"…Your Majesty, I am grateful for your comfort, but now that things have come to this, I dare not hope for the best."

"Alas, Prime Minister, please accept my condolences." Emperor Qing sighed and said, "How about this, the sacrifice to heaven will be postponed for a few days, you can go back to the mansion to recuperate, and the Supervisory Council will continue to dig. If there is any new progress, I will send someone to deliver it to the Prime Minister's residence immediately."

Hearing this, Lin Ruofu stood up, bowed respectfully, and choked up, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace!"

"I'm leaving now!"

After saying this, Lin Ruofu bowed his head respectfully, then backed away and left the imperial study.

Emperor Qing watched Lin Ruofu leave. When the sound of his footsteps faded away, he spoke thoughtfully, "Eunuch Hou, do you think Lin Gong is dead or not?"

The eunuch waiting nearby immediately replied respectfully: "Your Majesty, I feel that if Second Young Master Lin had left at that time, there might still be a glimmer of hope for survival, but if Second Young Master Lin was also in the manor at that time, he must have perished under the might of heaven!"

Emperor Qing nodded and said, "I think so too."

“Heavenly might… Heavenly might…”

Emperor Qing sat on the edge of the dragon bed, gazing at the bright moon on the palace wall outside the window with extremely deep eyes.

At the same time, in the Overwatch Council, there was also a person who was looking at the bright moon through the skylight.

Holding the letter in his hand, Chen Pingping in the wheelchair suddenly thought of the mysterious young man he had met during the day.

"Heaven...Heaven..."

"If Heaven really exists, it should be easy to draw out such divine power, right?"

Chen Pingping lowered his head and looked at the memorial in his hand, his eyes becoming extremely complicated.

But if heaven really exists, why hasn’t it appeared in the past?

Or is it that Heaven is just a larger version of Qing Kingdom?

If this is really the case, then I can only rely on you, Fan Xian...

…

…

That night, everyone in Kyoto was sleepless because of the heavenly punishment.

The same was naturally true for Fan Xian, and he also had to worry about how to deal with Lin Gong.

So he thought about it all night, and only when the rooster crowed in the early morning did he open the door, look up at the sky with a tired face and a wry smile.

"Lin Gong, ah Lin Gong, what should I do with you..."

"Why can't you just say it in a nice way? Why do you have to do something so extreme?"

"If someone around me really died because of you, do you think I should kill you or not?"

Fan Xian sighed in his heart. Although he was still dissatisfied with what Lin Gong had done, he was already vaguely inclined to let Lin Gong go.

After all, in the Niulan Street assassination case, except for the destruction of a carriage, he did not suffer any losses. Instead, Lin Gong was almost killed by the two powerful bodyguards around him.

Of course, the above statement is just a conclusion based on the results.

Judging from the cause, Lin Gong did go a bit too far.

Fan Xian pondered for a night, and finally made an eight-character comment on Lin Gong's behavior:

His intention is despicable, but his feelings are forgivable.

After all, he knew how good Lin Gong was to his sister, and after he came to Kyoto, he tarnished his own reputation in order to break off the engagement. In the eyes of his loving brother, he really looked like someone whom he wanted to kill as soon as possible.

Considering the attitude of his fiancée Lin Wan'er, Fan Xian finally decided to let Lin Gong go.

But before letting him go, he planned to have a good talk with this brother-in-law who would assassinate his brother-in-law at any time.

Just as he was about to walk towards Yamu's room to ask where Lin Gong was being held, his sister Fan Ruoruo suddenly rushed over.

"Brother, there is someone outside the door. From what he said, he seems to be a staff member of the Prime Minister's Mansion."

"...the Prime Minister's staff?"

Fan Xian was stunned for a moment, then frowned slightly, not understanding why the prime minister's staff came to visit today.

Could it be that the Prime Minister knew that Lin Gong was in his hands?

How is this possible? !

After a little thought, Fan Xian decided to meet the aide first.

"May I ask your name, sir?"

In the flower hall, Fan Xian smiled and bowed to the aide.

The aide smiled and returned the greeting, saying, "I am Yuan Hongdao, an aide to the Prime Minister's residence. I came here today mainly to convey some news and attitudes to Master Fan on behalf of the Prime Minister."

"…What news?"

Fan Xian asked calmly.

