Chapter 129: Prison Suffering is Inevitable

In the palace, the emperor stood in front of the hall, watching the snow falling, with a hint of helplessness in his eyes.

"Xu Rong, did I do something wrong?"

Xu Rong knelt down in fear after hearing this: "Your Majesty has devoted all his energy to Dongzhao, has implemented benevolent policies, and cares about the people. He is a wise ruler throughout history."

"Don't say these nice words, tell me the truth, and I will forgive you."

"Love between father and son, and love between husband and wife are common human emotions. Your Majesty, as the ruler of a country, should put state affairs first. It is not easy for you to do this."

The emperor withdrew his gaze, thoughtful.

Spring is coming soon, but the current situation is still not sunny!

"Is there any movement from Concubine Qi?"

"Your Majesty, the Imperial Concubine has come to pay her respects these past few days, but Your Majesty did not want to see her, so she knelt for an hour before leaving."

"Greetings?" The emperor looked disappointed. "She must know in her heart that whether she can be safe or not depends entirely on the choice of her and her son."

Eunuch Xu: “…”

The matter of the secret passage touched the emperor's bottom line. Coupled with the secret reports from the shadow guards about unusual movements in Jiangnan and the He family's secret obedience to Prince Chen, the emperor's pain in the heart must have deepened.

**

At the Ruan family villa, Ruan Xiaoyue was preparing to return to the Pei family, but she didn't expect that many soldiers suddenly came to her house.

Ruan Chenglin and Zheng Qiaohui had never seen such a battle and were stunned for a moment.

Ruan Chenglin came to his senses and stepped forward: "Excuse me, sir, why is this happening?"

The leading officer stepped forward and said: "Pei is suspected of treason, arrest all the people from Yigan."

Ruan Xiaoyue stumbled.

Zheng Qiaohui's legs went limp and she was at a loss for a moment.

Pei family is plotting rebellion?

How is that possible?

Ruan Chenglin had not expected this to happen: "My Lords, are you mistaken? Pei Chong is the commander of the city defense army, how could he possibly rebel?"

"Stop talking nonsense and take it away?"

At the Changting Pavilion outside Beijing, He An and Ruan Qinghuan came to see Ruan Qingzhou off. Ruan Qinghuan had tears in his eyes and felt sad. He warned him, "Qingzhou, the journey to Jiangnan is not easy. You must be careful and cautious after you start working."

"Don't worry, sister. I've made a note of it."

Ruan Qingzhou had long wanted to enter the officialdom. If he chose to go through the ups and downs of a career in officialdom, he would do his best to protect the peace in the area.

Xu Xi didn't like such a sad scene, so he went to the front and waited first.

Xu Zining said goodbye to the Ruan family one by one, and when she came in front of Zhou Yunzhi, she was hugged tightly.

Her son had just returned to Beijing not long ago, and now he was leaving again. Zhou Yunzhi was reluctant to let him go. She took out a jade bracelet from her sleeve and put it on her: "This is a gift from my mother when I got married. When you return to Jiangnan and go to the Zhou Mansion, the old lady will tell you the origin of this bracelet."

"But it's too expensive. I..."

"Well, in my heart, you are as precious as Qing Zhou and Qing Huan. How can these material possessions compare to you?"

Xu Zining's eyes were red: "Before leaving, I made up my mind not to cry, but..."

The children of the rivers and lakes are free and easy.

But the feelings we had during these days seemed to have taken root in my heart, and it was really hard to bear the moment we had to say goodbye.

"Let's go, let's go, don't waste time."

As the carriage moved further away, He An hugged Ruan Qing Huan and whispered, "Madam, don't worry. I have arranged everything. Qing Zhou will return to Jiangnan safely."

Zhou Yunzhi nodded.

"Master, Madam, it's bad. The second master and his family have been arrested." The servant came running over and brought this shocking news.

Almost everyone in the Ruan family turned their attention to He An.

