When Concubine Hui died, many people secretly breathed a sigh of relief. At this point, there was no evidence, and it was impossible to judge a deceased person.

Emperor Zhaowu "graciously allowed" Concubine Hui to be buried in the imperial mausoleum, executed two prison guards on duty, demoted Zhu Lanting and several imperial guards, fined Meng Duo's salary, and the assassin was sentenced to death according to the law. This sensational assassination case in the harem ended in such a whimper.

All the officials were glad that the crown prince had retained his throne for the time being, and no one cared that a fourteen-year-old boy had lost his mother, with whom he depended on for everything.

Yan Sikong was somewhat reluctant to visit Chen Yi at this time. He knew that he would see his past self in Chen Yi's face, and he would feel guilty because of empathy, but he did not need such a useless emotion as guilt.

But he still had to go. Chen Yi no longer had a mother, and this was the best time to deepen Chen Yi's trust and dependence on him.

When he arrived at the East Palace, Yan Sikong could already see from a distance the eunuchs and female officials kneeling on the ground and the mess in the room.

Yan Sikong walked over, and Chen Yi's personal eunuch Manfu was like seeing a savior. He wiped his tears and looked at him hesitantly.

Yan Sikong waved his hand, signaling them all to go down, and then quietly walked in.

Broken flower pots, ornaments, tables, chairs, and cloth were scattered everywhere on the ground. The entire palace looked as if it had been looted, leaving almost no place to step.

Yan Sikong followed the mess and walked into the inner bedroom, only to see a young man in his underwear and disheveled hair curled up in a corner, not moving at all. When he approached, he let out a hoarse and fierce roar: "Get out!"

Yan Sikong paused and called softly, "Your Highness, it's me."

Chen Yu slowly raised his face. From beneath his messy hair, one could vaguely see that his eyes were terribly swollen. His dark pupils were surrounded by scarlet blood, like two bottomless pits that could swallow everything. They stared at Yan Sikong intently, but didn't seem to be looking at anyone or anything.

Yan Sikong was stunned. He saw the deep sorrow and hatred in Chen Yi's eyes. This young man who always kept the dignity of a prince was like a desperate little beast. If the enemy was right in front of him, he would rush up and bite without caring about anything.

Yan Sikong's heart was beating fast. Was he like this back then?

Chen Yu bit her lips, which were bleeding from her own biting, and whispered, "Sir... you are well-informed. Tell me why my mother died. She did nothing wrong... anything. Why did she die?"

Yan Sikong took a deep breath and said slowly: "Because Your Highness is not the emperor yet."

Chen Xi glared at Yan Sikong fiercely.

Yan Sikong stood there, his face full of sadness.

Chen Yu froze for a moment before he said absentmindedly, "You're right, you're right."

Yan Sikong walked over slowly, knelt carefully in front of Chen Yu, and said softly: "Your Highness, the most important thing now is to take care of your body."

Chen Yu blinked and murmured, "Call me Yu'er."

“…”

"Call."

"Mian'er."

Chen Yu stared at Yan Sikong blankly for a while, then suddenly threw herself into his arms.

Yan Sikong also took the opportunity to hug him.

Chen Yu buried his face in Yan Sikong's chest and burst into tears.

Yan Sikong embraced the frail body, stroked his hair, sighed silently, and his eyes became more and more unfathomable.

Chen Yi cried until his voice became hoarse and he was completely powerless. Yan Sikong carried him to the couch and covered him with a quilt. Chen Yi still held his hand tightly.

Yan Sikong advised: "Yin'er, eat something."

Chen Yi shook his head.

Yan Sikong held his hand and looked at him without blinking: "If you hurt your body, how can you avenge the queen?"

Hearing the word "revenge", Chen Yu's hollow, gray eyes finally brightened up, and he revealed his undisguised hatred: "Revenge, yes, I must avenge my mother!"

Yan Sikong hurriedly told Manfu to bring the meal. The meal was still hot, so Manfu brought it over quickly. Yan Sikong helped Chen Yu up, sat at the head of the bed, and fed him mouthful by mouthful.

After taking two bites, Chen Yu said sadly, "My mother was a peaceful person, but she was forced to death by them. When I become the emperor one day, I will make sure that those who murdered her die miserably!"

Yan Sikong whispered, "The revenge for the murder of my mother must be taken, but before the time is right, you must not show it. My dear, you haven't even secured your position as the crown prince, and your life is also hanging by a thread."

Chen Yu clenched his fist unwillingly: "I know, I will endure it."

Yan Sikong took the opportunity to feed him another mouthful, and said solemnly: "The queen's spirit in heaven will surely bless you to ascend the throne and rule the world."

Chen Yu held back her tears and looked deeply at Yan Sikong: "Sir, you are the only person in the world who will call me Yu'er. Will you always stay by my side?"

