Chapter 705: It’s better to curse out loud than to keep it in your heart
"What a cruel method." Zhao Chen'an clenched his fists in his sleeves. "But since they dared to make trouble in the court, they must have made thorough preparations. I'm afraid they have no shortage of witnesses or evidence."
"What's fake won't become real," Qian Zhenyun said calmly. "As long as Your Highness trusts me, I have a way to make them shoot themselves in the foot."
Seeing his calm appearance, Zhao Chenan's irritability gradually subsided.
He nodded and said in a deep voice, "Okay, I trust you. If you need me to do anything, just tell me."
The Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion.
Gu Qingchen had just returned from the horse farm when he heard the maid Xiao Cui running to him in a panic to report the news.
"Miss! Oh no! Something terrible has happened!"
"News has come from the palace that... Young Master Qian is being investigated by the Censorate for corruption! Now the entire court, both civil and military, is impeaching him. Even His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has been called in by the Emperor to be reprimanded!"
Corruption?
The horsewhip in Gu Qingchen's hand fell to the ground with a "snap".
Her mind buzzed and went blank in an instant.
How could it be? How could it be embezzlement?
A few days ago, he hinted that Lin Jiayou had bought his official position with money, and she angrily accused him of being blinded by jealousy.
In the blink of an eye, he himself was imprisoned for accepting bribes.
This is such a huge irony!
No, impossible!
A thought was clamoring wildly in her mind. She knew better than anyone what kind of person Qian Zhenyun was.
He may be dull, tongue-tied, or even stubborn at times, but he is definitely not a greedy person!
If he was greedy, he would not have saved all his pocket money when he was a child just to buy her a jade hairpin that she mentioned casually.
Someone must have framed him!
It's the Third Prince! It must be the Third Prince whose heart is smaller than a needle tip!
Gu Qingchen's heart tightened instantly, and he turned around and rushed out.
"Prepare the horses! I'm going to the East Palace!"
Outside the East Palace gate, security is tight.
Gu Qingchen turned over and dismounted, lifting her skirt and trying to rush in, but was blocked by two crossed halberds.
"Get out of the way! I want to see the prince!" She said angrily with her eyes wide open.
The guard at the gate replied expressionlessly, "Miss Gu, His Highness has ordered that no one will be seen today."
"He doesn't dare to see me!" Gu Qingchen was so angry that he blurted out, "Qian Zhenyun works for him, and now that something's wrong, is he going to become a coward?"
The guard commander frowned, stepped forward, and said politely, "My lady, please be careful with your words. His Highness is attending to important matters, so please return."
"Important matters? What matters are more important than the lives of our own people?"
Gu Qingchen looked at the tightly closed vermilion lacquer door and felt a surge of anger rushing to her head, burning her to the point of losing all her rationality.
She knew that the prince was avoiding her. He was afraid that she would make a scene without caring about him and make things worse.
But she just couldn't swallow this!
She took two steps back, pointed at the palace gate, and cursed with all her might.
"Zhao Chen'an! Come out here!"
"Are you still a man?! You can't even protect your own people. All you do all day is weigh the pros and cons. How can you be a prince?"
"I'm telling you, if anything happens to Qian Zhenyun, I, Gu Qingchen, will be the first one to not let you go!"
Her clear, tearful curses were heard from far away, attracting the attention of the surrounding palace servants, but no one dared to step forward to stop her.
Inside the gate, Crown Prince Zhao Chen'an stood at the window, listening quietly.
The eunuch behind him bowed and whispered, "Your Highness, Miss Gu...should we send someone to persuade her?"
Zhao Chenan raised his hand and indicated that it was not necessary.
As he listened to the vigorous cursing outside the door, his furrowed brows relaxed a little.
"Let her scold."
He said softly, a faint smile appearing on the corner of his mouth that no one noticed.
"It's better to curse out loud than to keep it in your heart."
Outside, Gu Qingchen's cursing voice had become a little hoarse, but she still had no intention of stopping.
Just as she was about to take a breath before scolding again, a gentle voice came from behind her.
"Qingchen, shut up."
Lin Jiayou arrived at some point. He quickly stepped forward and grabbed Gu Qingchen's arm.
"What are you doing? Outside the East Palace gate, you can't mess around! Come back with me!"
He tried to pull her away, but Gu Qingchen was like a rooted tree, motionless.
She shook off his hand and stared at him with her red eyes.
"Go back? Why should I go back? Qian Zhenyun is about to be murdered. Should I go back and wait for death?"
"But if you make such a scene here, besides embarrassing His Highness and making things worse, what problem will you solve?"
Lin Jiayou frowned and lowered his voice to advise, "There must be something behind this matter. We should take a long-term view and not act on impulse."
"Long-term consideration?"
Gu Qingchen looked like she had heard a huge joke. She pointed at herself and then at the tightly closed palace gate, her laughter tinged with tears.
"By the time you finish your plan, his head will be off the floor!"
She looked at Lin Jiayou, at his face that always showed the expression of "considering the overall situation", and the scene of the poetry reading that day suddenly flashed through her mind.
That day, when Qian Zhenyun was being bullied, he also stood aside and said useless words of concern.
A deep disappointment suddenly overwhelmed the anger.
"Lin Jiayou, go away." Her voice turned cold. "If we don't share the same ideals, we can't work together."
The gentle mask on Lin Jiayou's face finally showed a crack.
"Qingchen, what are you talking about? I'm just thinking about you!"
"Thinking about me?" Gu Qingchen turned his head and stopped looking at him, his gaze returning to the palace gate.
"I only know that I will protect my people myself. Even if it means risking my own life, I will never watch him get into trouble while I hide behind him and calculate the pros and cons."
Lin Jiayou's outstretched hand froze in mid-air, and his face turned pale and blue.
Gu Qingchen ignored him and was tired of scolding him. She knew in her heart that she couldn't get in by brute force alone.
She wiped her face, turned around, walked to her horse, and jumped on it. Her movements were smooth and without any hesitation.
Before leaving, she turned around and glanced at Lin Jiayou coldly.
"You don't have to follow me."
After saying this, she clamped her legs against the horse's belly and sped away.
Only Lin Jiayou was left standing awkwardly outside the East Palace gate, becoming a laughing stock in the eyes of everyone.
Zhao Chen'an turned around and sat back in the main seat. He picked up the tea that had already gone cold on the table and took a sip.
"This girl's temper is exactly the same as when she was a child."
He put down his teacup and his eyes fell on Qian Zhenyun. "Now, tell me. How do you plan to make them shoot themselves in the foot?"
Qian Zhenyun took a step forward, his expression still calm.
"Your Highness, since they have set up this trap, they must have already prepared the witnesses and evidence."
"The so-called witness is likely the 'rich businessman' who sent the gift. And the physical evidence is the rumored ancient inkstone from the previous dynasty and the box of gold bars."
Zhao Chen'an frowned. "The people from the Censorate have already sealed your official house at the Ministry of Revenue and searched your residence, but found nothing."
"Next, they will definitely find ways to pin this so-called 'stolen goods' on you."
"good."
"So, I would like to ask Your Highness for a favor."
"you say."
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