The next day, the Emperor scolded the Grand Canal Governor and other officials from the Ministry of Revenue and the warehouses, publicly dismissing two of them. The second-in-command of the Grand Canal was not only dismissed but also imprisoned, pending verification of all his crimes.
In the capital, the emperor began to rectify the bureaucracy, dismissing over a dozen officials. Four were beheaded, and their families exiled. The rest were dismissed from office, and their property confiscated. For a time, the officialdom fell silent, as if transported back to the time two years prior when Empress Jing'an had her accident.
As for the grain transport, General Gan led nearly 50,000 troops and besieged the Cao Gang in Yangzhou. After ten days of siege, the leader of the Cao Gang was captured by his men. From then on, the Cao Gang was taken over by the Cao Transport General and became part of his office.
After the emperor's wrath for his beloved, rumors spread that the emperor had also been angry for his beloved daughter, raising Princess Jinyi's status among the common people several notches higher. Families that had previously been reluctant about her becoming a consort to a princess began to try to get their sons to become consorts to Princess Jinyi.
When Xu Lin, who was far away in Quanzhou, heard about the news in the capital and the grain transport, he couldn't help but write a letter of concern and sent it to the capital.
After Princess Jinyi returned, Empress Jing'an summoned Xu Wen to the palace the next day to speak. Xu Wen, who had just returned to Beijing three days ago, was about to enter the palace when she received a summons from Empress Jing'an and entered the palace to meet her early in the morning.
When talking to Xu Wen, Queen Jing'an did not beat around the bush. After pulling Xu Wen to sit down, she asked directly about Xu Lin's situation.
Xu Wen was also a little surprised when asked. After a moment's reaction, she thought someone had taken a fancy to Xu Lin and wanted Empress Jing'an to act as a matchmaker, so she told him everything. After she finished, she asked Empress Jing'an, "Your Majesty, whose daughter is she?"
Knowing that Xu Lin was a chaste man, with no concubines or maids in the house, Empress Jing'an nodded in satisfaction. Then, suddenly remembering some modern circumstances, she immediately asked, "Does this second young master have any close friends? What do the servants look like?"
Xu Wen really didn't know about this. The two siblings hadn't known each other for long, and she hadn't heard that A-di had any close friends. A servant? Thinking of Shuisheng, the burly, honest-looking man who followed Xu Lin, Xu Wen replied, "I guess he doesn't have any particularly close friends. The servant looks like a peasant."
Empress Jing'an's thoughts wandered to other places. After a moment's wandering, she asked, "Is this peasant married?"
Seeing Xu Wen nod, Empress Jing'an breathed a sigh of relief and said embarrassedly, "I'm not afraid of you laughing at me, but it might be a little early to say this now. But the Second Young Master is already old, and if I don't tell you this in advance, I'm afraid you might be unaware and do something wrong." After a pause, Empress Jing'an said stubbornly, "Why don't you write a letter and ask if the Second Young Master has a sweetheart? If so, have him tell his elders as soon as possible."
Hearing this, Xu Wen was furious, thinking that Princess Jinyi had discovered something Xu Lin had done in Quanzhou. Shamefully, she bowed and apologized, "Please calm down, Your Majesty. This boy isn't a bad person by nature, he just can't settle down. I will question him thoroughly, so please rest assured."
Seeing Xu Wen's misunderstanding, Empress Jing'an was confused. She couldn't say, "My daughter seems to like your brother. How will we discuss generations in the future?" Alas, this matter was becoming increasingly confusing. Empress Jing'an sighed and said, "It's not that the Second Young Master made a mistake, but he is already of marriageable age. It's good to make plans early, but we also have to consider his feelings."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