"I will." Yan Sikong said firmly.

Chen Yu paused and said, "You are nice to me, is it just because I am the prince?"

Yan Sikong smiled slightly and said, "If you were not the crown prince, I would also admire your talent and virtue and become your close friend. At that time, we would just talk about love, poetry and wine, and we would be very happy."

Chen Yu's eyes flickered, and she held Yan Sikong's hand even tighter, pressing it against her heart, and whispered, "Sir, you must stay with me forever."

——

After Yan Sikong left the East Palace that day, he felt inexplicably uneasy.

This turmoil seemed to have passed, but people in the government and the country all sensed that a bloody storm was waiting ahead.

Concubine Wen killed the Crown Prince's mother. If the Crown Prince ascends the throne smoothly, he will definitely not spare her. She certainly will not sit idly by and wait for death. This is not only a fight for succession, but also a fight for life and death. Whoever wins the throne will survive to the end.

Wen Youchi colluded with Xie Zhongren and forced Concubine Hui to death. He almost shook Chen Yu's position as the crown prince. Most importantly, all the ministers saw the partiality of Emperor Zhaowu. If it weren't for the Queen Mother, the crown prince might have been deposed. But who dared to rely on a dying old lady? After this, there must be some wavering people who leaned towards the second prince's faction, and the crown prince's situation would only become more and more difficult.

It has been less than three years since the Second Prince left the capital to be established as a fief, and Concubine Wen is bound to make trouble again. If the Crown Prince is to be saved, the power of the Second Prince's faction must be weakened. Therefore, this imperial inspection plan is of vital importance.

Thinking of this, Yan Sikong suddenly lifted the curtain of the carriage. From here he could just see the Prince Jingyuan's Palace in the distance. Even if he just glanced at the flying eaves and arches from a distance, he could feel a little relieved.

Now they just hope Feng Ye can bring him some evidence against Wen Youchi. In this battle, if they can't take the opportunity to defeat several of Xie Zhongren's generals and kill a group of shrimp soldiers, they will never have such an opportunity again.

The so-called Jingcha Daji refers to the assessment of officials by the imperial court led by the Ministry of Personnel, which is held every six years. The assessment of officials in Beijing is called Jingcha, and the assessment of local officials is called Daji, collectively known as Jingcha Daji.

Among them, officials of the third rank and below are examined by the Ministry of Personnel and supervised by the Censorate. For officials of the second rank and above, the examination method is very different. In addition to the Ministry of Personnel giving evaluation opinions on political performance, they are also required to state their own gains and losses in political affairs, which are then reviewed by the Cabinet and ultimately decided by the emperor.

For officials of the third rank and below, the basic means of assessment is "assessment at all levels", which is a level-by-level assessment where superiors assess subordinates, mainly evaluating their political performance and integrity, and ultimately reviewed by the Ministry of Personnel.

Officials of the second rank and above are mostly inspectors, governors-general, cabinet ministers, and chancellors, and they no longer have superiors. The means of assessment are "listing of questions" and "introduction". The listing of questions is set by the Ministry of Personnel, and officials of the second rank and above are required to elaborate on their own political achievements and related major state affairs, and state their merits and demerits. Every word they say must be recorded. Then, the Ministry of Personnel will introduce the results of their assessment of the officials and the self-statement to the cabinet and the emperor. The cabinet will draft the final assessment opinion of the official for the emperor's reference, and the emperor will make the final imperial decree.

In addition to these three most important assessment criteria, the official's ability, diligence, reputation, and even physical condition are also within the scope of assessment.

The results of the assessment will directly determine promotions and appointments. Usually, if they are not promoted, they will be dismissed. Every time the imperial examination is held, the officials are trembling with fear. At the same time, it also breeds countless cases of abuse of power for personal gain, corruption and bribery. In the last imperial examination, Wang Shengsheng used the assessment to demote Cai Zhongfan, who was resentful. Later, Yan Sikong used him to set up a new history plan.

This time's imperial inspection plan is bound to cause a stir as it involves last year's rebellion and the reduction of feudal lords, this year's assassination, and the inevitable future succession dispute. Yan Sikong doesn't even know if he can protect himself in this storm, and his goal is to eliminate enemies that are countless times larger than him.

Yan Sikong did not lower the curtain until Prince Jingyuan's Palace disappeared from his sight.

He wanted to see Feng Ye very much, right now. His clothes were still stained with Chen Yi's tears, and he could still feel the boy's pain and trembling in his arms. He couldn't help but think of himself eleven years ago. At that time, if someone hugged him and gave him a word of comfort, he would remember it for the rest of his life. He wished Feng Ye was by his side, no matter in the past, present, or future.

And everything he did was to push Feng Ye further and further away.