Chapter 301: Lan Lao's Suggestions
The emperor frowned, pacing back and forth continuously, his expression gloomy. "Overnight, Concubine Ming's identity as a spy was suddenly exposed. Prince Qi has planted spies in the palace. If this were limited to the inner palace, it would be fine."
"Someone suddenly appeared in the court, holding definitive evidence proving the former Crown Prince was framed by the King of Qi. Such solid evidence was not presented earlier, but only appeared now. This is clearly an attempt to disrupt the court!"
"Who is it? Who is it? Who is stirring up trouble right under my nose?"
Thinking of this, the emperor stopped pacing and ordered with a sharp look: "Announce, Prime Minister Li Zhu. Minister of Justice Xing Zhang..."
But before the emperor could finish his words, a young eunuch came hurriedly, looking flustered, knelt down and saluted, saying, "Your Majesty, Prince Li and the former Prime Minister, Mr. Lan, have entered the palace."
"Send a sedan chair immediately to pick them up..."
However, today was destined to be turbulent. As soon as the emperor finished speaking, several places sent urgent reports over eight hundred miles to the case.
The emperor read one of the letters, which turned out to be a secret letter from the General of Zhenxi. It stated that Tatar spies, aided by veterans of the previous dynasty, had infiltrated the army, causing chaos in command and malfunctioning food and fodder supplies.
Attached to it was a letter of apology from the General Zhenxi.
When he opened another one, he found that it was the document of Wei Zheng, the border envoy who died half a year ago. It contained irrefutable evidence that the Anxi officials were corrupt and levied heavy taxes, causing the people to suffer, and that the King of Qi was behind all this.
Combined with the information that the Purple-Robed Envoy had found out with the help of Chu Ci, the emperor felt a chill run down his spine.
The dense pile of evidence laid out before him, each one shocking, like a sharp knife piercing the emperor's heart. "Prince Qi, Prince Qi! What on earth does he want to do?"
Because of his anger, the emperor staggered and almost fell.
Zhang Rang reached out to help him, but was angrily rejected by the emperor.
It happened that at this time, Prince Li and Lord Lan arrived at the door of the imperial study.
Zhang Rang was overjoyed when he heard the news from the eunuch at the door. He immediately ran to the emperor and reported, "Your Majesty, Prince Li and Elder Lan have arrived. Should we invite them in now?"
The emperor naturally understood Zhang Rang's intention to divert his attention and ease his emotions.
But at this moment, he wanted to know the news brought by his uncle and Lord Lan.
Therefore, after a brief pause, the emperor took a deep breath, tried to calm himself down, and said in a deep voice: "Transmit—"
Zhang Rang was delighted and immediately gathered all his strength, shouting at the top of his voice, "Yes, Prince Chuanli and Elder Lan Zhilan are here to see you—"
As Zhang Rang's voice spread, Prince Li and Lan Zhi soon walked into the imperial study.
Prince Li and Lanzhi were about to salute the emperor when the emperor quickly raised his hand to stop them, saying, "Uncle, Elder Lan, there's no need for formalities. Please stand up."
Prince Li stood up and said solemnly, "Your Majesty, I believe you have guessed the purpose of our entry into the palace!"
The emperor's face darkened upon hearing this, his eyes filled with deep thought. He then waved his hand to dismiss the eunuchs and palace maids, and lowered his voice to ask, "Uncle, are you saying that everything today is because of Feng Yan? So, how is Feng Yan doing now?"
Seeing that the emperor still didn't grasp the key point, Prince Li couldn't help but look disappointed. He sighed and said, "Emperor, don't you understand yet?"
"The key issue right now isn't Feng Yan himself. It's that the Great Zhou has been riddled with holes by these insatiable, greedy termites. They're like vicious ants lurking in the dark, silently and relentlessly eroding the foundations of the Great Zhou."
"If we don't take drastic measures and crack down on this situation, I'm afraid the Great Zhou won't be able to hold out for much longer."
"The country is in imminent danger, and the country is in turmoil. Your Majesty, can't you see clearly?"
Being accused so bluntly and mercilessly, even though the emperor usually respected Prince Li, he could not help but feel murderous at this moment.
But the next second, the emperor saw Prince Li raise the founding emperor Wu's cane without hesitation.
The emperor's heart sank.
The murderous intent instantly dissipated, replaced by deep fear and uneasiness. He could only reluctantly ask, "Uncle, what do you think I should do?"
Upon seeing this, Prince Li was about to tell everyone everything, but was stopped by Old Master Lan who gently extended his hand.
Prince Li didn't understand why, but out of trust in Master Lan, he didn't continue his original action. Instead, he turned his questioning gaze to Lan Zhi, asking anxiously, "Master Lan, what brings you to the palace today?"
Lan Zhi did not answer Prince Li immediately. Instead, she turned to face the emperor, looking solemn and saying in a serious tone, "Your Majesty, you should have discovered many inappropriate things about His Royal Highness the Prince of Qi."
"The current situation is so chaotic and complicated. Why not take advantage of the situation and shift all the blame onto the King of Qi? That way, while you may be guilty of not raising your son properly, you can avoid the embarrassment and difficulty of issuing a self-criticism edict. This might help temporarily stabilize the court and appease the people."
Upon hearing this, the emperor cursed inwardly, "Old Fox! When did I ever say I was going to issue an edict of repentance?" This Lan Zhi was truly calculating.
But he knew the two old men in front of him better, and they would never fight an unprepared battle.
So, suppressing his dissatisfaction, he tentatively asked, "But if that happens, Second Brother... I can't bear it. Is there any other way to have the best of both worlds?"
As soon as the emperor said such shameless words, Prince Li almost couldn't help cursing on the spot. His face instantly turned red and his fists clenched tightly.
Fortunately, Lan Zhi, who was beside him, coughed in time, which allowed Prince Li to suppress his temper that was about to explode.
Even so, what Prince Li said was not very pleasant.
"You feel sorry for the second child, why don't you feel sorry for the third child?"
"A diligent prince was punished to be confined to the imperial mausoleum for many years just because of your baseless speculation!"
"If you had cared about the father-son relationship at all, you wouldn't have troubled the Queen for so many years."
"Look at what this harem has become because of you. And look at this court, it's a mess, and you still have the mind to protect the second brother!"
Chu Ci had no idea that because of his sound sleep, he was severely scolded by the emperor in the palace.
If she knew, she would definitely put her hands on her hips and sigh proudly, "How could I be so talented! I could trigger such a chain reaction."
However, the news was not kept secret for long. The reason was that Chu Ci, Fan Jingrui and Feng Yan had just come out of the secret room and unlocked the Feng Mansion's absolute guard order.
Prince Li and Marquis Wucheng appeared in front of the three people with their personal guards.
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