He An: "The Pei family case is suspected of treason, and everyone related to the Pei family must be investigated. The reason why the Ruan family did not move is because Qing Huan was a first-rank imperial lady personally appointed by the emperor, and the first and second wives have already separated. Otherwise, I am afraid she will inevitably be imprisoned."

Ruan Chengfu's face turned pale: "Then your second uncle's family... can... can they still be saved?"

He An gave Ruan Qinghuan a soothing look: "Don't worry, as long as they didn't participate in the treason, they won't be implicated. But a few days of imprisonment is unavoidable."

The crime of treason will punish all nine generations of the family. Being able to save one's life is already the best outcome.

Ruan Chengfu didn't dare to ask for anything else.

Zhou Yunzhi had not expected that things would be so serious. Ever since the Ruan family's business grew, the old man had become a well-known figure in Beijing.

I haven't seen him so distraught in a long time.

**

Shortly after the Pei family incident, the emperor released Prince Chen from house arrest.

In the Crown Prince's Mansion, Ji Lingchuan sighed: "The Emperor has released Prince Chen from his confinement at this time. It seems that this time, just like last time, he still wants to suppress this matter."

He An didn't say anything.

The prince brewed tea quietly, concentrating fully.

Ji Lingchuan didn't respond, and crossed his legs: "I think I'm the only one who's upset, aren't you guys upset?"

Prince: "What's the point of worrying?"

"What if King Chen makes another move?"

He An frowned slightly when he heard this.

Ji Lingchuan's expression froze, as if he had suddenly realized something: "Could it be that the emperor has other intentions in releasing Prince Chen from his confinement?"

The prince sighed: "Father has given him two chances. This time, it depends on his choice."

No wonder, since the Emperor gave the order, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was not in a hurry to investigate the case, but handed the case over to the Ministry of Justice, waiting for Jiang Jie to report on the investigation every day.

"I am a brother to him after all, but how can a woman who is a crown prince hold the throne? This time, my father is testing the King of Chen, and he is also testing me."

Ji Lingchuan: “…”

He was born a military general and couldn't understand all these twists and turns.

The prince said: "According to the date, the Qingzhou has already arrived in Jiangnan, right? Is the journey smooth?"

"We encountered two assassination attempts along the way, but fortunately we had made some plans beforehand and escaped unscathed."

The prince shook his head.

He knew Prince Chen's character very well. His father wanted him to turn back to the right path, but after years of planning, how could he be willing to see his plan go to waste?

There was a knock on the door, and the servant handed over a gold-stamped invitation: "Your Highness, this is an invitation from Minister Jiang's residence."

Jiang Jie?

Ji Lingchuan was curious. The situation in the court was uncertain right now. Would he want to get married at this time?

But looking at the prince's meaningful smile, it was probably true, and he thought to himself that this guy was such a coward.

After reading it, the prince threw the invitation to He'an.

He An didn't look at it.

Although Ji Lingchuan knew that Jiang Jie was their friend rather than their enemy, he felt that the move of marrying into the Qi family was useless: "Wouldn't he be courting disaster by marrying the daughter of a criminal?"

"not necessarily."

The prince only said two words and didn't explain clearly. Ji Lingchuan was very worried.

He An said: "Since the emperor wants Lord Qi to take the blame for the incident in Lucheng, he must give him some benefits. The only way to make Lord Qi willing to take the blame is to protect the heirs of the Qi family."

The Crown Prince: "Jiang Jie's actions have fulfilled the Emperor's wishes. On the one hand, he has accused the Emperor of protecting the daughter of a guilty minister, and on the other hand, he has solved the corruption case. He has won the Emperor's heart."

Ji Lingchuan: “…”

These civil officials have a lot of twists and turns in their minds, which is really hard to understand and tiring.

The prince was worried: "It seems that the matter of Qizhou's grain shortage needs to be investigated thoroughly to avoid any further complications."