Yuan Hongdao smiled and said, "Nothing much, it's just that the Prime Minister wants to ask Master Fan how to set the wedding date."

Hearing this, Fan Xian couldn't help but be stunned for a moment.

After coming back to his senses, Fan Xian said with a sharp gaze, "This...this should be decided by His Majesty, right?"

Yuan Hongdao slapped his head, stood up and bowed to Fan Xian with a smile: "Mr. Fan, you are absolutely right. I was confused. Since it is Your Majesty who arranged the marriage, it is naturally up to Your Majesty to decide. I will take my leave now!"

Having said that, Yuan Hongdao bowed, turned around, and left the flower hall in a neat and tidy manner.

Such an anticlimactic meeting that ended so bleakly left Fan Ruoruo, who was waiting nearby, a little confused.

“…You’re leaving now?”

Fan Xian had come to his senses by now, and immediately raised the corner of his mouth, glanced at her and said, "Now that the word has been passed on, I have to leave."

Fan Ruoruo looked confused, blinking her big eyes and asked, "What did you say? How did you spread it? Why can't I understand?"

Fan Xian smiled and picked up the untouched cup of hot tea, and said softly, "Minister Lin is using the wedding date as an excuse to convey his attitude to me - he has agreed to my marriage with Wan'er!"

Fan Ruoruo thought about it for a moment, then suddenly realized, "So that's what it means."

Fan Xian put down his teacup, shook his head and said, "But this level of kindness is not enough. I have to go to the Prime Minister's Residence to talk to him."

"Ah?" Fan Ruoruo asked in surprise, "What are we talking about?"

Fan Xian sighed: "Let's talk about family harmony in the future."

After saying that, Fan Xian immediately stood up and found Yamu in the room.

"Brother Mu, accompany me to the Prime Minister's Residence."

"..." Yamu glanced at him, "Now?"

Fan Xian nodded seriously and said, "Yes, and if possible, it's best not to let others find out."

…

…

Half an hour later, two dark shadows rushed onto the roof of the Prime Minister's Mansion.

Yamu squatted beside Fan Xian and pointed to a room next to a rockery in the courtyard and said, "Prime Minister Lin is there."

Fan Xian looked at Yamu in surprise: "How did you know?"

Yamu glanced at him and said calmly, "Aura."

Fan Xian nodded thoughtfully, and then complained: "Brother Mu, I'm not saying anything bad about you, but why are you talking in the same tone as Uncle Wu Zhu now? Have you been infected by him?"

Yamu twitched his lips and sighed, "Is it possible that I am a quiet person?"

"You? You're so quiet?" Fan Xian glanced at Yamu in surprise and shook his head, "I can't tell."

Yamu rolled his eyes, raised his hand to grab Fan Xian's collar, and said unhappily: "Stop talking nonsense and get down quickly!"

After saying that, Yamu raised his hand and threw it. Fan Xian immediately flew out with a low cry, adjusted his body shape in mid-air, and landed accurately outside the study.

After landing, Fan Xian steadied his body, looked up and glared at Yamu, gave him the middle finger, then straightened his clothes and strode out of the study.

At this time, Yuan Hongdao had already returned to the Prime Minister's Residence and was in the study explaining today's meeting with Lin Ruofu.

"...In my opinion, Mr. Fan is quite intelligent. I just mentioned it and he immediately understood what the Prime Minister meant."

Lin Ruofu nodded and said, "Fan Xian can write a quatrain like "Climbing the High Tower", so he is definitely not an ordinary person."

Yuan Hongdao hesitated and said, "It seems that it will be difficult for Master Fan to escape from political oppression with his status, and it will be very difficult for him to have a stable life in the future. If we entrust the eldest master and Miss Chen to him in the future, it doesn't seem to be very safe."

Lin Ruofu shook his head and said, "Even if his last name is not Fan, as long as he marries my daughter, he is doomed to be trapped."

Yuan Hongdao sighed softly, and then whispered, "What about the eldest princess?"

A cold light flashed in Lin Ruofu's eyes, and he said in a cold voice: "Although Li Yunrui is a crazy woman, she knows Your Majesty best."

"She asked Wu Bo'an to plan the assassination, which was a plan that killed three birds with one stone. By killing Fan Xian, she could regain the power of the inner treasury, and by persuading Gong'er, she could use this as a rope to tie our Xiangfu tightly to her."

