancholy.
The sun was setting in the west, and the evening breeze, carrying the scent of spring grass, gently caressed our faces.
Wei Luo led Shen Yao for a walk in the courtyard.
Shen Yao said, "If only we could stay like this forever."
Wei Luo said, "Why not? Once you and Xu Xuan have divorced, and once I've finished my mourning period at the end of the month, we can truly be together, loving each other like any other couple in the world until we grow old together."
"Really?"
Shen Yao stopped and stared at the handsome man in front of her, her eyes filled with expectation and fear.
Longing for a happy life, yet fearing the despair of letting others down.
Wei Luo stared at her intently for a while, then suddenly said, "You're scared, aren't you?"
Looking into his eyes, Shen Yao didn't deny it, "I am a little scared."
Wei Luo asked her, "What are you afraid of?"
Shen Yao replied, "I don't know either. I just feel panicked. It's like all of this is unreal, like a dream, or like a bubble that will burst at the slightest touch, leaving me with nothing but scars to live out the rest of my life."
“That doesn’t sound like something a young woman would say,” Wei Luo said, her eyes crinkling. “It sounds like a seventy or eighty-year-old woman lamenting the fleeting nature of life and the impermanence of things.”
Shen Yao stared at him with wide eyes, and it took her a while to realize that Wei Luo was saying she was old. She quickly pinched his palm and asked with a giggle, "Does it hurt?"
Wei Luo quickly withdrew her hand, glaring at the person who had done the wrong thing, and said, "What a bold girl! How dare you pinch His Highness! Don't you have a death wish?"
Shen Yao snorted, crossed her arms and laughed, "So be it. May I ask Your Highness how you intend to punish me? Will it be slow slicing or caning?"
"Of course—"
He took a big step forward, pressed his lips to hers, and murmured, "I want all of you~"
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