Chapter 99 You're not leaving, right? I'm leaving

Not long after the prince arrived at the hall and sat down, someone reported that there was a fight in the garden. Upon hearing this, the adults had different expressions and felt a little uneasy.

Qi Yuanchang, in particular, has now become the biggest suspect in the Lucheng disaster relief corruption case and can't stand any disturbance.

Recently, his daughter has been unhappy with him because of her engagement, but he must not be the one causing trouble.

The gentlemen looked at each other in bewilderment. Most of the people in the garden were officials' wives, some noble ladies and young masters. How could such an incredible thing as fighting each other happen?

People of their status attach great importance to etiquette and education, and would never lose their composure on such an important occasion.

The prince took in everyone's expressions, frowned and asked, "Do you know who is fighting?"

Ji Lingchuan didn't want to listen to the questions, so he suggested, "Your Highness, how about we go over and take a look?"

Among the people in the room, only Ji Lingchuan was eager to give it a try. After all, how much fun would be lost if he didn't watch the excitement?

The servants of the Prince's Mansion whispered a few words in the Prince's ear, but the Prince did not tell the adults directly the result. He stood up and said, "In this case, let's go to the garden and see what's going on."

When everyone went out, they bumped into Jiang Jie who had just arrived. Jiang Jie was wearing an official uniform and it was obvious that he came in a hurry.

He walked quickly to the crown prince and said, "I am sorry for being late. Please forgive me, Your Highness."

"Stand up. I heard that the Dali Temple has been busy with many cases recently. Lord Jiang should focus on government affairs. But you came at the right time. Someone has made a noise in the garden. Lord Jiang, please judge who is right and who is wrong?"

"Your Highness, please stop teasing me. Most of the guests in the palace today are officials' families. There is no place for me to be of any use to them."

"Hey? That's not right. Maybe it can be useful."

**

A group of officials came over and the onlookers consciously moved aside. The two officials' wives were still kneeling. Seeing that the Crown Princess looked unhappy, all the officials took a deep breath.

The Crown Prince is famous for his doting on the Crown Princess. If any other lady disrupts this garden banquet, it would be tantamount to offending the Crown Princess, and offending the Crown Princess is the same as offending the Crown Prince.

The Crown Princess stood up and saluted: "I have met His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

The prince held the man and asked: "What happened?"

"I also heard something confusing. Madam Chen said that Madam Li's husband wanted to put the blame on Lord Chen, but Madam Li did not admit it. Madam Chen also said that Lord Li was a dog beside the Minister..."

Upon hearing this, Lord Chen felt a chill on his back and his face turned pale. Without saying anything, he stepped forward and slapped Madam Chen to the ground: "You wicked woman, how dare you say such nonsense and slander the officials of the court? Don't you want to die?"

"No, I was just extremely angry for a moment and said that Madam Li was like a mad dog. I would never dare to say that about the officials in the court... Sir... ah..." Before she could finish, Sir Li slapped her again.

The prince's face turned cold: "Mrs. Chen, do you mean that the Crown Princess is lying?"

Blood oozed from the corners of Mrs. Chen's lips and her head was dizzy. In such a hurry, her brain obviously couldn't keep up with her mouth, and she could only kowtow and admit her mistakes continuously.

Lord Chen wanted to continue beating him, but the Crown Princess spoke up: "Lord Chen and Lord Li are both in the Ministry of Revenue. Even if you may not be close friends on weekdays, you should still interact with each other. Why are you so impulsive today and fight without considering the occasion and etiquette?"

Mrs. Chen was a little dazed after being beaten and just kept shaking her head.

The Crown Princess looked at Madam Li, who explained, "What the Crown Princess said is true. Madam Chen and I had a good relationship before and we often visited each other. There was no rift between us at first. I don't know why Madam Chen suddenly came over angrily to question me, and that's why..."

Ruan Qinghuan's eyes swept across everyone and finally stopped on the face of another lady from the Ministry of Revenue. If she remembered correctly, this person should be the wife of the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.

At this moment, everyone was listening carefully to the development of the situation, but she had wandering eyes and an uncertain expression, and it was clear that she was a little absent-minded.

Seeing this, Ruan Qinghuan asked again, "Madam Chen, if you can't come up with an explanation today, you will be punished for slandering officials in the court."