"But she didn't expect that Fan Xian wasn't so easy to kill..."

Before he finished speaking, there was a sudden noise outside the study.

Lin Ruofu and Yuan Hongdao immediately became alert and shouted coldly: "Who is it?!"

There was silence outside the study for a moment, and then the door slowly opened, revealing Fan Xian's expressionless face.

"… is it you?"

Yuan Hongdao looked at Fan Xian in astonishment.

Fan Xian ignored him and just stared at Lin Ruofu, saying slowly: "So it's the eldest princess..."

Lin Ruofu frowned, turned his head to glance at Yuan Hongdao, and motioned him to leave.

Yuan Hongdao understood and bowed to Lin Ruofu, then bowed to Fan Xian before walking past him.

Fan Xian did not stop him, but just looked at Lin Ruofu and asked, "Why?"

Lin Ruofu waved his sleeves, sat behind the desk, glanced at Fan Xian and said, "Didn't you hear it?"

Fan Xian said calmly, "You said you could achieve three goals with one stone, but I only heard about two. What about the other one?"

Lin Ruofu shook his head and said, "This third place has nothing to do with you. It is the great cause of your majesty."

"Your Majesty has always been upset about your failure to complete the Northern Expedition. Now that Li Yunrui has ordered Cheng Jushu to kill you, it can be regarded as giving Your Majesty an excellent reason to start a war. Even if Your Majesty does not like her acting on her own, you must accept her kindness and will not punish her severely."

"So, just forget about it!"

After saying this, Lin Ruofu didn't care about Fan Xian's reaction. He waved his hand and said, "I won't ask how you got in. Since you're here, come and sit down. Let's have a good chat."

“…”

Fan Xian walked over with a complicated expression and sat opposite Lin Ruofu.

Lin Ruofu looked at him quietly for a while, and suddenly said something shocking: "What do you think about Gong'er wanting to kill you?"

Fan Xian was stunned for a moment, then calmly said, "After I came to the capital, I did a lot of ridiculous things to tarnish my reputation in order to break off the engagement. It is only natural that the Second Young Master does not want his sister to marry me. Besides... didn't you just say that the mastermind behind the assassination was the eldest princess?"

Lin Ruofu frowned and said, "I told you to forget about it."

Fan Xian smiled and said, "Things that have been memorized are not so easy to forget."

Lin Ruofu shook his head and said accusingly, "You are still too young... As I said just now, the princess's actions are very much in line with His Majesty's wishes. Even if you expose it, the princess will not be convicted. At most, His Majesty will scold her a few times."

"I asked you to forget about this, not to ask you to kneel down and beg for mercy, but to hide your fangs and wait for the right time."

Fan Xian's eyes moved slightly, and he couldn't help but ask, "Why is the Prime Minister so considerate of me?"

Lin Ruofu looked at him deeply, and suddenly said calmly: "In my life, I have only two sons and one daughter. My eldest son was ill when he was young. Although his body was cured by a famous doctor, his mind could not grow and always remained at the level of a three or four-year-old child."

"Although my daughter is mentally sound, she is born weak and suffers from tuberculosis. Her identity cannot be revealed to outsiders."

"As a father, I have not been able to see my little girl much since she was born."

"Among the three children, only the second child Gong'er is the future hope of the Lin family, but now, he and that bastard Wu Bo'an..."

Having said this, Lin Ruofu paused, a hint of coldness and sadness flashed in his eyes.

Then he asked softly, "Do you know Wu Bo'an?"

Fan Xian immediately replied, "Yes, and it's not just Wu Boan. I also know about the meteorite and the manor."

Lin Ruofu narrowed his eyes: "The Fan Mansion and the Supervisory Council are actually connected to this extent?"

Fan Xian smiled slightly and did not answer.

Lin Ruofu waved his hand: "Forget it. Anyway, Gong'er's chances of survival are slim now. For the sake of my children, I can only place my hopes on you, my future son-in-law..."

Fan Xian said thoughtfully, "So, you want to know my attitude towards this matter."

Lin Ruofu nodded: "That's right."

Fan Xian blinked and said, "What a coincidence. I also have something to do and want to see the Prime Minister's attitude."

Lin Ruofu raised his eyebrows: "You say."

Fan Xian stared into Lin Ruofu's eyes and said in an equally shocking tone, "Lin Gong is not dead yet. He is in my hands!"