Mrs. Li fixed her eyes, as if trying to concentrate. After a moment, she suddenly turned her head and looked at the crowd.

As she looked at the crowd, Ruan Qinghuan discovered that the wife of the Right Vice Minister had unconsciously moved behind the tall adults.

Mrs. Chen was kneeling, so she couldn't be seen. Ruan Qinghuan continued to ask, "Did Mrs. Chen think of anything?"

"Yes, it was Madam Tang who told me that Master Li secretly pushed the blame onto my master. I was furious and anxious when I heard that, so I lost my composure. I wanted to confront Madam Li, but she refused to admit it... I... Oh, what should I do?"

As she was talking, Mrs. Chen burst into tears. Mrs. Li was also at a loss and could only cry.

Everyone in the Ministry of Revenue has been feeling insecure recently, and the officials there are even more cautious, so it's inevitable that they lose their composure when they are stimulated under such pressure.

Mrs. Tang, who was in the crowd, saw that she couldn't hide away, so she had to step forward. However, she refused to admit what Mrs. Chen said, and said innocently, "Crown Prince and Crown Princess, this matter has nothing to do with me."

Lord Tang is the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. The reason why he was not implicated in this disaster relief matter was that he was dealing with a drought elsewhere at the time and could have stayed out of it, but he did not expect to be involved in today's incident.

The Crown Princess was also annoyed and didn't want to ask any more questions: "Everyone has their own version of the story, but I am not good at identifying the truth. Why not leave it to Jingzhao Prefecture?"

As soon as these words came out, everyone's faces turned pale. It was a shameful thing for the official's wife to enter the government office. Several officials knelt down one after another and said, "Your servants are brave and beg the Crown Princess to show some leniency. We will definitely ask the matter thoroughly and give the Crown Princess a satisfactory answer."

The Crown Princess: "This reply is not for me, but for all officials in the court. If anyone can slander and frame me at will, wouldn't the Ministry of Justice be overwhelmed?"

Seeing that the matter had nothing to do with him, Qi Yuanchang in the crowd breathed a sigh of relief, and then thought about his own affairs. He looked around, trying to find his daughter to come and say hello to Lord Jiang, but he couldn't find her after looking around, and became a little angry.

Such a good opportunity, I had to give up.

The prince heard this and said, "Forget it. Fortunately, today is just a garden party. If something like this happened in a formal occasion, it would be a disaster. But the whole story must be explained."

He paused and said, "Master Jiang is good at judging cases, so I'll leave this matter to Master Jiang."

Jiang Jie did not refuse: "Yes, Your Highness."

Several people involved were taken away, and the noble ladies in the garden also stepped aside tactfully, as if nothing had happened.

Before He'an and the prince left, he winked at Ruan Qinghuan. She knew that he was worried that she was not used to such occasions, so he signaled that she could go first.

The Crown Princess also saw this scene and immediately grabbed her hand: "Since you are here today, you can't leave early."

Chu Li agreed and suggested, "That's right, let's go to the backyard and play pot tossing later."

Ruan Qinghuan and the Crown Princess: "..."

The Crown Princess glanced at her and signaled her to turn around. Chu Li turned around in a daze, only to see Ji Lingchuan standing behind her with a flattering smile on his face. His face immediately turned cold: "Why don't you leave?"

"Your Highness and He'an will be there to investigate the case. I'll stay with you guys."

"No, you better go."

"No, look at how beautiful this lotus is. Do you want one? I'll pick one for you."

The Crown Princess on the side shook her head helplessly, while Ruan Qinghuan smiled. It was she who showed Chu Li the way at the last banquet at the Crown Prince's Mansion, which allowed her to capture Ji Lingchuan.

It hasn't been long since then, and the identities of the two people have been switched.

The two of them argued back and forth for a long time, and then Chu Li said angrily: "You're not leaving, right? I'm leaving." Then he really turned around and left.

"Okay, okay, let's go together. I got a top-quality warhorse a few days ago, so I'll take you to try it out."

"Warhorse? Really?" Chu Li rolled his eyes doubtfully: "Okay, I just want to see the horse."

The Crown Princess and Ruan Qinghuan laughed at this. The Crown Princess shook her head and said, "They have been enemies since they were young. It just so happens that they like similar things, such as throwing pots and war horses?"

Ruan Qinghuan suppressed her laughter: "That's exactly what the Crown Princess said."